The [Open] Temple

It was a strange day as Zuqetta found herself kindly accosted by a monk who flattered her fighting ability she'd yet to even display, and offered her proper guidance in the way of Martial Arts. The day was stranger still, as with nothing else to do as she traveled the Earth for a bit of sightseeing, she'd accept the kind monk's offer and was soon escorted to a bus. Considering she could fly, the trip felt rather long, though it was at least interesting to see the different kinds of individuals interested in learning. From the typical large brute, to the surprisingly small and slender dark horse, the bus was steadily becoming packed.

As the bus went about gathering potential recruits, a rather chatty rider would take to sitting alongside Zuqetta and would inform her as to the history of the Temple, both recent and ancient. Zuqetta hardly paid too much attention, treating the experience as just another moment of sightseeing. When the mention of the rampaging Fukushu came up however, Zuqetta found herself a bit more intrigued. An alien perpetrator who attacked a city alone, and had nearly been victorious in his assault. One of the causes of Earth's accords, a motion created by a now recognized criminal mastermind of a president.

The hot trouble that plagued Earth was pretty much as bad as any trouble that Plant suffered through, it was something that elicited a sigh from Zuqetta as she realized how unlikely it was to find ANY truly peaceful place in the universe. Still, considering the continued greenery and the temples resilience to rebuild, she found herself interested enough to see what a monk's way of life must have been like. Though, she wasn't quite interested enough to maintain conversation with the more chatty individuals on the bus, and would feign sleep for the duration of the ride.

As the bus came to a stop, Zuqetta would be roused from her accidental nap. "Wuh-?" Her acting so great, that in her attempt to merely pretend to sleep, she'd actually fallen asleep and the riders were now at the bottom of a hill. Exiting, Zuqetta would take note of the monks, martial artists, and even civilians who were guided up the hill to the temple proper. With a yawn, she followed suit lazily, enjoying the crisp clean air of the area as they each followed the path.

"Hm?" A twinge would set off Zuqetta's senses, "Something's... different." She'd remark, glancing around as she tried to find the familiar energy of a suspicious species she'd encountered time and time again. No, enough of that, I ain't here for trouble! She'd think, shaking her head as she tried to simply follow along with the guided tour, glancing over towards a bearded old man momentarily as the group she was with passed by, "Mornin'!" She'd say with a slight wave, giving the man a soft smile as she tried to ignore the fact that the one she was sensing was him. Her energy remained hidden by her magical ability, though at this point, Zuqetta was beginning to realize that hiding it completely might've actually been attracting more attention rather than not.

The day had come suddenly to noon, bright and clear, the sun shone down on the plants granting them life. The children that ran around were cheery and enjoying their day, any small accident was quickly brushed aside. Broken pots or other incidental damages were quickly fixed with some simple magic from the elderly man.

The majority of visitors had neglected Pat, but that was natural, he was just an old man to the untrained eye. But some of the guests were not so untrained, a Saiyan by appearance and Mr Steel himself. They had apparently hired out part of the Temple to host a televised fight whilst Pat had to attend some Otherworld business and now was running for President! Quite a prestigious guest if he ever saw one.

Hosting today might have proven quite effective in ways he had not expected. He subtly corralled the pair together with himself, to a section of the temple that was just away from the touring crowd. “Good day to both of you, a pleasure. My name is Patience, Abbot of this temple. I trust you are both having an interesting time.” He said with a warm smile that pierced his cloudy beard. “Mr Steel, I had no idea that you were such a follower of the temple’s wellbeing. I’m glad it has not been fully forgotten, does it live up to your expectations?”

Copernicus the budgie peeked its head out of the many folds of his robe to rest on his shoulder, tweeting idly into his ear, to which Pat nodded. “And you my dear, are you looking for training? I’m sad to say we don’t have many advanced fighters amongst our ranks yet, but I would never say no to a challenge.” He chuckled at the thought of trying to train a Saiyan.

Pat took a moment to observe the temple around him. The energy that was here at this moment, the sun, the people, the plants. It was good here, but it was without purpose, aside from teaching some few recruits the basics of martial arts he had yet to have any move beyond their first stage. Most were focused on the physical aspects while the elderly man had to almost beg them to meditate. Balance was hard to achieve, but his goal was to help them achieve it.

Luckily with the noon sun came food, and a gong crashed into the dining hall to summon the visitors and inhabitants alike to eat in the grand hall. A tall vaulted ceiling, with new glass atop it, allowed the whole room to be coated in sunlight. Plants clung to the walls and cluttered the space where people were not required, each corner of the room constituted a jungle unto itself. The plants here were mostly for aesthetics with a couple of fruit-bearing plants scattered throughout. A crop had been established because had helped the financial situation of the temple. It all came together nicely as trays of Ramen, Soups, Vegetable Stews and other filling and nutritious foods were carted around to the assortment of tables that dominated the space.

