Chương 757: Chapter 747

Core Creation. Aura Condensation. Natal Palace Formation. Domain Development. Void Shattering. Five steps from beginning to end which marked the Path from mortal to Divinity, but aside from the last hurdle which she had yet to overcome, Alsantset had progressed along her Martial Dao as easily as turning her hand. Each milestone came to her so naturally it was as if she'd been born to be a Warrior, a child blessed by the Mother Above to stand against humanity's darkest foes.

Admittedly, she'd stumbled and faltered a bit before wholly mastering Domain Development, but almost all of her issues regarding that particular milestone stemmed from personal mental stress rather than any actual incompetence on her part.

'Haste makes waste', as so many were wont to say, but when Alsantset saw how quickly her cherished little brother progressed, she didn't want to be left behind. This led her to doubt her own capabilities as she struggled to grasp the concept of Domains, but once she took a step back and stopped stressing over the details, she eventually found success through dedication and repetition, along with a little help from the Mother Above in the form of Insight as if to reward Alsantset for her hard work.

In spite of all her natural talent however, she had long since fallen behind little Rain in terms of comprehension, and more recently even strength, a verifiable fact which filled her with equal parts joy and envy. Joy because she knew how well-deserved his success was given how hard he worked and how much he sacrificed to reach the heights he stood at today, and envy because he no longer needed his older sister to protect him.

It seemed like just yesterday when he'd come home every evening all discouraged and dejected because he had yet to find Enlightenment, and now he was hunting Demons for their Ichor as if they were prizes just waiting to be cracked open and enjoyed.

This was without mentioning his nigh unthinkable feat of trading blows with the formidable Bai Qi and emerging unscathed in the exchange, an accomplishment few Martial Warriors could match, for though the traitor general was reviled the Empire over, none could deny the man's unfathomable strength. What's more, unlike Alsantset, Little Rain's talents did not start and end at the Martial Dao alone.

Her little brother proved himself an able merchant, creative inventor, brilliant tactician, cunning politician, savvy ruler, and now even a genius Healer after bringing Papa back from the brink of death at no small cost to himself. In contrast, despite focusing on the Martial Path alone, Alsantset was not even first among her peers anymore, having long since been overtaken by the likes of Gerel, Tursinai, Tenjin, and so many others.

Some might spout excuses about how she had a family of her own to maintain, but being a wife and mother was no burden at all. Caring for her beloved family was like a soothing balm for her soul when the trials and tribulations of life ran her ragged and worn, so how could it be a barrier to her success? Though her parents had never once expressed even a hint of disappointment, Alsantset felt as if she herself had let them down by not living up to her true potential.

Though the Martial Path came easily to her, she relied too much on natural talent alone and failed to apply what she'd learned in any meaningful manner, simply because she'd never felt the need to. Why bother when she already stood head and shoulders above most Warriors her age, well on her way to success so long as she continued to follow the Path before her? No need to risk failure when success was inevitable given enough time, yet time was what she now lacked the most.

A new chapter in the War against the Enemy had just begun, and while many believed the conquest of the West would be years in the making, Alsantset believed little Rain had a different vision in mind, one that fit more firmly with the opening exchange wherein the Imperial Army retook four harbours in the span of a single night. The fighting would be fierce and bloody indeed, but once little Rain's Runic Cannons entered the fray, the conflict was destined to be anything besides drawn out.

The time for probing exchanges had long since passed, and both sides were readying for a grim and gory all out battle with the very fate of the Empire on the line. That was how Alsantset saw things at least, and Papa's battle plan proved his thoughts ran parallel to her own. Why else would he take so grandiose a risk in going after not one, not two, but three high value targets at once?

Even killing Bai Qi or Mataram YuGan alone would be a tall order for the combined might of the Imperial Army, but now the Imperial Army had split up to target both traitors with a third force aiming to kill the infamous Mao Jianghong. Doing so much at once almost seemed like wishful thinking, yet Papa and Grandma were both keen to try it in spite of the odds stacked against them.

Desperate though the scheme might seem, these were desperate times indeed, for if the Enemy were given the leeway to reposition and build up momentum, they could easily pick and choose their battles to stretch the Imperial Army thin. In the past, fighting a war on multiple fronts was actually to the Empire's advantage, because despite the Enemy's overwhelming numbers, their large-scale tactics were all but non-existent.

