Birth of a Shadow
Chapter X: Carriage
"And we are Cien and his Shadows!" I yelled suddenly.
"What?" Moc reacted surprised.
"We are Cien and…."
"I have heard what you said, but what do you want to tell me with this?"
"This is our name."
"Name?"
"Yeah, we need a name. A name, which when spoken frightens our enemies and awakes hope in the hearts of the innocent people."
"Eh….okay. And you chose Cien and the Shadows? So Shadow and the Shadows?"
"His Shadows. And Cien is my nickname."
"Nickname?"
"Yeah like by you Moc, Li. All of us need a nickname like our group needs a name."
"And why?"
"Because it sounds cool."
"Aha…..so Cien and his Shadows?...No."
"Why not?"
"Because I am not a shadow of a shadow. Or your underling. I am your friend."
"Hmmmm…..yes you are right. So how do you like Heroes in the Shadows?"
"No….I hear enough of this Hero-crap from your dad, so don't start with this as well."
"Hmm, what is with The Feline Revenge Troup?"
"We are no avengers….not important how much I hate to repeat the words of your dad."
"Ah yes, forgot almost. How do you like then Felines of the Darkness?"
"I am not a feline. And when you add Eric to this Troup, than he as well."
"Man, you destroy all the fun with your….logic."
"You should use it more often as well."
"I use it, when I need it, not now. How do you like Kitties and Puppies?"
He looked at me with a dumbfounded look.
"I am not a puppy." he replied with an angered undertone.
And so I invented further names for our little group and all of them were smashed at the logic of Moc.
Ah, I forgot to mention the situation.
It was two days later in the Northern Forests. We were hiding inside a bush close to the main road from Amber Harbor to Eagle's Hall. We were expecting of course Skull and his escort as well the thing he was transporting.
We both wore black doublets and pants, as well like green cloaks for concealing oneself in the Forests.
"…and how to do you like…"
"They are coming." he interrupted me. When he got serious, his voice changed always to a more dangerous sound.
I looked to the side. There it was. A carriage. Armored with hard blue steel, escorted by six wolves – everyone armed with real armors, shields and swords – and four falcons at the sky – they wore leather doublets and bows and arrows. Normally there were six, but two were the spies, which we had finished off already.
The Carriage was pulled by two strong oxen and on the seat of the carriage was sitting Skull. He was a vulture – a real ugly one, bigger than his kind normally grew and with an ugly scar at his face, which didn't improve his outlook. He wore also a leather doublet, which was iron strengthened, a sword and a knife at his sides. Normally he wore as well a helmet, which hid his face, but when he was on missions without a royal family member, he undressed to frighten every person, who could have the idea attacking him.
We were not frightened by this.
"So, what it should be: Distance or Close Combat?" Moc asked me.
"Distance. Need still some training in this."
He looked at me with a face, which told: Are you kidding?
"What? I said the truth."
"But you know that this is no training anymore?"
"Yeah, of course. After all I was the one, who got this information in the first hand or not? I am ready for some real action."
He sighed and shook his head.
He took two bows and quivers out of the bush, which we had put down there earlier.
We equipped ourselves and went on the road in complete normal speed.
We waited till they were clearly visible on this road. One of the reasons for the ambush here was also this big range of vision. Only few trees had grown inside the road itself and so we could see our target clearly.
But the opposite was also the case.
"So how is it? A contest, who finishes off four opponents faster?"
"Not in a million years, Kuba. Or Cien for all I care. I make no contest with you, when speed is the topic."
I grumbled. I have challenged him to a speed contest rather often already and it became harder and harder to find a way to convince him. I needed to find a way to underline my strengths somehow.
….Yeah, I love to win. No matter where. Happy that I admitted it? I am not ashamed cause of this….but don't tell the others, okay?
So let's continue.
Our first targets were of course the falcons, who were flying in the front and had these incredible good eyes. They had seen us of course and had warned already the others. But they didn't see our bows yet.
We showed them from one moment to another, took an arrow almost simultaneously and aimed.
The falcons had noticed it of course, but before they could react properly, we shot.
And hit of course.
Mine was faster at its goal, Moc's there for closer to the aimed target.
