Episode 24- General Teno Kenpachi and The Tragedy of Red Dawn
"Before knowing you, I would describe this next general as the heart and pride of Grandoria, a Grandoria soldier that grew infamy and fame. His name and power grew so much that he was able to create and appoint four generals as the 'powers of Grandoria'."
"He formed the generals?", asks Zero.
"Yes. There would be no generals without him.", replies Red Dawn.
"If he created and picked the generals, what made such a man choose you?", asks Zero with a tone of distrust.
"Do you want to know about the generals or interrogate me?", asks Red Dawn with irritation. "Continue.", says Zero.
"Although it seems impossible when said out loud, the rumor is that he made one of the strongest and most proud of the dragons, named Yanos Sin, beg for its life, all without any assistance from magic. In exchange for sparing the life of Yanos Sin, General Teno was granted the power of hellfire from the dragon. Hellfire is no ordinary flame. Hellfire burns a reddish orange and although the task is painful, it has the ability to heal the injuries of the caster. General Teno once tested his healing in front of all the generals. He took a long dagger and cut off his left arm. He screamed in agony and pain as the hellfire engulfed him. As if created from a contract in hell, his left arm reattached as the burning ceased. In all honesty, if General Teno wanted to burn all of Grandoria to the ground, he could with only a small portion of his power. Needless to say, if you focus on destructive power alone, he is by far the strongest of any general.".
"You tend to put a lot of emphasis on the bastard.", says Zero.
"Nonetheless, his son is his pride and joy. Well, he was until that day you encountered him as a child. General Teno's wife blamed him for not being there to protect their son. His family and entire life came crashing down from that one moment. He grew colder, more sinister. He still loves his son, and gave him a private, bright red castle in Grandoria full of attendants and servants that take care of him. It's the only red castle in all of Grandoria as if symbolic to General Teno. It's like his heart.
Well, that's everything I know about them. We should head back to Grandoria to speak with General Mash.", says Red Dawn.
"We aren't done. We still need to discuss the last general.", says Zero while looking at Red Dawn.
Red Dawn closes her eyes, then takes a deep breath. She then opens her eyes and exhales. "Fine. My story begins in a forest, a small forest next to the little castle my parents owned. I was only eight years old. I liked to practice my bow and arrow in the forest. I would just shoot at the leaves, the trees, little ant hills, or other simple things. One day in the woods, there were bandits, two of them, far stronger than any physical strength I could muster at that age. They desired to have their way with me, thinking I was the lost child of a beggar. I fought back against them. I bit them, scratched them, screamed, cried, and resisted so much that they beat me, badly. Finally fed up with not getting what they wanted from me, one of the bandits gave me two choices. Those two choices would change my life forever. The bandit said, 'Either we get your body or we take something important from you'. The bandits noticed the bow I was using to practice with and figured my sight was 'something important'. I still continued to resist, so one held me down with all his strength while the other pulled out a dagger, enchanted with lightning magic. He held my face with all his might, and slashed me, ripping my eyesight from me forever. They left shortly after without anything further, satisfied that their egos had been stroked.
I was blind, miserable, and powerless for some time, until my parents took a trip to Torgan Mountain for a break from duties. Looking back on it, I think they wanted to give me a change of scenery, to combat my depression. I was angry and lost. I waited until I couldn't hear my parents and wandered off, until I stumbled into Rowa Test. Once I realized I stumbled into a dragon, I yelled at her, trying to provoke her into attacking me, or better yet, killing me. Rowa didn't. I'm not sure why, and until this day, I don't question it, but she gave me power. She gave me a second chance to live. I eventually learned to use the power to restore my eyesight. Everything I see today looks like different shades of violet and purple. I think it's beautiful. It allows me to actually see farther than the average eye can see, both literally and figuratively.".
"I think your eyesight is beautiful as well. Some of the most beautiful flowers can grow after a rainstorm.", says Zero.
"So you've calmed down a bit, and learned some philosophy.", teases Red Dawn while smiling.
The two share a kiss, ending the conversation, and preparing Zero for the generals.