There's nothing I hate more than noise, and once upon a time, the four winds sect was filled with it. I guess you could say it was one of the many reasons I was downright diabolical and spoilt at times but, right now I miss it. I miss the hundreds of slaves, servants, and disciples that moved around on their day to day activities. The elders giving lectures, the alchemist cooking up all manner of concoctions foul and pleasant. The engineers and forge masters thinking up the next big technology, and my father scheming, growing in power and making a plethora of deals that would help the sect move forward. But he was gone now, and whether I liked it or not it was up to me to make sure that whatever is left doesn't go to shit, and not because I'm bound by some obligation, but because if the four winds sect does not stand again, then I am so fucked, and not in a nice way.
Of the Ark-Land left in the sect, only the prime is left standing. It wasn't that large of a land, it was just under ten hectares, housing just the manor, the shrine, and the control chambers. Which was my current destination at the moment. Apart from my mentally challenged mother, just the family butler and head maid was here with me, everyone else was gone. Not that I cared, or rather I did not want to care about being abandoned and betrayed by the people I have Known my entire life. I guess you could say that my father passing away gave me a new perspective on life, I wonder if I really was such a monster as everyone said I was. Was I so terrible that none of them even cared to stay behind and serve the family they swore fealty to, instead they left, ran and never looked back. Taking everything that was of worth with them and leaving me high and dry.
I looked at the control chamber in front of me, it was a peach tree. Though this one was massive, really tall with a lot of hanging Vines and branches and filled to the brim with monkeys of a variety of species. At the very least this was the only thing that was left intact, the annoying infestation of primates. They were a feature of the primary ark land, and hurting them would result in expulsion or instant death from the land itself. Ark lands were rare, they were pieces of unclaimed land masses around the cursed ocean that could be attuned to any other ark land, growing the land itself and adding new features to it. The four winds sect used to have a total of 88 Ark lands, each unique and different in their rarity. Never the less the basic characteristics of this ark land is that it spawns monkeys or rather has an ecology of primates of different species. None of them has ever been successfully domesticated, which made them nothing more than useless free loaders, the moment I see another way, I'm getting rid of them.
The tree had a door that led into it, along with stairs that grew out of it's side, leading up to the door that was midway to the top of the tree. I ascended, taking notice of the fact that all of the monkeys had stopped what they were doing and were ardently watching me. It was jarring and extremely nerve wracking, it was so similar to the time my father and the clan elders had to test me, when they found out my mother had placed a cursed crown on my head in a fit of madness and rage. It made me unable to cultivate, made me useless ..... A monster. Well not that i regret what I have become, it would have just been nice to have power to go with being a debaucherous black hearted bastard.
I came to a stop in front of the door, I looked up to notice a peculiar cloud hanging underneath the canopy of the tree, it was weird, because for a moment I almost felt as if it was looking at me, but it's a cloud, that should be impossible. I moved my gaze back to the door in front of me, surprisingly it was made of iron, or rather it seemed to be made of iron as the door itself grew out of the tree. Nothing strange about that, I've seen people get healed from eating unicorn shit and piss. A tree growing a wooden door was not so high on the strange things list.
However there was a monkey man thing embossed in it… weird, I hated the damn picture already. He was holding a staff, and oh look, he's standing on some sort of cloud… damn thing looks familiar if I might add. "where have I seen something similar?" well nothing I can do about that, I'd remember it eventually, i shrugged my shoulders and placed my hand on the door, the cloud above me totally forgotten and not even considered for the very stark resemblance it had with the cloud on the door.
[BLOODLINE RECOGNIZED! GRANTING ACCESS TO USER DESIGNATED THEON AIRIKSON!]
Well that was enlightening and at the same time really weird. It was crazy, but this was the first time I was seeing a system message since I was six, since that bloody crown was placed onto my head and it proceeded to sink in, cutting me off from the system and a chance to cultivate. The iron door slid to the side, opening up to a room that had nothing but a table with a peach floating on top of it. I raised an eyebrow at that as I walked into the room, and as the door slid close behind me I raised the other as my heart let out a loud thump, fear almost taking over me.
