Awakening the Dragon
By Kai Lun Mau
AN: Before we start I just wanna say that a lot of the History about to be revealed in this chapter was supplied by White Wolf role-playing games Demon Hunter X book. It is used without their permission, which I apologise about but as this is non profit and only for my peace of mind and your entertainment I don't think they will be to angry.
Chapter 8
Several days passed as Harry recovered from the cleansing and the wound in his shoulder. Fever racked his body and nightmares ravaged his sleep and more than once Hermione found herself holding a feverish and delirious Harry in her arms till he calmed down enough for her to leave him to sleep. So long had the piece of Voldemorts evil that was poisoning his soul been with him that its removal almost killed him. Grandfather Wu at Hermione's urgings kept quiet about what had occurred that night and Harry was none the wiser that Hermione's kiss had broken the poisonous essences hold on his body and mind.
Finally the fever was broken and Harry found himself waking up, his body wracked with aches and hunger gnawing at his stomach. He tried to sit up only to find himself held down by a pair of arms encircling his waist and the reassuring weight of a body pressed against his back. Without having to look he knew who it was, the vanilla scent of her soap, and the smell he would always associate with the library wrapped around him enveloping him in a cocoon of comfort.
Finally he could feel her stir and slip her arms from around him and almost immediately he missed them. "Hey…"
He could feel her stiffen before suddenly her arms were around him again squeezing him hard enough to make him groan from the pain lancing through his shoulder.
"Oh god Harry I'm sorry!"
He winced as he rolled onto his back and lay there staring at the ceiling. "What happened, I remember the tiger guy, I remember the weird Japanese people showing up, after that it's all kinda a red haze."
Hermione lay her head against his chest and sighed softly. "Well you saved me from the Tiger creature, you bruised some of the Japanese people, and you lost control." She felt him tense under her touch and she shook her head. "You didn't hurt anyone, well except for the Tiger thing, Grandfather Wu pasted some kind of paper ward onto your forehead…and that little cow Noriko shot you with a bow and arrow."
"Noriko…Grandfather Wu?"
Suddenly an elderly voice interrupted the conversation. "Ah good you are awake hehehe." Harry sat up or at least tried to, grunting with pain he tried to lever himself up with his good arm and he toppled back with a yelp. Hermione slipped an arm beneath his shoulders and helped ease him up placing the pillows behind him and she smiled at Grandfather Wu.
"Hello Grandfather Wu."
Harry glanced at Hermione strangely before he turned his attention to the old man who was no bigger than Professor Flitwick. "Hermione says I owe you thanks for stopping me."
The old man climbed onto one of the stools and he studied the two as they lay there side by side on the Futon. "Well where do we start, well Introductions I guess would be the order of the day." The old man smiled benignly his already wrinkled face crinkling up as he did so. "I am known as Grandfather Wu, you are Harry Potter and Hermione Granger?"
The two teens grew pensive and Harry reached for a wand that wasn't there and he scowled. "How do you know who were are old man, I'm tired of people playing games with my life, first Voldemort then Dumbledore now I travel across the damn world to get away from them both and I happen to run into you?"
Hermione glared at him and lightly thumped his good arm. "Harry he saved your life the least you could do is listen to the man, he and I have talked while you were recovering and I think he and his village could help us."
Harry's anger faded at her glare and he nodded pensively to the old man. "Ok I'm willing to listen."
The old man nodded and pulled up a chair from against the wall and settled himself down his staff resting across his knees and smiled benignly. "This story spans many centuries so I ask you be patient with me while I explain." He pulled out a pipe and lit it with the tip of his finger and puffed carefully looking pensive as he tried to find a good starting point. "You must understand my country has always known and accepted the existence of demons, and ghosts and great evils much like the creature you battled before your injury, to us they are simply the Shen. Almost three thousand years ago these creatures ruled provinces and cities from behind the scenes, pulling the strings like puppeteers."
The two teens watched carefully as the faint herbal smelling smoke curled around the old man as he related the history of his people. "Into one of the Ruling families a man was born, this man was Wan Kung Yi and it was his hand that created the Shih armies. You must understand this is a much abbreviated version as the true history is far longer tale that over time I am sure you will earn it." He puffed quietly for a few moments before he started to speak again. "Yi was sent by his father to collect taxes in the towns and provinces they controlled knowing his son would watch study and learn and report back to him."
