Contrary to the stark white operation room, the sight that awaited Zun Zhao beyond the closed doors was a cheerful colourfulness. The walls and ceiling of the hallway were decorated with a myriad of murals, smudged drawings depicting anything from people to locations, it was as if an entirely new world unfolded itself along the walls. There were quite a few people going about their own business around Zun Zhao as he went on his way, some had a calming and gentle expression while others still looked a bit grim, a heavy air lingering around them.
The difference was clear at a sight, but perhaps it was just to be expected. The gentle people were all those who were employed by the doctor, the benefactor that allowed him to pursue the last will of his deceased young master. And those with the heavy air were all like him, the unfortunate and powerless that the doctor had picked up, the crying people he helped find a new people, Shadowchasers he called them, us. Were things just a bit different then Zun Zhao may very well have ended up like them, darkened eyes and heavy steps, shoulders lowered by sorrow.
But luckily, Zun Zhao had yet to reach that point. No matter how much his body was altered, no matter how strange his innards became, no matter how dark his mind became, there was always something that would stop his steps from getting too heavy. He rounded a few corners and moved through a few rooms, his chest feeling a bit uneven thanks to the new pair of lungs that had fused with him. Eventually he pushed open a set of doors, the bright rays of the morning sun pouring in. And there she stood, the lifeboat that kept him from sinking just yet.
"You're out! Is everything good, did things go okay, were there any complications, any pain?"
A barrage of questions hit him as he stepped beyond the door, lush grass and moist earth softening his steps. His hair had been tainted by murky purple and dirty green while his eyes had been tainted by pale white and mottled brown, but hers, hers was still as beautiful as it was in the past. Beautiful golden hair with a slight curl and glittering green eyes that carried enough light to make up for what Zun Zhao had lost.
His arm reached out and landed on his sister's head, Zun Zhi's head, and ruffled her hair in the same way their young master and their big brother Liang Chen had done in the past. Normally he would pull her in for a hug, but he didn't want to hold her close to the lungs he had just altered, she didn't need to be close to something that dirty. No, she needed to stay bright and gleaming, it was enough that he went ahead and dirtied himself.
"Of course everything went fine. In fact, I feel better than ever, I'll never have to fear any kinds of poison again."
Poison was a scary thing, it could creep into you no matter how strong you got. What did it matter if you were so strong that you could tear up cities, a single wrong meal could spell your doom. But now, now Zun Zhao would never have to fear something like that and was free to continue his revenge. And soon… Very soon, lightning immunity would follow, then he would finally get to finish his revenge and let his young master rest in peace.
"And oh, Benefactor said that I could get lightning immunity very soon, I just need to get accustomed to my new lungs first! Soon, very soon, this will all come to an end and we can go back to normal!"
Zun Zhao's gaze slid past Zun Zhi, trailing beyond the small garden she had been waiting in. He could see the future already. The alliance that killed their young master would be ruined, he and his sister would get to live in peace in a big city, wealthy and peaceful thanks to his strength. If he got to spread his name enough then they might even get a hold of big brother Liang Chen and have him visit, Zun Zhi would surely love that.
His eyes practically sparkled as he gazed into that not-so distant future. Soon, soon everything would be set right, at that point he should be allowed to shed a few tears for his young master, wouldn't he? But while he gazed into the horizon and the future, he failed to see the dark swirls in Zun Zhi's eyes and the way she bit the corners of her lips
"We can just stop now, can't we? The city is gone, but we can find a new one, we can make a new home. This… We don't need to do this…"
The hand weakly tracing his chest pulled Zun Zhao's attention back onto his sister. One of her hands was held to his chest while the other was hidden behind her back so Zun Zhao couldn't see her clenched fist or the veins bulging on it, the nails digging into flesh until they drew blood.
Zun Zhao twisted his torso slightly so that her hand left his chest, she had just been tracing the lungs he had just acquired. Meanwhile, his stretched out hand lowered to cup her cheek, his finger tracing beneath her eye. The glittering eyes were clouded by worry and unease, their luster missing.
"I'm sorry for making you worry about me like this, I really am. But I've become strong now, I won't fall like the young master, I won't leave you alone. So please, don't worry, it'll all be over soon."
Zun Zhao could see only one reason for the worry that muddied his sister's eyes, putting on the calmest and gentlest expression he could as he rubbed her cheek. Yes, he was much stronger now than he was in the past. If he had been this strong back then then he would have been able to protect their young master, he wouldn't have died and left behind such regrets and resentment that he would ask the two of them to avenge him. In fact, the current him was stronger than the big brother Liang Chen that awed them back then, he had reached a realm the young him would never be able to dream of. So he didn't want his sister to worry about his safety, he wanted her to feel at ease, knowing that he'd come home every time.
"I know, let me show you. I can't be compared to the past, but it's probably hard for you to embrace that difference without seeing it. Come, I've got just the way to show you!"
Zun Zhao lowered his arm again, clutching the hand that Zun Zhi previously used to trace his chest. He held it tight as he turned to the side and started to move, jogging lightly. Well, to a normal person it would be a light jog, to him it was like a snail's pace. But it was for the sake of his sister so he was fine with taking it painfully slow, anything more and she might just break after all.
