It is said that within the bounds of the Heavensfall crater, The Shards reflect the truth of whoever peers at their reflective surface. Hidden truths, ignored truths, or simply truths unknown.
When standing before a Shard of Truth, one is forced to reflect on themselves, their doubts, guilts, perceived flaws, and more. Made to honestly evaluate themselves. A visitor of The Shards can never hide from a reflected truth for it will haunt them like a devil in the heart for all their days until they overcome it, or die.
As Lucian walked through the large field of dirt within the incredibly wide crater, he felt as if every hovering shard of broken glass was calling out to him, as if they all had something important to say, something he needed to know.
Not every shard reflected ones character. Many truths about a person could be reflected, including oversights, flaws in cultivation, reasons for failure, and more. It was for this that most dared risk the shards, though Lucian could see none within the crater now.
Turning to his right, he locked eyes with a reflection of himself so clear he might think himself the reflection… if he were hit in the head.
As he watched that reflection, it ceased to be that, the other Lucian within moving in ways he did not. He saw himself readying for battle, blood emerging from the pale skin all across his body to form the crimson shell, while a large, clawed gauntlet formed on his right arm.
Curiously, the other Lucian's head was not covered by the shell, leaving his impassive face and cold, empty blue eyes standing in stark contrast to the red.
He felt a powerful aura rolling off the other Lucian, something beyond his current means, and knew instinctively why. This Lucian was his desired self. One part of it at least. This was a Lucian of what he hoped to be the near future, who had used his Bloodbond and Boundless Condensation to their truest potential, allowing his cultivation to skyrocket with the theft of life.
Slowly, the image in the mirror-like shard zoomed out, moving away from the other Lucian to reveal the mountain he stood on, bit by bit. It was truly incredible, no matter how much the image moved back, Lucian could still see every strand of grass, and smell the scent of every flower on that beautiful mountain.
He was no longer aware of his surroundings in the Heavensfall crater, having been absorbed by the demonstration of the shard. Lucian's slight, eager smile grew strained as a distant scent caught his nose.
'What is that? I know that scent.'
As he thought on it, the inability to recall its origins frustrated him, the sky in the reflected world darkened like night as the air grew still and stale.
'What on earth is that smell?'
The scent grew increasingly overpowering as the soft fragrance of flowers vanished.
'Death.'
It was not his thought that answered. It was the other Lucian, locking cold, unfeeling eyes with him as the mountain beneath him grew dark, like a silhouette. The trees wilted and withered away, practically melting as the sky took on sunset tones and the mountain was revealed once more.
Where there had been flowers and grass, there lay blood and flesh. Where soil had nourished trees, now thousands of corpses supported lances of blood and crimson swords.
The smell assaulted him more powerful than ever before, and Lucian knew the Truth of this shard like he knew his own name.
The path of slaughter.
He had dreamed of the first image, the all powerful Lucian, standing undefeated atop the tallest peak, while ignoring what he knew to be taken for granted. The bodies that built his dream.
'How many?'
The thoughts of other Lucian echoed, or were they his own?
'How many have you killed already? Just to train in the sword, to learn to fight. How many more?'
Again, the reflection featured only the other Lucian, his calm, dead eyes uncaring for the gore that littered his body, or the entrails and fecal matter that dirtied his boots.
Lucian was shown the people he had killed, and was amazed at his lack of recollection. The vast majority of the faces were unrecognizable to him. He had killed these people?
Within his own mind now, the cold blue eyes of the other Lucian remained waiting impassively, yet somehow probing and inquiring, like they wanted an answer.
He did not know how many he had killed.
He did not know how many more.
'Is it worth it?'
This time, he could not distinguish the voice of the other Lucian from his own.
The world within the shard changed once more, reflecting images of nameless, faceless people, people he had killed. The people changed in face and body until they reflected those he cared about, Tess, Theo, Tyr, Delia, Helga, even Melia, Diores and a few other helpers and instructors he was surprised at his level of care for.
He saw them captured by the enemy, taken to a large property, and then slaughtered by children as they were trained. Others still were killed by demonic cultivators, like those of legends, who ate their flesh to seize their power.
Every image was like a stab at his heart as those cold blue eyes grew larger and more dominant in the back of his mind.
'Is it worth it?'
**
As Lucian remained locked before the first Shard of Truth, enduring the prodding and probing of his self, the rest of the world moved on.
