Post by Harkovast on Jun 2, 2015 21:04:25 GMT
"Am I alright to keep this on?"
Tsai-Chong pointed to his bandana. Other then this he was only wearing a pair of trunks, and he looked extremely uncomfortable, hunched forward nervously.
Scatterpod said "That's fine. You're only undressed to avoid over heating. You need to relax yourself, staying relaxed is important. This ritual can get a little...intense, especially for the uninitiated. If it gets too much for you, please let me know and I'll stop it. I would want you to be harmed."
"Is...is it dangerous?"
"Everything is dangerous, dear. Just stay relaxed and take deep breaths."
"I appreciate all your help. Everyone here has been very kind...though I think I might be irritating Thundercloud."
"Don't pay him any heed, everyone irritates him. It's just his way. Wild Stallion has been annoying him for a lot longer than you, and they always seem to hang around together. I get the impression he likes you. He was very impressed with your skills with those swords."
"Really? He didn't mention anything."
"I told you, it's his way."
She raised a ladle of water of and poured it over the rocks in the middle of the room.
"Now I told you I was going to show you the paths that lie ahead of you. That was true, but it might have given you the wrong impression. Seeing the truth is not simple or harmless. You may be shown things you don't want to see. As I said...tell me if you need to stop. Breath deeply, and look to the Joyous Land, where the ancestors sit and give council."
Tsai-Chong breathed in the rising steam. It tasted strange, and made the back of his nose feel suddenly cold.
He sneezed as it tickled his sinuses.
Scatterpod chuckled.
"There you go," she said, her voice kind but clearly amused. "Just stay relaxed. Go where it leads."
Looking up at her, Tsai-Chong found the room seemed darker, and the glowing rocks between them were brighter than they had seemed before.
Scatterpods smile seemed to stand out from her face, a white crescent of teeth.
He could make out the motion of her tail behind her, raised up and swaying back and forth behind her head, its motions slow and blurred.
He blinked and shook his head, trying to focus his vision.
His own motions began to take on the same slow, blurred feeling, as if he was wading through thick water.
He stretched out his hands in front of him, wriggling his fingers as he got to grips with this new sensation.
The water around him lifted him off his seat and he began to drift backwards.
Shapes swam past him, but he couldn't see them clearly. Perhaps fish, perhaps other travellers.
He looked at his hands again, but this time he noticed darker clouds forming around his fingers. He realised he getting blood in the water, and started trying to pull his hands back, but the blood continued to spread in front of him.
He began to panic, and struggled to find some solid footing.
The blood was forming into the circular shape of Tsung-Dao writing, spelling out his own name.
Tsai-Chong started to screaming at the vision, thrashing his arms around wildly.
In his panic to get away from the vision he managed to pull himself through the water to the entrance to the sweat lodge.
As he got outside he felt the sudden rush of cold air on his face. He bent forward retched, vomiting with painful force before collapsing backwards onto the grass.
"Is he dead?"
"Of course he's not dead! Mother wouldn't kill him!"
"I dunno, maybe Tsung-Dao don't respond well to this kinda thing."
"I swear to the ancestors, I'm going to see if you respond well to my foot in..."
"Shhhhh" Sunset hushed Thundercloud and Wild Stallion "He's coming around.
Scatterpod leaned in close and snapped her fingers in front of Tsai-Chong's face a couple of times.
"Can you hear me, Tsai-Chong?"
"Yes...urgh...sorry," He struggled to sit up. "I didn't mean to disrespect your ritual."
Scatterpod smiled "No, you did well. But as I said, the lodge can get very intense."
Thundercloud drapped a blanket over Tsai-Chong's shoulders and handed him a cup of water.
"Don't feel bad, I've seen people do worse their first time. Wild Stallion wet himself and wouldn't stop crying for hours."
"Don't tell him that!" protested Wild Stallion.
Sunset shoved Thundercloud in the shoulder in irritation.
Scatterpod gave him an irritated glance and then looked back to Tsai-Chong.
"What did you see? It's alright if you don't want to talk about it, but often sharing a vision can reveal its meaning."
