A long line of people were moving towards the mountain, snaking through the narrow path between the green trees. They were bound in fetters and chained methodically to one another to prevent a lousy attempt at escaping. Slaves. They were being transported to the Mines.
About fifty men in black eastern attire walked either at the front of the slaves, the back or sideways. They were armed to the teeth and brutal in flogging the people to move.
At the rear of the line were Lung and Qi, the latter being the last person on the line. Their faces wore fearful looks as if they were surrounded by ghosts. Well, being surrounded by ghosts was better than being sold as a slave to a silver mine. In the case of the former, you would be haunted and at worst killed. But in the latter, you would work in the mountain, digging for the ground like badgers. Death, to them, was better than a lifetime imprisonment and slavery.
"We are doomed!" Qi cursed under his breathe. He had gone to submit a scroll and now he was being submitted to the Mines. This was sure self deprecating!
"Spare your energy for work instead of talk," Lung said, maintaining a calm face.
"The Abbot will find us."
Qi comforted himself but he knew this was impossible. If the Abbot wanted to find them, he would have done so since and not now that they were close to the Mines. There was no way he could save them now.
"He's dead. Probably," Lung sighed. If they could be easily snatched underneath his nose by an unknown darkness, why can't the assailant do the same to his life?
As they neared the mountain, they saw a tunnel at its foot. It was so dark that they couldn't make out anything inside. The group proceeded into the darkness. For what seemed like eternity, they walked to an unknown destination.Then they ascended what seemed like a staircase, tripping as they climbed. But they didn't fall. They quickly felt themselves being caught by an unknown force. How they managed not to fall, no one knew. Finally they came of the tunnel into a large hall.
The hall was filled with cells, making it look like a catacomb. The walls of the hall were covered with slippery moss, growing wildly like stubborn weeds. Several candles lined the walls which had no window, consuming the little oxygen the new 'slaves' would need. This was the main reason most slaves died at the Mines. Poor ventilation.
The occupants of the cells wore no shirts and were more of sacks of dry bones than a body of flesh. They were thin and unhealthy, a sign of malnutrition. Just like the new slaves, they were bound to fetters.
No escape, Qi lampooned as he felt a sweaty, large hand grab his neck. He squinted in pain and was mildly relieved that Lung had another hand grabbing his neck. It was the man with heavy beard.
Pheeew...he heaved a sigh of relief after discovering the man was not trying to strangle him. It was an action of his to get them into moving faster.
A door at the end of the hall, which Qi didn't notice, opened. A tall man dressed in a silver coloured armour emerged, concealing his most of his physique except his height-he was very tall! His fiery eyes peered at try slaves from within the helmet, his right hand rubbing his chest, displaying rings on all fingers. Diamond rings.
"Welcome to the Mines," he spoke in a hoarse voice. "The name's Chan, the owner of this mine."
Why is his talking so hoarse, Qi thought. Is he faking that voice?
"There are three rules. Number one, Don't try to escape."
Chan walked close to Qi who gulped a mouthful of saliva.
"Number two, Obey the first rule! And then three, obey the second rule!"
"..."
All the new slaves had one reaction. They were momentarily at loss. Weren't the three rules the same? Why make it three when they were all the same?
"In summary, there's no escape!" Chan turned to the man with heavy beard. "Are 'these' the special ones?" He pointed at Lung and Qi, stressing the word, 'these'.
"They are, Chan," the man said, letting go of their necks. All this while he had been grabbing them.
Lung and Qi rubbed their necks, feeling them once again. This man sure had a problem.
"They are young monks," the man proceeded.
"You are great, Li!" Chan said. "From mountain to mountain!"
We don't live in a mountain, Qi thought. Monasteries' the name.
"Lock them up till tomorrow!" Chan bellowed and immediately all the the slaves were led to different cells, which were of course occupied by two or three older slaves.