This wasn't to say they were fools who rushed headlong into battle without thought, for the Defiled were a devious foe indeed, and many a Martial Warrior had died for the sin of underestimating their cunning. Take Brigadier Cho Jin Kai for example, who lost an entire army to an ambush after the force he was pursuing hid in the treetops for almost three straight days, a testament to the damage the Defiled could accomplish under the right leadership.

That being said, previously, their cunning had been limited to the battlefield alone, meaning a single battle or series of battles between two opposing forces. Now however, with talented and rational generals like Bai Qi and Mataram YuGan to direct them, the Enemy now had the means to wage war on a grand scale, which was a whole different beast from a battle alone.

It was the difference between playing a single game of chess versus playing dozens of different board games at once, and even if the Empire won the vast majority of their matches, a single disastrous defeat could negate all their hard won victories to date and turn the tides of war against them. Though lacking Papa and little Rain's talent for command, even Alsantset could easily lead the Defiled to ultimate victory against the Outer Provinces, for the Enemy held most of the advantages in hand.

The Chosen were a formidable force to be reckoned with not due to strength alone, but largely because their equipment and iron discipline allowed the Enemy to utilize a whole host of new tactics previously denied them. The tribal Defiled were like hunting dogs, effective when unleashed against a chosen target, yet difficult to recall once they scented blood, meaning that they were quick to attack any target which presented itself and slow to withdraw.

There were instances in which they avoided conflict if the challenge was too great, but they could easily be drawn into battle if given a tempting enough target. This could easily be seen in the effectiveness of little Rain's Districts, because while the Defiled were happy to bypass the Western Wall to head deeper into Imperial territory, not a single warband was able to resist the urge to strike at the lightly defended Districts.

Though he no doubt never intended to use them in this manner, the Districts were a lightning rod of sorts, one that drew in the Enemy and held them in place long enough for Imperial reinforcements to arrive and carry the day. A force of Chosen however might well disregard the Districts altogether and continue east without stopping, and if enough Enemy soldiers made their way into the heart of Central, this would spell disaster for the Imperial campaign.

While tribal Chieftains would fast lose themselves to blood lust, Chosen Champions might well stave off their madness to wreak havoc for months on end by attacking outposts, caravans, navy ports, and other valuable military objectives rather than going for whatever targets of opportunities before them, all while the Enemy army tied up Imperial forces on the front lines.

Starving soldiers would not fight, and even Runic Cannons needed ammunition to fire, so once the supply lines fell apart and panic set in, the complete and total collapse of the front lines would soon follow. A fate little Rain saw coming well in advance, which was why he made his push for this Western Offensive.

Why anyone would oppose this move once his reasons were made clear was baffling to the extreme, especially a Living Legend like Shuai Jiao, but Alsantset had long since accepted that she would never understand the intricacies of Central politics. At least in the North, the nobles knew when to put aside their squabbling and present a united front against the Enemy, yet here in Central, they wielded little Rain's concern for the citizens of the Empire like a dagger over his head.

Madness is what it was, and were it not for the millions upon millions of innocent lives at stake, Alsantset would have long since left the scheming Central politicians to their well-deserved, ignoble fate. Unfortunately, retreat was not in the cards for more reasons than one, and Alsantset was left with no choice but to once again leave her beloved husband and precious children behind as she rode out to war.

It was one thing to fight in defence of her homeland and people, but another thing altogether to do so while ingrates schemed behind their backs to topple and plunder everything her family worked so hard to build. Her papa almost died and little Rain fell into another coma after saving his life, yet while the full force of the Sentinels in Central moved out to bring battle to the Enemy, the scavengers were eyeing the People's assets left behind.

Marshal Yuzhen and Luo-Luo both assured everyone that they had matters well in hand, but they were fighting tooth and nail to keep opposing interests from taking hostile control over little Rain's market share and scaring off his less resolute allies. Like snakes trying to swallow an elephant they were, not content with the majority left to them when little Rain could easily have cut them out of the Districts and Citadels entirely from the start.

Doing so would have incited near rebellion of course, but he had other reasons to show mercy, ones Alsantset didn't entirely agree with even if Luo-Luo believed it was the right move. A man with fully stocked larders back home was unlikely to feel much gratitude for a free meal in town, but offer the same to a starving man lost in the wilderness and you might well have made a friend for life.

