Author's Notes: I'm back. With an Interlude!…Okay, I know this isn't what people were probably expecting, or wanted really. Personally, I don't all that much care for Interludes, they usually just seem like filler to me. But, this one actually has a purpose. And it's actually Plot Relevant! Whoo-Hoo! So, without further dos, onwards to the fic!
A Demon's Familiar
Shades: Casting a Shadow
The Netherworld.
Ideally, it was a place that one should try to avoid at all costs. The vaulting sky painted red spanned into the infinite and the various drifting landmasses sedately wondered about, listless and unheeding of any true direction. It was a place reserved for only the most treacherous and loathsome of offenders, dooming them to an entire existence of near nothingness. On one such abandoned isle, a curious event occurred. The air, normally stagnant and still, shivered unnaturally before tearing open, a pulsing void of blue and green light that hummed with arcane might. It twitched, vibrating with tension before it heaved, sending out its passenger who landed hard on the dry, stony ground.
"Wait!" the passenger, a boy aged just shy of a decade with a head of long, dreaded locks, cried out in desperation "Boss Lady, I can explain!"
From the void another appeared, their form was far too much for the small window in dimensional space, allotting only their head and shoulders to be presented. The lack of visible parts did nothing to diminish the impact of their stare, which remained as bloody as the sky around them.
"Explain?" her voice was hard, a dangerous edge present that sent shivers up the boy's spine "Explain how you, a personally taught vassal of my own devising, lost to that ignorable spawn of my sniveling cur of a brother? Yes, truly I'd love to hear the details of how someone under my supervision failed in such a spectacular fashion."
"But it wasn't my fault!" he'd risen to his feet, hoping to gain more height and standing with his erect stature "She was stronger than me! She's got more experience, better coaching-"
"Are you implying that my teaching methods are sub par to that of my inferior brother's?!" Her long, dangling tendrils whipped threateningly about, thoroughly cowing the young lad "I'd choose my words carefully boy, you tread thinly enough as it is. Despite your failure, I've decided to offer you one more chance at redemption."
"Is that why you sent me to this really, really creepy looking place that looks like its some Dante's Inferno reject?" He didn't believe he was exaggerating, this place was simply that unsettling.
"Indeed, for the time being, this place shall serve as your home until a time comes that I deem you fit to once again present yourself to me." This gave way to an outburst which she easily ignored "Do try not to die: this particular area is home to a rather unsavory group of lesser Demons that shall be eager to feast on young, tender flesh such as yours."
With that, she departed, the portal snapping shut and the air once more reverting back to the stillness that it was known for. Drew J. Porter, Familiar for Bai Tza the Water Demon, stood stock still as he simply gazed forward in astonishment before his scarf hissed and he turned around. He came face-to-fang with a creature that seemed a mixture of bulldog, raptor, and some weird caveman and stood still once more before darting off down into a valley. This proved a flawed move as from atop the walls more of its ilk descended, fangs and claws snapping in restless anticipation of their favored fair.
"I Fuckin' Hate My Life." And then Drew ran.
-S-
The sun was high above the sky. His kitchen was filled with the rhythmic sounds of metal against wood as a shadowy, blue skinned man chopped the ingredients for his lunch. His living room was occupied with more MIBs who posed as attendants to his wife as she patiently knitted a pattern from soft fabric. And there was a disembodied voice ranting ceaselessly about the inferiority of Man and the inevitable resurrection of their own, glorious race.
So, a pretty standard morning for the once ordinary Shen Chan.
Yawning, he looked up from an expense report long enough to observe a flock of pigeons in flight and absently licked his lips before shaking his head roughly. He'd been having the strangest cravings lately, most of them for the flesh of some passing animal that'd normally never would've peaked his interest, most definitely not in that sort of way. He sighed, rising from his work as he ordered one of his men to catalog documents for another time and took his leave to the living room. The Chinese man took notice of the shift in décor from the plain, beige and cream Spartan layout to a much more cluttered, dark-themed flavoring. He took notice of the exotic vans and vases he never remembered purchasing and feudal Japan weaponry that adorned the walls and felt a sense of…rightness by it. As though his home were now moreso because of their presence.
