Orion sat his back against the stone, staring into the dim glow of the temple's spring. The room was quiet after they arrived. Susanoo said that he is going to search the surrounding area, disappearing with a flash. Meanwhile, Hercules was fast asleep, sleeping like a newborn baby.
He turned his gaze up to Wukong. Who lounged on top of a pillar. Twirling his staff between his fingers
"What are you?" Orion finally asked
Wukong grabbed his staff and let out a long breath "Straight to the heavy question, huh?" He jumped off the pillar, landing lightly
"Let me make this simple. There are 3 main races. Gods, monsters, and mortals
Orion blinked. "Monsters? Mortals?"
"Yeah," Wukong said, sitting cross-legged on the ground. "Gods are beings born, chosen by divinity. It's like an inbuilt power source. From the moment they are born, they have great power and are loved by the universe.
He raised two fingers. "Monsters are.. those whom the divinity didn't choose, "Wukong continued, his tone softening. "NO divinity. They are born raw- sometimes weaker, sometimes wild, most times less intelligent. But what they lack in divine blessing, they make up for in raw potential. Unlimited growth with no limit
He lifted a 3 finger. "Then there are mortals- humans, elves, dwarves, all those in-between. They aren't divine, not people. There are exceptions, of course, humans who have killed gods, but they are rare.
Orion absorbed the words, settling them in his head.
"But," Wukong added, raising a finger again, "Shiva's a weird one. A god who keeps growing like a monster.
Orion tilted his head. "So which one are you?"
Wukong grinned. "Monster. Proudly."
There was a moment of silence before Orion asked his next question, "How did you all get sealed?"
Wukong's eyes dimmed, "That's... that was betrayal. A trap."
He began to pace slowly." There was a time when we were on the verge of peace. A council was called- Everyone was there. We were bored with the blood.
Wukong's hands clenched into fists. "Then the Buddha- Enlightened one, we called him- pulled one last trick. A final move. A seal that would hold us for a very long time.
Orion opened his mouth, but no words came out
"The seal not only locks us but binds transport between realms"
"Why?" Orion asked. "Why did he do it?"
" He feared that he would soon be replaced. The Gods were willing to sit down with the monsters. Which he considered unacceptable"
Orion's mind was spinning, trying to connect the pieces in his head
"Then why do you and Shiva keep saying that I smell of stars?" Orion asked suddenly, the memory of Shiva's stare and Wukong's laughter rushing back.
Wukong chuckled. "I'll answer that soon, come outside."
They walked through the ruined temple halls until they reached the ivy-covered balcony.
There in the sky above the hills, they saw them
Two dragons soaring through the heavens
One was massive emerald scales gleaming like wet jewels. Horns spiralled back alongside its head, its wings shimmered with translucent energy. This was Kirimu, the Devourer of storms.
Beside him flew Fafnir- a darker, more brutal presence, with obsidian-black scales that reflected no light and eyes burned like molten gold.
Orion could only stare." What are they doing?"
"Searching? Scouting? Wukong said, "Maybe they are hunting. Getting ready for what is coming next.
"What comes next?"
"Bloodshead", Wukong said bluntly.
Wukong leaned against the wall, his voice quiet. "Peace. That's what I wanted for monsters. We've been hunted, labelled as evil, and treated like filth for lacking divinity. So, I went to war with the heavens to give my kind a place. A future"
Orion looked at Wukong, trying to understand the strange mix of wildness and wisdom that lived behind his golden eyes.
"But I learned something in that war." Wukong continued. "There is something worse than gods or monsters. Something that endangers all of us.
"What is it?" Orion asked.
Wukong turned his head, waiting for the dragons to disappear into the clouds.
"Fate."
The word hung in the air like a blade
"You mean destiny? "Orion asked
Wukong shook his head," No, I mean fate. The force that keeps reality on script, the thing which determines who's born a hero and who dies a villain. The thing that determines when you live and when you die ."
Orion frowned "Can it be stopped?"
Wukong smiled. " We are going to find out, but first, you're going to get stronger."
The temple behind them flickered faintly as the divine wards shifted, responding to their presence.
Wukong jumped into the air, landing back on the pillar he started on
"There's more you need to know. But first, let's see what basic combat skills we are working with "
Wukong plucked a single strand of hair from his neck. throwing it on the ground
A puff of golden smoke exploded, and from the smoke stepped... Wukong. Identical down to the mischievous glint in his eye and the sway of his tail. The clone spun its staff and cracked its knuckles with a toothy grin,
Orion's eyes widened. "You're not going to make me fight you?"
Wukong wagged his finger. "Not me, a tiny piece of me. Relax- this one diet-sized."
The clone leapt from the pillar with a cackle, landing gracefully across from Orion, staff being held in one hand"
"Ready?" the real Wukong asked from above
"No."
"Too bad."
The clone lunged
Orion barely brought his arms up in time to block the first flow slamming into him like a freight train. HE flew back, rolling across the mossy courtyard floor before skidding to a stop near the spring.
Orion did boxing in school; he wasn't the worst in his class, the same way he wasn't the best. However, he could tell that none of that was going to help him in his current situation.
He groaned. "What happened to 'diet-sized`?"
The clone gave him no time to recover and was already on him, staff whirring like a storm. Orion dodged the first strike, ducked the second, then caught the third with both hands - but the force still sent him staggering back.
He tried to strike back with a punch, the clone weaved around it effortlessly, planting a foot in Orion's stomach and flipping him over its shoulder.
He hit the ground hard, coughing, his whole body aching
"C'mon, Orion," Wukong called cheerfully. "Use that trickster brain of yours. You can't win this by playing fair."
Orion rolled to his feet, panting. He already knew he would never be able to compare to the clone in strength. Not even close.
But maybe... he didn't need to
As the clone went to attack, Orion moved back, then grabbed a handful of loose moss and dirt from the ground and threw it directly at the clone's face.
It blinked, stunned for just a second.
Orion seized the opportunity.
He ran forward, sliding under the clone's staff, kicking its legs out from under it. As it fell, Orion snatched up a broken stone shard from the ground and impaled it onto the clone's chest- not to hurt it but to disrupt its form.
The golden smoke exploded with a pop, and the clone vanished in a burst of shimmering light.
Silence.
Then clapping.
Wukong sat on his pillar, grinning widely and applauding. "Now that was beautiful. Dirty. Clever. Unpredictable. I like it."
Orion let go of the shard and collapsed onto his back. Gasping for air. "That was awful"
"You won," Wukong said. "Doesn't matter how. A win is a win."
He hopped down again, landing next to Orion. "Let that be your first lesson: Trickery is a weapon. And you've got the mind for it."
Orion closed his eyes, letting the moss cushion his bruised body
Wukong chuckled. "Get up, that was the easy part"