Cicada(2)

The sky was clear. Giant hills and mountains scaled the earth far and widened and created valleys that stretched on for hundreds of kilometers. Dense vegetation littered the mountains and the top was covered by a bright splash of snow that rested serenely.

Rivers flowed from the crevice through the mountains and down from the valley to join in to the sea that was in the horizon, a place where the sea kissed the sky and both blended into a monotonous blur.

Amid this serene and untouched landscape, there was a particular direction where a lone man stood atop a pile of stones holding a giant sledgehammer in his hand.

Raising the hammer above his head, he slammed the hammer right down into the stones, pulverizing the stone almost 3 times his own size and breaking it into pieces. The man, as he stabilized himself, looked back. And there it was, the destruction he had caused. Rows of mountains laid broken, reduced into mere dust. The dirty face of the man, marred by cuts and mud couldn't help but morph into a smile.

He shook his head and again got back to breaking the mountains.

Bang!

Bang!

Bang!

Each swing of the hammer brought dust onto the eath and reduced the size of the stones.

Then, with a small trinket he held beside him, several gnome like robots burst out of his pocket and carried the dirt and small stones away, clearing the way for the man to do more excavation.

Each swing brought more destruction. Each swing dug a tiny bit deeper into the mountain. Each swing brought him joy.

Just then, amid the sound of his hammer, he heard the sound of footsteps.

The man turned, seeing two peculiar figures, dressed in well made clothes coming towards him.

Their faces were obscured, but he could see one of their hair's was black and eyes of the same colour. As for the other, the hair was blocked by a hat but he had eyes that shone red.

He observed them as they got close, eventually deciding to get back to smashing the mountain. And then, the men got close.

"Excuse me dear friend! May I ask what you're doing?!" The man with the dark hair spoke. His voice was heavy.

"Who're you lot?"

"We are but humble travellers. We roam through the different floors simply for the sake of exploration." The man smiled and kept a hand onto his chest, offering a short bow.

The hammer in his hand was raised again, and with the smashing sound of crumbling stone, he said, "What does it look like I'm doing? I'm smashing a mountain."

"Why?" This time, it was the one with red eyes that spoke.

"Why? Why not?" He laughed. "I used to be one of the regulars that wanted nothing more than to climb the tower. But then, I was thrown out in the 2nd floor itself. Tragic."

"And? Does that explain why you are breaking mountains?"

The man sighed and looked towards the sky, propping up the hammer at his shoulder.

"My late father and his father before that, and even his father before, all spoke of a buried treasure that can offer power to the holder. I'm simply here to look for it." He said.

The dark haired man chuckled.

"So why break an entire mountain for it?"

"Ahahaha! What better way to have a thorough search! This way, I won't leave any blind spots that I miss!" He laughed.

The red eyed man commented, "This is pure idiocy. Why break entire mountains based on a simple story told by your ancestors?"

Shaking his head, he replied with conviction.

"This is the way, my heart tells me so. I have nothing left anymore. After coming back, I married and had three kids. But my wife has died due to illness and the kids are all grown up now and headed into the tower." The man flexed his biceps. "So now, I break mountains! No matter what, I'm getting back into the tower!" Again, another strike impacted the mountain, this one slightly shaking the entire structure.

"And when I reach the top, I'll bring my wife back and meet back up with the kids! Then, I'll live the rest of my life in peace!" He yelled, smashing the hammer into the stone again.

The hard haired man looked at his companion with a smile, one that the other person didn't seem to appreciate.

With a strange expression, the red eyed man asked.

"Why not ask someone more capable to do it?"

"Like you?" The man looked at the travellers with a smile. "You're strong right? I can feel it. You might be able to clear the entire mountain in seconds even." He nodded.

"But what good would that do for me? Hehe. A true man's worth is always judged by his work."

"And where do you find the strength to do this? Return here everyday?" The red eyed man asked.

"This is love." The man stopped the hammering, his face taking on a look of melancholy. "First it was with the tower. Then, it was with my wife." Then, he smiled and waved ahead. "Now, it is with the mountains!"

With that declaration, he again slammed the hammer into the stones, pulverising them into dust.

The two men watched this strange person hammer the mountain with a smile.

Slowly, they walked away.

And as they did, the one with the dark hair turned to the other.

"What did I tell you?"

"What?"

"You need not judge everyone based on how you have judged just one of them. He does not stand as the representative for everyone in the tower."

"Funny that you would say that." The red eyed man looked at his partner with a sarcastic smile.

In response, the target only shrugged his shoulders.

"I admit I got pissed off at one point, but that doesn't mean I judge everyone based off of that one encounter. You have rarely seen the tower yet."

"I have much more experience than you do here."

"Hmm. True. But not all experience is the same." The man laughed.

The eyed companion could do nothing more than stare at him.

"Why did you even bring me here?" He asked.

"Do you not remember the last time? When you decimated an entire village to prove a point?"

The red eyed man rolled his eyes at him.

"This travel is to show you how much compassion a man can hold. Now carry on with me. You might see some stuff that you like."

"That won't change my mind. People are inherently flawed. Just one exception won't change anything."

"My friend. Exceptions are not only on the positive side. The bad examples are also exceptions." He continued. "Majority of the people will never commit a major crime in their life. Besides, how does one even define a crime in the first place. How does one define something as evil, when there is no good involved?"

"Evil is other people." The red eyed man replied tersly.

"Tsk tsk tsk. Then let us consider a child. A child, in his own world can simply point his fingers at someone and say 'bang. You're dead.'" The man mimicked the movements he described while doing so.

"There is the fact that he does not yet understand the concept of death. He has not yet come to terms with it. But it does not change that he has the thought of genuinely killing someone. A child does not know evil and he does not know good. A man while walking steps on the ants. Is that evil? A god, like you, destroys an entire village to prove a point. But just because he does not even consider, or put to mind the feeble existence of the village folk, can that be considered good or evil? Or simply nothing?

"Good and Evil arises from empathy. Empathy that grows and matures across the years. And both are equally extreme examples in a society. Exceptions."

There was silence for a moment.

"What're you trying to say here? Do you wish to establish a middle ground?"

"I merely wish to help you understand the world from another perspective. There is no merit for me in establishing a middle ground. After all, I do not care for such things."

"And yet you concern yourself with them all the same."

"It is the duty I have taken upon myself. And I must follow through with it."

After that, the silence persisted.

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A/N: Can anyone guess who these two might be?