Echoes of Humanity

Both saints remained silent as they walked from the Virgo temple, although Shaka hesitated slightly as he walked over the threshold. He wasn’t sure he wanted to leave, in some ways. The temple was safe, his sanctuary within Sanctuary, and was the one place that he had complete dominion. Curiously, the Virgo Saint thought on the words for a moment. The temple was no more his than Sanctuary itself. It belonged to Athena, and Athena alone, just as the Virgo cloth did. Despite that, however, the cold stone and plain walls were as close to a home that Shaka could ever remember having. He shook his head and looked over at Mu, as they climbed towards the house of Taurus. The Aries Saint seemed slightly distracted, but he smiled slightly at Shaka when he caught the blond looking at him. Shaka wondered at the thoughts that were passing through the other man’s head. For all his kindness, Mu was as guarded as Shaka himself ever was, only exposing himself if it was absolutely necessary. No one really got angry at Mu for it, though. It just looked enigmatic on him, whereas Shaka wore his caution in a veil that seemed like arrogance.

Still, the walk to the Taurus temple seemed short, with the pink-haired man at his side. They spoke nothing more, but the understanding between them grew with each step. In some ways, it was the silence that created that understanding. Mu would not pry unless he had too, and Shaka had promised… well, Shaka promised that he would do his best no to implode without warning. The image of the unconscious Phoenix Saint still danced behind his eyes though, accompanied by other images that were equally painful, and Shaka wondered if he would keep his promise. Mentally, he edited his promise. He would promise not to implode while Mu was around. What he would do on his own time, he didn’t know.

Still, standing in front of the Taurus temple, Shaka couldn’t help but feel slightly apprehensive. Mu had stopped, and was contemplating the architecture carefully, as though he was considering the best way to enter it. Shaka had the sudden, insane thought that Athena should install doorbells on the columns. It would certainly make announcing one’s presence simpler. Finally, Mu seemed to come to a decision, and he called out the Taurus Saint’s name. Both men were surprised when the answer came not from inside the temple, but from beside it. Walking around, they found Aldebaran on his knees next to a small shrine. Although he was surprised to find such a thing, Shaka decided the shrine was more personal than religious, something that was much more expected of the Taurus Saint.

“Taurus,” Mu said, inclining his head in greeting, “I was hoping that you might join us in procuring dinner.”

Aldebaran looked at the two Saints curiously, taking in first Mu, than Shaka. “So it’s the gold saint social hour, than?”

“We were going to lick our wounds together, actually.” Shaka said, and the comment made both other Saints look at him sharply. Shaka wondered if he had really seemed so arrogant as to be able to discourse plainly. Maybe it was the cynicism. Aldebaran simply smiled, though.

“I see.” He said, picking up his broken helm from where it sat on the ground next to him. “I suppose I could join you in that, at least.”

Mu reached out a hand towards the helmet, indicating that Aldebaran should give it to him, which the Taurus Saint did. Carefully, Mu turned the cloth in his hands, studying it with an artisan’s eye. “The cloth is well-pleased. It will not take a lot to repair.” Mu said. Shaka wondered what exact the definition of “a lot” was. Even minor repairs seemed to take a lot out of both the donor and Mu himself. He imagined that a major repair would probably end with someone in a coma, or worse.

Aldebaran, however, was nodding understandingly as he took the Cloth back, tucking it under his arm and heading back into the Taurus temple, indicating that the others should follow. Inside, he placed the huge horned helm on a pedestal in the center of the room, reverently bowing his head to it before turning back.

“Shall we break bread, than?” He asked.

Mu shrugged. “Bread, cheese, meat, it matters little, as long as it fills my stomach.”

