v8c11: The Old Ways, the New Ways (Patreon)

Gaolan could not get enough of seeing. Of experiencing. Of looking out into the place that had protected her for so long.

And so her Contractor went forth into the Ravine. Clad in their new garments… they actually started to blend in. They went from guests, to simply more people from the Ravine, travelling through their home.

The bits and pieces started to come back to her more easily. 

The way to properly ride a horse, how to make one of the canoes that people used on the rivers, how to braid rope. He followed her whispers, and let her hands guide his own limbs so it felt like she was the one doing it.

Her contractor probably indulged her more than he should have. She knew she was being selfish. The other part of her, the bigger part… she just let Gaolan, a small smile on her face. Occasionally she would chime in with her own thoughts. She knew nearly as much as Gaolan after all, but for the most part she let Gaolan speak, an understanding smile on her face.

It was wonderful. She drank it in. The smells, the sights, the taste of the air. She watched them hunt for a feast, Gou Ren making the killing shot on a bison, and carrying it back to the camp to great celebration. Bi De, Ri Zu, Xianghua and Yun Ren sparred with several of the Grand Ravine cultivators, their skills surpassing all who met with them. She saw the bees spreading through the Ravine, tasting the flowers, and finding them good. She saw Bei Be meditating under a waterfall, the thunderous stream washing off his back like light rain. She saw Biyu, a bright smile on her face, as she and several other ladies reviewed their doll collections. Wa Shi lazed in the river, only stirring when it was time for a meal.

Zhuye played with several other children, as much as a child his age could play, under the watchful eye of Suyan.

And Meiling, her other Connected One, spent several hours conspiring with several other housewives; the cooked root of the Canyon Flower was known for its energising effects.  And Meiling figured, with a couple of added other ingredients it could be quite… potent.

Several of the men passing by that meeting looked rather disturbed by the collective chuckles emanating from the gathering.

And every night, she felt them. Her Connected One. Her connected ones. They pressed their hands to the earth, and gave their Qi to her.

They let her feel their love, their gratitude, their joy. How much they appreciated being here.

And as the days passed, Gaolan started feeling other things. Things from the people of the Ravine. She could feel the echoes of their dreams. Their thoughts, their hopes and dreams, and even their fears and worries.

Her heart panged for those. They kept them hidden, those worries, and she could feel only faint echoes. She wanted to know more. She wanted to help. It was the least she could do for them, after everything they had done for her…

===

Ulagan Tarkhan expected that attending to a powerful Master would be stressful. Trapped in the bonds of formality and politics, second-guessing everything. But above that was that he had wanted to make a good impression on Master Rou. He had wanted to show the man the Ravine, and have him appreciate it.

Tarkhan knew that he had thoughts unbecoming of a proud Man of the Ravine. He should be above caring what the Imperials thought of them or his people, but… it was still frustrating. It made his blood boil, when the Imperials thumbed their noses at them when they thought they weren’t looking. When they whispered poison under their breaths.

The Grand Ravine Sect was the most powerful sect in the Hills. They were as ancient as all the others, and still, fools dared to look down upon his people. They mocked the slight accents they had, they scoffed at their dress, and they looked at their tattoos and said it was proof of their barbarism.

It frustrated him. No, it enraged him that his people were looked down upon, despite being the strongest. Tarkhan hadn’t gone out into the Azure Hills wanting to hate people. How could he have? He had grown up on the tales of Chengis Altan, who had friends who were outsiders.

Maybe that was why he was so fond of Rou Tigu. He still remembered the day they met, vividly. The short little Imperial girl, who had looked upon their dress and their tattoos and their banners, and proclaimed, with honest admiration, that they were beautiful.

That small display of respect, that open desire to learn about the Ravine… it had meant something to him. Enough that when the Shrouded Mountain Sect went and took her, Tarkhan joined the fray on her side.

That had continued into friendship, especially with the Azure Alliance. She was a good friend to share a meal with, and they traded pointers in the ring often—Tarkhan was one of the few who could actually press her these days, the little tiger having grown well into her stripes. He would have liked a sister like her. Sarnai was fierce in her own way, but Tigu loved life and learning and art in a way that was infectious. He still had the mostly finished designs for the tattoo she had wanted.

And then there was her father. Master Rou. Any man who had raised a daughter like that was a man worth respecting—but the feeling of the man’s Qi, his sheer power, and the way the Earth spoke of him… it awed Tarkhan.

He was an Imperial so powerful that Great Experts like the Cloudy Sword Sect proclaimed him a Master. The Shrouded Mountain Sect recoiled like a beaten dog from a mere letter. An invasion of demons was shattered by the strength of his arm.

And though the man had always been more than cordial, he was outright kind, Tarkhan had still been nervous. Even with the stories, he had been worried, on that first day.

And yet he was rendered a fool by the wisdom of the ancestors. When the legends said The Herald of the Earth would know their ways as if he was born among them, Tarkhan hadn’t really appreciated what that meant.

They’ll know how to greet us, they’ll be able to use their blades, perhaps they would enjoy butter tea. That is what he thought of that passage.

“Here's a good spot,” Master Rou declared, his eyes locking onto the places Tarkhan himself would have looked. The angle of the side passage, the way the tree's roots looked, and the lack of burrow holes around their trunks. Sometimes colonies of marmots would take out the roots, and then the entire tree would fall off the side of the Ravine.

The man walked through the Ravine like he had been going through it for centuries. Tarkhan had lost him three times already today, the man seeming to just disappear and reappear at will… and he seemed to find it amusing when he snuck up on Tarkhan. 

It was like being out and about with a fun uncle, rather than Master Rou. Especially with the clothes the man was wearing.

Cousin Gou Ren whistled. “You know how to choose locations.”

