𝐑𝐄𝐈𝐍𝐂𝐀𝐑𝐍𝐀𝐓𝐄𝐃;

As the words pass between them, he turns to observe the Trailblazer before him. Tension remains in his back, in the way he sits. Jing Yuan drifts closer, footsteps quieter than a ghost. Sei would hear the general's voice behind him, chiding lacing the amusement of his tone. "Your mind is not empty enough. Waiting for something to react to is not meditation. You brim with energy; it is easy to read. Focus on your breathing -- but not too hard. Just enough to acknowledge how the air flows into your lungs... and out."

…he’s right, though, Sei thinks- or, at least, what the general is saying makes sense to him. He is waiting- pulled back like the string on a bow, tension silently building as he waits for something to happen; a signal, an impetus to let fly, some reason to let go.

He needs to be loose- to be let slack, to exist solely in the moment and not be waiting for something.

Let’s try this again, then?

The trailblazer relaxes his posture, and does as advised- he breathes.

Don’t… don’t focus too hard?

Perplexed, he tries still- in through his nose, out through his mouth. He breathes as natural- not too deep, not too shallow, but just as his lungs demand of him in the moment. His chest expands slightly with each inhale and shrinks slightly with each exhale- and so he allows the cycle to continue.

Jing Yuan’s voice, now in front of him, calls his attention back into focus. Why is he making him do this? Was it not his own request, for the general to teach him how to remain calm in the heat of battle, and in the most harrowing of situations? Sure, a correct answer would be ‘because I asked you to,’ but what was the principle behind it all?

Though Jing Yuan was fairly used to seeing the tops of heads, the way Sei bows had him all but blinking in surprise. His stunned silence lasted but only a moment before a sudden peal of laughter erupted from him.

"Oh, goodness-- I don't mean to laugh," the general apologized hastily, waving a hand in a gesture for Sei to sit up. "Please don't treat me with such formalities, Sei, I've told you once before. We are friends. I offered you my instruction; naturally, I will do my best to assist you in this manner."

He reached out to poke Sei's forehead, gentle as ever. "The first step would be to ease that furrow between your brows," he teased. That warm, golden eye blinked at him, growing somber, stern. "If your face is easy to read, it is all the easier for enemies to pry into your weaknesses. You must master the art of concealment.

"Come with me," he stood suddenly, folding his hands behind his back. "I wish to take you somewhere."

Jing Yuan guided Sei out of the Seat of Divine Foresight along a winding path behind the Exalting Sanctum, surrounded by gingko trees and glowing grasses. They came across a courtyard, the stone floor weathered and cracked; smoother in some places as if worn and polished down by years upon years of practiced footwork, distinct enough for Sei to be able to almost visualize every step.

The first thing he'd notice would be the silence. Not even the wind stirred loud enough to rustle the leaves of the nearby gingko, towering far above any other in the vicinity.

"It is quiet here," Jing Yuan began softly, hands folded behind his back. His voice was heavy with something, a reverence that seemed to cling to every strewn leaf that littered the stone beneath his feet. "Sit down, Sei. Anywhere you'd like." He wasn't facing the Trailblazer at all.

("Fought Phantylia together" sounded better than "Sei repeatedly got knocked on his ass praying to whatever higher power existed that his shield would protect his friends, while Jing Yuan and Dan Heng's new form dealt most of the damage.")

He blinks-- the tips of his index and middle finger rub furiously into the space between his eyebrows, as if trying to massage out the inquisitive wrinkle between them. Got it-- unreadable. Stoic. Firm.

The path behind the sanctum led to an area he hadn't seen before; his eyes quickly scan the unevenly-worn stone. His ears pick up--- nothing. Nothing, save for the general's words and the faint humming reverberating through his bones. Was it always this quiet here? Was it always so... peaceful?

"Is this... where you train?" Sei wonders aloud, selecting a place to park himself where the stone was worn smooth, somewhere off to the general's right.

Where he... trained, once, too, surely. Where once, his Master put him through drills and forms and movements to hone his skill to where it is now...

Pretzel-legged, Sei straightens his spine, takes a deep breath, and closes his eyes.

Let the silence carry your thoughts.

He tries- his best, really- to let every thought pass, like a cloud in the sky. To not linger on any word, or image, for longer than an instant... To let his mind wander in peace, to cycle through his thoughts and let them fade away, with the same ease as his lungs breathing air.

There is emptiness, in time- a pregnant pause, as if waiting for something to be said. As though his mind were waiting with bated breath, not simply empty but brimming with silent anticipation.

[ icon test!

"Why've they been calling me 'Caelus...?'"