While waiting for Saya, Tanya watched the sunrise from her balcony. The cold wind sent shivers into her body.
As three paradise flycatchers seemed to dance in front of her, she thought once again about the prophecy. She was the bell and her role was to echo throughout the world.
'Accomplish your destiny, dear daughter, fix my mistake and share our teachings to those who had forgotten them. Guide those who have lost themselves back on the right path,' the Great White Wolf had told her and she thought maybe she had finally understood what she had to do. She had to teach the people of Arthdal, just like a mother taught her children, she would teach them again the values of the Wahan Tribe and so the values of Asa Sin they had forgotten.
She would guide them back to a world of kindness, compassion and tolerance and show them it was more suitable than a world where people were obsessed by greed.
She would make them love her, she would owe their hearts so that they would follow her, so that they would live according to the teachings her ancestor had passed her.
But there was an obstacle between what she wanted and what she could do: Tagon, the man she had made King and whom she knew was wrong in his ways. His title was now more powerful than hers but she could see that as an advantage rather than a inconvenient.
Hate was the natural feeling she could have towards Tagon and his warriors considering the harm they had done to her tribe but she had been taught that anger and hatred were signs of weakness while compassion was a sure sign of strength.
She took a deep breath and straightened herself. She would unleash the strength hiding within her, she was strong and she would show them how much she was.
She wouldn't hate the King or the Daekan warriors. She would do the opposite, she wouldn't forget but she would forgive their wrongs. And, just like the people of Arthdal, her other subjects, she would help them find the right way too.
She had come with an idea on how to spread the words of her ancestor, by herself, she had taken a long time to elaborate a plan so that she could prove to everyone around her she knew how to play the game too.
The first Kingdom meeting she would be part of would be held in a few days and she still had a lot of things to do before that and she just hoped everything would unfold the way she wanted it to.
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As he was told to, Saya went to see Tanya early in the morning and, as promised, she told him everything about the sword, its maker and also where she went the day before and why.
She was waiting for him to show a little bit of anger for having been left out from that but he wasn't angry. He had listened carefully and patiently to her words and he understood the urge they were in to find a solution. He thanked her for her honesty and he actually felt glad he had worried for nothing as she wasn't truly sick.
She appreciated him when he was like that, patient and kind. It was when he showed this side of himself she could think a part of him was similar to her Eunseom.
She shared with him her worries about Tagon not respecting their deal or Taealha finding out about what they were hiding but he reassured her: letting Yeolson live was more interesting than killing him and so, he doubted Tagon would try to do harm to the Priestess' father, at least not now.
She told him she had asked for a sign of guidance and saw the Great White Wolf in the forest, "she told me to share her teachings," she explained without speaking yet of the Black Wolf Asa Sin had mentioned.
"Is that so? Then, how are you going to do that? Is there something I can do to help you?" Saya asked.
"Yes, during the meeting for the Kingdom I would be part of, could you please support my ideas?" she asked him with a smile he gave back.
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Saya had agreed to support her, even though she hadn't tell him more about what her ideas were, whatever she wanted, he was by her side, he had assured her that. He also told her about everything she wanted to know about Asa Sin's origins and about the White Peak Mountain's Hearts, her devoted followers.
And so, before the meeting, she still had things to do.
She had summoned MuMyungjin first, and the assistant was fast to respond to her Niruha's convocation.
Tanya was sitting behind her desk, her presence strong and when MuMyungjin entered she respectfully greeted the Priestess.
"Is there something I can do for you, Niruha?" the assistant asked.
"MuMyungjin," Tanya started, "I know you have been spying on me for Prince Saya."
Confused, MuMyungjin dropped to her knees and apologized. She hadn't been given the choice but to report to him about the Priestess' every move.
"I am not angry at you and you will not be punished for that, you can report to him, it doesn't matter, I have nothing to hide," Tanya said as she stood up and approached the woman, she took her hands in hers to help her raise, "I want you to help me."
Tanya wasn't worried about confronting her, she knew Enoria was working on removing her from her side and so, soon enough, she wouldn't have her by her side all the time anyway. But she needed her for now, or rather she needed what she was, one of the leaders of the White Peak Mountain's Hearts, those people who believed in the true teachings of Asa Sin and who believed Aramun Haesulla was an Igutu. Truth or not, she had decided to use that so that she would keep her promise to Enoria: making sure one day people would stop discriminating against others for the color of their blood.
"My role, as Asa Sin's descendant, is to share the teachings of my ancestor, the beliefs you follow. I want you to help me spread the Great Mother's words to the citizens of Arthdal, will you follow me?"
"Yes, Niruha, I will do whatever I can to assist you," MuMyungjin replied.
Tanya thanked her, asked her to wait for her instructions and dismissed her assistant.
A satisfied smile appeared on Tanya's face as she went back to her desk, she had another guest to welcome.
Yangcha who was, as always, guarding her from inside, took a deep breath, the Priestess was up to something and he couldn't help but to worry about that even if he didn't really know why.
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Later, the next guest showed up in Tanya's office, as he was supposed to, he greeted the Priestess respectfully.
Yangcha had recognized that man, it wasn't just a random priest, not only because of his status but because he also was one of those who had helped with Tanya's cover the day before which meant he was one of Enoria's people.
His name was Asa Won. Enoria had explained everything to him and to Tanya on the way back to Arthdal the day before. He was Asa Ron's illegitimate child, a child the former High Priest had disowned to benefit Asa Yon instead. Unlike Asa Yon who was dedicated to the former Niruha and who was ready to do anything to keep the power of the Great Shrine, Asa Won was dedicated to the true faith. He believed in the return of Asa Sin's descendants and his goal was to prepare for that. Not many people knew about him or about his beliefs in the Shrine. Since he was considered a traitor to his own family, he had always been kept in distance but he had gathered loyal followers on his own and they discreetly lived their faith.
