I must do something.

Saulo clung to hope in the face of a desperate situation.

The touch of death would approach if he didn't resort to the ability he was guarding.

His most powerful action.

He had no choice in the face of his circumstances. He had used the supporting objects in every way he could think and what the environment allowed him. In addition, with the means available to him, he could think of no other way to surprise Aaron.

He had to do it.

In order to protect this person and the future he wanted to follow, this was his most powerful action.

And then...

"... You're from the army, aren't you?"

"Huh?"

The unexpected question destabilized the combat position that Aaron adopted to face the most powerful ability that he thought the young man would use against him.

"I see your manner of speaking is that of a soldier."

Though confused at first, the man turned his attention to the young man.

"Why do you say that?"

"Something caught my attention,"Saulo replied as he shook off the dust accumulated on his clothes. "When you speak, you use a soldier's own words. Enemy, war. A language proper to the one who served in the army. Besides, your high level and that of your weapons proves it to me."

"That proves nothing."

"That is true. I'm not so sure about that part because maybe that's just the way you talk. But... of those two I have confirmed something."

Saulo stopped to wipe the dust off his shoulders. Slowly raising his eyes, he observed that Aaron didn't shake his head in denial.

"Those two young men are your comrades. People with whom you formed ties through continuous joint work... And you are their leader, but they respect you to the point of assuming your mistakes as their own. They are not your lackeys. Since I was trapped in the backpack, I heard all your conversation and you corrected me when I mentioned if they were your lackeys. Remember? Mutual help over personal interests has turned you three into comrades. And those bonds of trust come from a job like that of a military man... That's what I think."

Aaron seemed to want to say something, but at the last moment he held back. During those moments, the only reflection of a change in his behavior was a slight tremor on his shoulders.

Finally, after a few seconds in which he hesitated with growing uneasiness, Aaron spoke after turning to the two people who were silently watching him.

"I was a commander of the army until a superior of mine considered me to be a danger to his ascent."

Aaron held his words with his consciousness moving away to distant times.

"Thanks to certain political contacts with which he contacted, he managed to get me expelled from the institution to which I dedicated six years of my life."

"!"

"Nobody helped me. All those who were my comrades ... they turned their backs on me."

"..."

"Do you understand what it is like when your comrades forget you and reject you just to save their own skin? Never in my fifteen years of service did my enemies hurt me in the back, but my brothers in arms were able to do it in a few seconds."

Aaron took with force a hand to his chest and his expressiveness immediately altered with fury when addressing Saulo.

"I gave them years of my life and that's how they repay me! Without the right to a pension, with a tainted honor and an early retirement! And because of my fault, these two young people also suffered the same fate!"

Recalling his past with resignation, Aaron little by little regained his composure in the silence and fog that remained present.

"Ah, I seem to have touched a sensitive point. I'm sorry I put you and your comrades in this situation of remembering bitter times."

Aaron refrained from redirecting his gaze back when he heard these words. As a bitter indication, he didn't need to turn around to know what Don and Ryder were feeling. From the distance that separated them, the weight of the air that fell on his back conveyed the concern of his comrades.

"We aren't allowed to join the army because we condemn the war, so I don't know how is the administration inside this institution... But I can say that you and I are similar because..."

"We are similar? You said that you come from the countryside, and I am from the army. There is nothing similar in that."

Aaron interrupted Saulo pointing his sword at him. However, Saulo didn't stop.

"We are a community where we help each other, whether it's hard times or not, because that's what building community life is all about. You should also know about this. War is where those bonds of camaraderie necessary for the survival of the members of a group are best built."

Saulo's words continued toward Aaron with the strength not to be interrupted again.

"Whether with a shovel or a sword. It is in collective work where mutual help is built above personal interests... and when the time came, those same people with whom you shared experiences will forgive you."

However, in that last part of his words... he lowered his voice so that only the man named Aaron and himself would hear them. The two people he had just referred to.

None interference or reaction broke the silence that occurred. The truth in the words carried a pressure that enclosed in the body the intentions to add something more.

