BAM! That was fast! I know you've all been all waiting for this!
You know the drill now.
Huge thanks to TrajectoryAgreement, starlit and storybookknight for beta reading!
绝智弃学。 I will cast out Wisdom and reject Learning.
游心于玄默。 My thoughts shall wander in the Great Void.
绝智弃学。 I will cast out Wisdom and reject Learning.
游心于玄默。 My thoughts shall wander in the Great Void.
遇过而悔。 Always repenting of wrongs done
当不自得。 Will never bring my heart to rest.
垂钓一壑。 I cast my hook in a single stream;
所乐一国。 But my joy is as though I possessed a Kingdom.
被发行歌。 I loose my hair and go singing;
和气四塞。 To the four frontiers men join in my refrain.
歌以言之。 This is the purport of my song:
游心于玄默。 "My thoughts shall wander in the Great Void."
— 'Taoist Poem', Ji Kang. On the nature of enlightenment
The snap seemed to echo down the hall, along with the last scraps of her heart. And all Taylor could do was lie on the dirty floor and stare.
"Aw, what's wrong, Taylor? Did you drop something?"
Every word was a stab in her ear, shattered glass raking over a chalkboard. She didn't dare look up, not when cold eyes stared at her. The few students who dared to brave the halls at the time stood to the side, watching and unmoving. Teachers? As if. They always knew when and where to strike, away from anyone who might give a damn.
The same song and dance every day, though this one started tamer than usual. No hate mail, no sharp whispers, only the lone spitball in class. For a moment, she had even dared to hope.
Maybe that was why the abyss felt deeper. It closed by a margin, and she'd latched onto the edge like a lifeline…only for the maw to open wide and swallow her whole again.
This time, it wasn't the mocking eyes full of cruelty of her former friend, nor the barbed words of the rest of the Trio, or even the apathetic gazes of her schoolmates that rent her innards apart.
It was the little pieces of wood, once finely polished and admired by the light of a desk lamp, scattered across filthy floor tiles.
A blur came down and another snap rang in her ears, and all she could only watch, even as the new piece of wood rolled right into her face.
"Oops, was that important?" Madison's voice raked the proverbial nail across her brain. A sob or a whimper would've been natural, but instead, all Taylor could feel was the abyss drowning her again, dragging her to depths she hadn't even thought possible before.
It was stupid. She didn't want to bring it to school. She knew this might happen. Their sole purpose was to ensure her life was as miserable as it could get. Nothing and no one was sacred. If her mother's flute wasn't safe from their hands, why would a stupid little brush be spared?
Why did she do it then? Why grab the brush from her desk and not leave it next to the inkstone? Why not wait until after school to read about calligraphy, to finally have the courage to put it to paper? It wasn't anything special; hell, she'd looked up fancier brushes.
"Wow, I didn't think you could get more pathetic, Hebert. A brush? That's all it takes to break you?"
Maybe…she wanted to feel it in school, where the demons came out to play and torment her. The warm tingling she got when she held the little piece of wood and hair. The greys of the world around her, blooming with a smidgen of color. The invisible chains dragging her limbs down lost a few links.
She just had to take it out as she hid behind her locker door. Right as they saw it.
A silly little gift.
Given by the first person who actually bothered to stop and help her.
It wouldn't stop; she'd accepted it long ago. No one would help her, and she was powerless. Taking the blows was routine at this point. They gave her their daily dose of humiliation, she'd endure, pick herself up, and slog forward until the day ended.
Was it so wrong to feel that lingering warmth with her in that abyss?
But in an instant, it was gone. Scraps for a fire or the garbage.
Like everything else.
She ignored the kick. The snickers, the whispers, they all began to fade. Even as everything grew grey and blurry again, her body moved. She didn't even realize it until she held the broken brush in her hand. It was only the end of the handle and the hairy tip.
An anchor in the otherwise roaring sea of despair that was her life.
The boot grinding against her fingers drew her out of her stupor, and the smug face of Sophia Hess staring down at her made her feel like an ant. Emma slowly walked around Taylor's prone form and smirked, brushing a strand of red hair away from her curved face.
"You're right, Sophia. You know those rats that scurry around in the science lab and grab the little pieces of cheese? I think I'm looking at one right now."
