The older man sat by the fire, the fringes of his dark hair illuminated with the orange glow. His eyes looked over at the group sitting around the blaze, eyeing each and every one. Auric was still in the hut, bandaged, and asleep. “You all know who I am, I suppose. Then allow me to tell the true story of my life. Not the sickly sweet coated lies you’ve been fed about me. I am not hero, no “white lion.” I am no better than a simple soldier.”He placed a stick in the fire, the heat raising slightly, the light illuminating his face more and he began.   
“I have seen thousands of men and women die over the course of my life. Some died by my hand. Some deaths I regret, and others I do not. They-they called us heroes back then, back when we all believed in something. Back when it meant something. We were just children-we were exposed to too much-too much suffering. Before those wars-I had seen death and had brought my fair share, but at the time I thought it was justified. Killing for the greater good. I had no idea what suffering was like-I just fought those who fought me. Then-The Order. I was still just a child-though I had experienced my share of sacrifice and pain. But they were something else. They thrived off of suffering and fear, and I stood to fight them.
      Then I met my brothers in arms, my comrades: Wolfos, Blade, Michael…we stood together, we made allies an enemies. Some of us found love, and…some lost it. There is no greater pain than watching someone you care about killed in front of you-while you are powerless to save them. The first time occurred when I was only twenty years old. Spurned for vengeance, I fought harder. I became cold, I became like my enemy. We all…changed. Wolfos became a monster; Michael became a monster-and I had to stop both of them. I had to spill the blood of my comrades before they could destroy more life than they had already. And I became no better-I yearned for the taste of my enemy’s blood. I was full of rage and hate, something only sated by the death of an enemy. I was blind to the fact that I was no better than my enemy. We had to face our demons-we had to atone for our sins. And we did it-we defeated the Order. I received blood for blood, and I decided to give up fighting.
      I found love again, and together we had a son. I thought that my suffering was over, and I could live in peace. That’s when Hunter came with his army. And for the second time in my life, I was powerless to save the woman I loved. She saved our son-but-I left the infant behind, I left him when that great anger inside me awoke and I could only be sated with blood. I prayed that I would finish this last battle, and with my life, the boy would grow up in a world where he did not have to know fear. Wolfos lost more than I did-he lost his tribe, his wife and a daughter. We led the charge against Hunter-and we lost every single brave soldier in our campaign until it was just the two of us. Two men, against a still seemingly endless horde of demons. We pressed on, through blood and sweat and sheer guts we pushed on to fight Hunter himself. And Wolfos gave his life to protect this world from him. I should have died there too-but I was left alive. The sole survivor, left to carry on with the weight of a thousand lives. And so I went into solitude, to watch over this land and to ensure no catastrophe would ever occur. Wolfos and I-our hands were stained with too much blood.
      But we did that so you-you children would never have to fall like we did. We spent a lifetime of suffering to bring peace-and what was our reward for such sacrifice? A fleeting moment of quiet, only to be broken by an even worse monster. This is not your fight-this is mine. My brothers are all dead now-I’m the last one. It’s my turn to atone for all of our sins. It’s my life that needs to be given-so maybe once you can all have the life we fought so hard for. Go home. Don’t waste your life like your father. Don’t waste it like I did mine. You are all the last of your kinds-rebuild your tribes. Allow me to end this-for my son’s sake; for my wife’s sake; and for my own sake. This is my war, not yours.”