24 — SOMETHING OF PEACE

A day of peace in the refuge.

Everyone wakes up refreshed, while Shun has already prepared some tea and some food for them to eat in the morning.

"Good morning, Shun!" said Xiaoling super excited. The first one to wake up.

Shun smiled at her, his mouth full of tea.

"Let me do something for us." she said. "You should rest more, you're still very hurt. Haven't you slept anything?"
"A little."
"Don't lie to me. What about Ikki, where is she?" Shun took a deep breath before answering.
"She left, but…I know she's going to be fine."
"Oh, you can be sure of that. I recognize those bands on her arm anywhere. Ikki is staying with Master Mayura in the mountains." Xiaoling said.
"Master Mayura?" Shun asked.
"Yes! Our Master who trained us."
"You think?" Shun was surprised.
"I am sure. And you know what? With Ikki and Master Mayura together, the Sanctuary is doomed!" she announced.
"Good Morning."
"Good morning, Mii! Feeling better?"
"Yes. What about you, Shun?"
"The same." he replied.

Soon everyone was standing at the table drinking Shun's tea and Xiaoling's food. Shun told everyone that Ikki decided to stay alone for a while, although Xiaoling was sure, as was Alice, that she would be in the retreat of Master Mayura who had trained them; the same retreat that Seiya and Shun visited so many days ago. Saori thought it would do her good. Seiya and Shiryu were overjoyed for their friend.

By the end of the meal, however, the whole world seemed to be on their backs.

"What do we do now?" asked Seiya finally.
"Today we won't do anything." announced Saori. "Today we are going to spend the whole day watching cartoons and eating delicious things."
"Yeah!"

It was Xiaoling's dream, she almost knocked Saori out of her chair with her embrace.

Seiya and Shiryu looked at each other not quite understanding what that means, as they had a big enemy to face. Saori was emphatic, however, that on that day it was forbidden to talk about the Sanctuary. And whoever dare to say its name, would suffer serious consequences.

Seiya was the first to say.

And he was attacked from all sides by plush pillows.

They spent the rest of the morning watching old cartoons, which Xiaoling absolutely adored; they ate sweets and raffled off who would make the lunch. The piece of paper with Xiaoling's name was removed from the draw, to the girl's protest. Saori shook a bag in which each of them wrote their own name and in fairness, Xiaoling would be the person to take it out, as she would not be participating. She wiggled and wiggled and pulled out two names.

Saori. Shiryu.

Alice sneered.

"I can cook, ok, Mii?!" said Saori. "What a teaser."
"Shiryu can't even cross the street, let alone cook." said Seiya.

Shiryu was the most serious of all of them and was a little flushed with the racket. Saori insisted on bringing them aprons with a beautiful circular design and the two went to the kitchen, leaving the rest of the lot watching TV.

"Shiryu..." said Saori, softly. "I'm terrified. I don't know how to cook."

Shiryu tried to smile and told Saori to be calm because she had an idea.

To Saori's surprise, Shiryu searched and took a bunch of pots from the cupboards, looked for what ingredients were available and then placed them all lined up on the counter.

"Miss…"
"Oh no." protested Saori. "If we're going to cook together, you need to call me Saori."
"Sorry."
"There's nothing to be sorry for, Shiryu." said Saori. "Come on, what do you want me to do?"

Saori knew she would be the helper there; Shiryu gathered the flour and asked Saori to make a dough and gradually add water, as well as some salt. She was going to take care of a rice she had found in one of the cupboards herself.

And the hours before lunch were of intense preparation and delicious smells in the kitchen between the two.

"Was everything okay with your Master?" Saori asked as she stretched the dough.
"Yes. He was fine."
"You like it there, right, Shiryu?"
"Very much. I was very lucky." she replied, barely noticing the inconvenience.

Immediately she was silent. The whole kitchen was silent.