Lung and Qi had to share a cell with a young man who was in his early twenties. He was tall with taut muscles which bulged out at all angles, his auburn hair adding more to his physique. His eyes were brown and had a twinkle of energy, one you could find in an adventurer. Unlike other slaves, he had a golden object around his neck.
"It's called Falun Gong," he answers them when they asked. "Surpresses your chi."
"Who are you and how long have you been here?" Lung asked.
"Except you have a calendar, you'd lose count," the man laughed. "The name's Tao."
"I'm Lung, he's Qi. We are monks."
"It's obvious. You'd fetch a good price with your energy," Tao continued. "You know I was an Abbot in the Eastern Monastery. You look like southerners."
Lung was excited on meeting an eastern Abbot. No wonder they put a Falun Gong around his neck. But Lung's counterpart, Qi wasn't the least bit intrigued. He was thinking of a way to escape.
Looking at the hole in the Falun Gong, he arched his brows.
"Does that have a keyhole?"
"Of course, idiot!" Lung snapped. Qi was slowly getting in his nerves. What's with the weird question? he thought to himself.
Arching his brows, Qi asked again, "Are there rats here?"
Lung and Tao exchanged looks. Qi was asking lousy questions.
"What's with you and your questions?" Tao asked. Well, he didn't need to answer Qi's questions because soon afterwards a rat scurried into their midst, sniffing out something.
Bam!
Qi slammed it with his right palm, killing it. His face lit up with a smile. Pheeew...He sighed inwardly. Now I've got the chance to escape.
"Don't tell me you are going to eat that?" Lung asked as he watched Qi put his right hand into its mouth. What is this lad doing? he thought.
"Eating rats is common here. But I'm shocked why you'd est one in your first day," Tao said.
"No, I'm not that crazy," Qi said calmly. "Well, I'm crazy actually. But not they crazy. We are monks, we don't eat meat..."
"I do," Tao interrupted.
"That's because you are locked up in a mine," Qi mocked. He grunted as he pulled the tooth of the dead rat.
Snap!
The tooth came off, Qi smiling deeply. He heaved a sigh of relief, ignoring Lung's and Tao's looks for explanation.
"A rat's tooth can serve as a key," Qi smiled.
"Smart lad," Tao said. "Now unlock us."
"Not so fast?" Qi said. He'd noticed that the door and walls of the cells were enchanted, making it impossible for anyone to escape even though they were unbound from their shackles. He had a plan to easily tackle this problem.
"Huh?"
Tao peered at the young monk with his brown eyes, wondering what the lad was up to.
"You forgot the door's keyhole is bigger plus it is enchanted, the walls included. Even though I was to unbound us, we would still not escape."
"So what now?" Lung asked. He was surprised Qi was more knowledgeable that he looked.
"I have a plan," Qi said.
"Smart lad," Tao admitted.
And Qi told them the plan-the whole of it.
A while later, seven guards dressed in black attires walked in. Three went towards the trio's cell while the rest went to another.
"It's your working time," one of the guards said, looking at Tao. He took out a bunch of keys from his pocket.
"I thought I worked in the morning," Tao complained.
"Too bad it's still morning to us," the guard slotted the key into the key hole, turning it.
Click!
It opened and he pushed the door ajar, walking into the cell. Grabbing Tao, he hoisted him to his feet and led him out of the cell.
Then it happened in a whim.
Psst!
Qi blew the rat's tooth from his mouth towards the key hole in Tao's Falun Gong. But Tao caught it and yelled, "These monks are trying to kill me!"
"Bring them out!" the guard who had opened the cell bellowed at the other two. They went into the cell and brought the monks out. Seeing that their attentions were distracted, Tao put the tooth into the key hole and began turning it. He wasn't good at opening locks so it took him much time.
"It seems you are too free to play pranks!" the guard bellowed once more. One could mistake him for a cow!
"It wasn't me," Lung protested. "It was him!"
"Hey! Watch your mouth, Mouth. It was you!" Qi snapped.
This was the plan. To distract the guards in order to buy time for Tao to unlock the Falun Gong.
"That's Chang's problem not mine," the guard said.
