New Vorelia II; Ascension and Apotheosis

[The Yaarou Clan]

[Continued From Here]

Four days had passed since the Western Isles.

In that brief span of time, New Vorelia had already begun to change. The arrival of thousands of Yaarou refugees had transformed entire sections of the Inuki capital into something almost unrecognizable. What had initially been temporary accommodations had evolved into permanent residential districts, each one carefully arranged to preserve the customs and traditions of a people who had lost their homeland almost overnight.

Yaarou banners now hung between buildings that had once flown the sigil of the Inuki. Traditional lanterns illuminated streets that had previously remained dark after sunset. Markets had begun operating beneath newly constructed awnings, selling foods, clothing, and artifacts salvaged from Qiyoto. Children who had spent their first days in New Vorelia frightened and disoriented now chased one another through courtyards while their parents attempted to rebuild some semblance of ordinary life.

For the refugees, it was a blessing. But for the Inuki, it was becoming increasingly difficult to ignore the permanence of their presence.

The two clans had spent thousands of years developing independently, separated by geography, philosophy, and tradition. Yet now their cultures existed side by side, pressed together by circumstances neither had anticipated. And nowhere was that tension more apparent than at the heart of New Vorelia.

The Cathedral of First Dawn had been completely transformed.

What had once been the spiritual center of the Inuki Kingdom was now officially known as the Yaarou Palace.

The process had taken days of relentless work. The ancient religious icons had been removed from the walls. Sacred relics, prayer tablets, ceremonial weapons, and centuries-old depictions of the Inuki's celestial ancestors had been carefully catalogued and transported elsewhere. The great altar had disappeared. The prayer chambers had been emptied. Even the enormous stained-glass depiction of the First Dawn had been removed from the eastern sanctuary.

In their place came crimson banners emblazoned with the Yaarou insignia. Dark polished wood and intricate furnishings imported from what remained of Qiyoto filled the voided corridors. And the cathedral's sacred halls had been repurposed into audience chambers, offices, private quarters, and ceremonial spaces intended for their Xhi'on.

The architecture remained Inuki, but everything else was foreign. And the priests of First Dawn had not taken well to the change.

They had obeyed, but they had mourned in silence.

Some had stood outside the cathedral for hours after being forced to surrender the keys to their former sanctuary. Others had quietly removed themselves from the surrounding district, unwilling to witness the transformation of a place their families had worshipped within for generations.

But despite this, there had been sightings of Inuki citizens breaking out into protests. No rioting or violence or semblance of a seething rebellion. Nothing at all to convey any festering civil unrest.. Not yet at least. But resentment had begun to take root.

It lived in the lowered eyes of the priests. In the whispers exchanged between citizens during the uncomfortable silence that followed whenever a Yaarou delegation passed through the streets of New Vorelia. And beneath it all was the same unspoken question.

"..Just how long were the Yaarou going to stay here?.."

But for now, nobody dared ask. The answer, however, had already been decided by Raizen himself.. But the transformation of the cathedral was not the only thing weighing upon New Vorelia. Four days had given the city enough time to absorb the destruction of Qiyoto, but not enough time to understand it.

The Yaarou refugees spoke little of what they had witnessed. Some had lost entire families. Others had arrived carrying nothing but the clothes upon their backs. The few who attempted to describe the destruction often found themselves unable to finish their sentences.

Many of them witnessed the battle between Hiroshi, Bhalia, and the Nether Serpent upon the ashes of their homeland.. but even still, it was nearly impossible for them to comprehend what happened.

What they knew was that their Xhion saved them, and what the Elders of the Council relayed to them. And the only thing they've been assured of was that they were safe now.. secure. Everything else had been classified as matters of the Council.

The nuances were kept secret, as things often were beneath Yaarou jurisdiction. Their leaders understood that uncertainty could become dangerous among thousands of displaced people, and so the truth had been carefully divided into what the refugees needed to know and what they did not.

And among those carefully guarded secrets was the whereabouts and condition of their Xhi'on.