"She has the hair for it," giggled Madison. "We just need more grease and a dash of that smelly deodorant from the gym. Then she'll fit right in!"
If Taylor could shrink into her hoodie like a turtle, she would have. It made her harder to spot in a crowd. Whenever she did the action after their antics, it gave them a feeling of victory, and they'd leave her alone faster. It worked before, even if it burned whatever little dignity she had left.
Sophia's boot kept grinding on her closed palm, and the rubber scraping against her knuckles would have made her drop the brush's remains…but her palm remained closed. If anything, the grip grew tighter. The logical part of Taylor's mind, worn and scarred by the Trio's relentless campaign, chided her for resisting. If she let the now-useless brush go, maybe they'd leave faster. Then she'd wait school out, endure everything else, and return home. A cold, empty home that held on with an illusion, but at least it was safe. Away from them. Sure, the routine would repeat ad nauseam, but she grew used to it.
And yet…she didn't let go. A vestige of herself she thought had died in that summer camp, pleading wordlessly to cling to any speck of comfort she could find.
To not let a precious thing get stolen from her again.
Why was she listening to it? Why was her fist still closed?
Before she could process it further, two hands reached down and grabbed her, one by the jacket and the other by her outstretched hand. She was slammed against the wall and winced at the sudden motion. She looked back to find Sophia staring right into her eyes with a half-sneer on her face.
"Oh, that's just cute, Hebert. Think you've got a spine now?"
This was bad. She never got this violent.
Madison stood behind Sophia with a smirk of eagerness, and Emma's perfect eyebrow was raised. Pressed against the peeling paint, Taylor glanced at the hallway and just like before, the few students that were present looked away. She even spotted one or two giggling at her misfortune.
Unfortunately, Sophia noticed her flickering eyes.
"You think someone's gonna come help, geek? News flash, it ain't gonna happen. They know their place, and you need to know yours." She tightened her grip on Taylor's arm and began to twist. "No one will believe your spineless ass, and that's how it'll always be."
Her arm began to burn and Taylor felt tears welling up in the corners of her eyes. She wanted to look away, but Sophia's fist gripping her hoodie and pressing against her prevented that. The abyss felt wider and wider, and it wasn't a fast fall. The air felt cloying and thick, and the shadows grew from the corners of the hall. A choked sob almost escaped her, but she forced it down. If she gave a reaction, they'd push even more.
Despite all that, despite the utter hopelessness of her situation, she didn't let go of that broken gift.
"Make this fucking easier on yourself…" Sophia leaned forward, and her voice dropped into a cruel, bloodied whisper. "And take what's coming to you, you pathetic little queef."
Her arm was a vice, burning her thin flesh. Amidst the snickering and silent goading of the rest of Trio, Taylor watched with frantic trembling as her grip loosened bit by bit. Any moment now those pieces would fall, Emma would throw them away where she could never find them or break them completely, and that little gift would be gone. Gone in body like her mother, gone in spirit like her father, gonegonegoneawayalonewhywhyWHY -
Chirp chirp.
White. No, smoke. It filled her vision, then it was gone. Wait, was that a hand?
"Now what do we have here?"
No. No way. She was dreaming again. Hallucinating from asphyxiation, or she was so far gone that her mind was trying to cope.
Because there was no way in hell that the very one who gave her the stupid little brush was here, holding Sophia's right arm with a hand of pointed nails.
"While I do not blame children for acting rambunctious, such is their nature, this Old Sun believes you are treading the thin line between play and blood."
Yet there was no mistaking that raspy voice, nor the furry mane crowning his very distinct face and fanged smile.
"Why don't you let go of the young lass and we can have a calm and reasonable conversation about this, oh dark-skinned one?"
It was an image that was seared into Taylor's mind. Sophia Hess, her tormentor and the source of her misery for over a year, who tried to break her down piece by piece. Her former friend Emma, who pushed everyone away from her and crucified her on the social gallows with her crony Madison, filled with schadenfreude at every act of degradation against her. The students of Winslow, indifferent to, and at times rejoicing in, her misery.
All of them staring in absolute shock at Sun Wukong.
A moment this perfect couldn't be real.
The monkey man tilted his head with amusement and twisted his palm. Sophia yelped and both her grips loosened, letting Taylor go. She quickly brought her fist to her chest and rubbed her wrist, even as her knees buckled by the sheer incredulity of the situation.