But it was silent, and for a while until I decided to move it was just me and the floating peach. I shook my head, obviously I have to eat the damn thing. Did I want to? Absolutely not! Did I have a choice? Also absolutely not! "fuck!" I moved forwards taking three giant steps, grabbed the peach and took one massive bite out of it… … and I won't lie; it was the single most revolting… most tastiest thing I have ever had the pleasure of putting in my mouth. Just because my heart is black, it doesn't mean my tongue should be too. And in seconds I found myself rapidly devouring the peach, until there was nothing left but a very satisfied half human, half demon. I shuddered, feeling an itch at the base of my waist that I didn't expect, and even more so when a tail tore a hole through my trousers.
"Oh what the fuck!"
[NEW MASTER ACKNOWLEDGE!]
[BLOODLINE RECOGNIZED AS HYBRID HUMAN AND WINDICE ROYAL MONKEY]
[BLOODLINE RECOGNIZED AS DIRECT LINE TO THE GREAT SAGE EQUAL TO HEAVEN SUN WUKONG!]
[FLOWER AND FRUIT MOUNTAIN TRIAL WILL BEGIN FOR FULL ACCESS TO CORE DIRECTIVES AND SYSTEM]
All of a sudden the world fell away and I found myself at a river behind a tall hill, and from the hill the water rushed down, making a powerful cascade as the waterfall glistened with a purity unlike anything I have ever experienced. This place was familiar to me, however I had only seen this place once before, and it was by accident as I had stumbled here as a kid before. But since then I have never been able to find it, and now all of a sudden here it was in front of me. I crouched down, looking at the river as it flowed past, brightly colored koi fishes swam about without a care in the world. There were massive rocks and boulders stuck in the river with some of them placed evenly underneath the waterfall, and finally there were monkeys, lots and lots of monkeys, and they were all just sitting there watching me.
[TRIAL: WALK THROUGH THE WATER CURTAIN CAVE AND COME BACK TO BECOME THE MONKEY KING! UNLOCK ALL ACCESS TO FLOWERS AND FRUIT MOUNTAIN]
A monkey king? Absolutely not! And as if to prove just how messed up of a situation this was, the tail that had suddenly grown out of my body waved itself into view, prompting me to release a growl of annoyance. This was fucked up beyond all fucked up measures and it was making me so fucking angry and in a lot of fucking ways. I really wanted to fuck something up as this fucking trial was forcing me to fucking accept something I didn't want to fucking accept!
"I hate Monkeys!"
"Well it's not as if you have a choice." I quickly turned around at the voice, completely shocked at who I saw here.
"Mom? What are you doing here?" I asked her as I quickly rushed to her side to hold her hands, her thin frame looking like a reed that could be blown away by the smallest gust of wind. She stiffened as I touched her, and while the reaction to her own son coming close to her hurt me, I still chose to swallow it as I led her to a well sized rock to sit on the river bank, her bare feet sinking into the river as she let out a contented sigh.
"I came to visit my family, it's been such a long time since your father trapped me in this human body, with him dead I finally have access and a chance to come back here and meet with my family. Look, there's my father." I almost wanted to cry, I had a great deal of fear and love for my father, but even with how black my heart was, I can not even begin to imagine the hell he had put my mother through. He drove her crazy, made her think she used to be a monkey, just so….
"Its that you daughter?"
"Jesus!"
I screamed out loud as a macaque with snow white fur and bands of blue and green running from his face to the middle of his back appeared out of nowhere. Now normally a macaque, monkey should be about the height of a four or five year old, but this dude was over nine feet tall and had fangs that made me weak in the knees, and it was much more worse when you consider the fact that he was talking, a giant monkey that can talk. Unless he was a demon beast with an extremely high cultivation this shouldn't be possible, however here it is, the unthinkable happening in a world where the impossible was the general norm.
"It is good to see you again Baba. Look it's my son's turn to take the trial, I believe he would pass, he is one of us after all."
The only response she got was a wild roar as the giant macaque smashed his fist into the ground and rushed at me, grabbing me by the neck as he raised me up, his gaze blood red and filled with rage and anger.
" This thing is an abomination! He should not exist! He does not deserve, in fact forget deserving he is not worthy! Daughter you are back, you can be queen once again! Allow me to end this stain, this blemish on the legacy of the great sage!....let me kill him!"
