Chapter 3: The Great Quest
-Yunlan-
The feast was quite something, but Zhao Yunlan was too concerned about two things to fully enjoy it. The Fire Prince was now sat in front of him and although he was not directly avoiding him, Zhao could feel he was uncomfortable in his presence. Perhaps he hasted his sudden confession, scaring the innocent Prince with things he was not ready for just yet.
However, what he had said to him was not a lie, they may not have a next day in their dangerous journey and if they manage to come back, he will move heaven and earth to be with his Prince, if Shen Wei also want him back. He had put his eyes on him, a long time ago. When they were kids and their fathers introduce them to one another, the fire boy's eyes, smile and kindness had melt his heart in the spot, not to mention his beauty.
So he make sure that in those very few days he could see Shen Wei in Clans gathering counted the most. He stayed close to the Fire Prince in every opportunity, most of the time trying to avoid people his father wanted him to befriend, because he only had interest in the fire beauty. Nonetheless, he still needed to keep up with his father's wishes when younger, but as he grew up, he care less for appearances and alliances and simply do what he wished.
He was sure Shen Wei had seen him stare his way most of the time, but he had been pleasantly surprised that the very few moments he was not seeking the Fire Prince presence, the roles reversed and it was him who stare his way. The only real difference between the two was when he catch Wei staring at him, he gave the Fire Prince a wink which set his face on fire and avoid him for hours.
Thinking about that, make Zhao smile, which in turn attract the other Prince attention back to him. Shen Wei glance at him, but as usual, he blushed just remembering Zhao Yunlan had basically confess to him half an hour ago and been as shy as he was, he looked down to his served food.
"Don't worry, Lord Yunlan, you will have what you desire most at the end." Lord Tao said, smiling. He was sat between Zhao and Shen Wei in the long table and although Shen was pretending not to hear, he could not help but blush even more. Apparently, Lord Tao was also a great teaser, so he was hopeless between the two masters.
"I honestly hope so, Lord Shi. He is the light of my eyes and the owner of my heart." At that, Shen Wei almost choke with his food. He begin coughing, as Zhao pass him a glass of water and the old Oracle laughed.
"Come one, Lord Wei, don't kill yourself before I can have the honor of your first kiss." Then Shen almost choke with his water, but this time not only Lord Shi laughed more, but also the one sat at Yunlan's side laughed as well.
"Not you too, Lord Qing." Shen Wei protested.
"You know, it's quite refreshing to see that the Fire Prince is this shy, while the Water Prince is this shameless. It's like your elements are reversed. Lord Wei should had been a Water Prince, while the teaser the Fire one." Da Qing said, as he munched some fish.
"I agree..." Zhu Hong said by Shen Wei's side. Shen sighed. "He is cute, so I can see why he interest you so much." Zhu continue.
"Is this really the time to be talking nonsense? We are about to embark in a quest that could end our lives and that of our Clans." Shen Wei protested.
"And that's why we need a distraction, Lord Wei... don't mind Lord Yunlan too much, he may tease a lot, but he will give his life for you, of that I'm sure." Da Qing said and Shen Wei looked at Yunlan, as Zhu Hong assented by his side.
"I would too..." Zhao arched an eyebrow, quite pleased to hear that from his Prince. "I mean, I will risk my life for all of you..." He hastily changed the implication, as Zhao was smiling in that mischievous way.
"You are too kind Lord Wei..." Zhu said, also smiling.
"Hey, let's cut the Lord's thing. We are going to travel together, probably for months, so we don't need to be formal anymore." Zhao suggested.
"That would be wise. Facing dangers as one will keep you all alive, but if you keep your Clans position first you will all fail." The Oracle warned them.
"So do you saw how this all will end?" Zhao asked the Oracle.
"Choices are what defines the future. I saw many possible ones, make the right choices when the time comes and you will have a great future. The dangers you will face are many and maybe not all may return, but it will be the same for the rest who stays in their lands. This new threat will be fought in two fronts, you two Wei and Yunlan, had already seen what a few Shadows can do to our people, so it's not like we will not suffer casualties as you travel to save the rest of us." The Oracle explained.
"I'm sure our fathers will take care of the problem of the Shadows." Da Qing said with confidence.
"Don't be so sure, young Qing. Shadows can cause great sickness that can kill entire Clans, don't underestimate them." The Oracle warned.
"I will tell my mother to prepare herself, in case she needs to make potions for this possible sickness." Zhu said.
"Ah, don't worry, I will speak with her myself. Your Snake Clan had devoted to Nuwa's worship, I'm sure the goddess will hear your prayers and help your Clan to face the new threat and challenge." The Oracle reassure her.
"Well, I think we should go now. The faster we eliminate this threat, the better for all the Clans." Zhao said.
"Agree." Both Zhu and Da Qing said at the same time. Shen Wei simply nodded, prying that his brother could overcome his fear of sickness and become a great leader in his absence.
A few minutes later, after they gather their things and talk with their respective fathers about the possible threats inside the Clans, they go down the stairs and the Oracle activate a huge summoning circle, toward beyond the farthest border of the Seven Lands.
The magic used in the summoning was extraordinary and as the group stood right in the middle of it, Shen Wei was awed as he saw multiple colors dancing stars under his feet, then they moved up the ground, some dancing around Shen and Yunlan, to finally circle the entire group with moving columns of light filled with shining constellations, that connected to one another with arches.
