Schala Zeal
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Schala felt her cheeks flush red again when Cagliostro mentioned something about Ben being her boyfriend, having looked in his direction as she had said so.
"No!... I-... You-... I mean..." She trailed off, completely flustered about the question in itself.
In all honesty, she had been so focused on fighting for the multiverse... Seeking answers... Honing her own powers, that romance was something that had more or less completely slipped her mind.
Her feelings on these kinds of matters largely went unnoticed, at least to her... And often times, she wasn't sure what kind of 'love' she felt towards some of her comrades.
Finally, she shook her head, clearing her thoughts before she spoke.
"I... Don't know. I've never had one before..." She said finally, seeming to suddenly shy away from approaching Ben, at least for now.
Though, before she could properly snap out of her embarassed state, as Othinus appeared once more. There was a much longer pause as she pondered her answer, even after she caught a brief glimpse of the potential futures they might have depending on the choices that they made... Thanks to Ben, before Othinus cut it off abruptly... Then she spoke, having suddenly reached a conclusive answer to Othinus' question... Closing her eyes, as if she were meditating before she opened them again, speaking clearly... Confidently.
"This world is... In a way... All I wished for... Fought for; a place where there is peace... A place where everyone is happy, but yet... Something feels... Wrong." She said, a frown crossing her face.
"Perhaps I don't wish to change the way things are, perhaps I can live here forever. Though... I know... More than anyone, that no paradise, left on its own can truly last forever. Not without depriving some, or all of their freedoms... Their ability to choose how to act and feel, ti sine extent... And that is something I wish to sacrifice."
Then, she suddenly looked up at Othinus, a wistfull look on her face as a sudden realization occurred to her.
"But... Perhaps that alone not the reason this 'paradise' is flawed... Is it?... Perhaps... Your plan is to recreate this day... This week... This month... This year... Or maybe more... Over and over... ... Whenever this paradise crumbles, in some shape or form... You'll rebuild it to restore it in its former glory... Right?"
She asked, her question not out of any sense of maliciousness, but maybe... Curiousity.
It was difficult to decide for sure, whether she wanted to live in this paradise... Even if her time here was finite. Though, if not... Her answer would likely change overtime, perhaps when the meaning of happiness or sorrow, or... Anything at all began to fade away. After all, if one got everything they wanted, without any struggle, or pain... Was it really worth it? Could it really still result in happiness?
If not... The only way to resolve that kind of decay in response would be to start from the beginning, and perhaps that was what Othinus intended to do... And aside from what Billy had said about the worlds she created being unstable, giving her the idea that they might have to be 'renewed' constantly, perhaps the reason why in the future Ben showed them, where they did choose to stay in this place... It was almost like a time loop, the same events happening over and over.
...
In the end, she was somewhat thankful to be snapped out of that train of thought by Ben's question, not just to Othinus, but everyone in general. However, it still was quite a difficult one to answer properly, but she did nonetheless give it her best effort.
"A person who is admired or idealized for courage, outstanding achievements, or noble qualities. That is the 'official' definition... The one I found first when searching for the meaning of the word." She said, but then shook her head, seeming a bit dismissive of it.
"But since then... I've discovered the meaning is... Flexible... Dependant purely on your perspective, or perhaps the perspective of your peers." She added, then paused for a moment, before she finished her train of thought.
"In my eyes... A hero... Is someone who stands up for what they believe is right... Fights for it... And protects it... Even at the cost of their own life, but by that definition... This means even those seen as villains, those who we oppose... Can also be seen as heroes in their own right... To their own cause. So in a way... We're... All heroes... But what makes us a hero... Is not always the same for everyone..." She said.
Then, her mind went to the next portion of Ben's question, taking a moment longer to ponder upon when this 'hero time' was supposed to be.
"Perhaps 'hero time'... Like being a 'hero'... Is also up to your perspective... Your view. When you feel as if your beliefs have been wronged... Your moral code broken... Perhaps it is when you feel it is your duty... To fight for what you feel is right... For the better or worse."
In the end... As Schala finished talking, she soon realized the reason why she found it so difficult to decide on her actions to begin with... At least whether or not they would result in anything 'good' in the end.
To some, like the Coalition perhaps, she was considered a hero, but yet... To others... Like Jiren, or Marian perhaps... She was considered a villain, as what they felt was 'right', or 'just' differed from her own outlook on such things, and being able to understand this... Made it all the more difficult for her to fight to uphold her ideals, but in the end... It was the pain she had once felt, and seen, inflicted upon her, and upon others, that gave her the strength to push through her doubts and stand her ground.
Here, with the dilemma Othinus was presenting them came the greatest inner conflict yet when it came to whether or not she should fight to preserve her own ideals. If it weren't for the foreseen future of this reality, if this reality truly could stay like this forever, with no strings attached... It was unlikely that she would have many qualms with staying here. However, given the few methods she could think of to sustain this paradise, and keep people 'happy', she found part of her opposing the idea of Othinus sustaining an existence like this... For the better or worse.