CHAPTER THREE: THE MIZUKAN CLAN
Charlot exhaled and opened his eyes.
"Keep still…" breathed an elder ninja, "You've been meditating for almost twelve hours… You will soon reach full spiritual enlightenment." Aigon, Zechariah, and Radia all ran around in the courtyard noisily. Charlot closed his eyes again, trying not to pay attention to his friends having fun without him. "Keep focused," stated the elder, "You have ten seconds… Ten…" Charlot heard them throwing the football and laughing. "Nine…" Charlot heard Aigon cheering as they flew through the air. "Eight…" Charlot heard Zechariah laughing at Aigon as they crashed to the ground. "Seven… Six…" Charlot opened his left eye and saw their shadows playing in the courtyard. He squeezed his eyes shut. He knew if he stopped meditating early, he'd be forced to do this all over again. Twelve hours… wasted. "Three…" A bead of sweat ran down Charlot's forehead. "Two…" Charlot squeezed his eyes shut even tighter. "One… Congratulations, Mizukan Charlot, You have reached full spiritual enlightenment." The elder opened his eyes and found that he was speaking to no one. He sighed and walked towards the courtyard, finding Charlot catching the football from off the roof. He flipped and landed gracefully. "Charlot!" the elder called, "You left before we finished. You must do it all over again!"
"What!?" Charlot called, throwing the football towards Radia, who fell on her back from the sheer force Charlot threw it at, "You counted to one! I sat there for exactly twelve hours!"
"But you left before I finished talking," the elder protested, "Come come, you must do it all over again."
"No," Charlot muttered, earning an eyebrow raise from the elder, "Master Genji, I did it, despite the temptation. You told me to bring my friends in the message you sent me. You told me to bring them so they'd tempt me, and I resisted that temptation until the very last second-" Master Genji rang a bell and Charlot stood at attention.
"Come," he ordered. Charlot nodded and stepped forward.
"Sorry guys, maybe I'll get to hang out tomorrow… I got another twelve hours of meditation," Charlot said before going back into the dojo with Master Genji and closing the door.
"Is that Master Genji guy serious?" Zechariah asked, "Charlot meditated for twelve hours and just because he didn't stay for some unimportant stuff at the end, he has to do it all over again?"
"I'm sure Genji's masters were just as hard on him at Charlot's age," Radia stated, "The bell may be a bit over the top, but this is the way Charlot's clan works."
"It's stupid!" Aigon raged.
"Aigon…" Radia said, placing a hand on their shoulder, "This is how it works. I'm sure it's a respect thing."
"Charlot doesn't deserve this…" Aigon sighed, "Where's the respect for him?"
"Yeah! Can we at least agree that Charlot deserves more respect than twelve hour meditations and bells?" Zechariah asked.
"We can," Radia replied, "But even though it doesn't seem right, it's the way things are done."
Charlot struggled to keep his eyes shut. He'd been doing his meditation for at least eight hours now and was starting to get irritated. He opened his eyes and stared a hole into Master Genji's soul.
"Come on, Charlot," Master Genji stated, "You must focus, or we will have to do this all over again… again." Charlot rolled his eyes at the master. "Such disrespect will not be tolerated," Master Genji stated, "Let's start again." Charlot's eyes snapped open and he glared at his elder.
"No.." he muttered.
"Excuse me..?" Master Genji replied, "We are going to start the meditation again."
"I said.. No!" Charlot exclaimed, standing up, "What's the point of this..!?" he questioned, "Because it seems to me like there's none at all! What difference would it have made if I had stayed a few extra seconds to listen to your talk at the end!?"
"Such disrespect…" muttered Master Genji, "I will not tolerate this behavior." Master Genji held up his bell and rang it. Charlot covered his ears, and squeezed his eyes shut. Finally, he stopped.
"Let's restart.." he mumbled, resuming his position.
