“Where is he, Kyral?” asked the voice in irritation.
“He's in the city of New York,” said Kyral. “He is learning Muay Thai with one of the Guardians in charge of a key."
“Did you find any of the other Masters?” asked the voice.
Kyral nodded his head. “We found another, Americo Estefan in Brazil, but he's well-guarded by his disciple, who is proficient in Brazilian Jujitsu and Capoeira. The others we have so far been unable to locate, my Lord."
“Very well. Kyral, take who you need and deal with Master Estefan. Bring me the key. Do not fail me," said the voice.
Kyral bowed and replied. “Of course, my Lord.” Drawing his triangular-shaped throwing knife and his sharp ninja stars from his clothing his eyes glinted. “I'm not the best at Ninjutsu for nothing. He shall die quickly, my Lord." He held the two weapons between his fingers, a bloodthirsty smirk present on his face. His arms moved fluidly, in patterns that would seem random to any witness, but as he finished a black portal appeared before him. Walking forwards and disappearing, ten more shadows exited the temple and followed him through the portal.
“I’m getting tired of these constant failures, he had better succeed,” growled the Voice as lightning shot down, striking the middle of the room.
***
In a temple well-hidden, deep in the Amazon jungle, a dark-skinned man with prayer beads around his neck was walking alongside a young man. The tanned, black-haired youngster appeared to be around fifteen years of age, and sported a pair of spiked black gloves.“Mason, I sense an ominous presence. You must leave at once. You've completed your training and are now the Master,” said the man, the concern apparent in his voice.
“But, Master Estefan, why?” asked the young teen, confused as to why his Master would now choose to send him away.
The man put his hand on the boy’s shoulder. “When I was mediating, I had a vision. It seems you have a great mission to accomplish. A blond-haired boy, not much older than yourself, will present you with a medallion like this one," said the master taking out a medallion and handing it to his student. “I want you to train him in our fighting style so he can protect the world from evil.” said the Master.
“Master, let me help!” implored the student.
“I told you this day would come, my student. Now go,” said the Master, a stern look across his face.
The tanned teen hugged his Master and fled with the medallion in hand through the back exit of the temple. Estefan’s gaze softened as his watched his young student depart. Turning around he readied himself to face his enemy.
Exiting the front of the temple, a dagger immediately grazed Estefan’s cheek, drawing blood. Estefan still remained calm. “I’ll take you down, foolish assassin,” said the Master as he blocked a series of throwing stars with his hands His gloves of tough leather successfully protecting his hands.
Estefan looked around, a smirk beginning to appear on his face. “I was picked as a Guardian because I'm in tune with nature,” he informed his attacker. As he spoke three jaguars bounded from the jungle and stood, ready to attack, next to the Master. “They are aware of when I need assistance.
“I'm so scared of your kitties, old man. I’ll make a coat for myself,” Kyral said, as he crouched confidently unseen on a high branch. His confidence was short lived though, as he was forced to jump from his perch to narrowly avoid a tree branch swung in his direction by an angry monkey. Another of the Master’s assistants it seemed.
Landing in the clearing below he was immediately charged by the Master. Kyral’s skill set didn’t involve physical combat but rather more hit-and-run tactics from a distance. “It seems you are truly worthy of fighting,” said Kyral as he successfully blocked a kick, the surprising power of the Mater sending him backwards. I have to get some distance between us.
As Kyral retreated he loosed a trio of daggers. With gloved hands, Estefan blocked the projectiles and continued to advance on his attacker. A noise from behind caught the Master’s attention. Turning around he saw he was also going to have to try and contend with ten warriors, garbed in black tunics. Blocking the first punch, he moved quickly to grab and throw his assailant into another warrior. The rest however continued to surround him.
Master Estefan tightly held the beads around his neck, bowing his head as the warriors again closed in. Fighting numerous assalents, he failed to see a dagger heading to back of his neck. Due to the surprise attack, Estefan meet his end
After the fight, the assassin, Kyral, ransacked Estefan’s temple. He had welts on his arms from the punches. Before locating the key he fell to the floor. “Damn that Master,” said Kyral, his voice wavering in pain. After a minute to compose himself, he tore up the temple in search of the key. Finally in the darkest corner of the temple he came across floor boards that had their corner slightly raised. “He should have hide it better.”