“Shall we eat, I for one am starving.” Despite his name, he sat down with a creak and a groan, matched by the chair and began cautiously eating some noodles, each mouthful carefully blown on as the small bird took a chunk off each bite intended for the man. After a few, he turned his head but mostly his eyes to the small yellow bundle and said quietly. “You are going to get fat on all this Earth food, Copernicus, slow down.” He chortled as the bird seemed to lead an angry tirade of tiny tweets.

Thread PL:10000
Resources: Mystic Arts, Kai Kai, Stalwart (inactive), Tenacious.
WC: 354+619 (booyakah booyakah)= 973

Compared to how she felt upon her arrival, Zuqetta had become well relaxed; food was always a nice thing to have, and free food was even better! Though she ate with an enjoyable ferocity, she'd listen intently as the other two spoke a bit more. She'd heard the weird fuzzy guy talk about being president, or... running for it? She didn't really understand, she only had a vague idea as to how the democratic system of Earth worked; but if he was going to be president, then it might have been a good idea to get some pointers from the guy on how to be a good leader!

Before she could make any remarks to Steel however, the old man would speak up of something truly interesting. Winning before the fight even begins!? She'd think to herself excitedly; though would begin to choke on her roast kaiju, prompting her to reach for a beverage in an attempt to clear her throat while Patience continued to speak to Steel. They'd already hung around long enough, and it seemed meal time came to an abrupt end; hardly enough time for a Saiyan, but she wouldn't complain. Rather, her attention would return to Patience with a bright and eager expression.

"I wanna know how ta win without fightin'!" Zuqetta would suddenly exclaim, her tail swishing behind her excitedly; though her focus would be solely on the old man, switching quickly towards Steel, "An' you, fuzzy guy!" she'd point, "You seem super familiar with this place! Do you know how ta win without fightin'? Is that how you're becomin' President??" she'd question, wondering if his "running" for the position had anything to do with it. Her expression would only brighten further, the idea itself that Patience had pitched being something she found most intriguing.

His companions seemed to remain enthused by the temple and the conversation, so he decided to tempt them a little further. “Zuqetta, the practice of the Way of Patience, allows one to be in a near-perfect mindset for combat. The precipice of confidence and wisdom, where combined you know yourself, and your enemy. It is a taxing regimen I must say, but if you were to train here I would be grateful.” He hoped to gain a student, even if they would not remain here for long. “Then again, I could always come to teach you at a more convenient place. Transportation is not an issue for me, whereas you may have a more busy life than mine.”

He stood slowly, leaning heavily on his cane to pull him to his feet. He groaned before responding to Donut “Luckily we always save the prayer hall for last, so if we go over there now, we will have a few minutes before the tour arrives.”

He pushed out the large double doors into the main courtyard, ivy covered most of the walls here, some bearing fruits others flowers. As he went by he could be caught murmuring to them soft words of encouragement. ‘Worry not, there is no rush, take your time and you shall bloom too.’

The walk to the prayer hall was a simple one, it was one of the larger chambers here, a tall pagoda-style building 3 stories tall easily, towering over the rest of the area. This building seemed to be the only one that was free of any plants. A sturdy door painted in a soft yellow held the room within.

With a simple push, the door gently swung open. Inside the room was prepared for prayers, though there was not a full congregation, a single member of the church prayed with a candle of remembrance. ‘For his mother.’ Pat recalled. His face took a pained expression for a moment before returning to the gentle persistent smile he wore so well that it seemed more natural than if his face was resting.

The hexagonal building had 4 of its sides adorned with candle-covered surfaces. The other two were different, one was the altar, a place for Pat or another leader to stand and guide those who visited in raising their spirits. The other side led up to the higher floors which also seemed filled with tiny glowing lights and a few monks attending their duties.

“We had to put the scriptures away for today I am sad to say but we had to be sure they were going to be safe.” The rest of the features came to view after the light levels became familiar. The pillars that went from floor to ceiling, were covered in runes, gold inlaid in the reddened wood. The language was lost to mortals, but they spoke of an ancient prophet, Orin, who found this hill and began to meditate, he remained still as stone, people came and joined him, and others started to build the temple around him. But this prayer hall was built where he eventually passed into the otherworld. Some say he did not die, that his spirit had simply found ascension and left. Of course, with all myths, the details were lost to time.

The glass dome above caught the sunlight and cast it down into the temple, granting natural light to the room in addition to the hundreds of candles and candelabra. “This is a holy place.” he almost whispered. “You may take some time here if you wish.” He gently placed a hand on Mr Steel’s back.

Thread PL:10000
Resources: Mystic Arts, Kai Kai, Stalwart (inactive), Tenacious.
WC: 1293+603=1896