W.I.T.C.H. Dreams of Lusteria
by Galistar07water
Disclaimer: W.I.T.C.H. is owned and copyrighted by the Walt Disney Company Italia and is in no way affiliated with the fictional works of Galistar07water.
Author's note: If you would like to see drawings of W.I.T.C.H. Dreams of Lusteria, please visit my page and click the "W.I.T.C.H. Dreams of Lusteria" folder in the gallery section.
Chapter 07: The Sealed Portal pt. II
Will didn't know what happened. One minute, she and her friends were trying to close a dark Portal, the next they were falling down a tunnel of swirling light and rushing air. Will turned to see Taranee, Irma, and Hay Lin shrieking their heads off to her right.
"What's going on?!" Cornelia screamed to her left. "Where are we?!"
"HANG ON GIRLS!" Will screamed, unsure if any of them could hear her with all the sound of swirling wind and magic around them.
Will didn't know for how long they've been falling. It felt like hours…or maybe minutes. It was hard to tell when you're inside a swirling vortex. Finally, they could see the end of the tunnel coming near. Whether you're going through a regular or a dark portal, the scary part was never knowing where you're going to end up on the other side of the Veil.
"BRACE YOURSELVES!" Will ordered.
The Portal opened and the five Guardians braced themselves for a hard landing. To their surprise, it dropped them onto soft grounds.
"Wha—?" Will gasped. She looked around to see her friends trying to untangled themselves.
"Urgh…good thing the ground is soft here," Irma said. "Corny, get your butt out of my face!"
They quickly unscrambled themselves and got to their feet. They looked up to see the dark, swirling Portal hovering over their heads. To their horror, it disappeared as strangely as it had appeared.
"Where's the Portal?!" Cornelia cried. "WHERE'S THE PORTAL?!"
They glanced at Will who shook her head. "I didn't close it! It disappeared on its own!"
"Um…better question, girls," Hay Lin interrupted, glancing around her. "Where on Lusteria are we?"
They looked around to see they were surrounded by various tropical trees with vines and palm leaves hanging above. The air was very warm and humid. So much so that it was difficult to breath at first. Worse, there were bugs flying everywhere, much to Cornelia's dissatisfaction as she tried to wave them away. Upon hearing a whooping noise echoing in the distance, they froze, unsure if it was a spirit.
"What was that?!" Irma asked.
"I think it's some sort of gibbon," Taranee reasoned. "And from the looks of things, we've ended up in a jungle of Lusteria."
"I don't know about you girls, but it's boiling hot around here!" Irma complained as they all took off their winter coats. "I thought it was still winter here, too!"
"Irma, this is the tropics," Taranee rolled her eyes as they all tied their jackets around their waists. "Any country near the equator only has one season all year round, saved for dry and monsoon seasons."
"What I want to know is how did we end up here?!" Irma glared.
"I don't know what or who opened it," Will said, looking down at the Heart of Kandrakar. "But perhaps we should just open another one and go back home."
"Right, let's not linger here anymore than necessary," Cornelia agreed. "All of this humidity isn't good for my hair! And there are bugs everywhere!"
"Plus, who knows what kind of spirits are lurking about," Hay Lin added. "I don't know about you girls, but I don't want to—"
BAM!
Hay Lin didn't have time to finish her sentence, but she didn't have to because that was when a few dark spirits ambushed them. The Guardians were forced to dive out of the way and once they were able to compose themselves, transformed to fight at full power. A shout of the five elements echoed through the forest in unison, followed by bursts of light and positive energies.
Will and Cornelia gave the hissing jungle spirits smirks, but much to the others' surprises, they were still in their human form.
"What's going on?!" Irma cried. "I can't transform!"
"Something's wrong with our magic!" Taranee realized as she fired a few fire balls to keep the spirits back. This seemed to be a bad idea because the dark spirits seemed somewhat immune to Taranee's fire. Either that or her magic isn't strong enough to make a big impression, so the more fire she threw at them, the more annoyed they were. A few primate-liked spirits began to whoop as their calls echoed throughout the jungle. The girls cringed from the deafening call.
"What the hell is going on?" Taranee asked. When the monkeys' chattering stopped, they opened their eyes to find themselves surrounded by countless monkey spirits with glowing evil eyes in the trees, looking down on them with ravenous expressions.
"Put blankly," Irma stated as they all got into a defensive position. "We're so screwed."
The dark spirits attacked, causing all three girls to flinch. Luckily, Will and Cornelia erected a giant dome barrier to protect their friends. The scene of dark primate spirits jumping and pounding on the domes was both terrifying and quite humorous at the same time.
"Talk about being the monkey in the middle," Irma commented sarcastically. A few didn't like hearing that, especially the ones who are specifically apes, and began to attack more ferociously. Irma was knocked off her feet by a powerful shock wave coming from her side of the dome. More where coming, threatening to overwhelm them.
"We have got to do something or else they'll get in, sooner or later!" Cornelia said as she erected another layer of crystal to strengthen the shield. "We can't just stay here forever."
