Chapter 278 - Loose Bonds

“Bacchi…” Somm uttered the name of his elder brother like a curse, his lips curling into a snarl.

“He knows that you are here, he will arrive before sundown.” Yuzu nodded, sharing a small portion of what she had seen in the strings. 

“That fast… Then he is still in Fuha?” Somm did not hide his surprise as his brow furrowed with deep concern. In fact he had already considered the possibility of Bacchi hunting him down, but he did not consider the risk to be very high. To hear that Bacchi would arrive in such a short time shocked him. 

Yuzu nodded, frowning quietly.

Somm’s eyebrows knitted together as he fell into a thoughtful silence. Yuzu subtly observed the strings, watching the tapestry as it shifted and churned in the morning light.

In the sanctuary of that abandoned house to the west of the village, Yuzu had seen Bacchi’s arrival in the strings. Previously at the beginning of the elder guru-chi had not come to the village, but also previously Nilya did not succeed in finding a hollow ember. Yuzu’s interference in the trial had caused a butterfly effect, causing the guru-chi’s thick silver string to arrive in the vicinity.

From one point of view Yuzu’s influence on the trial had directly caused the battle between the two guru-chi. From that perspective, Somm’s near loss of control, too, was her fault.

“What bad luck…” Somm muttered darkly, “It seems fate has deemed to curse me until my demise.”

“Fate is subtle and ever changing.” Yuzu’s eyelashes fluttered softly as she muttered the words. Her expression was grim as the tapestry unfolded before her.

Coming out personally into the swamp to help the guru-chi was not a decision Yuzu had made lightly. As she expected Bacchi’s silver thread was now quietly entwining around not just Somm and Nilya’s strings, but hers as well.

Once again, she felt great danger in touching the guru-chi’s strings. She didn’t dare to use her powers on them. Even though she had just saved Somm’s life and warned him about his elder brother, Yuzu didn’t dare to actively use her abilities on his thread.

Therefore when dealing directly with the guru-chi she could only use ‘normal’ means. This put Yuzu in a dangerous predicament.

She was naturally risk-averse and preferred not to get directly involved in matters. In the two months that she had been in Fuha she had never shown her face to anyone, Her powers could even be said to complement her personality well, allowing to interfere from a safe distance.

Though he didn’t know this, Somm would have survived the backlash from being defeated in the trial’s pocket world. Yuzu didn’t need to interfere. However, he would be incredibly weak and was also oblivious to his brother’s approach. Bacchi would have killed the two Exalted without any resistance.

From there Yuzu didn’t know what would happen. If she remained on the sidelines would she be able to stay hidden from Bacchi, or would she be in an even more dangerous situation? At the very least Yuzu couldn’t assume her situation would get better.

But directly involving herself with Somm and Nilya, she could no longer be a spectator, observing from the sidelines. Her fate would become entangled in theirs.

Even now after saving Somm she didn’t know the full consequences of her actions. The tapestry was shifting, the future was yet to come. When Yuzu was on the sidelines she could use her intuition to account for the variations in the future and predict it with some degree of certainty. Thrust in the midst she felt lost.

Fate was subtle and ever-changing.

Yuzu had picked her words carefully. In a way she had spoken them more for herself than for Somm.

The old guru-chi nodded quietly, the words affecting him deeply. This old monster who had pursued an ancient prophecy for hundreds of years had a deep relationship with destiny. 

“Yes… You are right, Shou Tao…” The guru-chi’s tone was burdened, taking Yuzu’s words in a darker light, “The trial is destroyed, my oji cannot fulfill the prophecy. Perhaps fate has finally turned against me.”

He sighed, lamenting quietly, “Ashes, ashes, betrayal, deceit.”

His voice trailed off as he seemed to fall into despair. His strength seemed to falter as he sat down on a rock, cradling his petrified hand. From his tone and delivery Yuzu guessed that he was reciting a line from a poem, though she didn’t recognize where it was from.

Another moping scholar? Yuzu mused with slight annoyance as she tried to think of a way to pull the guru-chi out of this downward spiral.

 It was too late to turn back. Now that she had involved herself with the guru-chi she needed him to work with her. She stood up decisively, a challenging glare in her eyes, “The trial is destroyed but Nilya just has to bring back a hollow ember, no? There’s still hope. Otherwise, why would you have told him to find the owner of the trial’s world?”

The guru-chi froze upon hearing Yuzu’s words. This was not just privileged information, it was something that could only have been heard by specific methods. Of course, there were many, many ways that Yuzu could know this information. Somm couldn’t make too many conclusions from just what Yuzu revealed. 

Aside from that and perhaps more importantly was the intention behind Yuzu’s words, shining a glimmer of hope to pierce through his despair. Thoughts crashed in the guru-chi’s mind as he realized the profundity of Yuzu’s words.

Seeing that the guru-chi was off balance she recited, “A tree bears many fruit, who is to say which one will sprout?”

This line was from a popular poem that Yuzu had studied in school, though not one written by Li Ru. The name of the author escaped her, though.

