Side Story Arc: The Whispering Zephyrs and the Hidden Kingdom
Chapter 9: Report to the Dragon
The journey back to their hidden home was very long and very tiring.
Initiate Jin and Initiate Suyin flew high up in the sky. They were miles above the ground. The air up there was freezing cold and very thin. A normal person would die in just a few minutes in that cold air. But Jin and Suyin were not normal people. They were masters of magic.
Jin used his wind magic to find a fast stream of air. The wind pushed them forward very quickly. Suyin used her water magic to pull a thin layer of wet mist around them. She made the mist warm, so they would not freeze in the cold sky.
They flew over the hot, yellow sands of the great desert. They flew over the deep blue waters of the ocean. They flew over the tall, snowy mountains of Europe and Asia.
They did not speak to each other during the long flight. They needed to save all their energy. Keeping the magic going for so many hours was very hard work. Jin's arms ached. His chest felt heavy. Suyin's eyes were tired. Her mind felt slow. They had fought hard in the dark warehouse in Berlin. They had flown across the world. They had faced twelve dangerous guards in the hot African jungle. Now, they just wanted to go home.
As they flew over the outside world, they looked down. They saw the gray, dirty cities of the normal humans. They saw thick black smoke rising from tall factory chimneys. They saw the bright, harsh lights of cars driving on long, gray roads.
The outside world was very loud, very messy, and very fast. It felt like a giant machine that never stopped moving and never stopped making noise.
Jin and Suyin were very happy to leave it behind.
After many long hours, the sky began to change color. The sun began to rise in the east. The dark night sky turned into a beautiful mix of pink, purple, and gold.
"We are close," Jin whispered. His voice was very quiet and weak. He sent the words through the air directly to Suyin's ear.
"I can feel the clean air," Suyin whispered back. She smiled a very tired smile.
Far below them, they saw a massive green forest. It looked like a normal forest of tall bamboo trees. But to Jin and Suyin, it was the most beautiful sight in the whole world. It was the Bamboo Maze. It was the magic wall that hid their home from the rest of the planet.
Jin aimed their path downward. They fell out of the fast wind stream. They floated gently down toward the green trees.
They landed softly on a thick, mossy tree branch near the edge of the bamboo forest. They were so tired they almost fell over. Jin leaned his back against the tree trunk and took a long, deep breath.
"We made it," Jin said. He let out a big sigh of relief.
Suyin let the warm mist around them fade away. She sat down on the tree branch and rubbed her tired eyes. "The magic door is right there," she said, pointing to a spot between two very tall bamboo trees.
To a normal human eye, there was nothing there. Just empty air between the trees. But Jin and Suyin could see a faint, glowing line in the air. It was a fold in the space. It was the secret door to Ta Lo.
They stood up slowly. Their legs felt like heavy lead. They walked off the tree branch and stepped toward the glowing line.
They did not need to use force. They just stepped forward.
The world around them changed instantly.
One second, they were in a normal, quiet bamboo forest on Earth. The next second, they were standing inside the magical pocket world of Ta Lo.
The change was amazing. The air in Ta Lo was perfectly clean. It smelled like fresh rain, sweet lotus flowers, and clean rock. The sky above them was not a normal blue sky. It was a beautiful, bruising mix of four different colors that swirled together.
But the best part was the feeling of the magic.
In the outside world, Jin and Suyin had to work very hard to find magic energy. But inside Ta Lo, the magic was everywhere. It was in the dirt. It was in the wind. It was in the water. The rich, golden energy of the Guardian Dragon filled the air.
As soon as they took a breath, the magic rushed into their tired bodies. It felt like drinking a glass of cool water after walking in the hot desert all day. The pain in Jin's chest started to fade away. The tired feeling in Suyin's mind began to clear up.
"Welcome home, my friends," a soft, calm voice said.
Jin and Suyin looked up. Standing a few feet away, hovering exactly one inch above the soft green grass, was Grandmaster Feng.
The Master of the Air Temple wore his simple gray silk robes. His silver hair blew gently in the clean wind. His pale eyes looked at them with a very deep, quiet understanding. He had a small, golden, six-legged creature named Bulu sitting on his shoulder.
Jin and Suyin immediately bowed very low to their master. They crossed their arms over their chests to show great respect.
"Grandmaster Feng," Jin said. "We have returned from the outside world."
"I can see that you are very tired," Feng said gently. He floated closer to them. He did not ask them to hurry. He knew that a long spy mission took a heavy toll on the body and the mind. "Did you find the answers the Great Dragon asked for?"
"We found much more than answers," Suyin said. Her voice was serious. "We found a secret that changes everything. We found a kingdom made of science and metal. They are just as hidden as we are. And they are very, very powerful."