"Of course it is." Oh joy, the voice was speaking again "Have you not taken heed of my wisdom? You are no longer a mere human, destined to never rise above the pathetic mediocrity that surrounds you. You are now Oni, Shen Chan. And it is far passed due for you to start acting as such."
Once again, Shen shut the voice out with a mental push, but couldn't help a curious tread of thought that'd sprang forth. He been calling him an Oni for some few days now and that alone had made him inquisitive enough to pursue the matter further. A quick search through the internet had yielded many result, though none of which were good or served to bring him any measure of peace. Oni were demons, vicious, brutal creatures that existed to spread evil and misfortune throughout the land. They were horrible looking creatures with horns, cruel fangs, and wild, unkempt hair with ferocious tempers.
I am Not an Oni.
Yes, his skin had shifted to a hue common amongst the myths and his hair had started to grow longer gnarled in thick, unruly clumps. His frame had bulked considerably, formerly fitting suits became unbearably snug and ripped with the slightest overexertion. His teeth had grown sharp, fangs gnashing through all manner of things caught between them. And yes, he even had horns growing from his head, tipped with a rapidly darkening black lay just above his brow. His fuse had grown shorter, his patience had frayed and his hunger for all sorts pleasures had risen to an almost alarming degree, but he refused to allow himself to succumb to these base desires.
I am Not an Oni.
Taking a deep breath, he gathered his frustrations and ill-will, releasing them with his exhale. Feeling lighter than before, he plopped down on the couch next to his wife, swinging an arm over her shoulder affectionately and nuzzled into the nap of her neck. Mai stiffened briefly but then gracefully shrugged it off, continuing to knit her pattern as she asked for more yarn. The day seemed to one of blissful, slightly abstentious normalcy.
Which, of course, was a precursor for the most assuredly not normal time ahead.
-T-
He did not like this place.
It was too loud, the air hummed with latent traces of his element, phantom caresses that were both welcomed for their familiarity and infuriating for their fleetingness. The atmosphere was clogged with the nauseating scent of humanity's vanity, their metal carriages rambling along like freed stallions and belching up thick cloud of some foul gases that rose to his brother's domain to blot out the sun. A person talking excitedly into a small, silver box jostled his form and continued along without so much as an apologetic bow and fevered pleading for their life. His body shook with rage, wisps of light trailing beneath him like restless snakes before he reluctantly shoved them down.
As much as he hated this city and all of it's inhabitants and longed so very desperately to see them charred to a crisp, he reframed from acting on his natural impulses, lest he mar his disguise. And truly, nothing spoke more of the severity of his situation than the fact that he'd had to resort to…this in order to secure his freedom and stake his claim on the land.
True enough, the final display of his might had been satisfying in both sheer magnificence of his element and the surety of which it'd eradicated his enemies. Yes, he'd wanted the old Chi Wizard to suffer for what he'd done, what he'd stripped away after only mere moments of finally attaining it after a millennia of imprisonment, but circumstances had forced his hand and he'd been had to make due with a large ruckus that at least exhibited his prowess to his siblings. After all, lightening was of the divine, used for heavenly retribution against the most devious and wicked of sinners. His mastery of it proved his right to rule over his kin as patriarch by mandate.
However, such feats of power came at a cost. His Chi had been drained, drastically depleted from his vengeful onslaught and he'd been so exhausted after his return as to be rendered prone and unconscious for the better part of a season. When he woke, it was to the knowing look of his sister and the condescending smile of his brother. He'd spared them no pleasantries, simply rising to hobble off drunkenly to another, far off isle before collapsing once more for another period of time. Afterwards, he sulked. While human Chi regenerated after a short while, a Demon's Chi was not so easily replenished. Years of nothing more to do but hurl bolts and vent his anger had rendered him weaker, feeble when compared to the indomitable force he'd been in his prime. The act of calling down heaven's fury had taken more than he'd ever admit under any circumstance and compounded with his years in the Netherworld and his already depleted state had left the Thunder Demon like more than a hollowed out husk for almost another season's time.
