Special points go to Asher Tye for noticing how I'm writing this! Other points go to my regular readers, Spleef and Tajeri Lynn for continuing to read and review, Thanks! Oh, this fic is NOWHERE near being over, yes, the demons will turn bad, but I plan on putting them through hell first, so you can see WHY they're so bent on destruction (Well, mostly Tso).
Disclaimer: I don't own JCA, but I do own a talking spider-man plush.
Chapter 10 Aqua Meaning
The party proceeds the next day. I tell no one of the girl's connection to my vision. The
surrealness of the celebration is maddening. It is like the old days, when there was no phantom
threat, when there were only seven children and all were accounted for. Everyone sat still, even
Shendu, a first for him (however, I believe it had something to do woith the pale gold dragon who
kept raising his eyebrows at Syra every time she looked at him. In order to avoid such
occurences, she kept a closer eye on Shendu than usual, much to his horror and my delight). Hsi
Wu is enamoured with his surroundings, all the excitement and motion. It is evening now, the
hanging lanterns are lit, music plays and everyone chats mindlessly about their lives. Even Rune,
the sternest of the three Chi Guardians is enjoying herself. She swirls a large class of wine as
she speaks with Mother. Syra is speaking with Lu, who is pleasantly enjoying her first sip of rice
wine in a whole twenty four hours. It is then that I notice the red maned dragon sneak up behind
Syra Seo. He looks in another direction as he drops a few small coins on the ground. He cranes
his neck down to retrieve them, while at the same time, peeking under her tail. I haven't seen
this form of peeping before in person ,though I have heard Lu Song often speak of it. She claims
that is how she and father met, she caught him doing something similar. She called him a
pervert, he called her uptight, she called him rude, he called her gorgeous and the rest, well, I'd
rather not know.
I notice that Lu sees what the male dragon is up to, she smiles slightly, but does not alert Syra
of the situation, I imagine she'd say something like "Why spoil something so hilarious?"
Finished with the episode, I move off in another direction.
...........
I find myself alone on the edge of the party, enveloped in the darkness that is my closest
companion. The sounds of gaity are far off, butI can still hear them. Such is the way I desire to
live, still within range of happiness, but In m own private space. I inhale deeply and look up at he
moon, brught, glorious and full. A firework explodes, momentarily illuminationg me with particles
of red light. Another flow of images enters my mind, once again unbidden. The evil blues and
purples of Dark Chi mist envelope everything, death hangs heavy in the air. The markings on
countless Chi warriors change first to electric blue, then grey, as does the rest of their skin.
Rumiko-hime stands with a sword raised, glowing with heavenly light, before Hsi and a young girl
who I do not recognize, but Hsi looks so much older......The red maned dragon stands with his two
compatriots, the red eyed dragon and the orange eyed dragon, the Three Chi Beasts. Snakelike
tentacles of Dark Chi Wrap around them, slicing at their skin and attempting to force themselves
into the beasts mouths. The two dark colored dragons surrender quickly and appear to embrace
the dark power being pumped into the heart of their souls, sucking on the tentacles with a
perverse vigor while their friend struggles against the evil. The red maned dragon spews green
Chi energy at the tentacles, but to no avail. They simply bind his mouth shut and abandon trying
to force their way into his. It fights, wrenching its snakelike body in painful arcs trying to
escape. The tentacles dig farther into its pale flesh with every move. It lays in its own blood,
every few moments giving a pain wracked twitch, still fighting. A phantom voice echoes in my
mind.
"Why do you not simply give up?" The piercing green eyes of the pale dragon burst open with a
murderous glare.
And I am back in the garden.
And I am not alone.
It appears that the tree that I have been leaning on has an occupant, sitting upon a branch a few
feet above me is the young Chi Guardian, Hikari.
"Hikari, wasn't it?" I ask, attempting to be civil and courteous.
Her brilliant eyes burn into my soul
"You're from Rumiko-hime's state? How was it destroyed?"
I instantly regret asking, I should not have asked a child to tell me about the masacre of
thousands, as is my understanding of the events. But the girl answers without hesitation.
