Titans Throne

Darkness

Kenshin was flustered with rage, but more than answers, he wanted revenge. The amount of information that had entered him mind had brought him to the brink of insanity, and he could barely understand any of it. Thus Kenshin decided to turn the tables. He opened up his palms and congealed two katanas with his Soul Force.

Using his Soul Force, Kenshin made the swords join to form a sort of coat of arms. That was going to be his brand. Without saying anything, Kenshin made the brand approach Bastian's chest. Bastian did not resist and merely braced his mind for what might come. Bastian's greatest fear was that Kenshin would throw in as much information as he did.

Even though it was unlikely, it was still a possibility that made Bastian very uncomfortable. Bastian was not a coward by nature but he was not a fearless man either. After seeing what Kenshin had gone through, his mind was placed in a prison of paranoia.

Bastian closed his eyes when he saw the brand enter his chest. He tried to prepare his mind for what was about to enter as best as possible. His experience with Li and with the Mark had taught him the value of having control over your mind.

When the process of the branding was over, the information finally started flowing into Bastian's mind, except it was not quite what Bastian had expected. The memories he saw were comprised of mostly one thing, darkness.

A darkness that encompassed everything, all that was there were sounds, smells and feelings from touch. Not only was there darkness, emotions also came with it, anger, resentment, loneliness and fear. All of the emotions were negative, and very powerful, especially the fear.

Bastian basked in this fear, as it was impossible to avoid. Never had Bastian felt such dread. The fear had rendered him speechless. Bastian lost control of his own body and collapsed. His eyes were open but he could not see. His ears could not hear anything. He could not feel anything. It was as if he had been cut off from the rest of the world. For Bastian this was the worst feeling he had ever experienced, ever since coming to the Sovereign Continent.

In this state, time and space felt like irrelevant concepts. Bastian's own self-awareness was at an all-time low. It took all of his will power to keep himself from getting lost in the darkness. By the time he had finally gotten back his senses, the torrent of negative emotions had faded. Bastian finally regained self control and stood up.

The entire time, Kenshin had done nothing but stand and observe Bastian. When Bastian stood up, he opened his mouth but no words could come out. After gathering his wits about him, he finally found the words he was looking for. "You, you are blind?"

"Yes, I am. So, how was the darkness?" said Kenshin. "You think you are the only one who thinks little of death? Well let me tell you something. I have wanted to take my own life countless times. But I did not, just because I do not fear death, does not mean it is not significant. None of us have ever died, so there is no one who knows what death is like. Do not underestimate it!" Kenshin had assumed his words were wise, and indeed under normal circumstances they were, but unfortunately he said them to the wrong person.

"Showing me your most miserable memories and including your own emotions, very clever. But unfortunately your words are barking up the wrong tree. Since you still do not understand me, then let me add one more thing to my brand." Bastian created another Taiji brand in his palm, and made it fly toward Kenshin.

Wary, Kenshin said, "What are you adding?" Bastian smiled as he said, "I gave you my knowledge, but not my perspective. I am going to include my personal memories and perspective, all the way up till this moment. That way, I won't need to explain anything to you. After seeing you superimpose two brands to make one, it gave me this idea."

Kenshin heaved a sigh of relief when he heard Bastian's words. "But why now? Why have you decided to include them now?"

Kenshin wanted to know why Bastian was doing this. As far as he was concerned, Bastian should not like him. Even though they were performing the Soul Brethren ritual they were more enemies than friends. Not to mention there was also the chance that Bastian would add only negative emotions like he had. But Kenshin wasn't worried, as far he was concerned, it was unlikely that Bastian could have an experience that could match up to his.

"The answer is simple I need at least one person to fully understand me. Previously I had allowed my childishness to get the best of me, so I had not given you all the information you should have. After experiencing what you went through, whatever that was, I realized that I need more friends than enemies, and make a friend out of you in particular who is going to literally have a part of me."

Bastian's words made sense, so Kenshin allowed Bastian to go ahead. Bastian superimposed this new Taiji over the old one. The new brand contained not only all of Bastian's memories but also his perspective, allowing Kenshin to understand all that Bastian did from science to Mark Bearers. At that moment, Kenshin began to experience an easy time. The information flowed into his mind easily and became part of him.

It was at this point that Kenshin realized why Bastian cared so little about dying.

He already died!

This information was a revelation for Kenshin. Not only had Bastian died but he had died with virtually no family or friends to care about him. His experiences in life were horrible and yet somehow, Bastian's perspective toward life was still positive!

This fact alone shocked Kenshin. He did not need to ask why Bastian felt that way. He already had his perspective but he was still amazed. All Kenshin had given Bastian was negativity and suffering. After thinking it through, Kenshin realized that Bastian had given him knowledge and a new perspective. As far as Kenshin was concerned, the perspective was far more valuable. Bastian had essentially shown Kenshin all he was.

Would I be able to show someone who I truly am so easily?

Although Kenshin was surprised by the fact that Bastian had reincarnated from another world with his memories intact, he was more concerned about what he would do next. After resolving himself, Kenshin opened his palms once more and created two more katanas with his Soul Force.

Bastian was no fool. He understood what Kenshin was doing. Bastian allowed the new brand to enter his chest and superimpose the old one. He was curious as to what Kenshin had put in. After the brand had settled, new information started entering his mind. As far as Bastian was concerned, this information was far more valuable than anything. Battle experience!

What Bastian lacked the most was battle experience, considering the fact that he had only been able to fight for no more than a day in physical form.

This experience would not only improve his own ability to react and think in battle, it would also improve his mindset, because it had Kenshin's perspective! Bastian's perspective contained how he viewed life. Kenshin's was no different. This would prove invaluable as it would improve his mentality toward battle. Kenshin was a brave and resilient warrior, and this aspect of him had now become a part of Bastian!

Due to the fact that Kenshin had Bastian's memories, he knew exactly what Bastian needed.

Kenshin was a dual wielding swordsman. And all of his experience and skills had been put into the brand, including his own perspective, that perspective was just as valuable as Bastian's, if not more valuable.

For it not only included Kenshin's battle experience, but also included his insights into the Dao of the Sword!