40. FREEDOM
Something always happens at the end of a battle. The losers retreat as quickly as possible, while the winners usually celebrate with days of celebration and parties.
But this time it was different. The clash had tried everyone, without exception, both psychologically and physically. That February was not particularly cold, but enough to cause more problems.
Despite the fact that the humans had been rejected, there was a realization that, for the moment, there was nothing to celebrate.
Shen was perched on a branch belonging to a fallen tree. His wound was still fresh and he avoided trying harder than necessary.
Lang Min joined him shortly after. Unable to climb the log, she waited for him to descend. She had broken her leg when a human, driven by despair, had used one of their iron machines equipped with a powerful metal arm, to cut down trees and crush as many of them as possible. She had ended up putting her fellow men in crisis by hurting them too and this had made her let her guard down.
She and Shen had separated during the fight as at one point Mei had run after the peacock leaving the wounded without protection. The peafowl had thought of securing them and then following her friend, but that human had stopped her shortly after and found herself forced to retreat. A branch had broken her right leg and before she could become easy prey, Juan and Lien had rushed to her aid.
Now thanks to crutches made from one of the many trees felled by humans, he was able to walk even in the thick of vegetation.
Shen took one last look at the place of the fight, far away from where they were and gave her a smile "How are you?" He asked gently stroking her cheek "I'll survive!" She replied "Didn't you see anything?" She asked worried.
It was feared that someone would return to the attack, but luckily there hadn't been even an attempt on the part of the humans yet. Indeed, they seemed to have evaporated.
"No! Let's go back! " He said putting his right wing around her shoulders before setting off inside their new hiding place.
Just inside his eye fell on Zhan and his wolves fast asleep next to each other. They must have been on guard duty, and the exhaustion from their healing wounds must have been too much to live up to their good intentions. A glint in the dark gave the peacock confirmation of Bo's presence. Shen sent him a look of alert so that he understood that he should not move from there, before going deeper into the cave and emerging into a dense forest.
The makeshift shelter hadn't been looked for as carefully as the first one and it was an area of the wood full of rocks protruding from the ground. Some hid small caves, but nothing to do with their previous base.
Most shelters were built with wood, straw, or tents stolen from humans.
At the end of the fight Shen had passed out due to a severe concussion due to the explosion of Carmela's weapon and had been unconscious for about a week.
Xian had taken the lead by deciding in an illogical and absurd way to go and inspect the battlefield.
Very useful things had been found, such as additional supplies of food, blankets, tents and weapons that they had destroyed, but they had risked meeting other humans or letting them discover the current location of others.
Since the wounds prevented them from moving, most of the animals were intent on animatedly and interruptedly discussing even stupid things, in order to pass the time that seemed to pass too slowly.
As soon as they noticed Shen, however, they fell silent, bowing their heads in respect.
The peacock initially believed that this gratitude would diminish over time, enough for the animals to realize how hard life in the wild was and how absurd his strategy was.
Going face-to-face with an enemy with lethal weapons hadn't been the idea of the year. Sure, the most seriously injured were now out of harm's way, but those scars would become marks to be worn for life. A silent reminder of what they had been through.
But it didn't happen as expected. Everyone treated him with the utmost respect and obeyed his every order or request and if they had to complain they kept it to themselves.
Shen felt that something had changed, even if he didn't know what, nothing would have been the same!
He decided to go to bed for a while. It was early afternoon and if he wanted that day to pass too he had to devise a plan so that death would not take him out of boredom.
Mei walked quietly among the trees. The signs of the fight on her were less obvious. A scratch on the right eye and a burn on the left forearm and a bruised shoulder. Stop. End. It had gone well with her.
The interruption of the constant chatter made her turn around and saw Shen and Lang Min heading for their tent.
That peacock! The victory over humans had made everyone trust him blindly and had given birth to something unexpected and new in everyone: loyalty!
Okay, she and a few others already were against Shen, but now they were sure that following him, the future would be bright!
Indeed, between a bird raised by humans and almost died to defend one of them, compared to a Prince educated to fight and protect his people, the choice was easy! Although for everyone else he was a mercenary who had fought for them, the result remained unchanged.
Kang had been badly injured and Master had been watching over him ever since, along with Rose and Sam. He and Xu were the worst offenders.
Mei did not despise the old peacock as many had found themselves doing after his "act of courage". He had always been kind and thoughtful and really cared about the people he loved, without making any distinctions. This was a great virtue, but due to their past differences with humans, it was common for not everyone to be able to see through the hateful veneer placed in their minds and over their eyes.
She could clearly realize how broken Shen was about her condition, but she still couldn't figure out if her hostility towards humans was reborn because of what had happened or, like her, he too understood.
