Disclaimer: I do not own Jing. I do own Maeris.
A/N: Welcome to the SIXTH chapter of Becoming a Bandit where our trio will strive to figure out a way to defeat Master Gear and his partner Sherry. So, without further ado, I turn it over to Mae. Enjoy!
"Watch out!" yelled Maeris, pulling on Jing's arm as an energy blast landed in front of them.
"Thanks," murmured Jing as they continued running. "How did they know where we were?"
"I don't know," panted Mae while they were constantly shot at. "This is ridiculous!"
"He's not our only problem," Jing informed her, pointing at a group of soldiers poised to attack them up ahead.
"Oh, come on," groaned Maeris as one of the blasts took out the soldiers, sending the trio flying but they quickly recovered.
"Those idiots, they missed!" declared Kir.
"I figured out how they knew where we were," Jing told them with a grin.
"Really?" inquired Mae and Kir.
Jing winked. "Now I know how to fight back."
~ Becoming A Bandit ~
I hope he's right about this, thought Maeris as she stood on the roof of a building with Jing who had Kir attached to his arm.
"There were three heartbeats before, but one of them has disappeared," Sherry informed Master Gear as they approached.
"Did they split up?" asked Master Gear.
"Perhaps," mused the fox. "Because there would be three heartbeats if they were together. I'm sure about that, but…"
"If they have separated, we cannot use our special attack," muttered Master Gear. "We'll have to trust our men to find them."
I should really have learned not to doubt Jing by now, thought Mae, smirking as Master Gear finally noticed them. He is the Bandit King, after all.
"Sorry 'bout that," Kir told them. "Jing and I joined together and synchronized our heartbeats so that..."
"Kir!" hissed Jing, putting a finger to his lips.
"How did they…?" wondered Master Gear.
"We can wait for their explanation," replied Sherry, charging up and releasing a series of blasts.
"Sorry," apologized Kir while they moved out of the way. "I should learn to keep my big beak shut sometimes."
"No kidding," murmured Maeris as Master Gear and the fox proceeded to fire at them. "What do we do now?"
Jing gritted his teeth.
"Over here!" called the girl who had been about to be executed as she appeared from underneath a manhole cover. "Quickly!"
The bandits stared at each other, nodded, and joined the girl below the city.
"That was too close!" gasped Mae, smiling at the girl who turned on a flashlight. "Thanks for helping us."
"You're welcome," she responded, leading them through the sewers. "It was the least I could do after you three saved me. I owe you a debt of gratitude."
"Wait, I just want to make sure you get things straight," said Kir. "I was the one who saved you!"
The girl giggled. "I guess you're right, thanks."
She then kissed the albatross on the cheek.
"How come you never thank me like that?" Jing asked Mae. The preteen girl blushed making him smile. Maeris is really cute when she's flustered.
"Anyway, I just realized we haven't introduced ourselves to her yet," remarked Mae, changing the subject. I'll figure out how I truly feel about him later.
"That's right," replied Jing, returning his attention to the girl. "My name is Jing, and this is my keeper, Kir."
"I'm Maeris," Mae told her.
"Are you Jing's girlfriend?" inquired the girl.
Maeris flushed crimson. "We're business partners, that's all."
"Is that so?" responded the girl. "My name is Mirabelle."
"Mirabelle, Mirabelle, mi amore!" sang Kir.
Maeris rolled her eyes but let the bird have his way, this time. He did save her, after all.
Mirabelle guided them to an open space filled with coffins.
"Well, this looks like the entrance to Hell, doesn't it?" noted Jing.
"Yeah, maybe it's an omen," mused Kir as the coffins began to open. "Is this when all the mummies come out and get us?"
Jing placed himself in front of the girls and unsheathed his hidden blade. "Maeris, protect Mirabelle."
"I will," acknowledged Mae, reaching for her whip.
"If you feel like keeling over, we have plenty of empty caskets," offered one of the 'mummies' as a bunch of them came towards the group.
"Who goes there?!" demanded Jing.
"Stay behind me," Mae advised Mirabelle.
"Watch your voices," a new voice coming from behind them chastised. "Many spirits are sleeping quietly in peace."
