Sa Shin Mu: Hyun-Mu (solo)

Once again he ascended the stairs. Arawn adjusted the duffel bag's strap over his shoulder. It was a light burden and yet already it was biting into his flesh. His gaze rolled over the many more steps to go to reach the top of the mountain. The thinning air, and the high sun only made the simple trip more difficult. He wiped the sweat from his brow with the back of his hand. His mind drifted back to the day before.

Yesterday
When he entered his home he found a familiar letter on his desk. The doors had been locked, but it was impossible to keep the woman of snow out. He often wondered if she just unlocked the doors and then locked them once she left. Everything was undisturbed, not even footsteps in the dust. Arawn shrugged as he took off his white lab coat and tossed it on the bed. He picked up the parchment that Yuki had left. It was the same as always; short and too the point. It informed him to meed with Master Sung the next day at his mountain retreat. There was no map. Arawn had been there enough he didn't need instruction in finding the place. He was happy to be summoned. His injury was coming along nicely. After several follow up exams from the doctors they pronounced him almost fully healed. But they wouldn't remove the work restriction. He still wasn't allowed to do patrols. Arawn knew is body better than the doctor could ever know. He felt great, all the inactivity was making him feel quite restless. He wasn't a physical person by nature, but the amount of restrictions the light duty gave him was unbearable. They even wanted him to keep from working in the lab since it might cause him "stress". The note was a godsend.

And now he climbed. He was surprised how winded the trip had made him. Perhaps the doctors were right, he wasn't up to 100% yet. Arawn shook the thought from this mind and hopped up the steps faster. This would prove to be a good warmup for what everyone Sung had in store for him. The mansion came into view and Arawn quickened his pace. He reached the sliding paper door gasping for breath. There was no doubt he was out of shape. Four weeks of inactivity would do that to anyone. The warm up had turned into a workout. Opening the door he removed his sandals and fell to the ground. Yuki peeked around the corner to see his sleeping form in the hallway. She gazed at him and then turned back onto the living room. "Master, he has arrived." she said making no effort check if Arawn was alright.

The short nap did wonders for the tired shinigami. After twenty minutes he got up and moved into the living room to see his master. The old man was snacking on rice crackers when he entered. Yuki was nowhere to be seen. The old man stopped mid-bite as Arawn crossed the threshold. He stood in the doorway and his master finished chewing. Ever the dutiful student he waited without a word. The elderly gentleman looked at his ward and smiled.
"Welcome." was the soft greeting. "I see the time away hasn't been kind to you." Sung said as he reached for another rice cracker and bit into it. He never stopped smiling. Annoying habit that. Arawn bowed.
"It's good to be back Master." he spoke. He didn't know what else to say, but figured it was enough. "I'm ready to resume my training."
The old man finished his cracker and stared at the younger man his eyebrow raised. Arawn didn't like that look, it wasn't one that instilled confidence. Without a word he stood and crossed to the other side of the room. The old man opened the door and stepped through. Such a motion obviously meant for him to follow, and so he did. The made their way through the large house to the back. The exited the hallway to the wooden porch that overlooked the mount's rock grotto.

