Chapter 16: Night of Misery
Dreadfully, the sun slowly disappeared over the horizon's trees, giving no choice but to allow the darkness of night to begin spreading over the vast heavens above. Ever since the dawn of the time, and the birth of civilization, the night has always brought the atmosphere of danger and doom. The darkness can bring all types of terrors to the young and old. The warm, illuminated day had died down, and the cold, colorless, black of night slowly but undeniably seeped over the world. With the light forced away, warmth and life went with it. Alone the large river, by the shallow waters near the forested land, the raiders resided for the time being. Small campfires were made as thugs of varying types from oxen to crocs, rested on their breaks from watch duty. With only sounds of the winds and the chirping of crickets, the men made banter with each other to keep the early night from becoming dreadfully silent. They laughed and chugged ale, around the fire. Some laughed with drunken minds, and some bragged about either extreme crimes they've gotten away with or exotic pleasurable company from their pasts. A vulgar and simpleminded lot made up of common thugs only looking to get paid any way possible. Any Illegal way that is.
Little to their knowledge, the leather uniformed panther woman watched them from aboard the ship's deck. That drunken lot of oafs became loud enough to be heard from the edge of camp, and they disgusted her. Her eyes watched as they all reveled in their stupidity. Strong, hard men, yet were slaves to their primitive, base instincts. Urges to kill, consume and mate as much as possible in a lifetime. In the darkness, she couldn't help but detest her leader's decision to task her with keeping such mewing creatures in check. They could drink themselves to death for all she cared.
"Now… what are you doing out here, huh?" A low, gruff voice sounded.
The she-panther looked to her right, unfortunately discovering the large, pot bellied boar, Renzha who spoke up to her. Looking back to the group of buffoons on ground, Renzha approached, continuing to wear his open vest and shorts, always displaying his fat and unclean image.
"Did ya hear me?" He asked rudely.
She gave a cold blank stare before plainly saying "Yes"
Renzha looked at his gang, rightfully enjoying themselves.
"You watching my boys?" the large boar asked.
"Making sure… those… don't become stupid enough to ruin our plans." She informed coldly.
"Ah give us some credit, we did what we were told, and the rest of us will be here in no time with the merchandise." Renzha said, his large belly moving in reaction to his strolling on the ship deck.
But the panther assassin remained quiet, keeping to herself.
"So, what's the deal with that, um… Genral… Yu, was it? What's the deal with that guy, or his pack too?" The boar asked.
She took a deep breath, making sure to always remain controlled around moronic oafs for the time being as she answered as much as she would be allowed. "He's important to our leader's personal matters."
"I still think we should just kill those wolves and get it over with. They'll just take up space." Renzha argued.
"We're keeping them alive, so we can use them if needed." She replied, her cold, serious tone remaining strong.
"Jeez you really need to lighten up woman." Renzha joked.
A comment as idiotic as that earned him a striking gaze of fury as she dashed to the large oaf, knife in paw just seconds before it was just an inch away from his throat. Raising his paws up, the large boar slowly backed away, taking small but slow steps further from the vengeful vixen in front of him.
"Alright… alright, I can take a hint." Renzha said in a partially sarcastic tone.
Putting away her blade, the panther vixen disgustingly replied "I'm surprised that's possible, what with that thick skull of yours."
"Ha, ha… ah so you can have a sense of humor." Renzha replied.
The assassin simply shook her head in revolt as the large oaf went on his own way. She resumed her watch over those idiotic men, whom half were already out cold from the chugging of ale, if not intoxicated by the loathsome grip of rum. Resting her elbows on the edge guard of the ship, she sighed while bringing her right paw to her forehead. Here she was, one of the order's top, elite assassins, who killed countless generals, noblemen and even rulers of small kingdoms, now forced to command a band of muscle minded buffoons. She sighed to herself while muttering "Gods, how long until this ordeal is over with already?" She resumed her watch, as she seemed to be the only capable, sense driven being in this whole damn camp.