Within the imperial capital of the Toubia Empire, Alram Toubia coughed a mouthful of rich blood in which white energies shifted.
Before him, the much younger Duke Joseph Werich flipped his kukri in the air casually.
"Guardian! What is the meaning of this!" Alram roared at nothing with his deep and gruff voice, watching as the white energy, almost fog like in appearance, expanded within his expelled blood, devouring the red until all that remained was a purely white, opaque liquid.
"You still don't understand?" Duke Werich asked with a hint of annoyance.
"You have been forsaken Alram. You are unfit and unneeded."
"Guardian!" The Emperor roared louder. "Does this child speak for you?!"
Duke Werich, a 90 year old man despite his middle aged appearance, opened his mouth to speak when he was silenced by the sudden presence of a third man within the hall.
He had not seen how the man appeared where he stood, he was simply there.
"Do not resort to petty name calling, Alram. It is beneath you."
The Emperor's gaze lost a hint of its ferocity, replaced with resignation as he spoke slowly.
"So you truly have forsaken the empire."
"Not the empire, Alram. It is just you." The man's rich voice echoed with a gentle, sincere tone that seemed unfitting to the cruel truth of his words.
He was a man of muscular stature, roughly 6'2" with brown skin and a bald head. His eyebrows were blonde, while his eyes were a bright gold with white pupils. His expression was mostly impassive, though a hint of apology could be seen in his eyes.
"Lay down your sword Alram. Your time of rule has ended, but you need not die for it. I would see you serve me still, and when this is all over, I will remake you, as I will Joseph."
Duke Werich's gaze was a mix of displeasure and fascinated anticipation. He had little care for the Imperial Throne and the lifetime of headaches it would bring. What he sought was this, to be remade by the Great Guardian and allowed entry to heaven. It was only the thought of Alram Toubia, who was now destined to be an enemy, receiving the same treatment that made him frown.
With a deep breath, Alram sighed before speaking.
"No, Guardian. I don't think I can do that after all."
He met golden eyed gaze of the guardian, and his face locked in determination.
Joseph smiled in relief, while the guardian shook his head in disappointment.
"So be it."
With a lift of his hand, the guardian willed his gift, the blood of angels, within Alram to refuse its host, and immediately the emperor felt that purifying presence run rampant in his body, unmaking him from the inside.
"Goodbye, Alram Toubia. I am truly sorry you could not fulfill our pact."
Joseph Wurich walked towards Emperor Alram once more, the white energy held in his own blood gifting him with incredible strength as the golden flecks in his green eyes shone brightly.
**
Within the Heavensfall Crater, weeks after Lucian encountered the first Shard of Truth, he finally felt his shoulders relaxed. He had not looked at the shard again after the first day, but the images had remained rooted in his mind, together with those cold blue eyes that watched him.
He had spend day after day for weeks thinking, reflecting, and using the truth of the mirror to refine his ideas about himself, who he was and who he wanted to be.
Only now, did he finally have an answer to that question.
'Is it worth it?'
'I don't know. And I won't know for a long time still. But I know this much. Life is fleeting, and I want to make the most of every second. If I let myself become one of the bodies in someone else's mountain, my life has been wasted, cut short by another's hand because I was not ready to defend it.
'I am the core from which all in existence is perceived and experienced. If I die, the world might as well have ended, returned to the void absent of potential. To allow another to decide that end for me would be my greatest regret, and if trampling the lives of a million men will help avoid that fate, then so be it.
'That is my answer. Is it worth it? I don't know. But I would rather live to find out than die never knowing.'
The cold blue eyes that stared at him within slowly closed, as the images of the shard receded to memory. They remained there, waiting to be called upon, but no longer haunted him.
He did not know if his answer was correct, or if others would share his view, but that did not matter in The Shards. He had faced his doubt, one of many, and put it to rest. He had faced Truth and accepted it. That was all.
Standing, Lucian stretched before looking back at that first Shard of Truth. It was transparent now, like the glass of a window rather than a mirror, and it did not reflect anything more than a window should.
With a content smile, Lucian felt himself whole, as if he knew himself more intimately now than ever before.
When he approached the second Shard of Truth, it was not a truth about himself, but about his cultivation that was reflected back to him. Something he had overlooked that could prove a tiny chink in his armor if left untended.
He was relieved by the far simpler revelation, and sat down to resolve the issue before moving on.