As they walked down the hill together, to where there was a larder well-stocked with food from the area farms and vineyards. The offering of food was a remnant left over from a time when Athena truly had ruled Greece, and the tradition had continued to this day. Then, armies of young men had been at her command, and keeping them fed and clothed had been a chore even for a goddess such as Athena. The tradition of offering food had been passed from generation to generation, and the more traditional families still brought part of their yields to give thanks to the goddess who had protected their lives so long ago. Shaka wondered if they knew that she was once again walking among them, offering her bodies to protect them from those that would destroy the earth. Despite its weaknesses, Athena fought to protect humanity. She was willing to forgive humanity for the gravest of its transgressions and, if Mu was right, she was willing to forgive her saints for standing against her. Shaka could barely comprehend the mercy she had shown. Yet, it was of the reasons he was a saint. He had stood before humanity and seen its faults, and he had stood before Sanctuary, and seen all that Athena had to offer. Knowing what she stood for, and how far she would go to protect humanity itself had been the reason Shaka had respected the leadership of Sanctuary. His faith in Athena, and Sanctuary itself, had been at least part of the reason he had been accepted to succeed as the Virgo Saint. Part of it. Shaka would not delude himself into thinking that his heart was the only reason he had been accepted. Even among the gods, power was a quality to be respected, and coveted. Shaka had power, and Sanctuary had desired that power, in the name of Athena.

As they walked down the mountainside, the three men shared words back and forth, careful questions about the other’s well-being, and Mu communicated some of what he had observed at the hospital for the sakes’ of Aldebaran and Shaka. It seemed wrong to Shaka, somehow, this fairly personal conversation. As far as he could recall, this was the first time that he had purposefully walked with another saint to complete a task that was not somehow related to business at Sanctuary. Being that the saints were of a singular purpose, and lived in basically the same place, the relationship between the Saints was more that of coworkers than comrades, and Shaka couldn’t help but wonder that, if they had shared information, maybe the battle for Sanctuary wouldn’t have ended as it had.

Dinner was an interesting affair. Although they had rallied around one another in their need, none of the Saints were quite certain what to say, and small talk seemed out of the question. It was beneath them, and definitely far too shallow for Shaka’s liking. If either Mu or Aldebaran had made any comments about the clouds which threatened from the north, Shaka would have walked out on them. But small talk was not even considered, and Mu and Aldebaran discussed the damaged Taurus cloth for a few minutes before the three men lapsed into a silence that was at the same time casual and uncomfortable. Mu tried to start a conversation a few times, but stopped after they fell flat. Shaka couldn’t help but think that the Aries Saint seemed to be trying just a little too hard to establish unity among them. It was almost as though Mu was trying to fulfill duties of a role he had never been assigned.

Still, it couldn’t be easy for him, either. Shion had been a great man, and a better saint. His death had weighed heavily on Mu since it had happened, who was left to follow in his footsteps. Mu was the legacy and successor of a man who had been alone among their number to see the last holy war, unless one counted the hermit Libra Saint, who guarded secrets too dark to recall. It was not a simple task to be an heir to the Aries cloth, one of the reasons that Mu had been hand-picked by Shion, and Mu had handpicked his own student. Speaking of which, Shaka wondered how the child was. He looked over at the Aries Saint, who was just finishing an apple, studying the core speculatively. Taking a deep breath, Shaka braced himself to start a conversation.

“Mu, how is your student?”

Mu looked up, studying Shaka with the same expression he’d been using on the apple core. “Kiki asked to stay in Tokyo, and I saw no reason not to allow him that.”

“Is that really the best thing, with the bronze saints…as they are?” Aldebaran asked. Mu shook his head.

“Kiki understands the progression of human life, and he understands what it means to be a saint, as well as you or I.” Mu replied, and Shaka couldn’t help but think there was a slight hint of sadness in his tone, although it might just have been exhaustion leaking through.

“He’s staying in the hospital, than?” Shaka asked, curious to know just how close Mu was allowing his student to be to the bronze saints.

“No, he’s at an orphanage that the Pegasus Saint frequented. That is another reason I chose to let him stay – he very rarely sees children his own age.” Mu paused for a moment. “They are much better company that I am, at the moment.”

“Afraid he’ll get tired with the tirades of an old man, eh Mu?” Aldebaran teased gently, but Mu replied to the words as though they were a serious question.

“I’m more afraid he’ll grow up too soon.” He said quietly. “He is to take my place when I am no longer able to fulfill my duties, but I don’t want him to have to take that role on too soon.”

If either of the other men thought anything on the fatalistic sense of the words, as though Mu were signing his own death warrant, neither said anything. It might have simply been that they didn’t notice, though, since they had long ago accepted that their deaths were just as likely as the probability of their taking a breath the next morning. Despite the expectations of his race, Shaka thought that Mu, in some ways, was one of the lucky ones. He already had a protégé, and was not constantly searching for someone worthy and strong enough to take on the duties of a gold saint when he died. There were very few, even among the silver and bronze saints, who were sound enough of body, mind and spirit to be given the responsibility, and the search for successors was not an easy one.