... I've made a lot of mistakes this last hour and the fact that I'm fighting, that an Amish is fighting!... But the time to convince with words has passed. I have no choice. The blood I'm losing doesn't let me think clearly about another solution.

"Something happened to you, didn't it?"

While Saulo waits for the movement of a weapon, what he gets instead are words that leave him momentarily in confusion.

"Hm? What do you mean?"

Aaron relaxes his position, but his eyes do not falter.

"You still have a lot to learn about how to fight... I say that because you're shaking."

If this was a conversation to distract him, then it was well thought out.

Saulo's hands were shaking slightly because of what he felt was going to happen. If he himself had to act to remain calm at this point in the fight, the conclusion was the final act that the two of them would carry out with their weapons and abilities.

There was no truth or lie to deny that.

"The same thing happened to me many years ago,"Aaron said without hesitation, after thinking for a moment. "On my first day on the battlefield as a member of the army, I couldn't hold firmly my summoned weapon, so I clung to this bracelet that is tied to the hilt of my sword."

The bracelet - which Saulo thought was just decoration - was clearly worn, with loose straw threads.

"In those moments of fear, and upon seeing this bracelet, the memory of those days in the field calmed my life. Days where life was simpler. Where I could live without worries. I don't know how or when, but when I realized, it was all gone. The happiest moments of my life. All was gone.

Aaron looks at the sky and suddenly realizes that he let himself be carried away by his memories. He does this just in time to look again at the young man, who in turn is following his movements.

"After several deaths of my comrades at that time and a wake-up call with a language specific to the army, I managed to understand that a summoned weapon is your best friend. It happens to you too, so you cling to those supporting objects. I also needed something familiar to get that sense of false security in the difficult moments when I faced danger. And I still carry this with me because it's the memory of all those times that I lived through. I had to survive to see my precious home again."

A severe expression interrupted for a brief second the tranquility that conveyed his life experience.

"Then, answer me this young man... Why do you cling to those supporting objects for combat like that something that can give you peace of mind in the face of danger? For what we have fought so far my conclusion is that you have too little experience in combat to cling to... an object that you think is a weapon."

This time there was no anger in Aaron's words.

On the contrary, there was a sense of tranquility in the air, as if two old friends were talking.

But just as there was no need for Saulo to continue to respond, there was a strange atmosphere of familiarity between two people who until recently were fighting.

With a moment of quietness, it was enough for both of them to understand the reason why they did not dare to sentence the fight... It was the similarity of circumstances as an unspoken truth among those who had to fight on the battlefield.

Finally, Saulo's lips move.

"In this world where there are too many colors with which a user can identify, where everyone can summon a weapon and use the power of the elements, the danger is everywhere. Whether against humans or creatures that I'll face, there is a real danger that these two species will go back to war..."

An attentive expression remains on Aaron's face, so Saulo continues to think for a few moments.

"... But above all, and in addition to my trinity, I need these supporting objects to face this outside world of which I am completely ignorant. And it is precisely because I am an Amish, that if I have to fight, I will fight in a different way. An intermediate way between the principles of non-violence with which I grew up and my own convictions obtained from my life experience."

None of the people holding weapons add anything else.

The moment of silence lengthens.

Finally, after taking scratching his long and careless beard, Aaron responds in a tone of a person that has found the solution to a problem.

"I see. So you are an Amish. That explains it in part, but I ask you again. Why do you need these supporting objects to fight? From what I know of the Amish, their members would never fight. Am I right? All of you are against all forms of violence, and have interpreted that commandment not to harm anyone to the point of not attacking another person even if that person is hurting your loved ones. How is it that being from a non-violent community against me you have decided to resort to violence, and why specifically with objects of support? Even if they are attempted weapons; hand grenades and throwing knives can be dangerous if they hit the eyes, for example. Answer me."

Saulo verifies that the man with the sword does not try to advance while he thinks what to say. Both his hands and his feet didn't move in what was a reasonable time to wait for an answer.

Then, so for what Aaron waited, is heard without any hesitation.