In her eyes, Luo-Luo and little Rain should have crushed their foes and taken everything they had before making a peace offering to spare the lives of the miserable nobles of Central, but they claimed that things were not so simple for reasons beyond her comprehension. They spouted plenty of reasonable arguments like commercial infrastructure and local snakes and whatnot, but in Alsantset's eyes, it was better to clear everything away and start anew than try to harvest a partial crop from blighted fields.

Sure, times would be tough and some might starve in the process, but in the long run, the survivors would be better off for it. Then again, perhaps she was wrong, as there was a good reason why Alsantset had no intention of following in Mama's footsteps to become Speaker for the village or Papa's to become a military commander. Though capable enough in her own right, Alsantset was no leader in any sense of the word, merely a Warrior and mother who would always do what was best for her family and people first.

She fought the good fight because the Mother above required it, but if there should ever come a time when the situation became irreversible, she would be among the first to voice her desire to leave. Retreating in the face of untenable odds was not cowardice, merely prudence and good judgment, because while desperate last stands made for exhilarating tales, such stories would be cold comfort to her beloved husband and darling children if she were to fall in glorious battle.

That was something little Rain never seemed to understand, the pain and anguish his death would bring to so many others, because if he did, then perhaps he would stop being so reckless and spendthrift with his life. The stupid boy was still in love with death, or at least with the idea of dying for a noble cause, always ready to sacrifice himself should the occasion ever demand it.

He did it time and time again, such as when he charged a Demon with naught but a mundane spear, or when he jumped the line to be the first and only duellist to fight in the trials against the Society. Then, in Sanshu, he nearly drowned to death because he leaped into the water feet first in an effort to single-handedly put an end to the Butcher Bay raids, while his tireless efforts on the front lines in Sinuji spoke volumes to his grit and dedication.

Even his marriages could barely keep him away from work for more than a month at a time, yet for all his perceptive talents, he failed to see the toll his choices took on his wives, parents, and Alsantset herself, to say nothing of poor Tali and Tate.

The two of them were only ten years old, and yet sweet Tali had already taken it upon herself to help her beloved uncle by mastering the Dao of Cooking, while silly Tate worked himself to exhaustion pushing ever forward on the Martial Path just so he could join the fight that much sooner. Every time Alsantset told either one of them to rest easy, they'd grimace and mumble something about how 'Uncle Rainy' needed their help or had accomplished more in less time, despite the absurdity of such a comparison.

There was no one else like little Rain, not in the last ten thousand years, so saying her children would never match up was not selling their talents short. Little Rain was simply an exception and an outlier, so any comparison was foolish at best and detrimental at worst, for success could be measured as nine parts confidence and one part everything else.

Even knowing this however, Alsantset herself was unable to avoid making the same mistake as her children, for she wanted nothing more than to stand at little Rain's side and help shoulder the burdens he'd taken on. Gone were the days when he relied on her for everything, which was a bittersweet realization at best, for Alsantset did so love coddling her precious and precocious little brother.

Now he was a man standing on his own two feet, with wives and responsibilities aplenty, a man who'd left his older sister far behind in his dust in every facet save age. Alsantset couldn't even boast of being a better parent than him, because even though he had no children of his own, he'd been more of a second father than uncle to Tali and Tate both, not to mention how well he cared for his staggering collection of useless pets.

For this and many other reasons, Alsantset had spent the last two years living in Central honing her Martial abilities without rest while keeping well away from the public eye so as not to embarrass Papa and little Rain both.

The rumour mongers were never kind to either of them, and a failure of a daughter and older sister would only add fuel to the fire, so Alsantset did everything she could to avoid attention including moving out of the Citadel to live among the Sentinels instead of enjoying the luxuries of wealth like little Rain, a point of contention she avoided ever bringing up.

Though still better than most nobles, it seemed almost scandalous for him to rely so much on servants to keep his household in order, though she understood that a man of his standing could hardly be seen emptying his own chamber pots. To be fair, Mila, Yan, and Mei Lin were also to blame considering their complete and utter lack of domestic skills.

If they were back home in the village, Alsantset imagined her sister-in-laws would be knocking at her door daily for help managing their household, though there was an equal chance that little Rain would simply have shouldered everything himself and left his wives to languish in their inadequacies. Then again, Alsantset herself was also guilty of taking advantage of his good nature, for she'd been more than happy to let him handle all the more unpleasant tasks when he still lived with them.

