IsleOfJade/SessionEighteen

Expulsion and an Opportunity for Redemption

Yeled: All is darkness. Peaceful, serene darkness. Floating in nothingness. No troubles. No pressure. No struggle. Nothing but darkness.

Yeled: "Oh. He's waking up," says a voice in the darkness. Its shrill. Young. A girl's voice. It doesn't belong in the darkness. Its intruding on the serenity of the darkness.

Yukio: "Nyaaaahhh" Yukio mumbles softly

Yeled: "Master Li!!!" it calls, penetrating the darkness with its piercing sound. There is a faint sound of footsteps moving away. "Master Li! He's waking up."

Yeled: It is several moments before anything more happens. Then footsteps approach. Several pairs. They walk quickly across a wooden floor. You smell...herbal tea. Ginsing. Then someone commands the others to be seated.

Yeled: "Do you think its safe?" asks the shrill voice. "Will he go crazy again?"

Yukio 's eyes peek open for an instant before the cumbersome weight of his eyelids force them back closed again.

Yeled: It is not enough to take everything in. Yukio's in a brightly lit room. He's on a mat and under a cover. There are several people gathered around him. One is certainly the Master. The others are students, although he didn't see which of them they were.

Master Li: "No, I do not think so. He should be calm now." The sound of liquid being poured.

Yukio 's mouth moves as if he is trying to talk, but all that can come out is the quiet sound of air passing through his voice box.

Master Li: "Mmmm," sighs Master Li. "Perhaps he needs a bit of encouragement."

Yeled: There is a moment of silence. Then Yukio hears a "pop." A moment later he smells something extremely foul directly under his nose. It works its way up his nostrils, burning his sinuses like acid.

Yukio jolts, wincing at the potent odor. His eyes open and his hands weakly swat towards his nose.

Master Li: "It is time for you to return to the world, Yukio." Master Li looms above Yukio, pushing a stopper back into a glass vile.

Yukio is blinded by the brightness of the room. "Whe.. Where am I?" he manages to sputter.

Master Li: "You are in my sitting room."

Yukio: as his eyes readjust, Yukio's eyes look around the room, hoping to identify the previously undistinguishable students.

Master Li: His eyes move from face to face: Eiji, Mae, and Minh kneel on the floor, their eyes transfixed on Yukio's prone form.

Yukio: as he gazes around the room something in Yukio's eyes seem to express an inner agony and shame.

Master Li: "You do not like what you see? But you must look, Yukio. You must look."

Yukio: "What have I done?" mumbles Yukio softly to himself.

Master Li: "I was hoping you would explain that, Yukio."

Yukio mumbles "Gao... Gao. He suggested that we leave... the school. That we go and become something. Said we needed the prisoners. I... I..."

Master Li: "Yes. You succeeded. They are gone. Gao as well."

Yukio: "No. I failed. I do not... I do not know" his words stumble out, as expressions of confusion and doubt subtly appear on his face.

Master Li: "Do you have anything more to say for yourself?"

Yukio: "I... I am sorry." His eyes close, and an expression of pain appears. "I was wrong."

Master Li frowns. "When I brought you to this school, Yukio, you were a skilled but troubled youth. You had enough common sense to survive on the streets of Yu without much help, and that takes some doing. I had hoped you could refine your skills here. And you did that. But you refined something else as well. You developed an unhealthy sense of pride. You became thoughtless and cruel to your fellow students. You chose to learn some of my lessons and ignored the rest."

Yukio: "I... I know. He convinced me that I had learned all you could teach me. I... I see now that I still have... much to learn."

Master Li: "Mmmm," grunts Master Li. "You do. It is unfortunate. Yukio, you threatened your fellow students. You drew your blade against them. You attacked one of them. Do you think your crime is different than Gao's?"

Yukio: "Yes. It was worse," he says quietly, "I had no personal problems with the students I attacked. But I do not what became of me master. I had no intent on harming anyone. And then... suddenly, there was an inner rage unlike anything I have ever experienced before."

Master Li: "Yes. It is in your blood. The blood of the dragons carries with it a burden. You are lucky indeed to have not experienced that before. You will surely experience it again, and will have to learn to master it."

Yukio: "Yes master."

Master Li: "But nevertheless your crime against your fellows remains. You have apologized to me. Do you have something to say to them?"

Yukio: "Yes. I apologize to all of you for the disgrace that I have committed. I also apologize to Mihn, as I am truly sorry for threatening you."

Yeled: "...but Yukio, I wasn't..." starts Minh in reply before Master Li cuts her off with a look and she falls silent.

Master Li: "Yukio. Minh has something important to say to you. But before she does, I want you to tell me what you think we should do in this situation."

Yukio: "Master, I would like to continue here, however I know I do not deserve it. Being left my life is truly more than I could ask for given my actions."

Master Li: "No, you do not deserve it. Nor could I allow you to continue here, even if you did. You threatened and attacked your fellows. And furthermore they were not remotely on your level. You might easily have killed them. For their sake I cannot allow you to stay."

Yukio blinks. Briefly nods. "Very well then." He begins to sit up to leave.

Master Li: "Where do you think you're going so quickly?"

Yukio: "What do you mean?"

Master Li: "Your actions have led to your expulsion, but more has happened than you know. Minh, tell him."

Minh straightens up. She looks to Yukio, then to Master Li, and finally to Yukio again. "It wasn't me."

Yukio nods, having thought this from master Li's previous censoring. "Who was it then?"

Minh shrugs. "I have no idea."

Yukio: "Do you know who it was Master?"

Master Li: "Perhaps. But that is not important. Tell him where you were, Minh."

Minh: "I was taking care of Dawn Star. I only left her for twenty minutes. I just went to get some food. I didn't realize I was guarding her. I was just taking care of her….Dawn Star's gone, Yukio! She wasn't there when I returned."

Yukio: "What?” Yukio 's eyes search to Master Li.

Master Li: "There is no redemption for you at this school, Yukio. But redemption remains an option."

Yukio: Master Li has Yukio's full attention.

Master Li: "You know where she is. Bring her back."

Yukio: "Master Li. I do not know where he has taken her. He told me nothing of the kidnapping."

Master Li: "You know where he went. Go there. Start there. It is your choice, Yukio. Who are you going to be? What are you going to be?"

Yukio: "Very well Master Li. I will not let you down."