"You are right that in the Amish we would never apply violence against our enemies. We avoid destroying a life because that goes against our beliefs. Even if it means our death, in every aspect of our life forgiveness and refusal to use force is our response to anyone who wants to harm us. We do not apply this belief just because we expect the attacker to understand our response, but because that is how God taught. With forgiveness and without resorting to violence. Always.

"You may not understand, but that's our way of living our faith."

A hand on Saulo's chest directed Aaron's eyes to the part of the body where the young man hit himself. It was one of the parts of his body where the blood was notorious for how red he was.

While Aaron thinks about this, the young man wipes the blood from the halberd.

"But that I use these objects is because they saved me from a tragedy... Only I was saved. From that moment on, many questions about violence made me wonder about what I had been taught. If I had not doubted so much about whether or not to use my trinity, I would have acted in time to save a life. Perhaps... perhaps having been born in an average village no belief or my own fears would have prevented me from reacting in time. So this is my reminder of that day and how I should act in the face of danger."

Aaron observes Saulo and then the halberd. Compared to his sword, there is not much blood that the young man must wipe from his weapon. But despite the obvious damage he caused, the wounds are not noticeable on a part of the body.

The area of the pockets of his jacket, from which the young man was removing his objects, was without traces of blood. Coincidences of life, it was the area closest to the heart.

Releasing a bitter laugh from the bottom of his heart, the voice he was listening to once again reaches his ears.

"Between my Amish principles of non-violence and this outside world with dangers that are known and unknown to me, I have found in the supporting objects my own position between not resisting or killing danger. That we can all summon a weapon or use skills does not imply that we all have the confidence to fight. Not everyone has trained with discipline and we understand the responsibility of possessing a trinity as it is with you who were a soldier."

"So you're one of those. Of those who prefer not to use their right by nature to protect themselves with a trinity."

"You're wrong about that. If so, I wouldn't do this."

After a simple movement, Saulo's halberd hit the ground.

With the end of the handle touching the ground and his two hands holding the halberd tightly, Saulo was silent with his weapon in firm position.

Immediately, through the fog, nothing seemed to be happening. But without anyone saying it, something had definitely started to change in the atmosphere.

"We must all protect ourselves against danger with a trinity, but only if all the resources of preventive defense have not been exhausted before. Each person is a potential danger if they believe they have that right only because the trinity was a divine miracle given to humanity millions of years ago to defend themselves from creatures. Many things can go wrong among beings who are identified by different colors, weapons and abilities in spaces as crowded as cities.

Aaron's eyebrows immediately contract because of what the young man of the halberd said.

It was nonsense.

What the young man proposed was to avoid using as a first measure a natural and divine right that all people possessed and that was known as trinity. If someone attacked you with a trinity, you had to respond in the same way by attacking with a trinity. From a very young age he had been taught about this, and in the army he had internalized this teaching of common sense even more.

The moment his mouth curves, new words make him listen to the young man.

"Because we have that capacity for power known as the trinity, many people are carried away by their desires and emotions as they grow up by the power they discover they are capable of doing. And because of this, and without proper teaching and control of emotions; kids, young people and adults fail to realize the harm they can cause with their trinities... Given this situation, with the supporting objects I believe it is possible to decrease the number of people who think they can solve everything with a trinity. Different situations require different countermeasures. For example, using a trinity to confront a robbery is the most logical thing to do. But... What happens when words are not enough to calm a dispute between acquaintances and a fight is inevitable?"

Saulo raised his eyebrow a little.

In what they had been talking about, the halberd had begun to tremble.

"Could you with your sword stop someone without hurting him? Or with your abilities based in smoke power? And not just in a dispute. In a quarrel, in a street fight. All those involved would definitely use their trinities first. And do you know why Because it's logical that one wants to fight with a weapon that can be summoned between his hands in a single second... I'm not against the use of a trinity if the situation escalates to worse, but this is my position. Restrict before you think about seriously hurting or killing."

Aaron frowned slightly and placed his shield on his chest and his sword toward Saulo's direction.

