Phase 1: Rise of the Orphan Blade
Chapter 4: The Blade's Path
Part 1: Duty and Dread
Kerisforge Stronghold had made me a warrior, but its shadows were teaching me what it meant to carry a blade's weight. I'm Rentap Buana, sixteen, bound to a vow from Blood Island, a keris that pulsed with jade light, and a fight that had claimed my soul. The Oath of the Kirin Blade had raised me to adept, tying Taming Jiwa to the Sky Nexus's heart, but the Shadow Nexus Maps and the Black Coral Ridge's crimson shard showed a war growing darker, Taring Zenhmaut's chaos a tide I couldn't outrun. I want to share with you what it was like to bear the burden of a title I'd earned but barely understood, to hear a warning that turned my blood cold, and to learn that the Nexus isn't just a duty—it's a fire that burns through doubt, binding me to those who fight beside me. This is the part of my story where the shadows whispered, and I found strength in the scars I carried and the allies I trusted.
The Starlit Spire's oath lingered in me, the jade rune on my vambrace a constant hum, syncing with Taming Jiwa's pulse, a reminder of my new rank—Kirin Blade, adept, no longer a novice. Aisha and Rizwan were my anchors, their coral-etched and humming kerises glowing, their loyalty forged in Starfall Hollow, the Coral Abyss, the Black Coral Ridge. Taming Jiwa was my guide, its jade light deeper since the Starlit Kirin's trial, the coral orb, Lila's bead, the rune pouch, Suri's jade-edged dagger, and my rusted kerambit my ties to Jaya and Mira, my parents, whose vow I'd sworn to carry. My scars—kirin's mark, shoulder, thigh, arm—were healing but ever-present, the mantra Ya Rahman, Ya Rahim my rhythm, Astra-Nusantara Silat forms—Storm Claw, Veil Tide, Iron Surge, Star Whisper, Sky Fang—flowing sharper, jade waves bright in the coral arena.
Kerisforge was alive with purpose, novices eyeing us with awe or envy, adepts nodding in respect, elders' staff taps a steady drumbeat. Master Zainah trained us relentlessly, Aisha's precision a dance, Rizwan's fire a storm, our spars a testament to the Nexus Grounds' lessons, our Kirin Blade bond. Kadir was our guide, his staff tapping coral floors, his eyes sharp with strategies, while Suri's smirk promised battles, her blades glinting with pride. The Shadow Nexus Maps, Idris's betrayal, Hafiz's ambush, the Starlit Kirin's rune, the Black Coral Ridge's maps—they were steps in a war, and Taming Jiwa's pulse, Assyafiee's whisper, my mother's plea to find them, burned in my heart. I was a Kirin Blade, but the title felt heavy, my place in Kerisforge's hierarchy new, my fight tied to a Nexus under siege.
The burden hit me hardest in the quiet moments. Days after the oath, I stood in the coral arena at dawn, Taming Jiwa mid-strike, jade waves shattering a pillar, sweat mixing with the sea's salt. The Kirin Blade rune on my vambrace glowed, its weight more than coral—it was expectation, trust, the Nexus's light resting on me, Aisha, Rizwan. Novices watched from the edges, their whispers sharp—Blood Island, Jaya's son, Taming Jiwa's chosen—and I felt their eyes, some proud, others waiting for me to falter. I was no longer the boy from Crimson Cliff, but I wasn't a master either, and the gap between felt like a chasm.
Zainah found me, her armor glinting, her staff planted. "You're carrying too much, Rentap," she said, her voice firm but kind, jade waves flickering in her eyes. "The Kirin Blade isn't just a title—it's a burden. Your parents carried it, and it broke them. Don't let it break you."
I sheathed Taming Jiwa, its pulse warm, the coral orb glowing faintly. "How do I carry it?" I asked, my voice raw, the Black Coral Ridge's chaos, Idris's warning—The shadows are deeper—clear in my mind. "The Nexus, Taring Zenhmaut, my vow—it's all on me, and I'm still learning."
She nodded, her staff tapping coral. "You don't carry it alone. Aisha, Rizwan, Kadir, Suri, the Clan—they're your strength. Taming Jiwa chose you for your fire, not your perfection. Trust it, trust them."