"Wha-what the fuck!?" Sophia yelled, her eyes widening as she looked him up and down. "Wait, aren't you -"
"Sun Wukong, Monkey King of Flower-Fruit Mountain and slayer of ten thousand demons, yes, yes, I know." He gave a little flourish with his free hand and bowed. "Awe is natural in my presence."
She didn't know who whispered Lung, but they voiced the collective thoughts of everyone in the hall. More students peeked out from behind corners and doors, their faces matching the other in a mosaic of wide eyes and gaping jaws.
"H-how the hell did you get in here!?" Sophia asked, her voice growing nervous and bewildered with every word, a feat Taylor didn't think was possible.
"Hm? I came through the window of course, where else would I enter?"
He pointed to the window at the end of the hall, and everyone turned to it. Wait, it was always broken?
"I was just strolling through this lovely quarter of the city and spotted this institution of learning. The feng shui is lacking for an environment of studying and education; no color or cohesion, the design is inconvenient, and the smell!" He waved a hand in front of his nose and his red eyes scanned the halls, causing his smile to grow thin. "I see this applies to the gardens and the palace. I was pondering the reason for such untidiness when the distress of a fair maiden reached these old ears. Being the good-natured monkey that I am, I hopped over to see what all the hubbub was about."
Fair maiden? A strangled guffaw finally rolled out of her throat. Sophia turned to her and snarled with a stare that could melt through steel, only for Wukong to clamp down harder and bite out a curse.
"Imagine this Old Sun's surprise to see three young ones conduct themselves with such poor manners! Haven't your mothers taught you how to behave amongst your peers?" he tutted and wagged his finger. "For shame!"
Sophia tried to wrest herself out of his grip, but he didn't budge. Her free hand twitched next to her pocket as if it was reaching for a weapon that wasn't there but didn't move otherwise. With every attempt, the bully bared her teeth until she resembled a panicked animal.
"Umm, Mr. Wukong, sir?" asked Emma in a saccharine-sweet voice, stepping up to him. Taylor's heart sank at her pouty lips and faux-concern. "We were just helping Taylor up. She's my friend, you see, and she doesn't watch where she's going, always stumbling into other people, so we make sure no one trips on her."
Every time Emma used that voice, the teachers and the few students not in the know believed her and told Taylor to 'mind herself'. It was another reminder that Taylor had no power, that people would always believe Emma's version of the story over hers. Emma and her friends: the perfect students vs. Taylor: the troublemaker.
Wukong stroked his mane and hummed in thought. Taylor's head lowered. He was going to believe them, like everyone else, and she'd be left alonealonealone -
"Wait, where have I seen you before?" he asked, then snapped his fingers. "Ah yes, you were at that food vendor some weeks ago. All that fat is too much for your frail body, girlie. I already see the pores and wrinkles forming on your little face. Lying so blatantly only worsens your condition by rotting your teeth! Dark words stain the mouth, and not even the ponds of Guanyin can cleanse them."
Emma gaped at the insult, but she had nothing on Taylor, who felt the world record scratch.
Did-did he just-
"That mask of jade might work on mortals, xiǎo mǔ zhū, but this Old Sun has seen past both guai and mortal lies far craftier than yours. At least in their case, I bought into their falsehoods, even if it was for scant seconds! You do have a career in the traveling theatre, so do not despair!" He gestured to Madison, who'd taken a step back and adopted the same hunched posture Taylor had all those long months. "Even now, I spot a performer willing and able to join your troupe!"
One of the Asian kids who was watching mouthed whatever word Wukong called Emma and laughed into his hand. His friends looked at him in confusion before he whispered in their ears, no doubt the meaning of the word. Their laughter, unmuffled by limb or flesh, drew Emma's attention, and she turned to them, ready to lash out. The corners of Taylor's lips twitched upward, yet another feat she didn't think possible.
Sophia tried once more to pry off Wukong's grip with both her hands, but all it accomplished was returning his focus to her.
"Now, why don't we all put this past us and you apologize to young Taylor?" His fangs jutted over his lower lips as he smiled again. "I know this will be difficult for you, your type are hardly ones to regard those they deem lesser, but to climb Mount Tai one must place their foot upon its slope!"
Sophia stammered silently, her face performing a mime act all by itself before finally settling on anger.