My eyes widened in surprise as I turned to look at my mother, I felt a chill so significant I shivered in the hands of what I now realize was or rather is my grandfather. She hesitated, I saw it in her eyes, for a few short moments she considered doing what he asked of her, it made me wonder why she hated me so much, why is it that no matter what I do or try to do I can never be good enough for my mother. She wanted me dead, she didn't want me…
"No! Father how dare you! He is my son! My child! If I say he is worthy, then you are unworthy to even judge his worth! Now put my baby down! Or I'll show you just how dangerous a mother monkey can be, especially when she's a demon descended from Sun Wukong himself."
My crazy monkey of a grandfather put me down with a loud grunt, and then right before my very eyes he shrunk until he was… well tiny. He looked at my mother for a while before going to pick a rock of his own to sit on, his gaze dull yet still burning with Killing intent. I felt so lost, and this was saying something as even with my father's death I have not been caught off guard yet.
"You have questions, there is so much you need to know, and I will tell you. But only on the condition you pass the trial in front of you." My mother said as she slowly got back up to her feet, causing me to look back at the waterfall as I wrapped my hands around my sore neck. I turned to her to ask.
"What if I fail?" in response her eyes turned a bright gold, with red right in the middle before she said to me.
"Then I'll kill you Myself!"
okay this is an extra long chapter, enjoy!
Over the years that I have lost my ability to cultivate, I had developed a sort of sixth sense that not many people can claim they have, or perhaps I don't think anyone has it at all. And that was an ability to notice the pressure Qi exerts on an area. And to be able to, just to a certain extent; trace it's origins. And right now that my heart seemed to have calmed down from the entire drama with a monkey grandfather and mother, I realized that the waterfall and river itself was filled to the brim with Qi, so much of it that the pressure it exerted was not spiritual or even energy like in nature, it was freaking physical, like I was about to be thrown under an avalanche.
Too much thinking never helped anyone, my mother or not, I don't think for one second she was kidding when she said she was going to kill me herself. I took a step into one of the rocks, feeling a cascade of Qi was over me, it was as if the river bank itself was a boundary and once I stepped past that boundary, it wasn't like being thrown in front of an avalanche, but rather dumped right in the middle of a tsunami's onslaught. The rush of Qi almost threatened to throw me off my feet, but somehow I withstood the rush.
Taking an extra deep breath I hopped onto the next stone, holding on to that breath until I was in front of the rushing waterfall. It really does look like a curtain though, one made with the most exquisite of natural crystals. I took another step forwards, putting myself directly under the waterfall, and almost immediately I was blasted to the ground, my chest smashing against wet rock as a coppery taste filled my mouth.
My limbs felt like they were each carrying steel balls weighing dozens or hundreds of kilograms. And my back felt like it had a mountain on it, a mountain that was rapidly getting heavier the more seconds that passed. It was a lot of pressure exerted not just on my body, but also on my spirit. However I could still move, with way more ease than I would have ever expected. It made no sense, to be under the onslaught of such powerful Qi pressure yet, here I was , standing untouched. I felt a little bit of a chill around my forehead, but beyond that there was nothing else to be felt from the Qi rushing through the waterfall. I took one more look behind me, struggling to see through the cascade of water as it rushed down on me, catching a glimpse of my mother.
She still watched me, impassive in her gaze and more rigid than I would have expected. I felt conflicted, I really had no idea how to react to this current situation, but there really was no other path but forward, so I took a step past the waterfall, and into the cave behind it. There was a loud gong, so deep in it's rumble it seemed to reverberate across the entire flower and fruit Mountain. I shuddered as my vision blurred for a few moments, and when it cleared I was in a brightly lit cave, with a small house, stone tables and seats with china ware covered in dust. A small brook flowing from the back of the house with a red bridge over it, a small field/ garden for use at the side and finally on the wall to the east of the cave were words written in ancient letters.
[Water Curtain Cave]
Well there was no reason to spend any more time than was necessary in this damn place, after all the test was just to walk through the waterfall and then walk right back out. Anything else seems like an extreme waste of time, however something stopped me. I'm not sure what, but I didn't think it would be right to just leave this place like this, something about it made it seem like an area that was even more sacred than Airikson family tomb/shrine. So I took a step back and gave three deep bow's, and then turned around to leave.
"You are a lot more perceptive than I thought boy, still why would you want to leave so damn early, after all you just got here. Come and sit with me, it has been a while since I've had someone to talk to."
I felt chilled as i heard the voice, there was power to it, that I couldn't deny or ignore. And it was even more strange that I was coming from some illusory brown furred common monkey. The monkey was sitting by the brook, and ironically enough he was eating a banana. Speaking with a monkey was the last thing I wanted to do, but since all of the monkeys here so far have proven that they could kick my ass and erase me from existence before I can even blink, I felt I had no choice but to indulge him.
