How long had he fought? How many lives of people and monsters has he taken in the uncountable days of nonstop adventuring he was subjected to? It wasn't much of his choice in the matter, but he decided that it was better to try and go along with the flows of fate than expend the effort and mental faculties to try and find a way out of it. Sure, he would speculate on possible ways to return to his old home, or at least find a way out of the land of hope and miracles that was Palamecia. Being forced to fight monsters alongside an annoying fairy and a heretic stuck in the past, all while being led around by an enigmatic and mocking voice in his head was in no way the kind of life he would want for all eternity. Everyone expected him to one day grow strong enough to fight the once undefeatable force known as Chaos, and while in the end, he did manage to succeed, he was constantly crushed by the expectations of an unknown number of other Blanks and innocent people.

It was maddening, but there were a few silver linings.

The man once known as Cloud, a first class SOLDIER and unwilling temporary resident of Palamecia, eventually became a rather close friend to the Blank. They spoke little but fought alongside one another like friends who had known each other for years. This man was one of the closest friends that the Blank had ever made and would always hold a special place in his memories.

Speaking of close friends, the fairy named Echo that trailed him on his journey was something like a friend. She was annoying and would not leave him alone, but in a way that was part of her charm. He could hardly stand her most of the time and more often than not brought up his desire to either see her disappear or find a way to get away from her, but over time those once very true statements became small jokes and jabs he would toss out to see her get flustered and angry. It was adorable and was a nice break when the silence of his adventure became too much. Deep down, he wasn't quite sure what he would do without that little fairy to give him side quests and motivation. There were times when he just wanted to sit back and give up, but she wouldn't let him. She'd help him find a reason to stand back up and fight on, even when the stress of the prophecy he was subjected to was practically crushing his spirit.

When once he relied on darker, more selfish motives, she helped him find other reasons to stand tall.

Oh, don't get him wrong, he was still a sarcastic asshole and blunter than a well-worn hammer. It was also likely he would find strength in rage or revenge over any other emotion, but he also fell in love with the idea of adventure and loot, something that Echo was obsessed with to an unhealthy degree. Even with his newfound respect and love for those two things, Echo would always have him beat in that regard. She always found ways to distract him from his path to complete challenges and competitions with other Blanks in the pursuit of loot.

He really needed to find the little thing a therapist at some point...

Sadly, he would not be able to do that now. He would not be able to go on wonderful adventures and compete in challenges with the high-pitched commentary of his tiny companion, but most of all he would never be able to hear her voice again. She would go away forever, along with everyone else he had come to hold as almost-friends. Cloud had used a crystal to return to his own home, the sweet princess had patched things up with Garland and the two now had other things to do besides adventuring with him, and all the other Blanks he'd had the mixed pleasure of conversing with were dying or finding their own paths in life. Everyone and everything would move on without him, and possibly even be reset, and some new Blank will take up his name or another name and be fated to fight and defeat Chaos.

And the reason for this, the reason all of this must be left behind, was very simple: He, the fated Blank, had defeated Chaos. The amalgamation of darkness and whatever the hell it was made of had been vanquished thanks to him, and now it was time to receive his gift. What was this gift, you ask? His long awaited gift, his reward for completing his prophecy and bringing immense hope to this land, was a way home. He'd fought long and hard, made friends and enemies alike, and his gift was to have it all taken away so that he could return from whence he came.

How fucking wonderful.

It wasn't fair. It just was not fair, but when was his life ever fair? He should have expected this. He should have known that he was going to lose everything to have one of his old desires fulfilled. Sure, he once desired a way out of this place, but now he wasn't too sure if he wanted that anymore. In the end, that choice was made for him. He was going home.

He didn't know if he wanted to go home.

Staring at the mesmerizing glimmer of the azure crystal floating above his hands, he came to the decision that he would at least try to live his new life, but with something familiar by his side. He turned and smiled to the fairy floating above his shoulder, a hand moving towards her in a welcoming manner.

"Come with me," he said to her.

"I can't," She said back. She gave him an adorable little smile, but her wings betrayed her. She was sad too. She didn't want her friend to disappear, but most importantly. "I can't live outside of Palamecia. I can't even exist without you. Once you leave, I will disappear. No one will remember me because I could not fight. I will just fade away."

"I know," he whispered. His voice was dulled at this point, the emotion slowly dying from it at each of her words before all that was left was the husk it was at the beginning. "I guess I just held onto too much hope. After all this time giving hope to others, when I finally have my own hopes, they get torn away."

Echo's sad smile was accompanied by a rain of tears as she dove to him and buried her face in his cheek. She really didn't want him to go. He was by her side for so long, he meant so much to her, and in the end, he is torn from her. She would disappear now, and he would probably run the risk of living the rest of his life alone.

She felt a moistness in her hair and gave a wide smile when she looked up at him.

"You're crying," She told him. "I thought you no longer cried?"

"I can't help it," He croaked out. He had stood strong for so long, cried so little, and in the end, he could barely prevent himself from completely breaking down. "I'll miss you."

"I'll miss you too." She whispered. The glow of the crystal in his hands grew much more intense while her form started to fade.

It was too bright now. The crystal's blinding glow masked the fading face of his fairy and left him floating in a sea of white, a white he was familiar with yet unable to remember.

Was this the way home?

It didn't matter. He would stand tall, not matter what was thrown his way. He was the Warrior of Light, one of many saviors of Palamecia, and he would live by the golden rule beaten into every Blank.

None shall remember those who do not fight, and Avalon will not be forgotten.