Atharos and Shui - Music in the Moonlight
"
He's been gone for too long." The Aurion prince had left the rest of the strange pack of warriors, because one of them: a man fond of water Pokémon, it seems, had vanished into the forest. So far, Atharos had not managed to share a decent conversation with the man, but he did worry for his safety. What if he had encountered some threat in the surrounding wild-land? What if he had been attacked by Savage electric Pokémon? How would he defend himself or his partners against a horde of Manectric or Galvantula? He had sent Bishop out to scout for him, while Knight stuck with him, in case they should run into some sort of danger. He had his Axe withdrawn and his shield at the ready, in case they found any feral monsters, or bandits.
"
I don't like this, Knight. It's too q..."Atharos suddenly stopped speaking when he heard something out of place. There was a noise filling the air, but it wasn't the noise of battle, or of danger. It was a distinctly purposeful sound: a crafted sound, made by someone intentionally. He slowly led Knight towards the direction of the sound, pushing through the bushes and the forest silently, like a hunter stalking a Deerling.
As he pushed through one set of bushes, he was surprised by what he saw: Shui, playing music on a flute of bamboo. Instead of interrupting the man, who was mid-song, Atharos paused to listen to the music. He was to the man's back, so hopefully the man wouldn't be aware of his presence, but he made sure not to move quickly, so as to ensure the man didn't feel threatened. After all, Atharos was enjoying the tune of the flute: the man had talent with his instrument.
The entire band of soldiers had set up a camp a while ago, and things were dying down, having collected enough supplies to see them through a week of travelling, and then some. So, Shui stepped away from the rest to pay his tributes with the music of the Temple of Lugia. Now, to the outside, or anyone unfamiliar with the ways of the Warrior-Priests of Lugia, it would just seem like a particularly beautiful song on a flute. But to the Warrior-Priests, it was a spiritual tune that praised Lugia and asked for strength.
Jiao and Huang both sat quietly, listening to the music. Jiao on her haunches, as per usual, and Huang sitting like the Warrior-Priests themselves. Nothing but the sound of the flute filled the air around them. And, as the song picked up, the two Water-type Pokemon started to slowly dance in place in the method demonstrated at the monastery.
Shortly after the song came to an end, and an accompanying prayer to the deity, Lugia, Shui spoke. "
A song, played to worship the Argentian deity, Lugia. The song asks many things of the god: peace, strength, and tranquility, among others," he said, directly to Atharos. Turning to the Aurion, Shui continued. "
I played it in the hopes that Lugia answers, and grants us the will and strength to continue, so that the lands may find peace and tranquility."
Continuing, Shui said, "
But, to people outside the faith and following of Lugia, it is still a beautiful song." Jiao and Huang turned to look at Atharos as well, calm and at ease. "
Why did you come here?" he finally asked the bastard prince.
Atharos listened patiently as Shui explained the purpose of his song, nodding periodically to acknowledge he understood. He had to admit, the song was more pleasant than he had expected. If someone had said they were going to play a song of worship, he would have waved them off. Worship, in his mind, was best done through living and doing. Frivolous acts that take time out of your day were a waste, in his world. Suicune demanded fluidity, and adaptability. Rituals of worship were generally far too rigid to correctly praise the Aurion diety.
Shui finished up by asking questions of Atheros, and he straightened up once the man finished speaking. "
When a man vanishes into the forest alone, without telling anyone, it arouses my curiosity. There are a dozen things you could be doing, and dozens more creatures in these woods which could have been attacking you while doing them."
Taking a few steps towards Shui, Atheros took in the man's appearance for the first time. He didn't strike Atheros as the typical image of an Argentian anything. "
You don't look much like a holy-man. What should I call you?"
"
I appreciate your concern. I didn't expect my absence to cause such a stir in anyone. Thank you," Shui said, thanking Atheros for coming to find him. In all honesty, Shui would've been fine, having fought both other people and Pokémon before while training as a Warrior-Priest in the Temple of Lugia. His Pokémon were well-trained, too, and were able to handle themselves in combat.