As for the reasons why they followed her, Enoria had explained that too. She needed to have contacts in the Shrine to keep an eye on Asa Ron's moves when the latter was still in control. For people like Asa Won, whose beliefs joined those of the White Peak Mountain's Hearts, Aramun Haesulla was an Igutu so purple blood, instead of being a curse, was sacred. So when Enoria had shown up not only as an Igutu but as someone with the ability to communicate with animal spirits and more, they saw in her someone gifted by the Gods and had accepted to join her.
Tanya started by thanking him for his and his group's helped the day before, then she went straight to her point just like she had done with MuMyungjin, she asked him to follow her so that they could share the true teachings of Asa Sin with the people of Arthdal.
Of course, he accepted. He had no reason to refuse, spreading the true faith and making Arthdal a peaceful place were also his goals as a servant of the Gods.
Tanya thanked him, asked him to wait for her instructions but to share with the others her will to make them her allies then dismissed the priest.
Once again a satisfied smile appeared on her face. She heard her bodyguard inquiring about what she was planning but she ignored those thoughts, she wanted to prove herself without being influenced nor by him, nor by Saya, nor by Enoria either, it was a battle she would do with the help of the Great White Wolf only.
She drank a glass of water before she looked at her bodyguard, "I am going to the Fire Room," she said before she left the room with determined steps. Now that she knew how she would share the teachings of her ancestor she needed to know more about the Great Black Wolf and its descendant Asa Sin had mentioned to her.
Her bodyguard followed closely, complying to whatever she wanted though he was still trying to figure out what she was up to.
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After her visit to Tanya Saya had asked to see Tagon in private as there was something he needed to ask him.
"Father," Saya started, "Tanya told me about her father and the steel sword. Do you still want me to search for the secret of the Bronze? Or is that not necessary anymore?"
"For now, keep going on your research, we still have no guarantee Tanya's father will successfully give us the steel knowledge."
Saya agreed, at worst they would know how to use both, the bronze and the steel. He told his father he would see him later, then he bowed and headed for the door.
"Son," Tagon called out, "if Tanya told you about that, it means she trusts you, make her your wife."
Saya restrained his smile, he more than liked the idea of Tanya belonging to him. "Yes, Father, I will, that is something I am also working on," he replied before he bowed once again and left the office.
In the corridor which lead to his own office, he bumped into Taealha who inquired about Tanya's health since she was supposedly sick the day before. With a smile, Saya reassured her, the High Priestess was feeling just fine and she didn't have to worry.
But the Queen could see in his eyes he was, just like Tagon, in league with Tanya, after all he was fond of her and she wondered how he would react if she ended up like Saenarae. She left him with a smile wishing him in her thoughts to be happy while he still could.
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Far from the preoccupation of the High Priestess, Enoria was given some time off, actually, she thought she may have won it because Tagon was tired of her sighing of boredom but still, she thought it was well deserved.
She went to the Daekan headquarters, not because she particularly wanted to but because she had made a promise she would be sure to keep.
"Here comes our one and only Daekan Lady!" Mugwang exclaimed, "hey, it's been a while you didn't pass time with us!" he complained.
"Maybe because I don't particularly enjoy it," she replied to annoy him.
Her attempts to annoy him didn't work anymore on him, he had come to the conclusion he actually enjoyed when she was making cutting remarks anyway and that it annoyed her more when he was nice to her. "Do you drink with us?" he asked as he was already pouring her a cup.
"No, I don't drink anymore," she replied before she noticed the looks they were giving her and realized she had to find a good excuse and not give them the real reason, "I am on diet."
"I should do that too," Gitoha replied as he patted his stomach before the Daekans all laughed.
"Then you came to rob my money?" Mugwang teased.
"No, to honor my promise," she answered.
Mugwang smiled, he remembered well what she was talking about. Because he had helped preventing the Daekans to follow Taealha's order to destroy the statues and shrines of the Bato God after the coup, she had promised him, as a reward and sign of gratitude, to cook just for him. He would have preferred another kind of reward but Yangcha would not have agreed. "I see you are a woman who keeps her words, fine, the kitchen is yours! Make me something delicious!" Mugwang said with enthusiasm, gesturing her the way.
He was waiting with impatience, and though the smell coming from the kitchen wasn't that bad, it didn't smell that good either and he started to worry about the real intention she could have.
When she came back to the common room with a bowl of food, she put the bowl in front of him, gave him a spoon before she told him to enjoy his meal. The proud smile she had on her face made him forget about his worries for a moment but when she put her hand on his to prevent him from eating and that just before he put the spoon in his mouth, he felt suspicious again.
"I have something to confess," Enoria said.
"I knew it! It's poisoned, isn't it?" Mugwang asked with a sigh as he put back the spoon in his bowl.
"No, it's not," she defended herself, "but the truth is-"
"It's not edible?" he asked.
"It is! I put a lot of effort into this!"
"Then what?! What's wrong?!"
"The truth is, when I proposed cooking for you I actually intended to do a joke, I wanted to make a really disgusting or poisoned thing but I didn-"
"You wanted to poison me? For fun? What kind of joke is that? And you dared telling me my humor was not worth an ugly stone? Yours is not even worth an ugly wood stick. Such an evil heartless woman," he deplored as he shook his head.
"Hey! I am telling you I changed my mind! I cooked seriously without making jokes!
"And how can I be sure of that, huh?! How can I be sure you aren't trying to kill me with your food?!"
"Because if I wanted to kill you Mugwang, I'd just have to rip your heart off out your chest. It would be way more quick, easier and funnier than making a poisoned dish," she replied with gritted teeth before she softened, "I am serious, I made an effort, really."
He could almost swear she would start crying if he continued not to believe her willingness and he finally gave up and took back his spoon wishing it wouldn't be the last meal he would eat.
The sincere smile she was giving him when he was chewing the contents of his spoon dissuaded him from telling her he actually felt like spitting out. When she asked for his opinion, his tongue and heart told her it was delicious, his brain and stomach were screaming it was inedible.
"Wow I am reassured! Just for you to know, I am actually a really bad cook! That's the only thing I know how to make and it took me weeks to learn how to make it!"
"Have Yangcha ever tried that?" he asked with a forced smile.
"No, he doesn't really let me cook, I did make him sick two or three times in the past," she confessed in a low voice, slightly embarrassed.