"The Dark Chi man came and poisened the Chi, everyone in our shrine tried to stop him, even my
dad. But he changed them so they wouldn't stop him. He brought an army of beings that were
shadows with glowing red eyes. I was scared, my mom hid me. I didn't see anything, but Dad, he
came to get me. He sent me off with the Chi Beast, the red maned dragon. I saw the Dark CHi
tentacle go through his chest, Mom and I are alone now. But not really, for the Chi Beast is
always with us. He told me that since we are both redheads, we're "simpatico", or some such
thing,"
My throat tightens, that such a young child should have witnessed their own parent's
destruction. I need to ask:
"Hikari, was the man with the Dark Chi, human?"
"Yes," she answers.
Something all to predictable, I tire of these human fools. They toil with forces they do not
comprehend for their own gain. I decide to change the subject.
"Hikari? What do your tattoos mean?"
"Tattoos?" she asks.
"Yes, I've noticed that all Chi Guardians have green tattoos all over their bodies. I have often
wondered what they meant but was always embarassed to ask. I was unable to find the reason in
any book I have read," close enough to the truth.
She seems to accept it as a legitimate question.
"Oh, you mean these," she points to a trail of characters on he rarm.
"Yes," I say.
"They're Chi markings. See Chi Guardians are eighty-percent Chi. When we're born, we get these
marks on us so the Chi will flow into them and take on the meaning of whatever the tattoos say,"
"What do yours say?" I ask.
"This one says "Dark Shield", it protects me from Dark Chi," she says, tracing her finger along
her ankle.
"This one, says "Chi Scythe"," its the one on her arm.
"The ones on my cheeks are just decorations, but my Chi Eye is on my forhead. It is turned off
now, so you can't see it,"
"Ahh, that's right. All Chi Guardians have Chi Eyes. Only three humans have them at a time,"
"I know. Your Temple priestess, Teng has one,"
"That's right,"
"I like Teng,"
"Hikari?"
"Yes?"
"Are Chi Guardians tattoos always green?"
"Well, of course,"
"Oh,"
"But wait," she seems to have remembered something.
Hikari's eyes move back and forth with fervor.
Her voice is shaky at first.
"Wait......when the tentacle went into my dad, his changed colors. They......they were."
My heart begins to pound, for I know what she is about to say.
"......blue. Brilliant blue. Then they turned grey and the rest of him did too, and his eyes were
glowing red. He turned into one of those things that invaded,"
So that is the Dark Chi wizard's game. Conquer through assimilation.
"The Dark Chi Wizard went away though. Marl Kung fought him and saved a few of the villages,"
I reflect on this for a moment. That must have been when he met Rumiko-hime. Hsi Wu, my
brother, would never have been born if this did not happen. In the most bizarre way, I'm glad it
did.
A shrill scream shatters the relative quiet of the place. I feel an enormous surge of heat grace
my neck. I turn around to see the entire garden illuminated by a titanic fireball. I feel a breeze
overhead, I look up to see the pale gold dragon fleeing into the darkness, a smug look on his face.
I turn back to the party, Hikari looks as well.
It appears that after sometime, Syra finally noticed her intruder and her reaction
was.....explosive. She is still fuming enormous plumes of fire as she snorts out countless curses.
Meanwhle, Lu song is rolling on the ground, wracked with laughter.
"You..you didn't even nocitce, Syra! He was.........there for almost a quarter of an hour and you
didn't even notice! Admit it, you coy little geisha, you liked it!" Lu manages to say as she laughs.
Syra turns her rage on her aquaintance.
"You...you bitch, Lu! What did you call me? The nerve! And......wait....you knew he was there? And
you didn't tell me! GRRRRRRRRR!"
Syra leapt onto Lu and began to maul her. Still laughing, Lu fights back. The two demonesses
are caught in a match of fire, claws and teeth. They wrestle one another savagely for several
minutes. I notice that Lu has a wicked gleam in her eyes. She grasps Syra's serpentine body in
her arms and rolls the both of them into the pond, extinguishing Syra's flame and leaving her a
dripping, soaking mess. Syra snorts angrily and stalks off. She passes Shendu, who is laughing
uncontrollably. Enraged, she slaps him to the ground. He whimpers and runs in the opposite
direction.