"
Oh? You may call me many things. You may call me a Warrior-Priest of Lugia, for example. Another would be Xiurongese, not a normal Argentian citizen. For all intents and purposes, true Argentians can hold very prejudiced opinions about us. Finally, if none of those suit, you may just call me by my name, Shui," Shui answered to Atheros. "
What about you?"
Atharos listened to the man-of-many-titles, taking all of the information in and adding it to the growing mental notepad of characters in his party. So far, this man was proving to be the most unusual. "
I'm afraid I have far fewer, far less interesting titles. I am Atharos, of Aurios."
He looked at the man's partners: Two water types. Did he not fear the possibility of being put on the ropes by electric types? It seemed fool-hardy to ignore that chance. Perhaps there was a third pokemon in the wings, which gave him such confidence. "
I'll admit I've never met a Xiurongese before. What is your homeland like?"
"
I've never been to Xiurong. Anything I could tell you would be a secondhand experience of anyone that was around at that time. Though, from what I could ever gather, Xiurong is a wasteland, now. Ravaged and destroyed by power and malice so great it could have only been by the hand of a God. That God, my forefathers tell me, is the God of Destruction, Yveltal. For reasons lost, Yveltal snapped awake and razed the entire country in one felling, destroying an entire civilization. A land and country once so beautiful and prosperous, more so than Pheonicis, reduced to naught."
"
Oh, but you wish to know about my homeland? My homeland is the rural areas on the end of Argent, on the western side of the mountains, caressing the Ebony Sea. This is so because that is where the first generation of Xiurongese Immigrants set foot. When they came ashore, they were not greeted with open arms. They cried for help and a place to survive, and were answered with a section of segregated land and 36 years of racism. Yet, we Xiurongese Immigrants still live and prosper, even under the hardships given to us by many Native Argentians. Xiurongese Argentians are a quiet but prosperous people of laborers, mainly farmers, tilling the fields to forget hardship and make life better. The land we are bound to stresses this perfectly, very fertile and bountiful."
Shui let out a soft chuckle as he finished his speech. "
I could describe Xiurongese Argent to you for the remainder of this night, but by the break of dawn, it still wouldn't have fully painted the picture. The strokes of the brush are there, but the watercolor is not. To truly know Xiurongese Argent, one must see it, experience it. You will just need to be there for yourself. Only then will the brush touch with the pigment and paint Xiurongese Argent for you."
Once more, Atheros simply listened to the man as he described himself and the homeland he lost. His face, which had been passive throughout the last speech, changed slightly at the mention of the Argentian's harsh mistreatment of the Xiurongese. He almost spoke out about the cruelty of his country's long-time enemies, and how it is a shame that the foreigners did not make land in Aurios, but he stopped himself. Was he so sure that his predecessors would be so kind? Would the worshippers of Suicune adhere to their policy of fluidity and grace and be the gracious hosts to the foreigners?
It was impossible to say, and pointless to contemplate. He could waste time talking with this man of could haves and would-bes, but they mattered little now. "
I would very much like to see your homeland...Both homelands. While Xiurong may have lost its former glory, it would still be a view worth seeing."
After a moment of silence, Atharos suddenly spoke out. "
Bah, this talk is depressing, and serves us ill. We should return to camp. Food is no doubt cooking, and I'm sure the others would be delighted to hear your song. It has helped lift my spirits, if nothing else."
Turning, Atharos swung his axe to cut through a large patch of growth. As he did, it became obvious how prepared the Prince was: a number of trees had small gouge marks, from where Knight had marked them: A clear path to the camp. "
I am curious: how does a foreigner come to become a Priest of Lugia. Surely those of Xiurong have their own god?"
Following Atharos on their way back to the camp, Shui carried Jiao in his arm, and Huang followed close behind. He listened to Atharos as he asked one more question of Shui. "
Well, there are a couple of reasons. Before the Xiurongese Immigrants came to Argent, the people of Xiurong worshiped multiple Gods in a Pantheon. Many figures in the Pantheon are worshiped here, in Atlas. After, though, the Xiurongese came to abandon their Pantheon, whom had betrayed them, and came to worship Lugia. Nearly all of the Xiurongese Argentians worship Lugia as the Native Argentians do."