Tchang Zu then, after much consideration at length, grudgingly with clenched teeth and fury burning hot through his veins, decided he'd need a Familiar. The admission alone was a blow to his pride so devastating he'd nearly vomited in the aftermath. But, loath as he was to admit it, his strength alone would no longer suffice to keep his freedom. Not when it only took a chant and a clattering of eviscerated mollusks to send him back. So, he'd follow the trend of the rest of his family and claim his own.
Finding a way to the outside world was pathetically easy, now that he knew how to look for a weak point in the dimensions, where he could tear open a window to briefly interact with the human realm. Once such a portal was opened, he sent a small portion of his remaining Chi that'd been linked to his mind forth through the window. A faux Astral Projection or at least a partial one. While it wasn't enough to outright gain control of a host, I was enough to secure him an vessel to operate from. The chosen vessel being that of some passing tourist, out to see Hong Kong and all its many foreign wonders who registered his presence in his mindscape as little more than a brief chilling thought and nothing more.
It took all of three days to break into the deeper, more recluse parts of his psyche and only two more to drive him mad with day terrors and nightmares, twisting his perception into a hellish vision that had him throwing himself from his fifteenth floor hotel room to land face first in the alley. His head burst open like an over-ripened fruit, his chest, torso, and legs falling limply down before wisps of his power snaked out and repaired the broken man, knitted together flesh, bone, and sinew. Without aid of most of his Chi, the process took almost an entire day instead of the instance it normally would've required. When he was done, he'd dusted the accumulated filth off as best he could short of clawing off skin and proceeded towards the source of magic radiating not to far from there.
As he approached, he allowed something to slip on his borrowed face. It was too twisted by half mended teeth and still broken jaw and bled off an aura of wrong-ness that was decried it of being a smile, but the intent was clear. Whatever was giving off the waves of powers was powerful and, most importantly, not human. Because if he had to choose a Familiar, it needed to at be of some worth.
-S-
There was a knock at the door.
This, in and of itself, wasn't too out of the ordinary though it did come as a surprise. Shen had become accustomed to the solitude that his MIBs and his consequential transformation had wroth. Still, it'd be rude not to answer and he made to send the order for the MIB who was going to open the door to stop as the sight of a tall, blue-skinned and red-eyed humanoid wouldn't make for an expected, or welcomed, sight when the command was made pointless as the guest invited themselves in.
By which he meant the door exploded in a deafening explosion of wood, metal, and smoke, taking with it his man.
The remaining MIBs clustered over him, more emerging from the shadows around the house, sharp weapons of deadly steel clenched between fingers. From the billowing cloud of debris, a set of lightly tanned hands appeared, slamming against the walls as arcs of brilliant light surged from their arms, to their hands, to their fingertips, and finally the drywall where they proceed to travel and utterly destroy everything that touched it.
Namely his MIBs.
Those not destroyed by this tactic were soon rendered to nothing as the brown loafers hit carpet and sent lethal static coursing about, climbing the lower extremities of his men who gave a convulsive fit before bursting into faded slips of black and disappearing on the wind. Shen stared, wide-eyed and perplexed over the fact that the MIB, his men, his protectors, had been popped like birthday balloons.
"Hmp, an Oni." he Chinese man barely withheld flinch as the man came fully into view. The gait of his walk, the state of his clothes, and most notably the smile on his face all screamed of something that was simply wrong "I thought your kind extinguished with the rest of the yokai. But, as things seem wont to do in this age, I find myself proven wrong."
Shen had no idea who this man was -what he was, as there was no way this man was human- how he managed to find his apartment, or where he learned to spawn lightning like some comic supervillian, but Mai was shaking and cling to him and so very scared and that overrode everything else. He needed to get his wife to safety but he didn't belief entrusting her to a MIB would be efficient enough protection no mattered their number.
"Fool!" Oh, great. The voice was back again. "Cease your childish quipping, youngling! That which stands before you is one of the primordial forces that ruled over this world in times passed. You'd do well to be on your guard, Demons are known for their cunning."
"Who are you?" his voice sounded rough, growing deeper still as his bodily changes progressed and the edge his question held was accompanied by bared fangs and flashing eyes. The creature grinned. Amusingly.
