Ch.6: Into Sidai
This was such a fun chapter to write. I really hope that you enjoy it as much as I did in writing it. Also, I'm sorry to make you wait for each update to come out. I swear that I'm trying to get into a better writing habit. Two months, I feel like, is not a reasonable amount of time, but I did make sure to make this chapter a little longer. Another thing, I know there have been complaints about the scene changes. I thought that I fixed it, but evidently, I did not. So, I tried again. I'm pretty sure the lines are there now. If they aren't then please tell me! I really don't want any confusion when reading my story. One final note (I know, this is long), I might go back and make some changes to previous chapters. They will more than likely not be too major, probably just some differences in how I described something or adding in some imagery or sensory detail where it's lacking, but if they are major changes I will absolutely tell you so you can go read it.
"Look, the entrance to Sidai is over there," Heng whispered. A long and winding dirt road led the two skeletons close to a stone path, indicating the town. There was no wall or outer city in Sidai. Only the outer faces of the buildings were shown to them. They were still in the woods. China was reaching close to nightfall. At least, Sidai was. That's what happens when a town is surrounded by mountains. Regardless, Heng and Zhang still had to find a way to blend in. They had settled on clothes back at their watchpoint, but getting the garments was still in the conversation.
They hid behind a tree with drooping branches and a line of shrubbery that sat next to the dirt road, discussing with one another their issue. "How the heck are we supposed to get clothes?" Heng seemed to yell but suppressed his voice into a whisper.
Zhang shook his head. "I don't know. But we need to find them fast. It already took us all day to get here from the camp, and I don't think the general is going to give us much more time."
Heng groaned in discontent. He was growing impatient and annoyed with this predicament, and the weight of worry, the thought of the general, pulled his shoulders closer together. Anxiety began to creep up to his ribcage and he remembered that feeling of mangled insides. But suddenly, they both swiveled their heads around at a noise. It was a familiar noise. One that they heard earlier. It was laughter, coming from the side of a wagon. They, the strangers of two crocodiles, arrived at Sidai. "Zhang, look," he murmured, pointing his finger, "They must be here for the celebration."
They watched as silken robes waved over cobblestone. The couple walked towards the town's main entrance with oddly shaped faces. They appeared to be wearing masks of a sort, red, yellow, and made of carved wood. Heng tried to think about it. What kind of celebration would call for a party mask? "Hmm." His concentration was broken when a crack echoed through the forest.
A well-built ox had let the handles he was holding drop to the ground. He squeezed his shoulder, groaning to ease the pain that the long journey dealt to him. A pool of water that sat in the middle of a cul-de-sac grabbed the ox's eyesight for a moment before he took a lookout position next to the wagon. Seeing that the opportunity in front of them wasn't quickly changing, Zhang whipped his head around toward Heng. "Okay," he said, "those two crocodiles were wearing silk clothing, so they must be rich. I say we knock out the guard and take any clothing we can find."
Zhang began to sprint out of the bushes right as he finished, but Heng shot his hand and pulled him back to the ground. "Zhang, what are you doing?" he reprimanded. "We can't steal from these guys." Heng popped his head out to look around the tree. The ox was squinting his eyes and creeping toward their direction because of Zhang's movement. "If you saw their clothing then you saw what the woman was wearing. They're newlyweds! We can't steal from them!"
Zhang grunted, "Sure we can! That guy was probably a rich official or something. What's a couple lost articles of clothing going to matter to them?"
"I'm not gonna do it, okay? If we're going to steal, then it's not gonna be from those two."
He snuck a peek around the tree to see the ox's form get closer to them. Zhang grunted and punched the ground. "Fine! We'll find some clothes somewhere else."
The ox crept closer and closer to the tree. His nerves jumped as he felt the bark touch his hands. He flung himself to the other side of the tree to find… nothing. "That's weird," the ox mumbled to himself.
