10 Ch 10 Unexpected Enemies
Chapter 10
Joshua led me into a large building that was located on the ground floor.
Inside the walls were covered in more designs of birds, maybe flamingos or cranes biting at and being swallowed by mist.
"This compound is called The Fallen, we call it that to remember that we once lived in far greater land called Z'Gambo" he started.
"Z'Gambo is located in Africa and was the homeland of not only the Council of 7 but a whole country that we were sworn to protect"
"We failed, our people were massacred 200 years ago and only one of the Council managed to survive, he came here and created The Fallen and brought in more members to fill in the council"
"The enemy that wiped out Z'Gambo is the Crane Society of Kun-Zi, they are an evil organization That seek to control the world from the shadows"
"They have a hidden compound located somewhere in Moghulistan where they train their Crane warriors"
"They are led by the Crane Mother, a wicked sorcerer who has managed to corrupt Chi and grant that power to her children"
"Our mission now is to stop them at every turn and eventually destroy them as they did to us"
Damn that's quite a story and definitely not in the MCU, mixing dark magic and Chi doesn't sound good.
"If you choose to drink the mist brew it will become your mission as well. Do you understand that?" he finished.
"Yes" I said as seriously as possible.
"Excellent" Joshua said "Now take my hand"
He then held out his hand, and I grasped it.
White smoke appeared on the ground behind me at a point and slowly trailed around us in a circle at our feet over the course of 10 seconds.
Then suddenly in a flash of white, I was somewhere else.
A hill somewhere in a forest, him standing across from me with another toothy grin, us still holding hands.
I let go "No homo" I say just for safety.
"What was that?"
"Just a prayer" I stated
He started walking through the forest and I followed in silence wondering where he's taking me.
15 minutes later I saw smoke as we came to another hill, I was about to take another step forward but pushed my head down.
"Get down" he spoke in a hushed tone.
I crouched and we moved forward some more.
They're ahead of us was a camp of what looked like bandits.
Fires burning with bandits sitting around drinking and singing. Judging from their mirth I'd say they recently got a good haul.
Tents filled with ill-gotten gains, and horses tied up with rope, and large pots of stew being cooked for their dinner feast.
"These bandits are funded by the Crane Society and are collecting and transporting children for experimentation" he says.
He points toward a tent in the back that none of the bandits seem to want to go near.
"The kids are in there I was going to attack this camp when Dorji called us to The Fallen"
"Now it's your job" Joshua said as he pats my back.
"Ok ill clear them out" I said
Ok, about 15 bandits are milling around the camp, 7 of them are sitting around the fire while the other 8 are moving about carrying things or eating alone.
I have always defended against bandits and never attacked one of their camps alone before.
But I have played Hitman and assassins creed so I'll do it like that.
I sneak around the camp to confirm that the children are still ok.
There are 3 kids in a cage malnourished and covered in dirt, 2 girls and 1 boy.
"Don't worry I'm here to save you, promise" I whisper to them, I see hope in their eyes.
I find 2 bandits on the outskirts of the camp eating stew alone and kill them instantly with daggers from a distance.
Next, I wait in silence as a bandit is coming towards the 2 dead guys maybe to join them or something.
Just as he turns the corner I grab him, cover his mouth and slit his throat before laying him down gently next to his friends.
I come up behind 2 bandits carrying a chest of some kind.
I trail them quietly waiting for them to put down chest first as to not make noise.
30 seconds later they enter a tent and place it down.
I peak my head in the tent and throw 2 more daggers with 2 more hits.
"Were under attack" I heard shouting from where I killed the first 2 and throw a hail Mary dagger to the source of the shout, through a tent in the way.
Then I summon a fist-sized bag of gunpowder and iron shavings I keep in my inventory and lob it into the fire that 7 of them are sitting around.
The explosion and shrapnel kill 3 of them and I run into the clearing and kill 3 more with deadly precision.
The last guy that was around the fire charged me with a spear.
I parry his strike easily with my left hand, then pick him up by his shirt with my right and chuck him into the fire with my 20 STR.
These beasts who kidnap and trade in children deserve no mercy.
No one else comes to attack me but my count there should still be 2-3 left.
I head over to where I heard the shout come from and found my hail Mary dagger actually killed the guy straight in the heart.