"Ah, it would you are still a whelp." Here, he took a step forward, swaggering in with confident footfalls that sent minute sparks racing over the floor "All the better. Binding you as my Familiar should be a simple task then."
Shen had no idea what that meant but from the way the voice was literally Howling in his head, he took it was meaning something not very nice. He sent out an order, commanding a MIB to rise from his shadow, the man wrapping their arms securely around his wife who gave a startled yelp and a pleading look -She wanted him to explain what was happening. Why was this happening? What was he thinking?- before both she and the man retreated back into his shadow with Mai's brief gasp of horror. The man simply raised an eyebrow, the muscles of his face shifting in disharmony as he measured him. Shen looked him straight in the eyes, his body sliding effortlessly into an opening stance he'd no idea he knew, but just knew. The man chuckled. It was bone-chilling sound.
"So, going to fight?" He took another step closer and Shen tensed, every muscle coiled tight and ready to release "Going to trash like a fish in the tiger's maw? Like a mouse in the coils of a constrictor? Well, I should inform you that they all amount to the same time: futile."
Shen had no idea when the creature had moved or when the sneer had formed on his face. And he didn't have time as he was suddenly flying, back crashing through a wall to land heavily against the splintered oak that was once his nightstand. He shook his head numbly, mind reeling from the blow and the fact that the creature had just flung him through the wall into his room. He faintly thanked his quick thinking of spiriting his wife away as he sincerely doubted his ability to fight this thing and defend at once.
Shen rose shakily to his feet only to be blown over as another strike rammed into his chest, his body once more hitting a wall but at least this time only cracked it. He tried to orient himself but ended up sailing from another strike and blasted through the door instead.
"Disgraceful!" The voice rang loud in his already sore head, stars flickering in his vision as haze drifted in and out of focus "You are a General! You should be demolishing this insolent upstart Demon for even presuming to think he can chain you, not allow yourself to be tossed about like some freshly formed GENIN!"
His vision had cleared enough that he was able to see the fierce grin on the creature's face as it stood in the doorway and then struck. There was a twitch, small and nearly infinitesimal, but something urged him to follow it and he leaned to the right. Wood exploded and he watched as the thing's arm was buried halfway to the elbow into the drywall. They wore an expression of shock, which was all the opening he needed as he slammed his elbow into its misshapen face. It stumbled backwards and Shen used the space provided to run for the living and out the door.
"NOW you choose to run?" The voice didn't sound angry or even furious. It did sound curious, however.
"He who fights and runs away-"
"Lives to fight another day. A sound tactic, but you surely don't think that attack disabled your adversary?" The voice piped, once more curious
"No, but it should give me enough time to-" Whatever Shen was about to say was drowned out as the entire section of wall that was his apartment literally evaporated as bright, blinding light assaulted his eyes and the crackle of electricity filled the air.
"You only delay the inevitable!" And the thing walked out from the wreckage, looking even worse for wear with its face halfway collapsed in on itself and bleeding profusely. Its hands, however, were lit by a blue tinted power, as the space between was charged and tense as Shen hesitantly took a step back.
The creature roared. Shen screamed as lightening raced over him, burning his skin as it lash hungrily against it. He fell, sent to his knees as he gasped for air which proved hot and dry with the offending element as it once more crashed over him. He hollered in agony, his body spastically shaking as he tried to bring himself to his feet and after another bolt simply settled for remaining conscious.
"Do you see now?" Another strike, another ripping, tearing convulsion "I will have you as my Familiar even should I need to break you like some disobedient stallion! I am your Master. And you. Will. Obey. ME!"
Shen was shaking. From fear or the aftershocks of pulsing muscles he couldn't say anymore. All he knew was that he was in pain. Horrible, horrible pain. And he wanted it to stop. Surrendering would make it stop. Giving in would make this go away, right? So the smart and safe and only way was to do what his Master said, right? He opened his mouth, after finally getting it to work after a few aborted attempts, when his head suddenly pounded.