"
The second reason has to do with a tale my mother and father used to tell me about the night that I was born. According to the village doctor, neither my mother nor I should have survived the birthing had it not been for an encounter with the God of the Sea, Rain, and Storm itself, Lugia. The night I was born, Lugia itself blessed me with its divine being and brought me into the world when fate had it written that I was to perish before even living. Because of this, I felt a duty to worship Lugia at its Temple and serve the God," Shui explained as he navigated behind Atharos, Jiao in tow, and Huang right behind him.
"
A man touched by a God, eh?" Atharos smirked at the idea. How many times had he heard similar tales in his lifetime? About the champions of Suicune, or Entei who would save or destroy Aurios, respectively? How many fools with illusions of Grandeur had he been forced to deal with?
... And yet, why did he believe Shui, at least to some degree? The man gave off an aura, so to speak. A genuine-ness that certainly made his faith seem profound when compared to the average worshipper.
Atharos cut through more of the forest and, soon enough, the pair were at the edge of the it. He could see the outline of the camp, and he shrugged. "
I hope your god is watching over us. At this rate, we'll need divine intervention to even find a lead, let alone succeed." Atharos was waiting at the edge of the forest, and didn't seem to be in a rush to move. Shui had an opportunity in the silence to ask the Prince about himself, would he take it?
"
I put my faith in the God of the Sea, Rain, and Storm to watch over us and offer its divine intervention where it sees fit, to help solve this crisis. That's the reason why I was playing the song to Lugia alone: to worship and praise Lugia, and to ask for its assistance and guidance. I won't drone you much longer with this talk of religion. It's not for everyone," Shui said.
As they neared the camp, Shui decided to learn about Atharos. "
I have told you much about myself, but I've yet to learn about you, Atharos. Tell me, why have you come on this campaign? Was it for battle? Glory? Righteousness? Fame? Boredom?," Shui inquired, actually interested in learning about the bastard Prince.
What brought him here? It was a good question: one perhaps he hadn't asked of himself: It wasn't fame he sought, for he got enough of that for just being the bastard prince; it wasn't Glory, because there was little glory to be found in a mission almost certain to fail; He cared little for Righteousness, because the concept was malleable; and if he truly sought battle, surely keeping the state of things as it was would be his goal.
"
Perhaps duty. Perhaps Pride...Perhaps I'm just arrogant, and I fear that left to anyone else, the job won't be done right." The man shrugged his shoulders, as he looked at the warrior-priest. He started to walk back towards the direction of camp, assuming that Shui would follow. "
In truth, it is probably a combination of all three. We should get back soon."
Shui listened to the man as he answered his question. He was slightly impressed by Atharos; the everyday person has a hard time admitting to his sins, especially to someone they'd met relatively just then. Shui, being Xiurongese, has experience the darkness in people first-handed, and then see them turn to their neighbors and claim, as Lugia as their witness, that they are free of wrong.
"
I, too, feel a sense of duty in this expedition. A duty to Lugia, a duty to the Xiurongese, a duty to Atlas, and a duty to Pokemon. I feel like I have a calling to serve and help the movement to stop this time of darkness and find peace among the Pokemon with the hopes of that droplet rippling the waters and, in turn, acquiring peace among us humans," Shui responded nobly. He then said, "Yes, others have most definitely grown to be curious about our whereabouts."
"
Then let's not keep them any longer." He nodded to the monk, facing the camp with the same stoic, blank face he was probably starting to get a reputation for. "
I enjoyed this talk."
"
And I, likewise. It was enlightening to meet you, Atharos," Shui replied, smiling with the fluidity he carried around him as a general aura. Calm, flowing, fluid. As a being, he embodied water's calmer side. He was reminiscent of a stream, flowing over the rocks and pouring into a larger body, as Shui gave himself to something larger than himself, Lugia and its will.
Looking onto the camp, he saw not much had changed, and it seemed no one was rushing about, searching for the two. Shui would follow Atharos' lead, contemplating what he had said earlier. Would the entire guild enjoy his song as Atharos had suggested? He hoped; he would enjoy sharing such beauty with the others.
As Atharos and Shui returned to camp, the bastard Prince led them to the centre of the camp, where food was starting to cook. He ignored the havok of the newcomers, and tasted the Stew boiling in the middle. It needed more salt...