She couldn't remember the last time she'd cleaned out the quin stables, and to this day, Charok still didn't know how to change a diaper or swaddle a baby without making a mess of things. Little Rain just always seemed so happy to help, it was difficult to refuse him even if he asked, and most times she would simply go to do a task and find that he already had matters well in hand. Difficult not to envy him for his talents and work ethic, so long as one did not think too hard about how he came to acquire them.

Recently, she'd been given an even more comprehensive look into her younger brother's mindset through reading his compiled notes on the Martial Path, and what she found there was both interesting and disturbing to say the least. Little Rain had a way of looking at the world and stripping it of all magic and mystery, equating the Energies of the Heavens with water flowing downhill and a Martial Warrior's Core to a waterwheel making use of natural forces.

An apt comparison once you examined it further, but Alsantset's first reaction had been one of abject horror as he debased and profaned the mysterious workings of the Mother Above. The more she read however, the more little Rain's words made sense, and as she rode alongside Grandma and little Mila towards Tang Zangli, she continued to read and reread his primer on the Martial Path in an effort to glean something useful from it, but scholarly pursuits had never been her strong point.

It was all good and well to understand the relationship between the Core and the Energy of the Heavens, and that the Core, Natal Palace, and Domain were intrinsically linked in more ways than one, or any number of seemingly obvious conclusions that Alsantset herself had never pieced together on her own, but while little Rain's primer on the Martial Dao covered a wide variety of topics and raised many interesting questions, it fell woefully short when it came to usable answers.

It was nice to know that the Natal Palace exists in the Core, and the Domain is merely an extension of them both, but what use was this information in terms of practical applications? Despite little Rain's conjectures regarding the manifestation of one's Domain, he had no ideas as to how to accomplish such a staggering feat beyond a few superficial observations.

More interesting were his recent discovery of Domain Plating, a concept which Papa thought Alsantset might be ready to tackle herself, which was mildly infuriating to say the least. All her life, she'd been the apple of her parents' eyes, a woman of phenomenal talent and dedication standing at the forefront of her peers, yet now she'd been reduced to taking scraps of advice sown in the wake of her little brother's tumultuous path as he blazed a trail unlike any seen ever before.

Pride was meaningless in the face of Martial progress however, so Alsantset contented herself with being happy for her younger brother's accomplishments while hitching herself to his coattails in search of benefit, but thus far, all she'd found were headaches and disappointment.

Contrary to Papa's expectations, Alsantset found no success with Domain Plating even after discussing the matter with him and Little Rain many a time before embarking on this crusade West, and now, more than a month later, she was still stuck in the same rut as before.

Insightful though little Rain's primer and advice might be, his experiences were too far removed from her own for her to glean much from his explanations, like listening to someone with a heavy accent speaking in unfamiliar vernacular and coming away with a seemingly understandable but utterly incomprehensible statement. Yet despite the lack of success, Alsantset continued to study the primer whenever she could.

After seeing her quins and Sentinels bunked down for the day, she found herself with a few precious minutes to spare before retiring to her tent, so she settled down in the sand to meditate on her thoughts. Spacious though the canvas shelter might be, it was no match for the comfort of a roomy yurt, but you could fit more tents on a single wagon and mobility was of the utmost importance on this foray into the Western Province.

Still, the tent provided shelter from the sandstorms and sweltering noon-day heat, which was why the army travelled by night instead. Even the quins refused to move at any pace faster than a crawl during the hottest hours of the day, and much preferred burrowing themselves under the sand to seek solace in the cool temperatures underneath. Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.

A sight little Rain would no doubt love to see, the noses of his beloved quins poking out of the sand as they slept away the hottest hours of the day. Suret enjoyed it so much she even burrowed in the sand at night, though Alsantset suspected it had more to do with the delectable snakes and scorpions she snatched up along the way. Unlike the quins however, the sand and heat made Alsantset's life miserable in many ways.

The sun had yet to exert the full force of its fury upon the world around them, meaning it was merely dry and uncomfortable rather than sweltering and unbearable, but that would change soon enough. Adjusting her leathers to try and shake loose the grit nestled within, she tried to remember what life had been like when she hadn't been plagued by sand embedded in every nook and cranny of her existence, but her memory failed to convey just how wonderful a sand-free existence truly was.

