When I was a kid, I had a carefree existence.
Never wanted for anything, always felt loved and cared for. Nothing off limits.
Except for two things. The blade I hold on my shoulder.
And a tiny little box that my father kept hidden away inside his closet.
He was always a gentle giant, soft spoken and preferred to rationalize then punish whenever I was in trouble
The only time he was ever angry was the day I tried to open that box.
I remember he came up, screaming in my face, hands clasped upon my arms so tight it felt like they would shatter into pieces.
But through the fury and rage, there was something that I didn’t recognize until years later.
There was fear, whether it was because of what was in the box or the implications afterwards.
My father was terrified of that box being opened. And until the day he died it was an anchor around his throat.
Because everyone’s got that little thing that brings them to their knees.
Be it the past, the truth, or just fear of what to come, it’s the ghost that will forever haunt you.
Unless you can find someway to overcome and move past it.
And right now Burned Man, even a kid can see your fear is destroying you from within.
Some would think ghosts of the past haunt you but I know better.
You’ve told me plenty of your family, how you remember them daily and it drives you
Powers you through the darkness and makes you a better person.
Your families memories fuel everything you do but even they can’t help what you truly fear.
The memories of those flames, the agony of being burnt alive, it’s a phobia that paralyses you completely.
I knew the moment you refused to help when Olympus fell. It wasn’t because there were others to help.
It certainly wasn’t because Zeus and Doom were trapped because you’re not that cold and heartless.
It was because amongst the rubble was a burning reminder of a past you cannot let go.
And unless you can overcome it, just like my father it’ll destroy you in the end.
You know, it took months before I opened that box. The fear claimed me too, worried that whatever was inside would ruin his memory.
It was just a letter of his past, who he used to be and his terror that I would hate him once I knew the truth.
But it didn’t matter who he was because he was my hero. Because he was the only one who truly believed in me.
Just like I believe in you.
I know you think I’m just some idiot kid who doesn’t understand the danger but I know what I’m doing. And yeah, every foe I face I’m terrified of.
But if you let fear control you, they win.
Win or lose TBM, I will do what I couldn’t for my father.
And pull your fear out into the light to make you a better man.
On That, I Have Faith.