She was right. Although as powerful as their new powers are, their Power Girl transformation could only get them so far before they're overwhelmed by the vast numbers of dark spirits. Before Will or Cornelia could say anything, the battle was intervene when powerful bolts of light and darkness blasted at the spirits, scaring the life out of them as they retreated further into the depth of the jungle. Just when they thought they were all saved, two familiar voices rang over their heads as the identical sisters glowered at them.
"Well, look who we have here, sister," Kazumi smirked wickedly. "It's Cousin Kimi's Earthling friends. Here to do more damage, no doubt!"
Kiyomi scoffed, giving them all dagger eyes. "After what they try to do in Joseon, I'm surprise they had the gall to show their faces."
"Well, let's teach them a lesson!" Kazumi screamed as she slammed into their shield. Since it was already weakened by the dark spirits, the impact she left on its surface was so powerful, it was shattered in an instant and the next thing they knew, the twin sisters were right in their faces.
"This is for what you did in Joseon!" Kazumi cried, trying to focus her attack on Cornelia and Taranee who managed to block her with a shield. "How dare you side with those who are trying to destroy our world?!"
"Excuse me?!" Cornelia glared, blasting green energy at her. "I don't know who fed you those lies, but we're trying to save your world!"
"You were the ones who tried to kill thousands after that stunt on the dam!" Taranee added.
"A city of corruption and darkness needed to be purged!" Kazumi justified. With a wave of her hand, she fired white crystal lights at them.
Taranee managed to do several back-flips in order to avoid them. Silently, she thanked herself for taking the extra time to practice all of those dance moves. But her victory didn't last when Irma and Hay Lin ran into her as they tried to avoid the dark shards and shrapnel flinging at them. Luckily, Will and Cornelia came to their rescue.
"Enough!" Will cried as she and Cornelia flew for the air. Tapping into their new powers, they both glowed magnificently. Time seemed to be standing still as Will and Cornelia conjure up their lightning claymore and crystal staff. Together, they aimed their energies at the twins. Alarmed, they quickly flew away in time as the two Guardians' combine attack cleaved through a mountain in the distance.
"By the gods…" Kiyomi said in awe as the top of the mountain slowly slid off and crashed into the ocean.
"Curse their new powers," her sister seethed under her breath. How could they win like this?
"If you know what's good for you, go back to Nihon!" Cornelia spat. "And stay away from our friends!"
That was when the twins realized the other three Guardians haven't transformed yet! Kiyomi tapped into her shadow wielding power and sensed something was off. There was dark magic around here and it has sealed those three's full powers!
"Sister, follow me!"
"Where are they going?" Cornelia asked.
"They're going after the others!" Will cried.
Kiyomi and Kazumi flew towards their friends, ready to fire at them. "Concentrate your powers on the weak links!"
Hay Lin quickly created a small shield of air, but the thin blade of light and dark magic slipped through and landed near their feet. To their horror, they exploded into harden black and white crystals, threatening to encase them.
"Without your powers, you're useless!" Kazumi cried as she summoned a powerful surge of light magic.
"You three will be easier to capture!" Kiyomi said as she did the same with her orbs of darkness.
Together, they combined their powers. It crackled with intense magic as the twins aimed it at the Guardians and fired.
"WILL! CORNELIA!" Taranee and her friends screamed for help.
"NO!" Will cried as she tried to reach for her friends. This was not how it was to be! How could they be defeated by two misguided girls? Will wanted to be there as fast as lightning and get her friends out of range. But in that instant, her wish came true in a way. Without thinking about it, Will accidentally did the hand gesture for teletransportation and pointed at Irma, Taranee, and Hay Lin. The lightning travels faster than the twins' powerful attack and when it hit her friends, they were gone. Exactly a second later, the light and darkness surge hit that same spot, obliterating several nearby trees. But they weren't the only ones gone, since the twins disappeared, too, leaving only Will and Cornelia alone in the jungle by the sea.
"Will, what happened?" Cornelia demanded. "Where are our friends? What did you do to them?!"
"I…I think…I teletransported them away from here!" Will realized.
"So you're saying Irma and the others in a different area? But you teletransported the twins as well!" Cornelia pondered. "Well, what you waiting for? Get them back!"
"I don't think I can, Cornelia," Will reasoned. "After going through that Portal, I'm certain that it depleted a little bit of our strength as well. Plus, I have to know where they are to get them back here."
"Perhaps we should use magic and contact them by telepathy?" Cornelia suggested, although a bit annoyed. Not waiting for Will, Cornelia tapped into their automatic telepathic link Taranee set up for them a while back. Unfortunately, there was no response.
"Urgh, you teletransported them out of our range!" Cornelia frowned. "How are we going to find them?"
Will raised an eyebrow before crossing her arms. "Um, how about you use your nature magic and ask the trees? After all, earth is your specialty."
"Fine!" Cornelia shrugged. She stood still as she took in the essence of the earth. Reach out, Cornelia asked the jungle where her friends are. After what seemed like a few minutes, Cornelia sighed and nodded. "The trees said they're somewhere near a mountain village by the sea."
Spreading their wings, Cornelia and Will took to the sky and headed towards the south to look for their friends. "We've got to find them before Kiyomi and Kazumi do. I just hope they're all right."
"Perfect!" Irma ranted, kicking a tree. She swore from the pain before screaming in frustration. "Stupid tree!"