"No wonder," Mugwang whispered but when she asked him to repeat because she hadn't understood what he had mumbled he told her he felt honored. Her enthusiast was too cute for him to break her heart by telling her what he had in his bowl was absolutely tasteless and the textures were weird too, some things he couldn't even identify were cooked while others were raw and he wondered how it was possible to be that bad.
She went back to the kitchen for a little while as the other Daekans asked for a bowl too.
While she was away Mugwang looked at his comrades with pity, "you should have never asked for a bowl," he deplored in a sigh, "were those damn bowls always that big?" he asked for himself as he thought about the efforts it would ask him to finish it.
"Why? You said it was delicious," Gitoha said.
"Do I look like I am taking pleasure right now?!" he complained in a low voice.
"Then why didn't you tell her?"
"Because," Mugwang started before he sighed, he couldn't believe how far he was going for that woman, "because she is cute. Have you seen how smiley she was, it's going to break her heart if I tell her it's disgu-"
He didn't finish his sentence as she came back with the plate. When they were all served, the others understood soon enough the suffering of their comrade and they all exchanged looks full of meanings.
"What? What's wrong?" Enoria asked as she noticed how the atmosphere had changed all of a sudden.
"Mugwang, you tell her," Gitoha said, giving him a tap on the back.
"Tell me what?" she questioned, confused.
"Hey, little wolf, the truth is-, I mean, in reality it's-, what I am trying to say is th-"
"It's not good?"
Mugwang sighed, he couldn't believe he was going to break her fragile heart but he had no choice, it was that or else he had to take another spoon, "no, it's not."
"But you said it was delicious," she said, chagrined. He mumbled something but she didn't give him the time to make himself clear. She felt betrayed as she had really thought they were enjoying what she had spent time preparing, "how did you dare lie to me, Mugwang?" she asked with gritted teeth.
"I didn't want to hurt your feelings," he replied as he wondered how she could pass from sad to angry in such a short time.
"You failed, it hurts my feelings!"
"And so? It's not my fault if you are a bad cook! Test it yourself, it's disgusting!" he raised his voice, giving him his spoon and bowl.
Proud, she took a mouthful of her own dish with assurance. She was sure they were exaggerating. "It's not that bad!" she defended herself, though she didn't take another spoon.
"If even when you make an effort it's like that I don't want to imagine what it is like when you don't do one, grass probably tastes better," Mugwang joked.
"Then go eat grass!" she raised her voice, annoyed.
"Yes I should do that, it would be better than eating what you cook," he replied, before he leaned closer to her "but, you just put in your mouth the spoon I had put in mine so does that mean you just indirectly kissed me? Just confess you like me."
"Didn't I already tell you to stop with your teen-like remarks? I don't like you, you are mean," she complained, "Yangcha would have eaten everything just to respect my efforts."
"Yangcha would have finished because at the end of the day you sleep with him," Mugwang corrected, "I would finish that thing too if I was assured you would join me in my bed," he continued with a smirk before he noticed Enoria seemed more than offended by that, "what? Yangcha is no different, men would do anything to put a woman in their bed, one thing is sure you have no cooking skills so you must have other skills, or else why would he condemn himself to be with only one woman for the rest of his lif-"
She had tried not to react badly but she couldn't help it, he was going too far and, offended by what he was insinuating, she had slapped him on the back of his head, hard enough for his entire face to taste the meal she had prepared and to prevent him from finishing his sentence.
"Why do you always take everything wrongly!?" he asked in a sigh as he wiped his face with his hand while the other Daekans laughed at the scene, "it's kind of a compliment!"
"Shut up before I drown you in that bowl."
"I'll prefer you ripping my heart out than testing that disgusting thing again."
"I hope you'll choke with your own saliva."
"Which will still taste better than your dish!"
"According to the smell usually coming from your mouth I highly doubt that."
"You annoying bit-"
"Hey Mugwang, don't be that mean, she is going to complain to Yangcha," Gitoha interrupted as he was laughing, he didn't know if the two looked more like two siblings fighting or two lovers in a quarrel.
Mugwang just looked at her with a smile "go ahead, go to your mute dude and complain, something like 'Honey, Mugwang was mean to me today, I am really upset, could you kick his ass for me?' " he asked as he imitated her voice making the others laughed too.
She had to fight the actual urge to rip his tongue out, or maybe it was his heart she wanted to rip she wasn't that sure, but she restrained herself. When the other warriors started imitating how they imagined she was calling Yangcha in private she felt like burning the headquarters, with all the Daekans in it, but she restrained herself on that too.
She murmured some words in Neanthal language which didn't sound like sweet words, stood up, corrected them on the fact there were no such things as 'honey', 'darling', 'sweetie' or whatever nicknames they were imagining between Yangcha and her, told them with a smile to have fun cleaning the mess she had made in the kitchen, then she left, high-head but still internally annoyed, as they continued to tease her until she was out of the reach of their voices.
"What did she say in Neanthal language?" Gitoha asked.
"Probably not something like 'I love being with all of you, have a nice day'," Yeonbal replied before they laughed.
"Along with a series of insults, she said she hoped we would all choke with our own tongues in our sleep and that she regretted not having poisoned all of us with her dish," Mugwang replied with a smile.
"Then why are you smiling, idiot?" Gitoha questioned.
"I like her sweet words," he replied before they all mocked him and his hopeless love and ordered to go clean the mess his non-girlfriend had made.
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At the Shrine, in the Fire Room, the atmosphere was far more serious than at the Daekans headquarters. Tanya had sat on the stairs not far from the flame which never stopped burning as she was thinking about the words of the Great White Wolf.
'Keep the descendant of the Great Black Wolf close, she will help you, our two people have to unite again. Nothing is coincidence in this world, my daughter.'
The more she thought about those words, the more persuaded she was to already know who was the descendant her ancestor had talked about, who else but Enoria, the woman who had an entire pack of majestic black direwolves under her command? But she wondered what exactly it meant to be the descendant of the Great Black Wolf no one had ever heard about.