"WEAKLING!" his head felt as though it might explode, burst open like so much popped corn "This is all you're capable of?! This ABSOLUTELY PATETHIC DISPLAY?! You bare our Lord's Mark yet you would crumble in face of opposition!? You would BOW YOUR HEAD to such a DESPICABLE THING when faced with even a BIT OF PAIN!? You ARE UNWORTHY OF OUR LORD'S MARK! YOU ARE UNFIT TO EVEN BREATH IN THE SKIN OF AN ONI! YOU PITIFUL, WORTHLESS, SNIVILING CUR!"
Shen said something.
"What was that, Familiar?" It's body was hunched, power hissing in its hands as it peered down nastily at its downed servant-to-be "Speak clearly when your Master addresses you!"
"I said," the words were faint, barely audible and the creature went to yell his displeasure further when it suddenly found that steel was now imbedded from the base of his throat to the back of its head "get the HELL OUT OF MY HOUSE!"
There was a flick of his wrist, a practiced motion not practiced at all, and the tanto twisted and then sliced clean through the flesh, the head of the abomination bisected into two surgical halves like a split melon. Shen stood, a deft motion ridding his blade of most of the crimson blood staining it as he glared hatefully at the headless body.
Which started jerking.
Shen saw the arcs forming, coiling, racing about the body as its unnaturally form heaved its death throes and did the sensible thing.
He jumped out the nearest window. And a second later, the entire floor was consumed by a violent explosion.
It was some time later, after he managed to reform himself from the puddle of ink he seemed to become upon impact and then deciphered the way to retrieve his now frantic wife from her hideaway, that he sat in a chair in a motel room. Mai was sound asleep of the cot, her breaths a steadying rhythm as his mind buzzed incessantly. His injuries from hours before were gone now, having been removed while he was still a two-dimensional existence. But now that he was healed and his wife was safe and there was no chance of him being seen or attacked, he allowed himself to ponder.
"Do you not see?" Shen did nothing to hide his ignorance on the matter "This is what happens when you remain idle: you become soft, rusted, complacent. You let down your guard, set aside your weapon. You holed yourself up in glass fortress and your enemy caught sight of you and sought your destruction."
"He only wanted my service. He wouldn't be able to have it of I was dead." Shen reasoned, or as much as could be when discussing such things with an inner voice.
"It was as good as a death sentence, worse even. He would have broken you. He would have torn apart your flesh, drank your blood, gnawed your flesh. He would have used your power, perhaps whore it to whomever he saw if to further his agenda. He would have shattered your mind, eroded your will till you were nothing but his mindless tool to be brandished on a whim to fulfill whatever petty need suited him. And that. That would be a fate worse than death."
"You…Sound as if you have personal experience." And he was surprised that he felt a spark of pity for the voice but decided to pawn it to the lingering adrenaline
"…I have seen it happen once before. Your predecessor, a powerful General and prodigy seen only once in a Blue Moon, was broken by one of its ilk. Do you know what it is like to lose a brother? To literally feel the agony, the pained pleading as they helplessly thrashed against a more powerful, dominate force? To know that his being was being defiled, sullied, raped?" Shen said nothing. Could say nothing as no personal experience came close to even be compared "I will help you. I will make you strong. I will make you Steel. A terrible, powerful force that shall break mountains, split oceans, and part even the heavens. You shall be the beacon of our Empire, the Champion of our cause. You will be undefeatable, for as the state of the world stirs, so too do the forces that would either use your power or seal it to be lost in the river of time. And I Shall NOT let that pass."
And the voice fell silent. Shen sat in his chair, a wistful look on his face. Whatever had been left of his normal life was gone now. Shen Chan, ordinary businessman form China, was now dead. Or had he'd been dead for weeks and he only just now saw fit to authenticate his death, content to parade around his corpse to cling to the normalcy, the safety that his life ensured.? It didn't really matter now. Shen Chan was now Shen Chan, the Oni General of some vague Lord that most likely sought to either enslave or eradicate humanity. But he did not want to be this Shen Chan. This Shen Chan had the possibly to grow into the role, to truly become a monster as portrayed in myth in legend, which meant it best to kill him now in his infancy.