A python dropped its head and hissed at her, causing all three of them to scream and run away. Not watching where they were going, they tripped over some roots and fell in a pile of mud.
"Urgh! Just great!" Irma screamed, trying to whip the mud out of her hair. "We're stuck in the middle of this humid jungle, we're muddy and we don't have our full—"
"Irma!" Taranee warned. "Shut up!"
"What?!" Irma glared at her angrily. "I am not allowed to be angry?! Is that it?! Tara, we were almost killed by those two psycho twins again, and now we can't find Will and Cornelia! Tell me why I can't be angry about—"
"Shut up!" Hay Lin hissed quietly, clamping her hand over Irma's mouth. Irma wanted to protest at first, but then her friends dragged her beneath some shrubs as two figures flew overhead before continuing on in the distance. It was Kiyomi and Kazumi! They were certain they had heard that loudmouth Irma talking a second ago, but after another look around, they gave up this area and continued their hunt.
The three girls sighed in relief once their huntresses were out of sight and slowly crawled out of their hiding place.
"That was close," Hay Lin said. "Let's just find the others. Taranee, call Will and Cornelia and tell us to pick us up."
Taranee didn't hesitate as she tried to tap into her psychic powers. Unfortunately, she couldn't hear Will or Cornelia in her head! "Nothing!" Taranee gasped. "I can't get in contact with them!"
"What?!" the other two gasped. "Are you sure? Maybe it's because the dark Portal sealed your powers?"
Taranee shook her head as she manifested a small flaming orb in her hand. "No, we still have our basic powers and I can still hear your voices in my mind. I think Will must have accidentally teleported us out of range."
"So what do we do now?" Hay Lin asked, trying to get some of the mud off her outfit. "We're lost in this jungle without our full powers, running away from those girls. And who knows how many dark spirits there are in this place?"
Taranee pondered for a moment as she tried to look at their surroundings. "We need to get to a safe place. Hay Lin, see if you can spot anything from the top of those trees. And do make sure that you're not spotted. The last thing we need is anymore unwanted attentions to ourselves from any enemies."
Hay Lin nodded and quickly used a little bit of air magic to lift herself to a top branch. Gazing around, she saw they were in a middle of a vast, dense jungle with a tall mountain range in the distance. Those mountains were also covered with trees, and the sound of wild animals and spirits were all around them, chilling Hay Lin's spine. But then to her right, she could see the ocean in the distance with a river flowing into it. The ocean seemed to be too far away for them to walk, so Hay Lin's gaze followed the river and saw that it led between two mountains. More importantly, she saw smokes in a clearing. A village! Quickly, she memorized the direction and climbed down to tell the others what she saw.
"A village? That's perfect," Taranee beamed. "We could ask for information there, and hopefully there might be someone who could help us get a message to Kandrakar or to Will and Cornelia."
"What are we waiting for? Let's go!"
The trek through the jungle was very unpleasant and long. After only ten minutes, they were constantly stepping in mud and excrement and their hair were getting tangled in branches. All the while, Irma is complaining about how horrible her week has been. Fed up with her negativity, Taranee and Hay Lin are doing their best to make Irma miserable by walking ahead of her and leaving her out of their conversation.
"So how much further do you think the village is, Hay Lin?" Taranee asked.
"Probably another half hour at this rate," Hay Lin replied. "So do you have any idea on why the three of us lost our transformation?"
Taranee shook her head. "I can only guess, but it must have something to do with that dark Portal. Will and Cornelia were unaffected and I think it's because they have their Power Girl transformations as well as their Hearts of Kandrakar and Nature to protect them."
"That would make sense, since the three of us are the only ones who haven't found our Virtues yet," Hay Lin agreed. "I guess it's a good thing Kimi is staying home. She's still a little bit weak from her ordeal. I don't think another trip back home is what she needs right now."
"I'm not so sure about that," Taranee said. "Kimi does have the Jewel of Life and it's possible that it might protect her from the dark Portal like the Heart of Kandrakar did for Will. And Orube isn't a Guardian. While she still has some magic, she usually doesn't rely on it to survive out here."
"I guess that's why we should be grateful for the Jade Dragon's intensive training," Hay Lin nodded. "Without her, we probably would have been toasted much earlier when we ran into those twins."
"Speaking of which," Taranee noted, "those girls are a serious concern for us. They called us corrupted back in Joseon as if they really believed we would be working for the Celestial Warriors."
"But Xuan Wu is gone now," Hay Lin reasoned. "Without her ability to enthrall them, why are they still attacking us?"
"Because they're a bunch of wacko-screwballs like Kimi and the rest of her family, that's what!" Irma snapped, trying to pull one of her boots free from the mud. "And you know what else? I'm tired of being treated this way! When I get my powers back, I'm gonna wring their necks!"
Taranee and Hay Lin rolled their eyes. "Do you hear something, Taranee?" Hay Lin asked. "It sounds as if someone is trying to talk crap to you because of stubbornness?"
"No, Hay Lin," Taranee answered. "But if I did hear it, I'd say it's pretty annoying."
Irma fumed. "Ha, ha! Hilarious, you two! You can go and ignore me all you want, but that doesn't change the fact that we're being hunted down by Kimi's psycho cousins! Why? Because the entire Kinomoto family is crazy!"