((()-()))
Alone, still and silent, Zhong sat in his cell. Ever since being left to himself, and the surreal encounter with an unwanted spirit, the large wolf decided to spend his time keeping himself within mental check. He meditated as the time slowly slipped by. The lower deck he was in had no windows, illuminated only by the lanterns that hung on the walls and support beams. At first Zhong did his best to accurately guess the passing time, but seconds felt like hours and minutes turned to mere moments, and soon the one eyed wolf found himself unsure of how much the passage of time had flown by.
A lone single guard remained to keep watch, sitting on a wooden chair and laid back against the wall. He kept a vigilant eye on the prisoners, especially the large warrior in his lonesome. Every now and then the guard would give a quiet yawn, but he didn't do much else, other than sit, hold his sheaved sword close and watch. As the hours passed, the bison guard began to look confused, he kept diverting his gaze at the door only door that lead to the other rooms of the lower deck. With his patience wearing thin, the guard finally stood up off of his seat before walking to the door and exiting the room. Once the prisoners were left alone, inside their barred cells, Zhong closed his eyes again, attempting to meditate once more. However, the voice of one of the imprisoned, white wolves interrupted his mental process.
"Are you alright?" The male white lupine asked quietly, to not draw any nearby attention.
Zhong opened his one good eye and looked towards his fellow prisoners. The both of them looked through the bars toward the large lupine.
"Yeah… for now, at least." Zhong replied in an equally hushed voice.
"Are you sure? You got really roughed up." The male wolf asked.
"Don't worry about me, I've suffered worse, believe me." Zhong answered.
The low, dim light from the candles could just barely make out the captives' faces as they continued their small talk.
"Who are you?" The female white wolf asked.
A minute of silence came and went, along with a sigh before Zhong answered "…Yu… my name is Yu."
With a raised eyebrow, the lady lupine questioned "Really? You don't look like a 'Yu' to me?"
The male albino lupine looked to her, replying "Evelyn!?"
"Well I don't mean to be rude." Evelyn defended.
Zhong, not wanting to waste what little, valuable time that remained, broke up the building argument to-be with "It's ok, really it's alright. Who are you two?"
Immediately the two fellow prisoners ceased their bickering to answer politely, the both of them keeping in mind to not raise the volume of their speech even by much.
"Sorry, my name is Trevor, and this is my wife Evelyn." The male wolf answered.
Upon hearing their names, Zhong became curious. They didn't possess names from local provinces, more likely they were foreigners. But once introductions were made, Zhong decided to take this opportunity to gain some potential answers about what transpired in Shu's home village recently.
"Ok, Trevor, Evelyn, what happened at the village exactly?" Zhong answered.
Thinking back at horrible night, Trevor recalled the terrible tragedy that occurred less than a week ago. His wife stayed by his side, her face shown with much worry herself.
Trevor spoke with a tone of quiet horror. "They came late at night, when everyone was asleep. Out of nowhere we woke up from our cots to the sounds of screams and violence. When we got out to check what was going on, the whole town was overrun with those raiders. We tried to stop them, did our best to save anyone we could. But out from the dark we were assaulted by that monstrous vixen who gave you that beating."
Being remembered of that deadly woman, Zhong's mind began to wander with puzzlement regarding that vicious woman. It wasn't very likely for a female to be in command of a band of raiders or bandits. Only few were widely known, such as the fabled Woo Sisters or the Ladies of the Shade. And the brutish thugs currently imprisoning him, Trevor and Evelyn didn't seem the type to tolerate a woman giving orders.
Zhong then asked another question. "Do you think anybody survived?"
With a heavy heart, Trevor answered quietly. "I don't know. When were assaulted by their female leader. The next thing we awakened in here."
Evelyn took a turn of her own to subtly talk. "Wait, what about Galena?"
Trevor looked to his wife as Zhong's ears perked up. "Who's Galena?"
The lupine mother answered "She's our daughter, if anybody escaped from the massacre, she could have."
