The Heavens Shall Fall

The first light of the next morning felt... different. Siu couldn't say why; it just did. When he stepped out of his cave and looked towards the east, watching the sun climb, as it appeared between two peaks, its golden light felt... soft, like a hand rubbing against his skin, reaching his chest, which was visible under his loosely pulled-together robes. He took a deep breath, following the light, watching it shine through between the trees, falling over the stone paths of the sect. Even if it was already close to summer, amongst the mountains, the morning air was still chilly with thin wisps of mist drifting here and there, stuck above the ground where the sunlight had yet to reach, dominated by the shadow of the mountain peaks.

Taking another deep breath, Siu closed his eyes, letting the cold air fill his lungs, going down clean, melting into his bones and blood... For a moment, he simply stood there, letting it settle inside him. It stung, but differently than how he felt when coming out of the Medicine Hall. It was... a good feeling and, after the previous night, he felt something else deep down. There was a new kind of vigor coursing through him, as if a bottle had been opened and its contents were pouring through him, infinitely flowing and coursing within his body. Focusing on the feeling, he couldn't help but sense that this... thing... It will never go back to that bottle. A new flow was gathering strength with every revolution inside him, and he was sure that it would make him feel full sooner or later, requiring a... release.

“Yeah,” he murmured under his breath, reopening his eyes with a defeated smile, "Now I get it..." Chuckling to himself, he felt that there was a soreness left in his waist when he stretched too far, probably from all the dancing. Or as Arya would call it, butt swinging. Which made him realize that the two little monsters were nowhere to be seen.

When he woke up, they weren't in the cave, and they weren't outside either. He stepped forward slowly, his bare feet finding the cool stone beneath him really pleasant as he moved a few paces away from the entrance, starting to properly stretch, doing his morning routine, wanting to get back into it with his renewed feeling of... satisfaction.

It felt… good. Everything did. He even felt more alive. It was then that, behind him, the door creaked open again, but he didn’t turn immediately. He just listened as the sound of light footsteps followed suit, as a soft presence approached him from behind.

“Morning!” Neya's voice was softer than usual, followed by a loud moan as she began stretching.

It was then that Siu glanced over his shoulder, watching Neya as she stepped out into the morning light, one hand still adjusting the loose midsection of her robes, pulling it closer around her bare skin, while her other hand was brushing back a stray lock of hair behind her ear. There was a faint flush still lingering on her cheeks, though whether it was from the air or something else as she gazed at Siu… it was hard to tell.

“Um…" Siu nodded, then looked a bit more, watching her get closer, "Morning,” he answered in the end, smiling.

For a second, they just looked at each other, while she arrived next to him and leaned lightly against his side, her shoulder brushing his arm, her head tilting so that it rested comfortably on his shoulder. For a long moment, the two of them simply stood there, both of them inhaling and exhaling, and if someone was watching them, studying, they could tell that their breathing, consciously or not... was synced. Even if their techniques were different, tailored to their own, in that moment, their inhale and exhale came at the perfect moment, mirroring each other.

It was just then that Siu's senses tingled, and a shout reached him.

“MASTER! Finally! Took you long enough!”

Siu didn’t even need to turn to look, but he did anyway, watching as a familiar blur of black fur came sprinting toward them at full speed, completely disregarding their calm moment. The fact that he had woken them up every morning in the past, dragging them to the train, finally backfired. They woke up every day at a really early hour now... Already used to it. Smiling, he watched as Arya skidded to a stop a few steps away, her tail flicking rapidly behind her, her mismatched eyes bright with urgency.

“You’re awake! Finally!” she huffed, glancing between the two of them.

"You said that already, so... What's up? Hungry?"

“Eh?" She asked, tilting her head, "Oh, no. We went and ate already, while you two were still snuggly-snuggly. But then, we saw something super big news! We’ve been waiting forever for you to wake up! You ignored my shouting... Bad Master! You were too humpy-dumpy last night... And when done, you go into a coma. Totally like my dads...”

“Okay, okay!” Siu said, furrowing his brows, "What's going on?"

"Siu?" Neya also asked, noticing the rapid exchange between the two, blushing, thinking about last night, and that the little fox was maybe... laying out her complaints.

"Nothing," He said, rubbing her head, "Arya just rambling about seeing something, but refusing to say what is going on... She is being dramatic."

“Everything is going on!” she shot back immediately.

From somewhere behind her, a second, more chaotic figure appeared, as Marly came bounding along before slowing down near Arya, her cheeks already slightly puffed as if she had been eating something along the way... probably why she got back a bit later.

“We went to get food,” Marly added after coming to a stop, repeating the same thing. “Because you weren’t waking up.”

“Skip the intro, thanks,” Siu muttered under her breath. "What is it that you two saw?" He asked, in a way that Neya could hear and understand.

Arya’s ears twitched, her eyes sparkling as the two exchanged glances, deciding who would be the one telling it.

“We saw someone!” they said at the same time.

“Who?” Siu asked.

“Stonebrain Bren!”

"Bren?" Siu asked, raising his brows while Neya straightened immediately, pulling back just enough to look at Arya properly, while Siu’s expression didn’t change much, but his eyes got colder. “…Bren?” he repeated, "What was he doing?"

“Yeah!" Arya nodded, "He was super early! Before the sun was fully up.” Her tail kept swinging, the earlier excitement still there as she spoke. “He was alone, by the way. We thought he was up to no good, so we followed him, uhum!”

“Siu?” Neya asked quietly, gently nudging him, while he began translating their words.