Saya had not been able to give her the answer when she had asked him in the morning if he knew about it, he had assured her there was no mention of it in any book he had read despite the entire history of Arthdal having been passed down through them.
Yangcha too, just like the Prince, didn't know about it. When questioned about Enoria's ancestors, he was unable to give answers, the two had talked about it before but she didn't know about her ancestors, nor about where her abilities came from.
And still, Tanya knew Asa Sin wouldn't have told her that if there was not more to know, and the more she was trying to connect all the dots together, the more she started to believe that indeed nothing was coincidence in that world.
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As the Daekans had expected her to do, Enoria had not been able to fight the urge to go complain about them to Yangcha and she went to the Great Shrine. But when she entered the Fire Room where her lover was in, she forgot for a moment about the reason of her visit, mesmerized by Tanya's Spirit Dance in the water and she joined Yangcha not taking her eyes off the Priestess.
"Beautiful," she whispered to the warrior who just looked at her without showing any reaction, she gave him a mischievous smile, "you have the right to nod, I was talking about the dance not the Priestess, though she is pretty too," she teased him.
Tanya didn't seem to have heard her enter, she was concentrating on what she was doing and seemed to be in a kind of trance probably waiting for a sign from the Gods.
"I am back from the headquarters," Enoria said in a low voice before she explained to him what had happened there. He was glad he was wearing a mask, at least she couldn't see he was trying hard not to laugh but she knew him well and even if his face was half-covered, she could still see in his eyes he was mocking her, "I am not that bad, am I? Honey?"
He raised an eyebrow at that word, confused, she had never called him like that before and it sounded strange coming from her mouth, like a sweet word used to cover the fact he had done something wrong and she was going to kill him later.
She noticed his reaction and she thought just the same. "I knew it, it sounds wrong. Those kinds of things don't suit us," she said, "anyway, I am afraid you'll have to teach me how to cook, Daekan."
Under his mask he smiled as he nodded, he preferred her calling him that way, that was their way, and even though it may sound aggressive to someone else's ears, it sounded affectionate to his.
They didn't talk more and their eyes went back to the graceful moves of the Priestess who hadn't stopped dancing.
Another sign, that was what she was asking for, what she needed, an explanation to understand who was that Great Black Wolf nobody knew about. When she stopped dancing and opened her eyes, the first thing her eyes saw was Enoria. Tanya smiled at her, her Great Mother had answered her again and confirmed her intuition: Enoria was the descendant of that Great Black Wolf.
She wanted to dance again, to get more answers to her questions, but as she was about to start again, she suddenly felt weak on her knees and fell in the water.
The two warriors rushed to the Priestess but Yangcha stopped himself at the edge of the sacred water of the Fire Room, he was a warrior, he had no right to go further even if his Niruha had fallen and needed help.
That rule didn't seem to bother Enoria as she allowed herself, without even thinking about the sacredness of the place and her own status, to run to Tanya's side while asking her if she was ok.
Tanya nodded, she had just felt a little dizzy for a short moment but her eyes went to the sacred flame. She had noticed it had intensified at the moment Enoria had taken a step in the holy water. "Why is it doing that?" the Priestess asked her, pointing at the flame.
The Igutu looked at it too, then she looked back at Tanya. "I think I annoyed the Gods because I didn't take off my shoes before entering their sacred water, I guess they don't know my shoes are not that dirty," she murmured before the two exchanged amused smiles.
Enoria helped Tanya slowly stand up but the Priestess didn't look away from the flame, she had the impression to see things in it.
When the Igutu took her hand to guide her out of the water, Tanya let herself guide but they hadn't even taken two steps forward that she suddenly stopped. "Did you hear that?" she asked her friend.
Confused, Enoria glanced at Yangcha who seemed as lost as her, "hear what?"
Tanya frowned, she was sure to have heard it clearly, a wolf's howl, no, maybe two wolves' howls after all. She looked back at the flame, the Gods were trying to tell her something and she had to find out what it was. "Don't let go of my hand," she said to her friend who just nodded, without even trying to hide her confusion. Tanya guided her near the flame again and starred in it as if to search for something to see.
Enoria let her do so though she wondered what was going on, just like Yangcha, who was still waiting at the edge of the water.
Tanya closed her eyes and concentrated on what she wanted to know. She heard wolves' howls again and when she opened her eyes she saw two wolves dancing in the flames.
Surprised, she took a step back, but according to Enoria's confused expression, she had been the only one to see and hear everything. "Do it with me," Tanya quickly said, "the Dance of the Spirits, do it with me."
"What? No! What for?" Enoria asked, surprised by the sudden demand, "I don't want to, I don't know how to do it and I don't have the right to do it anyway, I normally don't even have the right to be in those waters, Tanya."
"Then why did you enter in the first place?"
"Because you fell! To check on you, obviously!"
"Because you were worried, because from the day we both met you care about me," Tanya said.
"What's going on with you today? You should rest, you are acting weirdly."
"Nothing is coincidence," Tanya murmured for herself as those words kept echoing in her head, "do the dance with me, please, there is something I need to verify, I will explain to you after."
Enoria took a deep breath and sighed, Tanya almost sounded like she was begging her and she hated herself for not being capable of saying no to the Priestess. She looked at Yangcha who obviously wasn't against the idea of seeing her dancing, then she looked back at the Priestess, "you will have to show me that damn dance once again then."
Tanya smiled before she frowned, surprised. "You didn't already memorize it? Eunseom was able to remember it after just having seen it once," she explained.
"Sorry for not having your Eunseom's talent! Show me quickly before I change my mind, I can't believe what you are making me do," she complained.
"First, remove your shoes," Tanya told her with an authoritative tone before their eyes met and they both laughed lightly.
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Enoria was a slower student than Tanya had expected her to be. Yangcha had wished her good luck with an amused tone and she had not understood why before but now she did.
"Do you have two left feet?!" Tanya scolded Enoria who had, once again, fallen on the water.
Amused, Yangcha confirmed in his mind, he used to tell her that her two feet were her biggest enemy and that was something that hadn't changed since that time.