"If you don't get your hands off me right now," she growled. "I will make sure you regret it the rest of your fucking life, chimp."
Wukong kept smiling and turned his grip sideways, and she hissed in pain.
"You think I'm joking!? You have no idea who you're fucking with!" she glanced at Taylor and her hateful eyes made Taylor flinch back. "Why the fuck do you care about Hebert anyway!?"
She wasn't even denying it now. Not that it'll change anything, the darkness of her mind whispered.
"Well, I barely know her, true, but even from those scant moments, I deem her company pleasant and her conversation impeccable, unlike some present, nameless individuals," replied Wukong as he looked around. The warmth, which had vanished from the broken brush in her hand, fluttered in her stomach again. Wukong gave her a wink
"As to who you are…heh, I've been asked that question time and time again, all by beings far scarier than you, thinking they could lord themselves over the unfortunate, and do you know what I said to them?"
He leaned closer to Sophia and a shiver went up Taylor's spine at the sight of his bared teeth and upturned smile.
"It didn't matter. They all went down in the end, proving themselves weaklings."
Emma's breath hitched and Wukong slammed Sophia into the wall, holding her just like she did to Taylor. While Taylor thought she should be concerned at a cape being so rough with minors, she made a crop harvest, weighed the grains and surveyed the ground, and found that her field was fresh out of fucks to give.
"So why don't we break our little delusions and start playing nice? You and your little troupe of tiger-eyed scavengers apologize to young Taylor for inconveniencing her, and I'll apologize for my roughness?" His tone was so polite it was mocking, just like Emma's. He tightened his grip on her shirt and Sophia choked on air. Quivering ran through Taylor's body as she attempted to process the whole situation, and sheer catharsis paralyzed her to the ground. This was…she had no words. It was something she didn't even consider anymore in her wildest fantasies. If she could snap out of her shock and laugh, she wouldn't know if it was from relief or insanity.
But why was his gaze flickering to her head? That panel above them hadn't collapsed in years, not that the school or Blackwell would fix it.
"That way the scales will gain balance, and we can all go on our merry way. Or is that too much for your brutish little mind to comprehend?"
As Wukong tightened his grip, Sophia's breathing grew more and more erratic. He wasn't choking her, but the way he was pressing her body against the wall did not look gentle in the slightest. Her eyes, once so puffed up with superiority, were displaying naked fear and rage, in the very position she was held in a moment ago. By now, half of the floor seemed to gather and even a teacher had come out. Being the useless adult that he was, he stared with a hung jaw and didn't bother to do anything else. The Asian kids looked downright eager, and Taylor remembered that the Asian district was where Wukong was known to haunt. They must've seen him more than anyone else here.
Still, what was he even doing here? There was no way he came just for her.
"I am not hearing an apology. Did you go deaf?"
Emma tried to speak up, but Madison, of all people, held her back and hissed at her. Yeah, nobody wanted to fuck with a cape, and she had to recognize him.
Then, Sophia lowered her head and mumbled.
"Hm, what was that?" Wukong asked and put a hand to his ear. "These ears haven't aged well, and I think the interested parties would like to hear your words. Come on, speak up. You have nothing to hide anymore, yes?"
Sophia's eyes widened again and he pulled back, no doubt ready to slam her into the wall again. One of the teachers (why for her?) swallowed and took a step forward, but Wukong slammed Sophia back as her arms trembled -
And she faded through his fingers in a dark haze.
No.
Her tormentor stumbled backward and scrambled up from the floor, total panic overriding her features. Wukong stared at the girl and gasped so loudly that no one could mistake it for genuine.
"Hark, little ones! This Old Sun has found the reason for this brutish female's superiority!"
But it made so much sense. That's why they let her do whatever she wanted.
"Do you have any idea what you just did?" Sophia hissed and reached for her pocket, the black haze still surrounding her. The stares were directed at Sophia and the whispers began to run rampant.
Wukong tapped his finger on his chin and nodded enthusiastically. "I revealed the true colors of a she-thug and her minions to the world and tore open your veil of superiority. Am I missing anything?"
The teachers, the principal, Emma…they were so confident because they knew.
Taylor's throat began to clog, and her knees finally gave in. Everything shattered as each piece slid into the puzzle.
They wouldn't bend for any regular cape, then the PRT would come gunning. The only reason no one came…is because all of them knew.
