CURSES /LMK.

three

For the rest of the night, she sat ideally. She had set herself down after their agreement. Trying her best to restore energy. Macaque tinkered with a few items on a table across from her. Turning to look at her every now and then. It seemed he did not trust her entirely. She couldn't blame him, she did not trust him either. She looked at the single light that illuminated the room. The light fluttered regularly, casting an amber glow. It was quite and somber. A single metal door was to her left and a staircase to her right, leading to who knows what. The thorned bushes where no more, only cracks and rocks being what was left of her impulsive behavior. She pondered on where she was, the room had no windows. Leaving no sunlight to enter the room. She scoured her mind.

What year is it..

Time had never been a burden until now. She had been sealed for such a long time that it was never something she really worried about. With the way he was dressed she would have believed she was in the Jaded Era. But something told her otherwise. He glanced over his shoulder then back to the wooden table. It had become a small routine. Tilting her head, she adverted her gaze from the flickering light to Macaque. His back was towards her, straining her neck she looked at the item that he held. It was an oddly shaped lantern, he fiddled with the top. Quickly setting it down, to grab another item. She hummed slowly growing bored.

Returning her focus to the light, she played with the hems of her tattered robe. She huffed deciding on speaking her mind. "What is that you hold?" She blanked staring at the light, he glanced at her. Returning his gaze to the lantern, he answered. "This is one of my finest works. This is a shadow lantern." With a simple hand gesture, the silhouette of a monkey appeared on the walls. It looked exactly like Macaque except its eyes burned with a purple light.

"The Shadow Lantern can do more than enhance one's skills in shadow magic, it can trap the bodies and souls of its targets. So long as the targets are trapped, the lantern can steal the shadows of its victims so its master can use them as a personal army until there is no use of them left."

She looked at the shadow on the wall, its purple eyes bored into her waving mockingly. He swiftly shut the top of the lantern. The shadow was absorbed back, he placed the lantern down. "Alright, lights out were going to be giving a special someone a little visit tomorrow." Macaque said, yawning as he stretched.

"I'm not tired."

"Tired or not. I'm going to bed."

He patted his hands on himself and made his way up the stairs. She watched him, turning her gaze to the lantern. He had left it with disregard. He popped his head from the railings, "Oh and don't stay up too late." He grinned at her then moved away from the railings. Going to rest in his room.

Could this be a trial of trust? Loyalty? No one would ever leave such a powerful artifact such as this unattended.

Her mind wandered as she stared at the lantern. It was dark wooden lantern detailed precisely, four strings hanging on each corner of the lid. She was impressed that someone such as Macaque had created such a detailed handiwork. She pushed herself up from the floor, eyeing the lantern. She stepped slowly, as to make sure she was not heard by the monkey upstairs. Unbeknownst to her he  was looking right at her.

Reaching the table, she looked over at the items. Maps, scrolls, and books were scattered all over the table: completely disorganized. She took a closer look at the map, there were trees painted and a red circle around a cave drawing. A
She adverted her gaze to an open scroll that laid to the left of the lantern. She glanced at the name, 'The Tale of The Wicked Nymph', not bothering to read the rest of the scroll. She reached to touch the lantern, running her hand across it. She felt the smoothness of the fine lines and details that she were engraved into the wood. Picking it up carefully, she tilted it looking at every corner and curve. It weighed as if it were paper.

He said the lantern could control any being as long as its shadow was kept inside. If she were to use this against Macaque she would not have to owe him anything. Her grip on the handle of the lantern tightened. He was holding her prisoner, under conditions she had to suffice to. They're meeting was not the best but in the end he had set her free. He had helped her, he offered her something that was taken from her, yet he said he would retrieve it and return it again to her. He did not mean to harm her, right? He was only asking for a small exchange, a favor. It was the least she could do for all the trouble she had put him through.

Placing the lantern back in its original place, she moved quietly back to her spot. Setting herself onto the floor, she wrapped her arms around her torso and brought her knees to her chest. She shut her eyes, dozing off into a deep slumber. To the side on the wall next to her, purple eyes stared at her nonchalantly.

It quickly dispersed, Macaque hummed satisfied. He sat on his futon replaying what had just happened. He expected for her to be more difficult, but this outcome was just what he needed. He may not trust her but that did not mean he did not know where her loyalties lied. He did not plan to sleep, instead opting on reading more about the woman. He would second guess himself asking himself if she really was who she said she was. The stories he read were all of nymphs with dark, large wings in which they protected an enchanted forest. But she was wingless. He pondered on what had happened or if the author had been wrong. Yet he didn't fail to notice the two gashes on each of her shoulder blades.

Was she always like that.. her power seems to be correct based on all her stories. And yet..

Sun Wukong. The first words she uttered to him, and that's when he really thought she was out of it. She seemed easily distraught when it came to his name. Would he call it fear? Anger? He flipped the pages of his book, not caring on what page he landed on. Wukong had never spoken of meeting any nymph back when they were "friends". Not once did he say anything. Maybe he was just trying to keep another source of power to himself. But, hey he never told him anything anyways. Shutting the book harshly, he huffed. He stood from the futon, deciding on sleeping to distract his mind. He threw off his scarf, landing wherever it pleased, and tossed himself onto the bed. Curling himself into a fetal position.

Tomorrow is going to be such a surprise..