So if he was Shen Chan, Businessman or Shen Chan, the Oni, who was he? He stole a glance at his wife, her slender form resting serenely under his gaze before he steeled it. He knew now. He would be Shen Chan, Period. He would not be content with the roles given to him, only the one he'd forged himself. He would play the part of the naïf Oni General under wing of his senior officer, but he wouldn't fall so wholly for their schemes and machinations. He was, after all, a Chan.
And Chans were, as his cousin once said back during the rashness of his youth, not shit to play with.
T-L
Time is a fickle thing.
Some say it was a river. Some said it tree. Some said it was a big ball of time-whimy stuff. But in the end, it was just like any other of the elements and bent easily enough under the right words, the ideal location, and of course, the will to see even the unbeatable enemy bow before your will. The figure who stood by the cliffside was one such individual. He'd planned this down to last intricate, minute detail and he held no doubts of the success of his venture.
His voice had carried on the wind, the current chilly and wisp-ing as the ancient tones drifted. A few moments passed before the air, space, and most importantly, time was rent apart like a sudden wound. It bleed, this perverse and unwelcome divergence in the waves of history, yet he cared not for that world or what its future might've been have he not attempted this method of procuring what he desired. But he was himself and nothing, not gods, mortals, or the intangible forces that be, could stop him from getting whatever his heart and mind yearned for.
After a time, the wound pulsed. Then it screamed. Or rather, its contents screamed in a voice that was familiar and new, infuriating and delightful all at once. It grew in intensity as the tear continued to pulse, the bleed, to swell until it finally expel its package with an almost wet sounding plop, the rift in time-space wrinkling back to normal. He glanced at his hard earned reward of nearly a month of preparation, another for the right time, and another still finding the appropriate destination. He wore green warriors garb, brown leggings bound tight with thread as was his long, grey beard. His headpiece was orange tied in a knot with a slotted belt ringed his torso.
The man groaned, body racked with injuries sustained from both the time he pulled him from as well as the journey and he knelt next to the warrior.
"Where?" the man coughed, spittle lanced with crimson drops erupting from his mouth
The man ran a hand through his hair, removing the headpiece to placidly strum against his scalp. The warrior struggled to remain conscious and failed, slipping once more into a dreamless sleep. He smiled, not unkindly, and picked the warrior up.
Today had been a good day.
Author's Notes: And there you have it folks! Yesm it's an Interlude, but it's one with actual plot! So, there! Now, on to the questions.
Drew in the Netherworld: Drew lost to Jade. This displeases Bai Tza greatly and thus, the training from hell. In what is basically Hell to begin with. Don't worry, we'll see the scamp again soon…If the local demons don't kill him first.
Body Snatching: Tchang Zu Style: Tchang Zu is still wiped from unleashing Heaven (get it? It's the opposite of Hell) on Hollywood and is gonna to wiped for a good little minute. Because of this, while he can open a small window, he can't fully astral project into the human world and so can only use a sliver. This sliver can't override another being's control. But Tchang Zu gives zero fucks about human life. Which means he can drive a innocent tourist into madness, have them commit suicide, and then (mostly) rebuild their corpse and use it like a borrowed coat. Tchang Zu doesn't have sensory input or else he'd be dead from that tanto to the throat-neck-head. He was still able to use some of his power, enough to nearly break Shen but also enough to take out an entire floor of a building. And yep, this is gonna set him back a bit.
Shen: King of the ShadowKhan: I realized, when I chose Shen, I didn't want him to be like Jade. I didn't want him to do anything for a petty reason, or a childish reason, or a stupid reason. Or no reason At ALL…As such, he needed something pretty big to kick his ass in gear towards being an actually Oni and this. This was it. Not gonna lie. Shen, as of right now, pretty much sucks. Yes, he gets some instinctive knowledge of how to do certain things, but that means of shit if he can't react fast enough or his mind's kinda busy with telling him that yes, getting hit by lightning hurts. His overall finish of the fight was anti-climatic and very Shinobi-like. This is his style. He's Jade's opposite: Jade is Naruto, Shen is Anbu. From here on out, the things start getting real.
Tease at the End: Can you guess who these two are? Can ya? Bet you can't.
Once again, thanks for all your wonderful support and till next time, TTFN!