"My fortune for a bath." Leaping to her feet at the sound of the familiar voice, Alsantset turned and greeted her Grandma with a military salute while cursing herself for behaving like a fool caught in some act of malfeasance. There was nothing wrong with sitting down during rest time, yet somehow, Alsantset felt like a shirker and slacker both when faced with her Grandma's domineering presence.

Even though Akanai was now a part of her family, Alsantset's stomach still turned and churned whenever she was alone with the formidable woman, but not without good reason. There was just something about the Lieutenant General that demanded not just obedience, but respect and deference as well, a hurdle little Rain had long since overcome but Alsantset had yet to even try.

"At ease, dear girl," Grandma continued, smiling as she brushed sand from Alsantset's cheek.

"I'm not here as your commander or even as a Lieutenant Colonel, but rather as your Grandma and friend." In testament to Alsantset's nervousness, her first response to so endearing a statement was to blurt out, "Why?", and she regretted it even as the question left her lips. Thankfully, Grandma took no offence and merely chuckled as she sat down in the sand and gestured for Alsantset to join her, which she did without thinking twice.

"I have not had much chance to speak with you of late, but I noticed you have been distracted these past few days. Copper for your thoughts?" Smiling at how even Grandma was using little Rain's curious sayings now, Alsantset forced out a breath to shake off her nervousness as she recognized the older woman's attempt to bond with her. They were a curious pair, both Warrior women with families they doted upon, but they had yet to hit their stride and settle into their new family roles.

Appreciating the gesture for what it was, Alsantset threw caution to the wind and decided to move forward as if she were talking to Mama or Papa instead.

"I lack direction along the Martial Path and have been working to correct this by reading little Rain's primer, but while it has cleared up many issues I did not even know I had, it has offered precious few answers and left me reeling in uncertainty."

"Bah. So the pup let you read it did he? Of course he did. He always did have trouble seeing the world through any perspective besides his own, and could not imagine a world in which his daughter failed to follow suit." Hearing her papa disparaged set Alsantset's hair a bristle, but Grandma merely laughed and patted her arm like one would a child.

"Full of fire and vinegar you are, so similar to the pup and his rose both. Far more mature and dutiful however, as it took them decades to outgrow most of their childish antics while some still plague them yet. Oh the stories I could tell you would have their cheeks burning with shame, though I suppose I should leave them their dignity as parents for a few more years yet."

Oh how Alsantset yearned to hear more, but Grandma fell silent with a twinkle in her lovely blue eyes, not quite as clear and vibrant as Papa's but still striking nonetheless. Though centuries of life divided them, physically they looked only a decade apart in age at most, and Alsantset only hoped that she would age so gracefully as well.

Small wonder Mama saw herself as old and haggard, for few could compare with Akanai's gorgeous and apparently unchanging appearance, a boon and burden Alsantset herself would also share. It pained her to think her beloved husband and brilliant younger brother each only had another century of life at most, while she herself would live for four more after their passing, but at least her beloved babies shared her long lifespan, as well as Papa to boot.

Besides, Mother willing, Charok and little Rain still had many decades of life in them yet, so there was no point getting all melancholic about their deaths just yet.

"I have benefited much from reading little Rain's primer," Alsantset declared, but even she could hear the petulance in her tone as she strove to defend Papa's decision without confrontation.

"And I would daresay that the benefits outweigh the costs."

"Only because you have yet to pay the bill, sweet girl. You find it worth the headache, but what if you find yourself still here in five, ten, or fifty years down the line? Hardly worth it then, I would say, so swallow your ire and answer me this." Leaning back on her hands in a slack posture Alsantset never imagined the Chief Provost would use, Grandma smirked and asked, "What sort of questions have you been musing over these past few days?

The intrinsic association between each individual milestone and how to bring them all together? Or perhaps the distinction between Chi and Heavenly Energy and the vast disparity between their power? No, you are not as greedy as the boy and know to set your sights lower, so you must be troubled by something closer to hand. Did your father and brother speak of something else they should not have, something not covered by the primer? Emotional Aura or Domain Plating perhaps?"

Humbled by Grandma's insight as much as she was ashamed at how easily she was seen through, Alsantset's cheeks flushed as she lowered her head and nodded in quiet acknowledgement. She'd settled on Domain Plating because it seemed like the most useful, versatile, and achievable skill available to her, as it made more sense than beating her head against a brick wall and trying to grasp the Mountain Collapsing Stomp which she had long since failed to comprehend.

