THE OPPORTUNITY AND THE DANGEROUS WIND
Chapter 7: Revealed
A Miraculous Ladybug fanfiction
by Bill K.
Miraculous Ladybug and all related characters are © 2021 by Zagtoons and are used without permission, but with respect. This story is © 2021 by Bill K.
All dialogue in brackets [ ] is in French. All other dialogue is in Chinese.
Ladybug, Piao Chong and Pianzi Huli sat on the bank of a stream in the Chinese countryside near Liangzhu and tended to their fallen comrade Kongque. Ladybug dipped a cloth into the cold water of the stream, then applied the cloth to Kongque's face, careful to avoid the red bandage with the black dots on her forehead.
"I am feeling much better," Kongque protested. The woman tried to sit up, but a wave of dizziness forced her back.
"You see! You are not as healed as you think!" fussed Piao Chong.
"Stop fussing, Piao Chong," frowned Kongque. "You are not my grandmother."
At that moment, a wave of energy bubbled over Ladybug. Moments later, she was Marinette Dupain-Cheng again. Marinette put the cloth down and cradled Tikki in her hands.
"How are you doing, Tikki?" the girl asked.
"I'll be all right, Marinette," Tikki responded breathlessly.
"Nothing a macaroon can't cure?" Marinette smiled and got a warm smile in return. Reaching into her purse, she produced a macaroon and gave it to Tikki. The kwami gratefully accepted it.
"Oh, your kwami is so cute!" exclaimed Pianzi Huli.
"And you are so young," Kongque observed.
"I'm sixteen," Marinette replied defensively.
"Are you married yet?"
"No!" she gasped.
"So young," muttered Kongque.
"She is from a land where girls marry whom they choose, rather than submit to the marriage broker," Pianzi Huli proclaimed. "And they follow the path of their choosing."
"What is this land called?" Kongque asked.
"France," Marinette replied.
"Your 'France' has very liberal customs," Kongque judged.
"Where is this 'France'?" Pianzi Huli asked.
"Why?" teased Piao Chong. "Did you wish to journey there?"
"It might be interesting to follow my own path instead of the one set for me."
"It's to the west," Marinette replied. "A long way to the west."
"And you traveled here alone?"
"She was transported here," Piao Chong interjected. "The Mingyun Zhi Jiao brought her here through its magic." She got curious stares from her fellow warriors. "It is a - - totem. Po Zhizhe created it and infused it with powers."
"Powers greater than the Miraculous?" Kongque asked as she lay in the grass.
"It is hard to say," Piao Chong replied uncertainly. "Perhaps not as varied as the Miraculous, but to bring a warrior across such a great distance as . . ." She stopped, wondering how much she should reveal.
"Such a thing could be dangerous," Kongque concluded.
"It brought Marinette to us to aid our struggle against the Empress," protested Piao Chong. "Po Zhizhe would never misuse its power."
"Did Po Zhizhe bring this other Ladybug to us? How did he know of her existence?"
"He didn't," Marinette told her. "Mingyun Zhi Jiao brought me here."
"Then it can act upon its own?" Kongque observed. "That indicates that Po Zhizhe, as benevolent as his intentions may be, cannot always control this thing." Piao Chong grew anxious. "And what if this totem should fall into the hands of Empress Feng Hou?"
"Po Zhizhe would never allow that! He is too wise!" protested Piao Chong. "We must trust in him."
"The wisest of men cannot plan for every misfortune," Kongque quoted.
"The Empress is not to be taken lightly," warned Pianzi Huli.
The three women suddenly stopped, freezing and listening intently. Marinette looked around, trying to spot what had disturbed them. She saw nothing. She was about to invoke her transformation phrase. Then she heard a tree branch rustle and a blur of black passed across her upper field of vision. And suddenly a man in a black tunic, black pants, leggings and boots, and a black cat-eared cowl crouched beside Piao Chong. He leaned on his bo stick and smiled confidently beneath the black eye mask on his face.
"Greetings, ladies," Hei Mao said with honied tones. "Your desolate wait is over. I have arrived."
"Guards!" Feng Hou snapped, turning to her soldiers. "Seize this man and imprison him! Whether by interrogation or torture, I will learn what I wish to know!"
Instantly Po acted. He grabbed Mingyun Zhi Jiao, with one hand on the base of the figurine and the other near the pointed tip, when Feng Hou's attention was off of him. His hope was to keep the figurine out of the hands of the Empress, then leap out a window to keep himself out of the hands of the Empress. If he could elude her forces and find a secluded spot, he could change into Ying e. If not, at least he could lead them away from the shop, where the Miraculous Box was hidden, then hopefully circle back and retrieve it before Feng Hou had the shop searched.
But as he held Mingyun Zhi Jiao, it began to glow. Suddenly there was a blinding burst of light from the object, a light that filled the room. When it dissipated, Po Zhizhe was astounded. The Empress and her soldiers stood in the room, frozen in place like statues. Glancing out of the window, he saw a bird caught in mid-motion as it flew by. An eerie silence fell over the room; Po couldn't even hear the air passing. He looked down at Mingyun Zhi Jiao apprehensively.