Having enough of this, Taranee turned to glare at Irma before giving her a good scolding. "Are you narrow-minded or something, Irma? Those girls are trying to stop us because they were influenced by dark magic! Xuan Wu's magic clouded their minds back in Joseon. This is bigger than any stupid vendetta you're going through!"
"What are you talking about?" Irma demanded.
"If you stopped hating Kimi and her cousins right now, you would realize that someone other than the Celestial Warriors have been trying to stop our mission!" Taranee said. "Think about it, now that Xuan Wu is gone, so should her dark magic! So Kiyomi and Kazumi should have come to their senses! Yet they attacked us here, far away from Joseon and Nihon! It's like they knew we were here! Why would they still believe we were the corrupted ones working for the Warriors?"
"And don't say that they're wacko-screwballs," Hay Lin added, turning her attention back to Taranee. "Taranee, are you suggesting that it was the spy we've been talking about?"
Taranee nodded. "Think about it, Hay Lin. It's so strange that Zhu Que appeared twice to help us! First he scared those girls away and then he reappeared to kill his own sister! In Zhong-guo, they seemed to be getting along, but then Xuan Wu must have done something to put herself on Hwang-Ryong's hit list."
"So he's been tricking her until he found the chance to be rid of her for good, making sure that Cornelia and Kimi would try to do most of the work for him."
"And it's too much of a coincidence that this strange imposter was able to coerce Queen Sŏndŏk right after the flood at the dam, not too long before we were captured and fought Xuan Wu to the death…" Taranee paused for a moment. "Orube's right. This imposter must have been using Xuan Wu's enthralling magic to brainwash those girls and make them plant those explosives. He needed them to believe they were doing the right thing by painting us as the villains."
"And this imposter could be someone who knew the Kinomoto clan well enough to approach the twin sisters. That and he was working for Xuan Wu to usurp the monarchy of Joseon!" Hay Lin added. "This same imposter…"
Taranee nodded. "Could be a spy working for the Celestial Warriors! And now that Xuan Wu is dead, he's probably looking for work from the three remaining members and is using a different method to brainwash those girls."
Irma rolled her eyes, but decided it was best not to voice her unpopular thoughts. "So what do you think we should do, Tara?" she asked. "If those sisters really are just being used, what do we do to enlighten them?"
Taranee shook her head. She hated to say it, but she's just as clueless as Irma and everyone else. "I don't know yet. But we should stop somewhere safe and come up with a plane."
"Then we'll never come up with a plan because if you haven't noticed, Taranee, we're on Lusteria! There's nowhere safe in this world," Irma replied.
Hay Lin decided to interrupt before another loud argument alerted unwanted attentions to their location. "C'mon, girls. Let's just try to get to that village. It's not much further now."
They continued to walk in silence, with nothing but the chattering cries of primates and the cawing of tropical birds in the distance. Unbeknownst to them, dark spirits were watching them in the distance, making a note of where they're going to report back to their Lord Zhu Que.
Will and Cornelia discovered a port town overlooking a gorgeous bay, filled with boats, fishermen, and merchants of all kinds, trading fish and other seafood for goods. The smell was unbearable to Cornelia as she tried to cover her nose. Will elbowed her, reminding her not to be rude.
"Are you sure this is where we should be looking?" Cornelia asked. "This isn't where nature is telling us to go."
Will nodded, "I know they're still in the jungle, but we'll need a guide who knows the safest route by river."
"Why can't we just fly all the way there?" Cornelia asked. "It would be faster."
"The two of us were also affected by that dark Portal, Cornelia," Will said. "That spell exhausted us, so we need to conserve our energy for emergency. Plus, we don't want to attract too much attention to ourselves by flying in our Guardian forms. It's best we travel up the river with a guide who knows how to avoid unwanted attention."
The two girls walked around for a few minutes, asking anyone to help guide them into the jungle. Unfortunately, many were fearful because it's now infested with dark spirits.
"I wouldn't be caught dead in that spirit-infested place!" said one fisherman.
Another merchant said, "I lost a whole month worth of goods while trying to travel upriver last time! I shall never go back until it has been purged!"
"If you girls are looking for someone brave enough to take you in there, ask for Đạo and his brother, Đức," said a butcher as the girls came up to his smelly and bloody booth. Cornelia had to suppress her desire to vomit as Will gave her a warning look. "Yes, that no nonsense of his is really something. You won't find someone as devoted to friends and family like him."
"Where can we find this Đạo?" Will asked politely.
Five minutes later, Cornelia and Will looked quite ridiculous trying to drag a giant swordfish, which the butcher insisted on giving them in exchange for the information, as they searched for the small fishing boat called The Endurance. Several fishermen laughed at the sight, but soon they were greeted by the sight of the most battered looking ship on the pier, its name practically faded away and covered in seaweed and barnacles.
"What a dump!" Cornelia said, not meaning to quote a famous line from a movie. "And my hands are smelly like fish! Gross!"
"Better get used to it, for that is all you'll be smelling in this town," cried a voice from the boat.
