A man walks into the darkness of his own soul. In that place he finds a prison, bound and crafted with the chains and nets he himself crafted over the years. Silvery prayers and golden songs bound the cage tight, sealing in the beast that had so long ravaged the man. His footsteps echoed in the great nothingness, the sounds of his thoughts wafting through the air like springtime breezes. He reaches a hand to the cage and raps a knuckle against it. Vibrations raced through the place, subtle waves of emotion. Within the shadows of the prison a mass stirred and a great armored head came within the light of the man; eyes squinting in pain at the light. The creatures massive body had been beaten, its horns broken, its claws shattered and its armor pierced; broken though it was, the creature remained a fearsome sight.

“What is it you want, light bearer?” The beast groaned out, voice rough and chocked with fatigue.

“I wish to know who you are,” The man said, voice quiet but strong.

“You know well who I was, and you broke me for it,”

“I did not ask who you where, but who you are,” The man replied.

The creature heaved a great sigh “I am what is left of your rage. I am the shattered remnants of your hate, your lust for power, you’re jealously. I am but a broken shell now.”

“But you are a part of me?” The man asked

The creatures bloody red eyes began to water “You know this. Why? Why do you come to torture me further? Why do you gloat over my broken body, light bearer?”

The man did not respond but instead began to pace around the cage, a hand stroking his chin in thought.

“What if I were to let you free? What then would happen?”

The beast growled in contempt “I would do as I always have, hate, destroy, ravage. You may have broken me, but you cannot change my nature, light bearer,”

“But if I called upon you in a time of need?” The man pressed

“It would make no difference. Unleash me upon a thousand demons or free my cage in the presence of infants; I will do as I have always done, be who I have always been,”

“Is this what you wish?” asked the man.

The beast seemed slightly taken aback “No creature wishes imprisonment” It paused for a moment before continuing “But in the question of whether or not my captivity is just? I must then admit that it is,”

The man sighed “Then you have no place in my life. Fare well, Hatred”

The man turned his back and walked back towards the light of his life, but just before he left that place of eternal darkness the beast spoke up “I will be free, lightbearer. One day you will lose your control and then these prayers, bound by your faith, will be meaningless. I will ravage the earth once more, if only for a brief while,”

The man looked briefly over his shoulder “I know,”

He stepped into the light and Hatred was left in the darkness, broken, battered, and waiting.
Always waiting.