Phase 1: Rise of the Orphan Blade
Chapter 2: The Forge's Heart
Part 2: Shadows and Light
Kerisforge Stronghold was a crucible, and I was still learning how to survive its heat. I'm Rentap Buana, sixteen, carrying a vow from Blood Island, a keris that burned with jade fire, and a heart torn between doubt and defiance. The hierarchy, the rivals, the weight of Taming Jiwa—they were shaping me, but the stronghold had deeper secrets, ones that cut sharper than any blade. I want to share with you what it was like to stand in a ritual that shook my soul, to face shadows that weren't just enemies but something darker, and to find a truth that made me question the path I'd chosen. This is the part of my story where the ley lines sang, and I saw the fight I was born for, not with clarity, but with a fire that wouldn't let me turn back.
The clash with Hafiz, Nadia, and Kamil left a mark—not just the cut on my cheek, now scabbing under coral salve, but a reminder that Kerisforge wasn't Blood Island. Here, respect was fought for, not given, and Taming Jiwa made me a target as much as a novice. Master Zainah's words echoed: Rivals sharpen you. I felt it, their glares in the training yard, their whispers in the coral halls, but Taming Jiwa's pulse, warm and steady, kept me grounded. The rune pouch, Lila's coral bead, Suri's jade-edged dagger, my old kerambit—they were pieces of home, tethering me to the vow I'd made at Crimson Cliff, to my parents' faces in the Ancestor's Whisper. But Kerisforge was my world now, its jade-lit forges and ley lines a new rhythm I had to learn.
Days were relentless—dawn spars with novices, afternoons studying Astra-Nusantara Silat forms under Zainah's sharp eye, nights haunted by visions of the kirin, Assyafiee's voice, my mother's eyes. I honed Storm Claw, Veil Tide, Iron Surge, Star Whisper, and Sky Fang, each strike stronger, jade waves brighter, the mantra Ya Rahman, Ya Rahim a river in my soul. But the hierarchy loomed, a mountain I was barely climbing. Novices like me were the lowest rung, watched by adepts, judged by masters, guided by elders. Kadir was scarce, his staff's tap a rare sound, his eyes always searching, like he knew something I didn't.
It was a week after the rival clash when Zainah called me to the central forge, a cavern where jade flames danced, coral walls pulsing with ley lines. The air was thick, heavy with mysticism, anime-style energy shimmering like heat off sand. Novices gathered, their kerises sheathed, their faces tense—Hafiz among them, his scar glinting, his smirk gone. Zainah stood before a coral altar, its runes glowing, flanked by two elders, their tunics heavy with kirin embroidery, their staffs topped with starlit gems.
"The Ley Line Ritual," Zainah said, her voice cutting through the forge's hum. "Kerisforge is built on the Sky Nexus's veins, ley lines that bind us to the cosmos. Tonight, you'll join them, novices, to strengthen your kerises, to hear the Nexus's call. Rentap, Taming Jiwa is Eldrin's blade, tied to these lines. Step forward."
I swallowed, Taming Jiwa pulsing at my side, and stepped to the altar, feeling every eye—Hafiz's, Nadia's, Kamil's, the elders'. The forge's flames flared, jade light bathing the cavern, and I felt the ley lines, a heartbeat beneath my feet, stronger than Blood Island's, wilder. Zainah placed a coral shard on the altar, its glow syncing with Taming Jiwa's pulse, and gestured me to kneel. "Chant the mantra," she said. "Let the keris guide you."
I knelt, Taming Jiwa in my hands, its seven waves gleaming, and whispered, Ya Rahman, Ya Rahim. The mantra flowed, my voice joining the novices', a chorus that shook the air. The ley lines roared, jade energy surging, anime-style waves rippling from the altar, wrapping us in light. Taming Jiwa blazed, its pulse a storm, and a vision hit me—stronger than the Ancestor's Whisper, fiercer than the kirin's trial.
I stood in a cosmic void, stars swirling, the Sky Nexus a pulsing heart, its light jade and endless. Kirins soared, their scales gleaming, chanting mantras that wove the stars. Assyafiee appeared, his armor starlit, his keris Taming Jiwa, his eyes kind but urgent. "The Nexus is breaking," he said, his voice the mantra's rhythm. "Shadow Krises rise, forged in chaos, wielded by those who'd shatter the balance. You, Rentap, must hold the light."
The vision shifted—dark jungles, coral cliffs, blades etched with red runes, pulsing with a wrongness that chilled me. Warriors fought, their kerises clashing, jade against crimson, ley lines cracking like glass. My parents were there, Jaya and Mira, their kerises glowing, falling under red-runed blades. "Find them," my mother whispered, her face fading. "Stop them."
I gasped, back in the forge, Taming Jiwa blazing, the coral shard now a glowing orb, its light tied to my keris. The novices stared, some awed, others—Hafiz, Nadia—wary, like I'd seen something they hadn't. Zainah's eyes widened, but she spoke calmly. "The Nexus has spoken. Your keris is bound, Rentap, stronger now. The ritual is complete."
I stood, trembling, Taming Jiwa heavier, its pulse deeper, Assyafiee's warning burning in my mind. The elders whispered, their staffs tapping, and Kadir appeared, his eyes sharp. "What did you see, boy?" he asked, low enough for only me to hear.