Will and Cornelia looked up to see a boy with dark hair and brown eyes sitting on the starboard side of the small boat. His clothes were worn down, but despite his poor-looking attire, he didn't seem to mind or care as he continued to untangle some fishing nets. In fact, he looked quite handsome, despite the messy hair and the dirt and fish scales on his face from gutting them a few hours ago.
"Are you Đạo?" Will asked.
"Who wants to know?" said the boy. "Hey, you two aren't from around here, are ye?"
"Gee, what gave us away? Is it our hair color?" Will asked sarcastically. "We're in a hurry and need to get upstream to a place deep in the jungle and people around here said that someone named Đạo can help us."
"That he can," said another voice as he stepped out of the bridge with a wooden cart full of fishing nets. He was taller than his brother and was just as handsome. He was clearly the older one and despite looking like a teenager, already sprouted a fine looking moustache. "Đức, where are your manners? These are the Guardians from Earth everyone's been hearing so much about!"
Putting the boxes down, Đạo bowed and greeted them respectfully. "My name is Đạo, first and eldest son of the head of the Bùi clan. This is my brother, Đức, the second son."
"I'm Will Vandom, the Keeper of the Heart and the Guardian of Energy, and this is my friend, Cornelia Hale, the Earth Guardian," said Will.
"It is an honor to meet the Guardians who saved two kingdoms from the Celestial Warriors. It is true what they say, you are as beautiful as a mermaid's pearl and fair as a mountain nymph," said Đức.
Đạo laughed. "Forgive my brother. He can be a bit of a romantic. But it is an honor to meet you. We've never met our world's Twin Guardians, let alone five others from a different world. Tell me, where are your other companions?"
"We were separated from them in a battle against two sisters," Will explained. "They're currently somewhere upstream near that mountain, but we need your help to get there without attracting too much attention to ourselves from dark spirits."
"That we can do," Đạo said as he held out his hands to help them into his boat. "But first, you must help us catch a few more fish. We're on our way to trade them with the locals."
"Help? As in…work with fish?" Cornelia asked, looking down at the one giant swordfish they were forced to buy.
"Of course! It would be good to have some help, especially with the great Tri-Ceremony in a few days! The entire Kingdom of Annam is working very hard," Đạo laughed heartily. "And I'll be happy to take that fine fish out of your hands as well!"
Cornelia sighed as she watched Đạo and Đức try to get their primitive motor engine going. It took them several tries until it choked and sputtered to life. It was going to be a long day.
A demon came up to his master and kowtowed respectfully. "Lord Zhu Que, we've received news from the northern part of the kingdom. There was a commotion amongst the primates in the jungle and then there was a sudden disruption and—"
"I have no time for thy squabble," Zhu Que replied coldly as he continued to look out the window of his palace. "If thou value thy life, tell me what strange dark phenomenon that wasn't of my doing!"
The demon lowered his head, praying that the Celestial Warrior of Fire wouldn't incinerate him to nothing on the spot. "It was a Portal, my Lord! An unauthorized Portal from Earth! It closed just as quickly as it opened. What came out should entice your interest."
Zhu Que turned his head slightly, giving his servant a dangerous glare. "And pray tell me what that is? If I find thy news worthless as thy broken horns, I wilst subject you to the volcanic pit beneath this palace and replaceth you with someone more dependable."
"The five Guardians from Earth, my Lord!" the demon blurted out quickly. "The Earthlings came through the Portal and the dark spirits engaged them in hopes to bring them to your knees. However, only two of them were able to transform!"
This got Zhu Que interested as he raised an eyebrow. "Only two?"
"Yes, the one with the red hair and the other with the golden hair," the demon replied. "It appeared the other three were cursed by dark magic when they came through that Portal."
"Hmm…So it was a Portal sealed by dark magic," Zhu Que mused. "Where art they now?"
"Separated! Our force was nearly able to overwhelm them, but then two twin girls from Nihon interfered. It appeared there was no love lost between the two groups as the Guardians were quick to engage the newcomers in battle. After such a great display of power, the twins were prepared to attack the three defenseless Guardians, but the one with the red hair spirited them away with her magic!"
When Zhu Que said nothing, the demon decided to press on. "This is our chance, my Lord! You could send in a force to attack and kill those pesky Guardians and destroy anyone who stands in your way! This land will know of your might!"
Zhu Que turned around to stare at the war table before him. The digital holographic map of the lands he has conquered was all marked in red while the Southern Fire Kingdom of Annam still stand in white. Only patches here and there were red. He needed to take down the capital where the royal family resides. So far, they have managed to resist his Wrath and it was quite frustrating.
"Tell me, what art thy knowledge of the Guardians?" Zhu Que asked calmly.
"I believe three of them were spirited away towards a village somewhere near the mountains while the other two are somewhere near Hạ Long Bay."
Zhu Que paused for a moment, whispering, "The Bay of the Descending Dragon." The name held many memories to him, but they were distant and felt like a life time ago. "And what of the Light Guardian and Basilíadian warrior?"
"I'm afraid we know nothing of them, my Lord," the demon replied. "They didn't come out of the Portal. It seemed they were unaware of their comrade's unexpected journey here."