He dragged her through colourful hallways and rooms, past gentle people and others like him, never once noticing the pained and distraught twisting of her expression. Before long, he reached the section of the complex that he was searching for, the transportation hub. The hub was in fact just a massive empty square filled with arrays engraved into the floor, a simple sign placed next to each to indicate where they would lead.
Thanks to this, the unfortunate souls picked up by the benefactor could go wherever they needed to go. In fact, the hub was constantly expanding, the benefactor setting up new stations in the outside world whenever he picked up a new unfortunate soul. He tailored each array to the new people, setting them up in places connected to the trauma that haunted them. He was kind like that, giving them the strength and means to heal their own trauma.
It didn't take long for Zun Zhao to find the array he was looking for, he had studied each and every array related to him time and time again, engraved their positions into his mind as if they were a curse he never wanted to forget. Stormbeak city, the stronghold of the Storm Dancer clan, one of the clans that was behind the orchestration of his young master's death. He wouldn't even have known about these people if it wasn't for his benefactor, but the doctor had luckily opened his eyes, ensuring that his young master's revenge would be completed without a single lousy insect escaping.
He dragged Zun Zhi onto the array and activated it, space around them twisting for a few short moments before they finally arrived at their destination, which was a few kilometres in the air above the city. Stormbeak city was located on a tall cliff and shaped like a triangle, dark blue waves beating against the base of the cliff relentlessly as they threw white foam into the sky.
Zun Zhao's gaze was locked on the large gathering of buildings that served as the centre of the city, bright blue stone carved into intricate shapes. The Storm Dancers, the next step in his revenge, he could see them milling about like ants down there. Their every movement irked him, poked his eyes like hot needles and prodded at his soul. How dared they act so carefreely after killing his young master and ruining their city? What right did they have to be so peaceful and accomplished? Was it their strength, because they were stronger? Well, if that was the case then he would claim that very same right here today.
"You can stay here, it's perfectly safe, benefactor has ensured that. Please watch, I'll show you that I'm stronger than we could have ever dreamt of!"
Zun Zhao let go of his sister's hand and stepped beyond the boundary of the array, his back tearing open as two pairs of insect wings burst forth to keep him afloat. He slowly lowered himself closer to the ground, one pair of his wings fluttering with wind while the other made the air around them vibrate to the point where it produced a painful sound.
His gaze remained locked on the gathering of buildings, the skin and flesh around his eyes melting away as his eyes expanded and his pupils took on the shape of a goat's. The ground that was still quite far away from him instantly became clearer, each individual moving about down there visible to him, he could even study their faces as he pleased. He allowed his gaze to drift across the city, but the same emblem appeared on every person he looked at, they all had that accursed insignia on their chests. A city built solely for a single clan, with every single person serving as a member, was this the sort of entity the Storm Dancers were?
The faces he saw also made his own expression twisted. They all looked so damn happy, their bright smiles appearing twisted as they reflected off of his eyes. They all looked to be laughing and smiling, enjoying the bright day in their own ways. How dare they. How dare they frolic about like this after robbing him of his family. Was it because they were strong? They were strong so they could rob others and then dance as they pleased? How sickening it was, how disgusting a world where something like that was okay was. But today, today it was Zun Zhao who was strong, today it was he who could be disgusting.
He sank lower, his insides churning as he looked at the peaceful scene. In the past, he and his sister were frequently part of such scenes, their young master always taking great care of them. But now those times were gone, burned to ash and mixed with blood and regrets.
His feet finally touched the ground, cracks spreading out beneath him as dark brown scales grew to cover his legs and his feet twisted into a five-clawed shape. The buildings closest to his wings turned to dust thanks to the strong vibrations, what little wasn't crushed getting cut to shreds by the wind that fluttered around his other pair of wings. If that was how the buildings fared then there was no need to talk about the people that were closest to him, a familiar scarlet immediately dyeing the world.
Naturally, chaos immediately broke out, the screams that rang through the air quickly drowned out by the vibration coming from Zun Zhao's wings. His goat-like eyes swept across the surroundings, but everywhere he looked he saw that damned symbol, it was as if they wouldn't be happy until they had emblazoned it on every single building and person they could get their hands on. The person who should be the leader of the Storm Dancers was rushing towards him, the scarlet that dyed the world mixing into Zun Zhao's eyes.
"Now… Now it is I who am strong… Now it is my turn to take, just like you took my young master."
His chest expanded violently as he spoke lowly and darkly, his voice dredging up the grudge that constantly suffocated him. The new lungs he was getting used to activated as his chest expanded, dark green mist spilling out from his mouth, nostrils, and ears. The mist slithered along the ground as if it was alive, spreading with the wind until it practically covered the entire city.
Zun Zhao heard the sounds of retching and coughing that came from throughout the city, the dull thuds of bodies hitting the ground. He heard justice and karma, retribution that he had brought about.
"See? Do you see? I'm no longer weak like back then, I am one of the strong now. So please don't worry, Zhi, I am doing just fine."