Click!
They all heard the sound as they watched the Falun Gong drop from Tao's neck.
Clang!
It landed in the ground, bouncing of the hard surface and rolling along it, coming to stop at the guard's feet. Before they knew what was happening, the chains which bound Tao shattered.
The guards were horrified and attacked immediately. This particular monk who had escaped was a tough nut. It had taken the Sons of Death to capture him. If they didn't restrain him now, he would easily stomp all the guards with time.
Whoosh!
Tao's hair fluttered as he moved towards the guards, his cloth flaying to the wind.
Thump! Thump! Thump!
His feet stomped the ground vehemently. It was like a stampede from an angry cattle of bulls. His movements left a heavy impression on the environment.
Pa!
He exerted force to his fist, punching at the guards one after the other. The impact was dense and tremendous, as heavy as a gigantic rock. The tiger fist. This was a martial arts technique which specialized in exerting strength to the fist and hand-held weapons.
Boom!
The guards were all sent crashing into the walls, burying themselves within the bricks. They didn't even recover, dying instantly on the spot.
Tao smiled, "It Will take time to fully recover my powers."
As expected, several guards came running in. It was unknown who had told them, when the person had told them and how he had told them. This brought an enlightenment to their minds. The Mine was sure under tight security. Mystical security would also be put into place, undoubtedly.
"Are you gonna fight or watch?" Tao asked Qi and Lung. He wouldn't want the monks standing like morons while he did the fighting. It was sure unfair.
"First, we are still bound," Lung answered, "and second, we were only taught defense techniques. Only the Abbots are allowed to learn attack techniques."
Tao sighed and tossed them the tooth. Why would a Monastery refuse to train the monks? What was the reason behind that? This was sure mysterious. Then he remembered a prophecy:
When the Order Harbinger is born,
he will become an untamed beast
With his absolute desire to burn,
he will turn people into feast!
The Southern Monastery had long discovered the reincarnation of the Order Harbinger! The monks not being taught any attack technique meant that one of the monks is definitely the incarnate form of this deity! This...Tao's mind turned adrift. The omnipotent and omniscient creator has being reincarnated long time ago. The prophecy has been fulfilled.
Whoosh!
The blades could be heard cutting through the air, shimmering with reflected lights from the candle as the guards swung their arms at Tao, hoping to slash him.
Tao immediately reacted. Moving in a blur, his right hand grabbed the blades of the swords, breaking them one after the other. Still maintaining his speed, he began punching the guards.
Pa! Pa! Pa!
His fists tore through the air, slamming unto each guard. He was so fast that he left afterimages behind him, appearing everywhere at the same time. Soon, all the guards were all sprawled on the ground, dead. The while ground was flooded with their blood.
"Done!" Lung and Qi said.
"Okay, let's move," Tao said and ran towards the secret door they had seen. The others asked why theyhe weren't going through the dark tunnel. He explained that it was dark and unsafe. They knew it had to do with the Sons of Darkness.
The Sons of Darkness were masters of darkness manipulation. They had the ability to use darkness to infiltrate your body, corrupting your chi. This would render your powers useless. This was sure fearsome!
As they approached the door, it flung open, revealing Chang who was walking from the darkness that lay behind the darkness. He was grinning from beneath his helmet and his eyes were blazing red from fury.
Thrusting his hands forward, all the metals all his body crept away into the air, reshaping to form long metal spikes.
"Uh...kids? You said you know defense techniques, now's the right time," Tao said.
Whoosh!
There were sounds of metal cutting the air as the spikes flew towards them.
Whoosh!
With speed ad agility, they leaped towards Chang, spinning to dodge the spikes.
Thud!
They landed and did multiple flips, dodging multiple spikes.
Whoosh!
Two spikes flew towards Lung but Tao did a cartwheel spin and grabbed him, pulling him into the air. They both landed on the wall, Tao kicking off immediately. Propelling himself into the air, he dropped Lung and flee towards Chang with a fist aimed for his jaw.
