Asher heard a voice call upon him, a voice he had never heard. Asher opened his eyes; Asher was in shock. The room was beautiful; the floor was made of clouds, and on top, a large fog covered a large figure looking down at him. The figure radiates light of all visible light.
Asher gets up to see the room transform into a courtroom. Seats on the sides of the room, made of clouds, all have versions of Asher sitting down.
Asher looked down, seeing that he was now at the center of the room, his arms chained, the figure looking down at him, judging his every action.
Asher realized that he was being judged by a powerful figure. He tried to speak, but nothing came out. Not a single sound was produced by Asher. He tried again, with the same results.
Asher, tell me every deed that you've done and what you did it for.
What is this question? Is it K.? No, that's not possible; he doesn't talk like this. I am feeling pressure because if I lie, I will die. What is happening? Asher calms down.
Asher's body starts to tremble; all of his deepest regrets, pains, and everything he hid is starting to flood all at once; the version of him judging him is the most broken part of him. His entire demeanor changed only by having his raw self to answer.
"I saved people at their lowest point, giving them a chance to live again."
Ok, tell me more.
"I managed to liberate hundreds of thousands from danger."
Ok, tell me more.
"I am trying to push peace in my country."
But you love war?
"No, I don't."
Yes, you do.
"Then tell me the reason for all my suffering."
You did well, but your heart is closed. I can tell traumas from your past linger and create a cell.
"Enlighten me how an imperfect human liberates himself," Asher questions his entire life.
Every individual is only a version of you. You need to forgive yourself, but others might not forgive you. Promise that you will not take your gifts for granted.
"I promise I will never take my gifts for granted. I will do my best to show understanding to the people." Asher, on the verge of tears, still has a lot of questions. "May I ask for something?"
You may
"All I want is to know why I am here. What happened?" Asher, his tears streaming down, tries his best to look up, trying to maintain his composure.
You are here since you are my greatest director. You and I are one. I want to show you that I know everything, your suffering, your happiness. You need to know your truths before facing more hardships.
"K., that's you, right? I knew it, but what is my future going to be about?" Asher felt the chains break.
Your future will be far worse than anything that you have faced right now. The life you saw of Kenny is only one-tenth of the pain Kenny went through. You will go through about one hundred to one thousand times more than Kenny went through.
"Do you think I can endure that much pain.?"
You will, with me, we will all survive. You are a savior. You need to save yourself before you save anyone else.
"I will try my best to carry out my purpose." Asher feels that one part of himself is free; many other pieces are still in shackles waiting to be freed.
The world starts to disappear, and Asher's soul falls back into its original body. While descending, Asher starts to see parts of himself that he doesn't remember.
…
Asher is now awakened back into his physical body. Sensing that he is lying down in a soft part, he wakes up alert for anything. Asher sees both of his siblings surrounding him; the people around him remind him of when he liberated his first village.
Asher embraced his siblings, asking them how they did in their fight. Their faces turned with mixed reactions.
Amadi and Dalia shared stories very similar.
Both stories start with them winning the first wave of enemies. Their confidence started to increase; however, the second and third waves were not like they expected. Most of their army was destroyed in a short time. It all perfectly aligns when Asher starts to feel weaker,
After their army was standing on its last legs, where the remaining soldiers felt that they wouldn't live through another day, they felt a large surge of power. Asher realized that it was when he awakened back again after Kenny attacked him.
They then recount how their senses got sharper; the enemies that they were once losing to are beating them with medium difficulty. Both of their stories end with them freeing the city.
Asher looks at them with a lot of pride. Sensing happiness for the gift that was bestowed upon him.
"Asher, we should probably establish ourselves and introduce ourselves to the villages that are still being led by a failed rebellion," Dalia says.
"That is true. All right, let's start this reconstruction." Asher gets up out of bed.