We reloaded immediately and this time my speed showed itself. We aimed, shot and hit another time and no birdie was on the sky anymore.
The others on the ground had realized already what was going on and besides two all of them charged us.
"Right Wing." I declared and aimed for Skull, who was faster than his armored escort of course.
We shot and Moc hit the Left Wing, while I made my declaration true. We nailed Skull at the steel carriage above the surprised oxen, who had stopped already.
"So now are coming the living tanks. Still want to compete?" Moc said still with his serious undertone. In this way the joke didn't sound very funny. In strength he won always.
He charged the first one without a weapon, dodged the enemies sword and pushed with his side against the enemy shield. This guy – these guys weighed at least several 100 kg – tripped backwards cause of this and almost had fallen on his back. But this was the point of this thing.
I dodged the attacks of my first opponent and then fall on my back. In this position I prepared my legs for stretching them out from moment to another and hit this guy in his helmet, before he could use his shield.
Of course it worked. And my opponent fell on his back and couldn't get up again.
I looked at Moc grinning, but he had finished his first opponent already and was in a strength contest with the second.
I was losing in a speed battle! That was not acceptable.
I rushed against the next opponent and jumped on his shield. I was struck back, but I have foreseen it.
…Yeah I did! Believe me. I was….ahem…am so good!
I have seen a tree not far away from him and was expecting that he stroke me right in the direction of this tree. He did. I rolled over in midair and used the tree for another jump board and this time my impact was strong enough to send him on his back.
I looked to Moc, who finished his enemy right in this moment as well.
Yes! I won!
The remaining two were running at us and Moc was running at me as well.
I knew what he wanted to do.
"Living Missile?" I asked him still hoping that I was wrong.
"Living Missile." Moc approved while grabbing my hand.
"I hate this technique." I muttered still before he threw me with all his strength at the enemies, who were charging us side by side.
I separated both of them and both of them landed on their backs.
While I needed still some time to regain my senses, Moc finished these guys by sending them sleeping, before they found a way to stand up alone.
"B….b….bb….But…..I…..have….won." I stammered still dizzy.
"Who cares? We didn't bet, didn't we?" Moc grinned amused.
Yeah, my weakness was that I saw a contest, where no one was. Sue me!
After I regained my senses, we went to the carriage. Skull was still struggling, while the oxen looked at us curiously.
"Do you care to work for us for a while?" I asked them simply.
Both of them looked at each other and then shrugged.
"Okay.", they replied.
Need to mention that Carriage-puller was a real bad job. Nobody jumped at the chance to become one and the loan was nothing desirable.
We went to Skull.
"Your idiotic canine and feline! Right now you made yourself an enemy, who will crush you! You…"
"Yeah, we know whose carriage it is. It is the reason for us stealing It.", I stopped his try to intimate us.
He looked at us completely confused.
"What? You know? From where?"
"You can think about this while sleeping." Moc replied and sent him to sleep with one hit at his face.
"Hey, what are you doing?!" I wanted to stop him, but was too late.
"What is it?"
"I wanted to call our group's name! Or at least our names."
He sighed.
"You can do this next time. Hope that we have one name till then, which is not idiotic."
"Hey!" I replied still weakly, but he ignored me.
We put him down from the carriage and threw him on the ground beside the road, after we took the key from around his neck. We did the same with the others and hid them under the bushes. We sat down at the seat and said the oxen to carry us further through the forest. Later we took a different course than the carriage should have used.
"So where were we?" I started the old topic again.
"Oh come, Cien can't you wait till we are back?" Moc moaned.
"No. How do you like `The shadowy figures, who want to overthrow the King and help the innocent and rescuing the felines of the kingdom`?"
"Too long…."
"Okay, so how…?"
And I did this for most of the route back. I admit that I was very annoying back then, but it was fun. At least for me.
…What? I am still annoying? You can't be serious! I am a walking Adonis of Happiness….
Don't laugh!
Okay, where was I?
Yes we rode back to our hideout.
Chapter 10. Enjoy it.
Kung Fu Panda belongs to DreamWorks.
This part of the world, the idea and these characters belong to me.