"Why do you say that?" Zhong asked.
"The day before, we had an argument and well…" Evelyn explained with a short sigh in the middle. "We had a fight and she was so mad she wanted to be alone, so she left a letter saying she'll be camping just a little ways from the village."
"You let her go alone?" Zhong questioned.
"She loves camping, and she can take care of herself… and, we thought the woods nearby would be safe. But, I guess we were wrong, so wrong." Evelyn finished before shedding a few tears down her face, restraining herself not to cry or make noise.
Trevor, as he hugged his wife, turned back to Zhong, and asked a quietion himself. "Zhong, how did you get into all this?"
Zhong moved his arms and legs ever slightly, to keep his limbs from falling asleep while not moving too much to make the cuff around his wrists and ankles tighter in reaction. As he did this, told of how he came to be here. "My girlfriend was born and raised in this village. She moved to the Valley of Peace, where we met. We lived there with my son. A couple days ago her family came to visit. Then they got the idea for us all to come spend a vacation at their home village. So we came, and became captives. I know they're keeping them alive, but I don't know for how long?"
"Why did they choose not to kill you, or your family?" Trevor asked.
Pausing a minute to ponder on that question himself, Zhong simply replied "I don't know."
A few silent moment of dread came and went. The subtle creaking of the ship and low howl of the wind was all that was heard.
"So, you're whole family is here, imprisoned?" Evelyn asked.
"Not all of them. My son wasn't captured. I bet he's going to get help as we speak." Zhong answered.
"What's your son's name?" the white she-wolf asked.
"Erdan… his name is Erdan." Zhong answered.
"That's an… odd name for around here?" Evelyn remarked.
"Dear!?" Trevor replied.
"Sorry, it's just not expected from the people in this country. No offence, Yu." She apologized.
"None taken." Zhong replied simply.
Trevor spoke up, asking "Do you think your son will actually get help?"
Zhong chuckled under his breath. "Trust me, you have no idea what that boy is capable of. He's been through and done so much for someone of his age." He said with pride.
"How old is, your son?" Evelyn asked.
"Fifteen"
"Our daughter is just a year younger, fourteen." Trevor replied.
"And, what is she like-"
CLINK! Sounded the knob on the door. Quickly and quietly Zhong, Trevor and Evelyn resumed their previous spots in their cells and acted as if nothing transpired in the last five minutes. The same bison guard walked in, giving a long yawn before closing the door, walking to his chair and sitting back down on his spot with his sheaved weapon on his lap. Zhong kept quiet and hoped that his son Erdan did survive, and was indeed on his way with Po and Five to rescue them.
((()-()))
(Fire Emblem Fates ost – "The Dim Abyss")
The light from the camp's fire lightly spread on the henchmen huddled around it, laughing and making humorously drunk conversation as the dark night continued.
"And so I say to her; Lady, you and me-"
"You've never even been with a woman before!" A fellow oxen protested.
"SO!" His fellow goon argued.
Suddenly, a voice loudly shouted "They're here!" And everyone in camp, from the men sitting by the fire to the raiders on the ship's upper deck, was made alert and drew their attention to the woods. Out of the almost pitch black thickness, came the small convoy of raiders and wilds cats in black, as large, strong ox men hulled three whole wagons filled with silent, subdued villagers. One their destination was finally reached at last, the oxen let go of their grips of the wagon handles before slumping down on the ground. Didn't matter that it was the dirt covered earth, for a whole day the six of them (two for each wagon) dragged a great amount of cargo down the road and in the forest, carrying around sixty-ish people, whose combined weight demanded great strength and stamina to transport unconsciously. As the large oxen finally got their deserved rest, Renzha, his men (the ones that weren't piss head drunk) and the panther woman approached to reunite with their allies, and evaluate their efforts.
The panther woman walked to the wagons' wooden bars containing their prisoners, and a hefty amount by her count. She rejoined some of her brothers and sisters of shadow, whom assisted with the operation that resulted in this great bounty.
