Chapter 十一: Stone
Before one can claim to be the saviour of the human race from something so powerful as mysticism and magic, one must have survived some sort of moral test, some sort of challenge between the right and wrongs of humanity. Before I begin my destiny as the Saviour, the Shaman that would put an end to the horrible reign of the Zodiac's, I had to undergo a test. It was a test that occurred at an early age. I wasn't a child but I hadn't yet become a man, I was only fourteen. That limbo of childhood innocence and adult ideas were ripe inside of me, it was a time of self-identity and understanding, it was deciding the kind of man I wanted to become from the boy I currently was.
At that time and place where I lived, the Pig was the highest Zodiac influence in our region. It was a sign representing honor, tolerance and sincerity. At its worst however, the Pig was possessive, jealous and naïve. This combination, the strive for honor without having jealousy was the perfect mixture of the human need for a war, to show one another up, to show who was the most honorable. It would be the first war in history and, the first mortal war influenced by the Zodiac's. It was a mortal test of mystic proportions, one that we humans automatically knew our fate: failure.
As a male, I was forced to take part in this war. The youngest age to enter was ten years old, the younger male children stayed home and became the man of the house, having to take care of the rest of the family, their property, crops, animals and whatever money they had.
Royalty were excluded from this war but did take a part in aiding weapons, rations and tactical input. They would hang banners of good luck, to bring upon fortune and victor, as well as cheer on their soldiers. In reality, they were cheering on their people who were dying by the masses.
I entered into the war when I was fourteen, not yet a man but no longer a child. I knew right from wrong, innocence from experience and most importantly, chaos from peace. I had known the stories of the Zodiac's since I was small, always in awe and fear, afraid of an inhuman power that could destroy us. That inhuman power was reigning now, driving the human race at war and unease with one another. Before the war, I had heard rumors of what had happened in the villages ruled by the Dog, the Rooster and the Snake. Cock fighting had migrated into other villages, more men wanted to prove themselves as the strongest, their passion guided by greed. When this war started however, cock fighting was put on hold to preserve more male lives to fight. The outcome could only be death once again.
When I was given my weapon, my badge that claimed me to be one of the best soldiers in our village (a badge every man received), a rock dropped into my heart, turning me to stone. I didn't want to become a slave to the Pig's power; I didn't want my caring, loving nature to turn dark and evil. I made sure to remain neutral, indifferent.
When I observed my first death in the war, a boy who had just turned twelve the day he signed up (I was in front of him in line that day to register a spot in the war), had his head cut clean off with a butterfly sword, I knew that the stone in my heart had cracked and my emotions were played out. I had thrown down my weapons, picked up the boy and screamed. I cursed the world, the sea, the sky and the mountains. The elements were against me, against us all. When I had cursed all four sides, I cursed each and every Zodiac, cursing them for this torment they brought upon the human race.
I laid the boy down, kicked away our weapons and walked. I walked for days on end, somehow dodging the battle and the death around me. I ripped off my badge and uniform and became a ghost, a dead man. I ran from my home, my family and the war. I was never found, believed to be dead among the millions of other bodies but however, I was very much alive. I had my own plans, my own agenda that needed to be fulfilled. I became friends and a student of monks, priests and shamans. I learned the ins and outs of magic, mysticism, ritual and elemental power. I held the staff of knowledge, power and hopefully, peace that would be returned onto the world.
I became the Shaman who would restore the earth, the future from being controlled by the negative powers of the Zodiac's. I learned that they could be harnessed and contained, a mortal instrument of mythical attributes. I had learned through war that peace was and had to be the initial outcome. The Pig could no longer keep my heart as hard as stone.