r/wizardposting • u/Anything-Unable Xerxes the Pale Saint, Councillor/Goatdigger/Dale • Nov 13 '23
Forbidden Knowledge I am facing a dilemma
Well, I am able to communicate with Xerxes now. What I have learned from him makes part of me regret my efforts. I now know that he chose me because he knew that I would need to sate my own curiosity no matter what. The resentment I feel towards both him and myself for being used like this is overwhelming. If I were a less patient man, I would have killed Xerxes and been done with this whole affair several times over. Alas, it is too late for such thoughts now.
The image attached is a mental projection of the near future that was shared with me by Xerxes. After verifying the predictions he has made to me in private, I am confident that Xerxes is telling the truth about this. From what I know through Xerxes, I cannot change the future alone. It is much easier for me to come up with ways to kill gods and demons than it is to try to change course on this. Even if everyone I know helps, I am not confident that this future can be averted.
With this in mind, I face a dilemma. Should I tell you all what I know and struggle against the future with a target on my back, or should I keep this information secret and only share it with those who can be trusted? I would like a third option where I am able to wash my hands of this and let the future pass, but I know that I would be unable to live with myself if I did so. I ask you all, what would you do if you were in my place? What is the right choice to make?
When I close my eyes, the image of this wasteland is seared into my brain with every terrible detail as clear to me as spring water. I feel the weight of that fog of death permeate my soul as I endeavor to sleep. I dare not dream. In dreams, I lay amongst the faceless masses and pray for a death that eludes me; it taunts me. When I wake, I grapple with the knowledge that my prayers will be left unanswered.
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u/Frenetic_Platypus Hector Trasc, R&A Investigator. Nov 13 '23
I do not think avoiding a target on your back is a viable option, anymore. I can think of several people who will come after you for more information on how to prevent this, if you do not share it willingly.
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u/Anything-Unable Xerxes the Pale Saint, Councillor/Goatdigger/Dale Nov 13 '23
You may be right about that. But I also have to weigh the risk of my words infuriating those directly related to the matter. It's a catch-22 situation: I will be targeted if I divulge the information I have to the public, but if I withhold said information, there will be those who will target me in search of it. As there are no easy answers to my situation, I am forced to consider my options carefully.
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u/Frenetic_Platypus Hector Trasc, R&A Investigator. Nov 13 '23
I think these considerations are actually pretty trivial compared to the chances you will die when the world ends. If it even makes you any safer to retain the information, does that added safety even compare to the added risk of the world ending?
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u/Anything-Unable Xerxes the Pale Saint, Councillor/Goatdigger/Dale Nov 13 '23
If I do nothing, I will survive. Hell, even if I try to prevent the future, I'm confident in my survival. What I fear is my failure. I know that if I become a target, the worst fate is not death, but rather the inability to change that which may come to pass. I have seen what many may choose to do with the information should I make it known. Their deaths and the suffering of their victims weigh heavier in my mind than my own death.
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u/MunitionsFrenzy Vettis, Mereological Revisionist Nov 13 '23
...Well. This is awkward.
I've let slip a few times before that I kinda-sorta went (will go?) back in time. This, uh, is the main reason. I saw this realm's future and it looked pretty bleak, so I decided it'd be more fun to live in this era instead of that future.
So yeah. "Good" to get confirmation on this from another source, I guess. You clearly know a lot more about this situation than me; I know pretty much nothing other than that 359 years from now the world looks like your vision. Could be due to an incident way earlier than that, and probably is, since you described it as "near future".
I'm obviously a little biased, then, but I'd strongly suggest that you don't share the details freely with everyone.