Chapter 39 :To Have Purpose
It is said that every man longs to have a place in this world ,a role to play upon a stage so vast that, if he were ever forced to accept his insignificance, he would crumble beneath it and be swept away by the meaninglessness of it all.
And so he chooses. Constantly. Relentlessly. Believing each decision pushes his life in some new direction, believing the path ahead is shaped by his hand.
But if that were true, why do so many lives arrive at the same ending?
Perhaps not all choices are equal. Perhaps most are nothing more than filler small, harmless distractions made to keep us convinced we are moving freely. And only a rare few carry weight enough to change a life, to split it cleanly in two.
The cruel part is this: we are never told which ones matter.
And if we were if somehow a man could see the outcome before the choice ,would he still arrive at the same place? Or would knowing tempt him to interfere, to steal a different ending for himself?
And yet something deep inside suggests the answer is punishment. Not for choosing wrongly, but for choosing...well knowingly.
So if a man were to blind himself, to accept a role any role and live without knowing what comes next, would anything truly change? Or would the path remain the same?
The question is whether that blindness is fear…or obedience.
This tale begins at the height of a civilisation of elves, on the day a boy turned seventeen.
"What is it that you truly desire to be?" an old man sat in a bush-crafted throne made of vines, bark and other types of nature found in the forest, asked.
"Father, you have asked me that question many times," the boy answered each time the same.
"Yes indeed," the old man said. "Each time you say you want me to be proud of you, and each time I say…
"But son, I already am." the boy finished
The boy stoo, well. He stood in the dim, light of late afternoon; the throne smelled like sap and old wood, the vines wet and dripping . Sunlight shining through leaf on to his face.
"To have purpose is all that matters, remember this . "A man with no path is no man at all." the old man said
"Father…" the boy breathed, speechless. He felt the straw of his sandals scrape his ankles, the tiny bump of his pulse in his throat.
His father only smiled, the smile of a man who had seen winters stack like plates.
Later that night the boy sat in a hut. A lantern swung with a soft clink in the corner, a shelf filled with jars, and the floor was lined with cold, wet sand.The smell of salt and old fish rode in through the window and mixed with the smoke of the lamp.
"What is it that I truly want in this world, huh…" he whispered. He fell onto his straw bed with a hard bang ; the mattress puffed and smelled of dust and moss. "I truly wonder what it is."
The elven Kingdom believed in a system of order and formed factions known as the Four Teas: the Green, the Oolong, the Herbal, and lastly a tribe covered in shadows known as the Black Tea. These four nations were the building blocks of the society that made up the elven Kingdom. They were united ….or so they said in betterment and survival of each other.
A meeting that night was taking place between the heads of the Four Teas. The room smelled of boiled leaves and old paper..
"Peposturus, you want me to truly believe that out of nowhere a tree took root? What have you of me , you think me a child?" an older elf shouted, his voice scratchy . He was in his late years, a gray beard formed by time and a balding shiny scalp he tried to hide by stuffing the remains of his hair into a dark bun (it didn't work). His hands trembled as he slapped the table.
"Earl Grey, it matters not what you think. Facts are facts," a soft voice replied. The woman who spoke was also in her later years; wrinkles carved rivers across her face, hair white as snow. Yet even now, far from her prime, she retained a strange, steady beauty. "The tree,or more so the stump , has taken root over Brooks' caven. Over seventy-five percent of habitable land is gone."
"Jasmine! You dare insult me!" Earl Grey snapped, disgust filled his words.
"Quiet down, children." Another voice cut through the noise, strong and wise. An older man whose hair remained black and long, tied in a tight bun, had eyesstrong . His face looked hardened. "It matters not what you think. It matters what we know."
"Ah, so he speaks," another muttered, old and fat, a strip of chicken bone rolling in his mouth. "The all-wise and oh so brave Sencha graces us with his speech."
Sencha sighed. "Silence. Chamomile."
"So what? We gathered here in the dead of night to talk about fairy tales and gossip? I do not believe this," Earl Grey said, bitterness in his tone. "Are you all idiots?"
"Do you deny that white particles have begun to float across our world since that tree took root?" Sencha asked.
Earl Grey paused for the first time; he had no answer.
"There is more," Jasmine said, voice low. "They say the ash carries with it a disease, a sickness of some sort. There have been rumours of misfortune taking hold across the land."
"So that's it then? We are afraid? What are we going to do,shudder and hide beneath our mothers' skirts?" Earl Grey scoffed. He rose, the creak of his joints loud in the hush. "We are a strong mountainous nation. If a sickness arises, we will snuff it out and move on with our lives.
"A fool lets pride cloud his vision. Given enough time, even an ant can move a mountain."Sencha said softly yet they all listened.
"Yet it is not the sickness I worry about, rather how it is enforced. One of us of this great nation will betray us and lead to the fall and ruin of us all.; he added softly
"Pshh,"Our nation is stronger than any ant or fool that would even dare imagine our ruin." Earl Grey pushed back his chair and left.
This conversation took place sixty-seven years ago. Unknown to them, it was the first domino in a sea of them to fall , the beginning of the end for Glass Beach.
An old man walked in, shaking his head. "A tree magically appears and all you do is sit and have a meeting?"
"What" they said looking towards him.
.... ash pours from the sky and all you do is argue over pride?" he spat, playing with the ash i the air . It floated between his fingers like dust.
Someone sighed.
"Sylas? What is it? Why do you even show up here? You made it clear you care nothing for your nation."
"Peposturus," Sylas said, voice low. "I simply do not care for the worthless conversations you have. I seek something higher….. purpose. But you lot would know nothing of that." He smiled t. "Fear not. I will show you all."
"How? With your little scurry of make-believe ninjas?" someone scoffed.
Sylas turned and the shadows seemed to lean with him. "Yes. Indeed. That is all I need."
Later that evening Sylas sat in a chair that overlooked the ocean, atop a hut raised above the waves. The balcony boards creaked under his weight, He sat and admired the horizon ared and gold where sea met sky.
Behind him stood two elven girls. One had black hair and a serious expression; discipline was allover every line of her face. The other was blond, a sharp smile masking her true emotions. Both scary looks in their eyes and wore black clothes that hugged their bodies. Sharp knives glinted at their belts, a sword slung across a back, ropes coiled, and small black balls ….smoke bombs tucked into pouches. They smelled faintly of oil and iron.
"And what have you gathered?"Sylas asked voice flat, not even looking back.
"The giants have all but been wiped out," she said. "All that remains are a few clans on the outer border of the tree. The king and all royalty are… no longer of this world." Her voice was a monotone speech, and when she spoke the air seemed to chill.
"They have also reported , the others have confirmed , that the top of the tree is covered by a dome. It stretches across its entire surface. It seems impenetrable; nothing can enter or leave its confines," the blond one added. Both bowed as they spoke.
"This world truly is something beyond my wildest dreams," Sylas said, smiling at last as he finally turned to face them. The lantern light carved bright lines across his face. "I need to know what this world is hiding. That is my one and only true purpose."
Notes-
What's your favorite tea