"From the looks of things, it seems you did a fair job." The panther in leather approved.
"The mission was accomplished perfectly. With half of the Jade Palace masters removed, the remaining warriors were mere child's play." One of the masked felines replied with pride and accomplishment in his voice.
"And what about the other half of your team: the ones distracting the masters?" The panther asked.
"They'll easily shake off the masters, far away from their sacred valley. They'll meet up with us in Fu Zha." He answered.
Giving an affirmative nod, the panther looked towards the captured villagers. Renzha approached the imprisoned adults, noticing that their bodies were motionless, yet their eyes were open and moved to scan their surroundings.
"Hey, what's with these runts? I thought you'd all knock 'em out cold?" The large boar questioned. The sight of eyes watching yet mouths remaining silent gave him a creepy feeling in his fat gut.
The panther woman answered the oaf's querry while her fellow ninjas retired to the ship for some rightly earned rest. As she spoke, she toyed with the hair on a goose woman's head, circling her extended claw on the bird's forehead, invoking great fear in the little woman's mind, yet was unable to scream or even mutter a single sound.
"My warriors, including myself, use a special toxic concoction that's been perfected over years of work. We tip darts in it before blowing them onto the target. First, it paralyzes them, then renders their minds to black out for hours. Eventually they reawaken, but the toxin effects their vocal cords, taking away their ability to speak or even scream." She made a malicious laugh, making sure that the poor prisoners heard every word she said.
"How long s'it last?" Renzha asked.
"Most likely a couple days, more than enough to keep them quiet while taking them wherever." She answered, giving a sinister smirk at the helpless innocents.
Renzha looked at the three caged wagons, looking at all the aware, yet silent soon to be profits. Her words rang true. At this moment, the large boar began to realize the legitimacy of this mysterious group, and why Hang Wo held these fearful felines in such high regard.
"Damn, now that's some effective stuff." Renzha appraised.
"Of course it is." The panther woman replied. "Because unlike you or your men, that toxin had competent creators."
The large boar gave apauled expression, which was returned by a sly smirk from the vicious vixen before she joined her brethren inside the ship. Grumbling to himself, Renzha muttered "Fucking bitch!" when a second later a short dagger flew just an inch from his head and landed in the side of the wagon. He dared not look back, only leaving the blade alone and went to his own business. Had she been any other woman, she'd be nothing but a blood bashed corpse in just a minute. But for the sake of his own hide, Renzha refrained from talking or even looking back. Deciding to watch his choice of wording in the near future, he called to his men, ranging from oxen, bulls and crocodiles together. Now rallied and no longer drunk (that is for those who weren't pissed to their heads yet) Renzha gave his men their orders and soon he and his gang carried the soon to be slaves on board their ship before encaging them again.
Suddenly, the doors to the inner bowls of the ship were opened, as Shu and her family were brought out of their sleep. Looking down hall, in came the same raiders and ruffians who imprisoned them, now carrying in more prisoners to keep. Shu took a moment to examine the pour woman being dragged on the wooden deck, when in a moment of pure shock, she recognized her; it was Mrs. Yung!
"M-Mrs. Yung!?" Shu exclaimed.
Though the goat lady was awake and aware of her surroundings, with her white open eyes staring at her lupine neighbor/friend, no doubt she was just as surprised to see Shu here and vice versa. Mrs. Yung's face showed with mortal terror, yet despite being hailed by the kind and young she-wolf, Yung didn't say a word, not even scream or yell in fear.
"W-what are you doing to her!" Shu shouted defensively.