Kyral located the cube, gestured several intricate movements, and then disappeared again through a black portal.
***
Arriving back at the mountaintop temple, the assassin walked up to the statue, placing the cube onto the pedestal that matched the carvings on the cube. “The first of many, my Lord,” confirmed the assassin.
The statue cracked a little further. “Now I have a full fifth of my power,” the voice chuckled, before continuing. “Kevin, I want you to kill the Shaolin Master Shin. Once you are successful you can burn the temple.”
A previously unnoticed man wearing a black cloak walked in from the shadows and replied, “Of course, my Lord.”
***
Master Thompson looked at his medallion and saw a part of the crystal crack. Oh no! Another one has fallen, he thought. No sooner had it cracked though, the crystal’s section mended and became bright again. Good, a successor was picked, thought the Master as he began meditating.
I think I might have to choose my successor soon, or all is lost, thought the Master.
Chapter 6: Out with the old and in with the new
Alexander was breathing heavily, as was his opponent Lenora as they sparred again. They had spent many hours together over the previous two months. They sparred daily, and had gradually grown to respect each other’s skills.
The headstrong, young nineteen-year-old woman had finally apologized for the way she had acted on their first meeting, and eventually thanked Alexander for helping her out.
Alexander had now advanced in Muay Thai sufficiently to be equal to the level Lenora was at when they first met. Lenora has also progressed and was now able to fight her Master to a standstill.
In becoming closer the pair gradually began to confide in each other over more personal aspects of their lives.
In the two months that passed, Alexander taught Lenora and the other students the basics of the Snake stance. Those that excelled and who passed the first tier, he moved on to show them more advanced moves. He also finished the scroll of the Dragon and Tiger stances and was now working on the Leopard. Alexander was now sure that all the Masters were insane in their training. He was bruised and battered from both the exercises and the beatings he endured during the initial spars with Lenora. He had even had to strike a boulder with an exposed knee one hundred times with each leg. His Master watching as he increased his leg and knee strength. During spars, he was being limited to Muay Thai only, causing him several painful defeats by Lenora before he was able to better defend himself against her attacks.
Part of his training also included the ankle weights that his first Master, Luray, had used. Building his speed up by rigorously training with the additional weight.
***
In the Shaolin Wu Shi temple, a baldheaded monk was meditating with a medallion on his lap. So how many of us are left? The monk considered, looking at the artifact. The Master that had recently passed had evidently picked a student to replace him, as the medallion was lit up where previously it had been dark.
A figure approached the monk at speed, as three others followed behind, nearin
g the monk he exclaimed, “Sifu Shin, an intruder is heading this way!”
Shin got up and grabbed a bo staff. “I’ll deal with this. The rest of you stay here,” he said, forecfully. “Tell Guan that he is in charge should I be killed.”
Using his staff as a cane he slowly walked out of the temple and down the path to the grounds where the monks trained. A robed figure approached as he reached the bottom.
“Master Shin, it's a good day to die,” said the intruder as he took off his hood, revealing the slicked-back brown hair beneath. Holstered on his back were two pikes.
“May I know the name of he who I'm facing?” asked Shin.
The man bowed and answered. “My name is Kevin of the Wind, one of the five generals of the Lord of Shadows’ army."
The monk brought his staff to a ready position as Kevin pulled a pike from its holster. The two opponents charged forward.
Shin took the offensive as he went in low with a calculated swing, but Kevin was swift to block the attack as the two weapons locked together. Shin pulled away, managing to trip his opponent with his foot as he retreated with his staff. Kevin rolled off the ground, swinging his pike as he rose, Shin managing to redirect it to the side before it smashed into his midriff.
Kevin growled as he pulled out a second pike. Spinning them around, he went for a strike with one only for it to be parried. He slashed at the monk’s staff with his second pike, cutting it in clean in half.