"Shadows," I said, my voice rough. "Red-runed blades. My parents… they died fighting them."
Kadir's face darkened, but he nodded. "The Shadow Krises. We'll speak later. For now, rest. The Nexus doesn't show such visions lightly."
I clutched Taming Jiwa, the coral orb warm in my pocket, joining Lila's bead, the rune pouch, Suri's dagger. The ritual had changed me, not just my keris but my purpose. The Sky Nexus wasn't just a story—it was a war, and I was in it, whether I wanted to be or not.
Rest didn't come. That night, whispers spread—novices talking of my vision, Hafiz's crew eyeing me like I'd stolen something. I sat in my coral chamber, Taming Jiwa across my lap, its glow soft but fierce, trying to piece together Assyafiee's warning. Shadow Krises, red runes, chaos—they echoed the pirate's blade from the maze, the wrongness I'd felt. Were they connected? My parents' deaths, the Nexus's breaking—how was I, a novice, supposed to stop it?
Dawn brought no answers, only training. Zainah pushed us harder, Silat forms blending into mock battles, jade waves shattering coral pillars. I fought, Taming Jiwa alive, my strikes sharper since the ritual, ley lines fueling my waves. But Hafiz's glares grew colder, Nadia's whispers sharper, Kamil's parang swinging too close in spars. Zainah noticed, her staff tapping warnings, but the tension was a blade, waiting to cut.
It broke three days later, in a jungle training ground outside the stronghold, where coral spires rose like claws, ley lines humming beneath vines. Zainah had sent us to hunt mystic relics—coral shards tied to the Nexus, hidden in the jungle, a test of skill and instinct. I moved alone, Veil Tide cloaking me, Taming Jiwa guiding my steps, its pulse syncing with the ley lines. I found a shard, glowing jade, nestled in a coral root, but as I reached for it, shadows moved—Hafiz, Nadia, Kamil, their kerises drawn, their eyes hard.
"You don't belong here," Hafiz said, his keris gleaming, jade waves flickering. "Taming Jiwa's a relic, not yours. Hand it over, Blood Island."
I stood, Taming Jiwa in hand, its pulse flaring, anime-style light cutting the jungle's gloom. "It chose me," I said, Storm Claw steadying my stance. "You want it? Try taking it."
Nadia lunged, her star-etched keris slashing, jade waves bursting. I dodged, Veil Tide blurring me, Sky Fang feinting, my jade wave shattering her guard. Kamil swung his parang, heavy and fierce, but I countered with Iron Surge, coral roots cracking under my strike. Hafiz was smarter, his keris weaving patterns, jade waves tight and controlled, but I fought with Star Whisper, the mantra in my soul, Assyafiee's vision guiding me.
Then it changed. Hafiz's keris flickered—not jade, but red, a rune pulsing on its blade, wrong, like the pirate's kris from the maze. Nadia's and Kamil's blades followed, red runes flaring, their waves darker, heavier, chaos in their light. I froze, Taming Jiwa blazing, its jade pulse roaring against the red. "What are those?" I demanded, dodging Hafiz's strike, my wave clashing with his, sparks flying.
"Shadow Krises," Hafiz snarled, his scar twisting. "Stronger than your relic. The Nexus will fall, and we'll rise."
I fought, heart pounding, the vision's warning alive—red-runed blades, my parents' fall. Taming Jiwa was a storm, its jade waves brighter, Assyafiee's soul fierce in my strikes. I disarmed Nadia with Sky Fang, knocked Kamil down with Iron Surge, and faced Hafiz, his red-runed keris clashing with mine, jade against crimson, ley lines trembling. I whispered the mantra, Ya Rahman, Ya Rahim, and struck, Star Whisper weaving my vow, my jade wave shattering his blade, its red rune fading like ash.
They fled, shadows in the jungle, leaving me bloodied, the coral shard glowing in my hand. Zainah arrived, her staff slamming the ground, eyes blazing. "What happened, Rentap?"
I held Taming Jiwa, its pulse steady, and told her—Hafiz's red-runed blade, the Shadow Krises, their words about the Nexus. Her face darkened, like Kadir's at the ritual. "This is bigger than novices," she said, taking the shard. "Speak to Kadir. Now."
Kadir found me at the forge, Taming Jiwa across my lap, the coral orb and bead warm in my pocket. "Shadow Krises," he said, his voice low, heavy. "Forged in chaos, tied to Taring Zenhmaut, a blade that defies the Nexus. Hafiz and his crew—they're pawns, not masters. You've unveiled a threat, Rentap, one Kerisforge must face."
I gripped the keris, my cheek's scab stinging, the jungle fight raw in my mind. "My parents died fighting them," I said, the Ancestor's Whisper clear. "What do I do?"
Kadir's eyes met mine, proud but heavy. "You train, you fight, you trust Taming Jiwa. The Nexus chose you for this. We'll root out the shadows, but you're not alone."
I nodded, Taming Jiwa's pulse my anchor, the mantra my strength. The ritual, the red runes, Hafiz's betrayal—they were pieces of a war I was only beginning to see. Kerisforge was my forge, the Sky Nexus my fight, and whatever shadows rose, I'd face them, with my vow, my blade, and the light my parents left me.
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