Then, galvanized by the situation, Po hurried to the back room. Having no way of knowing whether this phenomenon was permanent or due to expire in moments, the man hurried over to a floor board near the wall. It concealed a hidden compartment beneath it. Just as another compartment had hidden Mingyun Zhi Jiao, this compartment was the hiding place for the Miraculous Box. Pulling it out, Po stuffed it and the figurine into a burlap knapsack and hastily climbed out the window.
At that moment, time kicked back into gear. The Empress turned back to her prisoner. Feng Hou and her soldiers stared in shock, for the man who they were looking at a moment ago their time was now gone.
"Sorcery!" gasped Feng Hou. She turned back to her soldiers. "Find him! Bring him to me!" She grabbed a bowl and smashed it on the floor. "And bring more men! Tear this entire place apart! Find that Miraculous Box and bring it to me!"
As the soldiers hurried to obey, Feng Hou glared at nothing in particular with venomous eyes closed to a slit.
"Greetings, Hei Mao," Pianzi Huli sighed. She didn't seem that glad that he was there.
"How does Kongque fare? I heard she was injured in the battle with the Empress."
"Recovering," Marinette said. She couldn't help staring at Hei Mao. In many ways, he was completely different than Cat Noir. But there were eerie similarities as well and she found it momentarily unnerving. "I, um, treated her with my Miraculous Lucky Charm, because she wasn't getting better and I was afraid there might be a really bad concussion or even maybe a skull fracture and she wasn't getting better with normal treatment, not that I really know that much about medicine . . ."
Marinette noticed everyone was staring at her awkwardly.
"She's," Marinette blushed, "getting better."
"That is good news," Hei Mao nodded and gave her an easy smile. "Kongque is fortunate to have a healer that is both skilled and very beautiful." Marinette smiled nervously. "You must be the Ladybug from another land that I met in the earlier battle."
"Yes," Marinette nodded. "I'm Marinette Dupain-Cheng."
"Delighted," Hei Mao said. His gaze was hypnotic and he had an easy-going charm reminiscent of her Cat Noir, but not as pushy.
"What of Po Zhizhe?" Piao Chong asked urgently. "Did he not accompany you?"
"He remained behind in Liangzhu," Hei Mao reported. "He is still fussing with that ugly statuette of his. I pray it proves to be a formidable weapon, given the time and effort he spends upon it."
"You left him behind?" gasped Piao Chong.
"At his behest, Lady Piao," he replied, using that term of endearment that so irritated her. "He felt it more important that I be here to aid in the protection of Kongque and the rest of you than to prowl the city in search of more deviltry from the Empress."
"Were you followed?" Kongque asked. She was still laying in the grass.
"Followed? Me? The prince of stealth? What a vulgar thought."
"I'll go scout around," Piao Chong said, rising to her feet.
"Must you go, Lady Piao? I wither when I am not within the sphere of your radiance!" Hei Mao said dramatically. Piao Chong gave him a disdainful look and leaped off. "Deep down, she really does love me. Perhaps I am too forward, though, and she wishes to keep up appearances."
"Or perhaps she finds you annoying and is smitten with another," Pianzi Huli smirked as she doted on Kongque.
"Po Zhizhe?" scoffed Hei Mao. "The infatuation of a child toward a master figure. She will soon realize how staid and stiff he is and the infatuation will die away." And in the blink of an eye, Hei Mao was crouched next to Marinette. He leaned in to her. "Tell me more about yourself, Marinette Dupain-Cheng. A pretty face will always intrigue me."
"Do not annoy my healer, Hei Mao," Kongque exhaled.
"Do I annoy you?" Hei Mao asked Marinette.
"You are a little," Marinette responded, "close."
"Forgive me, please," Hei Mao told her with that same hypnotic charm. "It is the nature of cats to be close with those they trust." He leaned back, but was no less physically imposing. "Where do you come from? And how came you here?"
"She comes from a land where women are free to dictate their own path," Pianzi Huli said, unable to contain her excitement for the idea. "And free to marry whom they choose."
"A most liberal land," Hei Mao replied, impressed. "I must visit that land some day." He leaned in again. "You would greatly honor me by being my guide, should I manage to find my way there."
"OK, um, I," Marinette stammered. "Sure. If you manage to find your way there."
He smiled warmly at her and Marinette suddenly felt her insides tighten.
All of that went away, though, when Piao Chong landed in their midst after the apex of a prodigious leap. Instantly everyone went on alert.
"There are soldiers of the Empress to the south of us," she reported.
"Then you were followed, O' Prince of Stealth," Pianzi Huli grumbled.
"Perhaps not," Piao Chong offered. "They seem to be on a general sweep and do not have a specific direction. But they are large in number, perhaps nearly one hundred by my eye, and well armed. Several of the commanders are mounted."
"I will lead them away from your location," Hei Mao volunteered, rising to his feet. "If they hunt for me, they will follow and find me an elusive quarry. If they hunt for other game, they will find me an enticing alternative."
"A brave gesture," Piao Chong said. "Do not get yourself killed."
"I would not grieve you so," he smiled.
