“A picture is worth a thousand words, Ramsey.”
“Say you take a picture of a battlefield, one littered with the corpses of fallen warriors. With a click of a button you can immortalize their last moments on this mortal coil.”
“Everyone who sets eyes on that photograph can see the terror on their faces, they can imagine the sorrow in their souls.”
“Imagine.”
“Because for every thousand words you can use to describe a photo, there are millions more to describe being the subject.”
“No picture will ever capture the smell of blood lingering in the air, nor the sounds of countless souls begging for their lives.”
“The strongest of men could never stomach the brutality, never truly come to terms with the fact that their life is ending and their body is turning cold. They call out to their gods and hear nothing but silence in return, and all your pictures could ever show?”
“Is the aftermath.”
“A still of the world that you can present as you see fit.”
“That’s what sets us apart, Colt. The great divide between you and I is the fact that all you’ve ever known is the imagery and the second hand description therein. With that camera in your hands you’re happy to take pictures of crime scenes, snap photos of affairs, and write how it should make Arcadia feel.”
“You can use your words to describe what you see and influence those who don’t know with your falsities. You view Arcadia through a lens and now those who view your portraits may only see them as you do. Those thousand words mean so much, yet say so little.”
“Even now, the picture painted by Lionel Troy’s confessions is what rules your life. You cannot feel the paradise he promises you, nor can you even fathom the warmth and joy he claims it will bring. Because just like a photograph his tome is nothing more than the idea of salvation. The talk of a crooked man who can frame his picture any way he sees fit to change the perspective and make you believe what he wants you to believe.”
“You’ve never been to war, Colt. You’ve never lost, never died, never decayed.”
“So, I ask, how do you plan on taking on the very embodiment of that which you do not understand?”
“All I am, all I have ever been, is an experience. Be it the walking of the levels to discover their secrets, or the feeling of suffering as my life comes to a close over and over again only to wake up in a shallow grave.”
“Everything you can describe, Colt, is something that have lived.”
“And now, I’m going to make you experience it.”
“But I won’t have to do it in a thousand words. I’m going to destroy you, tear you asunder and leave you bloody on the mat.”
“And the only words I’ll need to describe your demise?”
“Are One. Two. Three.”
“I’m bringing you to War, Ramsey.”
“And just like your pictures…”
“War never changes.