Descending the short steps they entered the rock pit and Sung stopped. Arawn nearly bumped into the the man since he stopped so abruptly. It had been so long since he'd been here. There were a multitude of rocks everywhere he looked. He wondered how the pit had been carved into the mountain in the first place. Master Sung raised his hand and pointed to his right.
"Move those rocks." he said flatly. The rocks he pointing at were as big as cinder blocks. "We'll need an open space to practice."
"Okay..." Arawn dropped his bag and moved over to the rock. Upon moving closer he noticed they were larger than they appeared. "Where do you want me to move them?" The old man pointed to the far wall of the grotto. Arawn nodded and drew his weapon from the sheath tucked in the belt around his waist. The silver blade flashed in the noon light. He twisted is wrist "Drift_"
"Stop!" Sung shouted loud enough for it to echo across the mountain. Arawn was so startled he released his grip on the weapon. The zanpukto flipped from his hand and landed a few feet away. He stood there stunned. "Don't use your weapon, use your hands."
Arawn stood there staring at the older man blankly. "Move them by hand?" he wasn't sure he had heard correctly.
"Yes, by hand." he said with such finality. Arawn quickly went to retrieve his blade and returned it to the sheath. He returned to his position by the rocks to be moved. Once more he studied he pile of large rocks then back at his master. The old man nodded silently. Arawn shook his head and took a deep breath. Squatting down his hands looked for purchase on the rough surface of the solid stone. A gasp escaped from his lips as the realized how heavy the rock was. The added weight drove stones into Arawn's bare feet. He had forgotten to put his sandals back on. He took a baby step and then another, soon he was stumbling across the quarry to the other side. Halfway through he could feel his legs wobble and his arms ached. It was harder to breath as he tried to lean back and set the weight against his chest. Finally he dropped the heavy rock after three more steps. He was still short of the goal. Arawn bent over and wheezed. He looked up and Master Sung was no longer in the grotto. He sat on the wooden porch in the shade.
"Pick it up. Continue." he said with his usual smile. The student could only stare. Was he really serious? But he quickly reminded himself that he'd been given stranger and more dangerous tasks before. Arawn pulled the sheath from his belt and placed it against the wall. He sighed and picked up the rock again.

The true meaning behind the exercise became clear within in the first hour. It was just that; exercise. Arawn's body was already aching after his fourth trip. Muscles screamed as he took stiff steps across the quarry. His fingers were cramped from clutching the rough stone. Some of the jagged edges had cut into his hands. The open would gave him further pain as dirt got into it, but he couldn't stop. Everytime he stopped Master Sung would start to shout at him. The old man was enjoying watching him toil in the massive rock garden. It wasn't just his master's words that spurned him on, it was the woman beside him. Yuki had come to join the old man. She stood at his side. When the old man shouted her hand went to her sword. Defiance would be death it seems. He wasn't sure if Master Sung was aware of Yuki's encouragement, but figured he didn't care. And so he moved rocks. The sun bearing down on him as he trudged back and forth. Little by little Arawn shed his clothing, his shinigami uniform was already saturated with sweat. There was enough heat coming from him to melt metal. The young shinigami already felt like he was melting. The over shirt was first and then the under robe. Now shirtless he bent to lift and grunted with effort. His whole body glistened with sweat. Not having the shirt on felt cooler, but his body was giving off just as much heat. Worst yet the stones themselves were hot on his now exposed skin. They had been sitting in the sun all day, so it was logical that they had absorbed some heat. Whatever comfort he got from not wearing his top, was quickly lost as he was scorched by the hot stones. The minutes ticked by swiftly.

Lift

Walk

Drop

Lift

Walk

Drop

Lift

Walk

Drop

His mind was blank. Everything faded away into the background. He no longer heard Master Sung's shouts. Nor did he feel Yuki's glare and smug grin at seeing him suffer. He was like a machine. There was only the rocks and him. It felt so surreal like it wasn't him lifting the rocks, only thinking of it and the body did the work. Was he even breathing anymore? It was hard to tell. A reserve of unlimited energy fueled the automated man as he moved back and forth. But even that came to an end. Little by little the pain started to filter through the blanked mind and energy suddenly plummeted. And the sounds of his own labored breathing accompanied by his heart's rapid beating thundered into his ear. The pile of rocks was now complete, but his body made another trip to the now empty spot and he collapsed. The symphony of pain began. He'd overtaxed everything. In those weeks of light duty his body had rested, and now he had woken every fiber of his being. There were parts hurting he wasn't sure of, and yet the ache and throbbing was the proof of their existence. He lay there gasping for air staring into the blue sky and as the blight sun glared back. A sudden shadow covered him. Master Sung stood gazing down at his exhausted pupil.
"Well done Arawn." He smiled "I think that will be all for the day. You should go home and rest" he looked up at the newly piled rocks and whistled. Although deceptively small each rock was quite dense. The weight of each was 200lbs minimum. There was a wide grin on the old man's face. "But now that I look at it, I think they should be moved against the other wall." Too tired to protest Arawn grunted and nodded. Having expended the last of his energy the shinigami closed his eyes to rest.