The brutish croc ignored the captive wolf as he opened a cell before tossing Mrs. Yung inside, shutting the cage afterwards. Before Shu could demand more questions, more thuggish men walked on board, carrying more of Shu's neighbors from the Valley of Peace: Gerald and Margret, Mr. Ping, and of all people, Shirong's wife Yuing, whom was holding her baby in her arms while the two deer were thrown into a cold, dark cell. As the minutes passed, more and more innocent people came and the cells filled and filled. One of the last of which was Jimbo, whom was placed into the same cell as Renshu, because nearly all the cells were devoid of free space. Once completed, the men left to the outside and closed the doors to the ship, leaving the prisoners in the dark once again. Shu, and her family couldn't help but remain speechless as their lonely prison was filled with scared, soundless people. Their expressions shown nothing but mortal fear and terror of unknown fathoming. Shu could only hope that she'd be able to talk with her neighbors soon. How horrible a state they are in, she thought, for they have no mouth, but must scream.
Finished with loading their soon to be profits, Renzha's men could at last put themselves at ease after much raiding, hulling and loading. They gathered around the campfires, drank and laughed, all while the shadowy felines separated themselves from such degenerate rabble, finding slumber within the wooden walls of the slavers' vessel. Unbeknown to the small army of villainous henchmen and secretive assassins, was a pair of eyes watching from within thick bushes perched on a tall hill blanketed by trees. Through the long lens of a spy glass, Fang watched as the caravan of misery arrived at the lake and unloaded its contents into yet another prison. Crawling backwards and out of the bush, Fang quickly made his way back to the groups camp, now set up with a small fire surrounded by large stone, a good enough place that will conceal the small band of heroes for the night. The young rabbit rushed to his friends as Erdan and Yingyu finished pitching the tents, while Galena and the samurai Mushi prepared a late meal over fire and pot.
("The Dim Abyss" ends)
"I… I saw them, down by the lake." Fang reported, now taking a breath.
"What else did you see?" Mushi asked, taking a break from slicing vegetables.
Fang sat down on the grassy ground as he answered. "There were three wagons, all filled with people. I couldn't see close enough to recognize anybody, though, sorry."
Looking towards her new bunny friend, Galena said "It's ok Fang. So what did they do to the villagers?"
Erdan and Yingyu walked over, the orange and yellow light from the fire softly covering them.
"After arriving, they threw all the people into their ship. Well, not LITTERALLY throwing them. But they're all inside that boat." Fang answered.
"If they have everyone, then wouldn't they put out the campfires and get ready to leave?" Erdan asked, bringing his paw to his chin.
"Actually, it looks like they're staying for the night. The goons that brought the captives made a couple more fires and brought out food and stuff." Fang informed.
"I expected that" Mushi stated. "They've had a long last few days, raiding a village only to hull wagons full of prisoners will drain even the most able of men. They're most probably resting for the night before leaving."
With a raised eyebrow, Fang asked "Do you want me to keep spying on them?"
Erdan, sluggishly walking over said "No, you've taken your turn, so I'll keep an eye on them… n-now…" The teenage wolf began to sway before fatigue started to take his body, almost losing balance and falling to the ground, had it not for Yingyu, who quickly caught her friend. She held her arms around his torso to keep him steady while guiding his tired self to sit on the ground.
"Easy Erdan, take it easy." Yingyu advised.
Galena ceased her soup stirring to come to her fellow lupine's aid. Kneeling down, the white wolf girl placed her paw on Erdan's forehead then checked his paws and abdomen area.
"You're not taking any watch duties tonight Erdan, you're too exhausted." Galena said upon finishing her diagnosis.
"I… I'm… I'm f-fine-" Erdan said tiredly.
"You're NOT fine." Galena said back with an authorative tone. "You've been through a lot in the past couple days, and you didn't get much sleep the previous night. You need to rest."
His visible posture and reflected his condition, tired eyes paired with an almost motionless body as his limbs rested.
"We're already fighting raiders. So no one's going to be fighting fatigue on my watch. Understand?" Galena informed. Erdan thought to himself a moment before replying with a nod, all while still in Yingyu's arms.
"Alright," Galena said. "Then get some rest and food, doctor's orders."
Erdan, breathing in and out to calm himself, suddenly realized that Yingyu hadn't left his side for the past few moments. The deer teen's arms and hooved hands were still around his torso from helping his balance.