Feng's pale eyes widened just a tiny bit. For a man who never showed his feelings, this was a huge reaction. He understood right away that the news was very big.
"The Dragon must hear this," Feng said. He turned around and pointed toward the center of the large village. "Come. Walk with me. The lake is waiting for your report."
Jin and Suyin followed their master. They walked along a wide, clean road made of smooth black stone.
As they walked through the village of Ta Lo, they saw the beautiful, perfect life of their people.
They saw strong men and women from the Earth Temple working together. They were using their earth magic to build a new, tall house made of strong gray rock. They did not use hammers or nails. They just moved their hands, and the rock molded itself like soft clay into perfect walls and roofs.
They saw people from the Fire Temple cooking food in large, open kitchens. They did not use messy wood fires. They held small, perfect flames in the palms of their hands to heat the metal pots perfectly.
They saw healers from the Water Temple cleaning fresh fruits and vegetables with glowing, pure water.
Everyone was working together in perfect harmony. There was no fighting. There was no loud, angry noise like in the cities of the outside world. Everyone had a job, and everyone did their job with a happy heart.
Jin looked at the happy people. He thought about the men in the dark warehouse in Berlin. He thought about the guns and the greed. He thought about the atomic bombs that could destroy the whole world.
He was so glad that he and Suyin had made the Shadow Pact in the jungle. He was so glad they had promised to keep the secrets safe. If the outside world ever found Ta Lo, this beautiful, perfect peace would be ruined forever.
They walked for twenty minutes until they reached the very center of the village.
Here, there were no houses or roads. There was only a massive, perfectly round lake.
The lake was huge. It was over a mile wide. The water in the lake was not blue or green like normal water. The water was bright, shining gold. It glowed with a deep, warm light that made the whole area look like a beautiful dream.
This was the Golden Lake. This was the place where the Guardian Dragon slept.
The Dragon was a giant, magical creature. He was the one who gave the people of Ta Lo their magic. He built the walls around their world. He was the protector of their home. But keeping the world safe took a lot of power. So, the Dragon slept deep at the very bottom of the golden lake to rest and save his energy.
The lake was completely still. There were no waves. The water looked like a giant, flat mirror made of liquid gold.
Grandmaster Feng stopped at the edge of the soft green grass near the water. He did not step onto the lake.
"I will leave you here," Feng said softly. He bowed his head to Jin and Suyin. "This report is for the System and the Dragon alone. Tell the truth. Do not hide anything. The Dragon must know exactly what dangers are out there in the dark."
"We will tell the truth, Grandmaster," Jin promised.
Feng turned and floated away, back toward the tall quartz towers of the Air Temple.
Jin and Suyin were left alone at the edge of the glowing water.
They stepped very close to the edge. They did not take off their shoes. They slowly bent their knees and knelt down in the soft, wet grass right next to the golden water. They placed their hands flat on their knees. They kept their backs very straight.
They closed their eyes.
They did not need to speak out loud. The Great Dragon did not listen with ears. The Dragon listened with the mind.
Jin and Suyin focused all their thoughts on the glowing water in front of them. They pushed their minds out, reaching down into the deep, heavy magic of the lake.
[System Interface: Zephyr Operatives]
[Status: Connecting to Main System.]
Inside their heads, the world turned bright gold. The magical System of Ta Lo answered their call.
A warm, heavy feeling filled their chests. It felt like a giant, very wise old man was suddenly standing right behind them, looking over their shoulders. It was a feeling of total safety, but also a feeling of immense, terrifying power.
The golden text of the System appeared in their minds.
[Welcome, Watchers. You have returned from Midgard. Please provide your data report.]
Jin and Suyin began to share their memories. They did not use words. They sent pictures, sounds, and feelings directly from their brains into the giant, magical computer of the Dragon.
First, they showed the System the dark, wet warehouse in Berlin.
They sent the picture of the rusty metal beams. They sent the feeling of the cold November rain outside. They showed the men in the heavy coats trading the briefcase for money.
[Data Received. Analyzing Human Behavior: Greed and Conflict.]
Then, Jin showed the System the special gray metal.
He showed the memory of the Russian scientist shooting the gun. He sent the exact loud sound of the gunshot. He showed the bullet hitting the small chunk of gray rock. He sent the feeling of the magic wind watching the bullet flatten. He showed the System how the metal did not move. He showed how the metal ate all the pushing force and all the sound.
The golden light in their minds flashed very brightly. The System was very interested in this memory.
[Extradimensional Metallurgy Detected. Analyzing Physical Rules.]
[Result: Material absorbs 100% of kinetic energy. Material absorbs 100% of acoustic waves.]
[Logging new material into Ta Lo Archives. Name Designation: Vibranium.]
Next, Suyin showed the System the man in the black panther suit.
