Chapter 2: A title is Chosen.
Looking at the little figure of his brother, a thought came to mind which the Prince immediately voiced, "Has his title been chosen yet?" Silence immediately filled the room, with all eyes on Matriarch Helios.
…
She smiled, "I was actually waiting for you to show up before I looked into his fate; but, you were late…as usual."
Prince Brutus blushed but his curiosity was too much at the moment to let it bother him for long. "So, what's his title then?" he asked again impatiently.
One of the most mysterious abilities of Matriarch Helios, is to somewhat peer into the future. A power that gives her the opportunity to give a title that a person most deserves, or will deserve. However, one drawback is that she can't see the events that lead to them deserving their name, even though they always seem to earn it in the end. Such an example is Captain Athena, 'The Crimson Sun', as she most definitely 100% deserves no better title than this one.
The matriarch begins a unique ritual, calling upon the various lines of fate, as the sun bears witness to all.
Her eyes roll back as she gently hugs her little Virgo a bit closer. After a few moments, she speaks, "My little Virgo will be titled, 'The light that burns brighter'. May he lead, protect and love all who gather where his light touches, and burn those who hide in the shadows to harm those he holds dear." The silence seems even quieter now as everyone in the room tries to understand the deeper meanings behind little Virgo's title. All except one.
"What type of blatant bias is this?!" questions Prince Brutus as he gazes suspiciously at his mother. "Why does his title sound better than this handsome one's??"
This earned him another punch from Captain Athena as she shook her head sighing, "Seriously, please don't pass over your mental illness down to little Virgo." Matriarch Helios giggles weakly at the interaction between the two as she answers, "A title is merely a guideline for guessing the future of a person. It does not directly determine exactly it is that you will achieve. What you become still rests in your hands, as does the level of grandeur you attain." The Prince looks down shyly as he grumbles, "…but still", as he remembers the first time he talked to his mother about his title.
******FLASHBACK Begins******
I can still remember the sound of dull spears twisting and drilling relentlessly against those huge battle worn shields. Our shields are always extremely unique, having faces with strange designs carved out of them. Every Asura who carries a shield and spear always uses this opportunity as a means to stand out from the other warriors.
The battle was fast paced, but anyone could clearly see I was struggling more than my opponent. Despite my childish body falling behind in terms of size and power, my skill was most impressive. Especially when compared to my sparring partner, one of the Three Great Spears of Dawn, going by the title of 'The Faceless Man', Captain Hermes. He is the current leader for the Steel Faced Asura of Heaven's Gates. Although at first glance, if you ignore his ridiculous height, you will observe him as slim and somewhat thin looking, having a youthful glow under his porcelain-like skin. But if someone looks at him as weak, they wouldn't even understand how one of his blades would be placed to their neck.
Even now, I can clearly imagine that confident smirk ever present on the face of Captain Hermes. He effortlessly blocked the stabbing strikes of my then exhausted techniques. Despite always being parried and painfully counterattacked, the fierceness on my face never once left me. Always getting back up, no matter how much the Captain increased the strength in his blows. Eventually, the Captain finally made a misstep. I naively grinned an almost inhuman smile and launched out holding absolutely nothing back, aiming at the exposed neck of my sparring partner. This however only earned an even wider smirk from Captain Hermes as he smoothly avoided the strike by ducking under my beautifully placed spear. Planting his back foot firmly into the soil beneath him, the ground cracked as the captain pushed off it, thrusting his dulled spear into my chest and almost cracking my ribs.
Words cannot truly describe the feeling of suddenly getting the wind knocked out of you, but what I felt that day is ingrained into my body to this day. I felt my feet leave the earth as I flew across the entire length of the training grounds, halting my flight against a cement beam.
