Warning: Mention of violence
The King's Shadow
The world, for various reasons that many have tried to explain but nobody seems to understand, has been plagued by different evils since before time was time and mortals began to count it. However, some of these evils are more prominent in the hearts of some, above others, especially in the hearts of the demons that walked the earth alongside the immortals, fighting among themselves guided by instincts that humans had started to forget.
One of these evils, and probably one of the most dangerous, is greed. Like a worm nesting in their hearts, it devours everything, reproducing and invading the rest of the body until it invades the mind, causing desires for more, more, more. That is why many, humans and demons alike, committed atrocious acts in order to satiate that never-ending need.
It is also due to blind greed that some committed foolish acts without truly realizing how foolish they were.
An army of ox demons, commanded by their relentless Captain, had been traveling towards a mountain, with beautiful waterfalls and fertile ground, teeming with trees and flowers, for about a week, give or take. Their intention was to plunder the treasures inside. The Captain had heard rumors that a certain demon, an impertinent monkey who answered to the name Sun Wukong, self-proclaimed Monkey King, guarded an incredible amount of gold pieces and other valuable artifacts, hidden from prying eyes and closely protected by himself.
Of course, he quickly convinced himself that so many treasures could not remain a second longer in the hands of a low-level demon, so he had set off as soon as possible with his army, ignoring the warnings of other demons who apparently had encountered this Sun Wukong before. Something about him being in direct confrontation with the Celestial Realm or that there was something much fiercer protecting the cursed mountain. Cowards, he thought as he began his journey. What could a mere monkey do against his entire army?
He would simply kill him as soon as he saw him and take his treasure.
According to his calculations, they were less than a day's journey away, possibly less if they maintained the steady pace they were keeping. He could almost see the shine of the gold in his hands, or perhaps it was the sun reflecting on his armor, he thought with amusement as he looked up at the sky, assessing how quickly they could arrive if he picked up the pace. However, as his eyes reached the sky, something came between the figure of the sun and his view, something that seemed to descend rapidly in his direction. Before he could react, the figure of a monkey, dressed in armor as bright as the sun and enveloped in a reddish cape, became perfectly visible, gracefully falling in front of him with more elegance than he would expect from a creature like that.
"Ha! I knew I would catch up to you before you reached my lands," the monkey says, straightening up with his hands on his hips, observing them with a smug smile adorning his furry face. "I believe it is bad manners to invade someone else's territory without at least a declaration of war. Or was it arriving at someone else's home without an invitation? I don't quite remember, bah! It doesn't matter."
"What the hell...? Who the hell are you?!" the Captain exclaims, reaching for the handle of his weapon, immediately putting his men on guard.
"Monkey King, in the flesh! Protector of the Flower Fruit Mountain." the monkey mockingly bows, wagging his tail in the air. "A… little bird told me I would have some unwanted visitors, so I decided to get ahead and give you a proper welcome and, you know, invite you to leave."
"You? You're the Sun Wukong I came looking for?" the Ox Demon looks him up and down before bursting into a loud laughter that echoes around, startling some birds that take flight in fear. "You're so small that I could crush you with just one hand. In fact, that's exactly what I'll do."
However, as quickly as he unsheathes his weapon, Monkey King materializes a staff out of thin air, immediately stopping his attack.
"For the record," the monkey says, pushing him back with more force than expected, "I tried to be nice."
The confrontation pauses for a moment as both sides stop, taking deep breaths, trying to ignore the scent of blood hanging in the air. To say that the Ox Demon was surprised by Monkey King's fighting ability would be an understatement; with swift and relentless movements, the monkey had decimated a significant portion of his army, keeping their own attacks at bay without losing momentum in the fight. He had even dared to insult and mock them in their fighting style. Unheard of!
However, despite having only a few men still standing in decent condition to continue the battle, Monkey King looked more exhausted than him. He wiped the blood from his fur against the top of his armor, giving the Ox Demon a calculating gaze. The sun's descent behind the monkey was the only indication that they had been facing off for hours, not mere minutes.
"I must admit," the Ox Demon says, regaining his breath, standing tall to appear more intimidating to the diminutive monkey, "that you are more formidable than I expected. But it's just you against the rest of my army. You're finished."
The Captain expects various reactions to his words. First and foremost, he anticipates Monkey King surrendering, although fear in his eyes would be a good replacement. However, to his surprise, the demon lets out a laugh. It starts small, a quiet chuckle that merely shakes his shoulders, but it quickly escalates in volume, bubbling up from the depths of his chest, becoming deep and dark as his entire body shakes with it. Behind him, his men shift uncomfortably, disturbed by the tone his laughter has taken, which seems to have no end until suddenly it is cut off by a deep inhale.
"You are very, very mistaken," the monkey says, wiping away the small tears of laughter that had gathered in his eyes before straightening up to his full height. He swings his staff, assuming an attacking stance, and reaches a hand to his cape. For a moment, the Captain thinks he is going to remove it, perhaps to avoid further harm or in an attempt to be dramatic. However, what the demon does is extend it far away from his body, revealing the interior.
The Ox Demon gazes into the cape's interior, visibly confused, not by Monkey King's action, but by what he can see from his position. While the exterior of the cape is reddish, resembling the color of an apple or possibly a well-ripened peach, the interior is much darker, probably the blackest shade of black he has ever seen in his life. That doesn't make sense, he thinks, as a sense of discomfort and unease creeps up his chest, tangling in his throat. It doesn't matter that the sun is directly behind the other demon's figure; the interior shouldn't appear so dark, nor should the shadow cast by the cape be so extensive.
When had the shadow around Monkey King's body grown so large, even with a few rays of sunlight still illuminating the area?
"The thing is..." the monkey's voice breaks his concentration, drawing his gaze back to his face. "Who told you I was alone?"
A muffled cry from one of his soldiers makes him lower his gaze once again to the cape, where he finds two gleaming dots that weren't there a moment ago. He quickly identifies them as eyes as a figure slides from the interior of the cape to the outside, causing the shadow at Monkey King's feet to grow in size. The figure rapidly takes the form of another monkey, although its features remain obscured by the shadows, and slides out completely from the cape, straightening up. Gradually, the shadows slide off its body, revealing several things that send shivers down his spine.
First, a huge ruthless grin with more teeth than he can count. Second, while its features bear a striking resemblance to Monkey King's, its fur is completely white, shining like the full moon. And third, and perhaps the most chilling of all, are its three pairs of ears, instantly making him recognize who it is.
Six-eared Macaque. The Demon may have heard nothing more than rumors about Monkey King, ignoring any warnings regarding the demon, but he had heard much more about the demon capable of hearing the past, present, and future. Above all, he had heard warnings that he was a bloodthirsty warrior and had even witnessed the consequences of arousing his fury.
And now, he has that bloodthirsty warrior standing before him, while he remains paralyzed in his place, listening but not daring to look as his men retreat, huddling behind him, surrounded by shadow-made copies of Macaque. The demon himself conjures an identical staff to Monkey King's from the shadows, while Monkey King, in turn, bursts into laughter, plucking out some tufts of his fur and blowing them into the air, immediately spawning copies of himself around him.
"Now, let the party begin," Monkey King says, eliciting a snort from Macaque, who wastes no time launching the first attack.
In that moment, the Captain, on the verge of ceasing to be one, realizes that he never had a chance of winning the battle. Sun Wukong's banter upon their encounter was a display of mercy and an opportunity to retreat while he still had time. And he, foolishly, ignored it.