“And you are certain that this is not just a similar case to Dorgono’s?” Broken Mountain queries his brother with a somewhat puzzled look, barely hiding the mild annoyance he feels towards his brother as the two begin their treck from de Sol and towards the waterfall that Gorge has practically claimed as his own living and training space.

“Yes! Bloody hells, yes, this is different! Dorgono’s beast didn’t scare the living shite out of me in the middle of the night!”

The abrupt and loud reply did not surprise Mountain, for he had dealt with his brother’s temperament for years, but he could tell that the fear he felt was genuine. Could it be that this ‘Gan’ was from another minor clan of the Xaela? That this manifestation of the inner beast was but another aspect? His brother had called him to help, and he’d answer… Out of curiosity more so than anything else.

---

“Oh! Master! You’re back!” Gan pipes up and grins a big grin, wiping some sweat from their brow as they put down the axe they’ve been swinging close to the waterfall for about an hour now. They’re more used to a greatsword or a staff over the instrument that Gorge prefers for his maiming endeavors, but they could adapt to make this training easier.

Gorge (quite sheepishly, mind) greets the Au Ra and motions to his brother, whose greeting is much more lively and unassuming. “This is my brother, as I mentioned- he’s simply here to observe us training for a bit. Don’t pay him any mind, he’s all… Jittery and the like about the chance for more Warriors to join the profession.”

Gan shrugs. She didn’t intend to really /become/ a Warrior, and she just wanted to get that pesky ‘inner beast’ of hers under control, but she also understood that she’s probably going to be at least learning the basics. She gives Mountain a quick thumbs up before reaching over and roughly patting Gorge on the back. “Righ’ then! Let’s go an’ get our trainin’ started!”

---

At first, Mountain wasn’t even really sure what Gorge was so bloody scared of. The lizard was a great student! Attentive, giddy to move along, blockheaded as all hell to benefit Gorge’s own blockheadedness- They were probably the best student Gorge had had so far.

At least, that’s what he’d thought until they got to the third training exercise of the day, which was crushing rocks with an axe. Famed Lominsan tradition for training marauders, even if Mountain never quite gathered how basically ruining valuable tools was helpful… But the raw power required for such a feat was great proof of one’s capability, he admitted that much.

Gorge swung overhead with his axe, shattering a boulder in one go with a clean swipe. He then motions to a similar sized large boulder the size of a small boulder for Gan- which for Gan was in fact quite the large boulder the size of a larger boulder. Nevertheless, they seemed to be taking to the challenge well, a certain kind of glint in their eye as they spit onto their palms and rub them together before grabbing the handle of their axe-

And it shatters. This is not out of the ordinary, but what IS is the dark glow behind the swing, as if- there was another Gan, no- it’s not another Gan, but another person somewhat similar to their build swinging the axe with them… No, it’s not an axe either, but instead the tool used by the shadowy apparition appears to be taking the crude shape of a sword. And Mountain cannot tell if this glow was meant to be her inner beast, or…

…Something else entirely. Dorgono’s beast did not manifest like this, for the beast is called the Inner Beast for a reason. Neither had Gorge’s, or Mountain’s, or anyone else’s- the mere idea that the Beast could escape the cage that was the body of a Warrior was preposterous.

Yet here she was, hooting and hollering and swinging her axe around in the air in some sort of victory pose, living proof that perhaps the Beast could escape the cage. He’d have to research into this, and so Mountain’s quiet watch continues.

---

“‘Sh shooo ghood!” Gan cackles as they bite down into a haunch of meat. Daily rations from Lominsa, their own stipend to Gorge as thanks for training Warriors for their military- and now, most of it is being gobbled up by his half-pint student that might or might not be a demon from the Void taking shape.

“Yer ain’t gonna eat, master?” They look to him inquisitively, and Gorge bashfully lifts a hand and twiddles a few fingers, nervously chuckling.

“Oh, no! No no, heaven’s no, I couldn’t eat… Because I already ate a bear on my way here! Ain’t that right, Mountain?” Gorge nudges his brother, who’s busy writing down notes about Gan’s ‘beast’, sputtering and looking around in confusion before then clearing his throat and simply nodding affirmingly. He was not listening.

“Really? A whole dam’ bear?! Woooah, master! I’ve done that too! Ate a whole thing an’ then huddled up nice an’ comfy inside o’it’s skin durin’ a particularly harsh season!” She toasts to that, although she’s lacking a good tankard of mead, so she instead lifts the haunch of meat before biting down and devouring it near-whole instead.

This woman was a lot.

---

“Okay, they’re busy doing squats for the next twenty minutes. Let’s reconvene.”

“.... I’d be glad to discuss the matter with you, brother, but why on Hydaelyn are we doing this while hiding in a bush watching her.”

Gorge pauses, quiet, and perhaps aware that there was no real reason for this, but his glance turns to Gan doing some power squats with a big ol’ grin on their face, shivering from the very tip of his head to the bottom of his feet.

“So, that thing’s definitely not the inner beast, right? Right? Please don’t tell me it is, I’m going to start bawling my bleeding eyes out if it turns out that it could escape at any moment.”

Mountain very gently slaps Gorge over the head.

