Abide With Me

Battle Lines Drawn

For some reason as yet unknown, Wei Ying's right eye throbbed - a bad omen*. There was a slight tremble in his voice as he cried out, "Lan Zhan!" and buried his face in the strong shoulder above the arms holding him. A warm wetness alerted Lan Zhan, who pried Wei Ying's chin up, to look with concern at a crying Wei Ying.

"Wei Ying?"

"Aiyyaaah...it's nothing, just... I am not ready to go back home yet," he declared while clumsily wiping his eyes. Lan Zhan placed a firm hand on Wei Ying's core and closed his eyes. Wei Ying's core was ticking away merrily. Meridians normal. His Heart Chakra was overloaded, given his emotional state.

"Is there anything you wish to tell me, my Love?"

Lan Zhan's rare use of the endearment brought more tears and Wei Ying merely lifted his arms to Lan Zhan's neck for a deep kiss, that had Lan Zhan vaguely unsettled.

"We will all be fine. Linghun Qiezei is one against so many. You will see." The golden eyes persuaded silver ones to stop overflowing. After Lan Zhan had enrobed Wei Ying to his exacting standards, Wei Ying snapped his fingers to undo both the wards and silence spells and they stepped out.

They were met almost at once by Lori, who looked worried. "There is movement on the mountainside outside the Grotto. Large number of troops. I can sense Cultivators too," she added, cocking her head at Lan Zhan. Though Wei Ying would have readily answered, Lori was smart enough not to rock their domestic boat and hence addressed only Lan Zhan. This was not lost on Lan Zhan, who playfully jabbed Wei Ying with a gentle elbow. "Tell Jie, Wei Ying. Let me check on His Royal Highness, SaMi and Pranith."

Since it was very early, most of the miners still slept. There was no sign of Linghun Qiezei. Wei Ying told Lori that they'd received a message that their relatives and friends had arrived. "Then a battle is imminent!" Lori said grimly.

Lori and Wei Ying found a few elderly miners up and about. Wei Ying took this opportunity to instruct the miners on what to do when the troops came in to set them free. Quickly sketching a translation talisman on thin air, Wei Ying opened his mouth and chaste Sinhala emerged! "Mage aadarniya Mituran*..."

He advised them to lay low if there was any fighting. They were to take shelter behind the rocks and keep their heads down. They were not to believe anything Linghun Qiezei or his underlings might tell them. They could trust Lori, Lan Zhan, Wei Ying and of course, any members of their own Aquatic Realm's army, who might enter the caves to rescue them. They should follow any instructions these few would give them.

Wei Ying asked them to form small teams of six members each. At Lori's questioning look, he said, "I guess a DaNi can easily carry six people, eh, Jie?" Understanding dawned and Lori swiftly moved around, instructing miners in a quiet way.

Lan Zhan found that the Prince, Pranith and SaMi had passed a quiet night, lying in the soft sand behind some large rocks. As Wei Ying's talisman activated, his voice issued clearly from Lan Zhan's ring and the Prince listened with rapt attention. "Master Lan Wei Ying is a genius!" The Prince grinned his appreciation. SaMi watched Lan Zhan's ears turn red, but the Prince's mode of addressing Wei Ying left no scope for a sip of vinegar! "Lan Wei Ying is sometimes too smart for his own good!" thought Lan Zhan, flicking a glance at His Royal Highness, who grinned back at him; confirming his suspicion that the Prince had telepathic abilities!

"I didn't, earlier!" The Prince chimed in, to Lan Zhan's surprise. "But ever since lightning from the An-Nengliang struck my forehead, I can hear the thoughts of whomsoever I wish to." Lan Zhan involuntarily blushed at that, scrambling to stop thinking of Wei Ying and gathering together his concentration. The Prince gently added, "I can see auras too. So I would only read the thoughts of someone whose aura showed fear, anger, concealment or negative emotions," he reassured Lan Zhan smilingly.