"It's ok." Saori commented seriously. "The embarrassment of having to remember that Grandpa Kido sent you all to suffer around the world is much less than the suffering you actually had going throuhg that. No need to spare me."
"It's like Ikki said. They're not your mistakes."
"I know." agreed Saori, not quite sure and sulking.
"And as I said," Shiryu continued, "I was very lucky."

But then Shiryu heard that the dough stopped stretching for a moment behind her.

"A lot of people weren't." Saori spoke in a heavy voice, as if a mountain had fallen on her.

Shiryu looked at Saori and saw the girl staring at the doug with emptied eyes. What a talent for embarrassing her, she thought silently.

"No," corrected Saori, even sadder. "A lot of children weren't that lucky."

And then she took her hand away from the dough to brace herself on the prep table.

"I am very happy that you had a good Master, Shiryu. But everyone else suffered so much. Like Ikki. But I'm not just talking about all of you here. But…" and her voice broke for the first time. "Many children never came back."
"Miss..." Shiryu began not knowing how to comfort her and, when calling her Miss, Saori felt her so far away that she took her hands full of flour on her head.
"I suffer and I have suffered many nights because of this. And whenever I'm next to all of you, I'm stormed by this guilt."

Shiryu then looked for the best words to say the worst things, since nothing there could save Saori from that sadness.

"Maybe you shouldn't be on our side if it makes you feel so bad."
"No!" replied Saori. "I don't want to forget. I just want to know what to do."

Shiryu saw a girl like her there. A lost girl, as she has been so many times. On many other occasions, Saori was a resolute girl, brave and not wavering. But there, stretching the dough and facing past mistakes, she seemed to be fragmenting. Maybe it wasn't just past mistakes, but also all the dilemmas she had to face, at least as far as Shiryu could see. Besides those she suffered far from her eyes. It certainly had nothing to do with that hard-to-open doug.

"My Master told me a story once." Shiryu began, in a calmer voice. "About the youngest daughter of a terrible king in ancient China. The king wanted her to marry a man to continue the family lineage, like the older daughters had done. But she refused to marry. And that's why she was dishonored by her father. All she wanted was to dedicate herself to her studies and to do good for people. Her father wanted her to marry. So she ran away."

Saori buried her head on the table and tried to sob in pain.

"Time passed and then the king fell very ill. He was diagnosed with a terminal illness by an old monk who was passing through his village. He said that the king had only a few days to live, but the king pleaded with him and asked if there was nothing he could do. The old monk told him that only a powerful infusion made with the eyes of someone who would be willing to give them for his own good could cure him. Only that strange infusion could cure his illness. Someone who with a good heart wanted to donate their own eyes to him. And that there was someone close by who had gained fame helping everyone."

Shiryu lowered the fire a little, Saori looked at her.

"The king then sent a messenger to the mountain where he found a monastery and a young monk. And, upon learning of the case of this strange man, she willingly sacrificed her eyes so that the sick man might live. She was the dishonored daughter of the king. And he lived. He was cured and, some time later, he was reunited with the old monk, who told him to go and thank whoever had made that sacrifice."

There was gravity in Shiryu's voice.

"The king went to this monastery and found his daughter, whom he had dishonored some years before. She was adored by many around her. And as he got closer, he noticed that she was blind. Without both of her eyes. And he suffered to imagine the pain she'd endured all this time wanting him, her father, to accept her. What he didn't realize was that, when she felt his touch, his daughter turned into the old monk who had counseled him in the first place."

Shiryu then approached Saori and took her hands.

"They say this is the story of Guan Yin, the bodhisattva of Compassion." Shiryu's hands were warm. "And then a light illuminated everyone in the monastery and she was blessed with eternal life and a new pair of eyes. But that's a story. And she was a deity."

Shiryu gracefully pulled Saori's face to look at her.

"You're a girl like me, like Alice, Xiaoling, or like Ikki."

Shiryu looked deep into her eyes, but Saori lamented it slightly.

