The Two Kings

Shadow Play

It had been two weeks since the Lady Bone Demon first showed her face to MK and Parker. Neither had spoken much about her since, and honestly, neither of them wanted to. Who would want to talk about a looming, world-ending threat? Especially when neither of them had the faintest idea how to stop her.

Instead, they both made the mutual—albeit poor—decision to bury the experience deep down and pretend it didn't exist.

Unsurprisingly, neither of them was handling it well.

MK was jumpy and constantly on edge, flinching at every noise and occasionally letting out blood-curdling shrieks that sent everyone into a panic. Parker, on the other hand, had begun to withdraw. Hours would pass with him staring blankly into space, lost in his own thoughts. He was there, but only barely.

Mei had seen enough. Determined to snap them out of their funks, she roped everyone—minus Sandy, who was busy with something—into a mandatory group outing.

The chosen venue? A shadow play at a local theater.

Parker groaned internally as they arrived. Great. Shadows. He was more than done with anything even remotely related to them after Macaque stabbed him in the chest the last time they crossed paths. But Mei wasn't hearing any complaints.

Before Parker could protest, Mei shoved him into a seat next to MK, even going so far as to nudge them closer together.

"Sorry," Parker muttered under his breath, retreating slightly to sit upright. He rested his chin on his hand, his gaze shifting reluctantly to the small indoor amphitheater. The red curtains were drawn tight over the stage, and intricate golden pillars framed the area, casting long shadows under the dim lighting.

"I'm so excited! I haven't been to the movies in ages!" MK exclaimed, his fists pumping enthusiastically as he kicked his legs against the seat in front of him.

Parker raised a brow. He's taking this stress thing surprisingly well, he thought dryly.

"Uh, kid," Pigsy interjected from a few seats away, sounding thoroughly unimpressed. "This ain't a cinema."

"It's a shadow play," Tang clarified, seated beside Pigsy. He leaned forward slightly, peering around Parker to glance at MK. "With puppets."  

"Wha? Puppets? No!" MK exclaimed, his face falling in disappointment. He pulled out a poster of Wukong in an officer's uniform with a giant explosion behind him. "I thought we were seeing Kung Fu Monkey Cop: The Movie!"  

"If that's the case, kill me now," Parker whispered to Mei, who winced in response.  

"Eh, check the back," Mei said with a shrug.  

MK flipped the poster around, revealing a sign for a shadow play. Painted on the back were two figures fighting together. He lowered the poster, his brow furrowing in confusion. Then, he glanced toward the distance. "Oh, oh, Mei. Isn't that the guy who gave us that weird key?"  

Parker snapped his head to where MK was looking and froze, his eyes locking with the white-eyed stare of none other than the mayor, sitting just a few feet away. The mayor smiled even wider and waved at them. Parker growled and narrowed his eyes. 

"You mean the magic key that can unlock anything? Yeah, I'm pretty sure that is him, and I'm also pretty sure that he's still not actually the Mayor," Mei explained, crossing her arms.  

"Yeah...remember how much we argued about that thing?" Parker said to MK.  

"Yeah. Let's never do that again."