Prologue

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After Hector awoke to find that Beacon had still managed to fall and that he had killed Amber, the now previous Fall Maiden had gone into a depression over what he had done aswell as for not stopping the fall of Beacon Academy.
He mostly spent his days in bed wondering what he could've- no... SHOULD'VE done.

He should've killed Cinder when he had the chance.

He could've killed her when he saw her during the night of the dance.

He could've killed her when her team was at Beacon.

And yet... Ozpin... that old fool held him back.

The way Hector saw it, it was Ozpin's lack of action that led to the downfall of Beacon Academy. Because of his arrogance not only did Salem's pet Cinder receive half of the Fall Maiden's power but he was forced to kill Amber... an innocent person. And Pyrrha... he had now forced her to become another pawn to Ozpin which he didn't forgive himself for.

Hector saw why Traya left Ozpin's group. If this is what he felt like after one death... how did Traya deal with seeing those she called allies or even friends die?

Hector was sitting up on his bed wishing he had done something or anything to change the outcome of Beacon. He looked to the side where there was a desk in front of the window where his signature gas mask was sitting on top.

The gas mask was positioned in a way that it was facing the window with its reflection seemingly facing him which bothered him. The gas mask's smile on the top left side was somewhat melted giving off the impression of a smile that lightly contorted into a frown.

Like his lungs constant decay and regeneration it was a constant reminder of just how much he had failed and now had to live with the burden of knowing just that.

According to Traya they were in the southwestern part of Vale where there was a small cabin near a town where they could hideout for the meantime.

Traya had been by his side. She didn't say much since Hector himself rarely talked now and much less ate. However during one night when the moon was fully visible he decided to leave the his bed which was telling to Traya but decided not to comment. It had been nearly one month of him being bed ridden and the only time he got out of bed was to either go eat or go to the bathroom.

He wouldn't even look himself in the mirror as seeing his own reflection would mean seeing just how far he had fallen. Seeing his own reflection would mean seeing his eyes which would mean seeing his grandmother's eyes. He couldn't bear to think her reaction to see him going from a gang leader to one of the most prolific bounty hunters in Remnant. Deciding that sitting in the cabin would only drag his mind further into despair he grabbed his gas mask that covered the bottom half of his face and went outside despite only having just enough strength to walk.

So when Traya found him sitting outside on a small hill looking up she decided to go see what the young man was thinking.

Traya herself knew that the greatest of wars were never those waged by nations but those that are fought within one's mind and heart. Traya sensed what appeared to be a small conflict within him, it wasn't anything major or let alone noticeable but it was there.

Opening up the back door and walking towards Hector she asked,
"Enjoying the night?"

To which Hector merely ignored and instead asked while looking at the moon shinning high above the sky.
"Can I ask you something?"
Traya then sat beside him and replied,
"You have but to ask."

"How?... how do you do it. How do you deal with the loss?" Hector said without looking away at the moon. Traya was silent at first before answering.

"To be truthful you it wasn't easy, itwas cruel. Seing those that I have trained to the best of my ability and to whom I shared my wisdom to die was cruel. But as I've said before with the death of my parents. To realize that moving on from the deaths of those who I held dear is to accept their life for what it was. The people I knew lived their life. It may not have been deserved or they may have left this world too early but in time spent grieving and time spent healing you may once again live your life stronger than before."

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