She showed the memory of the man dropping from the high ceiling without making a single sound. She showed how his black suit looked like it was made of woven metal. She sent the memory of the man kicking the French soldier across the room with terrible, stored-up power.
Then, she showed the fight.
She showed her memory of pulling the wet air to make sharp ice needles. She sent the feeling of total shock when the black-suited man raised his arm and made a glowing purple shield of light. She showed the System exactly how the purple shield vibrated very fast and shattered her hard ice into harmless steam.
[Analyzing Hostile Technology.]
[Result: Technology mimics magical energy shields. Technology uses stored kinetic power for offense.]
[Threat Level to Ta Lo Vanguard: Very High.]
The golden water of the lake in front of them began to ripple just a little bit. The sleeping Dragon was reacting to the news. The Dragon was surprised that normal humans had built machines that were as strong as magic.
Finally, Jin and Suyin sent the last and most important memory.
They showed the System the hot, thick jungle in Africa. They showed the fake mountain painted with light. They sent the exact feeling of the static, buzzing purple energy wall that hid the giant city.
They showed the twelve War Dogs dropping from the trees with their glowing blue spears.
And then, Jin showed the System the conversation with Commander Badu.
He sent the memory of the words they spoke. He showed the feeling of fear, and then the feeling of understanding. He showed the System how both sides were terrified of the loud, angry outside world and its terrible atomic bombs.
Jin showed the memory of reaching out his hand. He showed the memory of shaking Commander Badu's hand in the dark, dry clearing under the giant tree roots.
He sent the exact rules of the Shadow Pact.
Rule one: Ta Lo spies will never go near the jungle city again.
Rule two: If they meet in the outside world, they will pretend they do not see each other.
Rule three: They will both keep each other's secret forever.
Jin and Suyin held their breath. They waited for the System to judge their choices. They had made a promise to a foreign army without asking the Dragon first. They hoped the Dragon would understand why they did it.
The golden light in their minds went quiet for a long time.
The lake stopped rippling. The air around them became perfectly still.
Inside the deep, dark water, the massive mind of the Guardian Dragon was thinking. The Dragon was looking at all the puzzle pieces. The gray metal. The black suits. The energy shield. The promise of peace in the shadows.
The Dragon understood.
The outside world was growing too fast. The normal humans were building bombs that could break the earth. The hidden humans in the jungle were building metal suits that could fight gods. If Ta Lo tried to fight the hidden jungle city, they might both destroy each other. And if they destroyed each other, the loud, angry world would find their broken homes and steal all their secrets.
Peace was the only smart choice. The Shadow Pact was a good idea.
Suddenly, a warm, bright, comforting light filled Jin and Suyin's minds. The heavy, scary feeling of the giant System melted away. It was replaced by a feeling of deep approval and safety.
The golden text appeared one last time.
[Data Report Complete.]
[Vibranium and Wakanda logged into highly secure secret archives.]
[Shadow Pact approved. Rules of engagement updated for all Watchers.]
[Well done, Zephyr Operatives. You have protected the mountain. You may rest now.]
The connection ended smoothly. The bright golden light in their heads slowly faded away, leaving them alone with their own quiet thoughts again.
Jin and Suyin opened their eyes.
The huge lake in front of them looked exactly the same. It was still perfectly round, perfectly flat, and glowing with a beautiful, soft golden light. The sun was fully up now, shining warmly on their faces. The birds in the bamboo trees were singing happy morning songs.
The heavy weight of the secret was finally off their shoulders. They had carried the terrifying knowledge of the gray metal and the fake mountain across the whole world. Now, they had given that heavy weight to the Dragon. The Dragon would keep the secret safe at the bottom of the lake.
Jin let out a very long breath. He looked at his hands. They were shaking just a tiny bit, but not from fear. They were shaking from pure exhaustion. The long mission was finally, truly over.
Suyin looked at Jin and smiled a real, happy smile. "We did it, Jin," she whispered.
"We did," Jin agreed. He slowly stood up from the wet grass. His knees popped, and his back ached, but his heart felt very light. "We found the ghost in the machine, and we made friends with it in the dark."
Suyin stood up next to him. She smoothed her blue silk robes one last time. "I think I want to sleep for three whole days," she said, looking toward the quiet, peaceful houses of the Water Temple.
"I think I will sleep for four," Jin laughed softly.
They turned their backs to the glowing golden lake. They began to walk slowly back toward the stone houses and the warm kitchens of their beautiful, perfect village.
They knew the outside world was out there, getting louder and more dangerous every single day. They knew the men in the black panther suits were out there, watching the shadows just like they were.
But for today, the borders were safe. The secrets were locked away. The Great Dragon was resting, and the people of Ta Lo were happy.
The Whispering Zephyrs walked home, ready to finally close their eyes and rest in the perfect peace of their hidden mountain.