Chapter Seven – Proud General Flute

Many years ago, when the reality of existence had not yet reached the tranquil mountainside village of Dajing, Zhi spent her days in atypical fashion of the country life in China. Although not claiming any sort of intrinsic value to the government and not striving to modernize like many of the surrounding areas had, Dajing had a long and rich history of the arts, for many great men and women lived in the quaint locale and strove not to exceed their own boundaries of want or need. With simple yet sturdy houses, a clear-flowing river coming down out of the distant Mt. Jinhua and favorable, fertile soil that supplied the much needed rice and vegetables, the village had the makings of a picturesque paradise that was as beautiful as it was practical, untouched by the development of the new age. The men and women of the village provided and were provided for, spending their days in the ways of learning, calligraphy, art and history, luxuries upheld year after year by the hardworking peasant that sought balance in toil and thought. The village had existed since the Ming Dynasty.

Many martial arts existed in Dajing. Some were very traditional, while others were known only to exist in the souls of those few that bore them. In all cases, the villagers were well renowned as being the stewards of the martial arts and some of the finest warriors in the region. These noble arts, so often regarded as simple fighting styles, were actually the ways in which the villagers endured a changing world, maintaining the balance needed to keep Dajing, and themselves, as beautiful as it ever had been.

Yet, there was also a great need for a balance with that changing world as well. For this reason, a single boy had been chosen to serve as emissary to the rest of the country and this boy happened to be one of the few children that Zhi remembered growing up with. His name was Xue. Although she had only been allowed to see him rarely, Zhi had been close to Xue from the moment they had met. They had gone swimming in the hot and musty summers, letting the placid waters of the river soothe their sweating bodies. They had often gone running through the muddy rice patties, being hollered at and chased by the workers but only to their own delight. They had done as children do. Their lives had been carefree and full of joy, mostly due to their esteemed guardians that set them apart from the rest of the villagers.

Zhi's grandfather was a sort of mystic among the people, even among the other masters. His martial art was a great unknown, and he taught no pupils, as well as anyone could remember. It was a very strange thing. Yet, even the elders of the village seemed to remember the old man as being old when they were children, so a sort of lore was born of his existence. No one knew exactly how old he was, and as such the villagers regarded him highly as one of the Immortals passing time upon the land. Zhi's parents had both died when she was young and having no siblings, Zhi was a sort of golden child, allowed to do almost anything she chose to and suffering only the consequences brought onto her by her grandfather. Thus, she had grown up not knowing suffering as many do, and this tended to make her heart warm and fresh like a summer drench. She never spoiled, but rather used her time and freedom to cosset her heart and study all of the beauty in the world, as handed down by her vigilant grandfather.

Xue was also a privileged child. His family line had been the magistrates for the village, providing guidance and enlightenment in matters of everything from the rice harvest to the dealings with government officials. His family was proud and large, and the stewards of a long and prestigious martial art that was highly regarded even among the most well-known masters. Xue had grown up knowing that he would inherit this lineage, but never thought it would have torn him away from his childhood playmate so early in their lives.

They had only been children when the time came to set Xue in his destiny. He was two years older than Zhi, and precisely the moment he had become eight years old, they had taken him. His life from that moment on was one of dedication, duty and education. He studied every day in the main village complex and was never allowed to deviate from his rigorous schedule of classes, training and practice. It was decided that Xue would be sent off to a university and educated, then to return and provide a much-needed link with the new world. The elders had decided this after sensing the encroaching progress of the government. They decided to use one of their own to best fulfill the needs of the village and preserve their balance. All of this was laid upon Xue and expected that he succeed.

Fortunately, Xue was as brilliant as everyone had hoped. People often referred to him as a genius and he was quickly becoming the pride of the village. In all things, he was exceptional and excelled in anything that was placed before him. He was the brightest student. He was the heir to a revered martial art. He was the best that his people had to offer.

Zhi had often stared in longing at the complex, hoping to see a glimpse of her friend so many years gone and hoping that he still remembered her. After Xue, Zhi had never had another close friend. So her thoughts were always on him, progressing just as the years did.

In one spring, when she had grown up quite a bit and was now considered a young woman, she had seen a glimpse of him when he was allowed to leave the complex to assess the village. From afar, she almost didn't recognize him, but as he neared, she had been surprised. He had grown rather tall and had strong features, as much from his lineage as his training, and he truly had become the pride of the village. Everything about him was as the villagers said, from his grand mind to his grand body and soul. Although she had waited so long to see him, she could not go any further than the tree she had held to for protection, her eyes searching every part of him for a glimpse of the boy she had grown up with. Several old ladies of the village had been nearby and, upon seeing her watching, began to hint at the rumors of proposed marriage, of the pride of the village to the only granddaughter of the mysterious mystic elder. This idea frightened her, for she had never thought of him as anything other than her childhood friend and could hardly consider him otherwise. She ran home to her grandfather, hoping to hear the matter from him only, and waited for his response. There was none. Her grandfather had simply let the matter remain unresolved and left it to linger there until the fateful day when Oberon and his forces came to the village.