The latter moved his head sideways, dodging the punch.
Pa!
Tao's fist collided with the air, a glint of blue ripple appearing.
Shink!
A metallic sound came as two spikes stabbed Tao in his torso, elongating to form long blades. He groaned, blood dripping from his torso.
By now the two monks had landed behind Chang and were headed for the door. This was their only chance of escape and they had to take it!
Bang!
The door shut tightly, crumbling inwards.
Opening his right palm, Chang sent Tao crashing into the wall. He then turned to the young monks and folded his hands into fists, the spikes reforming into chains.
"I'm not killing you," he grinned. "Not yet."
Whip!
The chains slashed through the air as they flew towards Lung and Qi, trying to bind them.
Whoosh!
Both of them moved in different directions, their hairs fluttering to the wind. With their speed, they were able to dodge the chains.
Whip!
A chain came for Qi, twirling itself into a loop. He curved his back and dived, flying right through the loop before it closed in on him. Spinning in the air, he easily bypassed other chains and landed on the ground.
Chang's perception was triggered and he quickly retreated the chains, reforming them into a large shield.
Bam!
Something slammed into it, shattering it. The collision caused the whole building to tremble.
Chang turned sharply but could not dodge the fist which was coming his way.
Pa!
The fist buried itself in his torso, tearing through his robe into his muscles and then bursting through his back.
Chang groaned in excruciating pain and stared at his assailant. Tao. He was covered with blood and his eyes were plain white. This blood kept squirming to form little tentacles which would elongate and retreated to their original position. This was a living nightmare! He knew he would soon die and would not be able to beat Tao in this form so he did the last thing on his mind. Attempt to kill the monks!
Boom!
The door was ripped off its hinges, transforming into a fan before flying towards Qi at great speeds.
Seeing this, Lung exerted strength into his legs and leaped towards Qi, pushing him off the path of the fan. It was he who got in the way instead.
Slash!
Lung's body was slashed into two, blood splashing everywhere and innards dropping.
Whoosh!
The fan came towards Qi but Tao retreated his hand from with Chang's torso and moved in a blur towards Qi. Grabbing him, Tao hoisted him out of the way allowing the fan to crash into the wall.
Chang then smiled wryly, pain in his expression.
"I'm not dead, not yet."
"Go!" Tao said in a hoarse voice as his body began cracking, strange liquid squirming out of the cracks. As the liquid dropped on the ground, they it vanished with a sizzle.
Qi obeyed and scurried out of the building into the darkness where the door had once blocked. With heavy heart, he ran through the darkness. Even though he had eventually escaped, his happiness was gone. His one and only friend was dead and now it was unsure Tao would live.
After Qi ran into the darkness, Chang raised up his hands and sent spikes flying towards Tao who leaped towards him, taking in all the spikes. By the time he got to Chang, his body was covered with spikes which began melting.
Pa!
Telling, he punched Chang, exploding him into smithereens. He panted as he looked at the chunks of flesh on the ground. One look at them and he felt like devouring the fleshes. With a smile he said, "I would have died anyway. This would have killed me..." And then he exploded, shattering into smithereens.
Meanwhile, Qi had already ran out of the darkness and was struck in the face by a blinding the light. His eyes adjusted to the surrounding and saw himself standing on the balcony of the building atop the mountain. He gasped and looked down. Far beneath the mountain, there was a river.
Tap! Tap! Tap!
He heard footsteps but didn't wait to see whose. He leaped over the balcony, soaring in the air for seconds as he fell.
Splash!
He landed in the river, sinking to its depths. The water rose and ebbed, forming waves which receded immediately.
"He's escaped," Li said in anger as he stood over the balcony, peering down. He was surrounded by guards. "Summon the Sons of Darkness!"
The guards scurried away, leaving the furious Li. For a moment, he calmed down. Then he shouted, "That monk has escaped!" His voice echoed through the whole mountain but he didn't care. All that mattered was the little monk who had escaped!
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At Crossroads: Of Death? 
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