The First Prince of the Zao Clan Prince Quadruplets was like his older Brother Wu Hai, Zao Ho was adept with his training and love for horseplay. One day he lost his way down the trail. Ho was five at the time, The battle of Zao City had ended and the forest was mostly cleared of monsters.
Patriarch Ooran had decided take the quartet to go out hunting in their future to keep it from happening again. They all had the darkness affinity, making it easy to escape under most circumstances.
"Make sure you don't lose anyone and stick with the group. Zhan follow behind them and I'll make sure they keep watch over the girls." Khan Ni wanted to go out with them, but.. she could not.
Khan Ni was pregnant.
Zhan and Khan Ni had been trying since Wu Hai had left with Mike. The Princes were well aware of their Eldest Brother and his habits, the Girls would never stop talking about gossip. Luckily for Zhan, the girls were busy staying with their aunt Lei and Fei. Lei had been learning from Fei to control natural forces in the area, with more time she could even learn to control the force shield that had worked for the Battle.
"They'll be fine. Ho, Han, Tiāncho and Wang have nothing to worry about. The Girls however, will become spoiled.. so, don't be too long and don't over stress yourself. Remember what Doctor Dibali said." Zhan chided Khan Ni a bit and then left with his little Brothers..
The passage into the forest was quick, the woods were just down the mountain toward the Antmen Colony. After the march on Zao City, much of the foundations for their Colony had been burned and crushed. The Elders from the Dark Sun Cult had spared little to nothing in their efforts to bury anyone in the path of their quest.
People died, in horrible ways.
"We're going to go south onto the plains where its easier to get away from prey and actually hunt. You won't always find a spot that has shade, so being quiet is a start for everyone." Zhan did his best to sound impressive, but it was cold.
Everyone just followed and kept quiet regardless.
"Brother.. " Tiāncho pointed at a snake and threw a frost bolt. It didn't do much damage, but it did slow the snake down as it ran for its life.
"Tiāncho, you don't have to kill everything. Although, the snake probably would have attacked if you went closer." Zhan didn't lecture but tried to educate them all just a bit on necessity.
"Right, but snakes do attack and we were on our way. Brother Wu would have told us to just go around it." Tiāncho pointed out a sore spot for Zhan, he was always in Wu Hai's shadow figuratively of course.
"Tiāncho." Gǔzhé popped out of the shadows.
He was tasked with the Princes protection in the background. "Your father wouldn't like it if you were bullying the animals you don't intend to eat or use." Once he vanished into the shadows again The boys all stood silent.
It was true that Patriarch Ooran had told them specifically not to bully animals before. One of the Liguars nearly went off the deep end once after Wang convinced everyone to constantly shadow drop them to see if Wu's story was right.
'cat's always land on their feet'
It was a matter of course, the Patriarch couldn't allow his sons to become delinquents. When he discovered their actions, the boys were tasked to clean the Liguar habitat for an entire month. They learned not to antagonize an animal that defecates more than their body weight every day... they also learned that they shouldn't anger an animal that is only minding its own business from their Sister Ni.
"Wang, catch up.. we're about to be where we spotted some Hoferrer. They should be easy enough for each of you to take your own targets. Before you go, I want you all to attack at the same time. With so many of you wanting to get a try, if you do it one at a time we will be here all day. You're a group, act like one and take down four at the same time. Back your brothers up and don't worry about dying, we won't let that happen." Zhan had been told this once by his own father.
Patriarch Ooran would have been there himself, but The Clan was going through a bunch of changes. With the irregular updates from Wu Hai coming in, Xuan Kim Li had been developing the technology of the city.
"Okay now, Ho you're the oldest so you lead the charge. I want Ho to stun them all, Wang makes a wall around them, Tiāncho.. I want you to target their heads only with water bolts and Han, you're in charge of snaring them when they start moving again. You have to get all four, or we release them and find another herd to try this again. None of them can escape and you each get your own job." Zhan was going to put them through the wringer. They had a lot more advantages then he and Wu Hai did when t hey were the same age. He thought it would be fun when they were older to visit the caves where Wu Hai and him had made a promise to their futures.