“Gather yourself, Curious: It’s clear that whatever affliction she’s dealing with, it’s not related to our craft. For one, despite lacking the control to keep it from manifesting, she has not even once been taken over by it. Dorgono proved that one untrained in the arts would lose control consistently and quickly. But that raises the question…”

Both look out the bush and to Gan, who is still squatting… Although, now her back is pressed against that same living shadow, the two figures acting as if they were mirror images of each other, squatting in tandem.

From a Dark Knight’s perspective, the fact that her Esteem was able to simply come and go and do such bland tasks as physical training might’ve been impressive. For Gorge? It was the scariest shite he’d ever seen in his life.

“You’ve /got/ to see what that damn thing does at night, brother.”

---

This was not how Mountain had considered spending his evening when he woke up in the morning. He had promising Marauders to scout for future training, he’d considered going to Baderon’s to see if his swilled piss had gotten any better and more alcoholic, and he had half the thought to go fishing also…

… But now he’s sitting here, perched on a rocky outcropping close to the waterfall, a single torch lighting his night as he watched down at the encampment that Gan and Gorge had made to spend the night in.

Bastard of a brother didn’t even bother to give him a pillow or a blanket. He’s glad the furs keep him warm, and that the night was rather mild for a La Noscean winter- things could get quite humid and wet, especially if it rained. Nevertheless, his eyes are aimed downsward to watch the two as they head to sleep.

A hour passes, and nothing happens. Another, and nothing happens. A third, and nothing happens. A fourth, and he watches Gorge get up to go for a piss before heading back to sleep. A fifth, and he almost gives up-

But then, some ten minutes later, something finally happens. A dark figure simply appears in the camp, and considering Mountain had kept an eye on all entry points, he came to the quick conclusion that this had to be the ‘beast’ of Gan’s. It looked around before slowly approaching Gorge’s sleeping spot. Mountain clutches his tome, ready to unleash a spell to save his brother.

But once the shadow reaches Gorge’s sleeping form, it simply stops and stares down at him, observing him. Was Gorge awake? He’d gone for that piss, so he must’ve been, but he didn’t move an inch. Was his brother so captivated by fear that he couldn’t even move a muscle?

The shadow breaks the stalemate some five score minutes later, hand reaching out- but not for it’s sword, but for Gorge’s head, now bare as his helmet had been set aside for his night’s sleep. The hand gently lands on the side of his head… And strokes his head. Despite the clawed nature of those hands, it seemed as if no blood was drawn, no hostile intent was revealed, and this gentle stroking of Gorge’s hair continued for some ten minutes before the ‘beast’ then stopped and walked off, disappearing just as it had come.

And during all of this, Gan simply slept, a gentle smile on their face as they snored.

---

“I almost shat my pants.”

Mountain pinches the very bridge of his nose. “Your bodily functions aside, I understand why you’d be scared… I’m surprised you did absolutely nothing, though.”

Gorge motions at himself, mouth agape in shock. “You’re telling me you wanted me to, I don’t know, deck the damn Beast of my student in the shadowy face while it could’ve crushed my head like a ripe La Noscean grape ready to be distilled into the finest wine in-”

“... Your long winded comparisons aside, I may have an idea as to why the beast did this.”

“- and furthermore, said wine would be delivered to the richest nobles in all of Ul’dah t- eh? You’ve got an idea?” Gorge quits his blathering, eyes wide open.

Just how long was that comparison going to be? Mountain shoos that aside for now and clears his throat, opening his tome to take a look at his notes.

“From what I’ve gathered, this “beast” is not an Inner Beast at all. And taking a look at the aether it’s aspected towards, it seems to be… Mimicking Gan’s signature quite notably, with some influences of darkness. Nothing dangerous, but a dark clone of them, so to speak. And they must’ve thought that our Beast functions the same way. A misguided, but clever attempt at controlling it. I don’t quite think our methods will let her take control of it.”

Gorge groans and runs a hand down his face. “So we’re to just let her go? Just like that? That’d be… Disappointing…” He’s not quite sure why he feels bad for letting the lizard go when they’ve scared the daylights out of him two nights in a row, but.

“I’m not finished, brother.” Mountain closes his tome and smiles. “While our methods may never help them gain control of it, I feel like your guidance would do good in placating the ‘beast’ until they themself discover how to control it. While they might never become a Warrior, I recommend you keep training them.”

Gorge pauses and points at himself inquisitively. Really?

---

The afternoon came, and it was about time for Mountain to head back to Lominsa to prepare for his Marauder inspection. The three gathered at the base of the waterfall to exchange quick farewells.

“See yer ‘round, master’s brother! Yer a pretty alright guy for someone who jus’ looks ‘round.” Gan chuckles and gives a quick thumbs up before smacking Gorge on the back. “Right then! Show me the ropes ‘gain today, master!”

Gorge oofs and hunches over a little from the force before straightening himself up and nodding. “Yessir! Come, Gan! It’s time to test your axe against some of the local wildlife! Master Gegeruju hired us!” Gorge brandishes his axe and rushes down to the beast, hastily followed by Gan swinging their axe in the air in tandem. They’re going to get hurt at this pace, leaving Mountain behind to watch-

“... All they need is someone to care for them for a bit, I think.” He murmurs to himself, head tilting. “At least, their shadow seems mighty attached to my brother.” He looks to the sky, to the sun, and smiles to himself at how oblivious his brother could be as he calmly takes his leave, serenaded by the sounds of axes clanging against crabshells.