Chapter 86 – Why?
Siu’s cave was quiet as he sat cross-legged in the center of the room, keeping his back straight, his hands resting loosely on his knees, meditating while using his breathing technique. The faint glow from the hole above him lit up the top of his head, as the strong moonlight was the only source of color, turning the darkness into something... silver. Of course, Arya and Marly were already asleep, curled up together, which would later end up with Arya waking up to the fact that half of her tail was swallowed by Marly in her dream, soaking it in her saliva… but that was still hours away.
As for Siu, although he looked like he had fallen asleep while sitting, he was actually replaying the spar he had with Kira, analyzing it over and over again… There was something in there. He couldn’t really understand it or capture it, but he felt it. There was something within him that, just for a moment, just briefly, made him react to an attack that should have landed on him.
Her steps… Watching Kira's body move in slow motion, he could read her rhythm and the way she vanished between one movement and the next. At first, it was fragmented, but then, as the spar went on, he could not only read her, but he was sure he could copy her if he wanted. Why? That was the question he was unsure of. Why did he feel like he could copy her? Was it because he studied the Wild Cat form? No, that shouldn’t be the case, because even if that was Kira’s basis, her technique was different. But then again… Why?
Before his mind’s eyes, he kept rewatching it while trying to get to the bottom of it, seeing her palm strike, aiming at him. She slipped through everything and would have hit him, so… he mimicked her attack, and did it so without thinking about it. Maybe that was why it worked, and why it came out so perfectly.
But then again… Why? How did he manage to copy her attack? He just couldn’t tell, and he was sure he couldn’t replicate it, even if he wanted to, as he never learned her style.
With a deep breath, restarting the moment, he suddenly remembered something different. Switching the scene, he recalled his sessions with Arya and Marly, the way they continuously kept chasing each other. Then, he remembered the moments where he saw Arya use her cultivation, the natural-born abilities of her demonic self, creating illusions and… the way sometimes his own steps matched Arya’s. The brief mirages he could see from the corner of his eyes, copies of his hand, his own illusions… Was it because of that? Was he… subconsciously mimicking Arya, and managing to replicate what she was doing?
However inconceivable that thought was, he couldn’t help but see it as the only explanation. It shouldn’t be possible, because he wasn’t in the blood resonance stage yet. But…. That didn’t mean his blood didn’t have any essence. His marrow was already working on saturating it; he just couldn’t control it yet, and he couldn’t tap into it willingly.
Could this be… the earliest signs of his future affinity?
“…Huh.”
Siu frowned faintly, opening his eyes, abruptly halting his meditation. Looking around in the dark, he watched as Arya’s left ear flicked for a moment, sensing his awakening, but, feeling nothing else happened, the little fox didn’t wake in the end. Smiling to himself, he was glad that by now he was getting proficient in handling their link. Through their tag-like training, it not only helped him hone his skills in the forms he had learnt and understand the Wild Dog’s essence, but also helped him grasp what the capabilities of a Mutual Contract were. Privacy was becoming something he could count on again, as he realized that even if they were linked, they could still block out the others when needed.
Which made sense… they were mutuals, which didn’t mean that they had to share everything, like how a slave had no chance of hiding something from his master. Although knowing the two furballs’ feelings, Siu also knew the two loved the fact they could share everything… hell-bent on oversharing, in fact.
“…”
Pulling his thoughts back from the two, he looked back at his hand, slowly flexing his fingers, then pushing his palm out, in the same way he did against Kira. Was it the sign of something that will come to him in the future? Could that really be? And if it was… what did it mean? From what his Old Man once told him, that stage comes to the cultivator when their blood finally carries and resonates with the essence of the world, and that’s only the beginning of it all.
“I have no knowledge of any affinity that… causes mimicry…” He muttered to himself, pulling his hand back, running his fingers through his hair. “Haah… It's too early anyway.”
Shaking his head, he stood up in the end, rolling his neck, before getting to his bed, lying down next to the two little beasts, letting their connection flow freely once again. The moment he did so, he could tell the two were having the sweetest dreams, yet even then, they sensed his presence, immediately shifting in their sleep and snuggling up to his chest.
“…” Watching them with a smile, Siu said nothing, just put his arm over the two, letting their scent and fluffy fur ease his thoughts, carrying him off to sleep. Soon his breathing matched theirs, coming into a perfect sync as his mind relaxed completely, not even worrying about that he would have to perform his best act before an eager crowd.
...
....
......
Baun didn’t like the feeling in his chest that had been there since the one-on-one sparring he had with Siu. It wasn’t pain, because the medicinal baths had done their work well and his body had recovered, of course. Yet, despite that, a feeling kept lingering in him, a kind of tightness he couldn't expel.
“Tch!”
Like clockwork, he clicked his tongue, pressing the feeling down, ignoring it until he forgot to recognize it. He couldn't be feeling fear... no. That was impossible, and he couldn't and wouldn't recognize it as such, especially not on the morning of the most important day. He has been training with Kira for the past week, going over her form, and although he still didn't understand what her actual plans were or how she would enact them, she was so confident that it made the feeling in his chest subside.
Today was the day, and this time, it would be different. Leaving his home, heading towards the already paid training field, it didn't take long for Kira to appear and walk up beside him, stretching her arms as she yawned, completely lacking any kind of tension in her body.