Aigon, passed out on a stone bench in the courtyard, sprawled out more, their wings hanging off the sides. They didn't want to stay in the guest quarters. They wanted to wait for Charlot, so while Zechariah and Radia got to sleep in comfortable beds, they got a stone bench. They perked up as Charlot opened the door and stepped into the courtyard. Aigon's eyes opened and they stepped towards Charlot.
"What's up dude?" they asked, "Are you okay..? You were in there for so long.."
"I am fine," Charlot stated through his smile, "I have reached full spiritual enlightenment. And please, dear friend, refrain from speaking such terms as "What's up". It is not a formal means of greeting." Aigon stood back, extremely confused as Charlot walked to his quarters. They watched as he closed his door, his eyes shaded over in gray.
"That's not right.." the dragon muttered.
"So, why did you have to wake us up for this?" Zechariah asked, rubbing his eyes.
"I think Charlot's possessed," Aigon replied, "He seemed… strange. He talked weird, his eyes were different, and just the way he composed himself just… didn't seem like Charlot."
"Are you sure?" Radia asked, "Maybe he's just tired.." She then yawned exaggeratedly. "Like us.."
"I'm being serious!" Aigon whispered, "That Genji dude did something to him during the meditation!"
"How about this," Zechariah stated, "You go and get some more information, we sleep…" Just then, Zechariah passed out on the ground.
"Radia-?" Aigon questioned, before turning to find her passed out too. They really hadn't done too much today.. Why would they pass out like that…? Aigon knelt down to their girlfriend's sleeping form.
"Oh my…" they gasped as they pulled a small dart out of her neck. They then felt a sharp pain hit their own neck. They looked over and found the same kind of dart hitting the ground. "Glad my skin is impenetrable.." Then, a swarm of ninja warriors surrounded them. "Not good.."
"Dear friend, Aigon, why don't you just come willingly?" Charlot asked, jumping down in front of Aigon, "It'll save us all the trouble…"
"Okay, what is going on..?" they asked, "Dude, you're all- weird."
"REFRAIN FROM THAT KIND OF SPEECH!" Charlot exclaimed, "It is not… proper."
"Ohhh you wanna see proper?" Aigon laughed, "I'll show you proper!" Aigon then charged at their friend, attempting to tackle him to the ground. Unfortunately, Charlot was prepared, and drew his katanas. Aigon's eyes went wide as they wrapped their wings around their body and ducked out of the way. Charlot, smirked, holding out his leg and tripping his friend. Aigon spread their wings and went to fly away, but that was exactly what he wanted. While their wings were spread, a ninja shot a dart into the webbing between the bones. Aigon cried out and went crashing down. Their vision slowly faded as Charlot's smiling face became the last thing they saw before passing out.
Aigon slowly came to in a small room with incense burning. They groaned and looked out, finding Master Genji meditating. Of course they were chained…
"Greetings, welcome back," Master Genji said, sinisterly.
"Come on dude… you used to be so nice.." Aigon stated before receiving a punch to the gut by Charlot.
"He's asked nicely for you to speak properly," Master Genji stated.
"What's going on..?" Aigon asked weakly, "Why are you brainwashing Charlot..?"
"Because, with the distractions you've put in his head, he's blocked off from his true potential. You see him now? He's reached it. This is who he's truly meant to be."
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry," Aigon stated, "I hate to be blunt, but you're telling me that you want your own grandson to be a brainwashed mind-slave just so he can be a better ninja? Do you hear how messed up that sounds?"
"Do not speak to Master Genji that way," Charlot corrected.
"It's quite alright, young Charlot," Master Genji stated, "They don't know any better… but soon, they'll be just like the rest of us.. Just like their little friends…" Aigon gasped as a door opened, revealing Radia and Zechariah with gray eyes just like Charlot.
"Hello Aigon," Zechariah said with a smile, "Are you ready to join us?"