"I merely wish not to thin our ranks or to provide the Empress with another Miraculous," Piao Chong responded, the edge of her mouth curling.
"Wait!" Marinette exclaimed. "There's another way."
Po Zhizhe headed west of the city. He knew his fellow Miraculous Warriors had gone north for the stream and he didn't want to draw pursuit toward them. The man knew he was being pursued. It would only logically follow what happened in his shop. Besides, the soldiers of the Empress were not the quietest of pursuers.
The knapsack he carried slowed him down. But what he carried was too important to abandon. The Miraculous Box was, until recently, the most powerful item he'd ever encountered. Misuse of even two of the kwamis inside it could threaten to topple an entire city. Use of more than two had even more dire implications, though the monk who had entrusted it to him warned him of the danger of using more than two.
And that danger was dwarfed by the implications of the mysterious power demonstrated by Mingyun Zhi Jiao. Po Zhizhe contemplated it as he ran. The talisman had actually frozen time in place. The effect had not lasted long, given the pursuit he was now experiencing. But to be able to stop time for all but you? Po Zhizhe considered himself a learned man, but how such a thing could be possible made him reel. Had the mystic might of his kwami combined with some element in the fabric of the talisman itself to create such power? Had the gods reached down and touched this in answer to his meditations?
As he ran, Po saw a rock formation to his left. At once, a plan sprang up. While he didn't question his ability to avoid capture by the troops of the Empress, there was also her ability to become Mifeng Zhanshi. Were she to enter the fray, there was the possibility that she could defeat him and seize both the Miraculous Box and Mingyun Zhi Jiao. Po stopped and surveyed the pursuit behind him. It was sufficiently in the rear to encourage him to enact his plan.
Going over to the rock formation, Po cleared away some of the smaller stones, then dug out a shallow pit. Gently he placed the knapsack into the depression, then covered it with the loose stones. This way, were he defeated he would not have the Miraculous Box or Mingyun Zhi Jiao in his possession. He stood up and gave a last moment's consideration as to whether this was a solid plan. Losing possession of the knapsack meant losing control over it. But it was less likely to fall into the hands of the Empress this way.
Galvanized into action, Po touched the butterfly pin on his tunic.
"Nooroo, Dark Wings Rise," he said.
Transforming into Ying e, the Miraculous Warrior leaped up into the trees headed toward the approaching forces that pursued him.
All eyes went to Marinette. Beating down a moment's nervousness, the girl spoke.
"Let Pianzi Huli use her power of illusion to conceal us," Marinette explained. "When the soldiers sweep the area, all they'll see is a stream and some flowers."
"It would be a simple task," Pianzi Huli concurred.
"And if one or more of the soldiers should stray too closely to our position and accidentally bump into one of us?" asked Hei Mao. "Forgive me if I am in error, but your illusion would not prevent a clumsy soldier from tripping over one of us."
"If that happens, we'll have to fight," Marinette answered. "It's a risk, but I think it's more of a risk to move Kongque or for you to take on the soldiers by yourself."
"Your concern for my welfare is touching, Marinette," Hei Mao smiled in a way that caused Marinette to blush slightly. "But there has not been a soldier recruited or trained that can match my skills."
"No, it is a better plan," Piao Chong declared. "I bow to none in the admiration of your skill as a warrior, Hei Mao. But Pianzi Huli is also very skilled and her way would be the safest way."
"As you wish, Lady Piao," Hei Mao smiled and bowed to her. "I am ever your obedient slave."
Taking that as her cue, Pianzi Huli produced her flute. Playing several notes on it caused reality to shimmer ever so slightly. The Fox Warrior lowered the flute and looked to the others.
"The deed is done?" Piao Chong asked.
"None may see us save us," Pianzi Huli replied proudly. "I have made our image one with that of nature. The soldiers of the Empress will neither see nor hear us."
"What of Po Zhizhe?" Piao Chong asked. "What if he comes to link with us? Will he be able to know where we are?"
"If I see him come, I shall drop my illusion," Pianzi Huli assured her. Then she smirked. "Although I would think that the beacon of your love and devotion for him would guide him to our location by itself."
"You are truly a jester who is not amusing," Piao Chong said disdainfully. But the others got a smile from it.
"I'd better transform," Marinette observed. Removing Tikki from her purse, she cupped the kwami in her hands. "All better?"
"Ready to go, Marinette," Tikki chirped.
"Tikki, Spots On!"
The transformation took hold and moments later Marinette was Ladybug again. But she was instantly conscious of Hei Mao's eyes roaming over her form-fitting costume, a costume she suddenly wished wasn't skin tight.
"Very sleek," Hei Mao judged. "My compliments, Ladybug."
"Mind on your work, Hei Mao," Piao Chong sighed. It sounded like this wasn't the first time she had made such an admonishment.
The band didn't have long to wait for the approach of the squad of soldiers. They appeared a few moments later out of a grove of trees, then fanned out along the bank of the stream at the order of one of the mounted commanders. The group of Miraculous Warriors sat and watched with varying levels of confidence as the solders approached. There was no overt evidence that the soldiers saw them. Still, they got closer.
Closer.
Continued in Chapter 8