A slim form walks through the monastery grounds. They have been abandoned by the monks who live there from the rain that now poured down on the form. It's figure was hidden under the cowl of a sweatshirt as the figure approached the large doors. The figure pounds on the doors and waits. After some long moments in the rain the door opened a crack. The one that came from the crack in the door was shocked for a moment by the figure in front of him. The only thing he could see was the figure's eyes from beneath its hood. They were young. But they seemed so full of knowledge. The monk in the door opened the door up more being the kind people they were, they would not abandon a person who was on their doorstep. The monk led the figure to a elderly monk that was sitting in front of lines of men that looked like the first. When the figure had approached the elder, the elder raised an eyebrow at him. The figure uncovered his face and bowed his head at the elder. The elder could tell he knew his place. The face was young, and mysterious. This interested the elder and he got up, taking a step toward the young one and lifting its face to examine it further. The elder bowed his head in turn and respect for the young one. The young man did not move his eyes, or any muscle. The elder was almost impressed by the young man. Almost. He welcomed the young man and tried to start a conversation with him. "You may stay As long as you need. There is a group of empty beds on the upper floors" the young man nodded and smiled in thanks. " I appreciate your hospitality. There is little to find anymore." The elder did not climb the steps with him but stopped at the base. "You are very welcome.
Over the week certain things started to stand out in this young man. When wandering the grounds he would not stray from the paths. He would already know customs of respect for nature that the monks would practice. When he came upon the pond he would bend over and go to touch the pool of water, yet his hand would always sway just before they hit the water and avoid getting wet. One day in the second week, one of the monks had watched this. As the young man left the pond the monk approached it himself, seeing new life forming at the edge of the pond where the young man was standing. The monk approached the elder and shared this with him. Other monks nearby had heard the conversation and word spread. The young man was peculiar indeed. One monk in particular did not take to the young man. He did not like his strange ways. He would speak amongst other monks of how the young man would "take apart our way of life. Peace and tranquility and isolation. Nothing changes in this monastery. Nothing has in a hundred years. And nothing should change." This monk was not the newest, but actually a mutually respected man in the monastery. He eventually rallied support and took it to the elder. "He's been here for months. He has no place here. There must be a limit to our hospitality." The elder did not like the monk as he made his point. However the support he'd rallied was irrefutable. During the next gathering at the monastery the young man was there, and the elder had gone up to him. The young man had adopted wearing the monk's robes since he'd only had what he'd worn when he'd first arrived. The monk who'd desired the young man's absence had approached the two as they met so that he could make sure that it was being done as he desired. The elder looked at the young man that he'd grown partly attached to over the months and was saddened. "I am sorry young friend. But we cannot have you accompany us any longer." The young man nodded and smiled to his old friend. He then turned toward the monk who had approached the two of them. By this time they had drawn eyes and ears of the room. The monk nodded and did not smile. He had gotten what he desired. But to his surprise the young man lifted a hand up to the monk's shoulder and asked him "what do you see?" The monk did not know what to say, he was about to answer with "a boy who has overstayed his welcome" but he'd paused as he looked into the young man's eyes. They had seemed as if they deepened. The monk was frozen as he was seeing the young man's eyes glow in front of him, the light enveloped him and he entered another world. There he stood on a barren landscape. Cracks in the earth below his feet that swelled with heat. He heard the question once more surround him. "What do you see?" The monk was in shock but still managed to speak of the spectacle. "I see a world. Empty, there's nothing here." He said looking at the landscape over the course of minutes. The land before him changed, the cracks sealing, the ground changing to soil, areas forming water, Algae forming in the water. He voiced all of this as it happened. The land changed more, forming grass, trees, bushes, wildlife started to appear and he spoke of what he was seeing. "There's animals here! They're all strange looking. There was a big flash of light. Everything is covered in snow? It was only just warm." As the snow melted and time passed, more creatures came and went through his vision, almost in the blink of an eye. Then what he started to see amazed him. The grass did not regrow. But humans came to the place in front of him. "What do you see?" The question pierced the world around him. "There are people now. They are changing the land. They're building walls. It's the monastery." Time slowed around him as scenes familiar to him were shown, monks had moved in, robes were worn, he even saw himself come through the doors of the sanctuary as the walls of his home formed among the nature that was the monastery. Time slowed more as it reached the current time, the young man entered the monastery, welcomed by the monks. Then time slowed to just above normal pace and they came upon present day. He saw himself go up to the young man and the elder, then he saw the young man grab his shoulder and ask the question. "What do you see?" That's when he saw what he didn't expect, the young man's eyes did not glow. He just stood there with his hand on the monk's shoulder. It went on as the monk started to blurt out words. He was watching the world not change once more, but simply go on, as the onlookers turned and became spectators to what was happening. They caught up to present time and the young man turned his head to where the monk was looking at himself. He did nothing but look. "You understand?"
The monk and hisself said at the same time"I understand."Then the world around him crumbled as he woke from his trance and was looking at the young man. "Life must adapt. It must change and be destroyed. Because in order for life to be created, it must make way for it. There is time that passes between life and life, and that is death. You must pave a clean slate for nature to renew. " The young man smiled and nodded at the monk. the young man walked off toward the door satisfied that he could cause one to understand, relatively. The monk turned and went after him trying to think on the spot. "Wait! You don't have to leave! You can stay! You just need to become one of us. That's all you need to do. You'll be welcome among us for as long as you live." The young man smiled and nodded one last time before looking at the elder. The next day he'd shaved his head and over the next month, he excelled he was one of the finest monks there. - 200 Years prior to present
Present- the monastery has been built up and has reached it's downfall, it is no longer the sanctuary it was, as it was forced to mend with time it was forced to shrink, downsize. The grassy field, trees, ponds, all of it was taken away and replaced by roads, stores, homes, a town formed around the monastery. Unfortunately the monastery was hit by hard times, and was now no more than a yoga studio. The young man had made his home in the basement, where he'd created a small square that was preserved, the pond that he would stand over so long ago, it was as healthy as ever, the fish in it swimming around and the clear water reflecting the young man's face grown, he looked only five years older. His head was still shaved, and he still wore robes of the monks, there were very few of them left, and none but he wore the old accustomed robes. Few cared to bother themselves about the young man who lived at the yoga studio, not many ever saw him.
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