"I've never seen a bigger asshole than you kid, but you're a complicated fellow aren't you. Not as simple or one dimensional as the rest of the world thinks you are. So what do you think of this water Curtain Cave? It used to be the seat of power of the monkey king, the inner sanctum of all inner sanctums. The place he comes to train, think, reflect and scheme. Now it belongs to you… but you're still such an asshole."
I blinked my eyes, it was a fierce struggle not to let my anger out, I'm a bad guy, that much has been established and I was not ready or willing to change who I was. But then again there was a lot to be said about how this old ghost money knew so much about me, and then in the end no one likes being called an asshole. "What do you want?" I asked him, as I took a seat besides him, making sure to keep a safe space between the two of us.
"A destiny unlike any other has come knocking on your door, and it is one you have no other choice but to accept and live. I actually like your disposition, you're incredibly selfish and extremely greedy, and you do not shy away from hurting people if it gets you what you want. And also your amusement, tends to leave people hurt or emotionally scarred for the rest of their lives, yet you're kind to those you consider your loved ones, fiercely protective of the things and people you own. Some would call you a psychopath, but I on the other hand will call you… … A monkey."
Not that I gave a shit, but; hearing those words sort of felt nice. It has been a long time since anyone had genuinely given me a compliment that was not an attempt at ass kissing. Of course this sounded more like a psych evaluation than a compliment and from a dead ghost monkey no doubt. But it made me feel nice inside being told I was not a completely heartless bastard.
"There's light in you boy, guard it fiercely and keep it close to your heart, there are many people who would love nothing more than to snuff it out. And in retrospect, the world you live in now will never allow a speck of light of any sort survive in you. You have finally come into your own, and you are one of many who have passed a test to become to become the next incarnation of the Great Sage Equal to the heavens; The Monkey King, Sun Wukong."
"I don't want it!" that's a big fat lie though.
"That's a lie boy!" and it seems like he knows it.
"I see it in you, the years of being unable to cultivate might have slightly dulled the urge, but you're drawn to power like a moth to a flame, like a fly to shit and vultures to death. In your heart of hearts you don't care that you've grown a tail, or that your mother is a demon monkey that took on human form and was trapped in it by your father so that a human of a perfect bloodline could be born, and his ambitions of creating a continent and ruling over it will be achieved. Finally power is at your finger tips, and the golden band around your head has both stopped your from taking it and groomed you for it's possession all your life. So do not lie to me boy, you are now my master, I will give you power, just as you will feed it back to me and help me grow, I will be the core of the kingdom you will build, the Nexus of the empire that comes next, and the center of the continent your wild ambition will drive you to create! I am earth and flower, rivers and fruit, wildness of life and beauty of savagery, I am the seat of power and the home to he who was equal to the heavens! I'm am the mountain of fruit and flowers! And I acknowledge you! Theon Airikson! Bloodline of the Great Sage, Bloodline of the golden cicada. Master! Lord! And Prince! The Monkey Prince! Now earn the right to become… King!"
And then be was gone, but I could still feel him, he was in my head. In my body, in my soul, he was everywhere and nowhere at the same time, the very land upon which I now stood. And for the first time in a long time I'm terrified, because this was unlike anything I have ever experienced before, and honestly I don't think I would be able to come across an experience such as this again. I got up, and took one long look at the water Curtain Cave, I knew I'd be back here again, in fact probably within the next few hours….. and that was because I could feel it stronger in here than anywhere else… there was Qi, and it was a lot.
As I approached the waterfall, it parted by itself, creating a path for me to walk through. Even the river beyond seemed to recede as I walked on dry earth, taking care to not step on the brightly colored Koi fishes that were flopping about due to the lack of water. My mother was still seating on a rock, her eyes an undisturbed pool of grey and gold as she cocked her head to the side, very monkey like as she observed me, looking at the tail behind me that seemed to have a mind of it's own.
"Is it done?" she asked, and I nodded in return, not able to trust my voice, or my emotions… my mother is a monkey and my grandfather a giant Macaw that hates me… who ever said my father dying had put the world in perspective for me was wrong, because it just got all the more complicated.
leave your thoughts and comments guys! thanks for reading
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