“Man… I’m still half asleep,” she muttered, scratching the back of her head.
“If we lose because of that, I’m going to hurt you,” Baun said with fresh irritation returning to his voice.
“Yeah, yeah,” she waved him off. “I know. It will work, I'm sure of it!”
Not even ten minutes later, they arrived just outside the same field where Siu first fought Nue, which seemed poetic, given that it was chosen for their sparring session. But it was not what made Baun almost fall over while he suddenly stumbled over his steps.
“What?!” He gasped because the scenery was not what he expected it to be.
There were people... A lot of them. The place was almost packed, with people gathering, talking, and already betting. He could swear he noticed a few faces that he had seen within Stone Ward, too. He had to do a double-take, but he wasn't seeing things... Disciples were lining up to watch the upcoming spar, and although there weren't as many as when Siu fought against Nue, there were... enough.
“Since when does a spar draw this many people?” He muttered, trying to see the faces present and try to see if there was anyone important there, but he couldn't really tell.
“Ohhh… look at that,” Kira hummed, watching the people, clearly amused. “We’re for sure popular.”
By then, Baun had confirmed that he spotted three faces he knew were inside Stone Ward, standing far apart from each other, never even looking towards the others. Damn it... The tightening feeling had suddenly returned in his chest, and it became stronger than ever. It wasn't helping that he noticed people from Ember Circle, too, and if the two bigs were here, then Golden Scroll informants had to be mingling in the crowd, too.
This wasn’t right...
“Relax,” Kira said, nudging him and already walking forward, reading the tension in his muscles. “You’re not scared, are you?”
“I’m not,” he replied immediately, trying his best to turn the tightness into anger.
“Perfect,” she said, glancing back at him over her shoulder. “Because we are going to win. You'll see! Come on,” she waved him forward. “Let’s not keep them waiting.”
Baun exhaled slowly through his nose, refocusing his mind as he followed. Walking towards the ring, he couldn't tell if everyone fell silent because they began watching them arrive or because his mind finally got into its battle-readiness. Well, it was a question for later, because he didn't want to break his own rhythm, taking the lead and being the first to step into the ring. Looking behind him, he watched as Kira strolled in after him, stretching again, completely unbothered, her movements loose, casual, acting as if this was just another day for her.
“You’re taking this way too casually!” He snorted, finally berating her a little.
“I’m not,” she replied, still stretching. “I just don’t see the point in acting stiff about it. A fight is a fight; we have our plan, and we will win. I am not going to wreck myself over nothing. This is just a spar! Why are you taking it so seriously? What's going on? That's the question here..." She looked at him, throwing him a suspicious glare, "Are you okay?”
Baun scoffed at that, and before he could respond, now feeling a bit of panic, a familiar voice cut in, walking up to the fence surrounding the field.
“Well… looks like word spread faster than I had expected.”
Both of them turned and faced Varren, who was now leaning against the barrier, smiling at them, which caused Baun’s eyes to narrow considerably.
“Wait… You knew about this?” As he asked and watched Varren pause, then shake his head... giving him signals with his eyes. Of course he did!
“No.” He lied, but now Baun was sure this was Stone Ward's decision... And if they indeed won today, he may just have a way to join their ranks with ample benefits. “Guess people are interested,” Varren continued, sounding a bit nervous, glancing around, “Siu’s name has been circulating quite a bit lately, so I'm not surprised.”
"You could say that again!" Kira agreed with a giggle as she also looked around, excited but for a whole different reason than Baun.
“Either way,” Varren added, looking between them, “good luck.”
“Don’t worry. We’ve got this.” Kira nodded with a grin, while Baun didn't answer, his mind preoccupied with something else.
Before Baun could finally open his mouth, he felt a shift in the atmosphere, a stir in the crowd as everyone's heads turned. When they followed their gazes, it wasn't hard to tell why.
“There he is,” Kira whispered, cracking her knuckles, watching as Siu strode into view.
He looked calm as he walked with Neya, the twins, Rinmei, and, of course, his two beasts. Baun watched as his gaze moved across the arena, pausing briefly on the gathered crowd, his brows lifting slightly.
“What’s all this?” Siu asked suddenly, and the question sounded genuine, and he looked genuinely surprised that people had time to watch sparring sessions.
“Oh, you know…” Kira called out, stepping forward slightly. “Word gets around.”
"Stop it..." Baun whispered, feeling the strangeness of the situation may cause Siu to refuse the spar... And that would be the worst outcome.
“Seems like it,” Siu answered in the end, exhaling and shaking his head while his eyes scanned the crowd again.
Just as Baun had noticed the people present, he did, too. But unlike Baun, Siu also noted the people belonging to the Golden Scroll, including Lorean, who sat the furthest back of everyone present, her attention mostly focusing on Stone Ward's observers.
"Master, I think this is way too complicated..." Arya muttered, sounding grumpy, "I like playing parnks but... This is just..."
"It may be true." He answered, rubbing her head before leaving them behind and entering the arena, "It's my first plan, and everyone needs to start from somewhere. We will do better next time, but for now, we work with what we have!"
"Next time?!" Marly moaned, "Master... I agree with Big Sis! There shouldn't be a next time at all!"
"That's not up to us," Siu said with a smile, his eyes moving across Baun and Kira, smiling at them, "Now... let me focus on this. I have to make it look convincing."