Torul yelped in shock, flailing the gnarled staff he carried with him wildly as he stumbled about in the sand. His yelps could be heard within the cloud, but his actions were invisible for the most part. The cutting dry rain lasted nearly a minute before it finally died off. As the dust passed him by, Torul gave a great heaving sigh and leaned back against his staff. He hadn't been cut once, and his clothes were little more than scuffed. He gave a goofy smile far too unfitting for a master monk. But it certainly seemed to fit the persona he was putting up.
"Or maybe I've just learned that a little luck and the will of God is a wondrous thing.
Master Torul first responded to Elias, as he had spoken first. "Fuhrer King Bradley? I remember seeing photos of him as a lad, not a day older than any of you. Heh, looking back on bygone years is a sad thing, isn't it?" Before anyone could stop him, he was monologueing. "Tell me, my children, have you ever thought about why we should remember the past? It's so hurtful. To see the man that once fought as a savior of all Amestrians could grow into a man cold enough to order the demise of his own people."
He drew little lines in the sand with his stick, making patterns only he recognized as he was lost in his thoughts. "But, you know, maybe it's for the best. There are lessons that we all must be taught, and they could be learned from any number of teachers. Take the sand, for instance. It's always shifting, changing, trying to forget old shapes and events. But it never quite forgets all the way. Underneath it all there are little bits and pieces of memories, bygone eras that have forever changed the sand's form in minute, perhaps even imperceptible ways."
He looked up at them and smiled. "Maybe, if this old man is lucky enough, he'll even teach you one last lesson before he passes on."
Victor stared at him wide-eyed disbelief. "What do you mean, teach us a lesson? Aren't we enemies?"
Torul looked at him, puzzled. "Are we? What IS an enemy, anyhow? Someone who opposes your goals, right? That is how conflict works, two goals clash, and the stronger one crushes the other underneath its foot. But there's another way. Compromise. Peace. If we can take lessons to learn from each other, we both become greater persons for it. So!"
He pointed at all of the Amestrians arrayed before him. "I ask you, not as a Master, but as a humble old man, let me try and teach you my last lesson to teach. What you take from it is up to you. If you try to kill me, then try, so long as you listen to my words. Will you accept this old man's final offer?"