Heng peered over his shoulder as they were running. He saw the ox, but it looked as though he didn't see them. The two wolves skidded to a halt as they found themselves next to a building's outer wall that practically touched the forest trees. A small and ajar window from above breathed steam into the now frosty air. The once visible and spectacular stars above them were now flooded over with polluted light from within the walls of the city. A breeze ran past them and shook the pool of orange and golden leaves. A branch, Heng thought. "Zhang, look." He pointed to a branch that scraped against the wall of the building. "Let's climb onto the roof. Maybe then we can scope out a place to get some clothes."
An oak tree that owned a scooping branch presented itself to the two of them. Zhang lifted himself before pulling up Heng onto a low-hanging branch, and they proceeded to climb up the ascending bark. From the end of the tree branch, they leaped onto the worn clay tiling of the building and crept up the slope of the roof.
When they reached the ridge, they became overwhelmed with light. Strands of fiber were strung across the pathways from roof to roof, and each one had no less than five lanterns illuminating the party of bustling people below. These people were shuffling throughout the cobblestone streets that were built and laid like a maze. -crack- A stream of smoke, from what looked like a distant plaza, stacked up to a display of colorful patterns that startled the wolves. As they gazed up at the light show, a building caught Heng's eye. A tiered building's exterior flashed as the fireworks continued their display. It stood tall, strong, and without a foundational fault. It appeared to Heng almost as if it might be imperial.
He attempted to squint his eyes and focus on what lay before him. Red paint lined the edges of the sloped roofs. The moonlight shone against the slightly faded black tiles that topped each tier. From the edges of these sloped roofs, ribbons were unrolled off of the sides and waves from the gentle breeze. At each corner of the tiers, small covered lamps were hung to give extra light and accentuate the brilliance of what kind of architecture was accomplished. He felt a twitch on his jaw tug. A soft smile appeared on maw. Heng marveled at the sight for a moment before returning his gaze upon the small city.
Patrons, villagers, and tourists stomped their hooves and paw pads against the narrow cobblestone streets. Long ribbons were wrapped elegantly around their necks and waves over the paths perfectly. Now that Heng started to notice it, he realized that ribbons were all over the city. Doorways and windows were adorned with them, the monument that he had been scrutinizing was more or less bathed in them, and anything that possibly could have been was wrapped with thick vibrant red ribbons. It was quite a masterpiece to study.
Zhang laughed curtly and sarcastically. "Oh no," he dragged on and slapped the clay tiling of the roof. "Heng, how are we gonna do this?"
Heng's smile faded away. For a moment, Heng forgot that Zhang was even there. "We'll have to jump to each rooftop." Heng talked as he began to sneak along the roof. "Maybe there will be an open window or someone might leave their house in a scarce area."
"What does that even mean, man?"
"Like, there's not a lot of people around."
"I'm not sure that's how you would word that sentence," Zhang nitpicked. "And why do you think there's going to be any place in this town without people? I'm sure there are tourists from all over China just to be here. Not even to do something fun. But just to be here!"
"It's unlikely, sure. But not impossible. And besides, I said 'not a lot of people,' not 'without people,' " Heng reassured.
"Unlikely," Zhang echoed. He sighed, feeling discouraged. He mumbled to himself, "Why are they even here? Why are we even here? Heng, this is impossible."
"Hold on. Shut up."
"No! I'm not gonna!"
"Shh! Look." The wolves halted on the roof and laid their stomachs down on the tiling. Heng had stopped because he saw an opportunity. An open space of an alley presented itself to them. They lay watching a ram struggle to lift a crate from his cart. Other boxes of silk and crates of garments were sprawled in this courtyard space. Why so many, Heng thought.
Zhang shoved himself closer to Heng's side. "We'll have to knock him out and then—"
"Honey!" A ewe shouted through the door to their right. She appeared to be weary but kept a smile across her maw. "We have a few more customers!" Oh, that's why.
"Coming!" he shouted back.