"My feet are used to move while fighting with swords, not to move to dance! What were you expecting? I am a warrior, not an elegant dancing lady!" Enoria defended herself as she didn't even bother standing up, "let's just forget about that, this is ridiculous anyway, I don't want to do that again, I am tired."
"Don't be such a whining baby!" Tanya scolded before she turned to look at Yangcha who visibly found the scene funny to watch, "how did you manage to train her for all those years?"
"Power of love," Enoria replied with a smile before the Priestess had the time to hear an answer in her bodyguard's mind, "alright," she started as she finally stood up, "show me again."
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Tanya had to recognize that even if Enoria was maybe not the best dancer in the world at least she was persistent, though she complained from time to time she actually ended up memorising the dance way more quickly than a Saram would have done.
"Ok, let's do it seriously, I think I have got it," the Igutu said, confident, "but I am warning you, if I do it right at the first try, we stop."
"Deal," Tanya replied before they both positioned themselves.
Enoria didn't know what Tanya was expecting from them dancing together, but as she felt it was important for the Priestess, she did it seriously and, slightly behind her, she executed the moves she had learnt with the same elegance as her.
Yangcha watched them, honored to assist to such a scene, wondering if he would manage to make Enoria do that again. But a part of him was worried about what the Priestess was searching for by making the woman he loved do that, and he silently hoped it wouldn't upset the Gods.
The dance was short but intense and when the two finally finished, Tanya looked around but didn't see anything. She couldn't hide her disappointment as she thought the Gods would give her a message, a sign after they were done but nothing happened.
Noticing her disappointment, Enoria approached the Priestess and took her hand in hers, "I don't know what you were waiting for but I am sorry it didn't wor-"
She didn't have the time to finish her sentence, the eternal flame intensified, more than it had done before. Out of reflex and because they had both been surprised, the two women had protectively hugged each other and when they realised how they had reacted, they looked at each other then laughed.
Hand in hand they were about to finally step out from the water but Tanya stopped.
In the dark entrance of the Fire Room she finally saw the sign she was waiting for. Two large wolves were staring at her, one white, one black. She wanted to tell what she was seeing but no words managed to leave her mouth. She wasn't able to look away from the eyes staring in hers even when she heard her friend's voice calling her name. The wolves growled and everything around her became black and silent.
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The two warriors had carried the unconscious Priestess to her bedroom, wondering if they had to call for help or to keep that for themselves at the moment.
Enoria had sat near Tanya, holding her hand in the hope the Priestess knew she wasn't alone.
It was only shortly afterwards they had safely laid down Tanya on her bed that they noticed something they were familiar with. Whenever asleep or unconscious, Sarams usually didn't move when their eyes were closed and yet, the Priestess was.
"Is she-, could she be dreaming?" Enoria asked Yangcha who was standing near.
"But Sarams can't dream," he replied, allowing himself to speak in a low voice as he hoped the Priestess couldn't hear him, whatever the state she was in.
"She is not just a simple Saram, she is Asa Sin's descendant, you are just jealous because you are a half-Igutu who can't dream," she teased.
"At least I don't slap you in my sleep, be thankful," he joked.
"I don't -"
"You do, and you know that, don't pretend, but it's fine, I know you don't do that on purpose," he interrupted, amused, "if she is dreaming then she is not in danger, let's keep her state for ourselves," he proposed.
She agreed and she went to ask some priests to forbid the access to the Priestess' bedroom, giving the excuse of her being in the middle of communicating with the Gods.
When she came back to Tanya's bedroom, she went back to her side, sat on the ground, took back her hand in hers and just watched the Priestess sleeping. She knew too well dreams weren't always good and she wanted to be attentive to any sign of distress so that she could wake Tanya up if necessary.
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Tanya stayed asleep for a while and it seemed to the two warriors watching over her that the Gods were showing her many things.
From time to time, Enoria wiped the sweat from the Priestess' forehead with a towel and she arranged the hair that was stuck on her wet face.
'Don't let go of my hand,' the Priestess had asked her and so she hadn't. Dreams were things the one who had them couldn't control and she was worried about what Tanya was seeing in her first one. She thought again about what Tanya had told her, 'because you were worried, because from the day we both met you care about me,' she was right, she couldn't help but to feel worried and care about Tanya, maybe it was because they were both similar. Tanya reminded her of her younger self, the one who was so sure changing the world would not be that complicated. Maybe that was why she wanted to assist the Priestess, her experience could be useful for the child of the prophecy who she believed had the true power to change the world.
Enoria was starting to nod off when the Priestess suddenly woke up, pulling out the two warriors of their own thoughts.
"You are safe Tanya, you are in your bed and everything is fine," Enoria reassured. Because she herself often felt disoriented when waking up from a dream, Yangcha always reassured her like that and so she thought maybe Tanya needed to hear that too.
"I saw everything," Tanya said as she caught her breath, then she looked at Enoria, "I know who you are."
"Great, because since the last time you asked me who I was I haven't changed," the Igutu joked, "how are you fee-"
"That was not what I meant," the Priestess interrupted, "I know who you truly are, what you truly are. I know why you can do things other people can't do. The Great White Wolf told me nothing was coincidence and she was right, it is not a coincidence if we are both blessed with abilities no one else has, neither it is one that we met in Arthdal, or that Yangcha saved you during the Great Hunt or that he is the one who caught me in Iark, everything is linked!"
"What are you even talking about?" Enoria asked, confused.
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Tanya asked the two warriors to sit as it was going to be a long story, she asked them not to interrupt her too so that she could concentrate on not forgetting anything.
She started by explaining what Saya had taught her about the origin of the Asa Clan. The actual inhabitants of Arthdal believed Isodunyong had made the first Saram, Asacho Haseuni and that, at that time, Sarams were all capable of hearing and talking to their Goddess, the Mother of All Things. However, it was said that one day, two moons appeared in the sky and along with the fake moon another species appeared: the Neanthals, which pride and arrogance were considered to have insulted Isodunyong whom, as a punishment, grabbed the evil spirited moon and returned to the heaven lake so that Sarams could live in peace. But the spirits of Sarams were already affected by the fake moon and since that day, Isodunyong hadn't spoke to Sarams directly and only addressed the direct descendants of Asacho Haseuni who were the only ones capable to meet and talk to the Goddess through their dreams they trained to have. However, Neanthals, as well as the offspring of Neanthals and Sarams, Igutus, were able to dream without training and it wasn't Isodunyong who appeared in their dreams but the illusion of the fake evil moon punished by the Goddess. The Sarams believed the Neanthals and Igutus had denied the Gods and considered themselves equal to the Spirits.