Equipped with a gong, she walked up to one of the main entrances to the valley where they were hiding and hit the metal with a piece of wood causing the sound to echo inside the small cave and in the ears of the sleeping wolves.
It was one of the few things she had brought with her and as always her intuition had not disappointed her: it would have been very useful!
"Now I understand how Derek managed to capture Shen! If your efficiency is this you will never get my trust! " The growl of the leader of the wolves made her understand that she was right, as always "But since that damned peacock is of another opinion I will continue to look for a meeting ground." What is not done out of friendship! Imagine for love! Already she feared that feeling which for now was unknown to her. That towards the soul mate, the partner! Family affections were quite another thing!
"We are some of the few who can make the rounds as quiet, safe and fast as possible, so let's get moving!" He said trying not to laugh at the wolf's confused expression. It would have seemed like a beautiful and good provocation!
"Rob a supermarket? Are you serious?" Rose asked, more amused than surprised by her friend's proposal. "They need a lot of supplies for this trip! They will take forever to start if they have to cultivate them! Once we can give concrete help, don't we do anything? " Sam asked trying for the umpteenth time to convince her. "Are you stupid?" Screamed the girl "Do you remember why we only attacked the various farms that surrounded the mountain?" She asked astonished "No! ... wait ... I guess: why were they the closest?" Asked the friend.
"No! No, no, no, no! Because they are not used to our technology! How do you explain that the automatic door opens thanks to a mechanism, rather than through magic? " Rose asked, voicing her concerns.
"So ... you fear they might be afraid of us ...?" Sam asked unsure.
"No!" She replied "Then let's tell him it's magic and let's finish it there!" She tried to solve him.
Rose began brooding in an attempt to hold on to anything to make Sam demote his suicidal ideas.
"The cameras!" Rose screamed again "What?" Sam asked confused.
"The supermarket is a public place!" She pointed out the girl as she gesticulated and ran her hands through her hair nervously.
"And so far it's not raining!" He said before recovering the situation by adding "What a problem there is! The whole world knows they exist thanks to your ... Derek! " He corrected himself at the last.
Rose stamped her feet on the ground "Yes, but they always thought that even if anthropomorphic they were stupid! Do you realize what would happen if they found out that they know how to forge weapons, build ships and fight? " Rose asked in exasperation.
Sam was unable to remain serious and a broad smile broke on his face "I'd pay to see their reaction!" He said holding back his laughter "Although after the fight I think they are aware of it!" He added.
"I do not believe!" Rose replied "My father kept a secret that they were able to speak, so I think they have already found a justification for what happened!" He said with extreme confidence "Maybe that's why no one is looking for them!" Sam lit up "But if they see them again I think the hunt will be reopened!" He observed.
The lethal look that his friend threw him forced him to think carefully about the problem and in a few seconds he found the solution.
"In supermarkets there must be a control room ... you know, where they keep the records ... I don't know what it's called, but that room exists!" He concluded.
"Oh, for Christ's sake ... stop going around it and get to the point!" The girl on the verge of bursting with growing anxiety urged him on.
"So: animals steal all long-life food and it's not too weird or too processed and we steal the records! Ah ... someone has to knock out the few people who will work at that time and ... there must be a pole! If by chance a stranger wants to go shopping, he must be stopped or made to go elsewhere! " Sam explained.
"So ..." Rose said taking a pen and a notebook "No snacks or various crap ... biscuits I would say yes! Do we also steal trolleys? ... no, too inconvenient to take them to the forest! We need some sacks! And I'd say it's better to hit it during the night! " He finished writing.
"Of course yes! Did you want to do it during rush hour? " Sam asked, unable to understand how she could have thought that he was so stupid as to do such a thing in the sunlight!
Even five-year-olds know that thieves steal at night! Well most of the thieves at least ... they do!
The days had gone by faster than everyone perceived them, and a month quickly passed since the final confrontation.
Shen was aware that it wasn't going to be easy, but that feline made it impossible to try to understand his real condition.
Ever since he woke up, Xu hadn't said a word. The left eye was lost forever, the right one would never see very well, but something was saved.
The wounds on his face would have left visible scars.
His sight would not return and yet he seemed unwilling to accept it as he tried to drag himself from one side of his tent to the other.
"You need rest if you want to heal!" Shu said made nervous by the panther's behavior. Xu hissed as he put too much strain on his burned left shoulder.
"Listen to it!" Shen interjected with authoritarian "You must be strong to face the journey!" He concluded. The feline looked at him suspiciously and aware that he would not have articulated a word, the peacock decided to answer his silent question even if he had to admit that such behavior infuriated him.
"Humans are defeated! As soon as your wounds and those of others are healed and when you stop acting like an infant, we will go home!" He said trying to appeal to every ounce of patience he possessed not to land the panther and speak to him while one of its blades was menacingly resting on his jugular.