Heng turned his head to see Zhang's jaw hanging open. "What were you saying?" he asked sarcastically.
He set his jaw back in place and grunted. "Lucky us," Zhang whispered.
The wolves crept to the edge of the tiling and dropped down to the gravel below. Rocks jumped in surprise and startled Heng at how audible the crunch was. He jerked his head around, frightened that someone might have heard.
Zhang muttered as if the sound didn't bother him, "All right. We have to be fast." The wolves scooted across the gravel courtyard with their backs hunched over as if it would make them quieter. Zhang uncovered the box that was lying alone in the center of the courtyard left by the ram. He drew two long brown robes out and tossed one to Heng. It was scraggly with bits of woven fiber left sticking out. The weaving was rough and handmade without much care. Heng squinted and saw that it was more so the color of dried-out grass. He raised it and set his arms through the holes, hearing the rough material scrape off calcium.
As his head finally reached through the hole on the other side, the starry sky rested on his eyes. "This is perfect," Heng said as he threw the hood on. Zhang did the same. "Do you see any masks?"
Zhang shook his head. "No, why?"
"Those two crocs were wearing some, remember? They were red and yellow wooden masks—like fake faces really."
"Oh, shoot. You're right, we could still get seen."
Heng nodded, "Yeah, but we might be able to make it by pulling our hoods tighter."
"It'll have to work then."
The two wolves ran out of the courtyard and onto a busy street, straining the integrity of robes' sewing. Lamps and streamers covered the dead space between the roofs of the buildings, and various villagers walked past them without batting an eye. They both, at least mentally, agreed that they were safe. Loud chatting and mingling from the vast amount of people that covered the cobblestone pathways nearly deafened the two of them.
Heng got close to Zhang and whispered in his ear. "Where to now?" he asked.
Zhang ruffled his hood and pulled it farther down to further conceal his face. He appeared, although very faintly from the lack of light on him, very nervous. "I don't know, man."
Heng looked down at the stony path and sighed. He didn't know how long it was going to be until the army would arrive. The general probably expected them back very soon, and they weren't even close. He suddenly gasped. A little goat was staring up at him from the ground. If Heng had any, his eyes would be as big as dinner platters. Please don't, he thought. He wasn't entirely sure what he wanted the little boy not to do, but he was too far frozen with fear to think harder.
"Xiao Li," a high voice said. Heng tried to hide his face more from whoever it was. The voice sounded feminine and carried with it a soft tone. "Come on little buddy!" He saw that a woman's paw reached down and grabbed the goat's. It must be his mother, Heng thought. Her paw squeezed his and they walked away. Heng slowly let out the air that he had been holding in. Relieved, he glanced at Zhang who was staring at him, very confused.
"Come on," Heng muttered and tapped Zhang's shoulder. Zhang stuck himself close behind Heng as they found themselves back in the courtyard.
"Heng, that shopkeeper could come back any second." Zhang seemed to yell through a suppressed voice. "What are you doing?"
The close encounter, like the name implied, was too close to call. They haven't done much yet, but Heng was too scared to risk that. "A little goat was staring right at me. He could've told his mother. He still might for all we know, and it's dangerous that other people could see our bare bones just by holding a freaking light up close! Zhang, this is ridiculous and dangerous and…" Heng continued to spill out his worry on his friend, who merely stared, hearing without listening. "We don't even know where this treasure could be. If it even is a treasure," he sighed. "We need a better general."
Zhang snorted a quick laugh. "Ain't that the well-spoken truth."
Heng nodded in defeated agreement. "I think we should stay on the roofs. It's safer."
Zhang agreed with his statement to ease the nerves of his companion, albeit not agreeing. "Alright, let's get a move on."
They looked at the wall that they had jumped down from. A stacked mountain of crates and fabric of many color varieties lay against the limestone walls. The wolves, in unison, jogged over to it and began to ascend. Zhang reached the top first and turned around to wait for Heng to arrive. "Wait, what about the masks?" Heng questioned.