Zhu Que took out his sword and brandished it. "It seemed the gods are smiling on us for opportunity beckoneth me with a cry for bloodlust. Very well, I shall fly out and smite those who dare to set foot in my domain. And thou…"
The demon looked up with hopeful eyes, thinking that his lord would reward him for such news. To his horror, the floor beneath him opened and he soon found himself hanging onto dear life at the edge.
"Master?! I've been not but a loyal servant to you!"
"Loyal? Knave thou art! Thou have failed to bring me the Guardians when they were weak! Thou have failed to trail them to their exact locations! I have no use for thee!"
And with one quick swipe, Zhu Que cut the demon's fingers off and kicked him into the volcanic pit. When it was over, another fierce looking demon stepped forward.
"You!" Zhu Que pointed at him with his sword. "Mobilize my forces and order them to attack all the mountain villages in northern Annam! We shall weed out the Guardians and all those who dare to harbor them shall knowth the divine power of mine Wrath!"
"Girls, look!" Irma pointed to a fat peach tree. "Food! I'm starving!" The muddy girl hungrily ran towards it, but Taranee and Hay Lin were skeptical.
"Irma, I don't think you should be eating strange fruit!" Hay Lin warned.
"It's a peach tree! What's so strange about it?!" Irma demanded.
"Um, maybe because it is a peach tree and they don't grow in the jungle?" Taranee suggested, raising an eyebrow.
"Taranee, there are mountains that floats here! There's one right above our head right now! Mountains don't float, and snow monkeys don't talk! But they do exist here on Lusteria, so maybe peach trees do grow in the jungle here!" Irma pointed out. "Whatever your logic is, save it because I'm not moving another inch until I get a quick bite to eat."
Without waiting, Irma greedily picked three fattest, juiciest, and freshest looking fruit. "Hello, peachy! Don't you look delicious—AAAAAHHHH!"
Irma shrieked as she recoiled back. The other two came to her aid. They were about to ask her what was wrong, when the fruit started to talk. To their astonishment, all the peaches have smiling faces on them and were laughing.
"Strange creature try to eat me! Hilarious!"
"They beautiful creatures! Ha ha ha! Makes me laugh with joy!"
"Beautiful ladys! Eat us! We is sweet and sour! Ha ha ha!"
"We bring joy and smile! Wee hee hee!"
"What the heck are they?!" Irma screamed.
They looked up and to their surprises, the tree was covered in laughing, smiling, giggling, chortling peaches! Their faces weren't grotesque by any means, rather they were sweet and adorable looking and they reminded Hay Lin of those anime chibi drawings she has seen in her manga collection. Suddenly, she remembered her grandmother telling her a funny story about them before when she was little.
"They're jinmenju fruits!" she exclaimed. "According to legend, a jimenju is a tree that bears fruits with laughing faces and they were said to have grown in southern China or something!"
"What the hell are they laughing at?" Irma demanded. Her screams seemed to delight the fruits even more. "Make them stop!"
More laughter filled the jungle, driving Irma nuts. Taranee seemed intrigued, on the other hand.
"Hmm…I wonder what they're saying. Is it Chinese?"
"If it were, I would be able to understand them," Hay Lin pointed out. "It sounds like Vietnamese…makes sense since we are somewhere in Annam, which must be Lusteria's version of Vietnam."
"Pretty! Pretty! The humans is so pretty!" the fruits sang in unison joyfully. "Won't they eat us and make us happy? Happy? Happy! Happy! Sweet and giggles! Ha ha ha! Hee hee hee! Ho ho ho! La la la! Life wonderful is!"
Irma sneered. "This planet really is freaky!"
"At least they don't seem to be of any harm to us, Irma," Taranee noted. "It seems to me, they're just really happy fruits and really do enjoy life."
Suddenly, a rustling in the trees puts them all on edges. The laughing fruits continued to laugh before oohing in interest. To the girls' relief, it was just a human. She seemed to be around Orube's age and was dressed in a colorful top with intricate patterns, but her billowing black, skirt-liked pants were black like her eyes and hair. She was carrying a woven basket on her back and she seemed surprised to see them. When she opened her mouth to speak, the girls were shocked that they couldn't understand her either.
"Hello, who might you be?"
"Um…Hay Lin?" Irma asked. "You're Asian! You say something to her!"
Hay Lin glared at her. "I told you! I'm Chinese! I don't speak Vietnamese! And frankly, I don't understand why we can't understand her when we could understand all those other people we met before."
The indigenous girl looked confused, as if she can't understand their language either.
"Where did you come from? Are you spirits?"
"Kandrakar!" Irma blurted out, hoping that the name still translates as a universal language. "We're the Guardians from Kandrakar! You know, the Fortress of Light? Kan-dra-kar!"
The girl's eyes widen as if the message came across. "Kandrakar? You are emissary from the Kingdom of Light? But why are you so dirty in those clothes?"
"Sorry, but we really can't understand you," Hay Lin said. Afraid that she won't believe them like Kimi did the first time they met, Hay Lin showed her a small demonstration of her power before grabbing a stick and drew some pictures in the ground. She drew them with wings and tried to tell her they were Guardians from another planet. She did her best by writing all of their names in Chinese, praying that the Annamites knew Chinese calligraphy like some Vietnamese can on Earth. Luckily, the native girl seemed to understand with the help of pictures.