"Do you want ... me to come with you?" The cat asked, more surprised than Shen expected.
"What questions do you do?" He asked perplexed "I'm disfigured! And now as a warrior I will never be the same! Without an eye for Dishi too it will be easy to beat me!" Xu said heartbroken.
"You know well that the value of a warrior does not depend on his size!" The she-wolf pointed out. Ghosts were excellent fighters, even though seeing them wouldn't be the first thing one would think of.
"Stop feeling sorry for yourself! Otherwise I'll start believing what you say! We all came out with new scars! If you let yourself get down you will let the humans win! Once healed you will find a way to overcome your new limits! " Shen said before stepping out of the tent.
It was what he had done. All his life he had been told that he was weak and frail. But he had proved otherwise by becoming a ferocious warrior in the art of the Califo.
"We have a problem!" Syaoran's voice reached him even before he entered the tent. "Damn black wolves!" Snarled Shu who, for days now, barely refrained from attacking the other alpha.
"I'm not talking about wolves!" He stopped her. "Humans?" The wolf asked worriedly. "No!" Syaoran answered only to lower his ears when Shu growled, showing his fangs, a sign that he had to explain himself as soon as possible.
"E-here! The guys ... said they know a way to collect enough supplies for the entire trip ... in just one day! " The wolf explained.
Shen's crest rose in surprise. The curiosity was very strong, combined with his good intentions of trying to be friendly towards humans, he made him leave the tent to listen to what they had to propose.
"It is exciting!" Cong stated as he and the rest of the ghosts were balancing on a thick rope that separated them from the construction of the humans.
"Shut up and keep the claws inside! Rose said not to damage the rope in the least, otherwise the humans would notice us immediately! " Genji said she was the first to reach the roof of what the bipeds called "Supermarket" and that she would solve their problems.
They entered the structure through a window on the roof and found themselves where the girl wanted. There was only one person who controlled the magic mirrors.
The same ones who used their captors to watch their every move on the reservation.
"Even at night these humans think about food!" Dishi pointed out that thanks to the cameras he could see how many actual people there were in the building.
Genji looked at the screens and couldn't feel worried. There were only four humans in that huge room, aside from the huge amount of food.
Three were deciding what to take, while the last had the task of checking that they paid what was agreed. Rose had insisted on giving a little lesson on how the place worked, believing it was "vital" for them to be successful.
They waited half an hour before only one alert human remained, as the other had stunned him. But getting rid of the latter had been easier than expected. It was enough to enter the great room where the food was kept, to emit noises because the human ran terrified towards her companion, in the rooms where there were the magic mirrors, so that the mustelids could stun her too!
"Perfect! Now I'm going to call the others! " Cong said running to the door. The squirrel took a hit when it opened by itself, but decided to try to get out before it decided to close itself, trapping them inside ...
With the only result of giving a deadly skull against the glass.
As if he wanted to make fun of him, the door opened soon after, but Cong was not a fool! He would not have fallen into his stupid game a second time, opting to exit through the window they had entered.
He tried to ignore with all his might, the comrades who laughed like crazy at his bad figure and inevitable defeat, inflicted on him by those damned human inventions!
Rose couldn't get the smile off her face.
The door "that opens by itself", "magical", "living", or whatever other name the animals had given it had been a very difficult challenge to overcome.
But once inside, the hard part was trying to stick to the plan without getting distracted by new things.
Sam had guarded the frozen food as soon as Deshi had spread the peas on the floor and Bao had tried to eat some frozen fish.
While some of them were playing with the crate, or rather, destroying it, the girl ran to a specific department taking large plastic bags.
Why worry so much about how they would move supplies easily and safely when the answer was right under their nose?
"Guo try to relax! There are Huo, Hua and Hui standing guard! " She took it while she tasted the food packed in colored bags.
"Unbelievable that owls have such similar names! I need to do it on purpose! " Ji joked the lioness.
"I'm not worried about any intruders!" The panther pointed out "I'm just amazed. I think humans are even more dangerous than we think! " He said when he saw that the animals of the human world ended up on the table. The girl had confessed it, but seeing him had a different effect than hearing him tell!
Shen had jumped onto a large shelf and was scrutinizing the situation on the top.
He had to admit that, for once, the kids' ideas weren't so bad.
Rose had told them that the humans had grown lazy and were preparing food that could be eaten years later, perfect for such a long journey.
The peacock knew that they could also stock up for the overland journey after the voyage, without being forced to steal. They were already considered bad omens because of their color ... better not to give people one more reason to hate them.
The less attention they attracted, the better.
Shen snorted. He was becoming like Kang. Shy, shy and without the slightest courage to face ... ok not this!
