Chapter 341 - The Sun God’s Amulet

“Create a catalyst…” Yuzu had a thoughtful gaze on her face, “By using spiritual ingredients to alter the properties of the sarira, the pathway can be changed.”

“Indeed.” Renshu nodded. 

“But, I’m already on this path, and this sarira is perfectly suited to it. Wouldn’t changing its properties be harmful for me?” Yuzu asked, “I thought Exalted can’t change their paths…”

“The further one goes down a path, the more locked into it they are. However, there are plenty of paths that diverge at the Apprentice level and solidify later. It’s only a matter of finding out what those alternatives are.” Renshu then hesitated, saying, “However…”

“I do not mean to imply that I know of any pathways or catalysts that would be suitable for you. I am only suggesting it as a possibility.” Renshu said.

“Regardless, this topic is getting dangerously close to triggering Akahi’s mechanisms. I won’t be saying any more on the matter.” He waved his arm in a broad gesture, as if clearing the air.

Yuzu frowned gloomily, feeling that Renshu hadn’t helped her at all. Catalyst recipes were highly specialized, strictly guarded secrets. Finding an alternate catalyst for her specific path? Where would she even start?

The Kismet Order is the only Fate-aspected organization that I know of… But they’re aligned with Akahi. They would definitely not help me.

To make matters even harder, Fate was an elusive and rare domain. Yuzu wasn’t even sure if there were any other Fate aspected Exalted out there in the world. If Akahi was truly at a level above other gods like Renshu said, would she even allow other Fate factions to exist?

“The deal that we made. In exchange for retrieving the amulet, you agreed to help me disappear from the Exalted world.” Yuzu said, “You weren’t completely honest with me, were you?”

“I did not lie.” Renshu said with a sagely air, “If you still so wish to disappear, I can make it happen.”

“But, you knew that my Fate would force me to return.” Yuzu said, “Otherwise, such an action against Akahi’s will would cause misfortune on you.”

Though her words were accusatory, Yuzu wasn’t actually trying to call Renshu out for the false promise that he had made. Just like a customer that made false promises about the value of an item that they were pawning, she wouldn’t be doing any favours by making the customer look bad.

However, in cases like this it was also good to let the customer know that she was aware of the ploy, and that she accepted the game they were playing. Business was business. Yuzu was no stranger to white lies herself. As long as the relationship could be preserved there was still value in doing business together.

“Akahi’s methods are forceful, but they are not all-encompassing.” Renshu said, “It is possible that you could be the loose thread that makes all her plans unravel.

“For example, that amulet you now possess. It would not be a stretch to say that you have disrupted her Prophecy. This amulet is meant for the sun god’s heir.

“But what if you were to wear it yourself, instead?” Renshu’s eyes glittered with a hint of mischief and curiousity.

“I’d… become the sun god’s heir?” Yuzu frowned. That certainly would make a mess of things…

“Impossible. You are aligned to Fate, the Sun God is Body. No amount of preparation would allow the Sun God to fully revive through your body, the very act would cause you to become Corrupt.” Renshu smiled as he shook his head, “But that amulet has a special property, it is designed to bolster the material and spiritual capacity of its wearer. On the one hand, it prepares the body and spirit of its wearer to become a better vessel. On the other, that same strength can be used to resist the process.

You want the strength to resist Akahi’s plans for you, this could very well be the first step towards that.” 

Yuzu contemplated Renshu’s words, absentmindedly rubbing her thumb over the smooth emerald gem of the amulet. There was a subtle glimmer of light within the gem that drew her eyes. Her spiritual intuition told her that the artifact wasn’t dangerous to her.

~

A thick, deep voice suddenly spoke out beside Yuzu. “It is done.”

Yuzu looked up from the amulet with a start as she found herself floating in the air in a massive chamber filled with ornate pillars and vaulted ceilings. The stone floor did not extend to the walls, but instead formed a rectangular platform. Prismatic light filtered in through stained glass windows that spanned across opposite sides of the hall.

