"He is resisting."
"I told you he would. He may be brother to both of us, Jian, but I've known him far longer than you have, even if you are older."
"You listened."
"I know things he doesn't, remember? He is of the same blood, brother, but his power is of the Warrior, the Hunter. You know enough of the Y?mni to know that the Hunter is the most stubborn of us."
"But you knew I was coming. That the Y?mni would be united at last."
"Yes."
"Should it not have been you that brought us together, then?"
"What part of the Y?mni am I, Jian?"
"You are the Seer."
"Indeed. My part is to See, to guide...but only once we are together, as one. Just as he is the Hunter, the Warrior, and it is his part to lead us when the fight comes. Bringing us together, Jian, my brother- completing us, making us whole...healing us - can only be done by the Healer. You."
"I see."
"No...I See."
"And what do you see, James?"
"He cannot resist forever, Jian. He clings to a memory of something that he wants to be reality, a vision of a possible future that will never be. He hears you calling, and resists because he knows that everything he knows will change...and he fears he will lose what little he still has."
"And will he?"
"Does it matter, my brother? This is our destiny, our future. Whatever we lose, there are different things to be found to take their place."
"As always, my brother, you speak wisely."
"The benefit of foresight, Jian. Keep calling. He will answer when he is ready, when the time is right."
"And you, James? What of the ties that bind you?"
"She will know, if she does not already. Either way, I go to tell her presently. The time draws close."
"I will be waiting."
He opens his eyes to darkness, a remote corner of the library that is his home. Musical instruments set in various places, small stacks of books - some from the Library itself, others that he acquired elsewhere - and other various knickknacks.
No one bothered him here, save for Saga, and she was a welcome distraction most times.
Saga.
Not for the first time, he laments the one blind spot in his vision.
Choice.
Some things are fated to be. Others are a matter of choice, and it is there that he cannot see.
He stands, stretching his human body much as a canine would if it could take two legs, and picks up from the various instruments a simple, long wooden flute, its grain and color darkened almost to black by the hands that have held and played it for millenia.
Yes, it is almost time.
"I told you he would. He may be brother to both of us, Jian, but I've known him far longer than you have, even if you are older."
"You listened."
"I know things he doesn't, remember? He is of the same blood, brother, but his power is of the Warrior, the Hunter. You know enough of the Y?mni to know that the Hunter is the most stubborn of us."
"But you knew I was coming. That the Y?mni would be united at last."
"Yes."
"Should it not have been you that brought us together, then?"
"What part of the Y?mni am I, Jian?"
"You are the Seer."
"Indeed. My part is to See, to guide...but only once we are together, as one. Just as he is the Hunter, the Warrior, and it is his part to lead us when the fight comes. Bringing us together, Jian, my brother- completing us, making us whole...healing us - can only be done by the Healer. You."
"I see."
"No...I See."
"And what do you see, James?"
"He cannot resist forever, Jian. He clings to a memory of something that he wants to be reality, a vision of a possible future that will never be. He hears you calling, and resists because he knows that everything he knows will change...and he fears he will lose what little he still has."
"And will he?"
"Does it matter, my brother? This is our destiny, our future. Whatever we lose, there are different things to be found to take their place."
"As always, my brother, you speak wisely."
"The benefit of foresight, Jian. Keep calling. He will answer when he is ready, when the time is right."
"And you, James? What of the ties that bind you?"
"She will know, if she does not already. Either way, I go to tell her presently. The time draws close."
"I will be waiting."
He opens his eyes to darkness, a remote corner of the library that is his home. Musical instruments set in various places, small stacks of books - some from the Library itself, others that he acquired elsewhere - and other various knickknacks.
No one bothered him here, save for Saga, and she was a welcome distraction most times.
Saga.
Not for the first time, he laments the one blind spot in his vision.
Choice.
Some things are fated to be. Others are a matter of choice, and it is there that he cannot see.
He stands, stretching his human body much as a canine would if it could take two legs, and picks up from the various instruments a simple, long wooden flute, its grain and color darkened almost to black by the hands that have held and played it for millenia.
Yes, it is almost time.