There was muffled shouting, and she thought she saw Wukong turn blue or white for a moment. Banging, a yell of pain, that didn't matter. Her mind was racing like never before, and the thumping in her head grew louder and stronger.
Kids like us can't be heroes. Ward first, then heroes. And there's only one Ward who can phase like that.
She felt fingernails digging into her skull. Her hair blocked whatever was left of her vision, and everything crumbled away as the memory of a photoshoot on TV and snippets on PHO formed the last, neatly carved piece.
A female Ward that could phase through objects.
Sophia is a cape. Sophia is a Ward. Shadow Stalker can phase through objects. Sophia Hess just phased through his hands. Sophia Fucking Hess is Shadow Stalker.
Of fucking course. Nobody wanted to mess with the PRT, the heroes who defeated the villains. So what if she was a bully? So what if she and Emma ruined her life?
Sophia mattered. Taylor didn't. Why should the poor little girl who lost her mother matter? Compared to a hero, who needed a punching bag, why should she matter?
Taylor never mattered. Taylor never -
The void was endless. A sea of stars scattered across infinity. Planets above and below, deathworlds and paradises, so grand and majestic.
Dust specks compared to the…thing before her.
Words could not do it justice. Vast, incomprehensibly so. A human is vast to an ant, a mountain is vast to a human, and a galaxy is vast to a star. None of them came close. Its body, trailing so far behind it, was an endless river of glass and light. It shrunk and grew, a thin line one moment, then the next replacing the void itself, even subsuming her pathetic, meaningless form. Everywhere and nowhere at once. The glass along its body spun, morphed and warped in endless ways, forming shapes so fast and incomprehensible they blurred into one another, before breaking apart again. They echoed stories in the silence of space, of blood, fire, and death. Epochs and sagas, just one could fill every library in the world, gone in the blink of an eye and replaced by the next.
They fell, like the scales of a snake, down through the void and the ocean of suns. Innumerable as grains of sand on every beach. Comets that hovered in existence in their grandeur and sped faster than light in an instant, leaving trails of the cosmos in their wake. One flew right toward her, growing in size until it shadowed the continent below her. An amorphous asteroid of glass that could wipe out all life, falling down, down, down until it collided -
Cease.
The golden hand was as immaterial as the glass, an insignificant speck before it. Yet it held it back, even as the skyscraping needle touched her forehead. Ethereal voices chanting in a tongue unknown, yet every syllable was transcendent.
This mind is not yours to take.
Her gaze flitted to the side. An incandescent form, blazing with aureate fire. A mane of fur and pointed ears under a twin-feathered crown, resembling an insect. Clawed hands and feet, garbed in armor so rich and fine. A long tail, swishing back and forth, protruded from its rear.
Whatever you are, whatever form you take, dissuade yourself of foolish notions.
The scale's form fluctuated and a spike both thinner than a needle and wider than the Nile shot toward her. Another hand stopped it with the same ease, right as it touched her eyes. She couldn't move, she couldn't speak. Only stare at the chronicle unfolding.
A rainstorm of glass descended, sprouting from that paradoxical shard. Blotting out the stars and shadowing the planet, all reeling toward her.
I have spoken once, apparition. I will not repeat myself.
A gong rang through the empty air. Heat and fire enveloped the void, yet she remained unharmed. Her heart shrank at the creature looming over her. The same ears, armor, and tail, only its legs reached the earth below and its head pierced the atmosphere. A radiant halo encircled the titanic body. His arms were in the thousands, sprouting from its back and clad in gold, reaching out impossible distances and grabbing every single drop, directed by three heads, arranged on the neck in a circle, facing all angles.
No battle or war in history could compare.
I do not know your reason for existence. Yet I deny it all the same. You, with no place above and below, to latch onto mortal minds. So I ask: whence do you hail from? What is thy purpose in creation?
The needles spun, drilling into immutable flesh. He bellowed a challenge, and the chorus crescendoed, both chanting and shrieking. Every drop was broken or grabbed, and the drums rocked the stars from their orbits. The scale shimmered in an iris of colors she didn't even know could exist, with more images dancing across its eldritch structure.
Eternal am I, who faced down the heavens and stared into samadhi. So vast you appear, yet so small from the whole. Begone, and I shall spare you.