And so ends Hsi Wu's One Year Celebration.
I sigh as I imagine what tomorrow will bring.
End Chapter 10
Disclaimer: I don't own JCA, but I do own a talking spider-man plush.
Chapter 10 Aqua Meaning
The party proceeds the next day. I tell no one of the girl's connection to my vision. The
surrealness of the celebration is maddening. It is like the old days, when there was no phantom
threat, when there were only seven children and all were accounted for. Everyone sat still, even
Shendu, a first for him (however, I believe it had something to do woith the pale gold dragon who
kept raising his eyebrows at Syra every time she looked at him. In order to avoid such
occurences, she kept a closer eye on Shendu than usual, much to his horror and my delight). Hsi
Wu is enamoured with his surroundings, all the excitement and motion. It is evening now, the
hanging lanterns are lit, music plays and everyone chats mindlessly about their lives. Even Rune,
the sternest of the three Chi Guardians is enjoying herself. She swirls a large class of wine as
she speaks with Mother. Syra is speaking with Lu, who is pleasantly enjoying her first sip of rice
wine in a whole twenty four hours. It is then that I notice the red maned dragon sneak up behind
Syra Seo. He looks in another direction as he drops a few small coins on the ground. He cranes
his neck down to retrieve them, while at the same time, peeking under her tail. I haven't seen
this form of peeping before in person ,though I have heard Lu Song often speak of it. She claims
that is how she and father met, she caught him doing something similar. She called him a
pervert, he called her uptight, she called him rude, he called her gorgeous and the rest, well, I'd
rather not know.
I notice that Lu sees what the male dragon is up to, she smiles slightly, but does not alert Syra
of the situation, I imagine she'd say something like "Why spoil something so hilarious?"
Finished with the episode, I move off in another direction.
...........
I find myself alone on the edge of the party, enveloped in the darkness that is my closest
companion. The sounds of gaity are far off, butI can still hear them. Such is the way I desire to
live, still within range of happiness, but In m own private space. I inhale deeply and look up at he
moon, brught, glorious and full. A firework explodes, momentarily illuminationg me with particles
of red light. Another flow of images enters my mind, once again unbidden. The evil blues and
purples of Dark Chi mist envelope everything, death hangs heavy in the air. The markings on
countless Chi warriors change first to electric blue, then grey, as does the rest of their skin.
Rumiko-hime stands with a sword raised, glowing with heavenly light, before Hsi and a young girl
who I do not recognize, but Hsi looks so much older......The red maned dragon stands with his two
compatriots, the red eyed dragon and the orange eyed dragon, the Three Chi Beasts. Snakelike
tentacles of Dark Chi Wrap around them, slicing at their skin and attempting to force themselves
into the beasts mouths. The two dark colored dragons surrender quickly and appear to embrace
the dark power being pumped into the heart of their souls, sucking on the tentacles with a
perverse vigor while their friend struggles against the evil. The red maned dragon spews green
Chi energy at the tentacles, but to no avail. They simply bind his mouth shut and abandon trying
to force their way into his. It fights, wrenching its snakelike body in painful arcs trying to
escape. The tentacles dig farther into its pale flesh with every move. It lays in its own blood,
every few moments giving a pain wracked twitch, still fighting. A phantom voice echoes in my
mind.
"Why do you not simply give up?" The piercing green eyes of the pale dragon burst open with a
murderous glare.
And I am back in the garden.
And I am not alone.
It appears that the tree that I have been leaning on has an occupant, sitting upon a branch a few
feet above me is the young Chi Guardian, Hikari.
"Hikari, wasn't it?" I ask, attempting to be civil and courteous.
Her brilliant eyes burn into my soul
"You're from Rumiko-hime's state? How was it destroyed?"
I instantly regret asking, I should not have asked a child to tell me about the masacre of
thousands, as is my understanding of the events. But the girl answers without hesitation.