Her priorities were often kept hidden, even among their own elders and attendants. So it quickly became a topic of discussion when Rinnala had returned from the Western Isles with Elder Jhun and Elder Ayune several days earlier. Their arrival had initially been met with relief, until neither Hitomi or Servin were among them. And when questioned about their whereabouts or at very least an explanation for Sevrin’s absence, the two members of council offered next to nothing in response.

They did not describe the confrontation, nor did they explain what had become of Sevrin and the Western Encampment. Jhun, normally one of the most articulate and historically knowledgeable members of the Yaarou Council, had become almost unnervingly quiet. Following his return, he would spend hours alone within his chambers, staring through windows in almost a reflective trance that nothing could break but hunger and sleep.

Ayune was scarcely better.

The woman who had once possessed an almost inexhaustible reserve of composure had become visibly pale. Her hands trembled whenever the Western Isles were mentioned, and more than once she had abruptly ended conversations whenever someone pressed her for details. She even went as far as to appoint someone to take over her duties supervising restorative faculties within the clan.

It was clear to the initiated few that the two of them had been compelled to silence by decree of their Xhi'on, but that didn't keep rumors from forming.

Some claimed Sevrin had been executed for his traditional values and forthright opposition to Hitomi. His disagreements with the Xhi'on had been no secret, particularly following the mysterious disappearance of Elder Hayate, and many were quick to assume that Sevrin had finally suffered the consequences of challenging her authority. Others believed he had escaped, and perhaps joined forces with what remained of the Shi following the destructive power of the Nether Serpent...

But no one knew for certain. And neither Jhun or Ayune seemed capable of providing any clarity.

Their silence had created an unease among the Yaarou that had begun to concern even the Inuki. Particularly when neither Elder had been summoned to participate in Hitomi's return.

Commander Keiko however, did receive the order, and seemed to be the only person privy to what transpired during Hitomi's excursion overseas.

Accompnying her had been Mitsuko and a small contingent of Kurotori soldiers providing security around the New Vorelian hanger. And before long, all of their eyes were drawn to the clouds where the sound of her return was heard rolling toward the city, growing louder with every passing second. Soon the rotors of a black helicopter descended above, tearing through the cold mountain air as it approached the Aerospace district, surrounded by a small escort of Inuki aircrafts.

Commander Keiko stood closest to the helipad once the helicopter finally touched down. Her left arm was hung in a sling, while the other rested calmly upon the hilt of her blade as her training had so finely conditioned. Her expression was calm amidst the churning winds, but her thoughts were.. conflicted. Rinnala had been sanctioned to relay only that Sevrin was a traitor that contracted Hitomi's death. That their Xhion was alive and would be returning soon. But Keiko hadn't laid eyes on her since the Yaarou's had arrived in New Vorelia. She had been bound to bedrest by the sages on account of her injuries, but her valiant efforts in Qiyoto seemed to have earned her a sense of favor with her Xhi'on. And now that Keiko had recovered, she would do everything in her power to convey that her Xhion made the right decision.

“Eyes up!!” She belted to her soldiers as the engines gradually wound to a stop. “Here she comes.”

Then the side door opened, and a figure emerged. But the woman stepping onto the platform was completely concealed beneath a heavy black shroud that dragged along the ground and a hood extended low over her face. Barely anything was visible; no skin, no hair. The only semblance of her Xhion that Keiko could see was the crimson glow of her eyes burning beneath the darkness of her hood. But as she stepped forward, the commander immediately lowered her head to show reverence to her sovereign. As did every soldier present. None of them could see what had become of their Xhi'on, but what they did notice was the cobalt containment matrix floating only inches behind her.

Hitomi's first step from the helicopter was slow and carefully measured. Even with her head bowed, Keiko noticed immediately. The Xhion was careful to mask it, so Keiko couldn't tell if it was fatigue or injury. Whatever the case, it gave her cause to worry. But as Hitomi approached, the thought was immediately suppressed.

A soldier of the Kurotori did not question the Xhi'on. Especially not in public.

Keiko stepped forward and lowered herself into a formal bow. "Welcome home, Lady Xhi'on."

But beneath the hood, Hitomi's expression remained hidden.

“Commander..” She said finally, drawing a slow breath. Her voice was hoarse and quiet, but her tone was unmistakably familiar. “Take.. me.. to my.. palace.”