It happened on a few close circuit TV cameras in the vicinity.
'BOOOOOM!'
'Pfffffffffft tup tup.'
Wu Hai came crashing down to the street, narrowly missing a Family Home and a Greenhouse as he skipped across the asphalt. Large chunks of the roadway created a pillow for Wu Hai's landing.
Dust and rubble scattered a bit, Wu Hai moved his arms to get up but noticed a sort of restriction in his movements. "Dammit, that hurt.." Standing up, Wu Hai could see the Temple not too far from his position.
The Temple stood inside the Mountain's Foot and looked like it had a long tradition.
"Shit!? What the fuck just happened?!" He spit. Reaching out with his spiritual sense, Wu Hai tried to see if anyone had used an ability to bring him down. Channeling his thoughts out, his soul threads fizzled. When Wu Hai started to channel his power, a piercing pain crept into his mind. The pain was different than when he had regained some of his memories. Someone or some ..thing was definitely keeping him from using abilities.
"DEMON!! You cannot pass through here." An enchanting woman came out of the shadows and approached.
"I am Nara Kuzunoha and you are about to die." Striking out without much of a warning, Kuzunoha threw a cloth roll that seemed to have a mind of its own onto the ground before Wu Hai.
The Cloth bolt rolled to his foot.
It was a little adorable, she was beautiful beyond words and Wu Hai was captivated. 'She is bloodthirsty when it comes to Demons, wait, how does she know I'm a demon?' Wu Hai thought that the Cloth Bolt might be a joke, then Kuzunoha started to monologue.
As she spoke the scroll began to glow. "My Clan has fought your kind for thousands of years, I will honor my ancestors!!" The scroll started to move quickly after her words.
Wu Hai could sense some impending danger and immediately took out the cup to re-roll the Form Die. If he wasn't a demon, perhaps this attempt wouldn't work, there was only a one in six chance. No mater that he was doing, his opponent was already going for broke.
When the Die came to a stop on the ground, the side marked with a Dragon lit up. Wu Hai's body started to grow, he ripped off his storage ring before it cut off his fingers and with almost no delay, he was freed from the binds that were dragging him to the ground.
'Whoosh'
Wu Hai soared into the air and stopped. He put on some clothes that fit and grabbed a chain to hang the ring around his neck. Somewhat dressed, he decided to land and looked down on at the Priestess.
"Miss Nara. Could you not do ..whatever you're doing? I have somewhere I need to be." Landing gently in her view, he was strutting in his new form, he grabbed the loose die from the street. Wu Hai resembled a Jiao instead of the western style dragons with wings and crocodile-like bodies. His swimming motion and ethereal nature made it hard for her to ignore his request.
"But.. you were a Demon a second ago! How can a Demon become a Dragon?" Nara Kuzunoha had lost her train of thought and her ability to subdue the creature in front of her. Her thoughts were disrupted and she was dazed.
The sacred scroll was immediately inactive after the shift. Her family specialized in Demon Hunting, not Dragons. Dragons were not even suppose to be real. Kuzunoha had even read about dragons but none of her clan regarded them as real. The best thing for her to do was just to accept the situation.
"I need to sit down.." Kuzunoha cried out.
Wu Hai noticed her limp persona and rushed over to catch her. When she in his arms, she only saw someone concerned with her safety and well being that had stopped her collapse.
She blushed momentarily. When Kuzunoha refocused her eyes and saw a Dragon in front of her, she stopped moving and started to show her timid side. Her dizziness vanished as she regained her composure.
"Don't worry, I'm not your enemy. I do have some questions though." Wu Hai had literally been plucked from the sky because of his previous body and those questions needed answering. If he didn't have questions, he'd be an idiot.
Tracing the shape of a chair, like Master Jiang had done so many times in front of him, Wu Hai created a Chair for each of them and started to make some Tea. There was nothing very special about the tea to the prince but the smell of the tea was unfamiliar and drove Kuzunoha's senses to an extreme.
They were still sitting in the middle of the road. The Table had broken through the asphalt and the chairs were one solid wrap of vine. Miss Nara stared at Wu Hai's actions incredulously, she could hardly believe the words that were coming out of her mouth but she herself used a magic scroll. "Magic, but how? If you're not a shape changing demon, or something like that, exactly what the hell are you?"