"Years later I understood why my Master told me this story. The story is not about the bodhisattva's enormous compassion, but her obsession with correcting her father's wrongdoing. Which was not accepting her as she was. Because that was his mistake. Not hers." Shiryu concluded.
"Shiryu..." said Saori softly, not understanding how to thank her.
"Live your life, Miss…" she corrected herself in mid-speech. "Live your life, Saori. Make your own mistakes. Don't let this pain blind you. Use it to transform your destiny."

Saori then hugged Shiryu who, unaccustomed, did not respond to the hug for two reasons: first, because she didn't know how to hug very well; second because she was all covered in oil.

"Now you are all dirty with flour." said Saori, wiping her tears.
"You're not much better." Shiryu replied.

She tried to smile and Shiryu soon told her to keep rolling the dough or the recipe wouldn't work. And for the next two hours they cooked lightly, helping themselves to prepare lunch for the starving horde in the living room.

Table set, plates spread, cutlery, glasses, Xiaoling drooling on one side, Seiya on the other; Shiryu appeared with a bamboo pan, a stiffer one, and a plate of many fried dumplings. The smell was killing.

"Shiryu!" Xiaoling was startled. "This smell so good. I'm gonna die!"
"Wow, Shiryu. I had no idea you cooked so well!" Seiya said.
"Part of my training was to cook for the Old Master." said Shiryu.
"Why doesn't anyone think I was the one who cooked it?"
"I bet the tea is yours." Alice said seriously.

Everyone helped themselves and ate like kings as the afternoon wore on; Saori even searched the fridge for a candy that she swore she had made the day before. A wonderful condensed milk pudding that also disappeared within seconds.

They sat at the table, sighing, tired and happy.

"Well, since you didn't let me cook, Seiya and I are going to wash the dishes!" Xiaoling announced.
"Oh, why me? Why do you hate me, Xiaoling?"
"Let it go, Seiya. Come on."

And there they were. Shun loved to see Seiya upset and from there at the table they could hear the many scoldings he got from Xiaoling for doing everything wrong. And it's not an exaggeration to say that the group spent some time at the table just laughing at the two killing each other inside.

"Today is a good day." said Saori.
"The best day." Shun added.
"Ikki is still very strong." Shiryu mentioned.
"With her on our side, we'll have fewer problems." said Alice.

Saori got up, went to the sofa, grabbed a pillow and threw it in Alice's face.

"Hey! I didn't mention the Sanctuary."
"You spoke of the fight." explained Saori.
"That wasn't in the rules." Alice protested, getting up from the table.
"Who get it?" Seiya asked, appearing in the kitchen doorway.
"Alice. From Saori if you can believe it." Shiryu said.

Seiya was pulled inside by Xiaoling yelling at him.

Toward the end of that pleasant afternoon when everyone curled up on the sofa, Saori announced that it would be better to go back to the city and take shelter in the underground structure of the Coliseum, since that refuge was known by the agents of the Sanctuary.

And she took a pillow from everyone in her face.

Earlier that evening, Seiya and Shun were dropped off in front of the Orphanage by the Foundation; Seiya had asked Saori for a moment to be able to say goodbye to the children and also to Miho, since ahead of them there would probably be an uphill battle. It wasn't time to go back to the Orphanage, mainly to not put them at risk, but Shun also wanted to say goodbye to everyone and thank them for their stay.

It was a huge party when Seiya showed up in the common room where the kids watched the late-afternoon cartoon they loved. They all went to grab and attack both him and Shun.

"And when does the Tournament come back, champion?"
"I bet Shun will beat you." said the frowning little girl.

They gave up candy, much to Miho's dismay, and other things that came from the Foundation. Seiya asked Miho to accompany him to the beach, as he wanted to talk to her alone. Shun said that he would take care of the children and that they were both supposed to behave.

Seiya wanted to kill him.

The Orphanage was on a large avenue on the edge of the beach, so the walk wasn't that long. There were many lights on the beach, and on that particular night, a huge moon shone in the sky, ensuring the light from the shore. They walked along the sand, but moved away from the tents and especially from the young people who drank and laughed near some kiosks.

