Notes and disclaimer in Prologue
Sure ThingChapter Eight
The two men faced each other, swords poised for action. There were no silly challenges or useless shifting about as they conserved their energy and observed the other carefully. A heavy silence hung over the cliff top, only broken by the occasional cry of a lone seagull above the crashing waves hundreds of feet below where they stood.
At almost the exact same moment, they touched the tips of the blades together, signaling the start of the duel. Wufei made the first move, a swift cut and jab, which the man in green easily avoided. The stranger then copied Wufei's move, who avoided the thrust with as much ease. They continued this same action for several moments more, a testing of the waters before the real fight began.
Wufei shifted his sword slightly in his grip, changing it to a position that would allow for more movement on his left hand's stronger side.(1) This would hopefully give him a slight advantage over the man in green. He then moved forward, giving another experimental thrust with the sword, which the stranger parried expertly and then took his turn to move forward. The sound of steel against steel filled the air as the two men continued in what could only look like a stalemate, with each giving as much ground as he took. They stayed in a relatively straight line, before the man in green was able to gain an upperhand, forcing Wufei to start backing up and moving to the side simultaneously.
The masked man kept up his attack, until, without warning, Wufei was able to find a weakness in his offensive and began to move forward. He watched his opponent's moves with a critical eye, allowing some admiration to surface in his mind. He has skill, that is for sure. I just hope he doesn't have more of it than I…
"You are using a very interesting technique, sir," The man's voice cut through his thoughts, and it had an amused edge to it, "I believe I've only ever seen it one other place before in my life."
"True," Wufei agreed, his sword still cutting through the air as if it had a mind of its own, "And that's probably because only one place teaches it. The Shaolin Monastery keeps its secrets well guarded, don't you think?"(2)
"Of course. Though I find it is possible to cancel it out with a simple Spanish defensive." The man said, and to prove his point he changed his stance and moved forward, forcing Wufei to back up once again. Wufei grinned at his opponent.
"Well done, indeed. Naturally, you would expect me to now use Agrippa to deflect your offensive."
"Naturally." The man said with a shrug. Wufei's grin widened as he suddenly switched his position and neatly spun around, causing the stranger to back up now and jump backwards off a small ledge of rocks.
"However, with this rocky terrain it is far better to remain with Cappa Ferre, only if you've studied it well." Wufei said before leaping from the ledge and flipping in midair so he landed facing the other man's back, "Which I have."
The man in green spun and lunged forward, causing the swords to clang harshly. They were silent in concentration once again, the duel starting to become fiercer, with the man in green once again claiming control. He drove Wufei back firmly, nearing the very edge of the cliffs. Wufei made a mental note of this, and a few feet away from the edge he spoke again.
"I must admit it, you seem to be better than I." He said with a small smile quirking at the corners of his mouth.
"Then why are you smiling if I am the better one and I'm winning?" The man asked in an almost monotone. Wufei had to hand it to him; the man was very good at concealing any emotions.
"Because I am aware of something I'm sure you are not."
"Really?" The man almost sounded bored, "What could that possibly be?"
"I am not left-handed." Wufei said triumphantly, quickly switching hands in mid-parry. Now, it was his turn to push forward with the seeming dominant hand. The fight escalated yet another notch, the swords flying so quickly their movements were hard to see.
The man in green was pushed backwards all the way to a wall of rock behind him, and Wufei pushed in, and their blades locked. The two men stared at each other over the "x" the swords made, breathing heavily, noses nearly touching.
"Perhaps," The stranger panted, "I should tell you something as well."
"What could that be?" Wufei asked, pushing the blades ever closer to the man's exposed throat.
"I'm not left handed either." Was all he said before firmly shoving the smaller man away and switching his sword to his right hand.
There was a slight pause before once again they lunged forward, striking furiously, the swordplay impeccable and impossibly fast. Wufei felt himself weakening slightly under the onslaught, and he called up all of his experience to keep the darting sword of the man in green to find a hole in his defense. Then, without even seeing it happen, the man made a move that effectively knocked the sword out of Wufei's hand, sending it flying behind him. Wufei awaited the feeling of steel being plunged into his throat or chest, yet there was none. The man simply gestured with his sword for Wufei to go retrieve his own weapon.
Wufei spun around after making sure the man wouldn't try anything while his back was turned, and saw the sword lying several yards away at the bottom of the rocky plateau they were currently standing on. In front of him there was an archway, making him realize for the first time they were fighting among the ruins of some ancient castle, demolished beyond recognition. Near the top of the archway there was a strange thick looking vine running horizontally that seemed stable enough. Without a second thought, he ran forward and used the vine to swing himself off the ledge and land beside his sword, which he picked up and spun to face the other man.