But what Tanya saw in her dreams was something completely different from the story Saya had learnt and shared with her.
The two wolves she saw before she lost consciousness, or rather fell asleep, guided her to a place which seemed to be Arth at a time that seemed thousands of years ago.
The First Great Mother of the Asa Clan, Asacho Haseuni, the ancestor of Asa Sin, appeared to her and she showed Tanya how the Sarams on Arth were living in harmony with each other, in the respect of the Nature, the Gods and the Spirits, just like Tanya herself had been taught in the Wahan Tribe.
Asacho Haseuni showed her that, at her time, everyone was capable of feeling the signs of the presence of the Mother of All Things in the Nature they respected and cherished. However, she, as the first daughter of Isodunyong, was the only one capable of directly communicating with the Goddess and the Spirits. She was the messenger of the Gods and they sent her dreams to guide the Sarams into the upholding of the peace of the land they had lent them and that was why she was the First Great Mother of their Clan. She had taught the Sarams how to receive the messages of the Goddess so that they could also hear and talk to the Mother of All Things but unlike her, they couldn't see her in what they called dreams too.
Unlike what was being said in the actual Arthdal, the Sarams weren't the only species living on Arth and there had never been two moons. The story the Asa Clan had spread was a lie and Neanthals had appeared at the same time Isodunyong had sent Asacho Haseuni to Arth.
The two species' beliefs were different, the blue-blooded didn't recognize the sacredness of Isodunyong, but to the Sarams' surprise, they could all dream without training. They worshipped the Moon that they considered to be the face of Mother Nature, their equivalent of Isodunyong. They were led by a Neanthal man named Razak, believed to be the First Son of the Moon.
Asacho Haseuni and Razak met to learn about each other's beliefs and people so that the two species could share the land which didn't belong to anyone else but to their Gods.
Maintaining peace was an evident thing to do for the leaders. Though their Gods didn't have the same names and weren't represented by the same things, their teachings were similar: to live in the respect of the Gods and of the Spirits of all living beings created by Mother Nature for the Neanthals and by Isodunyong for the Sarams.
And so, because their Gods wanted the same thing, Asacho Haseuni and Razak accepted their differences and met frequently so that they could learn from each other. With years, they found similarities between their two people and beliefs and the two species started to mix. They discovered what they called dreams was different, without training the Neanthals could see and hear things unrelated to their Gods in them however the Sarams, who had to train hard to have dreams could only hear and talk to their Goddess without being able to see anything, at the exception of Asacho Haseuni, the first daughter.
Despite their differences, the idea of conflicts or discrimination between them was far from their thoughts. The color of their blood was different but it didn't matter because they were all humans, with two eyes to see, one mouth to speak, one nose to smell, two hands to touch, two ears to hear and one heart to feel and love.
Then, the Wolves led Tanya to what seemed to be a celebration, she immediately recognized the paintings of the Wahan Tribe on the people's faces as well as the flowers crowns they wore on their heads, proof they were celebrating the Spirit of Flowers Ceremony, Sarams and Neanthals, together.
What Tanya saw next surprised her. The people of the two sides gathered around two little kids with purple lips, and bowed to them in respect before the two children put their hands on the ground and covered it with small flowers, just like she had witnessed Enoria doing when they went to that village.
Enoria didn't interrupt Tanya but she felt strange knowing that once there were other people like her, and she kind of felt reassured she wasn't just a weird one after all.
Careful about not forgetting anything, Tanya continued to tell what she had seen to the two warriors who were listening more than attentively to her words.
The two kids who were just like Enoria, ran to their parents, Asacho Haseuni and Razak who, after having met so many times to assure a peaceful link between their people, had fallen in love with each other.
When Asacho Haseuni got pregnant with twins, the people had feared what the union of their two species could create. Their Gods were different and by joining the lineage of the Sarams' First Great Mother and the Neanthals' First Son of the Moon, they were afraid their respective Gods would be upset and punish them.
But Asacho Haseuni and Razak had faith in their Gods whom they knew would never condemn their love. The First Great Mother of the Sarams gave birth to two healthy children with purple blood which the couple saw as the proof of the perfect mix between their two species.
However, the indirect descendants of Isodunyong thought Asacho Haseuni had sullied the direct lineage of their Goddess by having children with a Neanthal. They saw the purple blood of their Great Mother's children as a sign of a curse made by the Gods to punish them. Jealous of the capacity the Neanthals all had dreams without training, and afraid the blue-blooded Gods could be more powerful than theirs, they wanted to make people doubt the sacredness of their First Great Mother's children so that them, indirect descendants who could also dream after years and years of trainings, would take the control of the Clan and assure the superiority of their own Goddess.
But Asacho Haseuni and Razak stopped them, they both had had a dream in which the Gods told them their children weren't cursed and that their faith and patience would be rewarded.
As the Igutu children grew up, Asacho Haseuni and Razak discovered that their children were indeed not cursed but blessed. They were capable of dreaming and communicating with the Gods and the Spirits just like them but not only could they embellish the land by making flowers, plants and trees grow but they could also read the true heart of people by listening through their minds.
Witnessing that, the people stopped doubting and saw in the children' gifts a sign Isodunyong and the Moon had blessed the union of the two species. They recognized the sacredness of the two forgetting about the lies the indirect descendants had tried to make them believed.
On a peaceful Arth, Tanya saw the two Igutu children growing in kindness, in the respect of all lives just like their parents had taught them to do.