It was on that day, when her village had been torn to pieces by these men and women in dark suits and her village's masters were beaten all around her, that her eyes had fallen upon the colossus known as Flute. Although she desperately searched out for her grandfather, it was Xue that she found first, facing the grand colossus among the carnage and swearing that he would see the days filled with hope long after the huge man was defeated. As if to bring a self-revelation to his prophecy, and a forcible silence to the colossus's arrogant laughter, Xue had focused all of his honor, training and duty into a courageous moment and ran headlong at the beastly man, not at all aware that the screaming of his childhood friend was ringing amid the horrors, but falling silent on his valiant ears.

These images, although filled with years of memory and the intensity of the heart, were only a flash in the mind of Zhi, for the only thing she could see now was this variant of the colossus that had struck down her friend and the same smug smile that he bore. She could still remember it clearly. The valiant effort of Xue, the skill with which he fought and the single, earth-shaking blow that had sent him sprawling into the river, never to be seen again. The colossus's demonstrated power was nothing she could remember, for all she wanted was to avenge Xue. There was no gentleness in her heart, no childish demeanor that had impressed itself upon Kage only moments before. Zhi had rushed headlong just as Xue had, intending this time to topple the colossus and restore her village's honor in heart, mind and soul.

"What are you doing!" came the frantic call from behind her, but she already knew that Kage could not stop her in this moment of revenge. Even if Xue had been defeated, Zhi was certain that she could defeat this lumbering beast, if only because her heart told her so. It didn't matter that this was a warped, metallic version of the beast that had defeated Xue. To avenge him, and everyone in the village, she would beat Flute. She would do this before the eyes of the one that had saved her, for she wanted to prove herself to him more than she would even admit to herself. If she could help their escape by just this much, then she felt she wasn't such a burden to him. She could prolong the feeling that was taking her.

Flute had been eager to get to Kage as soon as he could, so the girl that Oberon had been so intent on keeping was nothing more than a trifle for him. The arrogance of his stature left him looming before her and grinning that same smug grin she had remembered, thought he had no specific recollection of just why she was being so enthusiastic to meet her end. "You're in the way!" he howled, rearing back a great fist and sending it towards her, the same great mass that had brushed aside her childhood friend months before.

However, this time the fist did not strike quarry, but instead dipped slightly at the added weight of the agile girl swinging up around his forearm and raking a foot across his face. It was such a shock that Flute stumbled back, his reaction more surprise than injury. Once more, Zhi had shown this intriguing ability to move gracefully about an opponent in ways that Kage had never seen before. But she wasn't done yet. Although she was appalled by how sturdy the colossus was, she was instantly moving again around the towering form of Flute, hovering in the air in front of him just long enough to show her intense loathing for him before clapping her feet together at his ears, jarring his head once more, and then landing lightly at his feet in form to attack once again. It went on like this, Zhi making Flute out to be some lumbering oaf unable to swat a noisy fly, but it was obvious that her attacks, no matter how well-placed or passionate, were having little effect on the general.

"Annoying pest!" came a howling rage at last and one of Flute's massive hands swatted Zhi from the air and sent her crashing down on the ground in a heap. As expected of his massive size, his strikes were fierce and powerful and Zhi could barely keep her breath, heaving heavily on the ground as she barely managed to roll over to look up at him. "Begone, putrid human," Flute sneered and reared up one of his great boots, leering happily at her impending fate. With great pleasure, Flute unceremoniously stomped his foot down on the rattled girl, hoping to feel the crush of a human to his eternal pleasure. Instead, what he found was a jarring halt to his foot and a struggling quiver at his sole.

Zhi had caught his foot with both hands, her back bending and warping the floor under his strain, all the while using what energy she had left to keep from buckling under the force. The strength she displayed was, in itself, something that caught notice from every eye that was watching, though her losing struggle was quickly dulling that shock. Inwardly, she lamented the fact that she was unable to beat him, but also kicked herself for attacking out of anger, so that her movements were saggy and weak. Not a single moment was given to wonder where her savior had gone, but rather she was glad that he had not come to help her again, to prove that she really was just a burden and perhaps not worth saving. Still, a small part of her, in its beating consistency, longed for him to appear once more and lift her that extra step.