The masked stranger looked at the vine and then Wufei, before carelessly throwing his sword from the ledge, where it landed neatly, point down in a clump of dry grass. The man took a small running start before leaping and swinging himself twice around the vine and then flipping precisely through the air so he landed beside he sword as well.(3)
Wufei couldn't help but gape at the man. "I am afraid to ask, but who are you?"
"No one of consequence." Came the cryptic reply.
"Really, you must tell me." Wufei insisted.
"Life is full of disappointments, Chang, better get used to it." Wufei stared at him a moment before shrugging in resignation. They began once again, and this time Wufei felt desperation start creeping up on him. He struggled to maintain his composure, but found it slipping away as the man's attacks doubled in skill and speed. All of his studies in the past seemed to fly from his mind as he began hacking desperately with the sword.
The masked man simply stood in place, easily fending off the reckless assault with one hand literally behind back. He waited until the opportunity presented itself before quickly thrusting the sword forward so it nicked the other man's shoulder, and then used the surprise at the small amount of pain to knock the sword from Wufei's hand once again and bring his own sword tip to rest on Wufei's throat.
The Chinese man's eyes went wide with shock at the sudden completion of the battle, and he dropped to his knees, waiting for the completion of his life as well. "Please, make it a clean kill." He said, with as much pride as he could muster, "A good death, which is all someone like me deserves."
The man walked slowly so he was standing behind Wufei. "How could I kill someone with as much skill as you? No one has given me such a good fight in years. However, I cannot have you follow where I am going." With that, the man brought the hilt of his sword smashing down on top of Wufei's head, knocking him out cold. The man stared at the prone body, before bending down and flipping Wufei so he didn't lay facedown and checking his pulse. "Keep fighting, Chang Wufei," the man murmured, "And claim your vengeance for Nataku."
With that, the man in green stood and ran in the direction Duo, Heero, and Quatre had taken, following the tracks made by their passage.
The three men he was following sat upon a hill some distance away, taking a break and waiting for Wufei to join them. Heero caught a movement on a hill nearly a quarter of a mile away and he strained his eyes to get a better look.
"Duo." He said and pointed at the small figure running towards them, hoping Duo's sharper eyes could determine who it was.
"He beat Wufei?" Came the shocked question. Duo looked at Heero. "We are going to have more trouble with him than we thought, huh?"
"We thought?" Heero said, a small smirk on his face.
"Well, what are we going to do about it? We are the ones who kidnapped Quatre first, there's no way in hell we're going to let this guy steal our thunder." Duo protested. Quatre sighed slightly, his expression worried as he watched the man drawing ever closer.
"There's one thing I can do." Heero said, "You go ahead with Quatre. I'll stay here and take care of him. My way."
"Wha'? No way, Heero! No, I refuse. He's probably already killed Wufei, I'm not going to let him kill you too!" Duo exclaimed furiously, gripping Heero's shoulders. Quatre was sure Duo would have shaken him as well, had it not been for the dangerous gleam in the other's cobalt eyes.
"I will do this, Duo, and I will live. He won't be able to take me away from you." Heero said in a surprisingly gentle voice. The two men stood for long moments, gazing into the other's eyes, and Quatre felt something almost like jealousy as he watched them, recalling the last look he'd had with Trowa on that fateful day so many years ago. Suddenly Duo leaned in a kissed Heero hard. After they broke the kiss, Heero leaned so their foreheads were touching. "I will live, Duo. I promise. And you will live for me, remember? Wait for me, I will find you." He said softly, before gently pushing Duo away and turning to look out over the landscape.
Duo paused for a moment, swallowing hard, before whirling around, grabbing Quatre's arm and racing off. Quatre glanced over his shoulder at the lonely figure of Heero as he stood watching the approaching figure of a man and possible death. "Bye, Heero." He whispered to himself before returning his attention to running and keeping up with Duo.
(1) Okay, I've studied a little bit of fencing, so I know a bit about hand positions and everything like that. It's mostly just subtle changes in the wrist so your foil is angled a bit differently.
(2) The monks at the Shaolin Monastery were famous for teaching the martial arts.
(3) Picture a Trowa flip here, you know, like the ones from the Endless Waltz. That's what I did when I wrote this. Tee hee.
A/N: This was so much like the scene from the movie, but I mean, come on, it's like the best scene in the entire movie. Well, not really. But close. I've always thought it hilarious how they just start talking as if they're having a normal conversation while they're fighting. I've never seen that happen in any other movie.