For six days and nights they attacked, on the last night of the scourge I was stabbed through the heart by a betrayer. I barely made it four feet before I succumbed to lord Hades. I remember waking up in Taurtaus surrounded by friends and family, in particular my wife Sereena, who told me that my time was not at hand. When my soul met with my body again, I woke to find myself with those who had fallen in battle. Quickly I changed out of my uniform and into those of an unfortunate civilian who had tried to stop the battle; he was the luckiest however, many others had wounds that included missing limbs, most so gruesome I will not mention them because it is best I do not. I decide to leave this horrific setting and made my way to the nearest city, which was Athenia.
When I arrived everyone was huddled in the square. I had asked a merchant what was happening he stated that the general had fallen in battle, and they had prevailed in his name. That would be the first time I felt it, but not the last, the feeling that someone I should be taking notice of was here, his name was Sun Tzu from the land of Chin, it is he who would be my teacher, as he approached me I asked if he were to help me avenge my death, and return to my love. He said that he would help me survive, when I asked what he meant he simply hushed me and took me into a local alehouse.
He explained that I was immortal and could only die if my head was cut from my body, it took a while to believe it, but finally I did. It was after I accepted my fate, I asked if it was fated for me to become immortal why did the fates not tell me, I believed in them, could they not believe in me? He said that it is not a question of you believing in these fates it is a question of them believing in you. The next day we began training he helped me perfect my attacks, thrusts, parries, and dodges. When my training was complete, he did something I did not expect, he challenged me, as I took his head,a nd had his quickening his last words still ring in my head.
"He who loses the battle, is freed from the battlefield, but the winner must keep the price of the victory in his heart, forever." As the Quickening ended I began to pack up his things, I noticed a book sticking out of a pouch, it read, "The Art of War: by Sun Tzu." I read through it to the very last page, on it was exactly what he said to me before I took his head, angrily, I ripped the page out and burned it. As I began walking, I began to think what a meagre existence this is going to be, killing, being alone. Just then I felt it again; I looked to see a woman...
M. Sebastian Caine IV