Both Zhi and Flute were jolted by the appearance between them, for Kage's impish grin and flowing motion were both items of great consideration. Flute, standing off-balance due to his crushing assault on Zhi, was unable to react in any manner, save his widening eyes and opening mouth, harboring a great expletive for this brash human. Kage's body whirled and brought his foot in contact at the precise center of Flute's breastplate, the armor resounding through the chamber in a metallic ping that seemed to live as a creature within the reflective walls. Despite his great size, Flute came off the ground, his weight in chaos, and was thrown a good distance back from Zhi, coming down in a great clamor upon his back. Although the initial shock was great, he leaned up slowly and placed his hand over the breastplate, somehow shocked that he could hate the smug human even more than before. To his great horror, meandering cracks spread out from the point of impact in his breastplate, making the insult far more infuriating than the injury. He would have been shocked had he not been in such a rage. Flute was simply scarlet in anger.

Kage came to a spinning stop on his feet, facing Flute with the same grin that had proven itself so aggravating to the general. Although Zhi still lay wheezing on the ground at his feet, Kage never took his eyes from Flute and proceeded to adjust his sunglasses as he always did, in a manner most insulting. "Sorry, I didn't mean to interrupt but I never was good at just watching a fight. As amusing as it was to see this paper-thin girl whooping your giant metal ass, ain't I the one you wanted to stomp into the ground?" he called gingerly, silently favoring the foot that had struck Flute and the pulsing pain that had stuttered him. As cocky as he was, he still felt the laws of physics. Flute's armor was hard. Very hard. He could understand why most people would have such a hard time fighting him. Still, he would not show the effect of the kick and, in only moments after he had settled his weight back on it, the shocked ankle forgotten and his mind quickly focusing back onto the matter at hand.

No matter how much fun he would have adjusting Flute's attitude towards him, Kage's eyes still strayed wearily to the stolid figure of Oberon, as if expecting some kind of new break in the indomitable aura that swirled about him. Kage cursed silently as he considered the fight with him, but was forced to quickly look back to Flute as he rose. "Ah, finished your break? I can understand you'd need one after she gave you such a workout," he called through his impish grin, almost tasting the pleasure of seeing Flute seething at him. Without a doubt, Kage enjoyed being the subject of people's fiercest emotions. The mediocre was boring. He wanted fire and ice; love and hate. He didn't pay any attention to the injured girl at his feet. He didn't need to. She was far more resilient than he had ever imagined.

Flute was almost boiling over with rage, seeing as this human had consistently made a fool of him in front of Oberon. Now, after cracking his great and precious armor, his huge, muscular hands now wanted nothing more than to crush the life from the insolent human that still mocked him openly. Pounding a fist across his injured breastplate, Flute roared in a commanding voice and let all things to the wind. This would be a fight he would bring to an end with his limitless strength! "You will never have such an opportunity again! I will turn my power on you and you will be ground into the very dirt of this worthless planet. You will feel the wrath of General Flute!" he roared, almost as if presenting a ceremony to the spectators and eluding to the fate of the human.

Kage shrugged. Ones who spoke their own names constantly bit their tongues too often. It was time to end the game with the colossus. With a taunting hand gesture, Kage welcomed the furious lunge of General Flute.

The distance of two moons was touched lavender by the waning light, as if the entire sky had been constructed of a silky drape that was slowly working its way into blackness as night fell across the serene horizon of Avalon. True to its alien realm, the two companions to the sky were distanced apart, but both causing sparkles and inversions of light and pressure in the atmosphere that made the twilight sky move as if it were alive, a phenomenon called the Calypsus Tide, named so in the belief that it was the largest and most prominent of the moons, Calypso, that caused such events. These firework-like expulsions set the city in every night, and few other places in the galaxy boasted such opulence for their people. Yet even as an exotic sky was falling across the glowing alloys of the impressive capital city, the shades of night had already crept upon the inhabitants and were secretly biding their moments until the fullness of their depth could be seen.

The darkness of the room had covered everything, leaving only the bland circle of light that orbited the colossus as he knelt. It was an odd thing, to be called to the royal chambers at such a time and to be admitted with no announcement or escort. Truly, everything about the summons was bizarre, but the proud general was not of the consciousness to question such things, but rather remain motionless in the light, waiting for the purpose to such an unorthodox calling.

"I hope I haven't disturbed you. It was imperative that you come," said a voice from the darkness, a voice that needed no moment of recognition for the general.

