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“ Asura..? Listen to me… This maybe be our final farewell…..so can you keep one last promise?”
“Take this”, he says, handing over the small, oddly coloured lotus seed to Asura.
“Plant this in the pond near that house on the hill, the one where we promised to be reunited…”
“You…what about you…?”
“What is this? What’s so special about this that you spend these final moments of ours obsessing over this?”
“Promise me Asura that you will plant this and make it bloom. Take care of it after it blooms, but protect it until it does. Promise me that you will protect it with your life.”
“Don’t you have thousands of lotuses all over your palace. Why this one?”
“This one is different, its special, it won’t grow here, I’ve tried but its nature is not suitable to Trayastrimsa”
“So I just plant this?”
“Care for it…can I ask that much of you?”
“Will we meet again?”
“Probably not but anything is possible for you, ….. my hero”
“I promise.”
“Now go Lord Mara, change history to your will, and may we meet at that house on the hill…
under a brighter sun….”
Asura regretfully bade farewell to the one that knew his heart the best, retreating to that house on the hill that they once shared after his battle had concluded.
Once he felt that his journey, his endless battles had ended, he all but collapsed onto his knees, grieving the loss of his beloved, known that even as he lives, the new reality will wipe all memories they have of each other from his mind. Wishing that even for a moment that they be reunited. They’ll once again become strangers…
Through burry eyes he remembered that he still held that strange seed given to him by Taishakuten, his final, unsure promise.
He slowly brought it up to his face closely examining the pearl-like seed. It was shimmering and had a faint golden hue, though when held in the sunlight revealed a faint red interior. It felt like a precious gem rather than an ordinary seed. Then again anything that once belonged to Taishakuten must be as beautiful as him.
He did as he was asked and planted the seed deep in the mud beneath the pond as if he was hiding away a treasure from the world.
Days past as he kept watch over the pond and his home as all worldly matters had faded away in the background. The other lotuses bloomed and faded as seasons changed until many moons later, a single sprout emerged from the depths. He had only noticed it when he was strolling past the pond during one of his dusk patrols, a small red bulb among verdant reeds and lotus stalks. The resilient seed reminded him of Taishakuten, blooming after years of struggle, past all obstacles. Maybe it was somewhat reminiscent of him as well.
He was even more curious now about the mysterious seed, which was worth taking up the majority of his last encounter with Taishakuten, what was so special about this seed? ‘A lotus that would allow them to see each other again? Probably not.’ he thought. ‘Perhaps a way for Taisha to keep an eye on him? Likely not since to him, he was just the god of destruction, Mara.’
He would have asked his beloved in person for an explanation if not for the fact that in rewriting history, he had also wiped his memory and all knowledge pertaining to this seed.
As days past, the sprout grew like any other, lest the fact that it grew like bamboo under the moon and it had a faint red glow pulsing through out as if beating with blood. Like a beast it seemed to have a mind of its own, swimming between stalks and lotus as if to find shade on sunny days.
That Onmyoji and his companions had even managed to track him down, asking him for assistance only to be turned down given his current predicament. The Onmyoji examined it from afar, noting that he sensed a strong energy emanating from the bulb casing but also that he had no knowledge of its nature. He informed them that he’ll go to the peacock kingdom by himself if he decides to help out after all.
The Bulb finally flowered under a blood moon that painted the land in a red hue. The flower itself nothing too spectacular or out of the ordinary, with red veins that looked like that of an animal or those he had slain. He even hoped that Taishakuten himself may emerge from the flower once it bloomed, but alas it was just another wishful fantasy. It swayed in the wind and hit the water’s surface as if it was a child splashing about in the shallows. It reminded him of the few carefree days of his youth. Before that happened
On such lonely nights he dreamt of his mother and how she had loved him and protected him from a world that wanted his kind dead. Her warm, loving arms lulling him to sleep on restless nights. He recalled the sort of peaceful life they lead until flashes of that fateful encounter jolted him up from his slumber.
With nothing he could do to return to his slumber, he sat down beside the water’s edge, glancing at the sea of lotuses that held the pod that had sprouted as the crimson flower had wilted away. The flower remained in bloom for almost a month before revealing a small pod. The pod similar, to the seed, had golden hue and crimson veins. It grew rapidly and to a size much greater than that of regular lotus seeds. The crimson that flowed through its veins pulsed like blood under the moonlight. He once again waited for the solitary bloom to give him his answers.
Then suddenly under a full moon the stem cracked in half and dropped the lotus pod onto the edge of the pond. Surprised by this sudden development he rushed towards the pod looking for changes. The stem gushed red sap that turned the pond into a deep crimson. The edge of the pod slightly parted and showing signs of movement.
He carefully approached the spherical pod that had planted itself on the bank, faintly showing signs of movement. He gently pushed a finger past the shell to examine the insides….
Inside he felt a smooth layer of black hair, that was soft to the touch when he moved his hands around. Then he felt what could only be a pointy ear. Astonished by what he could only surmise was beneath the casing, he pulled his hand back, only for the inhabitant to squirm inside in response. Could it be…?
He parted the shell fragments slowly to reveal a child, a newborn from what could tell, covered in mucus and curiously staring at him. He had no idea how he to deal with a child. As if he, a warrior and a born killer had any say when it came to childcare, but Taishakuten had given him this responsibility so he would have learn somehow.
The child curiously spread its chubby hands towards Asura as if asking to be held. He cautiously picked the child up the best he could as he had seen human women do before. He then stared back at it wondering about their future. Tiny hands grasped the hair that fell over his shoulders…
He began to hum that childhood melody subconsciously to her….
Keeping his promise to his beloved, he carried the infant back to his home…..