Divine Apostasy Book 7 - Chapter 3

Chapter 3

The group had three women and five men, all looking like they’d reached their thirties. They all stood over six feet tall with skinny bodies. The top of their ears didn’t come to a point, but they angled more than usual. Ruwen wondered where they’d come from, as he’d never seen them in any books or in person.

Ruwen sat down six feet from them and crossed his legs. “I’m Ruwen.”

Silence greeted him. The only sound in the tent was Sift as he continued to make up Chicken Steps.

A blonde woman pointed at Sift. “Is he okay?”

Ruwen didn’t turn. “Not in any way.”

The tallest man that had spoken earlier for the group glared at Ruwen. “You’ve doomed us.”

Sift landed softly next to Ruwen and sat. “No, you doomed yourselves. You are barely ready to be here. Why did your Sisen rush you all to the Master’s trial?”

The man looked down. “Demons overwhelm us. With more Masters we can open more temples and train more fighters.” The man looked up. “This is the last effort to save our lands.”

The blonde woman spoke again. “Now the token from this level is out of our reach.”

Ruwen leaned forward. “What did the Founders say about the tokens?”

The man replied. “That we would stay at this level until someone located it.”

“Yes,” Ruwen said. “Sift said the same. The Founders never specified they were valuable or necessary. You assumed that, but they could just as likely be harmful.”

“Are you saying we shouldn’t find the token?” the man asked.

Ruwen shrugged. “I don’t know, but its affected everyone’s focus. We aren’t here to collect tokens, but to pass the trial.”

The blonde spoke again. “But we need the tokens for the trial.”

Ruwen shook his head. “Another assumption. The Founders only said the token would trigger the next stage.” Everyone sat silently for a few seconds.

The blonde woman stood and held her hand out, palm down. Either she knew enough to recognize Ruwen’s mastery by his movements, or she had taken Sift at his word, but the gesture signified Ruwen’s rank over her. Had she placed her fist out, it would have signified she wanted to challenge Ruwen.

Ruwen stood and placed his fist under her palm.

“I am called, Nymthus.”

Ruwen gave a short bow. “Well met, Nymthus.”

Nymthus kicked the tall blond man, and he glared up at her. He sighed and stood. Slowly, he held out his hand, palm downward. “I am known as Porthus.”

“Well met,” Ruwen said again.

In quick succession, Ruwen met the other six members of rung four. Eight fighters from their world had come to the trial, and they had all ended up at the bottom of the rankings.

“Tell me about the tower,” Ruwen said.

“Not much to tell,” Porthus said. “The other groups cleared the first level on day one, advancing to the second floor. We have yet to clear it. And now, with seven fewer hours, it will be even harder.”

“Why even try?” Ruwen asked. “The other teams already have an incredible head start and now you carry my penalty. It seems hopeless.”

All eight stood up straight, as if Ruwen had insulted them.

Nymthus stepped forward. “If we quit every time we faced a hopeless situation, none of us would be here.”

Ruwen smiled. “Excellent answer. Now tell me what stops you from advancing to level two.”

Porthus looked embarrassed. “There is a massive tree. The branches hang down like vines and they move. When a vine touches you, it paralyzes you for fifteen minutes and teleports you to the entrance.”

“Interesting,” Ruwen said. “Are the vines’ movements random?”

“They look that way to us,” Nymthus replied.

Ruwen felt the pressure waves and tiny vibrations from the three Founders as they returned to the stage. He turned and looked down at Sift, glancing at the stage to verify the Founders remained invisible. Sift sat with his eyes closed and Ruwen nudged him with a foot.

“Okay,” Ruwen said to the eight fighters. “We have over six hours before we can leave. I wish to repay your kindness by offering advice on your Steps. Perhaps we can make some small gains that will aid us in the tower.”

Porthus frowned. “But you aren’t a Step Master. Aren’t you forbidden from instructing us?”

Ruwen shrugged. “I believe the Clan forbids teaching Steps to others that you have not mastered yourself.” He touched his chest. “I promise to only instruct on those Steps I have mastered and take full responsibility for any consequences. Anyone interested can join me on the platform.”

The members of rung four formed a tight circle to discuss, and Ruwen turned toward the platform.

“You coming?” Ruwen asked Sift.

“I guess,” Sift said as he stood. “Are you sure this is a good idea?”

Ruwen started for the platform. “All my ideas are good.”

The three Founders remained invisible on the wooden structure, and Ruwen ignored them. His confrontation with them would arrive eventually, but he doubted it would take place today. Not over helping a group of Adepts.

Ruwen flashed Sift directions in Shade Speak. Only. Basic. No. Hidden.

Sift nodded, and they turned to find the entire group had followed them.