Grandfather Wu chuckled as he watched Harry and Hermione sit up, the later resting herself gently against the formers good shoulder. "What he had no counted on was Yi noticing the machinations of the Shen behind the scenes. Now Yi's father was a good man in many ways, but even he was influenced by the Shen and knew that to follow their commands would mean prosperity for his family and to ignore them was to readily court death."
"As the years passed Yi saw the Shen working their subtle magics, of villages living in fear of were creatures, of places haunted by the dead, of the bodies left behind by the soul drinkers and most horrifying the indifference of his fathers soldiers to these acts." The old man smiled ruefully. "Yi was young then and passionate and when he made his report requested his fathers armies so he may do battle and rid the provinces of the evils plaguing them. He was refused. He was taken aside by his father and the shameful secret of his family and the other nobles was revealed. Appalled that his father not only knew but also condoned the actions of the Shen the young noble called his father a coward in anger, and though the father loved his son he could not allow such an insult to pass. Yi was banished."
Hermione sat up looking affronted. "His father banished him for simply having the courage to say what needed saying?"
Grandfather Wu waved his hands to calm the young girl with an amused smile as he looked at Harry rolling his eyes and a quietly muttered spew that caused Hermione to hmmph. "You must understand this was three thousand years ago, things were different, giving his son a small wagon, provisions and his sword and armour Yi was sent out into the world. His life lost to him Yi turned like many dispossessed and sought guidance through higher powers." He puffed on the pipe as he watched his words sink in, the girl looking rapt with interest while the boy looked annoyed wanting Wu to get to the point. "Yi wandered the land for five years, living amongst the barbarians from the west, learning to ride a horse like them even battling the Shen occasionally though only managing to wound them before have to flee. It was in his sixth year that Yi, tired, weary of travel and with flagging spirits came across a temple beset by spider like demons intent on draining the blood from the occupants inside. Yi decided that this was finally his time to die, but in doing so he would try his best to protect the temple, so sword flashing in the sun battle cry torn from his lips Yi rode to battle. In such a selfless act the Gods took pity of the young warrior and blessed his deeds. Time seemed to move differently for him as his sword rose and fell repeatedly butchering the butchers till at last, exhausted and near death the Demons were dead and Yi barely alive himself stood victorious."
Now he smiled as he lowered the pipe as finally the boys interested had finally been captured. "Yi would have died if not for the monks of the temple and over the next several months that he spent recovering from his injuries he and the Temple leader spent many hours discussing the nature of the Shen in the world. He learned much to his chagrin that his fathers actions in protecting his people was the correct one and that the Shen were as much a part of nature as the droughts that dried the rivers or the storms that flattened the crops. They like many animals and creatures and humans had their place in the world. But the balance had been destroyed and nature was out of alignment and though stories are sketchy after so many centuries Yi convinced the order of monks to aid him in resetting the balance of the world and thus the Shi were born.
"Many years passed and the Shih grew in numbers and during this time Yi met a water spirit named Heng-o from whom he learned that not all Shen were malevolent destroyers, and finally asked Heng-O father for her hand in marriage." The old man tapped his pipe against his hand and dropped the dead ashes onto the floor and sighed. "But things were not to last and the Shih's struggles against the Shen had unexpected benefits as each battle passed the Shih learned more about the Shen. Yi declared that this information be passed along, taught to the youngest members of the Shih and that crude signs carved on bone or tortoise shell be left in areas obviously in the sway of such creatures." Wu chuckled softly. "The Shen responded by seeking out the Shih and learning that holy men were involved in the hunts used their influence with the nobles to send thousands of warriors through the land to slaughter the shamans whose faith drew them apart from the corrupt shamans from the land of Shang."
"What started as Yi's quest to simply free his father and family from the clutches of the Shen led to his greatest accomplishment completely by accident. Travelling through the Middle Kingdom Yi met with many noble families dissatisfied with the Shang and soon his armies and followers grew and Yi returned home to find his life changed. His fathers palace burned to the ground, his family dead and in a rage no Shen was safe as he destroyed creature after creature in his madness till finally he caught the attention of a creature that feared no mortal or sorcerer." The old man laughed. "He had caught the attention of a dragon."
Harry laughed. "A dragon, I've seen dragons up close, they are frightening but several wizards can stun one easily."
Grandfather Wu shook his head. "You do not understand the dragons you know are pale imitations of the true beasts, it would the equivalent of comparing a Komodo Dragon to say a Hungarian Horntail." The man smiled at Harry's surprised look and following scowl why Hermione stared between them both completely absorbed by the story.
