Shizuka stopped at the entrance to a back alley, where she had gotten incredibly lucky and caught the faint trace of Liu Bai's aura – which was incredibly rare. He usually hid himself brilliantly, and Shizuka would even go as far as to say that his ability to mask himself was better than even Quynh.
The woman quickly followed the familiar energy, stepping into the alley and walking deeper into it. If it weren't for the fact she was a beast that possessed divine power, she would have been very scared for her safety. Nothing about the small passage between two sketchy buildings was welcoming, and if not for her superior vision, it would have been difficult to see.
Then, behind a dumpster, she caught sight of the edge of some white linens.
"Liu Bai," Shizuka growled, already knowing what she was going to find. "You dumbass! Are you okay?"
Shizuka rushed over to her friend, who was embarrassingly inebriated, and knelt down. He was still conscious, and didn't show any sign of being sleepy, but was still his usual, expressionless self. Liu Bai stared at her with hooded lids, then scoffed.
"I'm fine, this… is, is nothing," he muttered. In his hand was a still-burning traditional opium pipe. He brought it up to his lips and took another, long, drag, then blew the smoke directly into Shizuka's face.
Her dark eyebrow twitched with rage, and Shizuka swung an incredibly powerful punch to the side of his head – which knocked him out in one hit. After realizing that he was unconscious, she groaned inwardly. She hadn't thought it through, because now she would have to carry him herself instead of him being able to walk.
"God, damn it."
~~~
"Where did that bastard get off to?" Quynh furrowed his brows.
Shizuka had disappeared to cover more ground in an attempt to find Liu Bai, which left Vanna and Quynh alone. The awkwardness and tension between them was palpable, but there was nothing to be done. It was only bearable because they were in a public space, walking down a populated street in Astrey.
"Do you think something happened to him?" Vanna asked. "I hope he's okay."
"I'm sure he's fine," the dragon groaned, "but he won't be once I'm done with him."
Vanna sighed. It seemed that every conversation with him turned sour, even if it were something of importance – like the wellbeing of his friend. Naturally, she decided to try and talk about something else instead to save them from the quiet.
"That woman from Mako's shop," she began quietly, "you seemed to really hate her – but I don't feel that she had any bad intentions from the start? If she's really the Vermillion Bird, doesn't that mean she's quite strong? I thought that you and the other guardians got along fairly well…"
"We have been acquainted for a very long time – and I have never, nor will I ever, be affiliated with that vile woman," Quynh spat. "Don't even speak about us in the same sentence. Zuma is nothing but bad news, and she acts as a dog for someone even more despicable."
"Um…" Vanna got uncomfortable again. She didn't have the background knowledge of what exactly happened, but surely if it had been so long ago, it would be easier to call some sort of truce? "Well, I don't know what they did to you, but wouldn't it be easier to just… avoid conflict with her and whoever her, uh, leader is?"
Quynh stopped dead in his tracks and turned to face Vanna. His eyes flashed crimson as he looked down at her, "Zuma is friends with, and works for, the Azure Dragon – the man who murdered multiple of your past incarnations. You shouldn't preach about peace ever really, but especially not about people as evil as them."
Vanna's eyes widened and she felt her stomach lurch. Murdered?
A chill ran all the way down her body, reaching even the tips of her toes. She obviously didn't remember the events of her previous lives, but just hearing that it happened made her heart tremble. It felt… personal, and relevant. As though she knew, deep down in her heart, that her predecessors had been killed prematurely.
"Despite your silence, I can smell your fear and distress," Quynh spoke in a hushed tone, stepping closer to her. Vanna was nearly pressed against his chest as she continued to look up at him, and her hands started to shake. He finished, "So don't disrespect me, or the phoenixes who came before you, again."
All she could muster was a nod of understanding, which seemed to be enough for Quynh. He retreated several steps and returned to his usual aloof demeanor, then pulled out his phone. His long fingers tapped the screen fluidly for a few moments, and the phone vibrated almost immediately after he appeared to have pressed send.
"Shizuka says that she found him," he said, and added with an irritated groan, "but we need to go to them. He is, evidently, in no state to move anywhere on his own."
Vanna cast a sideways glance in his direction, "Uh… okay? So where exactly are we going to meet them?"
"She got him a hotel room, I guess," Quynh answered, clearly vexed by the situation. "He took the drug before returning to us and now we are all suffering the consequences. We won't be able to leave until he has sobered up, and god knows how long that will take."
"Oh, my god," Vanna gasped. "Is he okay? That sounds so dangerous!"
"Well, fortunately, or perhaps unfortunately, he actually does have resistance to toxic substances – but he underestimated the potency of this one. He's fine, just disoriented and insufferable, is how Shizuka described him," the dragon replied. "Whatever, come on. We'll make way to them and see how he's doing for ourselves."
Vanna nodded and followed along diligently. She couldn't help but wonder what Liu Bai would be like intoxicated – but the more she thought about it, the sorrier she felt for Shizuka having to deal with him all by herself.