They turned around to see a tall, muscular man with dark hair wearing a large coat smiling at them. "Welcome to Neverland!"
"'Neverland'?" repeated Mae, raising a golden eyebrow.
"Captain! You're alive!" exclaimed Mirabelle.
"You know this guy?" asked Kir.
"The captain was sentenced to the death penalty for being late just like I was," explained Mirabelle. "But he got away. Oh, I'm so glad!"
"'Just like I was'?" echoed the captain as Mirabelle embraced him. "You were convicted of the same crime as me?"
"Yes," confirmed Mirabelle. "But Kir, Jing, and Maeris saved me."
The captain grimaced and hit a wall. "Damn you!"
"Hey, watch your mouth!" reprimanded Kir.
"Relax, Kir. He wasn't talking about us," Mae told him.
"Master Gear?" guessed Kir.
"Maybe," mused Jing. "But I think he was mad for not being able to save her himself. Kind of like how I would be if it had been Maeris."
"I see," murmured Kir.
"Hey, by the way, I don't suppose you guys have any food down here?" asked Jing. "We're really hungry."
"If food is what you want," said the captain and he escorted them to a humongous room where tall sunflowers were bathed in a light beaming down from a hole in the ceiling. Mirabelle walked over to the beautiful flowers and knelt in front of them. "Don't be too surprised. This is the main dish of Neverland. This stuff keeps us alive down here."
"The only thing that surprises me is before we came down here, we didn't even see the likes of one weed," responded Jing.
Mirabelle leaned forward. "The smell. A long time ago, this flower used to bloom in abundance all over Adonis. But then Master Gear built the Clock Tower and took control over all of the clocks in town. Since then…"
"Neverland is the only place where flowers are blooming right now," the captain informed them.
"Geez, Master Gear is such a jerk," declared Mae, joining Mirabelle. "How could anyone not want flowers?"
"We are forced to live in the graveyard," the captain resumed after a few moments. "And watch our comrades above continue to die slowly."
"This is the only place where it still exists," remarked Mirabelle, standing up.
"Where what still exists?" murmured Mae, rising to her feet as well.
"The energy and liveliness of our town," Mirabelle replied cheerfully. "At the time when the flowers bloomed in the plaza."
Maeris glanced at Jing who was smiling making her smile too. Maybe there's hope for this place yet.
~ Becoming A Bandit ~
"Can't sleep?" surmised Jing after Mirabelle had gone to bed. He sat down in front of the sunflowers next to Maeris.
"These flowers remind me of the ones my mom grows in her garden," she revealed. "I guess I'm feeling a little homesick. What about you? Still thinking about Master Gear?"
"Yeah," he confirmed as he leaned back on his hands with a sigh.
"Did you mean what you said earlier?" asked Mae, causing him to stare at her questioningly. "About how you understood how the captain felt because you'd be the same if it had been me?"
"Of course I meant it," said Jing, raising a hand to play with a lock of her golden hair. "I'd feel horrible if something happened to you, Mae, just like you said you would have been if Master Gear had killed me."
Mae shivered from his touch as she found herself being pulled towards him until their lips were mere inches from each other. The young bandit flushed at how close they were but did not move away because she couldn't, didn't want to move away. Guess I've made up my mind.
"You can tell me to stop if you want to," offered Jing, his dark eyes were dazzling.
Mae did not reply, instead she bridged the gap between their mouths and kissed the Bandit King who kissed her back.
~ Becoming A Bandit ~
"Long ago, I desired to bring down Master Gear with one foul blow," the captain related to them later in the room with the caskets after Jing and Mae had returned. "We were always rioting but the number of victims continued to grow. As the leader, responsible for everyone's lives, I decided to stop fighting. We really have no choice! It's the only way we can go on living!"
"Hey, you don't need to explain yourself to us," Kir assured him.
"Kir's right," concurred Mae.
"If you think that's the right thing to do, what's the problem?" Jing pointed out.
"I guess you're right," replied the captain. "I'm sorry for getting all worked up."
"Don't be-," began Mae but was interrupted by a scream.
"Mirabelle!" cried Kir and they hurried to the girl's room.
Jing opened the door, but Mirabelle was gone. There was a gaping hole in the wall. They hurried through the opening and caught up to a crocodile whose back was covered in clocks.