Master Rou’s entire retinue was with them, and they had gone quite deep into the Ravine. The ground just past this passage sloped harshly downwards, and would stay that way until it descended ten Li into the earth—perfect for their purposes today.

“We can erect the tarp and the posts there, and set out the birds,” Tarkhan replied, nodding at the location. “The wind is right; they’ll have a good hunt.”

“Exactly what I was thinking. Ga-khalutei!” Master Rou said.

Hells, he knew more of the Ravine Tongue than Tarkhan did. It took Tarkhan a second to wrack his brains for the word, before he realised it was the old form of “wonderful.” Master Rou knew the old, old words that had fallen out of use over the thousands of years, spoken with an accent that made all the grandfathers and grandmothers laugh because he sounded like he was from deep in the western crags.

They worked together to set everything out, like proper men out on a hunt together. The Imperials would have likely had servants for this… or, well, some of them. Tarkhan had to reevaluate quite often what “Imperial” was, recently.

With the posts set up, the birds were released from the covered wagon. Master Rou grinned as one in particular winged its way over to him.

“Hoi, Hoi, there we go, beautiful,” Master Rou said, raising his arm so that his new companion could land on it. 

The Little Lord of the Blue Sky, a Grand Ravine Condor, landed on his outstretched arm. He was nearly as tall as Master Rou was, and his outstretched wings were that twice again. They were notoriously independent and aloof birds, the Little Lords. They were not for hunting, being scavengers, but tradition dictated that any found alive after falling out of the nest were to be raised and released, so they could continue their duty of carrying the bones of the fallen to the blue sky.

Galbayar was this one’s name, and he was nearly the age to be released.

The Little Lord headbutted Master Rou’s hand, and delighted in the scritches he received. Master Rou grinned at his Disciple, Bi De, who also seemed quite amused.

Master Rou held his other arm out, and there was a pop. The rooster stood upon his Master’s arm. Proud, erect, and majestic.

Every bird in the area paused, turning to examine the magnificent cock. His feathers sparkled in the light. Tarkhan swore he saw one of the eagles swoon.

The Little Lord of the sky looked deeply impressed.

Bi De was the first to take flight— and the rest of the birds followed after him.

Tarkhan, and the others, couldn’t help but shake their heads in amazement at the sight.

They let the birds fly for half a day.  The hawks and the eagles caught marmots and rabbits, and Galbayar simply flew, his feathers clear in the sky, his massive wings never having to move as he caught the thermals of warm air from the Ravine. They could stay in the sky for weeks if they had to, never coming down.

But Galbayar was still young yet, and he returned to them, once more nuzzling into Master Rou.

After the birds were returned to their rest, Master Rou decided that it was time for a walk once again, heading down the steep slope. Tarkhan followed, as did Sarnai, but most stayed back.

They went deeper and deeper, until they could barely see the sky, the walls narrow, and the trees above greedily catching all the sun they could. But even down here, there was beauty. The jagged rocks were covered in mosses and lichens, the layers of earth clear and distinct.

“How beautiful,” Master Rou said, and crouched down.

Tarkhan’s eyes widened when he felt the man’s Qi flow out of him, entering the earth, and settling there.

Nothing changed, and yet everything changed. Like a hum he didn’t know he could hear starting up. There was a feeling of rightness in Tarkhan’s bones.

“It's so easy, when it's been well taken care of,” he whispered, his hand patting the stone. He noticed their gaze, the questioning intensity, and gave them a small smile.

“We give to the Earth, and the Earth gives back.” Tigu said those words often as well. “Isn’t it right, to give a portion of our strength to our home?”

Naturally, a Great Expert’s words were utterly profound.

Master Rou returned to the main passage, a small smile on his face.

=======

That night Tarkhan sat in his own yurt. He examined his hands.

“You’re still thinking about what Master Rou said too, aren’t you?” Sarnai asked, sitting across from him. She was restless as well, Master Rou’s words clearly bouncing around in her head as they did in his.

Tarkhan simply nodded.

“We give to the Earth, and the Earth gives back.”

Tarkhan pressed his Qi into the earth. Into the very roots of his beloved Grand Ravine. Across from him, he felt his sister do the same. 

He poured his thanks and his joy into the act, but honestly, not really expecting anything to come of it. He was no Master. All he could offer was this.

Nothing changed. He just started feeling tired, and drained of Qi—and then he touched something. A golden web, deep, deep down.

Tarkhan opened his eyes—and sucked in a deep breath.

A woman was standing before him, radiating pale golden light. Her dress was that of the Ravine, her bearing regal, and her Tianlan-blue eyes impossibly ancient.

“I bid you my greetings, children of the Ravine—”

The woman looked upon them, and Tarkhan and Sarnai both dropped to their metaphorical knees.

“Great Ancestor Tianlan, we are not worthy!” Tarkhan managed, staring directly at the ground.

“It’s quite all—”

“Forgive us if we disturbed you!” Sarnai got out.

“I do not mind—”

Both of them pressed their foreheads to the earth.

“Children, you do not have to—

What the hells was going on?! Had this been Master Rou’s purpose—

Two feet stomped— strode regally over to Tarkhan and his sister. Tarkhan pressed his forehead harder to the earth… until the scruff of his robe was grabbed. He got a brief glimpse of dress as he was hoisted to his feet—and then something slammed into his skull.

Tarkhan staggered back, as did Sarnai a moment later, both of them holding their foreheads.

“Art thou quite finished being fools?” Great Ancestor Tianlan demanded in the old tongue of the Ravine, hands on her hips, and her glare equal to Tarkhan’s mother’s.

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THE UNDEFEATED HEADBUTT

Edited by:  BargleNawdleZouss,