Date: Thu, 19 Jan 1995 11:54:41 -0600 Reply-To: Joshua A Reyer Sender: Highlander TV show stories From: Joshua A Reyer Subject: Dragon's Luck, Part Eight X-cc: Neesan Dragon's Luck Part Eight By Joshua A. Reyer Wow! Part Eight! I'm on a roll!! Uh, ahem. Movie universe rules, no tv or movie characters in this story. *************************************************************************** China, Shandong Province. 1610 A.D. The Chinese man's sword flashed down, but suddenly, a black and blue blur rammed into the him, knocking him back. Daniel blinked and realized that Ying was there, his great dadao at the ready. The Chinese man grunted, shook his head and attacked. Ying blocked his attack and returned with one of his own. It was blindingly fast, but somehow the other Chinese man blocked. Their swords became a flashing, ringing, single entity between them. Then they broke apart. The large Chinese man brought his sword down in a vicious overhead chop. Ying blocked it and held it there. The Chinese man pushed down harder, but Ying held the block. Finally, he sidestepped, swinging his sword out of the away. The large Chinese man pitched forward, his sword cleaving into the ground. Ying placed his foot on the large Chinese man's sword, and with one swipe, beheaded him. The head sailed away as the body slumped to the ground. Daniel started to get back up, but his leg had not yet fully healed. With a groan, he fell back down. "Ying," he began, but Ying was not listening to him. That's when Daniel realized a greenish-white glow was enveloping the body of the slain Immortal, and it was rising into the air. Little lightning cracks shot from the body, singing the grass. It seemed that the sun became clouded over, and a strong gale picked up. Ying stood in the center of it all, and suddenly a piercingly bright light shone on him. He seemed paralyzed, almost as if he'd been skewered on a stick. He grunted once or twice, as the wind continued, and lightning struck around him. Several fires started, but were blown out by the wind before the could truly spread. Finally, there was a loud thunder boom, and then all was quiet. The sun came out again, and the wind died down. Ying's shoulders slumped, and it looked as though a feather would have knocked him over. After a moment, he stirred. "Jesus Bloody Christ, Ying, what the hell was that!?" Daniel exclaimed, slipping into English in his shock. Ying almost smiled. "Dui bu qi, wo ting bu dong," he replied, tapping his ear to indicate he hadn't heard correctly. Daniel reddened, and then asked softly in Mandarin, "What was that, lao shi?" Ying stretched his back. "That was the Quickening. You'd been told of this." "Yes, but neither McHenry or you ever mentioned something like this!" "It is hard to describe. Especially the feeling. You'll see when you recieve your first." Ying looked down at the defeated Immortal and back at Daniel. "You are unarmed. That is unwise." "I wasn't going far." Ying shook his head. "That does not matter. This week, you will finish your jiandao. When it is done, never let it out of arms reach. Your sword is your life. Understand?" Daniel sighed. "Yes, lao shi." "A Mongol," Ying muttered, bending down to examine the body of the fallen Immortal. "He was crazy. Beserk. Mad. He must of lived here for years, isolated from what was left of his tribe. There haven't been Mongols in China for nearly 200 years." "Who were the Mongols?" "A barbarian warrior race that lived North of here. The descended on China and conquered very easily. Marco Polo, the barbarian explorer, met with Kublai Khan, Genghis Khan's heir. The controlled China for a long time. They were fierce fighters." "How do you know this one was crazy?" Ying indicated the empty quiver hanging on the Mongol. "They were fantastic archers. They could make arrows out of nearly anything, and their bows were extraordinary. Normally, a Mongol Immortal would have softened you up, sapped your strength by hitting you with many arrows before taking your head. This one attacked with a battle axe, a poor weapon for Immortals, anyway." "Lao shi, where were you?" "I was looking for him. He approached the house early today, and I felt him. I followed him out, but his woodscraft easily outmatches mine. I lost him, but kept looking for him, for fear he might attack you, given the opportunity. Of course, he did anyway. Soon, you will learn to fight with a sword, and you won't be so helpless." Daniel rubbed his neck. "I can't wait." *Ka-Ching!!* The sound startled Daniel. The last blow struck on the blade had sounded different than usual. It was clear, vibrant, reasonant. "It is done," Ying said from the door of the forge. "You must inscribe it with your chop, and the date. Mention the House of Ying as the School of Smithing." Daniel nodded, wiping sweat from his brow. Ying turned and left, and Daniel worked on finishing the blade, sharpening it, inscribing it and setting it in hilt and handle. It was a sword nearly two years in the making, working nearly eight hours a day for seven days a week. It was a labor of love. It was finished. Inscribed, set and all. Proud, Daniel picked up the sword, and almost as promptly dropped it. It hummed in his hand, and it felt as though at any moment, it might jump free. Carefully, holding it tight, he took it out to Ying. "Lao shi, it is done." "Excellent. Have you named it, yet?" "Yes, lao shi. I've decided to call it Rui Zhuo. It seems to fit, thinking back to what Wei said about my year of birth." As soon as he said the name, it felt as if the humming in his hand died down a bit, as though by naming it, Daniel exerted power over the sword. It still felt alive, though. "'Auspiciously Lucky'," Ying translated. "Perhaps, it is a fitting name for the sword of a Dragon." He took a scabbard out of the folds of his robes and presented it to Daniel. "For you and your sword. With it, I bid you long life." Daniel took the scabbard reverently, saying nothing. He did not know that Ying had been making this. It was a fine scabbard, Daniel thought as he slipped Rui Zhuo into it. And a perfect fit, too. He stuck sword and scabbard through his sash, and bowed to Ying. "Xie, xie, Ying Lao shi." *************************************************************************** Yes, I know this one was short, but I found it hard to cleanly segue into the next segment. Don't worry, the others will be longer. Anyway, please e-mail with comments, or send them to HIGHLA-L. Chinese Glossary Rui Zhuo (ray-jwuh): auspiciously lucky. Incidently, this was my Chinese name when I took Mandarin in high school. xie xie (she-eh, she-eh): Thank you =========================================================================