Part Three
Night descended gently.
No unnatural signs.
No celestial phenomena.
But no one slept well.
Disciples avoided speaking his name aloud.
Elders convened in closed chambers.
Lian stood outside his door for a long time before knocking.
"You should lie low," she said quietly.
He almost smiled.
"I have been lying low my entire life."
She hesitated.
"You didn't bow."
"No."
"Are you afraid?"
He thought about it.
"Yes."
That answer surprised her.
"Then why stand?"
He looked toward the dark sky beyond the window.
"Because fear doesn't disappear when you kneel."
Silence lingered between them.
The world had not ended.
But something irreversible had occurred.
Heaven had asked.
He had answered.
And tomorrow—
The consequences of being heard would begin.