"Hey!" a voice shouted from the ground.
"Forget the masks!" Zhang shouted. "We gotta go!"
Heng was plenty startled by the little goat, and now someone had noticed their shady movement. He panicked and started to rush up the crates to get to the top, but the support from underneath him vanished. Smashing of wooden boxes and the thumping of massive fabric echoed out of the courtyard. "What are you doing?" the voice shouted again, this time with a guttural chant. Heng wasn't quite sure how he got to his new position, but Heng was now dangling from a roof, holding on to Zhang's paw for dear life. The paw in question tried its best to drag Heng higher off the ground, but Heng was suddenly heavier than Zhang recalled.
He almost had his friend to safety when Heng slid backward, taking Zhang too close to the edge for comfort. But who was he kidding? Nothing about this scene was comforting in any way. It was, in fact, stressful. His ears, or maybe the lack of them, were overloaded with the pollution from laughter and conversing tourists down below. For a small moment, Zhang caught a glimpse of the ram, the shop owner. He had his hoof pulling against the efforts of the mongrel above. Zhang mustered up every bit of strength he had and tugged harder. Heng let out a groan of discomfort which was disconcerting. But suddenly, within this poisoning cocktail of noise, a loud yelp was heard and the two wolves flew backward, landing against the clay tiles.
Zhang assumed that it must have come from the ram, but at that moment it didn't particularly matter too much. What did matter, however, was escaping the threat of what was below them. The wolves were stunned from the impact, but they fought to regain their focus and rise from the roof's tiling. Heng began sprinting across the seas of brownish-red tiles, followed suit by Zhang. It was quite dark and difficult to navigate, but the occasional flash of a detonating firework helped somewhat with the task. Every so often, Heng would see in the corner of his eye socket a head jerking up in his direction. Sure it may have been dark, but a blur in the sky is sure to be noticed by somebody. I hope they don't fully see us, he thought.
As they were traversing the rooftops, Heng noticed a crate sitting alone. There was no one next to it, there was no sign to stay away, and villagers didn't pay it acknowledgment. He squinted at it as they passed by to see that it was packed full of fireworks. He was mostly confused by it. For all he knew, it held no significance. He tried not to be too concerned by it.
The wolves arrived at a stopping point, a place that they assumed would be safe. Heng looked around at the tiles aimlessly, his chest heaving from fatigue. After a short moment of meandering, he found himself sitting down at the edge of a roof with his legs hanging over. He heard a scrape next to him as his fingers waved across clay, and another from Zhang sitting down next to him. His cartilage was stretching to its limit from the air Zhang was needing. Heng was reminded of the drills they would have to do when they first were conscripted into the forces. Zhang would always lag behind. Way behind. He never was very physical, he thought.
Heng looked around at the area. Bits of dried roofing chipped off from their being fragile. The surrounding area was dark. Well, more so dim than dark. There was the occasional lamp that was hung near an entrance to a property, but there was not much more supporting light. It was rather odd really. The front part of town, or at least the part that he and Zhang entered from, was flooded with light. So much so that they might have been blinded had it been any brighter. This section was just, well, some people would call it dull. Heng enjoyed it though, contrary to someone else's opinion. It was a nice break from being pulled down by a shop owner while attempting to climb a building. He smiled for a moment, realizing the uniqueness of that event.
Sighing, Heng leaned slowly backward and gazed up at the sky. It was like paint was being thrown onto a canvas' edges from the fingertips while a fat, round white dot was placed athwartships in the sky. Heng felt almost peaceful, but a thought loomed over him making his body feel uneasy. He longed for what it was like before. Before… something.