Instinctively, Zhao move his hand to grab Wei's, because he had no idea what will they encounter outside the Clans lands. He expected the Fire Prince to gently remove his hand from his hold, but to his surprise, Shen Wei not only allow him to intertwine their hands, he also smiled at Yunlan, before the summon took effect and they were transported beyond the border of their lands.
Once in the other side, they found it was already nightfall, the sky was moonless and cover with thick dark clouds. Shen slightly squeeze Yunlan's hand, before he summon a small fire in his free hand, then throw it above their heads as it grow in size, splitting and turning into several small fire birds that fly away in different directions. As they all looked around, there was no apparent danger, as they were right in the middle of big valley, which looked like a desert, with split earth, no grass or tress. It was all barren lands as far as they could see.
"We will camp here tonight and take turns to watch out for anything that moves in this valley. It will be too risky to walk unknown territory without knowing of its dangers. Hey you, the kid from the Sage Clan, can your senses pick up something threatening around?" Zhao asked, to the white haired Guo. The Sage Clan transcended humanity in the normal aspect and were more in tune with nature and the unseen spirits of the earth. Guo closed his eyes and let his mind and all senses run free from his body and as he did so, his long white hair shined in the darkness like silk treads made of moonlight.
Chu Shuzhi was awed at the youngest of their group, silent beauty. He was a master of treads, so he knew all about them, but he had never seen such purity in someone else, like in the kid. To be honest, the shining of his hair was quite blinding to his eyes, who see the world differently than others. The Clans all have many different talents, but he had never seen a Sage in action and it was breathtaking.
To Guo, there was not much life around, but he felt something hostile, several miles away. The valley in were they stood now, was pretty much empty, at the very least for now.
"There is something hostile, but is quite far away for now." Guo finally said, opening his eyes, his white hair turning back to normal.
"What about the Snake Clan? Nuwa had marked the forbidden lands, telling her worshipers about their dangers." Zhao said looking at Zhu Hong, which looked a bit impressed with the information only her Clan knew.
"I wonder, where you the one who was consider to succeed the Oracle of the Stars a long time ago?" She asked and the rest of the group look at Zhao with curiosity and surprise mixed.
"Indeed, I was. My father was offer with two paths when I was born. Either I train with the Oracle to become his successor or train to be the Water Clan heir. His choice is quite obvious, so what can you tell us of this place? There is no need for secrets here, we all will risk our lives for the same reason and fight for the same cause." Zhao said, earning Zhu's respect.
"At the other side of those distant mountains is the land of the spiders. They are vicious and poisonous, so we will have our very first fight right out of the blue. It will be safe to rest here for the night, we had the goddess blessing, I assure you." Zhu said.
"Okay then, I can make us an earth fort for tonight... by the way, will you two hold hands all night or what?" Da Qing asked, making Shen aware of their joined hands and blush harder, while removing his from the warm hold. It had felt so good he had forgot and as his fire birds were still flying around illuminating the night for them, it was plain to see as their appointed leader by the Oracle himself and him, in a more intimate way. The rest of the group laughed as Shen felt like melting and more so when Zhao winked at him so teasingly.
An hour later, as Da Qing used earth magic to rise a thick wall from the barren ground surrounding their selected resting place, Shen provided the fire for the camp that will magically burn without the wood or any other burning element. While Guo's meditation will keep him alert of coming treats and Chu's treads, dispersed all around them in an invisible cocoon, will also keep them safe. Resting very close to one another, Zhao looked at Wei, who was staring at the darkened sky.
"Don't worry, somehow, we will overcome this trial." Zhao whisper and Shen turned his head to look at him.
"Can you see as much as the Oracle? I mean into the future..."
"Not as much... to become an Oracle you need more than the gift of sight. You need to train to harness those vision and give them sense. Some may pass as simple dreams, only when happening you figure out it was a possibility."
"Yunlan... do you really...?" Shen begin asking shyly, but Yunlan already knew his question.
"Yes. I'm truly interested in you, thus yes, I like you in a more romantic way. Hell I may love you more than you can imagne." Shen blushed. "What about you? Do I have a chance?" Zhao asked seriously.
"To be honest... I... I don't know..." Zhao smiled.
"Then, that's fine. Hesitation means you have doubts, which can translate in a possible maybe that can transform in a big fat yes giving it the proper time to grow." Shen smiled.
"You sure sound confident." Shen whisper. The others were resting a bit further from them.
"I have no doubts, my Wei..." The Fire Prince was startle for a moment.
"My Wei? This soon? You really are shameless, Zhao Yunlan." Shen softly said.
"I'm honor by your words, my Fire Prince..." Zhao teased, making Wei smile. Soon, Zhao watch him fall asleep, probably too tired to keep up with his teasing. However, just before he was going to succumb to darkness as well, he felt Wei's hand grab his arm. It was an instinct act that meant nothing, but Zhao find it reassuring. So, he fall asleep while holding Wei's hand in return, dreaming with a day in which Shen Wei will become his and the differences of the Clans a thing of the past.
AN: LOL. I feel like this is a merge between Avatar the Last Air Bender and Lord of the Rings. I wonder if Shen is more a Zuko or Legolas or Yunlan more a Katara than Aragorn. Guo is definitely Aang! 😂. I have fun writing this, so I hope you have fun reading it too.
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