"Um, Yingyu… you… can let go now." Erdan reminded.
The young deer however didn't hear a word he said, despite being just inches away. In the current moment she was in a state of entrancement. Her arms were around his torso, and her hands lay on Erdan's bare chest, which was now rid of his battle armaments, of which he removed since setting camp. Silently Yingyu stared at his body. For reasons she didn't fully understand, Yingyu was captivated by his biceps and pectorals, the latter of which her paw slowly moved and rubbed over, feeling their developed strength and-
"Yingyu, I'm alright now." Erdan pleaded.
"I… I don't mind…" she replied unknowingly.
"YINGYU!" Erdan said again.
Suddenly the young noble girl was brought out of her trance, and she separated her limbs from his naked torso. Realizing what transpired, she muttered "S-sorry, I… I…"
But Erdan held up his paw and said "It's ok, forget it."
A long, awkward minute came and passed as blushed cheeks were faintly visible on both teens faces. Galena raised a curious eyebrow, while Fang paid little attention. Choosing to keep the group focused on the mission at hand, Mushi spoke up with respect but in a commanding tone. "Yingyu, why don't you take a shift on watching the raider's camp. Unlike the rest of us, you've still got plenty of energy." He said while finishing the soup.
"O-ok… I'll… go do that." The young deer replied, partially embaressed.
Yingyu walked by Fang, who handed her the spy glass Shifu supplied them with. Before leaving the camp, Mushi gave the teenage noble instructions. Mostly to just remain inside the bush, keep warm with a blanket and use the spyglass sparingly for less risk of moonlight glaring in the lens. Before she left camp, she was given one last piece of advice.
"Remember Yingyu, as long as their campfires are lit, that ship remains down there. If they ever go out, let us know the moment it happens. Understand?" Mushi said.
Yingyu nodded before climbing up the hill. Mushi took some bowls from the pack he carried and poured the finished soup inside. After handing a bowl to Fang, who instantly begun eating his food, Galena pour a bowl herself before bringing it to Erdan. As he rested on the soft ground, the young warrior ate his food while Galena checked the bandages on his arm from the previous two days.
"Something wrong?" Erdan asked before eating a spoonful of stew.
"I'm just going to check the condition of your wound and then change the bandages." Galena answered.
Upon removing the stained cloth on Erdan's upper arm, revealing the red, stitched wound that was slowly healing since first being treated. Reaching into her satchel, Galena pulled out her book and flipped through its pages. After double checking the tome's written information, she pulled out some white cloths from her pack, cleaned up Erdan's arm and re-wrapped it again.
Curiously, Erdan asked "How'd you learn to treat wounds?"
The young, white she-wolf paused a moment before answering his question, once her work on his arm was concluded. "My parents taught me. They're both doctors. Everything I know I learned from them."
"You want to be a doctor too?" Erdan said.
"Yeah, my family has always been healers, for generations." She then picked up her book, showing its various contents within the yellowed pages, displaying paragraphs of written texts and highly detailed drawings of body parts, medicines and plants. "This is one of my parents' journals. Years of research collected and recorded in this book."
Erdan flipped through the pages, careful to keep his stew away from the delicate written wisdom. While the information likely would be fascinating to him, all of the text was unreadable to the teenage wolf.
"I don't know what all this says. Is it in another language?" Erdan asked, turning to his fellow lupine.
"Yes, my family line is from another country, far away from here." Galena replied, now having a bowl of stew to eat.
"Where are you from?" Fang asked.
"I don't know exactly where my family originated. But I do remember being in Europe when I was really little." She informed while eating her supper.
Looking up from his stew, Mushi commented "That's all the way across a continent, how did you end up here, in China of all places?"
Sitting down next to Erdan, Galena answered "Well… I don't remember much, but me and my parents fled the country for our lives."
"Why?" Erdan asked, now fully invested.
