Turning his head, he sees Bell held up by men who try to get him to sit back down, yet he pushes them away as he says, "No, I need to say this."
Staring at him with eyes that barely restrain his anger, he says, "What do you want? Another round of humiliation in front of your crouch goblin?"
His fist tightens with anger as his rage only builds against Captivant, and as he moves forward, Captivant prepares to counterattack.
Bell drops his head in front of Captivant as he says, "I am sorry!"
The author freezes, and Bell continues, "I shouldn't have done those things to you back when we were kids. Tying another person up and leaving them in the forest is an awful thing to do no matter what. I didn't like you as a kid, but I also didn't understand you. There are many different types of people, and some kids are just born in ways that make us not get along, and as a father I understand now that doesn't mean some kind of moral slight, but I didn't understand that when I was a stupid kid and did something awful to you. I don't know if that's the reason you did all you did; I don't know if that's the reason you hurt me like you did today; I don't even know if that's the reason you stopped talking to your parents, but more than anything I want you to know I apologise for what I've done to you, Captivant."
Φ You apologise to me? You ask me for forgiveness? Now that you have a child, you think it's wrong? Now that you have grown up, you can only view what you did as wrong. Did your brain not work? Were you not human? Did your parents not sire a living being? Excuses, excuses, excuses, excuses, excuses, excuses, excuses, excuses, excuses, excuses, excuses, excuses, excuses, excuses, excuses, excuses, excuses, excuses, excuses, excuses, excuses, excuses, excuses, excuses, excuses, excuses, excuses, excuses, excuses, excuses, excuses, excuses, excuses, excuses, excuses, excuses, excuses, excuses, excuses, excuses, excuses, excuses, excuses, excuses, excuses, excuses, excuses, excuses, excuses, excuses, excuses, excuses, excuses, excuses, excuses, excuses, excuses, excuses, excuses, excuses, excuses, excuses, excuses, excuses, excuses, excuses, excuses, excuses, excuses, excuses, excuses, excuses, excuses, excuses, excuses, excuses, excuses, excuses, excuses, excuses, excuses, IT'S ALL JUST AN EXCUSE YOU PIECE OF SHIT!"
Φ Captivant's fist rises as he stares down at the man whose head is fully exposed to him, and quickly brings his fist down as Siegrund prepares to stop him, yet as his eyes glare forward, they stare into that of Bell's son, who stares at his own father with glittering eyes. Ones that remind him of a young boy who was captivated by human history itself.
His fist halts, and he pulls back, then turns around before leaving at full speed, with Bell soon collapsing to the ground soon after he leaves.
-Break-
Location: Captivant's Room
Sitting in his room by himself, he stares at the giant lumber in the room, and slowly but surely takes them apart and starts crafting them into the pieces he needs to complete his project, with his mind fully focused on his work.
Yet through the little fluctuations of his focus, the memories of the battle that took place three days ago rush through his mind. The cries from Bell's son, the feelings against his fists, the sincere words from a man he hated, the look of fear across the eyes of all those who surrounded him.
These images, they carve themselves deeply into Captivant, coming out with each and every movement of his arm, bringing his focus to new levels each second that passes.
"ADRIAN!" he hears, forcing his body to jump upwards and smash into the wall. Looking at the source, he sees Domita standing beside him and says, "Mother, what are you doing?"
"I came to check up on you and join you."
"I am busy now, and I don't have time for whatever this is."
"I see, I guess I'll just tell Siegrund to come get all the lumber in here for me?" She says, turning to leave.
Running over, Captivant grabs her and says, "Did I say that? No, I meant I have lots of time for a mommy-son meeting."
She gives a cheeky smile towards her son, and from his soul only one thought can move through it: What a brat!
-Break-
Sitting in a corner, with a piece of wood in her hands, Domita carves away at it as Captivant returns to his work, yet her gaze keeps moving from her work over to him again and again. Making him say, "Is something the matter?"
"Oh, I just thought you wanted to know that Bell has made a full recovery. It seems there will be no permanent damage."
"Whoop-de-doo."
They both return to carving away at their given pieces, yet her gaze keeps falling on him again and again, forcing him to say, "If there is something on your mind, mother, just say it."
Turning back to face her work as she rubs her throat, she says, "I just thought you'd have more to say about the situation."
"I have nothing to say. I regret nothing and have no remorse. In all honesty, you should worry more about the negative aspects of the deal you made with him and the rest of the foundational villagers."
"Did your father tell you?"
