Post by Lord Hastings on May 30, 2014 13:17:24 GMT -5
It is said that pride is a sin.
Some would even say it is the greatest of all sins.
I say that pride has to be earned.
Some would even say it is the greatest of all sins.
I say that pride has to be earned.
The sound of a rocking chair can be heard in the nursery. Donovan sits with his two infants nuzzled into his chest, their eyelids visibly heavy.
Hastings: There once was a realm, the golden realm in which was found the city of angels. Once a place of joy and achievement, it began to fall into darkness, until one day a champion emerged, prepared to usher in a new era. Against all odds he defeated the realm’s resident evil, and after that was able to vanquish an even greater evil. After saving one world from the brink of destruction, he weathered the incursion of another, uniting two worlds and ushering in a new glorified era.
One of the babies sighs as she fades into her slumber.
Hastings: It wasn’t long before it came time for this lord to step away from his throne, mingle amongst the peasantry, allow others to carry the larger burden. He waged war with the flamboyant dragon from the far east, and put down the insurgency of the red-eyed warrior. Yet through it all, he knew the day would come that the kingdom would need him to return to his throne, that his people required it, and his legacy demanded it. Once it inevitably did, this lord did what was necessary and beyond, but his journey had taught him a lesson that he would never forget, that his greatest legacy was not his deeds themselves, but rather what he left behind. His gift to the world.
With both infants now asleep, Donovan carefully rises from the chair and places them in their crib. As Calypso watches silently from the doorway, he looks down upon his daughters.
Hastings: Both of them.
The proof of an achieved self-esteem is your soul’s shudder of contempt and rebellion against the role of a sacrificial animal, against the vile impertinence of any creed that proposes to immolate the irreplaceable value which is your consciousness and the incomparable glory which is your existence to the blind evasions and the stagnant decay of others.
Pride is not my downfall, but rather the declaration of my own moral perfection, achieved by never accepting any code of irrational virtues, never failing to practice a rational virtue, and never accepting an unearned guilt or allowing a supposed earned guilt to stand uncorrected. By never placing any concern, wish, fear, or mood of the moment above the reality of my own self-esteem. Most of all, the rejection of any doctrine that would preach immolation as a moral virtue or duty.
Casa del Roberts…
Peterson: I don’t mean to speak out of turn, but you guys probably need to focus a bit and get serious. You’re not playing tiddly-winks here.
Vain: How fortunate then for you that ‘The Vain One’ is a world champion tiddly-winker. Come, fetch that cranky muppet and ‘The Epitome of Sexy’ will teach you everything you need to know and then some.
Vain gingerly stands up, some of his new cuts and lacerations clearly still having their effect, and saunters out of the room. Owen looks at Donovan incredulously.
Hastings: You’d better go with him, he’s concussed.
Owen shakes his head and follows after Vain, leaving Donovan sitting with Travis and Dirge.
Roberts - As ‘The Blessed One’ was saying, there is nothing to be achieved by defeating Phrixus Deimos yet again. Battleground and Horizons were more than enough to make the point. This is excessive.
Hastings: Maybe you should wear a blindfold.
Roberts - If it were a situation like yours it would be understandable.
Hastings: Like mine?
Roberts - Yes, obviously, as you’ve never beaten Moss.
Dirge flinches in the slightest, his eyes dart from Travis to Donovan.
Hastings: Nor has he ever truly beaten me. His supposed victories over me can all be credited to distractions and interference. He “won” all those years ago at Toxic Intent because events had transpired to make the entire match secondary to me, an obstacle in the way of my being able to deal with more immediate concerns. What happened two years ago at Kobayashi Maru was necessary to stomp out the snake in my grass. Moss Edwards has never faced me on an even ground, in a scenario where I could give his defeat the proper care and attention that it deserves. Rest assured, my reign will continue.
Roberts - Yes, of course.
Travis shifts and takes his phone out of his pocket, glancing at it over his aviators. He stands and motions with the phone before walking away with it.
Dirge: Edwards is a threat.
Hastings: He’s a cliche, and a conceited prick that has never been successful without employing his own array of smoke and mirrors. You weren’t here when he assembled a cult of dim-witted followers for himself, dressed himself up and hid behind a mask, and tried to pass himself off as some sort of dark and twisted royalty. He called himself the Puppetmaster before we showed everyone what the word really means, and he has no strings left to pull. I will tear him apart with my bare hands. He’s a dramatic fool that is in over his head, and his arrogance will be his downfall.
Dirge: That may be, but do us all a favor, and don’t let your pride be yours.
Hold your child in your arms.
Look into their eyes.
Hear their laughter.
Feel their touch.
Then you explain to me what could ever be wrong about pride.
Look into their eyes.
Hear their laughter.
Feel their touch.
Then you explain to me what could ever be wrong about pride.