Tsai-Chong hesitated for a few moments before he responded "I saw my name...in blood. It was...a reminder of my past...of my mistakes."
"You know what it means?"
"I fought another warrior, Rin-Xien, in a foolish duel. In my anger I lost control of myself and wounded him...cut him with my name on his chest. Afterwards I was too ashamed to speak to him... and then he left town shortly afterwards."
Scatterpod nodded "You came here seeking to find peace with yourself, it is this guilt that hangs over you. You must free yourself of this burden that hangs over you."
"Can you help me do that?"
"No, as I said I can only show you your path. If you have wronged a man, you must find him and make peace with him. That is the only way to escape the guilt for your crime."
"But I don't know where to look for him...and even if I found him, how could I ask forgiveness for what I've done?"
"As I told you, the sweat lodge can show you things you don't want to see. The alternative is to live with the burden of your sins, hope that in time your guilt will fade."
"What should I do?"
"You should choose what kind of life you want to live, and what kind of person you want to be."
Tsai-Chong looked down thoughtfully. "I have made my name a shameful one, I have a duty to make amends."
Scatterpod said "It is the custom, amongst Ano-Chee, to take on a new name when we go through a great life change. If you feel shame at your name, I will give you a new one."
She stood up and put a hand to her chin thoughtfully.
"What are you going to call him?" Said Wild Stallion.
"Shush!" Said Thundercloud.
"You are a great warrior," said Scatterpod, thoughtfully, "of the Red Earth tribe. So we will call you Redswords....wait...Redswords? Hmm..."
"Swords?" said Thundercloud "That's doesn't sound very good."
"It's a bit funny to say." Agreed Sunset.
"You're right," Scatterpod said "Red Swords. Red Sword? Red Sword. That's better. You will be Red Sword. That will be a name you can carry without shame."
Redsword stood up.
"Thank you, I will find Rin-Xien and try to make peace with him."
"A word of caution" said Scatterpod "It may be that he won't accept your apology, or he may become violent towards you. He may even wish to kill you. I can't guarantee you that this path will give you the closure you want."
"It doesn't matter." Said Redsword "I realise now that a samurai should not fear death or shame, only failure."
Tsai-Chong pointed to his bandana. Other then this he was only wearing a pair of trunks, and he looked extremely uncomfortable, hunched forward nervously.
Scatterpod said "That's fine. You're only undressed to avoid over heating. You need to relax yourself, staying relaxed is important. This ritual can get a little...intense, especially for the uninitiated. If it gets too much for you, please let me know and I'll stop it. I would want you to be harmed."
"Is...is it dangerous?"
"Everything is dangerous, dear. Just stay relaxed and take deep breaths."
"I appreciate all your help. Everyone here has been very kind...though I think I might be irritating Thundercloud."
"Don't pay him any heed, everyone irritates him. It's just his way. Wild Stallion has been annoying him for a lot longer than you, and they always seem to hang around together. I get the impression he likes you. He was very impressed with your skills with those swords."
"Really? He didn't mention anything."
"I told you, it's his way."
She raised a ladle of water of and poured it over the rocks in the middle of the room.
"Now I told you I was going to show you the paths that lie ahead of you. That was true, but it might have given you the wrong impression. Seeing the truth is not simple or harmless. You may be shown things you don't want to see. As I said...tell me if you need to stop. Breath deeply, and look to the Joyous Land, where the ancestors sit and give council."
Tsai-Chong breathed in the rising steam. It tasted strange, and made the back of his nose feel suddenly cold.
He sneezed as it tickled his sinuses.
Scatterpod chuckled.
"There you go," she said, her voice kind but clearly amused. "Just stay relaxed. Go where it leads."
Looking up at her, Tsai-Chong found the room seemed darker, and the glowing rocks between them were brighter than they had seemed before.
Scatterpods smile seemed to stand out from her face, a white crescent of teeth.
He could make out the motion of her tail behind her, raised up and swaying back and forth behind her head, its motions slow and blurred.
He blinked and shook his head, trying to focus his vision.
His own motions began to take on the same slow, blurred feeling, as if he was wading through thick water.
He stretched out his hands in front of him, wriggling his fingers as he got to grips with this new sensation.
