Chapter Ten: The Right Hand of Careen
The next morning the rain clouds having dissipated, allowing the sun to shine down in all of its glory, bringing life to the earth and slowly returning the mud of the past few days back to dirt, the world, for a moment, faded away; the only thing that remained were Careen, who stared at the morning sun, and his thoughts. For a moment, he was at peace, there was not thought of war or destruction, there was only himself.
"Out of all the things that are going to change" Careen thought to himself, "There are some things that simply must remain the same. For the sake of future cranes, I will see to it that the sun rises early in the morning, that they might look at it, see the day, and make it theirs."
Feeling the cold stone beneath his feet, Careen smiled as he gazed upon his men, going over their early morning routines; not because of his sudden realization of power, or because of his excellent strategic planning, in the selection of a home base that was both extremely secluded and assumed lost to time; but in the many, many sunrises that all of his efforts would bring. Turning around and leisurely pacing his quarters, filled with extravagant silks, gold and silver trinkets, and several luxurious china pieces, all collected from the campaign, Careen's smile increased as the feeling of absolute power and vindication washed over him. This feeling however, quickly subsided, as more powerful thoughts and greater desires clouded his mind; the sight of the china and the gold and silks reminding him of the one responsible for his success.
"What I would give to see all of this taken away" Careen said, speaking his thoughts aloud, "Power means nothing if it is wielded alone; just as total destruction is futile if there is only one survivor. Achieved, yet not achieved. A paradoxical conundrum only pursued by fools who do not know their fate."
Careen made his way over to a mirror on the wall and stared at his reflection, taking note of the numerous scars he had on his face; in particular, the one above his right eye, the newest addition, having been received during the most recent pillage and scorch. Rubbing his wounds with his wings, if only to see if they hurt and to remind himself of pain, Careen sighed and closed his eyes; only for the sun's reflection to blind him and to bring his attention back to its existence. Looking back towards his perch, which was merely an open space where there was once a former balcony, Careen stared off into the distance and once again became at peace; the sun serving as a constant reminder of hope and promise, as well as Chi-la.
"Don't worry" Careen continued, his mood considerably brighter, "We shall win the day."
The chamber door opened, standing in the threshold was Jun, a red-crested crane, a little shorter than Careen; around his neck, a ceremonial necklace, a symbol of his people. On his head, a conical hat with a black feather at the top, a gift for his service. The bird bowed majestically, lowered his head to the ground and swooping up his right wing in greeting, which Careen accepted with a simple nod, causing Jun to rise and stand at attention.
"Sir" Jun began, "Commander Lang has commissioned me to your service sir. Anything you require, I shall do my best to see it done."
Careen slowly stepped aside, welcoming Jun inside. Taking the cue, Jun carefully crossed through, taking his place in the center of the room, after which he began to run through his exercises, guessing that Careen wished to evaluate his skills. Careen, for his part, returned to his perch, denying Jun the courtesy of an audience but granting him the greater courtesy of privacy. Breathing in, smelling the morning air and tasting the warm wind from the trees, Careen slowly began calculating in his head how many suns he had seen and how many times they had brought him peace.
"How long have you been with us Jun?" Careen asked, a rhetorical question, for he knew the answer, Jun being one of the first cranes, when it was nothing more than a glorified militia.
Jun laughed and shook his head as he landed from a high jump-kick, flowing through into a small series of jabs and punches.
"Since Fujian" Jun answered proudly, "Have you forgotten already? I've been with you since the beginning. I have killed for you, I have seen my friends die for you; I gave up a chance at a home for you, that others might have it- that our people would be free."
Careen nodded, smiling a bit, guessing that there were a thousand stories and a thousand cranes, all like Jun, who had suffered the same and thought the same, each of them having seen their fair share of death, of families torn apart and lives taken before their time. He wondered if perhaps it was enough, if his statements were made, if the violence could end that they might know peace. He knew of course that this was impossible, for Chi-la still remained in spirit form, not yet returned to the living, a problem that, as far as he was concerned, could only be solved through the wave of bloodshed and the death of the Emperor.
"How far would you go to save the ones you love?" Careen said after several minutes of silence, "What if Naomi were in peril? Or Sun held with a knife to his throat?"
Jun stopped; pondering the answer, the weight of the question bringing him to a standstill. Naomi, his wife of six months; and Sun, his kid-brother, both in Fujian, working as merchants selling to customers who cared little for their wares. The thought of losing them in any kind of danger had never crossed his mind before, if only because they had always known some type of security, mostly through Careen. Jun supposed, that if any harm came to them, he would first ensure their safety and then go after the ones responsible; if they had died in the rescue, the only available option was suicide.
