[D][U] Hyperton Aftermath

[Grandpa Gohan]

?Hero? the word resonated in the head of the old man. Gohan had not done anything that would?ve put him anywhere near the category of hero. Images of the young child?s face appeared before him; his face as he lay there, dead in the humans arms. He looked so peaceful, at rest.

He thought back to Heartforged Keep, where he had first seen the small child, he was in the courtyard, training. There was another young soldier with him, though he didn?t remember him. Over the short time that Pigero and Gramps served the Dante Forces, they started to get to know one another. Pigero had saved him from certain demise in a battle with Syntech. That single act allowed Gohan to look past the fact that Pigero was just a child. He became something more in the eyes of the old man, his comrade. He acknowledged him as a fellow soldier, a fellow warrior; one who deserved respect in the eyes of Gohan.

The time beaten fighter had mixed emotions on the thought of Pigero dieing. He knew that he was simply returned to where he was before the competition, but it didn?t change the fact that he had held him his last moments. It didn?t change the fact that he was his companion, his ally, but above all that, his friend.

?Hero?, the word boomed in his head again.

?I am no hero, I wasn?t able to protect anyone, and now here I am; half dead.? He thought solemnly to himself unconsciously.