The water around him lifted him off his seat and he began to drift backwards.
Shapes swam past him, but he couldn't see them clearly. Perhaps fish, perhaps other travellers.
He looked at his hands again, but this time he noticed darker clouds forming around his fingers. He realised he getting blood in the water, and started trying to pull his hands back, but the blood continued to spread in front of him.
He began to panic, and struggled to find some solid footing.
The blood was forming into the circular shape of Tsung-Dao writing, spelling out his own name.
Tsai-Chong started to screaming at the vision, thrashing his arms around wildly.
In his panic to get away from the vision he managed to pull himself through the water to the entrance to the sweat lodge.
As he got outside he felt the sudden rush of cold air on his face. He bent forward retched, vomiting with painful force before collapsing backwards onto the grass.
"Is he dead?"
"Of course he's not dead! Mother wouldn't kill him!"
"I dunno, maybe Tsung-Dao don't respond well to this kinda thing."
"I swear to the ancestors, I'm going to see if you respond well to my foot in..."
"Shhhhh" Sunset hushed Thundercloud and Wild Stallion "He's coming around.
Scatterpod leaned in close and snapped her fingers in front of Tsai-Chong's face a couple of times.
"Can you hear me, Tsai-Chong?"
"Yes...urgh...sorry," He struggled to sit up. "I didn't mean to disrespect your ritual."
Scatterpod smiled "No, you did well. But as I said, the lodge can get very intense."
Thundercloud drapped a blanket over Tsai-Chong's shoulders and handed him a cup of water.
"Don't feel bad, I've seen people do worse their first time. Wild Stallion wet himself and wouldn't stop crying for hours."
"Don't tell him that!" protested Wild Stallion.
Sunset shoved Thundercloud in the shoulder in irritation.
Scatterpod gave him an irritated glance and then looked back to Tsai-Chong.
"What did you see? It's alright if you don't want to talk about it, but often sharing a vision can reveal its meaning."
Tsai-Chong hesitated for a few moments before he responded "I saw my name...in blood. It was...a reminder of my past...of my mistakes."
"You know what it means?"
"I fought another warrior, Rin-Xien, in a foolish duel. In my anger I lost control of myself and wounded him...cut him with my name on his chest. Afterwards I was too ashamed to speak to him... and then he left town shortly afterwards."
Scatterpod nodded "You came here seeking to find peace with yourself, it is this guilt that hangs over you. You must free yourself of this burden that hangs over you."
"Can you help me do that?"
"No, as I said I can only show you your path. If you have wronged a man, you must find him and make peace with him. That is the only way to escape the guilt for your crime."
"But I don't know where to look for him...and even if I found him, how could I ask forgiveness for what I've done?"
"As I told you, the sweat lodge can show you things you don't want to see. The alternative is to live with the burden of your sins, hope that in time your guilt will fade."
"What should I do?"
"You should choose what kind of life you want to live, and what kind of person you want to be."
Tsai-Chong looked down thoughtfully. "I have made my name a shameful one, I have a duty to make amends."
Scatterpod said "It is the custom, amongst Ano-Chee, to take on a new name when we go through a great life change. If you feel shame at your name, I will give you a new one."
She stood up and put a hand to her chin thoughtfully.
"What are you going to call him?" Said Wild Stallion.
"Shush!" Said Thundercloud.
"You are a great warrior," said Scatterpod, thoughtfully, "of the Red Earth tribe. So we will call you Redswords....wait...Redswords? Hmm..."
"Swords?" said Thundercloud "That's doesn't sound very good."
"It's a bit funny to say." Agreed Sunset.
"You're right," Scatterpod said "Red Swords. Red Sword? Red Sword. That's better. You will be Red Sword. That will be a name you can carry without shame."
Redsword stood up.
"Thank you, I will find Rin-Xien and try to make peace with him."
"A word of caution" said Scatterpod "It may be that he won't accept your apology, or he may become violent towards you. He may even wish to kill you. I can't guarantee you that this path will give you the closure you want."
"It doesn't matter." Said Redsword "I realise now that a samurai should not fear death or shame, only failure."