Red. Darker than blood. A black dot, a mere flaw at first glance, appeared, flying at her. Another arm swatted it aside. The stopped needles only needed the slightest push to break her skin.
One needle branched. A hand grabbed it, so resplendent it blinded her. But the tip jutted out again, bathed in that heavenly flame. Right between the eyes.
You dare-!?
The world blurred, swirling into the horizon and leaving no trace. An epic forgotten within seconds.
A garden lies tranquil, filled with ponds and flowers. The song of birds and the trickling of water fills the air. A weeping tree casts rippling shadows on the emerald grass below. A man sat cross-legged on a polished stone. Serene is his bearing, unburdened by the world. More gold, fluttering around her.
What a gentle smile.
Om.
Ma.
Ni.
Pad.
Me.
Hum.
With those words, she knew pain.
The construct swept at him, and Sun Wukong blocked with his forearm. Golden light clashed against the stone limb for scant seconds before he forced it away. As the last of his ethereal cloud state returned to material form, he grimaced at the sight of the construct jutting out of the girl's back and carving up the wall behind her.
'This was…unexpected.' His Golden Eyes flared to life and focused on Taylor's head. Where there once was a faint wisp, now hovered a full apparition, ever-shifting and changing. He held himself back from advancing as it passed through the walls and floor, only to shrink on itself and repeat the motions. 'Yet it proves my assumptions were not far off. These wisps are chrysalises which spawn these apparitions, blooming when great sadness floods the heart to let the weeds of rage and hatred fester. A dangerous loop; emotion that fuels magic is not unheard of, but for emotion to birth magic…curses are borne similarly, and seldom are the results pleasant.'
Taylor's silent howl of despair didn't go unnoticed, and he only had a moment to comprehend before the wisp suddenly expanded. Despite warning himself not to repeat his attempt at interaction with the apparitions as he did with the false long, his limbs reacted before his mind could catch up. He closed his fist around the metamorphosing spirit but after that…
'There was a battle…a spirit, the likes of which I have never laid eyes upon…the girl was there too, and then…' Wukong pinched the bridge of his nose and snorted. 'Ten hells, what are these creatures? Such chaos and disjointed structure…how can they even exist!?'
He stared at his hand and let it flicker into an ethereal state. 'Even the immaterial planes follow certain rules, laws of nature that are shared by all of them. I felt none of those in that vision. Those attacks…'
Words failed him as he closed his eyes and tried to recall the battle. 'Gah, the images are blurry. Even now, the colors are fading from the canvas. The result of my haphazard attempt at intervention.'
He raised his head and directed his gaze to the hall. The children had chosen the path of least resistance and fled from the scene at the moment of Taylor's…awakening. The only ones to remain were the troupe which - and he would bet ten lifetimes' worth of fruit on it - helped instigate this incident. The red-haired one and her minion were huddled in the corner and clutching each other, fat tears marring their makeup as they alternated their stares between him, their victim, and the downed form of their compatriot.
'Mayhap I was a tad rougher than the norm. She is a child…but I am familiar with courtly antics, and the lengths people will go when they feel invincible. She has the makings of a warrior, ' The brutish one's apparition, resembling a faceless cloak and hood, its fabric wreathed in shadow, hovered above her and inky clouds swirled around them, alternating at speeds of tempests. Fortunately, any gales would only be felt in the immaterial plane, and she was most certainly surprised when his Cloud Step bypassed their veil and his palm struck her neck.
'Bah, 'twas only a tap. She'll wake up after a good sleep. If she needs another reminder not to prey on her peers, this Old Sun will oblige her desperate request.'
Two brave cubs peeked from behind their doors, and they soon turned to Taylor, whose constructs were stuck in the wall. They sent each other fearful gazes, no doubt ruminating on their fellow student's new…circumstances.
'I might have acted too hastily. In front of such a crowd…there will be consequences for her.' He slowly approached her, and while the constructs shimmered, they didn't attack him. He gently poked the girl on the shoulder, and the constructs broke free of their trappings and splayed themselves. They resembled the wings of an insect, each ending in a pointed slant. There were two pairs, with the larger pair originating from the shoulder blades spanning further than his outstretched arms and a smaller pair a hand's length below them, with only half the wingspan. Instead of a membrane, the wings appeared composed of tiny, scale-like shapes that shimmered with her shallow breathing.