“We thought he was going to lay an ambush or something,” Marly chimed in. “But no. Nobody came with him... and he wasn't going towards the tower either!”

"Or the clearing," Arya continued, “He had something on his back. Big. Wrapped up! Maybe a body? Couldn’t see what it was, but…” She paused, narrowing her eyes slightly. “It wasn’t light.”

“…And?” Siu asked after telling it to Neya, who was now holding onto him with two arms, curious and a bit nervous.

“He was heading into the forest!” Arya finished, standing on her hind legs, totally fired up, "We think he is leaving!"

"Nobody can leave the sect just like that," Siu said at once, shaking his head, "Even if he is still only an outer... that's not how this works."

"Once you join," Neya also agreed with him, nodding her head, "You are committed until your death... or until the sect is destroyed. Everyone knows that."

Siu’s gaze shifted as he began thinking, turning toward the distant tree line that bordered the sect grounds, right at where the forest began. From here, it looked no different than it always had... but it was a dangerous place and... he had some ideas what Bren was thinking of. Multiple, in fact, and they could be good or bad. Or both.

“I see,” he said at last and... That was all. He didn’t ask more, and his body relaxed at once. It... didn't matter. Not anymore.

"Siu?" Neya asked, but he just shook his head.

"It's no longer an issue!" He said, stretching again, "Let's go... A quick wash, and we should go see how everyone is doing."

She didn't argue; she simply followed him back to the cave, now Arya and Marly bouncing behind them, and seeing their Master taking the news so nonchalantly, they also dropped it at once.

Instead, they began asking him about how it felt, because Neya was super loud and they could barely fall asleep while they were kept going at it...

...

....

.....

The rumors began spreading by midday.

At first, they were shared among small groups of disciples who had heard something strange. They heard that someone, somewhere, had seen Bren. Who? They didn't know... and nobody could follow the rumor back to its source, which was Lorean's design. Siu had told her the news, as a gift for future cooperation, and she immediately went and started working with it. Someone, probably from Stone Ward, tried to stop it, claiming he was still recovering, calling it a baseless rumor... But then, another insisted he had gone into seclusion.

The usual noise, as everyone thought.

But something about the news, the fact that the one, saying they saw him leave… It... felt different. That one kept appearing the same way, with the same details and descriptions. It made people repeat it more, and to make it stick, Stone Ward remained silent after the initial, conflicting statements. Then, even days later, they made no direct announcements or any reassurances. Worst, there was no new visible leadership stepping forward to address the growing questions.

By the second day of the rumors spreading, it was believed Bren indeed 'left,' and by the third, they had reached a point where the rumor could no longer be contained. Stone Ward had been too late to give a proper response, especially when Golden Scroll began selling information that repeated the same thing the rumors did. They just gave it legitimacy: that Bren Tarr had left the sect grounds, and no one knew where or why.

That was all it took, and Stone Ward began to fracture almost immediately and visibly. Members stopped attending gatherings, while smaller groups within the faction began separating, forming their own circles and alliances. Some even left openly, walking away without even attempting to hide it. Within days, it was no longer a matter of 'if' they would fall apart, but when?

Naturally, Siu just watched it happen, and he didn’t interfere, didn’t comment, didn’t step in to claim anything that was left behind, and he forbade any of the Wardens from even trying to meddle in it. Instead, he mostly worked on revising the Wardens' initial rules, raising the cost of joining, and adding more tiers and rewards, including ones that offered discounts on the monthly membership but required active participation and work on the Wardens' part.

He expected it to deter people from joining, to prevent the previous situation in which people wanted to just use him to get a beast... Yet, the people who wanted to sign up were still coming daily, willing to pay. It was no use... He didn't want to take in everyone; that would probably anger all the other groups, so, in the end, he had to set a member limit at 50 people, and no more. Which, of course, made everyone even more eager to join, leading him to host a tournament to decide who gets in. He wanted to curse, but... The others found his confused anger entertaining.

Still, in the end, things began calming down slowly and naturally, and by mid-summer, everything was back to... normal. As normal as it could be.

Which also meant he could finally return to his routine and resume training. He was walking down from his cave, early morning, dusk just starting, when his steps froze as a familiar figure approached him. Or... walking on the same path, which was more likely, because there was no reason for him to come and see him... Well... maybe there was, but Siu didn't want to overthink his own importance.

"It is good to see you again, Elder Thane!" He said with an honest smile, cupping his hands.

"It's good to be back home," He answered, nodding, gauging him, then moving his eyes onto Arya and Marly, shaking his head, "I heard your tale, boy. You were busy, huh?"

"Kind of." He nodded, realizing it had already been more than a year since he'd seen him. "How was your mission?"

"Swift." He said simply, clearly not keen on sharing details with a disciple, which was understandable, "It wasn't a big deal after all, that's why I'm back so early. How's your training? How many forms are you missing?"

"Two." He answered at once, making Thane nod and exhale in the end.

"I see... I guessed you would tackle some more, hm. Well, I am heading up to meet with other Elders, but in a few days, I will come and see you. You can show me your progress, and I will decide how well you worked. And what you need for the last two... Until then, don't tell me which those are! I will see it for myself what you have and what you are missing, and... we will go from there."

"Thank you, Elder Thane!" He said again, bowing, and feeling proud, when he walked past him, patting his shoulder.

"Let's get to work, boy." He whispered, sounding cheerful, "I want you to become an inner disciple in a year or two... Got that?"

"Yes." He answered, fire blazing in his chest, "I feel the same way...!"