Rogue One: An Untamed Story

Chap 19: The Original Minzhe

Narrator's Pov:

Like all life changing adventures, this one starts at night. Liu Yang makes her way to the inn she remembers Minzhe staying in. She follows him to the cluster of houses. She sees him go in and she falls in step a while later.
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Liu Yang had lost sight of him a while ago. She stops searching to observe her surroundings. The interior of the house didn't look like one. It looked bigger on the inside.

Furniture was upturned. Cobwebs hung from the ceiling, where spiders as large as her fist feasted on moths. Moonlight filtered in through a window, making the lighting look a light purple.

It was too dark, too cold and too quiet. A chill ran down her spine like someone had touched her back. Liu Yang startled and whipped her head around. No one was there.

Her blood froze like ice. Forget finding Minzhe, she would rather live. She takes a step forward and the rotting floarboard let out a loud creak. She shivered. Then, she begins to run.

She runs past fallen beams and smashed pottery. She leaps over a red puddle that she would rather not dwell on. The house is a maze. Nothing like a normal house when Liu Yang stepped in.

It was keeping her here. Toying with her maybe, she thinks as she runs past the same table for the third time.

"Ah!" Her foot catches onto uneven flooring and she trips. Liu Yang tumbles and cries out when she rolls to a stop at a person's feet.

...Wait.

Oh.

Her entire body is frozen stiff. Her heart stutters as she raises her head slowly. Her mouth becomes dry at the sight of a grotesque face.

Its eyes were hollowed out and nose missing; while its mouth stretched into a grin that reached its ears. The grin seemed permanent. It was not human.

Liu Yang snapped out of her stupor. She sucked in a breath, and she shrieked.

In an instant, she is suspended in the air. The monster's long, black hair wrapped itself around her throat.

The grotesque face belonged to an even more gross body. Skin clung at its bones and the waist was pinched so small. Its limbs were elongated and bony.

The hair was like a snake, it wound tighter and tighter. Liu Yang struggled as the hair began to force itself into her mouth, clawing down her throat and blocking her airway. She felt light-headed.

Distantly, she heard the creature say, "Yøu wįlļ mąķe a fįnə fəast før ų§..."

Then all at once, she could breathe again. She yelled as she landed on the ground. She spat the hair out of her mouth, pulling a handful of them and throwing them aside.

The sound of metal hummed in her ears and Liu Yang raised her eyes again to see Minzhe, standing in front of her with his sword and dagger brandished.

He doesn't glance at her or check if she was okay; before he sprinted forward and finished the monster.

Liu Yang gaped in awe. He turned to her, opening his mouth but she cut him off, " Us. There's more of them."

As if on cue, the remaining monsters appeared and Minzhe fought them. Minzhe sliced and stabbed, pulling (or shoving) Liu Yang out of harm's way. She was made to spin so much that she was very dizzy when it was all over.

Only when the last body dissolved to nothing, its soul leaving the earth, did Minzhe kneel beside Liu Yang. He lifted her arm gently, "Are you hurt?"

Liu Yang shakes her head. "That was incredible!" She beamed, fear and the danger of almost falling prey to monsters forgotten.

Minzhe blinks at her once. Twice. "You're the girl that kept following me for the past two days." He realises.

Oops. "Uhhh......no."

He squints at her but sighs. Minzhe stands to full height as pulls Liu Yang to her feet. Together, they leave the house. Since it was no longer possessed by those monsters, they easily found the exit.

Outside, Minzhe turns to Liu Yang, "Where are your parents, little girl?"

"I'm not little, I'm eleven years old." Liu Yang frowns with her arms crossed. Minzhe sighs again and amends, "Where are your parents, miss?"

Liu Yang answers, "They're not around anymore."

Minzhe's eyes widen and he shuffles awkwardly. "I see, well, erhm,"

Liu Yang: "Can I come with you?" Minzhe raises a brow and asks her to clarify. "I want to be like you. I want to be able to fight like you. I want to save people like you do. I want to be a cultivator."

A pause. "Are you sure? This isn't a children's game."

Liu Yang nods firmly.

"It could be dangerous."

Liu Yang nods again.

They're not around anymore.

Minzhe: "Okay."

The next day, Liu Yang says goodbye to everyone in the village. Minzhe receives his payment from the village chief, along with flowers from maidens and pastries from bakers. He shares them with Liu Yang.

Then, in the evening, with nothing but a can-do attitude and the excitement of the journey ahead; Liu Yang follows her new Shifu out of her village, ready to face the world.
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