He jerked his body upright, his conscience in disbelief. Heng shook his head to try and remember something—anything—about… what was he trying to think of? He grew anxious. Why couldn't he remember anything that wasn't from the past week? Heng began to hyperventilate, his chest heaving as it was when they first arrived at Sidai. He attempted to try harder and harder but to no avail. He gave up and a hand rested on his shoulder. Heng looked over to see Zhang looking very concerned. "Are you okay?" Zhang asked as if it was three questions rather than words. Heng sighed and nodded gently in response. "How about we just watch the fireworks for a few minutes?"
Heng mouthed a silent "okay." The wolves looked up to the sky and beheld the sea of color. Popping ensued with every ascending rocket, startling tourists and unexpecting pedestrians. Although the oranges and purples were very pleasing to see, Heng averted his gaze to the tiered building once again. It was so majestic how the red defined the architecture's edged beauty, and each tier was more glorious than the one below.
As he was admiring the work, he thought he saw someone at a balcony or window. He had squinted for a clearer view, but he realized that it was only the edge of the roof. It made him wonder though. Who would live in that building? Heng hadn't much knowledge of China's politics, but surely someone with great stature would be one of the tower's residents. They would probably have treasure too, or at least something important to them. And there would have to be a significant number of guards keeping watch up the tower. I wonder if anyone would have tried to steal it—wait. Heng did a double-take on what he just thought. What if that person had the thing they were looking for. The thing that the general was going to burn the town down for. That tower must have held the item within, and they were going to retrieve it. "Zhang," he said.
The other wolf was staring at the fireworks. "I know, right? It's so pretty."
"What are you talking about?"
"The fireworks. Look at them."
He stared at the light show that encapsulated Zhang, but he didn't find it as appealing. "I'm not talking about the fireworks. Actually, I'm not talking about anything yet. All I did was say your name."
Heng smiled to himself as if he figured that he was more intelligent in this scenario. "I can fill in the blanks."
"I don't think you can."
Zhang looked over to his friend, almost preemptively gloating. "Try me."
Heng sighed. "I think the thing we need to find might be in the tower."
Zhang glanced over at the building for a second. "Oh." He felt a paw nudge his arm.
"Hey, you tried." Heng giggled.
Zhang chuckled too and put his fingers to his temples. "My mind-reading capabilities are more powerful than you can imagine."
Heng mirrored his expression. "I'm sure they are, but the whole world would be blown apart if you used them!"
"Which is why I must refrain from using my abilities." The wolves laughed together, partly because they needed it and partly because they wanted to forget about what they needed to get done. But the objective of their mission returned to their minds and Heng brought them back on track.
"We're going to need a way inside the tower."
Zhang nodded. "Then we'll need to get closer. No use infiltrating the tower from over here." Heng agreed and waved Zhang to follow. They maneuvered across dried-up rooftops, slowly this time, and occasionally glancing down at the cobblestone pathway below them. Each step they took made a small clank from the tiles, but they focused on remaining as quiet as possible. Heng wanted to be extra careful this time around so as not to alert anyone below.
Another firework arose into the skies and displayed a wonder of beauty, but also illuminated the roofs Zhang and Heng were on. Such a gorgeous display, however, would need a large amount of gunpowder behind it. And sure enough, it did. When the firework had detonated in the air, there was a very commanding boom that went along with it, rattling the tiled roofs and Heng's bones. A few other animals below turned their heads to gaze upon the sparkling night sky causing Heng to hunker down as low as he could to remain unseen.
Shimmering bits of minerals broke down as they descended, and a small gust of wind carried the scent of gunpowder to the noses of whoever would want to smell. Zhang desperately wanted to, but he just couldn't. Why can we see but still lose out on our best senses? I want my old body back.
The colors in the sky finally dissipated, losing the interest of whoever it had caught. It was preferred by Heng that another firework would detonate again. At least not to that magnitude. "Alright," Heng whispered, "come on." The wolves continued, avoiding causing an audible distraction.
To Heng's delight, the frequency of fireworks had finally fallen, and they were arriving ever closer to the tower. The issue was how they would get in. There was a large court that surrounded the building's base, and stubby gray cats stood at attention, carefully examining each passerby that got a little too close.