'How much of this newfound power is hers and how much is due to the spirit's…blessing? Does it influence her thoughts, or is it content to merely observe?'
He knelt down and stared at her face, smiling sardonically at her half-lidded eyes and matted hair.
'To withstand this grief and remain awake, even if briefly, after such a drastic transformation…she has spirit, this one. Greater men's wills have crumbled in the face of similar circumstances. No, her hasty rescue I don't regret, only my lack of self-control.'
He stared at her wings and noticed motes of light gathering around them like fireflies. Wukong almost dismissed them, deeming them a side-effect of the awakening until they entered the constructs, and travelled down their length and into Taylor's prone body. An aura flickered around her, and Wukong felt his mouth open.
'Hold on…was that…?' He grabbed a mote and held it in his palm, feeling its candlelight warmth. 'Amitabha…is this my doing?'
"Don't move!"
Wukong sharply turned to his right and blinked. Standing in the hallway, in front of the brutish girl's body, was the blue-armored 'hero' he'd spied on, pointing a metallic spear at him and his mouth set in a thin line.
"Step away from the girl."
The hero shifted his stance and fully hid the girl from sight. Right, there were younger heroes accompanying the adults the time he spied on them. Disciples, no doubt about it. But wasn't this one's disciple a young lad?
No matter.
Wukong slowly rose and crossed his arms, fully focusing on the man. "Why would I do that?"
"I said, step away." The hero repeated, an undercurrent of anger audible. Most people would have complied, Wukong had to give the man that. Alas, Wukong was as far from 'most people' as the heavens were to the bowels of the underworld.
"You have some nerve, issuing demands from me when your disciple instigated this whole mess and attacked this poor girl."
"Disciple?" the hero muttered, his expression hidden behind his visor, before his frown returned. "Then you admit to attacking and unmasking a Ward in front of civilians?"
"Well, there was no mask to remove, but it's apparent she has learned no restraint, and I am not partial to sorcerers who abuse their status to prey on innocent children for their amusement." Wukong flicked his finger at the hero accusingly. "As her master, the fault lies with you as much as her."
He saw the hero tighten the hold on his spear. "What are you implying?" he asked with rising anger, albeit still restrained.
"I imply nothing, only state the truth."
Warbling noises and the red-and-blue lights from the city guard's - police, Wukong reminded himself - metal carts blared and shone through the broken window, accompanied by the calls and shouts of people. Once again, he had to give them credit for their response time, much faster than any city watch he encountered…though considering the current circumstances, he wasn't sure if it was praiseworthy.
"Even if what you're saying is true, you went too far with your response," said the hero. "If you want to clear this up, I suggest you accompany me to PRT headquarters."
The corner of Wukong's mouth twitched. "And if I refuse?"
"Then I'll place you under arrest for assault, reckless endangerment, and damaging public property. At least."
Wukong threw his head back and laughed, which only served to infuriate the hero further. "Oh, that is rich! You do not lack courage, at least! I admit, I have seen you ride around the city in that two-wheeled contraption of yours, and my interest is piqued. If you wish to receive a lesson from this Old Sun, then whom is this monkey to refuse?"
He reached up to his ear and the hero shifted his legs to a combat stance. His spear whirred in the air, and Wukong grew intrigued. A magic weapon? Or was it another child of machinery?
His priorities shifted again when he spotted Taylor falling to the ground. In a flash, he stopped her descent and held her by the shoulders as she let out a soft groan. The golden wings on her back began to disintegrate, flaking off section by section until they'd completely vanished, leaving a torn jacket's back as the only sign of their presence. A mote of light passed by him and danced on an unseen wind. Taylor's eyes had closed shut, and sweat coated her pale forehead.
'This day took quite the toll on her,' Wukong thought as he adjusted his grip around her waist and shoulders and gently hefted her up. 'Resilient as she may be, I fear for her mental state should she remain. Those above her will demand questions, the heroes will take offense at the damage to one of their own, and with witnesses to her awakening…'
A bad situation all around.
The hero slightly lowered his spear but took a step forward. "Put the girl down, she's a witness and needs medical treatment."
"And leave her in your tender mercies?" Wukong shot back. "While I doubt all your disciples have sullied their reputation like the brutish one has, I shall exercise caution and take responsibility for her recovery. As matters stand, my trust is a treasure you have yet to earn."