The platform didn’t have space for all eight to perform the Steps at the same time. “Two at a time,” Ruwen said. “Show me your Steps.”

Porthus and Nymthus stepped onto the stage, and Ruwen and Sift moved to the side. Ruwen listened to their rapid heartbeats and realized how nervous they were. While they were likely the pinnacle of fighters on their world, coming here had opened their eyes to actual mastery, and their nervousness showed the doubt that had grown in their minds. None of them now believed they should be here.

Their world sent them here in desperation, but if they failed, none of them would keep the knowledge of the Bamboo Viper Steps, leaving their world in even worse shape.

“Begin when you are wish,” Ruwen said.

The two bowed and began. Porthus started with the Bamboo Steps instead of the Viper, and Nymthus had, in three Viper Steps, already moved herself so far out of alignment she would never finish where she’d began.

Ruwen kept his face neutral as he studied their technique. They shared many of the same issues, which pointed at their Master having those same issues and passing it down to his students. Before his experience in the Spirit Realm, he would have marveled at their movements. Now he knew the truth, and the immense amount of work needed to fix all their problems.

Ruwen didn’t need to fix all their issues, though. Just the most blatant and grievous ones.

When they finished, Nymthus stood a full foot from her starting location, and Porthus trembled with all the stored energy ending on with Viper Steps caused. The entire sequence had been difficult to watch and barely merited an Adept’s skills, let alone a Master’s.

Ruwen bowed to the pair. “Honor your Master when you see him again, for he has taught you well.”

Sift glanced at Ruwen but remained silent. Porthus and Nymthus relaxed and their heartbeats steadied.

Ruwen had a terrible feeling but wanted to confirm it. “Are you both the most advanced in your group?”

Porthus bowed. “Yes.”

Sift let out a soft sigh and Ruwen felt the same. If they were quick learners, it would take months, possibly years, to correct all the issues with their basic Steps. It would take far longer to teach them the hidden patterns. But they didn’t need all that knowledge right now. What they needed was a proper foundation, and that Ruwen could do.

Ruwen pointed to the center of the tent and spoke to the group. “Please spread out and in a moment I’ll ask you to begin your Steps. Sisen Sift and I will rotate among you, fixing issues as we see them.”

Ruwen waited until they’d all repositioned themselves. The eight looked up at him, and he felt a kinship with them. They had told him they battled demons, and that they faced hopeless odds. To make a difference, they had come here, risking what had likely been a lifetime of training, so they could form their own schools and create more fighters.

“A secret is something you only tell a friend,” Ruwen said. “And I will tell you one now. Everything you have learned. Every Step you have mastered. All of it was a representation of a single ideal. It is the guiding principle of every movement, every breath, every decision. The entirety of the Bamboo Viper Steps orbit this single concept.”

Ruwen paused and let the tension build.

“The secret is…balance,” Ruwen said into the stillness of the tent.

Stepping off the platform, Ruwen moved among the group. “It is why we start with Viper and end with Bamboo.” He jumped to the front of the group and brought his arms down sharply in the shape of a “v.” “It is why Crashing Butterfly,” he raised his hands, palms pressed together, upward, before spreading them wide, “is countered by Hungry Leaf. It is why we end in the exact place we begin. All of this, and everything in between, obeys this law of balance.”

They all stood in silence and Ruwen let this fundamental aspect of the Steps sink into their minds. It would help them in the future, as they worked their way through the lessons he had already learned.

Into the quiet, Porthus spoke. “There is a beach on the south shore of Dreaming Lake with perfect skipping stones. My record is seventeen. Even now, I can see those seventeen perfect circles, spreading outward, their rings combining until the lake calmed and reclaimed the stillness for itself.”

Nymthus spoke as soon as Porthus stopped. “In winter the snow would drift to my second-story window. The snow would reflect the moonlight like a giant mirror, and the icewyrms would dance in the sky.”

One after another, each member of rung four spoke. When they’d finished, all eight began the Viper Steps and Sift moved away from the platform to fix the worst issues with their Steps.

Ruwen sensed the surrounding Founders, but didn’t react.

Dusk spoke, but remained invisible. “Those eight have experienced great suffering as demons ravage their world. To remember what is lost, and to show gratitude, they offer their memories. It is an honor to hear these remembrances.”

“Thank you for explaining the significance,” Ruwen said. “I will treasure them.”

Ruwen hid a smile as he watched Sift move among the group, using the same tone he had used when instructing Ruwen. The memories of being a terrified kid felt like yesterday.

Ruwen had important business back home on Grave, but staying here a few extra days likely wouldn’t matter. Especially when contrasted with the impact he and Sift would have on this group with just a few days of effort.

As Ruwen left the platform to help Sift, he made a decision. Instead of ending this phase of the trial when he left this tent, he’d wait until this group reached the tower’s top.