The Heavens Shall Fall

Hearing what a supposed High Elder just said to him, Siu stared at the man unblinkingly, trying to decide if this was a joke or not. After finally recollecting his thoughts, he looked around the Red Leaf, as if someone else might have entered while he was distracted and become the intended target... but that wasn't the case. At the same time, Orzimar waited on the other side of the counter, arms crossed, watching him.

“No,” Siu said in the end and watched as the man's smile disappeared.

“You want the land, and that is the only way you will get it.”

"Then we don't need it," Siu said as he stepped around the counter, standing directly before him. “You’re a High Elder, while I’m in the First Circle, only at the Blood Resonance stage. Are you mad at challenging me?”

"How can you be afraid of it?" Orzimar asked, genuinely surprised, "Challenging the natural order of the world is what we do, to cultivate, and you dare not face me?"

“You are trying to make this sound philosophical so I forget how unfair it is.” Siu shrugged, shaking his head. "The answer is no."

“It is unfair,” Orzimar said slowly as he unfolded his arms. “Boy, the world is unfair. And I know you are fully aware of it, that your enemies will be unfair, too.”

“That does not mean I should volunteer to be crushed by you.” Siu said with a small snort, "We are talking in circles here. You are mistaking me for someone who is desperate to find a place, which is not the case."

“I know that," Orzimar nodded, "And I will repeat this: that land is not for sale, and it has never truly been for sale. We didn't pay for it either; we earned it through our own power. It is how it was first given over by our Founder... and it is how it has been kept and shall keep being passed down between the members of our sect.”

“The Founder...?" Siu raised his eyebrows at that, because if the weird elder wasn't lying, that plot of land had more history than it would suggest at first glance. Orzimar smiled, too, seeing how Siu's attention was caught once again when he threw that piece of information out into the open, "So everyone who sent an inquiry was not actually ignored but... You went and challenged them?”

“Naturally.” He nodded. "None succeeded in earning it, as they were... inadequate to honor the value of the land. Of course, I ignored the subpar offers. Anything that was asking for permission to move in or offered payment to borrow it was immediately thrown out. I only looked into those who wanted it and offered them the same deal as I am offering you now. You will regret many things in this life, young Siu, but taking up on my challenge is not one of those, even if you don't earn that plot of land.”

“I’m still refusing.” He snorted, simply because he was disliking the way this supposed elder was talking, the tone of his voice, the way he looked at him; everything was irking Siu, down to his bones. So much so that he totally forgot he was talking to someone who could throw him out of the Sect if he wanted. Yet, in that moment, he was speaking to him as if he were a fellow disciple, not even thinking about it. "If I want humiliation, I would strip down naked and start walking around, swinging my hips." He added, already cursing in his head, realizing Arya was listening in too, as she sensed his agitation, and she was already nudging Seloryn to hurry back, since her Master was in 'trouble.'

"I see the issue," Orzimar studied him for a moment. "There is a misunderstanding here: You are not required to defeat me. That would be indeed unfair.”

"..." Siu shook his head with a sigh. "I had dealings with people like you before. No. You can decide we failed regardless of what we do, and you just want to have fun between century-long, reclusive sessions. I am not your jokester, your little court-side fool, and I refuse to be one.”

“...” Orzimar's eyes flashed while listening, but there was no danger in them at all; quite the opposite, but Siu missed it. “I am not challenging only you.” He added something new again, "I extend it to all of you. To your whole organization, every member can join and show what they're worth. You can earn it for yourselves... or you can stay mediocre."

"You are this desperate to get rid of it or what?" Siu’s brows furrowed, squinting at him. "Then just hand it over."

"Am I desperate?" He asked, and Siu knew the question was not directly for him, but more for Orzimar himself as he closed his eyes for a moment. "Yeah, I think you are right. So much time has passed, and people forgot how things were done... Even in my days as a disciple, it was a dying custom. But... we were adhering to it, the original rules of our Founder, and those rules are still the foundational tenets of our Song." He continued, opening his eyes, "And I will hold them up and make sure they won't disappear." With that, Orzimar walked toward the door once more, not even looking at Siu. “Three days from now, at the empty parcel. Be there.”

"Oi!" Siu’s head snapped up, watching his back as he was leaving. “I did not agree!”

“I don't care. You have three days to decide if you will be somebody, or stay a good little nobody.” And with that, Orzimar opened the door, stepping out and closing it without any more words.

Siu, shaking his head, hurried to the door, looking out, but no matter where he glanced, he could not catch his figure at all. By then, he simply vanished.

...

....

......

The first emergency meeting of the Spirit Wardens was held at the Resting Reed that same evening, mostly to Arya's delight because in her much bigger form, she managed to stun everyone who was seeing her for the first time like that.

"That's a dangerous partner," Vael whispered to Siu while Arya was fluttering her eyelashes, making sure she was bouncing around, entertaining Ruben and Joren, while also annoying Seloryn, who was rolling her eyes at the overexcited fox... who was now not only taller but bigger than she was.

"Tell me about it..." Siu whispered back, as they were getting to their places at the separated table, not that they needed it. At this hour, the entire restaurant was closed and empty for their complete privacy.

"How are you able to sleep with her being like this?"

"Just have her get tired throughout the day," Siu answered with an even quieter voice, "Then she falls asleep without issues."

"Like an overexcited pet," Vael said with a chuckle.