"The Dark Chi man came and poisened the Chi, everyone in our shrine tried to stop him, even my
dad. But he changed them so they wouldn't stop him. He brought an army of beings that were
shadows with glowing red eyes. I was scared, my mom hid me. I didn't see anything, but Dad, he
came to get me. He sent me off with the Chi Beast, the red maned dragon. I saw the Dark CHi
tentacle go through his chest, Mom and I are alone now. But not really, for the Chi Beast is
always with us. He told me that since we are both redheads, we're "simpatico", or some such
thing,"
My throat tightens, that such a young child should have witnessed their own parent's
destruction. I need to ask:
"Hikari, was the man with the Dark Chi, human?"
"Yes," she answers.
Something all to predictable, I tire of these human fools. They toil with forces they do not
comprehend for their own gain. I decide to change the subject.
"Hikari? What do your tattoos mean?"
"Tattoos?" she asks.
"Yes, I've noticed that all Chi Guardians have green tattoos all over their bodies. I have often
wondered what they meant but was always embarassed to ask. I was unable to find the reason in
any book I have read," close enough to the truth.
She seems to accept it as a legitimate question.
"Oh, you mean these," she points to a trail of characters on he rarm.
"Yes," I say.
"They're Chi markings. See Chi Guardians are eighty-percent Chi. When we're born, we get these
marks on us so the Chi will flow into them and take on the meaning of whatever the tattoos say,"
"What do yours say?" I ask.
"This one says "Dark Shield", it protects me from Dark Chi," she says, tracing her finger along
her ankle.
"This one, says "Chi Scythe"," its the one on her arm.
"The ones on my cheeks are just decorations, but my Chi Eye is on my forhead. It is turned off
now, so you can't see it,"
"Ahh, that's right. All Chi Guardians have Chi Eyes. Only three humans have them at a time,"
"I know. Your Temple priestess, Teng has one,"
"That's right,"
"I like Teng,"
"Hikari?"
"Yes?"
"Are Chi Guardians tattoos always green?"
"Well, of course,"
"Oh,"
"But wait," she seems to have remembered something.
Hikari's eyes move back and forth with fervor.
Her voice is shaky at first.
"Wait......when the tentacle went into my dad, his changed colors. They......they were."
My heart begins to pound, for I know what she is about to say.
"......blue. Brilliant blue. Then they turned grey and the rest of him did too, and his eyes were
glowing red. He turned into one of those things that invaded,"
So that is the Dark Chi wizard's game. Conquer through assimilation.
"The Dark Chi Wizard went away though. Marl Kung fought him and saved a few of the villages,"
I reflect on this for a moment. That must have been when he met Rumiko-hime. Hsi Wu, my
brother, would never have been born if this did not happen. In the most bizarre way, I'm glad it
did.
A shrill scream shatters the relative quiet of the place. I feel an enormous surge of heat grace
my neck. I turn around to see the entire garden illuminated by a titanic fireball. I feel a breeze
overhead, I look up to see the pale gold dragon fleeing into the darkness, a smug look on his face.
I turn back to the party, Hikari looks as well.
It appears that after sometime, Syra finally noticed her intruder and her reaction
was.....explosive. She is still fuming enormous plumes of fire as she snorts out countless curses.
Meanwhle, Lu song is rolling on the ground, wracked with laughter.
"You..you didn't even nocitce, Syra! He was.........there for almost a quarter of an hour and you
didn't even notice! Admit it, you coy little geisha, you liked it!" Lu manages to say as she laughs.
Syra turns her rage on her aquaintance.
"You...you bitch, Lu! What did you call me? The nerve! And......wait....you knew he was there? And
you didn't tell me! GRRRRRRRRR!"
Syra leapt onto Lu and began to maul her. Still laughing, Lu fights back. The two demonesses
are caught in a match of fire, claws and teeth. They wrestle one another savagely for several
minutes. I notice that Lu has a wicked gleam in her eyes. She grasps Syra's serpentine body in
her arms and rolls the both of them into the pond, extinguishing Syra's flame and leaving her a
dripping, soaking mess. Syra snorts angrily and stalks off. She passes Shendu, who is laughing
uncontrollably. Enraged, she slaps him to the ground. He whimpers and runs in the opposite
direction.
And so ends Hsi Wu's One Year Celebration.
I sigh as I imagine what tomorrow will bring.
End Chapter 10