Time in the Sanctuary flowed differently. Days, weeks, perhaps even months, bled into one another in a seamless cycle of training, rest, and learning. The grotto became Ren's entire world. Under the patient, unwavering tutelage of the Eldest, he and Shiro practiced their newfound abilities until they became second nature.
His daily meditations on the scar were no longer terrifying ordeals. He learned to quiet his mind and observe the cold, entropic energy of the blight without fear. He could feel its dormant pulse, and he began to notice subtle fluctuations in its energy, faint echoes that he suspected were tied to the waxing and waning of the blight in the outside world. Containing it was now an act of focused will, not a desperate struggle, a constant exercise that sharpened his mental fortitude.
Their symbiotic power grew exponentially. The "roar" was no longer a single, draining blast. The Eldest would create targets for them—illusions of corrupted beasts, spheres of solidified shadow—and they learned to modulate their power. A small, sharp pulse of will from Shiro could shatter a single stone. A sustained, controlled beam could dissolve a phantasm. A full, unleashed roar could still shake the very foundations of the grotto. Their bond deepened to the point where words were obsolete. A shared glance, a flick of intent through their connection, was all it took to coordinate a complex action. Ren began to feel the world through Shiro's senses—the heat signatures of living things, the taste of the air—as if they were his own. They were becoming one.
One afternoon, they achieved a perfect synergy, weaving and striking in a flawless dance to neutralize a dozen illusory targets in quick succession. A feeling of pride and power swelled in Ren's chest. They were ready. They were strong.
It was then that the Eldest's voice cut through his moment of triumph, heavy with a gravity he had not heard before. "Your progress is great, Guardian. Your bond strengthens as the Covenant intended." The colossal serpent shifted in its pool, causing the water to ripple with unease. "But the world does not wait for a student to graduate. The sickness spreads. The Unraveling quickens."
The calm surface of the pool in the center of the grotto began to swirl, the water darkening not with blight, but like a scrying glass. "Look," the Eldest commanded. "See what your enemy does while you train in paradise."
Ren knelt at the edge, Shiro tensing on his shoulder. An image formed in the water, blurry at first, then sharpening with horrifying clarity. He saw a vast forest, not of glowing silver trees, but of colossal redwoods that seemed to touch the sky. But a wave of grey death was sweeping through it. Trees turned to ash and crumbled, the ground became a festering mire, and in a massive clearing, a circle of dozens of grey-robed Hollow stood chanting. Their ritual was larger, more powerful than the one he had witnessed in the gorge.
At the center of their circle was a new Blight Heart, a pulsating crystal the size of a small hut, that poisoned the very air. Chained to the ground around the crystal was a beast of unimaginable size and age—a great bear, its fur the colour of rich earth, its form as massive as a hill. But its body was wracked with shudders, and veins of violet corruption were spreading through its mighty limbs. The bear roared in agony, a sound of pure, natural power being twisted and broken.
Ren cried out, stumbling back from the pool. He felt a searing, sympathetic pain from his own scar, which flared with a cold fire in response to the immense concentration of blight energy in the vision. He could feel the great bear's suffering, its spirit being torn apart.
"The Redwood Weald, a week's journey west of the mountains," the Eldest's voice was grim. "The Hollow seek to corrupt its Guardian, Olthann, the great forest bear. If they succeed, they will not just have a powerful new weapon; they will have broken one of the oldest pure spirits remaining in the world."
The vision faded, leaving the water clear once more. The grotto was silent, but the image of the tormented bear was burned into Ren's mind.
"Your training here, though incomplete, must end," the Eldest declared. "You have the tools. You understand the enemy. You are not a master, but you are a weapon, and you must be aimed at the heart of the threat."
Ren got to his feet, the pride he'd felt moments ago replaced by a cold, righteous fury. The choice was not a choice at all. It was a duty.
"Go," the Eldest commanded. "Travel west. Shatter the Blight Heart in the Weald and sever the Hollow's hold. If the great bear can be saved, save him. If not… grant him the mercy of peace. The world cannot afford for a spirit of his magnitude to fall into shadow."
Ren looked at Shiro. The small snake met his gaze, and in that instant, a single, unified thought passed between them: We go.
Their time of peace was over. The Guardian was being deployed.