Her words stayed with me, a spark against the weight, but the Kirin Blade's burden was real. Training was fiercer, Zainah pairing us with adepts, their kerises testing our Silat, jade waves clashing, coral cracking. Aisha's Star Whisper wove with my Storm Claw, Rizwan's Iron Surge powering through, our bond tighter, but I felt the eyes—elders, adepts, novices—watching, judging, expecting. Taming Jiwa flared at night, its jade light painting my chamber, visions of Assyafiee, Jaya, Mira, urging me forward, the Starlit Kirin's rune a constant hum, tying me to Taring Zenhmaut's strongholds, to a war I couldn't escape.
The warning came at dusk, in a coral cell beneath the stronghold, its walls etched with sealing runes, jade flames flickering, ley lines humming faintly. Kadir called us—me, Aisha, Rizwan, Suri—to interrogate the Black Coral Ridge's leader, the unnamed warrior whose red-runed keris had nearly broken us. They sat bound, their black coral armor stripped, their eyes cold but sharp, Taring Zenhmaut's sigil faintly glowing on their wrist, sealed by Kadir's mantras.
Suri leaned against the wall, her blades glinting, her smirk sharp. "Talk, shadow," she said, her voice low. "Your stronghold's ash, your maps ours. What's Taring Zenhmaut planning?"
The prisoner's gaze fixed on me, Taming Jiwa pulsing at my side, its jade light clashing with their sigil's red. "Jaya's son," they said, their voice smooth, venomous, anime-style malice flickering in their eyes. "Taming Jiwa's light is bright, but it won't stop the Crimson Tide. The Nexus will drown, and Kerisforge will burn."
I gripped Taming Jiwa, its pulse a storm, the coral orb glowing, visions flickering—Assyafiee, kirins falling under crimson waves, my parents' blades fading in a blood-red sea. "What's the Crimson Tide?" I demanded, my voice steady but tight, the mantra in my throat. "Speak, or the Nexus ends you."
They laughed, low, chilling, red runes flickering. "The Tide is Taring Zenhmaut's heart, a wave of chaos, ley lines twisted, strongholds united. Your maps are a spark—our fire is endless. The Nexus's light fades, Kirin Blade, and you'll fall with it."
Aisha's coral-etched keris glowed, her voice calm but sharp. "Where's the Tide rising? Give us a place, or you're no use."
Rizwan's humming keris tightened in his grip, his grin fierce. "Talk, or we'll carve it out."
Kadir's staff tapped, his mantra steadying the cell's ley lines, his eyes grim. "They're stalling, but the sigil's weak. Speak, or I'll break it."
The prisoner's eyes narrowed, but they spoke, their voice a hiss. "Moonshadow Cove, a ley line nexus, where the Tide begins. Strike there, and you'll see—Taring Zenhmaut is more than blades."
Suri's blades flashed, her smirk fading. "Moonshadow Cove's a death trap, coral caves, twisted ley lines. They're baiting us."
I nodded, Taming Jiwa warm, the Starlit Kirin's rune pulsing, tying to the Shadow Nexus Map's red runes, Moonshadow Cove a faint mark. "Bait or not, it's a lead," I said, Aisha and Rizwan's trust a fire, Kadir's nod steady. The Crimson Tide was no idle threat—it was Taring Zenhmaut's next move, and the Nexus needed us ready.
Kadir sealed the prisoner's sigil, their laughter echoing as we left, Taming Jiwa's pulse fierce, the Kirin Blade's burden heavier. The warning was a blade, cutting closer to the war, to my parents' killers, and I wouldn't falter, not with Aisha, Rizwan, Suri, Kadir, the Clan at my side.
Preparation began at dawn, the forge's heart glowing with jade flames, the Shadow Nexus Maps spread across a coral table, Moonshadow Cove's red rune pulsing. Elder Amira joined us, her starlit staff tapping, Zainah and Rahim at her side, their faces grim. "The Crimson Tide is no myth," Amira said, her voice sharp. "The prisoner speaks of a ritual, ley lines twisted to flood the Nexus with chaos. Moonshadow Cove is a nexus point, like the Starlit Spire, but corrupted. We'll plan, but you—Rentap, Aisha, Rizwan—will lead again, Kirin Blades."
I swallowed, Taming Jiwa blazing, the Kirin's rune guiding me, visions of my parents, Assyafiee, the Nexus, urging me forward. "We'll scout it," I said, my voice steady, Aisha and Rizwan nodding, Suri's smirk sharp, Kadir's pride clear. The Crimson Tide was coming, but the Nexus was ours, and we'd face it, with jade, with fire, with a vow that burned brighter than any shadow.
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