As soon as she said the words she cringed inwardly, embarrassed for herself. Hearing her own voice quoting it out loud she felt like she sounded like a pretentious old grandma.

A soft chuckle interrupted her internal conflict as the guru-chi showed a reaction to her words. “Is that from one of your country’s scholars? In my homeland we have a similar saying.

“The sculptor cuts a thousand blocks, not knowing which stone contains his masterpiece.” Somm replied in verse, his sunken eyes recovering their intensity.

He nodded again, his posture straightening as he stood up, “Indeed. It is too early to quit. As long as Nilya’s body and soul are intact, there is yet hope. Shou Tao, I will remember this favour.”

He walked over to Nilya, who had slouched over into a loose fetal position after Somm had disrupted the ring of candles during his earlier struggles. Somm picked up Nilya, hanging the boy over his back. With Nilya’s arms hanging over the guru-chi’s shoulders it looked like he was in a deep sleep being carried by a grandpa.

Somm picked up the remnants of the ritual, storing them in the pockets of his coat before turning to Yuzu. “Bacchi will follow the ritual energies to this place. His pneuma is called ‘branch’, his limbs are like willow branches - hardy, resilient and swift as a whip.”

Yuzu didn’t respond immediately, using Fate Cycling to ask Somm for more details. 

~ 

In the alternate future she asked, “Pneuma?”

“We guru-chi all follow the same path. Our common trait is that we each possess a pneuma.” Somm said quietly, “It is an extension of our bodies, a separate part of us that we nurture and develop. We can impart a portion of this pneuma on another person, providing them assistance from afar.”

Yuzu nodded, thinking back to the clash in the Trial of Requirement between the two guru-chi.

“Because our pneuma is an expression of our souls, each of my brothers have a different pneuma. Knowing the nature of a guru-chi’s pneuma is the first step to fighting them.”

The guru-chi did not elaborate further, resulting in this alternate future providing no further information.

~

In another alternate future Yuzu asked, “What’s the name of your pneuma?”

Somm’s eyes darkened ever so subtly as he hesitated for just a moment, “Strength.”

His single word answer was laced with caution. It was clear that by asking the question she had crossed some unspoken boundary, raising his suspicions of her.

~

In a third future Yuzu asked, “Can he track us if we run?”

Somm nodded, a grave look on his face, “He can not only grow limbs, but also other appendages. He can see like a mirage hawk, track scents like a baskhound, hear as acutely as a dusk bat. Normal means of running won’t keep him away.”

He paused, cupping his chin as he muttered softly, “His pneuma was in the guide, that was beyond my expectations… If he severed his connection then his pneuma must be damaged as well. Perhaps you and I could put up a fight.”

The vision of the future blurred, becoming extremely hazy.

~

Yuzu read the futures quickly, only taking a few seconds to sift through the responses. Fate cycling was incredibly useful, though doing it in the midst of a conversation was not something she could do, due to the time and concentration it required. 

Fortunately, Somm didn’t force a conversation as he cleared away the evidence of the ritual, giving Yuzu room to investigate.

After checking a few more alternate futures Yuzu was far more informed about the situation. She also could avoid some of the serious pitfalls of some of the questions, such as probing too far about Somm’s own abilities and inciting suspicion in his mind. Of course, any discussion around fighting Bacchi directly was out of the question for her.

Seeing that Somm was ready to leave Yuzu spoke up, “Fighting Bacchi is not something we should do. Running as well isn’t an option.”

Somm took in Yuzu’s words and nodded after a moment, “I agree.”

“Most importantly right now, I have to assist Nilya. The sooner he can leave the trial’s world, the better.” Yuzu said, “I can provide indirect assistance in the meantime, but…”

“Don’t worry.” Somm nodded, understanding Yuzu’s point, “Leave dealing with my elder brother to me.”

He did not ask Yuzu about her powers nor about her motivations. In the Exalted world such information was closely guarded by both parties. Often times having a common enemy was enough to form some loose bonds of cooperation.

In this respect Somm was clear about the situation. Shou Tao, this mysterious girl who had appeared out of nowhere had not helped him out of charity. 

Her introductory statement, ‘I am tasked to bring you and Nilya to safety’ indicated her affiliation with a higher power.

Therefore, there was something she needed from him, or some connection that she had to Nilya. Or perhaps the ‘task’ was a ruse, and she was in trouble with Bacchi, seeking to ally with Somm againstr the common foe.

The one thing that Somm didn’t doubt was that Shou Tao was backed by a powerful force. One that could save him from losing control with a few drops of a potion, one that knew the secrets of the Trial and what happened within it.

Somm had taken his time cleaning up the ritual while he mulled over these thoughts. In his hundreds of years of experiences he had made many such alliances. The most critical point now was that both parties needed to cooperate to survive. With time, the answer to his questions would become clearer.

After a brief discussion Somm announced that he was ready to leave. He chose their initial direction without yet explaining his plan to deal with Bacchi.

Yuzu didn’t ask for details as she pulled the hood up on her cloak to conceal her face. The golden light of the tapestry reflected softly in the depths of her pupils as they took off toward the village.