"Blessing from the gods! You are the Guardians from the rumors we've been hearing about! The village Elders would be so pleased! My name is Thủy! And you are Oma, He Linh, and Ta Ran Ni?"
"Well, I think Thủy's starting to understand us, based from her happy reaction," Taranee smiled. "Thủy, can you help us?"
Thinking that they were hungry, Thủy happily picked up some of the laughing fruit Irma dropped and started to quickly pick some more until her basket was full. She eagerly gave them one. Irma looked down skeptically at the giggling, cute-looking peach in her hand and politely turned her down.
"Uh, no thanks. My mom tells me to never eat singing or laughing food," Irma said.
"These fruits are good for you!" Thuy said and she took a bite of the laughing fruit. Amazingly, the fruit was still tingling in her hand and laughing even though its face was gone! "Come with me into my village! We have new clothes, food, and shelter for you! The others will be so happy to see you all! We certainly would appreciate the extra help for the Tri-Ceremony!"
"I don't know what she just said, but I think she's inviting us to her home!" Hay Lin said. And with that, the four of them made their way to Thủy's village.
After helping the two brothers with their fishing, Will and Cornelia could finally relax as The Endurance peacefully cruised upriver towards their friends. All the while, Cornelia had been complaining how disgusting it was to catch the fish, gut and clean them. The two brothers simply laughed as they seemed to enjoy watching a snob like Cornelia learning how hard working peasants like them were.
"Perhaps the next time you have fish for dinner, do learn to appreciate those who caught, clean, and prepared it for you," Đức suggested.
"And it's not just fishermen, but also farmers who worked hard to harvest the rice, vegetables, and all the other produce you eat," Đạo added. "Annam may be the poorest of the Five Elemental Kingdoms, but our people appreciate all the bounties nature can give us."
The two brothers occasionally stopped their boat whenever a family rushed out to trade goods for fish. Once they had some of the ingredients they need, Đức began to cook some stuffed squids on a small make-shift clay stove (turns out he's a fire-wielder) on the deck while his brother navigated through the rivers. Cornelia was turned off at the idea of eating at first, but her grumbling stomach and the delicious smell of cooked seafood convinced her otherwise. To the girls' surprised, the food was absolutely amazing.
Lunch was also the perfect opportunity for them to gather some information from the brothers. Curiously, Will asked them why the people they've seen so far seemed so busy with harvesting and trading food, as if they were anticipating for something big.
"It's the Tri-Ceremony," Đạo exclaimed from the bridge. "Everyone in our Kingdom is preparing to celebrate the Princess Huyền Trân's birthday, as well as her wedding, and her ascension to the throne!"
Will and Cornelia blinked in astonishment. "Wait, a minute! Your princess is celebrating her birthday, wedding, and coronation in one day?!"
"She's not ascending to the Throne of Annam. Her father recently abdicated it to her brother. However, she'll become Queen Paramecvariin of Champa, a smaller kingdom south of here. She's being married off to King Jaya Sinhavarman III by her father and brother because Annam is hoping to gain more land to resist Lord Zhu Que's rule," said Đức.
"It is quite unfortunate," Đạo added. "Truthfully, our Princess was already engaged to General Trần Khắc Chung. However, the Champa Kingdom is on the verge of succumbing to Zhu Que's rule and its King is hoping Annam would be able to protect them against his forces. Thus, our ruler, Emperor Trần Anh Tông, agreed in exchange for two more of Champa's northern provinces."
"The Royal Oracles have picked the Princess's birthday as the most auspicious date," Đức said. "They have predicted it as a historical event for nothing like this has ever happened before. For that is the reason for our festive mood."
"So that's why everyone's catching so much fish and bringing in the harvest," Will reasoned. "It's as if the entire nation is gearing up for a massive feast!"
"Yes, although most of us aren't invited, we will all celebrate the Tri-Ceremony together as one nation," Đức nodded. "We must all do our parts, from preparing and cooking all the foods to the decorations and the formal attires."
"Our own clan would be able to celebrate it in the capital with our fellow kinsmen," Đạo winked. "Hopefully, we would be able to catch a glimpse of our fair Princess on her special day."
Đức laughed as he threw his brother a piece of tofu which the latter caught expertly before popping it into his mouth. "Do not try to deny it, big brother! You're hoping to watch the Tri-Ceremony with her!"
Will and Cornelia blinked. "Her?"
Đức nodded as he lowered his voice, "Đạo is hoping to be with his heart mate, one of the girls of the Nguyễn clan. We've been neighbors since we were children. In reality, our family is poor compared to them, with the boys being soldiers, mechanics, and fishermen while the girls are cooks and housekeepers. But this girl's family…her father's a business man who runs several jewelry shops throughout the city. She and her sister are the most fashionable and well-mannered girls in the city. Most of my friends down the docks and in the shops are always talking about them, plotting ways to impress them. But the younger sister, Hồng Loan, was most impressed by Đạo's personalities and calm demeanors and accepted him. Even her father was impressed and allowed him to court her."