"So you went to Siberia, then?" started Miho.
"I did."
"And what was it like there?"
"Terribly cold, Miho. I have never felt so cold in my life."
"Are people very different?"
"Very much… but children are all the same. All little brats."
"You weren't much better, were you?"
"Like you were."
"It was always your fault when I was scolded by the priest."
"Oh, always my fault."
"You're still a pest, aren't you?"

He smiled.

"Seiya, why do I feel like you came to say goodbye?"

He stopped smiling and sat down; they were already quite far from the civilization, on a stretch of sand where they used to flee when they lived together in the Orphanage.

"Miho, I'm going to have to fight. And I don't want to bring you any problems. Or the children."

Seiya's voice was the voice of a young man telling a friend that he was going to war. That's what Miho felt and, for her, he was still a young boy.

"Do you promise you'll come back?" Miho asked, and Seiya looked at her, smiling.
"Of course I'll be back." he said. "As soon as all this is taken care of, I'll come back here."
"Are you staying at the Mansion again?"
"No," he denied.
"I don't like her, Seiya." said Miho, very sincerely.

She didn't like Saori.

"Because of her, you keep fighting. Getting hurt. Always injured. You spent years in a ridiculous training and now all you do is to fight and fight and get hurt. I feel like I'll always find you in some hospital in town."
"Miho…"
"You are a boy. You should have the opportunity to live a little. To come to the beach without hiding yourself. Boys of your age are enjoying their lives, and you should have that chance too." she said indignantly.

Seiya took a deep breath and looked at the starry sky where some special stars shone for him.

"There are children who are luckier than others." began Seiya.
"Do you think it's your destiny to always suffer?" Miho asked.
"I don't care about my destiny." replied Seiya. "It doesn't matter what star I was born under. I will live with courage."

Miho looked at the boy and, as always, his eyes were strong and full of life.

"For the other kids, maybe what makes sense in their lives is going to the beach without thinking about anything, drinking what they shouldn't drink, doing things they shouldn't do." he said, reflecting. "Maybe there are others who stay in their homes reading books. Playing something."

He had a wounded but brave face.

"What makes sense to me is to do the best I can. Do my best to fight alongside my friends."

Miho might never understand.

"Do you really promise to come back, Seiya?"
"Always, Miho." he replied. "I still haven't given up on finding my sister. I'm going to bring her back and we're all going to spend a whole week at the beach."
"I'll remember that!" said Miho, smiling.

He got up to seal the promise with his oldest friend, but noticed that there were two people watching them leaning against a rock in the distance. The moonlight was strong, but the silhouettes looked unfamiliar and certainly hid.

Still, the moon's glow was strong enough to reflect on what was undoubtedly a mask. Seiya knew that posture anywhere in the world.

"Miho." he began. "Go back to the Orphanage."

Miho looked over her shoulder and saw the two figures near the huge rock, watching them. She got up and noticed a woman's face, too, reflecting brightly in the moonlight.

"Seiya…" Miho worried, because he felt that this could not be a good thing.
"Miho. Go back to the Orphanage. Everything will be fine." he said, trying to comfort her. "This is my Master, Marin, who helped me when I was in Greece."

Miho looked again at the woman, but the whole situation made her uncomfortable. Even though Seiya's world, at least that part of his life, was a huge mystery for an orphanage helper, she couldn't help but feel an immense chill in her spine.

Nightly waves of the sea invaded the strip of sand, waves broke walls farther on where the waters foamed. The city was already distant to the point where the voices from the street and the car horns did not reach them.

She chose to trust her friend, looked deep into his eyes and found a confident boy with a smile on his face. They embraced. She held her little shoes in her hand and walked away barefoot in the sand.

Seiya watched the young Miho come back along the shore and when he no longer saw her on the horizon, she looked again at Marin and the stranger beside her.

The woman stepped closer to Seiya and he had no doubt that it was indeed his Master. She wasn't wearing her Sacred Cloth, nor the training outfit Seiya was so used to, but it was definitely her silver mask.