There was no scale to measure his surprise, for hearing the aloft voice had shaking his steel nerves and made the general seriously doubt that he heard the voice right, to believe it was who he thought it was. Such a thing was shocking of. Yet, Flute remained the pastel soldier he was known to be. Flute's head remained hung forward, his fist sternly to the ground as he paid the proper respects to the voice of this midnight caller. "Your Majesty," he said as he greatly sculpted each word for tone and phrasing, "there is not a moment in time that you would inconvenience me by your summons." The reply was a soft chuckle, then a terribly long silence that felt thicker than the darkness that surrounded Flute. Though his eyes were cast down, he knew that he could not see the voice, for it was not his place to acknowledge the presence of the speaker and the hand over his destiny. However, even as Flute was such a dedicated soldier, he was curious as to the mood of the affair and shifted slightly, though never raising his eyes. "What is it that your Majesty wishes of me?" he asked to break the jaws of the darkness.

The silenced lingered a moment longer, then was finally broken. "Only a great fool would question the loyalty of our devoted General Flute. Avalon's very welfare relies upon your great strength to uphold it," the voice called in curious monotones. However, Flute was not able to hear it. Only the great swelling of his chest touched his senses and the colossus voiced his gratitude over such praise. The voice, seemingly unfazed by the thanks, continued. "However, there are those that are not as steadfast as you, my dear general. Truly, I sometimes wonder if the rest of our great military is as devoted as you to the greater glory of Avalon."

Flute now was silenced, even from the whispering praises in his ears. To hear such a thing was scandalous, but the source proved to be more than mere hearsay. To the general's knowledge, there was not one officer that would falter in the true test of loyalty to Avalon, nor was there be any doubt in his mind that each one of his comrades would perform equally faithful. However, he could not simply dismiss it. This was coming from the sky. He had to heed the warning. "Your Majesty, what is it that vexes you? What manner of scum could possibly trouble the brow of our beloved Pri…"

"Do you know of my plans to send Commander Oberon to the planet where the Golden Queen met her equal? No, that is not correct. Met her superior," the voice said, suddenly sharp and causing the general to look up slightly. A hazy outline was visible in the darkness, but fully unable to form by the pale light. It lingered, wavering in and out of the colossus's ability to discern if it was really there, like a distant thought that came and went the more one tried to remember it. Flute stared, but only as long as it took to grasp the words fully. Its meaning was lost, then found in the striking truth that he had adjusted to the dimness and was no longer in a room of light and dark. He was in a room of shades, finding his own to be impossible to name or even distinguish.

"I do, your Majesty," he replied.

The darkness seemed glad, then seemed to settle further as the colossal general shivered on his knee. "Then, I shall tell you what you must do," the voice said.

The spectacular climax between Kage and Flute was nothing expected. It had progressed a span of a dozen minutes, with a parade across the pools of reflections in a blur of force and motion, and while Kage was beginning to feel a burn in his body and the strain of battling such a titan, it was Flute that was infinitely more astonished at the abilities of this reviled, but extraordinary human. The colossus was seething, his hands clenched tight and his brown fallen forward in intimate disregard for Kage's existence. How badly he wanted to grind him into dust, yet he found himself equally matched with the human, as if such a thing was possible. Every swing, strike or grab was brushed aside. This was something beyond maddening to him, for his immense strength was something that he had always promoted, and there was not but a few within the entire Imperial Forces that could best him, yet this human seemed able to predict his movements so accurately that he seemed to be only hindered by his physical body, forced to contend with the physical limitations born into his species. Yet he was proficient enough to have lasted so long without as much as a scratch. For such a show to have unfolded before Oberon was the general's bane, and every moment became more desperate for him to end the embarrassment that was slowly pulling away his regimented guise.

"You can't elude me forever, scum! I will scrap your entrails from my boots using your bones!" he called, his muscular body rippling under his armor for a chance to crush the human.

Kage retained his great smile, enjoying the fact that Flute was so riled up over him. Even as Zhi had barely been able to pull herself up to a somewhat sitting position, she had gained no attention from him. In fact, Flute wasn't even granted the main course of his thoughts, for that honor was given to the looming figure of Oberon and the aftermath of the inevitable defeat of the colossus. Inwardly, he was cursing. Flute was nothing but an exhibition, but he still gauged his chances against Oberon as very low. He was able to toy with Flute as a matter of scale, but he knew no amount of confidence could counterbalance the sheer might of that aura. Although his actually chances were vague, he had a pretty good idea of how quickly Oberon's power would swallow him. So he bought himself time with Flute, toying with the good general and trying to think of a good way to get Zhi out of there. Then, at least, the price for failure was only his own death.