As I saw the smirking bastard walking towards me. I hurriedly rushed to grab the spear that had fallen besides me, only to be assaulted by what I can only call a tsunami wave of pain beating against my chest. This earned me an earful of laughter as the bastard spoke, "hahahaha, my dear prince, I think it's best that we stop here. That was already impressive enough, that you can hold out against my full strength…" This in turn brought a proud smile to my face. "…the full strength I'm allowed to use without you dying that is, hahahaha…" he continued. The smile immediately wiped off my face as I remember thinking, 'I really hate this smirking bastard!' Standing up I scream, "Let's go again! I don't believe this handsome one will not surpass you! I will have all your strength eventually and more!!" The Captain eventually stopped laughing and replied, "…You truly live up to your title 'Eater of Great Ambitions'. I would love to see the day, although it will never happen, I suppose we need fantasies to live out impossible futures, hahahaha…" as he walked away.
He slowly turned his head, "But, I suppose I should give you a glimpse of the peak you wish to reach for." The ever present smirk on his face faded for the first time. The cocky nature he showed to the world seemed like mere pretense. The Captain now was a complete 'void' in all sense of the word. All I could sense from him was that if I moved as much as an inch, I would die immediately.
Captain Hermès, as though he had all the time in the world, slowly reached for his hip. Tied to it was a Steel Mask with ten wings protruding out of it. The second he touched it, a divine pressure crushed into me. It was like I was at the bottom of an Ocean, being crushed into nothingness.
But just as quickly as this divine pressure came, it suddenly left. The Captain barely grazed against his mask and that was enough to release such power. He put his characteristic smirk back on his face and walked out, leaving a few words of advice without turning his head, "Perhaps your efforts would be better spent amoung the Flame Dancers of Apollo's Inferno. Although I admire your tenacity, your passion is too great for you to properly control. And control is the basis of an Asura."
When I came back to my senses, I was about to chase after him but I realized I couldn't move. My body had given the last of its power just to keep standing. I collapsed and just stared at the ceiling, alone with my thoughts, 'How long did it take for Captain Hermès to reach his rank? When will I surpass him? What the hell is an Eater of Great Ambitions?'
A servant eventually found me and helped me into a medicine bath. I suppose looking back on it, Captain Hermes did always organize a swift recovery bath for me. I can definitely appreciate it now, but back then all I wanted was to punch him in his smug face. And he was right, the Apollo's Inferno truly became my second home.
After the bath, although I could move around, I was immensely sore. A long sleep was definitely needed to aid my recovery. As I made my way to the room, I suddenly stopped, and turned to head into the Garden of the Estate. A voice greeted me as I crossed the threshold to the outside, "Hello my beautiful son, how was your training today?"
I replied with a strange smile that wasn't really a smile on my face, "One day, one glorious day I will punch Hermes' smug smirk right off his face."
A kind laughter reached ears, "haha…many have tried and failed my son. If you manage this feat and sell the method, you will be the richest in all of our cosmos." A true smile was welcomed on my face.
"There was a reason I came to see you though Mom. Why did the Captain call me an Eater of Great Ambition during our spar?" I asked.
My mother smiled gently as she answered my question, "This is your title, a mere glimpse at your fate, what you could become, build, or overcome. As the 'Eater of ambition' you are born to chase your desire endlessly, and once you grab hold of it, do not let it go until you have truly experienced and grown tired. This is your will. A title can be many things, but most of the time it is simply what you will decide it to be."
After a period of contemplation I ask, "So I will become an Eater of Great Ambitions then? Sounds like I'm destined to be great." My mother simply shrugged her shoulders and returned to taking care of her garden. I left to return to my room, contemplating which ambitions would be worthy of being devoured by my handsome self.
******FLASHBACK Ends******
Brutus smiles lovingly at his little brother, 'It would seem as if we were both fated to be great in this life, little Virgo. We will gaze down from upon the peak together.'
Little Virgo, as if taking in the silent thoughts of his older brother, nodded his head as he closed his eyes. Eyes that were still new to the world, to enjoy his first sleep in his mother's arms. The young Virgo had truly been born into an interesting reality.