To become a ‘hero of legend’, that is the dream that has at least once captivated the mind of every child in Hanakawa. At one time, I was no different.
Nearly eight centuries ago, The Great Uprising began, plunging all eight worlds of the World Chain into strife as the gods descended from the Divine Realm to wage war against all mortals, or so the story is told. The Sixth, Seventh, and Eighth realms had been completely annihilated despite humanity’s desperate struggles, until he turned the tides of battle.
Out of every historical figure known to man, he was the only one unanimously agreed to be the hero of legend, The Unrivaled Sword That Parts The Battlefield, Hayato. Nobody could or needed to say for certain where he came from or what past he held, for all that mattered was that he was the figure to lead humanity to victory, or so the story is told.
Stealing the Key of Creation from the Divine Realm itself, Hayato sparked conflict amidst the gods’ forces and turned them against each other, dividing the gods into factions of humanity’s Salvation and of humanity’s Collapse. However, for a single human to defeat the gods would be blasphemous to the divine itself in all senses. With nothing more than a single godsent soldier, humanity could never truly ‘win’ the war.
As the outcome began to favor the gods once more, Hayato understood the only remaining course of action that could be taken to keep humanity moving forward, or so the story is told. Laying down his life for the betterment of humanity, Hayato used the last of the Key’s power and his life to create the Divine Layer, a barrier that would prevent the gods from ever descending to the mortal realm again, and World Zero, the sealed away planet on which the last remnants of humanity could continue to thrive.
That was the heroism we all strived for, forgetting the pains and sufferings of every hero we’ve ever learned of.
Playing pretend, “This time, you’ll be the hero and I’ll be the evil god trying to kill you!”, treating the glory of heroism as if it were some kind of game.
Nobody stopped to consider the trials Hayato had to endure to become our hero of legend, to become an idol whose sacrifice would eventually lead to the next cycle of hubris-led downfall. Nobody questioned the life Hayato had lived beyond the battlefield. Was he sad to throw it all away? Was he regretful of the path he took up? Or was he glad to fade away in a conclusive peace?
Such questions could be asked of every being who has at least once been forced to make a decision, but to answer them is a completely different story.
So, what reason could possibly motivate one to become a hero of legend?
- Excerpt from < Archives of Eternity > | Entry by The False / Final Hero Of Legend