"Okay, everyone use their darkness ability to shadow travel. Stick low to the ground so you don't alert them and wait for Ho's signal." Zhan kept a distance away and watched.
Gǔzhé was nearby, there was little to worry about.
Watching the boys try and tear it up was actually fun for Zhan to watch. It reminded him of stepping on his brother or Vise Versa, climbing over the muddy hills only to be yelled at by their mother when it came to dinnertime.
Gǔzhé was one of the better stealth corp veteran fighters. He was immediately drawn in by the potential to hid in shadows and sneak attack. To be a rogue was one of the things in life he dreamed of. During his fighting in the Battle of Zao, Gǔzhé made a big difference saving lives and taking down many enemies that would have otherwise surprised the defense teams.
The Boys tracked through the grass shadows and surrounded the rear of the herd, effectively cutting them off from the rest. It wasn't a bad strategy, but they had missed one key point of fact.
Ho sent out the signal and the quartet of five year olds jumped out into the to vision of the Hoferrer's. Stunning them wasn't the problem, they even had them surrounded pretty easily. The problem was that the alpha male was inside the encirclement. It noticed where the shock had come from and immediately lunged toward Ho. Han reached out quickly and snared the male to the floor.
After the body came crashing down to the dirt it struggled and made loud noises that didn't sound pleasant at all. Wang built a wall around the remaining three of them while Tiāncho targeted their heads. The whole group was wet by the end, but the Hoferrer had been knocked down and killed in about 45 seconds. The boys were all panting like they could have lost their lives, but in reality the Alpha male would have just run off once it noticed it couldn't win. That was one of the reasons they had come to this area to train the boys.
"Okay. What did you learn?" Zhan sat down on the body of one of the Hoferrers.
"Plants don't like lightning." Ho called out.
"Oh, so you noticed they were plants? That didn't take long. What else did you guys learn?" Zhan asked the quartet.
The remaining three who hadn't spoke looked nervous. "We caught a male" Wang answered
"Good, that's right, one male three females. Why did the male attack Ho?" ….
"Because it was protecting the women." The entire group called out and laughed.
Khan Ni was strong and Zhan was a little afraid of her, she would always tackle him in front of the others as if it had become a game.
"Its not nice to say it like that, someone is bound to disagree with it. You should say 'They were protecting the herd' because it was the alpha male." Zhan pointed out a pivotal prospective.
Storing the Sheepish plants into the storage ring for the alchemy department the group went to find the herd that ran off and collect a few more. It was important to train the boys, they were a future generation of generals and princes of the Zao Clan. With the ever growing forces that they were amassing it was bound to take a split. Someday the Clan would branch, the Princes would be those Branch Leaders.
Zhan had been groomed as the First Born son and heir to the Zao Clan. Wu Hai never had aspirations for such a role, he had always pursued more adventure or intellectual needs. Even when they lived in the City there was little confrontation about who would be a successor and who about be the one adventuring. To find the same qualities in boys of similar worth would be a fantastic thing.
Ho showed extreme promise in the leadership category. He was the ringleader in many of their acts of mischief, their pranks were sometimes a bit overboard. When they were three, before the battle at the City, They hadn't quite started.. but one of their first pranks was to take all the toilet paper, everywhere and hide it. Perhaps it was the wrong thing to do, everyone forgave the children but it was still a problem for a time.
"When we reach the next position for the herd, make sure to keep quiet." Tiāncho didn't want to be last, none of them did.
Sprinting through the trees and then into the next meadow the boys chased after the tracks left behind by the Hoferrer herd.
The Alpha Male was already missing, so they all congregated together. It was important that they stick together.
