Chapter 7 – Whispers of the Mountain
The scene opens with a soft mountain breeze carrying the scent of pine and earth. Ashura lies in a futon within a dim wooden cabin, his body still wrapped in bandages, faint blue veins of light pulsing beneath his skin where the artifact rests.
Though he has been unconscious for a week, his breathing is steady—unnatural for someone who had nearly died.
Shoto sits at his bedside, dozing off, while Temari carefully replaces Ashura's wrappings.
Temari: (quietly, almost to herself)
"…That glow again… it's healing him faster than any medicine could."
Suddenly, the door slides open. Master Iroh enters, carrying a small lantern. His expression is grim, his eyes wandering across the cabin as if lost in memories.
Iroh:
"This place… it hasn't changed. My old home… where it all began."
Temari glances at him but doesn't press. She knows the weight in his voice.
---
Later That Night
Ashura stirs awake. He winces as pain jolts through his body, but when he looks down at his arm, the diamond-shaped mark faintly glows before fading.
Ashura: (groggy)
"…Tch… still here."
He sits up, noticing Shoto sleeping nearby, then looks out the open window. The mountains stretch endlessly under the moonlight. Strange carvings glimmer faintly on the rocks, as though the mountain itself is alive.
Iroh is outside, sitting cross-legged by a fire. Ashura steps out slowly, leaning on the doorframe.
Ashura:
"Old man… this is your place, huh?"
Iroh: (without turning)
"…Yes. These mountains raised me… and now, they may hold the answers you seek."
Ashura frowns.
Ashura:
"Answers to what? This cursed mark? Why it's turning me into a freak?"
Iroh finally looks at him, his eyes sharp, yet carrying something like sorrow.
Iroh:
"Not a curse, Ashura… a choice. That mark chooses once in a hundred years. And it chose you."
Ashura clenches his fist, looking down at the faint glow in his arm.
Ashura:
"…Then I want no part of it. I just want to live. Take care of Shoto. Make money. Nothing more."
Iroh sighs, staring into the fire.
Iroh:
"You may run from the past, boy… but the past will not run from you."
---
The Foreshadowing
That night, as Ashura drifts back into uneasy sleep, he dreams of an underground temple deep beneath the mountain. Statues of past wielders line the walls, their eyes glowing faintly. One voice echoes in the darkness:
Mysterious Voice:
"…He has returned."
Ashura jolts awake in a cold sweat, his bandaged arm glowing faintly blue again.
The chapter ends with a wide shot of the mountains. Far in the distance, a shadowy figure watches fro
m the treeline—an enemy scout. The calm before the storm is about to end.