Taking a collective sigh, Galena explained. "Where my family was originally from, there was this powerful group of people, mostly men that wore robes and resided in giant cathedrals. The people around them blindly believed what they deemed right and wrong. My parents studied medicine and treated the folk in our town. They were really good at it. But, soon word reached the men who didn't like people trusting their care in someone else. My mother said that there were lies about my family that were spread around."
"What kind of lies?" Fang asked, slurping some soup.
Galena sighed again before continuing. "Lies like; my parents were actually using dark magic or witchcraft and that they were under the control of evil spirits. Claims so far from the truth it's disgusting." Galena rebuked. "One night, those same men lead a mod to our village, with torches and swords in hands. My father saw them out the window and grabbed me and my mother in time for us to escape. We made it out with our lives and a few small things, like the book I have here." She said while patted her family tome. "But, that mod burned down our house, along with all of the medicine and research inside. Generations of work, care and learning… burnt up in just one night."
Looking towards the fire, Galena was shown with an expression of regret and loss.
"I… I'm sorry for your family." Erdan condoled.
"Thanks." Galena replied. She then continued. "My parents thought it best to travel from then on. First we moved from country to country, planning on finding a nice place to set up again. But, my mother had an idea, and soon we became nomads, traveling the world to learn of medicine and care treatments from various people on earth."
"How many countries have you visited?" Mushi asked.
"Oh, plenty of countries; Ireland, Scotland, Arabia, Russia, North Africa, I grew up in many places and my parents learned so much while traveling." Galena's face lit up with glee with a thought that crossed her mind. "There's this place called Egypt, where the people there actually figured out how the tell if a woman is pregnant or not."
Surprised, Erdan curiously asked "And how do they figure that out?"
Galena paused while her eyes looked away for a moment. "Um, it… may not be the best time to explain… after all we're…eating."
"I wanna know, tell me, please." Erdan eagerly asked.
Hesitating for a moment, she granted his request, but whispered it into his ear. Erdan took a spoonful of soup, but upon learning of his desired information, he instantly swallowed while baring a disturbed face. Galena pulled away from his ear, and Erdan gave an expression of subtle disturbance.
"What did she say?" Fang asked.
"You… you don't want to know… I… I'm gonna eat this later." Erdan replied before putting his bowl on the ground, still holding a quarter of stew inside. Galena couldn't help but giggle, feeling guilty of what she did, but not by much.
Looking over to the armored warrior, who now held a bowl of stew for himself, the three teens watched with surprise as Mushi removed his helmet and mask, finally revealing his face. He was a brown bear, most likely in his mid thirties, large and strong just as his species were known for. But what surprised the kids, was his lack of scars or horrible markings. He looked normal, though ideas like such were built up in the teens' minds. Looking at his stew, Mushi quietly ate his soup slowly, so he could savor every last sip of flavor and broth.
"So, what are you all about, Mushi?" Fang asked.
The large, armored bear remained quiet, continuing to eat his soup.
"Hello, you can hear us, right?" Fang asked again.
"Yes" The samurai answered.
"Well, care to talk about something?" The bunny asked again.
Silence followed again before Erdan asked "Mushi, you said before that you're on a mission form your master right, so-"
(Fire Emblem Fates ost – "How Can That Be")
"My master is dead." The bear said in his deep but serious voice.
Instantly all three teen's turned their attention to their mysterious friend. Puzzled, confused and curious, Galena then asked "H-have you been all alone?"
Looking at the young people, Muhsi realized the burning curiosity he set in them. Rather than remain silent, he decided to (at the very least) provide some answers this time.
"Years ago, I served a great Lord in Japan. He was known and respected across the country. He came here to China to speak on behalf of Japan, to negotiate matters with the royal family. I… was part his personal guard. We arrived at a city that'd we would pass through. But, I was young then, and decided to tail a suspicious man I thought would be an assassin. He turned out to be a common hustler, a con-artist. But I soon heard screams and sounds of chaos. I rushed back to the market square, but by then, I was too late. My fellow samurai were dead, as was our master, who's end was brought with an arrow in his head."