"Notice how they stick together, without the leader of the herd they have lost direction and are confused. Until another male comes along, one of them will die off after another if they aren't close together." Zhan crouched in the grasses near the treeline and watched the boys approach.
It was clockwork again, they didn't have issues with cleanup. The husks of the Hoferrer were gathered the same as before. Zhan noticed something bigger coming and it was a sight that they didn't expect. He could protect the boys if they got into trouble but it was doubly important that they not miss the opportunity that was coming.
"Boys... pull back. There is something coming, can you feel it... pull back now." The Quartet spared little effort in their retreat.
It was a broken tactic that worked in many of the games that the Transmigrated had played in the past.
'Slip into shadows, fall back and regroup.' The boys all knew the procedure.
"I'll stall it with mud." Zao Wang shifted the earth beneath them to a more loose configuration, their every step sank into the soil.
It wasn't wet enough and the only one with Water Magic was Tiāncho. His ability was also not specialized in area of effect... Tiāncho really didn't have much experience with battle at all, none of them did.
"TCH!" Zhan was a little annoyed and stood ready to intervene. There would be a problem if any single one of them took a blow from the incoming animal.
"Its a Ruan Bear. Don't let it claw you." Jumping to a small distance away Ho was nearly hit by the incoming swipe.
He couldn't strike the Bear, it was moving way to quickly. "CONTAIN IT"
As Ho pulled back further a deep growl came from the Bear. Wang and pinned its feet with the soil, but it would only last for a moment. Han created a few bars of wood to pin the bear down. The creaking of the wood as it started to splinter proved it worked, but that it also wouldn't last. Tiāncho was watching the fight and while it was pinned Tiāncho soaked the bear from head to toe.
It was the right moment to strike, Ho rushed up and electrocuted the bear until it collapsed on the ground. It had been burned on one side, but the feathers from its hide were great for arrow crafting. The Prince Quartet gave each other high fives and then took the Ruan Bear into a storage ring. They had some time to kill before nightfall, the trip was to last a full week if they didn't catch five things each.
"Well, You have 3 each.. I think we can count the bear as one for each of you. Its not as hard as you think, but don't get too relaxed.. people die like that." Zhan started the boys with some frank advice and in an instant all of them had snapped out of their cheer.
The trip ended with the boys finding a pack of Undead. Zhan had to take action and Gǔzhé was quick to snatch the boys in retreat. It was not a good idea to stay in the area, when they returned to the city the Dragon Corp were taken to eliminate them. It was rare, but not unheard of to find Undead after the battle of Zao City had ended.
The Trip back to the City was fairly quick. Gǔzhé
"Father!" The Quartet ran over in unison and nearly tackled the Patriarch to the ground.
Ooran scolded them a bit but ruffled their hair and gave them his praise for their quick thinking and following Brother Zhan's instructions.
"Ho, I hear you did well. Good job, Its only right that you take charge. As the first born you're suppose to do just that. Darkwing has been asking about you lately, He'd like to teach you along with the stealth corp. Your brothers are welcome to come along, but you're the one he asked for, you match your older brother in both technique and drive." Ooran found himself lecturing Ho.
"It is as you wish, Patriarch." Ho kowtowed to his father and ran off to the Shadow Lodge.
Zhan was being cautious. "Father, are you sure its a good idea to train him with Darkwing at such an age?"
Patriarch Ooran grabbed his eldest son by the shoulder and started walking back to the Castle walls. "He's just like Wu Hai when he was that age.. it would be hard not to allow him.."
֍ꟷꟷꟷꟷ֍
"Its a bit of a stretch to get away from the auction house unfollowed with so many slaves in tow, we should let Gefést in on the gag. I want him to come with us, especially if things go as I think they will." Mike commented as he started going through the weapons in the tower to replace his spear.
He liked the spear, it was pretty fun for him unlike a sword. Hack and slash games were fun for him, but he had spent a lot of time playing uphill grinding games. Using a spear was always better for supremacy in his opinion.
