Chapter 27: The Firestorm
"I... I couldn’t save everyone," Ning said with his voice cracking. He saw Haven burning again. He heard the screams and He remembered how helpless he’d felt. "I thought it was the only way to save anyone."
"That’s a lie!" the ghost yelled while it forced Ning back. "You saved yourself. You let me die. You let Mireya break. You did it all to keep your own mind safe."
Ning could feel the truth in the ghost’s words. Deep inside, he had known this for a long time, but had been too scared to face it. He had made awful choices. He had run away from the guilt. He had left others behind so he could keep living.
As the ghost raised its sword for one final blow Ning didn’t defend himself. He didn’t fight back, but instead He dropped his sword.
It hit the ground with a loud sound. Then he raised his hands showing he wouldn’t resist.
"You’re right," Ning said with his voice shaking slightly. "You’re completely right. I abandoned you. I let Haven fall. I made the wrong choices. I let people die because I couldn’t face what I had done. I became someone I hated."
The ghost paused with the sword hovering near Ning’s chest. Its burning eyes flickered like the rage was weakening.
"I tried to forget," Ning went on with his voice stronger now. "I tried to move on without facing the truth. But I can’t anymore. I accept everything. The guilt. The mistakes. The people I lost. It’s all part of me now." He looked into the ghost’s eyes and saw not a monster but a reflection of himself. "I won’t run anymore."
The ghost of Denz began to fade, with its shape shaking like a candle in the wind. The sword disappeared into tiny lights. The anger in its eyes turned soft like understanding or maybe forgiveness.
"You... accept it?" the ghost asked with its voice now clearer like the real Denz from before.
"I accept it," Ning said like a promise. "All of it. Even the parts that make me a monster. I’ll carry the past with me, not run from it."