Chapter 5 :Caged

 

Sister?

            “Oh my, you’re back,” Lien exclaimed almost immediately. She instantly recognized the fiery red hair and the pair of golden wings that she so envious of since they were children, “Sis!”

The proud and regal Meili, she seemed like she haven’t change at all since she last saw her, apart from, she is now wearing a quite revealing light armor that almost gleamed in red in broad daylight, not the usual long cheongsam she always wore before she left the village.

                        “I’m glad you’re safe.” The red head Wingkin hugged her, “You’ve grown.”

                        “Of course I am,” she giggled childishly, nearly forgetting the gaping Wuxia who was glancing alternately between her and the newly arrived Yumang. “Oh sis, he saved my life, I almost drowned when he…”

                        “Captain,” She was surprised when he bowed down to Meili “I didn’t know she was your sister.”

                        “Ryu?” Meili’s emerald eyes narrowed down to him.

                        “Oh, you knew him?” it was her part to get confused.

                        “I was part of Mei- you’re sister’s team, she asked me personally to send a message to you regarding…”

                        “Shut up! You’re too late for that, I’m already here!” She almost jumped out when she heard her sister shout. I didn’t know, she was this hotheaded. Ryu didn’t seem to bother though.

“Well talk about this later.” Meili ordered.

                        “Regarding what?” Lien asked them innocently.

                        “Nothing, let’s go back to the village, I think they been looking for you all night.”

                        They? The elders? The villagers? No they’re not, they must be happy that I’m finally out of their care, she thought.

            “Lien, what happened?” Meili was about open up her wings. She finally clam down, at least.

            “Oh that sis?” she blurted out “I was attacked by a century serpent yesterday afternoon, so I plunged down to the water to escape. But then I heard those voices from them lake, and I almost drowned. Well that’s all that I remembered,” she paused. “Then I woke up naked with him beside me and—“

            “You what!”

            “I—mean he said---I had a high fever and it was—“ oh my…She didn’t thought it was that hard to explain what happened. She finally understood the Wuxia’s dilemma earlier.

            “You rake! What have done with my sister!?” the sight of Meili’s fist directly hitting Ryu’s fine-looking face practically shocked her.

            Now that would hurt… a lot.

***

            “Damn that asshole human.”

            “Now that’s derogatory, my dear,” CaiYi remarked calmly, checking up the wounds on her hands, she almost forgot that her aunt is actually a human herself, “If Metalfang didn’t follow you that time, you could have beaten up that poor Wuxia into a pulp.”

Meili hustled her aside, “She almost raped her. What is he thinking, he stripped her clothes of while she was unconscious.” She clenched her bruised fist, she will never forgive him.

My little sister, she thought. Though Lien had grown up now, she still remembers her as the teary eyed little girl, who was still clutching her stuff bear and begging her not to leave. It was her last glimpse of her before she opened her wings and head towards the Dragon City.

            “But he didn’t, didn’t he? And he did that to save your sister’s life,” Metalfang rose to his seat beside the village’s unlit central fire, “I shouldn’t have told about that dragon’s roar and get Lien by my self,” His large hand brushed up the fur above his head. “Look at what happened now, you always let your anger get in your way.”

“Don’t act as my superior now, we’re not in the council anymore,” she said in protest, ”I know what I’m doing.”

            “Excuses.”

            “What did you just say?!”

            “I told you so.”

            Silence.

            “My dear, this argument is getting nowhere,” her aunt said worriedly “You should let Qianren see your hands.”

            She groused, tightening up the lose bracers she wore on her injured hand, “They’re in the hut with Ryu,”

With both Yuling Master and the village pharmacist busy attending Ryu’s beautifully mangled face, that must have been quite a punch, she thought, It seemed that her father’s training was not wasted after all. She gripped her right hand slowly. It did hurt and it felt like one of the bones of her fingers was broken.

 “How about your sister then,” Metalfang insisted. ” She’s been talking to that Master Chen of your’s for quite some time now. I think he should be out in her in a minute.”

She gave him an obscure look.

“Oh no, my dear Metalfang, Lien was not allowed to be a Yuling. You know our laws did you, even the late Emperor had agreed to that,” CaiYi told him in a hushed tone.

“It would cause a great problem if…” she paused.

“It’s just fine, I can take care of this myself.”

Note: unedited version… la lang akong maisulat