Last Days In Death (Open)

Valan listened intently to what Typha had to say, but his expression turned into a bit of a frown. “That is a shame, Namek is a beautiful world.” The Shinjin sighed, his brow furrowing. “However, I must disagree on view of your demise. I doubt that you deserved to die. I would ask why you think so, but I assume the reasoning is personal— and I will not pry if you are unwilling to share. Simply put, if you were sent to Heaven, you are not a bad person. Yemma never judges incorrectly.” Valan spoke in an incredibly stern manner, it was not likely that he would budge nor be discouraged from having his current opinion.

On the plus side, Namek seemed to be doing just fine according to Typha, and that was a great relief to Valan. “Very good. I must say I am rather proud of the Namekian populace. They are a rather resourceful people, despite what some dreadfully ignorant fools may say.” Perhaps Typha had nothing to worry about, but the mortal realm could benefit from having one of it’s finest back. Thankfully, it seemed that would be taken care of soon enough given what Typha had disclosed thus far. Valan promptly followed Typha and Yudi as they selected a table to sit at, giving the employees of the sandwich shop a kind smile and nod. The Shinjin had no preference for any specific seat so he just took the one closest to him upon arrival. “Thank you, Typha.”

Valan scoffed and gave off a smirk, he was beginning to understand why Typha said what he did. “I suppose we can agree to disagree. In my opinion, failure is not the inability to accomplish a task. True failure comes from the inability to learn from what went wrong. If you are up here in heaven after death, then you have learned quite a lot, enough for what good you did to, to be recognised. This might not make much sense, but Hell is for the people that have a lot left to learn... Though yes it is of course also for the truly damned and nefarious, that much is obvious.” The Shinjin casually shrugged, looking around at the other customers in the sandwich shop as he waited patiently for his order alongside the other two.

“Would it bring you peace of mind if I was to take some time and assess the situation on Namek? If and when you are revived, should you choose to head elsewhere I could always contact you in the mortal realm to give you a run down on what is happening.”

“Indeed, and I am sure you shall one day make amends for your perceived failures. At the very least— you do have my support.” Valan added with a slight bow. “That is fine by me, I have a lot of time that needs occupying. So, I have always figured why not do something with it. It is of course convenient that our concerns for the mortal realm seem to be aligned; it makes sense to act upon it for the overall betterment of Mortal societies.”

Valan nodded, Yudi was correct; even in the ‘peace times’ that the Shinjin had observed over his many years, the Mortal realm was not dull. Conflict still existed and will continue to exist— what governed it’s impact is how people choose to deal with it. “Mhm. I can attest to this, Yudi; since I have seen a few milleniums come and go for better and for worse.”

Valan nodded to Yudi “All beings with free will shall hold true desire for something of their own making. Sometimes, individuals with similar wants and desires will emerge— that is what makes them friends or allies. On the other hand, there will be those that want something that others do not, in this regard they create enemies. Both of these scenarios can result in rivals, however.” Valan was quite aware this could be a rather obvious statement to some, but even the most basic principles of free thinking life deserved respect, recognition and in some cases repetition.

“Conflict happens. It is unavoidable. It is a result of free will. Many have made attempts to snuff out free will in the universe— and that is most unwise. Indeed, free will brings out the worst in people, but it also brings out the best in them. Beings of free will can feel love, compassion for one another. They laugh, they joke— they live as a result of beautiful chaos. If that which we know was truly dull... We would have lost that which makes it all truly worth it.” The Shinjin grew quite excited and animated as he spoke of his views to his two newest friends, there was a vibrant energy present in his tone when he spoke of life and the mortals that lived it. “This is why I cannot stand how many of my kind act. Not only have they not seen what I see... They often outright ignore it. One day though, I shall change that.” Valan smirked. Though he was unsure how exactly he was going to achieve this goal, he was fiercely determined to eventually manage it.

Valan smiled, glad that Typha and Yudi had both considered his wisdom. “Precisely, good sirs. The power to make choices that are wholly your own is what makes people truly alive. Perhaps, if you are still intending to pay for what you perceive as failures or bad deeds done to your people— start with keeping them free from being used and manipulated. It will be hard to protect them, but nothing worth doing is ever easy.”

The Shinjin fell silent for a while, allowing the group some time to think on what had been said so far in their encounter. “Just remember, Typha, to consider your own freedom and wellbeing too. Duty is one thing, and a sense of justice is most admirable— but I have seen it destroy people from the inside out with the festering illness that is obsession. If that terrible fate was to befall you, who would remain of sound mind to protect Konats from that which would cause it and it’s people harm?”

“Exactly, thank you again, Typha!” It wasn’t much of a surprise that a mortal agreed with the idea, but it did wonders for Valan’s confidence that one would voice their opinion so positively. “Now if only more of my people thought the same of themselves” Valan chuckled and rolled his eyes dismissively. He couldn’t understand Shinjin society as it was right now— or in his eyes; as it always had been— and he wasn’t about to try any time soon.

Typha was willing to take Valan’s words to heart, but he needed a nudge in the right direction to make the most of it. Glad that Typha asked for his help, Valan gave the Konatsian’s inquiry some well deserved thought.

“First thing’s first; Just remember that you matter just as much as those you are the sword and shield for. Now, some will see you as only that— your best course of action is to mitigate the risk of such a thing occurring. Get to know the citizens of Konats, show them that you have feelings of your own. Show them those things, and they will understand that they can be as strong as you are. Make sure they can defend themselves too. That said, defending the universe... You are right in that it will be a lot of work. In fact, it is not something that can be done on your lonesome. It is, in fact, impossible. Let that sink in, do not even begin to entertain delusions of grandeur. Going solo in this regard is foolish and beyond idiotic.” Valan looked between Typha and Yudi. The Shinjin smiled, his gaze resting on the Ogre for a moment. “So, make friends, just as you have with Yudi here. Extend your friendship to many more like-minded people. He faced Typha once more before his ending statements. “Forge strong bonds. Be as sure as you can be that they will not break. Fight for those bonds and with those bonds going forward.”