and the words repeat, breathing histories into stories untold

[todoright]

It had been exactly a month since he had arrived on the island, and Angel wasn’t feeling any more relaxed. This was supposed to be a vacation - albeit one that he hadn’t chosen for himself. Sun, surf, sand - an idyllic tropical island. The kind that he’d only dreamed about visiting in the daylight

Comments

[fears_nothing]

Niko liked the forests of the island. After assessing the perimeter and learning the buildings and the faces of the residents, Niko had worked on learning the places he could retreat to in solitude, those places he could reflect and find his zen again. Cal tried his zen on the best of days, after all, and having an escape was necessary to sound mind and body.

But, as the island was fairly populated for its size, Niko was not surprised to find someone else seeking out the serenity of the forest for reflection and clarity. He nodded at the other man in the midst of his Tai Chi forms and Niko started his own, unconsciously mimicking the other man.

"Buddhist?"

[todoright]

The man's movements were practiced and impressive. This wasn't just someone following his movements. This was someone who knew what he was doing. These small observations were ones that he could make even without vampire senses, and it comforted him to some small extent to know that he still had the ability, honed after centuries.

"Not really. Liked the ideas, but I'm not really one for religion." Angel says in the middle of transitions between forms. "Are you?"

[fears_nothing]

"Yes," Niko said, flashing half a smile before moving into a new position. "I find it helps immensely to have a sense of balance and focus in my every day life. Controls the chaos."

[todoright]

He sees how that could be comforting, but Angel also knows too much to subscribe to the human religions of the world. Perhaps the Powers That Be were encompassed within these belief systems, but he doubted it. And after all, it wasn't as though he could just walk into a church.

But ordinary people didn't have this much chaos in their lives. Above all else, they found appeal within the stable and the routine. If there was none to be found in an area, they'd move.

Yet Angel knows by now that the island's inhabitants are all anything but ordinary. Consider his curiosity piqued.

"Is there a lot of that going around? Chaos, I mean."

[fears_nothing]

"For most," Niko said, shrugging slightly. "I think it depends on one's definition of chaos and just how much entropy they can stand at any given point. I don't have a high tolerance for it myself and unfortunately ended up with a good deal before I came here. Hence, zen Buddhism."

[todoright]

"It's good...that you have a coping mechanism. Some people don't. They bottle and it's not pretty when they stop." he was one of those people, but that was different. He never - well maybe there was that one time - or a couple dozen. If the island's true purpose was to get them to self-reflect, it certainly was doing a good job of it.

Then again, in Buddhism, that was kind of the point.

"But I don't know about having some sort of transcendent wisdom inside of me."

[fears_nothing]

"It's more about a state of mind," Niko said, shrugging slightly. "Less about worship of any particular deity and more about just...reflection and being the best person you can be. It's good, having clarity and focus."