"Join us, my love," Radia encouraged, "Look into Master Genji's eyes and you will finally be allowed to see clearly…" Aigon resisted as Charlot forced them to stare into Master Genji's gaze.
"Charlot, you can fight this!" they exclaimed, "Zechariah and Radia, not so much, I honestly don't have any faith in them at all, but you have the strongest mind out of anyone I know! You can break free! If not for yourself, but for us…" Charlot blinked once, and then twice. His smile faded. Aigon felt their mind slip away, and their eyes glazed over with gray.
"Wonderful…" muttered Master Genji, "With all four of you under my spell, the world will fall to Seth…"
"Not all!" exclaimed Charlot, swinging a bo staff directly into Master Genji's face. Genji fell backward and the other ninjas surrounding Charlot attacked him. He fended them all off with ease. It was his next opponents that posed more of a challenge.
"How DARE you attack Master Genji like that!" exclaimed Zechariah.
"You've disgraced your clan, Charlot!" Raida added.
"I may have disgraced my clan…" admitted Charlie, "But I'm defending my FAMILY!" Master Genji went to get up again, but Charlot punched him in the face, knocking him back down.
"You hurt my favorite thing in the world!" gasped Aigon, "You… Will feel pain!" Aigon then flew at Charlot, crashing through the wall and into the courtyard. They then grabbed him and flew him high into the sky and threw him down. Radia jumped up from the roof and blasted him with some newfound golden power, which she was probably able to tap into in her enlightened state, while Zechariah teleported up to him, grabbed him, teleported lower to the ground and slammed him down. Charlot groaned as the other three Ancients stood before him.
"I can't beat them physically," he thought, "But maybe I can get into their heads!"
"Hey Radia!" Charlot exclaimed as he jumped towards her. He grabbed her arm and twisted it behind her back, "Did you hear what Aigon said earlier? They said they loved Master Genji more than you, their own girlfriend!" Radia's eyes widened and returned to their normal gold color.
"THEY WHAT!?" she exclaimed.
"Yo, Zechariah!" Charlot called out, flipping over to the son of the devil, "Radia just told me that she thinks you're cute!" Zechariah's eyes returned to normal almost instantly.
"Really!?" he exclaimed.
"Nah, sorry bro, just had to get you free!" replied Charlot.
"Fair," sighed Zechariah, highly disappointed.
"C'mon, Aigon, is that the best you can do?" Charlot asked as the dragon sliced at him with their sword. Aigon then kicked Charlot in the face, knocking him back. Zechariah jumped on them, but they easily threw him off. Radia tried to get close enough to kiss them, hoping that would snap them out of it, but, unsurprisingly, they threw her away.
"Long live Master Genji!" Aigon exclaimed, "Long live SETH!"
"Radia said she wants you in bed!" Charlot called as he flipped over their head and landed safely. Aigon's face went as red as their cape and their now bright orange eyes went wide.
"WHY DID YOU HAVE TO BRING IT THERE!?" they yelled, squeezing their eyes shut and beating their fists against their head.
"I mean, he's not wrong," Radia added, rubbing the back of her neck.
Master Genji opened his eyes to find The Ancients pointing their blades at him. He smirked before his eyes and mouth opened wide. Black smoke poured from his skull and disappeared into the night sky.
"Seth…" muttered Radia.
"Aww… am I the only one who hasn't had a direct run-in with him yet?" Zechariah asked.
"That's not a bad thing…" Charlot stated, "We saw firsthand what he's capable of…"
"Charlot..?" Master Genji questioned, "What happened..? What are you doing here..?"
"Why..? Why did you do this!?" Charlot questioned.
"W-What are you talking about..? Why have you come so early..?" Master Genji replied, "I was not expecting you for another several weeks." Charlot's eyes went wide. The request for them to come early had been sent at least three months ago… even before Seth's first attack…
"Hey Charlot," Aigon said, tapping his shoulder, "I think the question is… how long has Seth been in control of Master Genji..?"