Again, the feeling eroded him. It was the same feeling that had sent him away from Tokyo, from his friends and lover. Before, he had no fear of dying. In fact, he had sought it out as a way to be united with his lost sister once more, yet now was a different story. His heart beat for someone, and she had been through far too much pain and suffering on his account for him to simply die and disappear.

Tears would stain her cheeks. Her lips would quiver in pain. That heart which so graciously held him fast, would cease to love again.

This was his fear – the fear born from love. He had never felt it before, this feeling of stinging someone beyond the grave, and it wrenched his soul to pieces to think of hurting that girl again. It made him feel weak, pathetic and gross. This fighter's heart was tainted, and as such, felt like less of a force when he relied upon it to drive his will upon his enemy. And in that moment, he returned to the time when he had conquered his madness, if only by a ledge's margin, to question himself over and over again about the existence of his Ryuugan and the legitimacy of his pull on the powerful soldier of the lord of all planets.

Kage spit to the side, losing his grin and ending his mind's toil with the thought of a good, old-fashioned brawl. "If you had half as much strength as you do hot air, this might actually have been a fight," he said. Flute roared once more, then lunged headlong in an eager rush to end his frustrations. As a change of pace, Kage also rushed headlong in, but only because fighting denied thinking, and he no longer wanted to think his thoughts. He just wanted to deal and feel pain, to enjoy the simplicity of a fight.

However, something happened to him that was most unexpected, and most inconvenient to his efforts to defeat the colossus. It had happened a few times before, but never during a fight. Suddenly, Kage's Ryuugan were burning behind his sunglasses and his body erupted into a painful contraction like every muscle was being torn from his bones. There was no way he could describe it; in retrospect he had tried and failed, for he never experienced this kind of pain before, and he was very well versed in the doctrine of pain. It was such a sharp and blinding pain that he audibly groaned, halfway through his charge at Flute, and stumbled slightly, tucking his arms tightly against his body as if it would fly apart unless he held it together. Even more fantastic than the pain was what he saw through his burning Ryuugan: the past was full of images of a palace far away from Earth and the foul intent of a darkly shrouded figure there; yet the future was nothing but a meadow out in ipen skies and a single figure waving him to come closer amid the carelessly waving flowers that had been there all their lives. The visions flashed like lightning, burning and intermittent, and he had trouble remembering what was real and what was delusion. And then, it all stopped.

However, it was already too late and Flute came down on him long before he was able to recover from the paralyzing effects of the visions. A great and massive fist buckled his defenses and sent a throbbing pain through Kage's head, a pain that was only rivaled by the impact of his back against the hard metal wall behind him. Making a concave indention in the metal behind, Kage fell to the floor with a wheezing cough, though whether from Flute's score or the vision before, he could hardly tell.

"It seems your evasiveness has finally run out, worm. Where is your smug grin now?" Flute called with a great, embellished smile. That one strike had been more than enough to please him and now he thirsted for more.

Zhi was unable to call out for him, since her strength had still not returned from her own battle with Flute, but her eyes were wide with worry as Kage's form struggle on his knees. Inwardly, she cursed herself for rushing into the fight and being incapacitated so early, as she was now unable to offer any assistance to the person that had shown her kindness unknown. Although she desperately tried to stand and return his favor, her body would not allow it, taunting her that all forces experience limitations, even when told to the contrary.

All the while Flute was patting himself on the back for the dismal victory, Kage was doubled over, staring at his own hunched reflection in the floor. A great crack existed through his face and his eyesight was blurry, which startled him at first but soon gave away as the truth came to him. He had seen it. At first, he was confused as to why, but now he was sure of it. The throbbing in his head was an itch compared to the new sense of confidence in him, and the human defiant slowly rose to his feet before the gloating general. At first, Flute was a bit surprised, slightly annoyed but still very pleased with himself. Then, he saw the effect his strike had impressed on the human and his demeanor changed.

Now, he stepped back and started, his eyes as wide as stars, and his voice caught in his throat. Zhi had seen it also. Oberon as well. In fact, all those present in the great hall stood fast, staring at the boy in silence.

The elastic band snapped around Kage's head. The great crack in his vision fell away as the dark lens was removed. The sunglasses made a plastic thud as they hit the ground at his feet, the lens breaking a bit more at the impact of the pane and their protection was sloughed away. But all eyes were on Kage, the flaring energy erupting in his Ryuugan so spectacular that none dared to look away, in fear that a moment's lapse would somehow rob them of this understanding that the human, with his furious eyes and potent growl, was truly something dangerous and wild. They would waver and breathe, but never look away.

And his eyes were upon them.