"Then I will have to destroy that illusion of yours and bring you back to reality... You believe that an object that succeeds in paralyzing or restraining the enemy will suffice, but it will not. It has been tried before with non-lethal support objects such as portable net-shooters or electric shock shooters, but because the attributes of an summoned weapon are so different and vary significantly from person to person, the results have been very unsatisfactory compared to what a trinity has achieved. Either its power is insufficient, or it ends up being very annoying to carry a heavy object with sufficient capacity to stop an aggressor; and which furthermore cannot be returned to its dimensional plane as a summoned weapon."

Feeling the end of the tranquility of words, Aaron prepares his weapon. After all, he still had not used "that".

After all, he hadn't used "that"yet.

"Simply, the power and usefulness of a trinity far surpass that of the supporting objects that experts such as scientists, adventurers, and the Forces of Order have developed over the years. If you are afraid to use your trinity, then you should never have left your community in the first place. In this world full of internal and external threats, in people's hearts and territories, you must be prepared to cause harm to the being who causes it. Kill before you think about restricting."

"If you want to call that my weakness, then do it. But if I remain afraid to face this new stage of my life, then I will never be able to discover new experiences that I may like in this outer world that awaits me. If I remain afraid, I will never be able to do what makes me happy! Those objects that were my refuge are now my strength!

By saying this, Saulo finally turns his attention away from his halberd.

The reason was simple.

The objective of his recent efforts was in front of him.

This time a cut would be and should be the last respectively.

Between two opposing positions, the trinities of these users will collide, each with their own convictions.

Attack with a trinity, at the risk of causing a very serious damage or death to whom is the attacker.

Restrict with supporting objects, at the risk that the force used or damage caused is insufficient to stop the attacker.

Different methods and different possible outcomes.

Opposing positions of a soldier and an Amish.

"If something happens to me, my two comrades will not stand idly by."

Aaron's eyesight, like Saulo's, is directed at the two young men who in the middle of the fog had not moved at all. As their leader had told them, they had remained on the sidelines, but with a notorious spirit of intervening ready to fight.

"But as for you, with those doubts you'll never gain anything. If your Amish principles make you first restrict with your supporting objects rather than attack fully with your summoned weapon, I'll have to teach you the reality of the world you don't know. Whoever attacks you, it has to be motivated by self-defense, justice or evil,"

Saulo returns his attention to Aaron after seeing the disposition of the two young men, and confirming also the safety of the old man. For the time being, this person was still tied up and not knowing everything that was happening.

"Maybe I'll have my doubts, but I do know what I have to do next."

For anyone who was an Amish it was forbidden to use a trinity even in self-defense or to defend someone.

There were no exceptions.

But here, far from his home community, there was no one who could find out about this.

"Giagh... GGGiiiiiiaaaaaaaaahhhh!!!"

Marks appeared.

Gray marks of a reality that had been alien to him until today.

Only once had he used this skill.

And with this skill, a surprising change happened in his body.

Guggj... Giiiiaaaaahhhh!!!"

Holding his halberd tightly, a power that he felt was about to manifest appeared visibly on his skin.

Marks.

As if they were now part of his organism, many lines began to form on the covered and uncovered parts of his clothes.

Gaining space to be noticed even in the distance, the marks appeared and disappeared in smaller intervals from Saulo's body.

And suddenly...

The gray flowed through the young man's body to stay impregnated in his skin.

More specifically in his veins.

Not only his physical appearance had changed.

An increase of power flooded his body.

"For your bad luck, you are no longer dealing with an average Amish,"Saulo said as a gray mark rose up the right side of his face to the section of his eyes, and then continued above his eyelid. "Between self-defense, justice or evil... Do you want to know with what intention I will attack you?"

Aaron finished observing the young man's ultimate ability.

Of course, he could have attacked the boy before he had finished activating his ability.

But something stopped him.

It wasn't a rule, but attacking while someone was transforming was impolite.

He also couldn't affirm whether or not it was an improvised acting by his opponent that made him listen to each of his words.

But a slight shudder confirmed what he just felt.

An expression perfectly close to an intention between justice and revenge was reflected on the young man's face.

A brief sinister smile that seemed to be real.

For Aaron it was clear with what the young man would attack him.