Proof was the wound that had been inflicted on him while sparing Rose such suffering.
But the peacock knew that if they were branded as dangerous it would be difficult, if not impossible, to escape the imperial army and he wanted to stay in known territory without having to leave China.
A warm day in May.
Almost two years had now passed since the escape.
Carmela's surgery had slowed everything down, but finally the time had come.
Sam's father had surprised everyone by revealing that he had taken Rose into his custody and that he would take care of her as he had promised his mother.
On that occasion the two boys had discovered that the two had been good friends in the past and how he had helped Isabelle escape from Derek.
The most trusted man had betrayed him! The subtle irony towards the Collector showed no sign of disappearing!
This had slowed down and made the girl think carefully. He was seventeen and even though he was thrilled with the desire to go to the world populated by anthropomorphic animals, that of going to university with his friends was stronger.
The result of his decision was a farewell.
But knowing that they would all be safe, just once across the sea, helped.
The huge galleon was moored near a natural quay, hidden from prying eyes. She and Sam were helping to load up the last few things, while most of the animals were already aboard, ready for the imminent departure.
Even though there were few who gave her sad looks, Rose was sure she would miss them all equally.
There was only the anchor to hoist aboard. It was time!
Kang approached her with a knowing smile and the girl hugged him eagerly.
No words were needed. Not because it wouldn't have been enough, but because with a single glance and that hug they had already said everything.
Sam had stood aside in obvious embarrassment. He would have liked to shake hands ... wings or legs, smiles and exchange glances of understanding, but he knew that not everyone would appreciate. So he had decided to stand by and enjoy that moment.
When Kang and Lu-Chu let Rose go it was the younger peacocks' turn to say goodbye to their friend. Excluding Shen, who had stayed at a safe distance so as to make things clear.
"Good luck!" Xian told her "You will do great things!" Jun encouraged her.
After each of them said goodbye, Rose walked to the wooden platform that separated the ship's deck from the mainland.
But before she or Sam could reach him, she ran back to Kang and left him a note. "To remind you that you will always be in my heart!" He said with tears in his eyes.
"You are my daughter, my life! I will love you forever and I will stay with you even if we are separated! " Lu-Chu said hugging Rose as she couldn't stop the tears. The girl was crying too, but she was happy. Aware that a wonderful future awaited them all.
Rose then turned to Jingjing "Thank you for everything Master! I will try to do my utmost in everything I decide to do, it is a promise! ".
"In life, it is not the steps you take, nor the shoes you wear, that count, but the footprints you leave!" Master said with a smile.
This moving moment was interrupted by a certain white peacock who decided to approach in a threatening manner.
Rose released the embrace with the Master and looked at him, unsure what to do or say.
"You humans have inflicted unspeakable suffering on us. Imprisoned and tortured not for profit, but just for the fun of it! " Shen said.
" Well, not everyone can love you Rose! This always applies! Not only with animals! " He tried to cheer the girl up. She was well aware that many of them held her responsible for Kang's near death, but those months spent with them had made her strong, in every respect.
"Yet you have shown us that not all of your kind are like that."
Moody. Yes! This adjective suited that peacock perfectly!
"If you come to our world, know that you will be welcome!" Shen said surprising everyone. "It's the least we can do to repay! If it weren't for you, I don't think everyone would have survived! ".
It was evident that Shen was making a huge effort to admit those things and despite the hatred of many towards the bipeds, they had to acknowledge that the peacock was right!
"That is fine!" Xu broke in, furious at not being able to contradict Shen "If you come without cages and malicious intentions, then you may be welcome!" Said the panther.
A chorus of assent joined them and many thanks came from the animals. Although many, in Rose's opinion, only repeated the words, without believing them in the least.
"Promise me you'll protect them!" The girl said to the peacock.
Shen gave her an annoyed look "Don't break girl!". That last statement made all the peacocks laugh as they realized that Shen had changed his mind about humans, even though it was his intention not to let anyone know.
Rose and Sam once reached the top of the cliff, they heard the roar of an engine and saw the father of the boy who had joined them in the agreed place.
The two turned to take a last look at the galleon growing smaller and smaller in the vast horizon.
The two friends embraced happily.
And so ended that adventure that had been worth living only to start another one.
Rose had lost her family, but she had managed to find another. Life can be tragic but sometimes it can be wonderful.
At that moment the words of the Master came back to her mind, when she felt lost for having turned against the one she had always considered her father.
" You have no idea where life is taking you, but let her, she probably knows the way better than you!"
They finally made it!
I have been waiting for this moment with impatience!
There are a few chapters to go and I hope this first closure has been successful!
Comments, advice and opinions are welcome!
Soon,
X-98