One of them, Asae, married a Saram and from the union a baby was born, its blood as red as the blood of a pure Saram. The other kid, Rathanak, married a Neanthal, and from the union, a baby was born too, its blood as blue as the blood of a pure Neanthal. Both babies, just like their parents, were gifted by the capacity to dream and to communicate with the Gods and the Spirits. However, because the sacred lineage was already recognized, they weren't given other abilities.
With years, the line of descent continued, the descendants of Asae, Sarams on one side, the descendants of Rathanak, Neanthals on the other. The two lineages were sacred and respected by most of the people from the two sides but even if peace was reigning, the premises of conflicts were already there because the two species didn't evolve the same way.
The Neanthals, led by the direct descendant of Asacho Haseuni and Razak from Rathanak side, stayed close to Nature, true to their Gods and their teachings. Mother Nature gave them what they needed and they didn't feel the need to search for more than what they already had.
However, the Sarams, led by the direct descendant of Asacho Haseuni and Razak from Asae side, weren't content anymore with what they had. They longed for always more than what they were given and soon, they began to forget what the teachings of their ancestors were. They started to disrespect nature to obtain food in abundance, they destroyed the forests to build bigger and bigger houses, captured animals to tame them and even tried to dominate one another.
By doing so, they weakened the peace on Arth.
The Gods punished the Sarams for their greed and the abilities once given were taken away. Isodunyong never spoke again to Sarams and only addressed the direct descendants of Asacho Haseuni through their dreams.
Because of the growing difference in their lifestyles, the Neanthals and Sarams started to separate ways and with years, as the Sarams' greed continued to grow, so did the distance between the two species who were once living in harmony as their Gods had wanted.
The indirect descendants of Asacho Haseuni started to denigrate the Neanthals who had not evolved like they had and they mocked their primitive lifestyle. The idea that there was a descendant of Asacho Haseuni among the Neanthals began to bother them and so they started to blaspheme the sacred lineages.
The Neanthals were still all capable of having dreams but the Sarams knew the blue-blooded couldn't see or talk to Isodunyong in them since she wasn't their Goddess. And so, the indirect descendants who wanted the Gods of the Sarams to be the only ones accused the Neanthals of mocking and disrespecting the Goddess of All Things and pointed to the blue-blooded Gods as fake ones as well as their dreams to be fake illusions as the lie about the two moons started to spread among them.
The sacredness of Asacho Haseuni's descendant was still recognized but the Sarams started to only follow the heir of the First Great Mother who had inherited her red blood, the descendants from Asae's side, and they spread lies saying their First Great Mother had never united herself with a Neanthal. They denied all links with the Neanthals and disowned the descendants from Rathanak'side who they started to accuse of being imposters, monsters influenced by the evil moon.
Not being able to prove the truth behind the sacred lineages, the direct descendants of Asacho Haseuni and Razak could not stop the lies from spreading and they prayed for the truth to be reestablished. But at that time, the Sarams listened with their heads full of selfish desires rather than with their hearts.
And so, to protect their people from the lies, vileness and greed of the Sarams, the Neanthals ended up cutting all ties with them.
As a direct descendant from Asae's side, Asa Sin had tried to restore the link between the two species but at that time, Arthdal was in chaos. Led by their greed and their quests of power, war was everywhere, the different clans were fighting to dominate each other, forgetting the true teachings of their First Great Mother stating that no one, tribe or species, was superior to the other.
Asa Sin believed the chaos reigning on Arth was the consequences of the two lineages being separated and so, in an attempt to bring back peace on Arth, she had organized a meeting with Eiko, the direct descendant of Asacho Haseuni and Razak from Rathanak's side. Together they had prayed for days for their ancestors to give them a sign on how to restore peace on their land.
The Gods had answered their prayers and had sent them two wolves, a white one and a black one and the two women, as true descendants both gifted by the capacity to hear the Spirits, had listened to the message their guides were sharing with them. The wolves, messengers of the Gods, had informed them they wouldn't be able to bring back the peace on Arth as the Sarams weren't ready to recognize the true lineages, and the two women were told to assure the continuity of the descendance so that one day, when Arth would be ready, the truth would be recognized and peace would reign again.
The two women accepted the cruel truth and went back to their respective living place with heavy-hearts but determined to follow their messagers' instructions.
However, things didn't go as easy as they thought it would. They had not been the only ones to assist to the meeting and, the indirect descendants of Asacho Haseuni who wanted to instore once and for all the superiority of their tribes and Gods took the decision to never let the two species reconnect by erasing every descendant of Rathanak, linking the Neanthals to Asae and Asacho Haseuni's lineage. Those indirect descendants followed Eiko to her village and in the night they murdered everyone in their sleeps.
In Arthdal, Asa Sin learnt about the indirect descendants' actions and the murder of the other descendant. Seeing no end to the chaos, she took the decision to leave to protect and prepare the future descendant of the true lineage and to follow the will of the White Wolf who had warned her she wouldn't be able to do anything for Arthdal at the moment.
Guided by the White Wolf's words, Asa Sin had left a clue in the Great Shrine, the Bell, for her descendant to prove her sacred lineage when it would be time and then, with Risan, her loyal protector and the man she loved, she flew the land she wasn't destined to save. The two lovers went to Iark and met the people of the Wahan Tribe, they taught them the language of Arthdal, how to catch fishes with nets, how to sew and spin and most importantly, Asa Sin had passed down the will of the White Wolf, the values of the First Great Mother. However, as the White Wolf had asked her, she didn't share the truth behind her lineage as only the Gods knew when the truth should be revealed.
After her departure, the chaos continued in Arth, the wars intensified and eventually the people started to wish for their Great Mother Asa Sin's return.
But Asa Sin didn't return and the indirect descendants of the First Great Mother manipulated the faith of the people of Arthdal. The truth behind the lineages was forgotten as they had taken control of the Great Shrine.
The story of the two moons was told and told again until it became the commun story and the Sarams and the Neanthals never met again.
In the Wahan Tribe, Asa Sin and Risan had had a daughter, but Risan died young due to an illness and Asa Sin thought she was being punished for having left Arth in chaos.