The other 2 must have run away after seeing the guy get attacked through a tent right after he shouted.
I head to the tent where the kids are being held only to find Joshua already there.
"Let's free the kids" I said moving towards the cage.
"Wait" his hands turned to white mist and it circled the children.
"It's too late they have already been infected with Dark Chi"
"What do mean too late?" I said.
He walked out of the tent picked up one of my daggers and said,
"They will turn into darkling's in 2 weeks time nothing we can do now"
"Your last trial is to put them out of their misery" he hands me my own dagger.
"Wait there has to be something we can do, I promised them I'd save them"
"There's nothing, trust me after you kill them you can get the mist brew, what you are after in the first place" said Joshua this time with no smile.
"You mean you think there's nothing you can do" I continued
"We can take them to Kamar-Taj or the great protector in Ta-lo or even to Odin in Asgard" I finished I'm not mercy killing these kids unless there truly is no other way.
"That will take too long there are hundreds of kids like this on their way to the Crane Mother and every time she consumes their souls she grows more powerful" Joshua spoke
"It's more efficient to mercy kill them here and find more in the meantime, if you won't I will"
He reached his hand for the first child's neck, I punch him full force in his face knocking him out of the tent and breaking his glasses.
He rises up.
The glass cut his forehead and blood is running down his face past his completely white eyes.
"You FOOL" Joshua spoke.
"WE LOST THE WAR, Z'GAMBO IS GONE THIS IS THE ONLY WAY WE CAN WIN NOW THOSE FILTHY CRANES CANT BE ALLOWED TO WIN" he screeched at me.
"TRUST ME I KNOW ALL ABOUT CHILDREN DYING MY OWN SON WAS A VICTIM OF THEIR EVIL WE HAVE TO DO EVERYTHING TO STOP THEM"
"Winning like this is not a true victory" I shouted back.
"SSSRRRRREEEEECCCCHAAAAAGGGGHHH" he howled as his hands turned white and he shook violently.
"You pass"
An Old African man wrapped in beige robes and that has beige bandages wrapped around his eyes appeared out of literally nowhere.
There wasn't any mist or portal or anything.
"WHAT" I shout
Joshua's hands reverts to normal as he cleans the blood off his face with a handkerchief.
It was a trick, I'm not an idiot though, I originally thought this was a trick to see if was truly good.
But his logic on why I had to kill the kids was so thought out, plus when he started shouting about his dead kid I honestly thought it was real.
"It was a test, a very convincing one" the mystery man said.
"You should have been an actor Joshua, darklings? Ha it's a good thing you gave the test we both know Dorji is a terrible liar" said the man.
"Hahaha you know it's God's plan that I serve on the Council Master Chiwa" said Joshua.
"Just so you know everything Joshua since you left the compound is a lie, these were just bandits who kidnapped kids nothing more" Said Chiwa.
"Ya if the Crane Society wanted kids they would just get them themselves and darklings are just something I made up" he said laughing at me.
Joshua just puts on another pair of his circular shades, gave me a smile, and disappeared in a puff of mist.
I turn to the man named Chiwa "So what's your last name beige?"
"I have no true name, I lost it with Z'Gambo" he spoke solemnly.
"My mist is clear like water an advanced trick you may one day learn"
'Poof'
An incredibly beautiful woman just appeared in a puff of pink smoke and walked to the children.
"Do you kids have parents?" she asked the kids in an angelic voice
The oldest one a girl spoke up "No they killed our families"
"Don't worry you will be safe in the UnderCity, Dog Brother #1 will take care of you" She said
Pink mist covered the cage and her, suddenly the only the cage remained.
"Enough of this why don't we get you the mist brew you've earned it" Chiwa put his hand on my shoulder.
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Wow long chapter
Full of OC's hope it wasn't to boring with no canon characters
The obvious pretend to be evil to see if the new recruit is evil trick, did I actually get anyone with it in the end ?
If anyone's wondering the Crane thing and Z'Gambo are real marvel stuff but not at war.
I basically took the 7 Heavenly Cities from marvel comics but changed a lot for my story. There will be no Heart of Heaven tournament.
Iron Man
STR 15
AGI 15
END 18
RES 15
INT 70
WIS 30
CHA 20
PER 15
