Marco's Heart

[peccatore]

You find yourself in a bright white, circular room. It's nearly empty; too bare, almost clinically so. But the bareness of it means that what is visible here stands out:

A podium in the center, where a familiar figure sits, head buried in his hands. Three paths running from the podium to three different spots near the edges of the room - not corners; circles don't have corners - where three doors leading seemingly nowhere stand with no regard for their complete lack of structural support.

It doesn't take you long to figure out where you are, does it? You only have to decide where to start.

Comments

[pyrrhicviktory]

I see. I don't know much more than this. What else does your religion say about your god?

For example... in Zaun, the most popular deity is Janna. She is a wind spirit, and people often pray to her for clean air.

[peccatore]

"Well... Er, God doesn't have a specific... domain like that. He's... omnipotent, as well as omniscient. Why is why He's... just the one, I suppose."

[pyrrhicviktory]

I see. What else? Did he... come from anywhere? What is he known for? What are his ideals?

[peccatore]

"He, ah, created the world and every single thing on it, supposedly. He's... good, and kind and merciful."

... Marco is anticipating an objection.

[pyrrhicviktory]

[ Viktor definitely has objections, but it isn't time for those yet. Instead, he says ]

I can see how that would be appealing.

[peccatore]

"... Yes." He sighs.

"Our holy book is comprised of... Well, of many different parts, actually, but it's more broadly split into the Old Testament and the New Testament. It's the New Testament that's especially important to-- Er, to this particular branch of the religion that I subscribe to, because it tells the story of Jesus Christ. And, uh, it amends, or... otherwise renders null some of the earlier teachings."

[pyrrhicviktory]

Religions can adapt and change over time, as the times change. It is not so unusual for the rules to be updated.

[peccatore]

"Right, of course. Uh-- What more did you want to know?"

[pyrrhicviktory]

Hmm. Your parents... or I should say, your perceptions of them, seemed particularly fixated on "God's plan." Is that common? Is there a dogma about how the world is supposed to go?

[peccatore]

"... No. Not necessarily. Some people... do believe God has a predetermined path for all of us. But I can't say that it's a tenet."

[pyrrhicviktory]

Then... what about you? What do you believe?

[peccatore]

His brow furrows in thought.

"I'd rather believe in free will, I think."

[pyrrhicviktory]

You don't sound very certain.

[peccatore]

"... I-- Even looking beyond... my life, on its own... Too many terrible things happen for all of it to be God's design. If you ask me."

[pyrrhicviktory]

Mm. I prefer to believe we have free will as well. To a certain extent, anyway.

[peccatore]

"To an extent...?"

[pyrrhicviktory]

Hmmm. Imagine you go back in time to the day of the press conference. But you do not get to retain any of your future knowledge or hard-earned mental well-being. You do not know how it will turn out-- you are again exactly as you were in that moment.

How do you think you proceed?

[peccatore]

"..." He frowns. "I do exactly the same thing I did before."

[pyrrhicviktory]

Mm. That is what I mean when I say "to a certain extent."

Our fate is not written in the stars. But at the same time, whenever we make a choice, we are not making it in a vacuum. Everything we have done and experienced up until that point in time factors into our decision. Who our parents were. How we grew up. Our mental state at the time. What we know and understand about the world. The decision is therefore, in a sense, a foregone conclusion. Decided ahead of time, by all the factors that make you... you. If you could have made a different choice... you would not be you. You would be a different person.

[peccatore]

Marco doesn't say anything for a good few seconds. It's clear that he's Processing something.

"... I think I've wanted to be a different person. Often."

[pyrrhicviktory]

We cannot escape our pasts. We cannot... unmake the things that make us who we are. To attempt to do so is folly. There is no version of me that would have walked away from Jayce the day I met him, just as there is no version of you that could have decided to walk away from that podium.

But... we are still free to decide who we want to be in the future. And work towards that aim. That is what it means to learn and grow.

[peccatore]

"Right. You're... You're right."

[pyrrhicviktory]

... So. Shall we go bury your parents?

[peccatore]

Marco's hands clench. It's evident that something about the idea terrifies him. Despite this...

"Y-Yes. Yes, let's... Let's."

[pyrrhicviktory]

Take my hand.