"Yi and the Dragon conversed for many hours while his followers cowered in fear for the Dragon was Kung Kung himself, the Dragon who flooded the world and shook the pillars of Heaven with is rage. Finally the Dragon made Yi an offer and accepting the dragons aid climbed upon his back and flew away."
"While this was occurring the Soul eaters had combined forces with the Demon Kings and with a sacrifice of one thousand victims a curse was cast that caused ten suns to shine down upon the land. The armies of he Chou saw this as an attack by the Shang and the slaves of the Shang rose up and joined the Chou and war broke out, battles waged while men died of dehydration, their skin blistering under the sun as men battled men and Shen battled Shen." Wu sighed sadly. "The battles waged for nearly three months and in the final conflict an figure appeared in the sky. The Great Kung Kung had returned with Yi on his back and where ever the mighty dragon flew rains fell upon the land, men ceased to fight in awe of the mighty beast. Upon the dragons back Yi who carried a bow carved from the tree of life and a quiver of nine arrows carved from white Jade fired them into the unnatural suns and as each arrow struck the sun vanished and a curse was laid upon each of the Demon kings."
Wu shook his head sadly. "But like many things there was a price and for each Arrow a decade was placed upon Wan Kung Yi so that when the mighty Dragon descended from the skies and lay the aged warrior down. Now old and dying, his only wish to see his homeland freed from the Shen remained." The old man smiled sadly. "With Yi's words the war continued, many soldiers who had fought against the Chou were fighting with them and though the fighting was bloody and many died on both sides, Yi remained amongst the living throughout the time of war. The war was finally won and the Shen driven from the land and the celebrations began in Yi's honour and many gifts were given to him for his service to the new Emperor and he in turn passed onto his children. When the celebrations were over Yi spoke for the final time. "My time is here. I leave the world now that I know you will carry on my duties to protect the world from the marauding spirits who neglect their heavenly duties and prey on the people. Those who follow me should follow my children and learn from them, for they shall always have my guidance. And in a last moment Yi cast a great magic using the blood of the Shih as a tool cast a final curse upon the Soul Eaters, the Kuei-jin, - a curse that robbed them of heavens light. No longer could the Kuei-jin stand sunlight." The old man sighed sadly. "Yi died shortly afterwards."
Harry sighed as he watched the old man. "A ice history lesson Mr Wu but what's it got to do with me?" He yelped as the old man moved faster than he could see and cracked him lightly on the top of his head.
"If you would listen I will explain!" Frowning the old man settled his walking cane across his knees and again begun to speak. "For almost two hundred years the Shih were an army in their own right and followed the mandates of Yi but as time passed arrogance was born and slowly a faction of the Shih began to refer to themselves as the Celestial army. They decided to destroy all Shen not just those who broke from Heavens plan." He shook his head with disgust. "Though at the armies pinnacle there were very few Shih left within it's ranks and while the army tried it's best to force itself into the political arena of the Chou dynasty the true Shih continued to follow Yi's teachings till one day the greatest school of the Celestial army in the Kun Lun mountains was levelled. The school, the army, the very mountain erased from the very earth in an almighty explosion, and though the army burned brightly it burned quickly and to this day only we of the Shih know of its existence."
"The remaining Shih dispersed, learning from the mistakes of the Celestial army, no longer gathering in groups of more than ten if need be and we soon faded from history. Instead we became silent figures protecting from the background, but one thousand years ago the Emperor of Japan came to us gathering ten of the strongest Shih to help his country. We are the descendants of those ten. Over the years we learned that to bring attention to the Shih was to court destruction, but to battle alone is to court madness and thus the ten formed this Village and the people here are the Last descendants of Wan passing on the teachings of Wan Kung Yi's teachings and the skills to battle and defeat Evil." The old man stood and bowed.
"We are the Shih!"
TBC…
AN: what can I say, well for starters my power supply burned out so I bought a new one, it's a simply job replacing it, problem was the new one was faulty. Plugged it in ten minutes after doing so my computer blew up taking out the power supply with sparks shooting out the back, a processor that was only two days old and my ram decided to go with it. An expensive problem and time consuming, luckily I recently bought a lap top at auction so I could at least when bored start something new…and this is it.
Yours Truly
The Evil known as Kai Lun Mau