Guidestar Combatants

The Voices, The Shadows and The Decisions

Tracia grits her teeth as she steps into her head, a chaotic landscape filled with the voices of her loved ones. Their whispers are like daggers, cutting into her heart and mind. She knows they want what's best for her, but their conflicting opinions only add to her confusion.

In the shadows, she sees the faces of her enemies, their twisted forms mocking her. They represent her fears and doubts, reminding her of her past failures and mistakes. Tracia knows she must fight through these dark illusions to find the truth and make a decision, but it's easier said than done.

As she struggles to push past the voices and shadows, she can feel her own beliefs and morals being tested. She always prided herself on being a logical and rational person, but now she's being forced to consider options that go against everything she stands for. It's a battle between her heart and her mind, and she's not sure which one will win.

Tracia's hand trembles as she reaches out to make a choice, her heart torn between the options before her. She knows she has to make a decision, but what if it's the wrong one? What if she ends up regretting it for the rest of her life?

In a moment of weakness, Tracia makes a choice that goes against everything she believes in. She can feel the weight of her decision crushing her, but there's no turning back now. As she watches the consequences of her actions unfold, she can't help but wonder if she's made a terrible mistake.

Tears stream down Tracia's face as she realizes the full extent of her failure. She knows she should have listened to her instincts, but she let the voices and shadows cloud her judgment. Now, she's left with the consequences of her actions, and the guilt and regret will haunt her forever. Should I just kill myself? No, I can't do that. But what if I can't handle this pain anymore? What if I'm not strong enough? I was never good enough. Not for my family, not for my friends, not for this world. I was never enough. And now, even my growing children and my year-old child no longer matter to me. How did I become so selfish? How did I become so consumed by my own pain that I forgot about them? I have no one to help me guide them, to comfort me. I am truly alone.

But then there's Circe. She's always been there for me, but I never open up to her. I only talk about the good things, never the pain. I don't want her to see me as weak. But I am weak. I'm drowning in this darkness and I can't seem to find my way out.

The whispers and the grim hands, they still haunt me. They remind me of my failures, my mistakes. They tell me I'm not worthy of love or happiness. And part of me believes them. Part of me believes that I am no longer deserving of a life worth living.

But as I stand on the edge, ready to jump and end it all, there's a small voice inside of me that begs me to stop. It tells me that there's still hope, there's still a chance for things to get better. But I'm tired. I'm tired of fighting, of pretending that everything is okay when it's not.

And then I make the choice. The choice I never thought I would make. The choice that goes against everything I believed in. I choose to end my life. I choose to give up. I choose to let the darkness consume me.

As I let myself fall, my mind is filled with regret. Regret for not being stronger, for not seeking help, for not holding on a little longer. But it's too late now. As my body hits the ground, I feel my soul escaping my body, finally free from the pain and the struggle.

But then I'm jolted back to reality. I'm back on the edge, back in that moment before I made my choice. And I realize that it was all just a dream. A nightmare that felt too real. My friends, Cord and Cullen, are staring at me with concern in their eyes. They don't understand. They can't possibly understand what I'm going through.

"Aronik, you feel bad about what happened to Cabe and Tracia?" Cord asks, breaking the silence. And I do. I feel guilty for not being there for them, for not being able to save them. But mostly, I feel guilty for wanting to give up when they didn't have a choice.

I try to push the thoughts away, to pretend that I'm okay. But deep down, I know that I'm not. I know that I'm still struggling, still fighting my inner demons. And I know that one day, I might not be strong enough to fight them off. But for now, I'll keep pretending. I'll keep pretending that I'm okay. Because I don't want to burden anyone else with my pain.

As she let herself fall forward, her mind and heart were in turmoil. She knew that she was about to make a decision that would go against everything she believed in - a decision that would haunt her forever. Yet, she couldn't stop herself. As she uttered the words, "may beauty rectify and spread to the earth as I have..." she could feel the weight of her own hypocrisy. She was supposed to be a champion of justice and yet here she was, willingly giving in to the very thing she fought against.

But before she could fully process her conflicting emotions, she hit the ground with a thud. In that split second, she felt her soul escaping her body - a physical manifestation of the guilt and regret that consumed her. She knew deep down that this was a mistake, a mistake that would have dire consequences. But it was too late to turn back now.

As she lay on the ground, the impact of her fall both physical and emotional, she couldn't help but wonder how far she had strayed from her true self. She had always prided herself on being a strong and principled person, but now she was just a shell of who she used to be. She had failed herself and she knew that there was no going back from this moment.

Aronik just looked at Cord and Cullen as if they were crazy. Even though Cord and Cullen looked back at him in the same way, a part of Aronik couldn't help but wonder if they were right. They wanted him to go against everything he had been taught, everything he had believed in since he was a child. But could he really do it?

As Cord finally broke the silence and asked Aronik if he felt bad about what happened to Cabe and Tracia, a small voice inside of him whispered that he did. He couldn't deny the guilt that consumed him every time he thought about their deaths. But another part of him, the part that had been trained to be a soldier, told him that it was necessary for the greater good. And that was what he had to keep believing.

But then a voice from behind them shattered his inner conflict. "Aronik, you feel bad about what happened to Cabe and Tracia?" Cord's words were interrupted by Ozzy's mocking tone. "Of course he does because he is a pussy." Aronik's fist clenched and he turned to face Ozzy, his former friend turned enemy.

Ozzy's words hit him hard, stirring up a deeper inner conflict. A part of Aronik wanted to prove him wrong, to show that he was not weak. But another part of him couldn't deny the truth in Ozzy's words. He had hesitated, and that hesitation had cost the lives of two of his comrades.

As Ozzy continued to speak, revealing the death of President Glama and the truth behind the Russian attack, Aronik's mind was in turmoil. He couldn't believe that the one person he had trusted had betrayed them all. And yet, a small part of him couldn't help but feel a sense of relief that the war was over.

But as Ozzy stood and pulled out a gun, Aronik's inner conflict reached its peak. He knew what Ozzy was about to do, and a part of him wanted to stop him. But another part of him, a darker, more vengeful part, wanted to see Aronik pay for his betrayal.

As the gun went off and Aronik fell to the ground, Cord's mind was a jumble of conflicting emotions. He couldn't believe that Ozzy had just killed one of their own, and yet a small part of him couldn't deny that a part of him had wanted the same thing.

But as Ozzy turned towards the man door that Jai and Aronik had once walked through, Cord's inner conflict continued to rage. He knew what he had to do, what they all had to do. But a part of him couldn't shake off the guilt and regret that plagued him.

As they reached the top of the Shield and Jai let go of Ozzy, Cord couldn't help but feel a sense of satisfaction as he watched his former friend fall. But as Jai spontaneously combusted into feathers, Cord's inner conflict returned once again. Was this really the right thing to do? Was it worth sacrificing one of their own?

As the shield opened and the President's soldiers rushed in, Cord's mind was a mess. He couldn't believe that they had all lost so much, and yet a part of him couldn't help but feel grateful that it was finally over.

But as the soldiers tied their hands together and led them away, Cord's inner conflict reached its peak. He wanted to fight, to resist, to make a stand. But another part of him was tired, exhausted from the constant battle. And as they were taken to the PUMA camps, Cord couldn't help but feel like they had all lost something more than just the war. They had lost a part of themselves, and it was a loss that would haunt them for the rest of their lives.