Lucius sat on the edge of a cliff, gazing into the distance, listening to the sound of the crashing waves below him.
The reddish golden glow that the setting sun shone upon him, mixed with his distant expression and the wind caressing his black hair, made him look the part of a glorious character.
"Oh my gosh..... He looks so cool!"
Lucius turned his head to see who had made such a comment. His distant blue eyes suddenly became warm and a smile emerged on his face.
"Come over here you two"
Two young children, a girl and a boy, ran over to meet him. They sat beside him, having joyful looks of expectation.
"Uncle Lucius," the boy began. "What new move are you going to teach us today!"
Lucius patted the boy's head before saying, "I have nothing left to teach you. The both of you are talented learners."
"Really then why did you call us here?" the little girl asked.
Lucius looked into the distance once more, his eyes even more distant than before.
"Uncle Lucius?"
The boy's voice broke Lucius out if his short reverie.
"Right, I was about to tell you something."
Lucius looked down at the waves crashing at the base of the cliff, thinking of something wise to say to the children.
"Do you see the waves crashing against this cliff?"
The to kids looked at each other, then at the waves, then at him.
"Yes, we do...."
"Do you think you could calm those waves with your power?"
The two looked at each other again, their small minds not able to understand what he was trying to say. That and he was terrible at explaining.
"I don't think we could. But if we had a water affinity, we probably could."
"That's an incredible answer." Lucius praised the girl for her high intellect.
"But I must tell you, it's not always about affinity. Anybody could still these waves. Even this turbulent ocean can be stilled by one person."
Lucius' words had already captured the children's attention. They were very much interested in the supernatural.
"As long as a person reaches a certain height in the mastery of Martial Arts, mana and qi..... they would be able to do many things. Maybe even raising the dead!"
The children were amazed. They had never heard Lucius speak in such a manner before. Neither had they heard of what he was saying....
"So you mean I could calm these waves if I tried!!" the boy asked in excitement.
Lucius face-palmed and let out a sigh.
"It seems you didnt understand. Let me try again....."
Lucius looked around. The sun was almost hidden, which meant he had to finish with them so they could go home.
"Aha!" he exclaimed as he looked at the clouds.
"Do you think you could separate the clouds with a punch?"
The children were once again confused.
"No?"
"Exactly! But you can't do it now doesn't mean you won't be able to....."
The facial expressions of the two told Lucius the obvious—he wasn't making any sense.
"Ugh! I'm talking about determination and power! I'm trying to tell you that determination doesn't get you what you want. It's ability combined with knowledge! They go hand in hand....."
Lucius took a deep breath before letting out a sigh. His eyes became distant once more as he recalled a memory. The image of a woman flashed in his mind.
"What I'm trying to say is... become strong. In this world, that's the only way you can protect yourself and others as well."
He looked at the kids and patted their heads.
"You two should go home. Don't make your mother's worry....."
"See you tomorrow Uncle Lucius....."
Lucius didn't reply. His expression had akready darkened in the absence of the children.
"Don't forget what I said! Become strong..... I'm sure you kids can do it!"
"Okay!"
The kids ran off happily down to the village, oblivious to the fact that Lucius was giving them his last words.
As soon as Lucius was sure the kids weren't close by, he popped out a small white bottle from his pocket.
He looked at the last strands of light the sun gave before going to rest after a day's work.
"I guess you and I.... are kind of in the same shoes. Our light has come to an end."
Lucius looked down at the waves as the sun set completely.
"....only difference is, my light is out for good..."
The bottle contained a fast-acting poison that could kill even a Martial Artist like himself.
His plan was to drink it and jump into the ocean so nobody would see his body. Even in death he didn't want anybody to go through the trauma of seeing a dead person, especially those kids.
As much as he hated to admit it, Lucius still had a kind heart. Even after everything he'd done in his past.
"I didn't even tell them goodbye....." he said to himself.
He looked at the bottle for a while before removing the cover. He sniffed it a little, before hesitantly bringing it to his lips....