Chapter 6
Tonight was Mei Pieh Chi's first assignment. The Shredder had decided that her introductory training was complete, and it was now time for her to start pulling her weight. Nearly the entire clan was involved, their aim being to take their 'ultimate enemy down'. Pieh Chi was still getting to grips with local idioms, but what she could grasp from their chattering is that they were planning to finally destroy an enemy of the Shredder's, which had caused the Foot Clan many problems for the past year or so. She also sensed that the attack was part of a personal vendetta of the Shredder's, but he seemed extremely keen to get her involved.
"You shall be part of the 3rd group. Sets one and four will provide a distraction, whilst two and five will lay in wait until your attack is well under way. Our enemy will not expect such a sheer mass of numbers, and we shall wear them down."
"But how will you know it will work, Master? If this enemy is as tricky as people say, then what makes this plan so fool proof?"
The Shredder twisted so suddenly that Pieh Chi jumped back in fear that he would strike her. Her improved reflexes made him stay his hand, and he considered her thoughtfully. Although the Shredder was surprised by her forthrightness, despite the fact that he had tried to stamp it out of her, the Kame was wise to ask, he realized. And besides, it might be fun if she were to know...some of the reason.
"Because, Hen'i-tai, we have tried it before, and succeeded. We ambushed their leader, and without him, they were helpless. Too concerned for his safety as he drifted in and out of consciousness, the pain we inflicted on him causing him to suffer greatly." Malice and pleasure glazed his eyes, causing a stab of fear to strike Pieh Chi. "They were distracted, and through sheer numbers we weakened them. They only escaped through a hidden exit I was not aware of, and they survived with just seconds to spare. They fled to another hideout to recover for weeks, so weak were they."
"What happened when they returned?"
The Shredder's eyes went cold, refusing to look at Pieh Chi.
"It does not matter." He went to sit down for his daily tea when curiosity got the better of his guest.
"So, you plan to repeat the same tactic and aim to injure their leader? How can you be so sure that you will succeed this time?"
The Shredder was tired of the child's questions, but knew he had to be patient. He sat down, poured some tea, and gazed back at her, directly in the eyes, smiling.
"Because we have you."
His answer still confused Pieh Chi as she followed the rest of the clan out of the Foot's headquarters. Even after these past few weeks, she still didn't understand why the Shredder deemed her so important. He had wanted Chung I to work for him due to his powers (she had no idea how he knew of her master), but as far as she could tell, he didn't know of hers. He hadn't brought them up anyway. So what made her so special?
The city air was cold in the early spring night, and the fumes still caught the back of her throat. Although she missed rural China deeply, the twinkling lights made the city a beautiful sight, as if stars shone up to the sky rather than from it. Her team weren't going too far from headquarters, spreading themselves out only a couple of buildings away. One and four were heading down to the city's bank, where they would gain the enemy's attention and push them towards the third. Two and five would remain at headquarters until the Shredder gave the sign for them to move.
Pieh Chi had never been roof jumping before, and it made her extremely nervous. Her comrades seemed to fly across the gaps between what Pieh Chi frankly considered urban mountains. Her master's warning flashed through her mind as she began to hang back. There was no way she was going to make the jump, and so making sure no one could see her, she leapt and sent a sudden gush of air towards the ground, pushing her upwards and towards the next ledge. She may pick up the other's technique, but for now she would just have to rely on her own method of using her powers. After the third jump, they came to their sentry point. A lead ninja barked some orders in Japanese, and the group split up into three, dotting themselves around three buildings. Pieh Chi just followed the contingent surrounding her, crouching down on the fire escape of the centre building. Anticipation and nerves made her heart thump in her throat, and she pulled at the black ninja garb that cloaked and choked at her body. She'd never meant for it to get this far. She knew she had to bide her time to exact revenge on the Shredder, but she had never meant to actually work for him. And if she was expected to kill...she knew she could never do it. She wanted to run away and hide, attempt to find the safety Chung I had mentioned before he died. But her honour to her duty kept her still. 'I'm sorry father. I have failed you. I have not avenged you, although I promise I will. I am sorry for being so weak. I can only hope to inherit your strength. It is my fault that you are dead; I know you were slain trying to protect me. And now I shall make sure that your sacrifice was not in vain. Tonight I will make my move. Tonight, I will destroy the Shredder.'
