"Of History and Man"

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On some level, Reddas believes in cosmic retribution.

He also knows that he's in the business of war, and war is nasty by trade. Even if what he fights for is gods, country, duty, and all of that other gibberish.

So Reddas does his best to make up for it, he opens doors for ladies and never swears in front of children. His fellow judges think he's being ridiculous, but Reddas takes their jibes in stride. He's got a lot of violence to repay, and there will probably be much more in the future.

Maybe that's why when Cid comes up to him, eyes gleaming with something unfamiliar and partly mad, he listens. There's a new weapon Cid tells him.

A weapon to finally stop all this killing. A weapon to end all wars. All he needs to do is use it once, just once, and the fighting will end. He'll be the herald of peace.

They call deifacted nethicite, and Cid says the word like he's giving reverence to the gods themselves.

"This is history. The beginning of a new history," he preaches.

So Reddas starts the new history with the fire from hell itself, it devours Nabudis so thoroughly it doesn't even leave bodies to bury.

Reddas forgets about duty, gods, and country as he watches the city get blown away. Then he throws his name and rank among the ashes of Nabudis, and he just leaves.

He knows there is no amount of door opening and tongue holding that will make it right. Nothing will, but he tries to anyway. He does his best to clean up Balfhonheim, get rid of the scum on the street and in the skies. And he succeeds to a degree, he would like to think. But for all his sweat and tears are worth, it's not even a step closer to Nabudis. He may as well be throwing pebbles at a mountain.

So two years of guilt and nightmares later, he's standing in front of the sun cryst, and all he thinks is, ah here it is. The cosmic retribution he's been waiting for.

He takes the plunge for Lady Ashe. They think he is being fearless, admirable. But all he is really doing is receiving his just rewards.

One more step forward, one more breath, and one swing of a sword- and he once again makes a new history.

A/N: This one was sitting in my computer for too long, decided to dust it off and kick it in here. I remember being shocked when I found out who Reddas was, and I needed to get this one out there.