We've all lost loved ones to the inevitability of death. Sooner or later, everyone's time is up. But has death itself ever comprehended why mortals mourn for their loved ones?
Anto, the Black Spirit of Death, had done his job since his ex-lover Alanna had conceived humanity. However, even the Spirit of Death had never honestly understood why someone grieves.
Once, Anto had been in love with Alanna, the White Spirit of Life. But, unfortunately, she'd abandoned him when he introduced the sins of murder and suicide to the first of her children. After that, however, he never stopped loving her. Yet, he frankly didn't comprehend what upset her so much regarding the immoral act he'd committed. Only eons later would he know.
Thirteen years before Anto's attempt to accumulate the Shards of the Elements for his human counterpart, the former Prince Ozai's twisted schemes? He'd done something he wasn't proud of.
Anto had never ceased loving Alanna. Nevertheless, his obsession with her eventually got the better of him. One night after failing again to reconcile with Alanna, he'd gone crazy.
Her rejection of him filled him with so much rage he'd decided to hurt Alanna again. First, she loathed he'd introduce the sins of murder and suicide. Now she'd truly despise him when he committed rape.
Anto transformed himself into a human form, determined to find the most stunning female he could find. He came across a captivating Fire Nation woman walking home from the market. He went into a sexual frenzy and defiled her honor by assaulting her.
He didn't anticipate that his "petty revenge" would have serious consequences later. He heard through the grapevine the woman he'd assaulted to get back at Alanna had become a serial killer.
She'd chosen to become a serial killer to locate the person who stained her honor, thus leaving her in everlasting shame. She'd been caught and exiled to Sato Island. Sato Island was where the Fire Nation banished people who'd committed unjustifiable acts. Anto wouldn't even know till seven months later that the woman had been pregnant with his daughter.
Alanna went off on him for creating such an offspring. So he demanded to know why she even permitted it to occur! If she controlled life? Then why did she choose to enable a child to be conceived?
The holy woman declared he had a lesson to learn. He'd never seen Alanna act like this, as this behavior was extremely out of character. It only became clear thirteen years later why she'd chosen to give his daughter life.
During the Battle of Keaparaberu, his daughter, Wyanet, was slaughtered in cold blood by Alanna's champion, Akiko's ex-father, Zhao. Wyanet had perished in an attempt to save the woman her father loved.
He'd even felt her die. He'd been so outraged by her murder that he'd wanted to slaughter Zhao right there. However, Akiko convinced him to banish her ex-father to the Fog of Lost Souls instead.
Only later did Alanna come to help Anto come to terms with his daughter's death. She helped him through his grieving and said she'd ultimately forgiven him for what he did eons ago.
The Black Spirit of Death had ultimately discovered the hard way why every life is precious. Now he knew what heartache felt like and the pain of losing a loved one to something that cannot be changed.
He'd become 'human' as Alanna had planned. However, she acknowledged she hadn't desired him to learn this lesson in such a manner. Only through intense suffering had he come to understand the desire to protect a loved one and the pain from such a loss. Anto would never forget his daughter or what it truly meant to love and mourn for a lost loved one for the rest of time.
"Blessed are those who mourn, For they shall be comforted."
Matthew 5:4