Stopping for nothing, Wu Hai kept pouring the Tea as he explained slowly with a cross look on his face. "I come from Another World." Setting the kettle down, he looked back at Nara Kuzunoha while he prepared his cup.
"Miss Nara. What exactly did you do? What caused me to fall from the sky? I was minding my own business and actually on my way to save your countrymen, when you so rudely dragged me from my flight." Winking, Wu Hai set his cup down and waited for her response.
"Save my countrymen? Is that suppose to make me ignore your arrival? Or a Demon for that matter? My family has been searching for proof of Demons for the past few hundred years. Our Clan once fought against the Demon Clans of the West, now we are mocked as Chunni. Culture changes." Miss Nara seemed frustrated, she put her hands up, as if to say 'What can I do?' "If not for Zebedee the Demon Fisher, we would have wiped them out completely. One day, the majority of demon kind vanished from our world but my family never stopped preparing for the next battle."
Wu Hai listened intently but could only burst out with questions and confused looks.
"Zebedee? The Christian Apostle, was a Demon?" Wu Hai couldn't believe what he was hearing, they were screwed up to begin with but how could they be so blind as to not see that the people they were idolizing were in fact the instruments of their damnation.
"I've answered a few of your questions, answer mine already." Nara Kuzunoha was being as patient as she could, she set down her teacup and slapped her hands against the tabletop. A Demon turned into a Dragon in front of her, and then offered her tea. Wrapping her head around the situation was already troublesome, she needed answers.
"Another World, What does that mean? You mean another dimension? Or another planet? How are you a dragon that can talk and change its shape? And, What are you saving my countrymen from?" All of her questions were good questions, but she did need answers. Kuzunoha's words were flowing like a blur from her lips.
"I can answer some of these but some I do not have. I come from another world, its very different from this one. I know of the word Planet but I do not know if we have a name for ours. That too is a good question, I will find out when I return. As far as my ability to be a Dragon or Demon? I can change my shape when I feel like it but I am a Human just like you, I also have magic power." Wu Hai produced a flower from his palm and plucked it before setting it onto the table.
"I'm here to find people to leave for my World, abandoning this land that's on the verge of collapse. I've already planted a lot of Dodona Trees to help keep this world alive but ..it is not my world." Wu Hai swallowed a bit before continuing, he didn't want to hurt the girl or anger her, he wanted her to come along. Her ability to suppress demons was the first he'd seen like it either world.
Kuzunoha was very special in Wu Hai's eyes. "I actually want to ask you to come with me as well." 'Cough, Cough' Wu Hai looked at her with sincerity in his eyes, but she wasn't buying it. The wink during his sales pitch had made it harder for him.
"Why should I leave?? If I leave who will guard this world from Demons?" Nara Kuzunoha was not wrong, Wu Hai didn't feel this way about any other human he'd run across so far. If she was the guardian, he was asking her to leave.
"This world will die. Absolutely 100%, Well.. I should say that this world will no longer support life in about 200 years. Do the math. The ever decreasing water supply, The bad air, the overpopulation and lack of food. Its only a matter of time before this place implodes. I'm pretty sure I grew up on this world once and even died trying to get it to a better tomorrow. Make no mistake, this world is coming to an end." Wu Hai scared Miss Nara with his words but he needed her to accept what was going on.
"I'm going to offer this to you once and once only." Wu Hai threw two big gold bars onto the table.
"This should cover whatever choice you make.. Live in luxury, enjoy your fight here. Or.." Wu Hai paused dramatically. He leaned onto the bars and slid them towards her.
Nara Kuzunoha looked at Wu Hai and repeated his last word "or?"
Wu Hai continued, "Or ..leave this world with me and take the fight to their homeland instead of yours. If you want to meet me, go to the Orange Hotel in Beijing. By hook or by crook, this must be done before I leave or I will leave without you. You have less than nine days to get there." Wu Hai's voice got serious for a moment but he settled down to finish his statement.
"Now that I've said my peace about trying to recruit you, I feel something inside the Temple. What's inside?" Wu Hai was a little more than curious and seemed persistent to Kuzunoha. His tendrils and antennae seemed to perk up ever so gently like his interests were piqued.