"Everything I do is for them" Jun exclaimed, after a moment of careful thought, "I breathe for them, I fight for them and if necessary, I would die for them. No mountain is too high, no valley too wide, no price too much in regard to their safety. That is why I am with you. You are willing to do the things that others are too afraid to do."
Careen turned around and faced him meeting him halfway, satisfied with his answer. Placing his wing on Jun's shoulder, Careen, speaking with the gentleness, his voice filled with understanding and gratitude, began to hatch a plan.
"Jun, my friend" Careen exclaimed, "We've been through a lot together. We've seen good cranes die for causes they did not believe in. We've heard the cries of innocents go unanswered and eventually die, with no one to mourn them. Together, we have suffered. It is for this reason, among many others, your loyalty chief among them, that I am promoting you. Tell your commanding officer that from this point on, you report to me."
Jun nodded and bowed respectively, for there was nothing else that he could do, given the situation.
"Thank you sir" Jun replied, smiling a bit, "I won't let you down."
The door opened, with it came Raslin, in his hands, a tray of food and a ceremonial knife, as requested.
"Ah" Careen continued, noticing the mouse, "Please, bring it here."
Raslin, obliging Careen's request, quietly hopped his way over to his master, who then took the tray and knife and placed it on the bed. Jun huffed and rolled his eyes, personally finding Raslin and everything that he stood for, disgusting.
"There is no honor in assassination" Jun griped, "If we weren't trying to win a war I would kill you where you stand Raslin. But then again, I would be wasting three seconds of my life in the effort."
Raslin laughed and sniffed, the mouse being a light sufferer of allergies.
"Since where is there honor in being Lang's toady?" Raslin retorted, "That idiot can't even lead a battalion through simple formations, not to mention he's drunk half the time from all the nerves. How can you stand it? It must really be pitiful, being with that jester! Why, it's almost demeaning. Worthy of suicide."
Careen bashed Raslin on the head with his wing as hard as he could without causing serious injury.
"Hold your tongue!" Careen commanded as he hit him again, "You are speaking to my Right Hand."
Raslin laughed and huffed in disbelief; envying Jun for his newfound title and the position that came with it, for although he took plenty of pleasure and had plenty of status as Careen's servant and assassin, there was always more of everything to be had.
"You can't be serious Master" Raslin began dismissively, "You do realize that he's a toady? Follows every command Lang makes without question, never making himself known, and completely blending in. On top of it all he has virtually no experience in this line of work. He is, in short, a grunt, and a grunt's place is digging ditches and killing those who try to kill him, nothing more, nothing less."
Careen laughed and shook his head, as far as he was concerned Raslin was in no position to make such accusations; and in terms of combat experience, Careen could personally judge for Jun's ability, furthering nullifying Raslin's claims. Still, if only to humor the mouse, Careen indulged him.
"Since you're obviously filled with good ideas Raslin" Careen began, "What do you suggest?"
Raslin immediately retracted, cowering in himself and displaying behavior more akin to worms than hopping mice; still, despite this, he gave an answer.
"I am not one to tell Master his business" Raslin said, contradicting himself, "But if you would take my counsel might I suggest appointing someone with covert operations experience? Someone who is able to get behind enemy lines with easy and report intelligence. Someone who can blend in to almost any environment. Someone like-"
"You" Jun replied, cutting Raslin off, at the same time scowling in annoyance, "If you're going to nominate yourself at least have the courtesy to be upfront about it. Seriously, show some respect for yourself you demeaning sniveling cur."
Raslin raised his eyebrows and folded his arms, insulted.
"A demeaning sniveling cur!" Raslin exclaimed, "I have been called many things but never such a thing as that!"
Jun laughed and brushed him off, generally unimpressed with Raslin's comeback, for it sounded like something a crane chick would complain to his mother about; not the words of a hard and unfeeling assassin in the service of Careen. In fact, so little was Jun phased by Raslin that any respect that he had for him, which was none to begin with, had diminished even further and entered into negative territory border-lining hate.
"If that's the worst you've been called you aren't being told what a horrible and despicable person you are" Jun defended, "That or you have really, really poor hearing."
Careen raised his wing, bidding for silence, which Jun immediately gave; Raslin however was too busy whining, complaining, and defending himself from Jun: he began hopping manically as if he were about to go on a murdering frenzy all the while blabbering nonsense. The cranes, much to Raslin's annoyance, paid him no mind, which only increased the mouse's intensity. Walking over to the perch once again, Careen, followed by Jun, with the irritable Raslin carrying away aimlessly, began once again to hatch a plan of action.
"One of my scouts has intercepted a message from the Imperial City" Careen explained, "Apparently a member of the Furious Five has been ousted and the Palace is looking for a replacement."
Jun stood by confused, not reading the significance of Careen's words and simply passing them off as something interesting; which indeed it was.
"Does the public know?" Jun asked, slowly going through the million and a half questions that been triggered.