“Is he really able to handle himself around other children, though? He is…gifted.” Shaka asked, genuinely curious to understand the psychology of Mu’s young charge, and meaning no affront by the words.

“I’m not sure that matters.” Aldebaran said, chuckling slightly. “It is as ingrained in the behavior of children, especially boys, to compete against terrible odds.”

Mu raised an eyebrow at the larger man, and his eyes shined with something that seemed akin to mischief. “Are you implying that my student is a terrible odd?” He asked.

“Well, he is something of an arrogant child.” The large man replied with a shrug. “I imagine that he is flaunting his abilities.”

The banter continued for a few minutes longer, and Shaka allowed himself to fade into the background as it went on, observing the conversation with a critical eye. Once, Aldebaran had looked at him curiously, and Mu tried to bring him back into the conversation, but Shaka shook his head, indicating that they should continue without him. He wasn’t feeling left out, just slightly bewildered. Watching the ease with which the two other saints conversed, Shaka couldn’t help but wonder if maybe his judgment on the relationships between the Saints had been wrong. Maybe they had all formed tight friendships, and the camaraderie had just passed him by. He doubted that was the case, but just maybe he’d been wrong about that too. Whether it was a new friendship, forged by the dark trials they had endured, or old, Shaka found himself hoping it would last. It was comfortable, and even the pain which still ate at the corners of his mind didn’t dull the strange warmth he got from the careless, relaxed conversation.

“Shaka?”

The blond looked up, surprised. Mu was asking him a question and looked slightly concerned. Aldebaran had stood, and was picking up the mugs from the table. The conversation had ended while he’d been thinking, and Shaka blinked. Mu smiled gently.

“I don’t think the larder is the best place to doze.” He said. Shaka shook his head.

“I apologize.” He said. “I drink wine so rarely.”

Aldebaran smiled, and the sound was as genuine as any Shaka could remember hearing for years. “No need to explain yourself, Virgo. We are all exhausted after what happened.”

The Taurus Saint winced as soon as he’d said the words, and the silence fell between them again, the ease of their earlier conversation darkened by the reminder of what had brought them together. Mu, predictably, was the first to recover. “We should all rest.” He said. “Our bodies need to heal.”

Aldebaran nodded, and walked towards the door. Mu seemed to hesitate for a moment, then hurried after him. Shaka couldn’t quite bring himself to follow, and busied himself with scouring out the mugs they had used. Bits of conversation floated back at him, as Mu and Aldebaran stood by the door. It seemed relatively unimportant, although names of the other Saints floated back from them. Then Aldebaran tilted his head in Shaka’s direction, and took his leave. Departing back up the hill to his own temple, Shaka expected. Shaka hesitated a moment longer, but Mu was looking at him expectedly, and the Virgo Saint was unable to hide forever. Placing the final mug on the rack, Shaka joined Mu at the door.

Once again in silence, the two saints wandered back up the hill, and unconsciously both looked up to the stars, seeking out certain constellations and marking their location. Shaka couldn’t remember a time when the myths and legends of each of the star clusters wasn’t as much a part of his past as his training, and he felt a reverence for each as he located it.

When they had reached the Aries temple, Mu seemed to hesitate for a moment, then cautiously reached out and laid his hand on Shaka’s shoulder. “It’s going to be alright, Shaka.” He said, the words unconnected to any conversation, yet the meaning clear. Shaka bowed his head.

“Yes. It will.” He said, ducking under the contact and gazing up the hill where his own temple awaited him, dark and cold. It would be welcomingly quiet, if dangerously empty.

He had barely taken a step when Mu spoke again.

“It was my honor to speak with you this night, Shaka.” He said quietly, the words bringing Shaka to a halt. He paused, turning back to the Aries Saint, unable to think of a response to the seemingly casual statement. He stood there for a moment, then walked backed, clasping Mu’s still-extended hand in his own.