But Seiya had the feeling that this was not a friendly visit. He had fear in his chest which he successfully hid from Miho's eyes.

The guy beside Marin walked over to Seiya; he was a young man in an extremely elegant outfit, pale, with a cape tucked around his shoulders and wavy hair, long and silky.

"You have two choices." he said finally, and his voice was friendly. "Take your own life or let me take it from you. There is nothing else. There is no mercy."

An ice bomb exploded in Seiya's stomach. He swallowed hard.

"What does that mean, Marin?!" Seiya said to her, who was farther back.
"This is Lizard Misty, a Silver Saint of the Sanctuary. This is your punishment." she said only, stoic.
"My… punishment." Seiya repeated, and then looked in the direction Miho had left.
"Don't worry about the girl." said Misty calmly. "She will arrive at her destination safely."

Seiya couldn't tell if that comforted him or made him even more afraid.

"Marin, you are wrong. There is an evil in the Sanctuary that…"

The elegant man knocked Seiya face down in the sand. And he stepped on his head.

"Shut up. I already said that I came to take your life. I didn't come to listen to your voice." He stomped hard and buried Seiya's head in the sand. "It's your last chance. Take your own life or I'll take it for you. Make your choice!"

But Seiya gathered strength and held Misty's foot so he wouldn't step on him anymore.

"I choose to fight!" he said decisively.

And he hurled it into the air; the warrior whirled and landed gracefully on the sand beside Marin.

"Marin, it seems to me that your disciple chose to die at the hands of a Silver Saint." he said, looking at Marin.
"I will not die." protested Seiya. "Marin, there is something very wrong going on at the Sanctuary." he tried.
"Here's something very wrong: the Bronze Saints sullying the history of the Holy Saints by exposing themselves for ridiculous reasons. You will pay with your lives." said Misty.

Finally, the Sanctuary's direct punishment for the sins of Seiya and his friends for participating in the Tournament had catched up with them. He couldn't even counter-argue, because deep down, and even if there was any evil placed in that Sanctuary, his punishment was just. After all, the oath ran through the ages of Saints.

But Seiya wouldn't accept the punishment easily. His cloth protected him. It choses to be with him at the most difficult times. He was worthy of being a Saint.

Misty realized that in front of him was a boy willing to fight.

"Do you really think there will be a fight here?" Misty asked. "Do you think you can stand a chance just because I'm without my Sacred Cloth?"

Seiya was on guard.

"With or without the Cloth, there is an abyss between our cosmos. I know Marin taught you about this, so you must know that the power of a Saint lives in their cosmos. There is no way you can beat me."
"Our bodies are still that of a normal people!" said Seiya.

And he fired his Pegasus Meteors at Misty, who didn't move an inch; and all his meteors simply dissipated before the Silver Saint's undaunted face.

Seiya was shocked as he hadn't moved; his fist didn't even touch Misty's elegant outfit.

"I told you." said Misty. "Yes, you are right. Our bodies are that of a normal person. One blow from my cosmos will be enough to end your life."

But then Seiya found himself transfixed by Marin, who was at his back.

"Do you understand now, Seiya?" she asked. "The difference between you two is enormous."

Marin turned on her blueish-silver cosmos and, when Seiya turned to her, he saw her with her cocked fist to hit him violently in the chest. The blow immediately tore his skin and sank into his lung, causing him to immediately gasp in shock. Blood bathed the sand and the boy fell to her knees. Facing marin and his back to Misty.

She twisted Seiya's neck so that he wouldn't suffer a horrible death.

Seiya finally fell, defeated, to the ground.

ABOUT THE CHAPTER: A continuation of the peaceful scenery from the previous chapter, seeking to humanize Saori with everyone else. The story that Shiryu tells Saori is a real tale of the Bodhisattva of Compassion, I found it curious and it fit with what she wanted to say and with her personality inherited from the Old Master who usually says the profound things through parables and ancient stories.

IN THE NEXT CHAPTER: THE SILVER SAINTS

The Silver Saints appear and Seiya finds himself in a difficult dilemma.