This makes the girls giggled as it was no different from listening to the latest dating gossips on their world. If Đạo was embarrassed, he wasn't showing. Instead, he continued to steer the boat upriver. During the next half hour, the four of them conversed, asking each other about what life is liked for them on two different worlds. The girls were surprised that the two brothers have seven more siblings to look after and most of them were magical.
The brothers told them about their nation's origin: according to legend, the first Emperor of Annam was one of the 100 children of a mountain nymph and a sea dragon prince. Because they came from two different worlds, fifty children went back into the ocean to live with their father and the other fifty on land with their mother and soon spread out to start the first 50 family clans. Zhu Que's father, the Vermillion Bird god, created several mystical bronze drums, decorated with geometric patterns of stars and the depictions of life and death. These drums were usually used during ceremonies, but because they were embedded with ancient powers, they ensured the Kingdom's safety even from that of Zhu Que's Wrath.
The brothers were curious to know more about Earth, and much to the Guardians' relief, are anything but condescending like Kimi's relations. They were very polite and friendly, and were fascinated to know that Vietnam is Earth's equivalent of Annam and changed its name throughout its history (good thing Will and Cornelia paid attention to Dean's history lessons this week)! The girls found it difficult to explain to them about the concept of digital technologies, which was surprising since Lusterians seemed to be able to use holographic images and have digital interface screens floating in mid-air, something that even Earth technologies haven't grasped. Đạo and Đức just couldn't grasp the idea of smartphones, laptops, and ordering pizza through telephones. When Will tried to explain to them what an internet was, all they could picture was some sort of evil information organization on a giant spider web with a spider-spirit as the brain network.
"I do not understand why you would wish to watch moving pictures of dancing felines," Đức blinked when Cornelia tried to tell him about online funny cat videos.
"I'm afraid you girls will have to explain it to my brother another time," Đạo interrupted as he slowed the boat down. Sure enough, Will's Heart began to glow pink and emitted three lights to their friends' locations in a village up ahead. They were closed.
Đạo smiled as he continued, "This is the village of Mai Châu, home to the Bản Lác people, indigenous highlanders of this region. We'll be stopping here to trade with them. There, we shall part ways as we leave you to find your friends."
Will and Cornelia began to thank the brothers for their help as they anchored the boat to a wooden pier before rushing to get a better glimpse of the peaceful village. To their horror, the beautiful landscape before them was soon incinerated as they spotted Kiyomi and Kazumi attacking from above, targeting their friends and any villagers who dared to stand in their way.
The two sisters' victory was once again, short lived, for it wasn't because Will and Cornelia joined the fight. Just when both sides thought they had the opportunity to accomplish something, whether it's to capture the Guardians alive or escaping back to Earth through a Portal, the Celestial Warrior of Fire appeared with his small army of soldiers and dark spirits, and the two sisters quickly escaped like before in Joseon.
"I've warned thou Guardians before, I wilt showeth thee no quarter upon the next time we meet!" Zhu Que's voice echoed throughout the village as he summoned two giant fiery tornadoes with a wave of his hand. The mere sight of him and all the fire around them were both biblical and terrifying. As if he couldn't get more dramatic, Zhu Que burst into his giant fire-bird form with flaming, demonic, red eyes that matched his thunderous, bird-liked shrill. "I WILT SMITE THEE IN A SEA OF FIERY WRATH!"
Will was too busy getting ready to shield her friends to notice one of them whispering, "I wished Orube and Kimi were here."
As Zhu Que aimed his fiery tornadoes at them, Will silently wished for the same thing.
To be continued…
Cultural references:
Jinmenju is a strange tree that bears fruits with smiling and laughing faces on them, even when they have fallen from their branches. There is an illustration of this mythical tree in Toriyama Sekien's Konjaku Hyakki Shui. According to legend, the jinmenju trees grew in mountain valleys' groves in southern China and they're laughing because they're always happy about life in general. Since southern China borders Vietnam, I've decided to have one growing in the jungles of Annam for Irma and her friends to see.
Annam (or An Nam) is based on Vietnam. The real Vietnam has changed its name A LOT throughout its history. In the past, Vietnam was called Dai Nam, Dai Ngu, Dai Viet, Dai Co Viet, An Nam, Van Xuan, etc. I chose "An Nam" because it's one of Vietnam's more recognizable past names during French colonization.
All of the places mentioned in this chapter really do exist in modern Vietnam, including Hạ Long Bay, The Bay of the Descending Dragon, where Will and Cornelia went to and met the two brothers. However, their exact locations in this story are very different in real life. For example, the village that Irma and the others went to is much farther inland in North Vietnam and is nowhere the Bay. Then again, this is Lusteria, so regions and cultures are mixed and matched.
The legend of the nymph who bored 100 children really is an actual Vietnamese origin myth. According to Vietnamese mythology, Âu Cơ, the beautiful mountain nymph married Lạc Long Quân, the dragon prince of the sea and from this union, she bored 100 eggs that hatched into 100 children. Because the sea and the mountains were so different, the parents went separate ways. 50 children followed their dragon father to live in the sea while the other 50 followed their mother to live on land and became the first ancestors of the Vietnamese people.
Story Trivia: All of the Annamites the Guardians have met in this chapter are based on my family members' names, although some of their backgrounds are slightly altered to fit this story.