"Haah... kinda. But... Well... It is getting hard to..." He muttered, watching as Arya was now grinningly poking Cho'Wa, who was growling back at her, and at the same time, Nokoh was studying her body, asking questions about how she felt while transforming, wanting to know more to help his wolf reach the same stage.

"My friend..." Vael smiled, patting his shoulder, saying jokingly, "That problem is a good problem, and I won't lie... I'm a bit jealous of you. Chin up, Siu... Enjoy it."

"Enough fooling around!" Quillian said suddenly, feeling restless, and hit Arya on the buttocks with his cane, making her whole body jump up and jiggle. Landing on her feet, she hurried back next to Siu, sitting down while pouting, letting Marly's head pop out from between her bosom, where she was tucked away, yawning. "Let's get to this meeting, and get it over with... I'm tired."

"I agree," Seloryn said while stifling a yawn, "What happened...? Arya was ranting about feeling that you are being insulted or something... Who was it?" As she asked, everybody looked at Siu, but none of them expected his answer.

“I met High Elder Orzimar.”

"Huh?" Seloryn’s eyes widened, her second yawn getting stuck in her throat.

“I told you!” Arya exclaimed, standing up while grinning, slapping the table with two hands and laughing in a very enchanting voice, “I am Arya the Clairvoyeur! I can peek into the future, like others try to peek into my robes; I knew what to say to make the old man appear!”

“Sit down,” Siu said, pulling her back to her chair by the hem of her robes. "As for the High Elder, he doesn't want money, but he wants us, all of us, to go and fight him for the rights to own the place.

“That sounds promising,” Ruben said, rubbing his chin, "Cheaper than paying years' worth of CC." But then he grimaced, realizing they would have to fight a High Elder, which was... stupid.

“Just wait a minute," Joren raised a hand at his brother, "He wants to fight all of us?”

“Yes, at once.” Siu nodded, "Which would still be unfair."

“Duh.” Joren gawked, laughing in a defeated way, "What the hell is this? Cripple Lotto? I don't want to win on that!"

“My partner thinks it is a trap,” Nokoh translated when Cho'Wa made a scuffing voice. "However, he also points out that no elder would go out of his way to cause trouble for a disciple... There shouldn't be too much risk in taking up the offer."

"You are a battle maniac, aren't you?" Joren asked, pinching the ridge of his nose. "I can list you ten types of risks associated with this offer."

“It isn’t a trap,” Quillian spoke up too, "If this Orzimar wanted to hurt you, there would be no need for a challenge. Not to mention, if he is fighting inside the sect, that would be something many others of his rank would keep an eye on. It is not something that happens in here, and they wouldn't even allow it to happen if it's like what you are afraid of. Even if it's unfair, you can use it to start a formal complaint.”

“That is comforting,” Joren said flatly, "But I like my limbs attached to my body. Complaining about losing them means nothing."

"Hm..." Seloryn rested both elbows on the table, chewing her lips. “What exactly did he say?”

Siu recounted the conversation, leaving out the part where he called him an 'old fuck,' which, of course, was relayed by Arya, making everyone look at Siu for a straight minute, as if he was an idiot, saying nothing.

“Well," Seloryn recovered first, "I think he is testing the association. What we read about their own was that they were indeed talented but also way too proud. Apparently all those centuries failed to curb those feelings, if they go around challenging disciples as their elders... Which is shameful, but Quillian is right; we can use this, even if we lose.”

"Which we will do," Joren reminded everyone at the table. "We will lose. Period."

“That was my conclusion, too,” Siu agreed, rubbing his face, "Both about losing and why he is like that. But... He is going about it from an angle that makes me want to punch him."

"Isn't that what he wants?" Ruben frowned. “He wants to test our ability to be knocked unconscious together. I know I said I like the prospect, but thinking about it more, our medicine baths would be more expensive than buying the cave.”

“I can demonstrate being knocked unconscious without punching and kicking," Joren said with a scoff, hating that he was agreeing with his brother, "It will be cheap, too; we just need a few bottles of wine."

"I don't think he would hurt us," Nokoh shook his head. “Even if we go at him at once, he could test our individual strength separately. This is an opportunity to get a lesson from a High Elder!”

"I know I'm not part of your sect," Vael leaned over the table at that moment, looking at everyone, "But I agree with Nokoh. When I was a head disciple, if I wanted to know whether a group was genuine, I would not ask how strong each person was; instead, I would put them under pressure and see who they really were when things became serious.”

"Let's vote, or we will sit here, arguing about it," Seloryn spoke up, glancing at everyone. "Raise your hands if you are ready to accept the challenge. Everyone votes, no exceptions! If you don't raise your hand, you are voting against it."

Siu watched as Arya's hand shot up high, then Marly's paw appeared from between her bosom. Next, Vael and Nokoh both raised a hand, along with Cho'Wa.

"Well..." Siu smiled, slowly putting his up, watching as only Joren, Ruben, and Quillian's hands stayed down. "Then in three days, we go and face him, huh?"

"Can we not go?" Ruben asked, grimacing.

"..." Siu quickly looked at Seloryn and, in the end, nodded. "Sure."

"..."

"What?" Seloryn smiled, watching as Ruben's face distorted, suddenly feeling that his pride was now in ruins.

"Nothing..." He muttered, looking away, crossing his arms, "Damn it... Why did I join this crazy group...?"