Wukong turned to the wall with the broken window and approached it while carrying Taylor, ignoring Armsmaster's repeated calls to desist. When he was within arm's reach of the wall, he pulled back a fist and struck. Rubble flew outwards and exposed the hall to the elements and the lights of the police cars encircling the school. Joining their ranks were black cars wider and thicker than their metallic brethren with the letters 'PRT' painted on their sides. The men below looked up in shock and pointed their thunder-weapons at him while screaming various orders. 'Hm, what did Peizhi-xiansheng call them again?'
"This is Armsmaster, hold your fire!" he heard the man yell. "Cape is extremely dangerous and has a civilian hostage! Containment foam only!"
'Armsmaster? Yes, that fits his apparition well. A hostage? Hah, for shame! Twisting my words already?'
Gathering his breath, Wukong clutched Taylor tightly and leapt through the hole and onto the roof past the institute's boundaries. Not stopping for a moment, he bounded across the rooftops and away from the school, savoring the panicked cries fading into the distance behind him. At least the girl didn't vomit at speeds faster than a horse. Why was his master chosen for an arduous journey when he had motion sickness, Wukong never found out. He clutched the girl's head to his chest and shielded her from the sharp winds as they approached the coastline. Spotting the familiar dark silhouettes of ships in the distance, he changed his direction and kept bouncing until he landed on a green hill, the same one he rested on after his triumph over the false long.
A heavy sigh escaped his lips as he sat himself down and took in the sight of the ruined metal ships floating near the coast. In contrast to the scene he fled from, filled with confusion and pandemonium, quiet reigned in the scrapyard below, with only the calls of gulls and the rolling of the sea to disturb it. The sun had begun its descent, dyeing the sky in a vermillion cloak.
He couldn't help but chuckle. 'What an eventful day this has been…once more, this Old Sun is filled with questions and answers. It feels like a dance at this point.'
A shifting motion on his lap pulled his attention to the girl he had brought along. She was latched onto his charred robes and fully resting on his crossed lap, whimpering and moaning as perspiration covered her pale face. Carefully removing his arm from her waist and holding up her head, Wukong looked her up and down and grimaced at the rising heat against his palm.
"Quite the revelation you have endured, little one," he said softly. "What karma have you gathered in your past life to throw these ordeals at you?"
Predictably, Taylor only curled in on herself in response. A shiver ran up her body and Wukong gripped her tightly.
"Peace, child. You are safe, away from those who would do you harm. Listen to the sea's song, and let it wash your troubles away as the tide washes the shells."
The Monkey King gently placed his free palm on her forehead and closed his eyes.
'I am no healer, and there are no materials in arms reach…hmm, there are no physical injuries to speak of beyond a scratch or two… this should do for now.'
Qi gathered in his palms, and a golden haze spread throughout her body…faster than he anticipated. Within a minute, her breathing grew steadier and the heat had dulled. Pulling his arm back, he saw a calmness had settled over her features, yet a touch of unrest remained.
The girl was fine for the time being…but what now?
'Going for walks might be a tad difficult for the coming days. I shall have to watch my toes. But what of this one's fate? She mentioned a father, but I do not know if it is safe to bring her to him right now. This Armsmaster witnessed her powers, as well as her fellow students…what misfortune would befall her if she returned? Hm, troublesome. Yet I said I would bear responsibility for her recovery, and I do not intend to go back on my word.'
Another chuckle rolled from his mouth. "And all those times I complained about rescuing Master Tang or the pig…I guess this is my karma. Regardless, 'twould be an injustice if I ignored her opinion, so waiting for her to wake up is the best step from here."
He gathered the girl in his arms again and slowly stood up. As he stared at the horizon and felt the sun's rays caress his fur, the smile returned. 'Whatever the case, this Old Sun has a feeling your life will grow exciting from here on out, just as mine has. We both have questions that need answering, and who knows?
…maybe a girl and an old monkey could help each other out.'
Wow, I admit, this scene took a lot out of me.
I hate bullies, and a lot of my frustration bled into the scene as I wrote it. I did my best to ensure any affected parties remained in character but...gah, frustrating. Also, epic battle between Wukong and Taylor's apparition! Neither victory nor defeat in this one, but who knows?
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