"No, I just guess. I doubt Siegrund would teach Bell and the rest of his friends Spirit Energy, and if I combine that with what I saw, I am guessing that, as permission to allow more refugees into the land, you made it so that Siegrund had to teach the foundational pests Spirit Energy to defend themselves and put together some kind of village watch to deal with incidents."
"What a big brain you have, Adrian."
"Don't patronise me."
"I always mean my compliments towards you."
He clicks his tongue and says, "Don't distract from the issue at hand that you've given power to people who have been growing in their disapproval for you. You know as well as I do if things get violent, it won't go well."
"Siegrund will protect us."
The muscles around Captivant's head tense as he says, "Well, who cares? It's not like he can always stay around; you need to find more permanent solutions."
"Don't worry, we may fight and disagree with each other, but the legacy of this country and the blood and sweat our ancestors have poured into it unite us more than any tragedy could ever hope to break."
"That's a nice thought, but mother, you read all those same stories to me, so you should know there is no such thing as a legacy that can't be tainted and broken. If you bet too much on it, the pressure will shatter it into pieces."
"I understand, even I have made the mistake of putting too much pressure on the things I hold dear in the past. It could've broken them, due to my negligence."
"Good for you."
"I am sorry for never asking about what Bell did to you. I knew you started acting strange when you started training with Siegrund, and never pushed for the reas-."
"Don't mother, don't. I am fine; the actions of country hicks could never taint the legacy I built. Don't waste the words trying to make something unimportant a bigger deal than it is."
"Hey Adrian, why do you write?"
"Huh? Isn't it obvious, to detail my legends and spread my legacy."
"To whom?"
"People who can read."
"And why would they listen?"
"Because it is a good story?"
"Sometimes in your books you can be mean to other people and occupations; you seem to have a love for bullying farmers."
"I don't do that oft-."
"About 92% of the 1754 things you've written have some kind of insult towards farmers."
"Urgh, who cares. Being a farmer is a lowly job, and we can barely even consider most of the people farmers here. The vast majority don't own their land and are all just help on this land, nothing more than servants who get paid. It's not like trash like that are the ones reading my books; they only take them in by the word of mouth of the people who actually matter in this world."
"Why do you think that?"
"Is there some kind of point to all these questions or are you looking for a reason to keep going?"
Stopping her hands, she stares up towards the wall and says, "When I walk down the street and step in poo I feel anger, when I hear a new baby is coming I feel excitement, when someone falls sick I feel fear, when I get invited to a party my mind becomes nervous, when I hear a traveller taking with a unique dialect or in a different language I feel confused, when smell some of Rainia's cooking I get hungry, when your father sees something that makes him happy I lie a bit and join in on it, when I hear women insulting there suns I feel uncomfortable, when I heard of your troubles I felt worried, when I got proposed to I felt happy, when I talk to your father I feel like myself, when I wear a new dress your father excitement fills me with embarrassment, when I see abuse against some children by former villager I felt disgust, when you other women flirt with your father I feel jealousy, when I read your books it makes me think, when you don't tell me you love me I feel annoyed, when I hear of all your achievements I feel shocked, when I gain weight my mind fills with despair, and when I see you looking down my resolve strengths.
These are all the emotions I've felt living in this single place my entire life. A giant myriad of them that has given me the strength and will to push myself forward throughout all my struggles and battles; it's something that has allowed my life to be full beyond comparison, even if from a more objective lens it wouldn't be considered so. Being a person in this pointless village has given me so much joy and hope in my life. To me, I've lived a full life. And when you insult and belittle that life, you insult and belittle all the emotions in my heart. You tell me in some shape or form that this life of mine doesn't matter."
Exhaling, with a painful look strung across his face, Captivant says, "What stupidity. Putting the value of your life in things you can't control is ridiculous. If you see this legacy that can vanish as the centre of yourself and not your actions, one day you will lose the ability to love yourself and collapse. If people do not understand that they don't deserve to read my boo-."
His mothers hands grab onto his face and pull it towards her own were there eyes met, and she says, "You've always been brilliant, you have a a drive many never do, so don't limit yourself to those rules, don't limit the world from allowing all who can to hear the words and ideas in your mind I am sure the world would be better that way. Also your wrong and right at the same time. It's true that people shouldn't put there self worth in things other than themselves, but the truth is that worth is already placed into you from above and through your blood. Know this: no human can be born without love. That's why no matter what happens, I'll always love you, Adrian."
She gives him a kiss on the cheek before handing him the sculpture in her hands, which is a near-perfect wooden replica of his face, before walking away towards the door. Seeing his mother go, he says, "I would've protected you."
Smiling she says, "I know you would," and continues forward.