Domain Plating would allow her to utilize the same familiar Chi skills, only more effectively, which in her eyes offered the greatest benefit for what should have been the lowest cost, yet understanding and comprehension were still beyond her reach. Even more infuriating was the sense that she was close to a breakthrough, so close she could feel it in her heart and soul both, yet she always fell short of a real answer when it came time to sit down and deliberate the fruits of her labours.

All of which came pouring out before Alsantset could stop herself, all her pent up frustrations erupting in a single petulant tirade more befitting of a woman half her age. It was all Grandma's fault for being so reassuring and steadfast a presence, a larger than life figure who Alsantset suspected would make her feel like a child no matter how many more decades she lived.

"You say you feel close to a breakthrough?" Alsantset nodded, and Grandma nodded along.

"More than once?" Again, Alsantset nodded, to which Grandma responded with a girlish tilt of her head, an almost mocking gesture as she asked, "And what did you do each time after that feeling passed without achievement?"

"I sat down to catalogue the experience and determine where I went wrong."

"As the boy would, yes?" A seemingly innocuous statement which Alsantset absently agreed with, but then she caught the glint in Grandma's eye.

"... You mean to say this is not my way, but little Rain's?"

"So quick to catch on, unlike the pup and the boy." Offering her a grateful smile, Grandma continued, "Talking with you is like a breath of fresh spring air after spending the winter cooped up inside. You have touched upon the crux of the issue, though I would not phrase it in such definite terms. It is not your way now, but that does not mean you cannot benefit from the boy's methods, or that it will not become your way in the future."

"I do not understand."

"Nor do I, not entirely, but I work at it each and every day." Reaching up to gently brush Alsantset's tiger ears, Grandma sighed and shook her head.

"Did you know I was the third person to ever hold you? The first was the midwife, while the second was your birth mother, who personally handed you over to me, a healthy, red-cheeked babe with half-lidded eyes you could barely keep open." Reeling at the implications of such a statement, Alsantset's tail lashed in agitation as she furrowed her brow and glared, but Grandma would have none of it.

Quieting her anger with little more than a passing glance, Grandma continued, "You had a wail that could wake the dead and a burning desire to use it, but Sarnai was adamant to take you as her own. The pup didn't find out until after the fact, but he fell in love the moment he laid eyes upon you and held you all throughout that first night.

Though I was still being mule-headed and unwilling to formalize our family ties, I still took an interest in your upbringing and watched you grow into the fine young woman I see before me today, yet even then I am still amazed by how far you have come on your own."

"I was never on my own," Alsantset declared, her lips pursing at the implication.

"Mama and Papa were always there for me, and now I have Charok, little Rain, and my sweet babies both."

"True enough girl, true enough." Nodding in silent apology, Grandma's smile was still warm as ever, which made it difficult to argue with her.

"I should have specified I meant solely on the Martial Path. Your parents trained you, but neither one ever took you as their Disciple or sought out a Mentor to guide you. Do you know why?"

"Because Papa wanted to Mentor me, but Mama said his methods were too barbaric." Which also ruled out Grandma, who'd Mentored Papa, while Mama never wanted Alsantset to be a Warrior in the first place. Mostly because she was afraid to lose her precious daughter, not necessarily just in battle, but to battle as well. After all, Papa was always off chasing one conflict or another, so if Alsantset turned out the same way, then Mama would have no one to keep her company at home.

"Merely an excuse," Grandma retorted, and Alsantset heard a ring of truth in the statement, not that she suspected Grandma would ever lie.

"The simple fact of it is that anyone with eyes could see that you had no need for a Mentor, because you were wholly capable of forging a Path all on your own. Why waste the effort guiding a student who needed no lessons to succeed? Any Mentor risked doing more harm than good by interfering with your natural instincts and Heaven-sent Insight, so the pup and his rose let sleeping dogs lie and it turned out for the best."

"Until now." Slumping her shoulders and leaning ever so gently against Grandma, and to her surprise, the stoic, standoffish woman embraced her without hesitation, so warm and natural Alsantset wondered how she could have ever suspected her Grandma was cold and uncaring.

"Yes, because the pup forgot himself and let you read the boy's primer." Feeling her tense up, Grandma chuckled again at Alsantset's protective nature and shook her head in commiseration.

