The black horse's nostrils suddenly flared, a neigh that sounded more like a roar aiming toward Dyon.
In an instant, a surging pool of energy swirled at the entrance of its mouth, forming into a massive sphere of famine qi.
It was then Dyon realized that the famine qi wasn't only leaving his body and into the air only to attack him once more, but was actually part of a charging process that would be used as an attack by this damned horse!
Dyon was far too close to dodge. His Divine Sense was far too susceptible to distortions in energy to see through the patterns in qi movement and prevent this from happening. At the same time, his ambitious attempt to cover for lack of quality with quantity had obscured the vision of his Perception. To top it all off, it was his own unbridled use of qi that powered this attack.
One could say he brought this all upon himself.
Dyon barely covered his chest with the broad body of the dragon king just as the beam of grey qi slammed into him.
He felt as though his arms were collapsing even as he flew backward through a rain of his own red spears.
Luckily, he still had the wherewithal to push them out of his way by manipulating his soul qi, but there was nothing he could do about the air that was knocked out of him the moment he slammed into the opposite wall.
Dyon coughed violently, what seemed like liters of blood pooling at his feet.
'I asked for that one…'
Dyon still had the mind to chuckle to himself. It seemed he hadn't fought a real battle in so long that he lost all of his battle sense. What a pitiful sight he was now.
He weakly stood, cracking the stiffness in his neck away.
'That balance is a problem. Isn't famine supposed to appear third? Why do I have to deal with him first…?'
Dyon loosened his shoulders, not even noticing the grin on his own face.
"He's a madman. The same madman." The voice trembled beside itself.
'A balance huh…' Dyon slowly thought to himself. '… There's a fourth thing they can't restrict as well… My constitutions.'
Dyon's pupils flickered between an opaque white and a dazzle silver-blue. With every flicker, he seemed to enter the white state for longer and longer. Eventually, his smile disappeared completely, replaced by an expressionless gaze hidden behind eyes as white as pearls.
A balance appeared to Dyon's back as he charged forth once more.
He never really thought about it before, but what were the purposes of the weapons the four horsemen wielded? Conquest wielded a crown and bow… War wielded a broad sword… Death wielded nothing… While famine wielded a balance…
According to the order of legend, Conquest would appear first, followed by War, then Famine, then, finally, Death.
A crown and a bow… It could represent both authority and distance. Maybe not authority as in a King or Emperor, but maybe so as in autonomy. It came first because it was a choice.
The bow was a sign of distance. How easy it was to make a cruel choice when the problems that would result were so far away, so out of reach. However, the crown was also a reminder of responsibility, or more to the point… accountability.
No matter how far you were from the situation… The ownness was still on you.
Then came the broad sword. It was more forward, more savage. The decision had already been made, there was no taking it back, but now one had to bear the brunt of their decision themselves.
This was the very War the Battle God turned his back on. He chose to run from the responsibility, the accountability his title of War came with, and as such, he died before ever stepping foot into the Dao Realm.
In the end of it all, there was Death. He and his pale horse held nothing. There was no more choice to be made, there were paths back waiting for you, there was simply nothing at all.
An empty hand stretched outward to lead you to death… this was Death.
But what about Famine which appeared in between? He held a balance, sitting upon his black horse silently.
Was this a final call to turn back? Or was it a judgement for the crimes you had already committed? Maybe the reality was that it was both. Maybe at this point, there already was no turning back. That deep feeling of regret toward your own foolishness was only there to taunt you…
As they say… There was no medicine for regret.
So as Dyon's mind cleared and the world became nothing but black and white reflected in his ashen pupils, he wondered… Why had the Heavens chosen to have Famine appear first?
Dyon didn't need to think much more to understand.
Famine didn't appear to ask him to 'turn back', nor did it appear as judgement. It appeared as nothing more than a question.
What was already committed could not be reverted. The conquest had already begun. The war was already being waged. The question was… Was there someone there to bear the responsibility? To take the accountability?
lightsΝοvel Who would balance the weight of the world? To take on this burden for themselves?!
Famine was a punishment. It was the plight of the people after the crown made its decision and after the broad sword executed it all. Who would take on this punishment? For the sake of common people, the innocent, the unfortunate… Who would take this weight upon their shoulders?
'Take on the burden for the sake of this world? Absolutely not.' Dyon said with a sneer.
Dyon brandished his dragon scaled sword once more. Instead of drawing back [Thunder God] after learning his lesson, he actually did the complete opposite, investing into it even more.
Lightning danced across his body as he attacked the horseman once more. However this time, his vision was completely different.
With every shift of Famine's balance, Dyon read through the actions before they even occurred. Countless calculations flashed in his mind all at once, causing the trajectory of his blade to change every so slightly every split second.
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