The three teens listened with pity as Mushi finished. "I failed him. Allowed my young arrogance best me, and I paid the price. I tried to find them, bring them to justice, but they left the city quickly. That night… I planned my seppuku."
"Seppuku, what's that?" Fang asked.
Mushi drew a small sword strung to his waist and showed it. As the blade was lit by the campfire, he explained its purpose. "All samurai, are given one of these swords. If we were to fail our masters, or bring dishonor upon ourselves, we would draw this blade… and kill ourselves with it."
All three young faces, in an instant, suddenly showed with shock after such a dark revelation.
"Y-you were… were going to…kill yourself?" Erdan asked with a hint of disturbance.
"Honor and perfection is held highest in regard for my people. Bishido, the code of the samurai, dictates that if we were to fail our duties, or break our code, the act of the Hara-kiri would allow us an honorable death." Mushi explained.
Erdan raised an eyebrow, asking "Well, you're still alive and here talking with us, so what made you change your mind?"
Mushi sheaved his short sword away as he explained his reasons for living and breathing this very day. "The night after my master was assassinated, I dishonored myself and my family. I planned my hara-kiri for after I would enjoy one last meal. But before I performed the ritual, a man appeared out of nowhere in a flash of light."
"A flash of light, just… out of nowhere?" Fang asked with an eyebrow raised.
"Yes… the man told me that I wasn't meant to end my life then and there. He told me that I was now purposed to bring the Shadow Claw to justice, and in doing so would restore my honor." Mushi explained.
"What was the man like?" Erdan asked.
The campfire continued to glow warmly as the samurai explained his strange experience. "He was dressed in clothes I never saw before. He appeared to look like a leopard, a very clean and well kept one. I also remember the held an odd trinket in his hand. Then, after explaining what he needed to say, a flash of light appeared and he vanished."
"So who do you think he was?" Fang asked.
"Well… a god of course, what else could he have been." Mushi replied.
Galena raised an eyebrow and with a reluctant tone said "Gods huh?"
Taking note of this, Mushi asked "You don't believe my story?"
Taking a moment to compose her words, Galena replied "I believe in what I can see and feel and study, not in wild stories of all powerful deities or some grand being controlling everything. If anything, my past has taught me that some people take their beliefs too seriously. No offence."
"None… taken." Mushi replied simply.
"Erdan what do you think?" Galena looked to her fellow wolf. But he seemed to be lost in his own thoughts. "Erdan?"
Erdan simply stared into space as his mind was in deep speculation. He muttered "Agent Wilson?" under his breath as-
"ERDAN!" Galena said by his ear.
"WHAT, WHAT?" Erdan said suddenly.
"I asked you if you believe in spirits and nonsense like that?" She asked.
Taking a moment to think, Erdan replied "Y-yeah… I do."
"Really?" Galena said back.
"Yeah, I do." Erdan looked down as he saw a leaf and remembered a teaching from his puppy days living in the mountains. "My parents explained it like this. This leaf is like us, here and now." Holding up the leaf, Erdan then tossed it into the campfire. It burnt up as the ashes from its remains floated upwards. "I believe that when we die, our spirit, like the ashes from that leaf, move on to another life… somewhere else."
"And you just, believe it, just like that, without proof?" Galena asked.
"Well, it's not about having proof, it's about looking at our world in a totally different way." Erdan explained. "What do you think Fang?"
But Fang didn't reply. One look revealed that the young rabbit fell asleep in the middle of their banter.
"We should get some rest." Mushi ordered. "Erdan, go with Fang into the tent and get some sleep. Galena, go to Yingyu and take her shift for awhile."
The two teen wolves nodded, and after saying their goodnights, Erdan gently carried his best friend, Fang into their tent. Laying his head down on the soft pillow, Erdan slowly let his exhaustion overtake him as his eyes closed into slumber.
("How Can That Be" ends)