"This is not to say either of them are to blame, or even yourself for your curiosity, but he should have better stressed the fact that you should only ever use little Rain's advice as working examples of the Martial Dao rather than a hard and fast guide to adhere to. What works for him will not always work for others, especially not someone as different as you." Which of course made sense, and Alsantset herself had even realized it earlier herself, only she failed to act on the information and change things up.

"Then what should I do instead?"

"Now that is a question I have no answer for." Rubbing her shoulder in soothing reassurance, Grandma shrugged almost imperceptibly and added, "Though I will say you seem overly rushed of late, almost desperate to force your progression. I remember when you were younger, you possessed a burning love for the Martial Dao, one only surpassed by your love for your family, yet these days, I see no sign of that love for the Path anymore.

Perhaps that is why you feel you lack direction, not necessarily because it is true, but because the world feels perfect when you have love enough." To think that Grandma was such a hopeless romantic, but Alsantset loved seeing this tender side of a woman she wholeheartedly admired.

"Then you think I should what? Give up my pursuit for power and wander aimlessly along the Dao?"

"Silly girl. When did I say this? I am simply telling you what I have observed, that you are a woman who follows her heart in spite of what others might say. Is this not so? Take your husband for example, who you married in spite of the pup's disapproval, or the boy you rescued despite knowing all the risks and challenges taking him in would entail.

More than one older Warrior cautioned you against adopting children so early, for doing so could slow your progression along the Martial Dao, yet you paid them no heed and found two beautiful babes to love and call your own without compromising your own ambitions."

Pulling away to force Alsantset to look her in the eyes, Grandma straightened up and took on the aspect of strict disciplinarian and authority figure as she said, "You are Alsantset of the People, a woman, warrior, daughter, and mother who has always forged her own Path, so what need have you of direction? You know the way forward. You only need follow your heart."

"She speaks truth." Starting at the sound of an unfamiliar voice, Alsantset turned to find a beautiful stranger standing across from them, with arms crossed and lips pursed. Even before noticing the orange and black markings on the lashing tail behind her, or the folded ears emerging from tufts of white fur twin to Alsantset's own, she knew who this stranger was upon first glance.

She'd always known her mother lived in the Saint's Tribulations Mountains, yet this was the first time she'd laid eyes on the woman who birthed her. It pained her to admit they were strikingly similar in more ways than one, and not just physically either.

The clipped tones, the standoffish posture, the way they hid their nervousness by tensing up as if preparing for a fight, even without the telltale tiger markings denoting the two of them as a matched pair, Alsantset would have instantly recognized this woman as her mother. No, not mother, but dam, a woman who gave birth to a child and threw her away soon after, someone wholly undeserving of so sacred a title as mother.

"And what would you know of me?" There was no heat in Alsantset's voice, only cold disdain, for the similarities only served to fuel her contempt for the woman who birthed her. When she was younger, Alsantset would have given anything to meet this woman, but that all changed the moment she held her own children and wondered who could be so monstrous as to abandon so precious a pair.

Though Alsantset would never know the joys of giving birth, she could never imagine giving away any child to someone else to raise, not after they'd looked her in the eyes and smiled so sweetly.

"No, I care not what you know, for you are a stranger to me," Alsantset hissed, and to her surprise, the Ancestral Tiger flinched as if struck by a stray rock, but the floodgates had opened and there was no stopping now.

"You gave birth to me, but I do not even know your name, or the name of the man you laid with, so what makes you think I care for what you have to say now?" The Ancestral Tiger met Alsantset's eyes and found nought but fury within, but her gaze held more than a hint of pain and regret. Too little too late, but that didn't stop the woman from responding.

"Hate me for the weakness which led to your birth," she began, her voice barely more than a whisper.

"Hate me for lacking the strength to overcome my instincts and raise you as a mother should. Hate me for remaining absent all these years and never once revealing myself to you. This is your right, and I do not hold it against you, but no one can know you better than I. Not the parents who raised you, not the husband you adore, not even the children who love you or the younger brother who idolizes you so, for none of them understand the struggles you face each and every day."

Breaking eye contact so quickly Alsantset was left glaring at the back of the woman's head, she held her tongue as the Ancestral Tiger gestured at the soldiers camped all around them.

