"Hey…mister, are you okay?"
He stirred, but didn't wake up.
It must be a dream…I'm dead…
"Hello? Mister? Can you hear me?"
Something poked his head, then again, and again.
"Come on mister, nap time's over. You gotta wake up!"
He moaned slightly, and slowly cracked his eyes open. Everything was blurry at first, but steadily came into focus. A young peacock wearing a green robe was staring down at him with curious yellow eyes.
"You okay mister?" she asked.
"…Who…who are…you?" he asked weakly.
"My name's Kaiya."
"Where am I?"
"My front yard. I woke up and you were lying on the shore. You don't look too good, maybe you should come inside for a little bit."
"But…I could've sworn I was dead…the cannon fell on me and…"
Kaiya gave him a strange look.
"I don't think you're dead mister, but just to be sure,"
Kaiya wacked him with the stick she'd been holding.
"OW! What was that for?" he yelled.
"Nope, you're not dead. What's your name by the way, mister?"
"…Shen. Lord Shen."
"Nice to meet ya."
Shen stared at her a little confused.
"You have no idea who I am do you?" he asked.
"No. Should I? Are you like a king or something?"
"Not really, at least, not anymore…"
"You mean you got kicked out? Did you do something bad?"
"No just drop it! It's none of your concern!"
Kaiya stared at him with wide eyes, then nodded.
"Okay, I get it. If you don't wanna talk about it, that's okay."
Shen gave her another strange look.
"You're wing doesn't look too good. You should probably get that checked out." Kaiya remarked.
Only then did Shen feel the searing pain in his right wing. He lifted it up and saw it was broken in several places. He flinched at another pang as he tried to move it.
"Come inside, I've got some medical stuff, maybe I can help."
Kaiya led him inside a small shack, and he settled in a corner while Kaiya pulled out a wooden box and sat next to him.
"Now let's see, we'll need some gauze, and something to clean that with…"
She pulled out various objects, then set to work on Shen's wing.
"You know an awful lot about medical procedures for a child." Shen remarked.
"I have to. I'm the only one who can take care of me around here."
"What about your parents?"
Kaiya paused for a second.
"They're gone. I don't know where they are, or if they're still alive, or what. They vanished a couple of years ago, and I've been on my own ever since."
Shen stayed silent as Kaiya continued treating his wing. After putting it in a sling, she put the box away, and set a bowl of soup in front of Shen.
"So, how old are you?" he asked as Kaiya sat across from him.
"Ten."
"Tell me, how is it you've managed to live out here all on your own, and manage as well as you've been."
"I don't know, I just do. It's not that hard actually, I can go on noodles for weeks. There's this great place in the Valley of Peace, I went there once. It was really good, and the owners were really nice. There was a goose and a big panda-"
"A panda?" Shen exclaimed.
"Y-yeah, he's the owner's kid, although, I don't think they're related."
"So, that's where he is…the Valley of Peace, you said?"
"Yep, nice place. My…parents took me there, when I turned four. I've been wanting to go, but it's a really long way to travel by myself."
Shen thought for a moment.
This could be my chance for vengeance, and this girl can lead me right to him…
"Say, Kaiya, in return for you hospitality, how would you like to go to the Valley of Peace again?"
Kaiya's eyes brightened in joy.
"Really? You mean it? Wow, I would love to! Thanks Lord Shen! I can show you the best places to shop there, and the Jade Palace!"
Shen smirked.
"I'd also like to visit that noodle shop you mentioned."
"Of course! That'll be stop number one!"
While Kaiya was naming all the places they could go, Shen chuckled to himself. This was going to be too easy.