Mike ended up choosing one of the Natural spears that Wu Hai had made some time ago. The branch that made up its handle was made from Myssintree, The illusory branches made the spear-tip seem to almost vanish every moment. There was currently no spear tip, Mike placed it in his spacial ring. He had the intent to have Gefést guide him through the forging of a tip. If he could make an excellent spear it would give him a fighting edge.
Wu Hai was buckets ahead of him in terms of fighting spirit and magical ability, but he rarely used weapons. "You ready, Mike? We still have to study for tomorrow, and the slave auction will require our complete focus. Are you ready to go back to the inn yet?"
Mike turned to look at Wu Hai, "Yes, but I'd ask you to forgive me for what I'm about to do next. I'm a guy and … well, please understand."
Mike turned to the room full of women and spoke. "My Name is Mike Cardeni, I am the right hand of the Prince of the Zao Clan. You're all going to join our Clan tomorrow evening. I'm single and looking for a wife, If you're satisfied and happy upon my return to the Clan, please look for me."
Mike bowed slightly and walked to Wu Hai.
"Dude, you're so uptight.. That was fine, The women will be free at that time.. I can't fault you for looking for that in this world. The bathing in this world leaves something to be desired. I feel like I'll end up taking a Wife, an Heir is necessary for my position in this World. Someday." Wu Hai was nothing if not honest.
"O-o-o-kay bud. If that's your choice. You've seen your brother's headache already right? Don't Twins run in your family?" Mike advanced toward the front door.
Wu Hai Sighed inside and followed him out. The mounts were still at the Inn, it was important that they not get caught teleporting just yet.
Channeling his spacial technique, Wu Hai expanded the darkness ring to cover the duo as a flash took them back to the Room at the Inn.
The Elemental was still sitting patiently inside of the room, nothing had happened during their brief exit. The building was quiet, the wind outside occasionally shook the shudders.
"Good, I'm glad you stayed." Wu Hai spoke to the Elemental.
"Do you like your form? As an Elemental it can be difficult to feel satisfied, I know.. I've been one before and usually keep an Elemental body."
"Master, you can become an Elemental? Impossible. But, Master did change my powers. Is Master a Guardian or Custodian?" The elemental spoke articulately, it tone was leaking both curiosity and terror.
"Yes. And.. I'm pretty sure I want to save the world from the Custodians... although, details concerning either of them is a bit scarce so I cannot make the distinction." Wu Hai was honest about this allegiances.. he also wanted the answer to his earlier question.
"So, do you like your form.. or do you want a different one? Keep in mind that most other species age and can reproduce, Elementals are quasi-immortal. It probably has something to do with balance." Zao Wu Hai looked over the Elemental again while he spoke.
"What does Quasi mean. Yes, I would like to be anything other than a slave." The elemental couldn't hide his interest.
Wu Hai looked at the Elemental and asked him what his name was. After learning that he had no name Wu Hai decided to just give him a name, the Elemental could choose differently it if he really wanted.
"Lu Sha, from now on.. I'll call you Zao Lu Sha. If you want to change bodies, ever.. tell me. The only bodies I won't allow you to keep are Evil beings. You can choose between Human, Qilin, Dragon, Phoenix, Echinemon, and of course Elemental, I can also give you different elemental affinities.. depending on your want, as you've already experienced we can even make you a second trait. Think long and hard, It could be difficult to choose." Wu Hai had signed a contract with the being, he had to let him in on the secrets eventually and they didn't have a whole lot of time.
Lu Sha gasped in disbelief. "I can be Human? I choose to be Human. I want my Ice magic back. This Shadow Magic is useful. I also want that."
"Lu Sha, these things are not impossible. Will you agree to a different contract, one that is not a slave contract?" Wu Hai looked at Mike, hoping he would understand and assist him in explaining. \
"If you're Human, I'm afraid that I will feel awful for gaining a slave. I don't want slaves." Wu Hai was watching as Lu Sha looked back.