Above the previous busy pathways, there were lines of string with lanterns hung across from roof to roof and danced whenever a breeze caught on. This tower instead owned perfect visibility of the sky. Perhaps if an avian encircled above them, the guards would need to be able to see. This might be a good thing, Zhang thought. "Heng," he whispered, "we might be able to use the darkness to our advantage. If we can just get to that entrance without being spotted." He pointed to a red-lined circular hole in the wall that was practically calling their name. "Then we can begin searching."
Heng shook his head. "Sure, but that doesn't solve how we're supposed to get to the entrance that is guarded, might I add."
Zhang began to rub his chin. "We would need to cause a distraction. Something that would require a lot of guards, if not all of them, to investigate. Now, did you see anything on the way here that could distract them?"
"We could set off lots of fireworks. I saw an unused crate a ways back."
As Zhang was about to reply he became distracted by something below them. There was a fight that broke out between a small leopard and a Sable. Tourists' attention was also being caught by the coming scene. Without a visible warning to the leopard, the Sable's paw struck hard and as fast as lightning, knocking the stubborn cat to the ground. Heng looked over at the entrance to the tower. It was open! The guards had left their post to intervene, as did some others too.
"Zhang look, we need to get over there fast." Heng hopped off of the roof and onto the cobblestone path. With Zhang on his tail, he sprinted to the entrance under the darkness of the night. No one suspected anything, no one saw anything, and no one did anything. It was like this was meant to be. They passed under the grand, red-painted archway and entered into the tower. The room was illuminated quite brightly, making visible various paintings that were hung on the walls. The floor was crafted with dark, elegant, ebony wood. There were no knots or imperfections in it. A staircase spiraled around the edges of the room and up the walls to the next floor. Its railing was painted a deep red that accentuated, even more, the tower's beauty.
Zhang became antsy. "That fight out there isn't going to last forever, Heng. So can we stop staring at the floor and move on to the next story. Hopefully, we won't have to do much searching."
"Alright. C'mon." They ascended the stairs up to the next chamber. A few colorful waves of light flashed through some of the open windows. It was relatively empty except for an oddly placed rug in the center. "Not here."
Heng and Zhang arose up the steps a few more times before coming upon a dimly lit room. A lonesome lantern in the center hung from a rope tied to the ceiling. It was giving some light to a stand that was positioned underneath. The wolves crept closer to the stand. It looked prestigious and more important than the tower itself. The rest of Sidai could be burning and someone would be dusting away to make it look its finest. The pedestal itself was carved in such a way that the center spiraled around like a dancer spinning. On top of it sat a green box with a small gold latch. It wasn't worn out like an overloved child's toy, but more faded as if a hundred years had passed by since it was first crafted. In other words, its age was very apparent. So to Heng and Zhang, it was the valuable thing they were after.
Heng breathed slowly to ease his nerves. He picked up the box, smiling that their mission was almost over. "Now it's time for the hard—" -crash!- They both looked down to see the box lying open and a shining ball rolling away from it. "—part. Woah," he finished feeling annoyed.
"I swear, Heng. That orb thing better not be broken." Zhang laughed nervously, but with some truth to his statement.
"Look, it's not my fault. I can't grip anything with these stupid boney fingers. If I could get a better body then I would, but… that's not how it works." He leaned down towards the ball that was slowly rolling away. "Geez, look at that thing." The orb was smooth all around and smiling timidly. Beams of light washed over it and shone upon their faces underneath the hoods they wore.
"It's no wonder the general wants it. I mean, gosh, I bet that thing could be sold for so much copper, it's not even funny."
"Yeah, no kidding." I wish I could sell it for a new body. Heng went to wrap his paw around the orb, but instead, he and Zhang soared backward in the room. A giant concussive blast had rushed from the orb, knocking both Heng and Zhang unconscious.
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