Miss Nara got up and escorted him to the temple. She had lost the will to argue with the strange being in front of her, she felt defeated and drained of energy, she even left the bars of gold on the table that had sprouted from the road.
Kuzunoha's mind was thoroughly blown as she nodded and led the way into the Temple.
Ceremonial Drums and robes were hung on the wall in neat boxes like they were on display in a museum. The cost of everything within the temple was probably less than the gold bars that Kuzunoha had left on the table outside.
"Underneath this Temple, are the handwritten journals and records of over 50,000 monks. They tell of fighting styles, sword dances and what most people in the world consider mythical creatures." Kuzunoha opened a panel into another room with a staircase that led down. Her attitude had taken a sharp change after entering the Temple Grounds.
There was no point in resisting, whenever she came into conflict with her direction, Kuzunoha would think about what her Ancestors would do in the same situation. 'If a Dragon had appeared back then, one sent by the Ancestors before, respect would have absolutely been given.' She nodded again and pointed.
"Fifty Thousand?" Perplexed, he really had to inquire.. his hands were itching like it was a payday.
"Yes but they are quite fragile and somewhat faded. Some people think this era doesn't need such things. I will never let them be forgotten." The passageway got narrow and Miss Nara didn't have an off switch. She kept jittering on about some of the techniques that were stored below. The stairwell was long and led down far under the hill.
"This better not be a dungeon." Wu Hai had been underground enough lately, the suspicious tone in his voice showed that he was being mindful of his surroundings. If he was buried underground a third time this year, he might just lose his mind.
Entering the lower floors of the Temple, the entrances were extremely hidden and in the most unlikely of places. Kuzunoha was forced to reveal the switchplate mechanisms with a glance, not much escaped a dragon's eye, even in the dark.
Walking to the back of the Temple, a small garden with a gravestone in the center was a place no one would disturb. Pressing on a stone and lifting a large boulder from its position, a loud clicking noise could be heard. Then, the gravestone cover hydraulics kicked in and lifted the stone from place.
Wu Hai seemed slightly impressed at the ingenuity but the size of the staircase narrowed again.
Another Staircase led underneath the Temple itself. Four hundred feet down Wu Hai could feel the a slight pressure against his scales, his skin was reacting, even the black spot was twisting about. A small popping sensation happened, his ear canals had pressurized like he had changed several atmospheres at once. The change in environment had triggered his senses, he probed outward with his spiritual threads and immediately he felt the murderous and joyful feeling just beyond the turning stairwell.
A blank stare came over Kuzunoha when she saw the expression on Wu Hai's face. She coughed.
"Before we go inside, I have to tell you that the records stored here are sacred. Some predate our recorded history books. Most of them talk of the times when demons were more common in the land. Our Ancestors fought the Demons with purification spells mixed with their own styles of fighting or so they claim. You're the first Demon I'd ever seen. If I didn't have the sacred scroll, you would have been able to kill me. Now, you're a Dragon ..and my scroll means nothing against you. It's truly a defeat to be disarmed so quickly." Kuzunoha showed pride in her perseverance and history with her words. The humility in her voice was clear but she tried to hide it.
Nana Kuzunoha was flustered, she really hadn't expected there to be a loophole. She was capable but ignorant to the unknown. The strict Demon Hunter family heritage that she had been taught since birth had been so easily trampled. She wanted to cry out but it was pointless.
Opening the door, there was a billowing stuffiness that fed in from the surrounding soil. Dust and soot carried the smell of long sealed water vapor that licked the nostrils of Wu Hai's face. He could see the particles form into droplets across his face. "I think its important to remember your history, teaching others was a passion of mine in my past life."
"Wu Hai, what are you doing?" Kuzunoha watched as Wu Hai waved his hand and collected the bulk of the scrolls and notebooks that were laying on the shelves.
The scrolls disappeared instantly from her view. They were the contents of his storage ring.
'Cough Cough' "I'm a Dragon ..it's my nature to take what I want. Plus, If you decide that you're coming with me. You can guarantee their safe keeping." Wu Hai's personality was starting to be affected by the Dragonkin blood in his veins. He was more domineering and straight forward than ever.