"Crocodile!" shouted the captain.
The crocodile spun slowly around. "Whoa, I haven't seen your face in a while. Weren't you killed?"
The captain charged the crocodile who slapped him away with his tail. "Don't worry! It will all be over soon."
The monster then opened his jaws and raised an unconscious Mirabelle to his mouth. "I'm opening up wide…"
"You might want to check again," advised Mae.
The crocodile stared at his prey which had gotten switched with a skeleton wearing some of Mirabelle's clothing. "What?!"
"I can't let you take her," declared Kir, hovering next to Jing who held the real Mirabelle. "We have a date coming up."
"Oh really?" challenged the croc. "Not if I have anything to do with it! The next place you guys meet will be in Heaven!"
The monster shot fire out of his mouth at them. Mae wrapped her whip around his jaws, clamping them shut while Jing hit him with a royale, but it had no effect.
"Oh, enough already!" complained Maeris as the crocodile shook off her whip, sending her flying. Her back hit a wall and she landed on the floor.
"My skin is so thick that felt like nothing more than a baby blowing on my face," the croc sneered.
"That's too bad," replied Jing, picking up some swords which were lying around. "Well, I guess these guys won't need these!"
The crocodile snorted. "Give it your best shot!"
Jing threw the swords, but they bounced right off the monster.
"Good!" commended the croc, charging the Bandit King. "That's it! Struggle for all you're worth!"
Jing fired another royale which sailed over the brute's head.
"Where do you think you're aiming?!" demanded the crocodile. "You really missed that time!"
The blast bounced off the swords and hit the croc from behind.
"Nice work," praised Mae, walking over to Jing and Kir. "He won't be getting up after that one."
"Nope," agreed Jing, smiling at her.
Mae smiled back as the Bandit King sat down to work on writing a note to Master Gear while they read over his shoulder. I see.
"What kind of plan is that?!" asked the captain. "If we do that, Master Gear will…"
"Hold on, let me explain," responded Jing as he kept scribbling.
"I'll let your bravery lead you three to certain death, but I cannot allow you to take advantage of my people!" the captain exclaimed. "Master Gear is sure to set fire to all of these tunnels!"
The captain then lunged at Jing. Mae moved in between them, but it was Mirabelle who stopped the frightened man.
"You're wrong," cried the girl, holding him back. "Kir, Jing, and Maeris are trying to help us get our freedom back!"
"Mirabelle," murmured Mae.
"What's going on?" inquired one of the men as he came over to look. "'Dear Master Gear, I'm going to steal all time from Adonis. Sincerely, the Bandit King."
"You guys are bandits?" asked Mirabelle.
"You could say that," replied Jing.
Mirabelle glanced at Maeris. "So, when you meant 'business partners'?"
Maeris winked. "Yep."
"I know I'm already your hero and everything," said Kir to Mirabelle. "But these two fools can't do it all by themselves so I'm going to help them."
Mae rolled her eyes but smiled at the bird. "Thanks for the confidence boost."
"What is this talk of heroes?" demanded the captain, thrusting a finger at a coffin whose clock was broken. "Just look at this lid! This is what happened when his time was stopped. This is what it means to interrupt time, to die! What will you so-called heroes do if you cause this mark to spread all over town?!"
"Well?!" shouted the captain, grabbing Jing by the front of his shirt. "What will you do then?!"
"We will cut time in half, and stop it in its tracks," Jing informed him. "You're thinking just as Master Gear wants you to."
The captain gasped and released Jing with a grunt.
The Bandit King stared at Maeris who inclined her head as Kir perched on the boy's shoulder and the trio began to leave. They stepped into a bucket at the bottom of a well and Jing grasped the rope, pulling them up to the surface. They could see through the opening above them that it was still dark outside.
"You mustn't look at those lids as warnings or bad omens," Jing advised the town's people, glancing back at them with determined eyes. "But as a hope for a future without the tyranny of time!"
Mae nodded. "It's time for Master Gear to be afraid of you! Don't let his mind games control you! No one should have to be terrified of living! Embrace your future with your own two hands!"
A/N: And there you have it! Until then, read review and show the love!