“I appreciate the effort you made, Mu. I…the honor was mine.” Shaka blinked at his own words. They were so shallow, and a hollow reminder of the comments he had made to Mu earlier, about rehearsed and expected responses. Still, they were the best he could manage. Unable to think of anything else, Shaka bowed his head, turning back up the mountain. He couldn’t help but hesitate as he took the first step, though, although he hated himself for it. He wanted nothing but peace, now. He wasn’t sure his mind would allow him that much, but the Virgo temple was familiar, quiet and calm. He loved it because it reflected him perfectly. Now, however, the temple was broken. Stones lay loose and disarrayed on its floor, and the temple was hurting. Dimly, Shaka realized that perhaps that was also a reflection of himself.

Either way, though, the temple was the closest thing he had to a home, and both he and the world would be far safer if he got back there as soon as possible. Whatever hesitation had blocked his path before was thrown aside, and he began to walk back up. When the footsteps behind him suddenly stopped, however, Shaka turned around.

Rather than returning to his own temple, where it sat to their right, although back a ways, Mu had simply walked to the nearest ledge, and was sitting there, studying the ground in front of him. Shaka raised an eyebrow. “You should rest as well, Mu.” He said.

The Aries Saint didn’t move. “So now it’s your turn, than?” He said, and Shaka couldn’t help to think that Mu sounded a bit guarded, and possibly even angry. Shaka balled his hand into a fist, meeting the anger with his own. Mu had made Shaka bare his soul, back in the Virgo temple, and no matter what Mu considered his role in Sanctuary to be, there was no way Shaka was going to let the Aries Saint get away with anything less. He walked back, until he was standing directly behind Mu.

“You’re troubled?” He asked. Mu snorted.

“Of course I’m troubled.”

“Perhaps you should go to your home.” Shaka said, not unfeelingly. He was concerned by what Mu was showing him, by the weakness he could feel coming in waves off of the other man. He wondered just how much of Mu’s earlier strength had been a mask. Or maybe it was just that night had fallen, Mu was more exhausted, and more emotional. Whatever the reason, he shook his head at Shaka’s suggestion.

“I can’t leave Sanctuary.” He said. Wrapping his arms around his knees. Shaka blinked.
“Why not? It’s not as though you would be abandoning her.” He said. “You can return at any moment.”

“Yes, but she is expecting me to watch over Sanctuary.”

Shaka growled slightly. “Sanctuary will take care of her own. No one individual needs to be responsible for that. We need to take care of ourselves, Mu. That means going where we are most comfortable.”

“I’m fine here.” Mu replied stubbornly.

“You are more at ease elsewhere.” Shaka countered. In truth, he kind of wanted to turn around right then and walk back up the hill. He was annoyed by this sudden insecurity from Mu, to say the least. It was yet another variable in his own life, to see the calm, collected Aries Saint reduced to arguments based on emotion. Arguments were not to be based on emotional responses, but on logic and truth. It was a basic element of Shaka’s existence, and Mu had always seemed to understand that. “Go home, Mu. You cannot be any assistance to Athena if you are exhausted.”

Mu looked at him then, and he smiled slightly. “We’re going to be standing here all night arguing this unless I leave, aren’t we?”

Shaka nodded. “I will fight for what’s best for Sanctuary, no matter whether that is the individuals who protect her, or Athena herself.”

Mu stood, and cocked his head at Shaka, studying the Virgo Saint carefully. He looked surprised. Shaka had the feeling it would not be the first time. The concern and sympathy Mu had shown for him over the past few hours, however unexpected, had somehow touched something inside him. It made him vaguely uncomfortable, and he wanted to know what it was.

Neither man really knew what to add to their conversation, so instead they bowed, and took their leave of each other, seeking the comfort and safety of their respective homes.

Sanctuary, well-guarded by her five remaining saints, was utterly still within a few hours. The racing of minds had given way before true exhaustion, and as night merged into morning, sleep found all of her inhabitants. It was not a peaceful sleep for many of them, but it was rest, and it was the first step in rebuilding houses and minds shattered by tragedy.

End Pt. II

AN: I\'ll admit I jipped a bit on this part. Things were supposed to happen, but I decided I wanted them later on in the story. Shaka is hard to work with, and although I have some ideas, I need to make sure they work before just throwing them in willy-nilly. I really wanted to get this part up, so eventually just said. \"gaah! you\'re going online, already!\". Milo makes his appearance in the next part, and Aiolia gets some more screentime. Things will start happening, I promise. Expect part III in a few weeks. Finals aren\'t condusive to ficcing.