It didn't matter, "Return them!!" Kuzunoha was starting to scream.
Her voice filled the surrounding spaces and echoed a few times.
"Miss Nana, Human. I am not stealing from you, I'm inviting you with incentive and telling you that this world will die. From my prospective, I am saving these important scrolls." Wu Hai looked around and saw a large rock sitting in the back with a Talisman drawn on it, it was a talisman that he had never seen before.
"What is this rock?" Wu Hai asked, his gaze gave little latitude and he wondered if she would answer.
A moment went by before she gave a huge sigh.
"The Spirit Stone is suppose to be the reason this temple was built here. Its used to ward off Demons, It gave life to my scroll." Nana was pissed but she wanted to understand what was going on with Wu Hai's explanation.
He kept discussing the impending doom on her world and it worried her a little. "Spirit Stone?" Wu Hai walked up to it and lifted the rock up from its seat.
The moment he did, he saw a jet black stone underneath. Putting the large talisman stone it into his ring for later, he picked up the jet black gem.
He could feel the power coursing through it. It was definitely not a normal rock or gemstone, the dragon blood was giving him impulses that he had been feeling with each step closer, they quickly subsided when it was in his hands. "This is an interesting Gem, I will be taking it as well.." Wu Hai heard a bell in his ears like a chime but it was only for an instant and then it was gone.
Miss Nana felt robbed, she had been protecting the Temple her entire life. For Kuzunoha to see Wu Hai loot it so casually, she almost lost her ability to tolerate the being in front of her. She had no chance to physically combat the Dragon in front of her, he had power she couldn't comprehend or fight against.
"Here is your opportunity. I asked once. Here is the address to my Hotel. Remember, by hook or by crook. You must arrive by nine days time. If you're late I might not be able to find you in time to leave. The entire world will be hunting me after I leave Tokyo." Wu Hai was not delusional, he knew that appearing in public would draw a very big response.
The entire World would learn of his existence and ability. It could be very messy.
Leading Wu Hai out of the now empty Temple repository, there was nothing that could be done about what happened. Kuzunoha had a lot to consider, Wu Hai was right about the state of the world but reconciling all of what he had said would take some time, time that he didn't have to waste.
If he caused a huge mess in Tokyo, the entire world would have no choice but to re-evaluate basic life principles. The World had no proof of dragons, no proof of magic. The chaos and uncertainty would drive people mad, create fanatics and mass panic that could cripple entire communities worldwide. The revelations alone would be enough for several mass suicides, the whole matter left Kuzunoha without words.
'This world is Doomed...' She was convinced from Wu Hai's attitude. If he acted anything like what she had just witnessed while he was in Tokyo, it could be disastrous.
"One last thing, I ask that you not tell others whom you do not 'explicitly' trust, you're a little bit special, If you want to bring others along, I will believe in your sense of honor. Remember, I have no problem condemning those that cause problems upon my return to the Mainland." Wu Hai wasn't sure what she was going to do but he wanted her at least think about her actions.
The veiled threat from Wu Hai was nothing but a threat of abandonment after learning of the impending destruction. The words were still kicking around in her head, so many things had come out of his mouth that she couldn't get over. She couldn't refute any of his words before and it took a while for her to recover but when she finally worked up the nerve to speak, she asked, "Are you really going to cause a problem in Tokyo?"
Miss Nana was hesitant to ask, it showed in her tone. The expression on her face was sheer panic.
Wu Hai shook his head, looked over and said, "I have to, there is something I'm looking for."
Kuzunoha was at a loss, "Are you really sure that's the right place for you to go?"
"I should blend right in. Don't worry." Wu Hai said in a low voice.
Wu Hai reminded Nara about the bars of Gold. "Nine Days!!" He looked back at Kuzunoha one more time. Raising his body up and stretching out his tail, he rose into the sky like a swimming serpent.
Flying as a Dragon without wings was a little different, he had done it before a few times but it was always awkward. The coastal winds in Japan were a bit choppy in certain spots but after getting the hang of it, he quickly became illusory and darted into the night sky.
Wu Hai rubbed his ring while he was in flight. He had gotten a lot in his adventure thus far and was amazed at the collection of items he had found.