Part 11: The Choice Engraved
Once again, I found myself standing in a dimly lit room.
Unlike the previous place, this seemed to be some kind of basement.
The space was oppressive and narrow, with old paper maps covering the walls and countless scattered documents on the floor.
In the center of it all sat Damian Stone.
He sat with his back straight, eyes closed, yet his face was etched with a deep expression of uncertainty.
“Back again, are you?”
The voice was likely from the weakest part of his consciousness.
I took a step forward and quietly approached him.
Damian, still with his eyes closed, silently awaited me.
“Damian, I know how much you are struggling right now.
But you must not forget there is another path.”
He slowly opened his eyes.
“A path…”
The word carried the weight of a lingering hope he seemed to be pulling back from the edge of fading.
“When I first chose that path, I thought I could never turn back.
But now, what is it?”
I asked.
Damian sighed and gazed at the map before him.
“What lies ahead on this map is power that everyone desires.
I obtained it. But the price of that power is…”
His words trailed off.
I moved closer and placed my hand gently on his shoulder.
“Power always comes with a price.
But gaining power is not the only answer.
What truly matters is how you use it, and for what purpose.”
Damian lifted his head and met my gaze.
In his eyes was a strong will I had once seen.
“What did I want to achieve by obtaining this power…?”
His voice was low, filled with deep regret.
“Is it too late?”
He whispered.
I paused in silence for a moment before answering quietly.
“It’s not too late. No matter which path you choose, you can always look back and choose again.
But the most important thing is what choice you make now.”
Damian stood up and picked up an old pen that lay on the map.
His hand trembled.
“I am still lost.”
His voice conveyed the heavy burden of past decisions.
“Being lost is not a bad thing. It is through being lost that one can find the true path.”
I smiled quietly.
He listened to my words for a while before, with trembling hand, he began to write on the map.
At that moment, the walls of the room seemed to faintly shake.
The time of choice had come.
“I’ll trust again.
The decision to choose again must come after that.”
Damian whispered.
And with that, he firmly ran the pen across the notebook.
In that moment, a single beam of light broke through the dim basement space.
11/15
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