However, she couldn't go back above the Great Black Cliff since the White Wolf had not only told her not to but also warned her that her descendant should be kept away from Arth until the time would come and so, she prayed for days to save her hometown. The Gods heard her and she became enlightened. Ten years later, the Gods sent a son to Asa Sin, Aramun Haesulla whose blood was purple, just like the children of Asacho Haseuni and Razak were. Asa Sin taught and raised him in the beliefs of the First Great Mother before she sent him to Arthdal on a horse called Kanmoreu to unite the tribes and to restore peace, at least until the time the true descendant of the First Great Mother would be called back to Arthdal by the Gods. Aramun Haesulla founded the Arthdal Union and brought back harmony just like his mother had asked him to do. He shared her words too, informing the people of the Union that the real descendant of Asa Sin would appear and find the Star Bell hidden in the Shrine to prove herself.
But seen as a hero by the people of Arthdal, he was seen as a threat by the indirect descendants and he was murdered for them to keep the control over the Great Shrine and the faith of the people. Before his death, he told them Asa Sin would call him back to Arthdal again and that he would come back with two voices and Kanmoreu.
Years later, the indirect descendants had made sure the truth about the blood of Aramun Haesulla was hidden, they had killed those who dared to say he was an Igutu accusing them of blasphemy towards Asa Sin's descendance and so Asacho Haseuni's one.
But there were still people believing in the true lineages and who worshipped the purple blood of Aramun Haesulla just like their ancestors before them had worshipped the blood color of Asacho Haseuni and Razak's children. They formed the White Peak Mountain's Hearts, who lived according to the true teachings in secret, hoping for Asa Sin's descendance return and the truth to be revealed.
And so, years after, the one chosen by the Gods to find back the Star Bell hidden by Asa Sin had appeared and as her destiny demanded it, she was brought back to Arthdal and took back her place as the true descendant of the Great White Wolf so that she could bring back the peace in Arthdal and reestablish the truth about the lineage.
Once the truth about the Great White Wolf was explained to the two warriors, Tanya continued to share what she had seen from the side of the Black Wolf.
The Black Wolf showed her the entire Neanthal village massacred by the indirect descendants of Asacho Haseuni who wanted to make Rathanak's descendance disappear.
But the Sarams, proud and too self-confident, hadn't been attentive enough and no one knew among them that they had mistook Eiko for one of her distant cousins.
Guided by the Black Wolf, Eiko had managed to escape the village before the attack, protected by YangRin, her loyal companion who made sure no one saw her.
But with years, even among the Neanthals the truth about the sacred lineages had been twisted. Some had began to believe that it was because the First Son of the Moon had linked himself with a Saram that greed, selfishness, discrimination and destruction had appeared on the land and, because Rathanak's descendants had red blood in heritage, they feared they would bring chaos among their species just like chaos was reigning among the Sarams. They decided not to recognize anymore the sacredness of the First Son of the Moon's descendants and chose their own leaders among those who only had blue blood running through their veins.
Eiko and YangRin flew together, they found refuge in another Neanthal village whose inhabitants were loyal to the First Son of The Moon's descendants. There and in secret from the other Neanthals and Sarams, she allowed the true lineage to continue as her faithful companion had become her lover.
When her daughter was old enough she shared with her the words of the Black Wolf: "the lineage will continue until the one chosen to bring back peace between the species on Arth would appear. Her sacredness will be seen on her skin and she will be blessed with gifts so that the people who had forgotten the truth would recognize her sacred lineage."
Years passed and the lineage continued in the Pyeonghwa Tribe, a tribe were Neanthals, Sarams and Igutus were living together, peacefully, as it should be according to the true teachings but the existence of the true lineage was kept a secret between the direct descendants of the First Son of the Moon so that they could protect it.
The night before Enoria was born, her father had had a dream in which he received the visit of Eiko, whom the rightful descendants he was part of, called the Great Black Wolf and she informed him his daughter was the chosen one. But he couldn't tell her as the truth was to be revealed when the right time would come. She told him she would visit him again before he woke up and his daughter was born not long after.
As predicted from the Black Wolf, her lineage showed on her skin and so the scab on her back was different from other Neanthals or Igutus but she grew up without knowing why. With years, her people also discovered she could communicate with the Spirits and make flowers, plants, trees grow to embellish the land, just like Asacho Haseuni and Razak's son, Rathanak, before her but again, no one ever told her why.
When the burning of Atturad happened, the Pyeonghwa Tribe were not there, because of their mixed tribe, they weren't allowed anymore to the celebrations of the Neanthals' Gods. They hid when the Great Hunt began. Until the Great Black Wolf appeared to Enoria's father again in a dream. She warned him that their tribe would suffer the same fate as the others but that his daughter would be protected. When he asked how he could assure his daughter's protection, the Great Black Wolf told him not to worry, just like Eiko had been protected by YangRin, the Gods had already chosen two protectors to be by his daughter's side and that they would show up at the right time.
She explained to him that two babies, both born from an Igutu man and a Saram woman so that they wouldn't discriminate the blood of the one they had to protect, had been chosen and named after Eiko's protector and husband even before Enoria's birth. The two brothers had been separated when they were still very young so that they would appear in Enoria's life when she would need them.
The Great Black Wolf asked Enoria's father to accept his fate and not to kill the one with the mask so that his daughter would live. And so, when the Daekans attacked his camp and killed the members of his tribe, despite the fact he had had the opportunity to end his life, he let the masked boy live to follow the will of his ancestor.
And the masked boy accomplished his role, he saved the true descendant of Rathanak. And when she felt like giving up on her life because of the massacre she had witnessed, she was led to her second protector.
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"That's it," Tanya said, "I told you everything that was explained and showed to me."
Enoria didn't answer right away, those were a lot of information to digest and she only mumbled something in the Neanthal language Tanya didn't understand.
"This is fucking crazy," she heard coming from her bodyguard's mind.
She looked at him with surprise, "no need to be vulgar," she scolded him.
"With all my respect, and though I think just the same, I was just translating, Niruha," he replied to her.
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Hey readers!
In case something wasn't clear, hope this is going to help you:
Thank you for reading and if something doesn't make sense, don't hesitate to tell me! ;p