A vision… Yuzu recognized the sensation immediately. I’m seeing the past of the amulet.

Lost in her thoughts, Yuzu had subconsciously latched onto the spirituality of the amulet. Her first instinct was to sever the vision, but her thoughts were interrupted by the glimmer of the emerald amulet as it passed in front of her face.

The amulet was being held between the thumb and forefinger of a hand that was many times the size of a normal hand. The amulet was the size of Yuzu’s fist, but in this man’s grasp it looked like he was holding a small stud for an earring. 

The owner of that hand was the one who had spoke out.

He was a giant, over two storeys tall, with broad shoulders that loomed over the hall. He had thick, curly black hair that resembled the coat of a sheep, and a similarly thick beard that bunched up and was tucked into a heavy mottled coat. The lower half of his body was hidden beneath the raised floor, which Yuzu now realized was a giant table.

Standing on the table were two individuals, a man and a woman, who were facing the giant respectfully. Their eyes were drawn to a pedestal between them where the giant gently placed the completed amulet on top of a silk cushion.

“Delivered as commissioned.” The giant rumbled with a nonchalant air.

“May I?” The man, a royal figure who wore a white cape elaborately embroidered with gold thread bowed and stepped forward to examine the amulet. He wore a gold circlet on his head that gave Yuzu the impression that he must be a ‘king’. As he approached the emerald amulet spontaneously lit up with a bright light, coming ablaze as if it were a white hot ingot that had just been taken out of a forge.

“As you can see, the amulet resonates perfectly with your spiritual energy. But I have also ensured that it poses no threat to Exalted from other domains, or even normal humans for that matter.” The giant said. Though his words were spoken casually, it was clear that he was both proud and confident in his work. “It should convey its benefits without any harm.”

“Immaculate work, as expected from the God of Craftsmen.” The king said.

At these words Yuzu could infer what she was watching. Yuzu knew of only one God of Craftsmen, Okuron, whose divine kingdom she had visited alongside Argus. In fact, the hallowed, ancient architecture that they were in, built with immaculate craftsmanship, could very well be one of the halls within His Great Library.

This god was now dead, his corpse rotting somewhere at the bottom of His library.

As for the king, Yuzu gathered that he must be King Shuma, the Sun God that ruled over Ying Chu and was defeated by Lord Noga in the War of the Five Kings. 

The final person at the scene was an elegant, beautiful goddess with flowing gold locks of hair. She stood patiently at the side as Shuma examined the amulet and discussed its construction with Okuron, but the look in Her eyes was of someone who believed in her own ultimate authority.

As if she were in charge of this meeting, and were letting it play out.

This goddess must be Akahi, the Goddess of Fate. Even though she couldn’t see threads within this vision, Yuzu had no doubt that this was Her. Yuzu was almost worried about staring too closely at the goddess, in case She somehow sensed her…

But that was impossible. This was a vision of the past, a spiritual memory locked into the energies of the amulet.

The fact that Yuzu’s spiritual intuition didn’t warn her of the danger of looking directly at these three gods also backed up the idea that she couldn’t be harmed by observing this vision.

After coming to this realization Yuzu willed herself to ‘float closer’ to the goddess, taking a close look at this goddess’ features. She was elegant, stunningly beautiful, with bountiful curves. 

Yuzu might have felt inadequate, if she weren’t also constantly aware of the fact that despite their appearance of health and power in this vision, all three of the gods at this meeting were now long deceased.

As the conversation wrapped up, King Shuma handed the amulet to Akahi,  bowing to her.

She took a moment to examine the emerald, which slowly stopped glowing.

“I trust everything is to your satisfaction?” Shuma asked.

Golden threads of light shimmered within Akahi’s pupils as she held her fingers over the amulet.

“It shall be woven into the Prophecies.” She said with a celestial air, “Your Fate is secure.”