"Master is already Master. I have been a slave for as long as I can remember Humans. I want to be Human." Wu Hai was quick to respond.
It was necessary for complete truths, he didn't want to lose his minion so quickly. "Have you heard of Echinemon?"
"Dragon Eater Water Rats? Yes. They aren't a terrible people to Elementals. Their Shape-shifting abilities aren't too bad either, but its not human. Humans can do whatever they want, humans enslaved me, sold me and had me kill so many innocent things." Lu Sha had lost it.
The Towering Elemental started to kneel down. "I will not disregard my duties, I swear it."
Wu Hai once again was momentarily speechless before answering Lu Sha once more. "If that is absolutely your choice, I will not trample it. However, I would like to remind you that humans age."
"Yes, that is true. Humans are quite sticky when I step on them. Perhaps another form." Lu Sha's mind went all over the place in his head.
It seemed like it would take the big guy a while to come to grips with choice afterall. He even considered the Phoenix, It was Eternal of sorts and would be reborn with enough power and control.
Lu Sha finally just took what was offered. "Master, I choose the Phoenix."
Wu Hai was buzzed with excitement, it was obviously a huge power leap from an Ice Elemental, to an Ice Shadow Elemental.
'If he was an Ice Elemental Phoenix that could move in the shadows... eeeheee, this is going to be phantasmal'. Wu Hai had the contract with the elemental, he would absolutely follow Wu Hai's order.
Passing the Cup and the Size Die to Lu Sha, Wu Hai instructed him to get to a small or tiny size. Luck was on the groups side when Lu Sha rolled Tiny on his first throw. Time was running short, the Large slave auction was going to begin shortly.
Lu Sha found it strange to be so small. Everything looked much larger and the once insignificant human prospective was in full view, he could understand why humans would panicked when they saw him. The next step was going to be interesting for Wu Hai, he had to take notes. Grabbing a pen and paper from his supplies he started jotting down minor notations and quickly put a bunch of ideas into the book.
"Okay, If you roll badly, just re-roll and don't be startled if you feel dead, you'll just be a vampire or devil or ghost." Wu Hai laid the pressure on so quick it had to feel like a door slamming in his face.
"Huh?" Grabbing the form die he put it in the cup and shook it free.
As it tumbled to a stop, it landed on Vampire.
Wu Hai put the die back in the cup and had Lu Sha re-roll, It would take a few moments for the transformation to start really affecting the mind. Wu Hai wrote down the specifics about an Elemental Vampire that he could notice. Watching a crisp frozen Shadow grow fangs was something he looked forward to seeing in action in some distant fantasy RPG on earth, but alas.. Lu Sha didn't notice anything different.
Rolling again the cup spilled the die onto the table. The die landed on Human.
"Master, This is a strange sensation." Lu Sha expressed concern and Wu Hai understood.
"Those are feelings" The newly changed Lu Sha heard Wu Hai and stopped himself momentarily.
"No, I feel a pressure building in my stomach." Lu Sha alerted Wu Hai.
"Ha-ha.." Wu Hai and Mike both burst into laughter.
"You have to piss. Its normal, I guess now that I think about it, I haven't had to piss as an elemental. I guess we just process everything into energy."
"What do I do?" Lu Sha looked dumbstruck.
"Okay, its easy. Be gentle, and clasp your hand around [omitted]. please.. please aim at the target." Mike was quick to deal with this, he had to bathroom train his nephews.
There was not much they could do about it, there was a large enough bathroom nearby so Mike followed him in and pointed to the hole.
"Try to point the flow into that hole, when your done.. come back to re-roll. You're not keeping that human form for now, we also agreed to try phoenix form with the elemental base." Mike was well aware of Wu Hai's goal, he probably would do the same.
He could always be human later, but right now they wanted to know more than anything what an elemental phoenix could do. Wu Hai felt a bit greedy with his choice in the matter, it was afterall someone else's body.