"The Empire demands their people revere Martial Warriors as people who are more than mere mortals, yet they are all still human yet. Their struggle for identity is a difficult one, yet yours, infinitely more complex. Even in anger, you cannot deny that my blood flows through your veins, which means that aside from your complex human emotions, you have a bestial nature to account for as well, one which drives you in ways even you cannot explain.

They are two sides of the same coin, your human and bestial nature, yet different enough to complicate matters and make it seem as if the whole world has gone mad around you." Turning back to face her, the Ancestral Tiger found her confidence and declared, "You follow your heart because it is in your nature to do so, but not your human nature. A tiger does as it pleases, without regard for anyone or anything which might stand in its path.

When your actions match your desires, no obstacle can bar your way, for that is a tiger's determination. This is not to say you must give yourself wholly to the tiger within, but rather strike a balance between your human and bestial nature, a balance you found early in life and have kept to all this time. You chose your path, your mate, your children, your sibling, all decisions you made without need for consideration, because you knew it to be the right decision.

Any step you take is the correct one, so long as it is taken for the right reasons. You are far less conflicted than I, less so than most half-beasts of any background, and this has brought you far along your Martial Path. Even without my advice or the advice of... your grandmother, you would have found the way forward on your own, but with trials and tribulations abound, I revealed myself in hopes of saving you some time. I see now that this was a mistake."

Pausing before turning away, Alsantset caught a glimpse of what might have been regret before the Ancestral Tiger disappeared from view, leaving behind one last statement that lingered in the air.

"My name is Machali, a name given to me by your father's father, and one I cherish deeply. Should you ever wish to speak with me again, your parents and grandparents know how to find me." And then she was gone, leaving Alsantset with a bellyful of anger and just a hint of shame for lashing out like an aggrieved child. It was clear Grandma felt the same way, but rather than say anything, she merely rubbed Alsantset's back in a soothing motion that calmed her nerves and robbed her body of strength.

"That was... unkind of me," Alsantset admitted, and Grandma had the good grace not to outwardly agree.

"You said she handed me to you herself? Was it...?" Easy? Difficult? Was Machali angry, saddened, or relieved? Did she kiss her goodbye, or was she glad to be rid of her burden? So many questions all asking the same thing, but Alsantset lacked the courage to voice it.

"Her tale is not mine to tell," Grandma replied, hugging Alsantset tight, "And in answer to your next questions, no, I was not aware of her presence or her intention to reveal herself to you, and had I known, I would have persuaded her to do so in a different manner." So taken aback, Alsantset pulled away and asked, "You think I should get to know her? Why? So I can tell her she made the right decision in abandoning me?"

Uttering a sigh, Grandma added, "I understand your anger, sweet child, but know that I also sympathize with Machali, which is already more than I should say." Shaking her head at Alsantset's silent plea to continue, Grandma screwed her lips into a pout and added, "If you want to know more, speak to her yourself, but regardless of your decision, you would be a fool to disregard her advice.

I myself only recently arrived at the same conclusion regarding finding Balance amid our conflicting natures, so her advice might well save you centuries of time and effort." Not the answer Alsantset wanted, but it was the only answer she'd get as Grandma fell silent and refused to say anything more. She was stubborn like Papa in that way, which was both endearing and infuriating to see, so Alsantset gave up and fell silent to reflect on this unexpected meeting today.

"Why now?" she asked, not expecting any answer at all.

"After so many years of silence, why did she choose today of all days to approach me?"

"Perhaps not so quick to catch on after all." Shooting her a glance rife with muted disappointment, Grandma gestured around the camp the same way Machali had and said, "Look around girl. Where do you think we are? What awaits us at our destination? Even Divinities are not free of the trials and tribulations of life, for though they wield power unmatched, they too are still mortal yet." A chilling reminder of the stakes at hand, and Alsantset took a deep breath to calm her nerves.

Then another, and still one more as she came to grips with the implication that no matter how hard she struggled and fought, all her efforts might well be overturned if an Enemy Divinity was opposed to the outcome. Despite that, she would still fight, because no one could dissuade her once her mind was made up, not even a Divinity, and she'd long since decided on this issue. She was Alsantset of the People, here to support her little brother, Falling Rain, and drive the Enemy out of the Western Province for good.

So woe betide anyone who stood in her way, for this tigress would permit no obstacles to bar her Path. Chapter Meme