"No" Careen answered promptly, "And they never will. Not as long as Master Shifu and Oogway have anything to say about it. They need to keep up the image that they have things under control. With that being said however, they have managed to send word out in their private circles to the temples that they are recruiting for Crane, hence the reason why we know about it in the first place."
Jun stared out into the fortress, looking down on the troops, who endlessly continued their drills as if it was their sole purpose in life. He could see Commander Lang, whose group was closest, desperate trying to rouse his men for another exercise. It was pointless, Jun knew, for half the time Lang had abdicated leadership to him, in order to calm himself down, Lang being easily startled and uneasy with most social interaction. The only reason that Lang was a commander at all was because of an accidental victory that came about through a retreat, unintentionally leading the enemy, at the time a group of rebels bent on overtaking the government, into the much larger force. It was easily the luckiest move in the history of warfare at the time, as well as the luckiest promotion that anyone had ever received.
"How many more of these messengers have we caught?" Jun continued, his brain switching to his inner strategist.
Careen smiled and laughed, patting Jun on the back in admiration.
"Not a single one of them remains!" the bird answered, "The message they carried was encoded; we have only recently deciphered it."
Jun nodded and smiled in turn; this was good, it meant that there was no possible chance for recruitment, by the time such letters were received and responded to, in addition to the discovery of the original ones never arriving, it would be too late. Careen and his army would descend upon the city and hopefully, assassinate the Emperor.
"So what's the plan?" Jun pressed, his interest peaked, "How are we going to move on this?"
Careen laughed again, this time more devious than the last; this worried Jun, for usually when Careen laughed in such a way it meant that he was getting excited and when he was excited, things happened. Whether or not those things were good or bad Jun was still uncertain of, the only thing he understood was that the laugh was always followed with action.
"You, my fine-feathered friend are going to infiltrate the ranks of the Four and make them the Five! You will train with them, you will eat with them, and you will socialize with them. Once their trust is an absolute certainty you will lure them to the Emperor whereby we have a mass execution."
Jun, although intrigued by the possibility of becoming Crane and being with the best China had to offer, immediately had some heavy concerns; chief among them being the inevitable retaliation that they would receive with the seven-way assassination plot, automatically accounting for Oogway and Shifu, who if the Four were killed would also have to be dealt with.
"What about resistance?" Jun added, "You can't possibly expect people to sit quietly about this. They're among the most respected individuals in the nation. Their deaths will only make them martyrs and martyrdom is bad for revolutions."
Careen laughed for a third time, for he had already thought seven steps ahead of Jun's thinking. This time however, he said nothing, only continued to laugh and shake his head.
"Sir" Jun concluded, speaking frankly as he took his leave, "If I may, you're completely insane."
Careen nodded in full agreement, for he would not argue with what he himself believed whole-heartedly. Raslin, who had given up his ranting and raving out of tiredness long ago, huffed and spat in Jun's direction in an attempt to as disrespectful as possible. The crane only smirked and rolled his eyes, just like he did before, his initial belief unchanged and gradually worsening. As Jun walked out the door to inform Lang of his new duties, he could not help but feel a sense of uneasiness come over him as if he made the worst mistake of his life even worse.
Back in Careen's quarters, the leader stood at his perch, the ceremonial knife in his hand. His eyes carefully watching Jun and his movements, trying to detect any sense of doubt and fear. The crane, feeling legitimate concern, took to the air and flew down to his newest protege and, in good graces, presented the knife. Returning minutes later with a serious look on his face, Careen immediately had another idea, a security measure.
"Raslin" he said, speaking slowly to make sure that he was understood, "Follow him. Make sure he does as he is told."
Raslin nodded and giddily laughed, a small bit of hope entering his heart, that he, of all people, had something meaningful to perform.
"Gladly Your Excellency" Raslin replied, buttering up, "And how shall I do it?"
Careen huffed, slightly annoyed, for he had hoped that given the nature of the request that it was obvious.
"Discreetly you idiot!" Careen bellowed, "And I do mean discreetly. No one must know of your presence. You act as a ghost. Do not kill, only observe and report. Do you understand?"
Raslin nodded again, showing his submission, internally cackling to himself.
"Spying on the spy!" Raslin thought, his mind working in its twisted and evil way, "How ironic can you get?"
"Good" Careen continued, interpreting Raslin's nod as complete understanding, "Now get the hell out of here. Send for Chi-la on your way out. It's not even noon and I'm already stressed."
Raslin, doing as he was told and bidding his time, hopped away, closing the chamber door on the way out. Careen meanwhile, made his way over to the bed, nauseously staring at the lunch tray before tossing it aside; not caring where it landed. As he waited for Chi-la and the sweet release that he knew she would bring, Careen, in a desperate attempt at peace began whistling to himself.