Wu Hai had tried a few times to push the boundaries with his form manipulation as an Elemental. They could easily change it around and have Wu Hai do the experiment himself, but it was the first time they had the chance to do it with a natural Elemental.
The occasion seemed somewhat special, Wu Hai insisted. "Humor me. If you really don't like it we can always do the human thing, but you should trust me when I say that power changes a lot."
Tossing the Die back into the cup for Lu Sha to roll again Wu Hai was patiently waiting. Lu Sha finally rolled and it landed on Ghost. It was strange enough that Wu Hai wrote down quite a lot in his notebook about possible changes in the future. Attempting again Lu Sha rolled the Die. It took 4 more rolls but he finally got it to land on Phoenix. The Echinemon was an interesting form, but it was ultimately not able to live up to the phoenix.
A power burst like a hurricane erupted within the room, Wu Hai quickly put up a barrier and Mike helped do the same. They didn't want to sleep in the street, and it would do no good if they drew too much attention as well. The evening was getting away from them quickly, but Wu Hai really wanted to see what would happen.
Wu Hai kept watch over the transformation process. When Lu Sha came out of the embryonic looking state he seemed to be doused in a dripping-like aura could be felt from hims every motion.
"Reign in your power, its important you not lose your focus right out of the gate. which is why I made you smaller in case of something strange." Wu Hai wasn't stupid, he had made some dangerous mistakes when he was first adventuring with Khan Ni and the Cheng Twins.
The thick and nearly fluid aura quickly withdrew, Lu Sha had grown talons and a long plumed tail. There were streaks of fire, slabs of Icicles, and streaks of black across every inch of his being. The bright plumage was incredible to look at. There was nothing that could be said for the rush of power flowing through Lu Sha's body. Appearing to look like a steaming bird fluttering about, Lu Sha's overall size had dropped significantly even for a phoenix.
"So.. no wonder you told me to do this, its incredible" Lu Sha expressed his gratitude and stopped talking so he could bask in his new found form.
Wu Hai was wondering why he was so small when Lu Sha turned from the size of a baseball to a the size of a small desk. Then something strange happened, Lu Sha took a humanoid shape again like his previous elemental form. The form now had a multitude colors, and prominent wings on his back. The tail-feathers morphed and wrapped around his thighs.
"Okay, so.. your new job is to suppress your power until you have no leaking power. Go sit over there and let us study. If Gefést doesn't approve of the way we spend our time, we can only blame ourselves. Explaining Lu Sha will be fun when it happens.." Wu Hai dug into the book on crystals, he wanted to memorize it all before he brought it out to show Kim Li when they returned.
Wu Hai had a few ideas on how he could effectively use the crystals and even the slag they had obtained from the mud and forging processes. There was a use for it all, he just hadn't gotten all the angles yet. One day. It would happen. A strange bitterness poured over Wu Hai, he didn't usually have a problem with anything but for some reason he was resentful of having the always be with someone else. He really liked the flight out into the plains, but he had met the Cheng Twins then. It was never the same after that, Wu Hai would always be spending time pushing the progress of everyone around him. If he truly focused on himself the results would likely be staggering.
"Rush Rush, Rush. The hubbub is hubbub.. Just read for now, we have to get this stuff in our heads before tomorrow right?" Mike eased the tension and Wu Hai was grateful. For whatever reason, he couldn't pin it down.. but he felt great unease.
"Mike, I felt something strange a minute ago.. just keep your eyes peeled." Wu Hai was on alert, but it was all for nothing. They read the books they had in their storage on forging and crystals. The Hammer scroll was getting a bit repetitive.
Mike and Wu Hai read throughout the night, It wasn't long before they had to get some rest. Wu Hai had Lu Sha guard the room and the pair went to sleep. The Slave Sale was going to take a lot of effort, and treasure, and tactical prospective to pull off without being killed in the process.