The Master, sensing defeat, backed up and went into his monkey stance ready to fight his assailant to the death. Alert to his advantage Kevin threw one pike at the elderly monk, but it was successfully blocked with the remaining section of staff he still held in his hand.
Kevin rushed forward trying to stab him with the blade of his remaining weapon, but he failed to land a hit as Shin evaded the blade. Shin followed this by disarming Kevin of his pike, hitting his palm hard against the hand of his attacker and simultaneously kicking him back.
Kevin went into a Kenpo stance as Shin stayed in his favored Monkey Kung Fu position. Both enemies stared each other down before rushing forward.
Kevin went for a punch to the chest, but his fist was parried and he was flipped to the right as Shin moved his bodyweight to the left. He rolled away as Shin jumped down with both feet, a move Shin aimed for his opponent’s esophagus, trying to end the fight with one killer blow.
Kevin raised himself up onto one knee and grabbed his fallen pike from the ground beside him. He was backed up though as Shin attacked with the second pike, Kevin’s other weapon grazing his chest as it was used against him. As he started to raise his own pike, the other pikes' blade was placed against his throat by Shin.
“Do it. I lost.” Kevin dropped his pike, awaiting death as Master Shin raised his blade, ready to strike.
“You fought well and have some honor,” Shin said before he gasped and started to stumble, droplets of blood appeared at the corner of his mouth.
Kevin looked up to see a dark warrior with a bloody sword, impaling the Master in front of him. The Master’s body slid from the sword and fell down in a heap as his expired before Kevin’s eyes.
Kevin stood and bowed to the fallen Master. “This was one-on-one. Why'd you attack him from behind?” growled Kevin as he turned to the soldier before him.
“I was ordered to help you win any way necessary,” replied the solider.
Cleared unimpressed, Kevin bent down to retrieve his pikes. “Let’s go. We've got a job to do. As much as I hate killing without honor, I realize we have orders to fulfill.”
***
“Alexander, you want to get some lunch at the mess hall?” Lenora asked as they completed their latest bout of sparring.
Alexander messaged his sore neck, “Sure, I'm famished,” he replied, moving on to rub his stomach. The two left the mat and headed to the dojo’s mess hall. Collecting their food they sat at a table across from each other, away from the other students. “So how's your training to become a Master going?” Alexander asked through a mouthful of pasta.
The young woman chuckled at the painful memory of her training over the past few months. “Never have I been this tired in my whole life. Now I know how you felt when you started the training under Master Thompson,” she responded.
“Didn’t he train you just as hard?” asked Alexander.
Lenora laughed. “Hard, yes, but not as bad as you. I told him off at first for going easy on me. After that it was harder, but I persevered.”
She turned serious, “I wanted to prove that women can be just as strong as men. There’s no need to be handled with kid gloves."
Alexander grinned at her. “You want proof that women can be just as strong? Just look at the bruises that you gave me during our sparring sessions."
Lenora smiled at her friend’s attempt to encourage her. “Thanks.”
Alexander took another bite of pasta and swallowed. “Listen to me, Lenora. I’m glad you don’t let others dictate what you can or can’t do. Only you can decide how strong you are through hard work and resilience."
“A very wise statement, Alexander, and very true,” said Master Thompson as he walked up to the table with his own tray.
He looked at his star pupil. “Heed his advice, Lenora, and you'll surpass me in skill," the Master said kindly as he put his hand on her shoulder.
“It’s true that only you can determine your own worth, no one else, only you. That being said, we can certainly help you when you need it. We're a family not by blood, but by bond. A family that stands together." He smiled kindly as the two students got up and bowed to their master, who bowed in return. “I need you both in my study after you finish your meal. I need to discuss something with you,” he said seriously. The two nodded their heads as Thompson walked away.
Later, the two students of the dojo walked to Master Thompson’s study and saw him writing. “There's been an attack on several more Masters of the White Rose and we've lost a second key,” he said with sorrow.
Lenora looked at her Master with confusion. “What're you talking about, Master?”
“I'll explain, Lenora, since only Alexander and I know what’s going on.” She glared at her friend, unimpressed that he hadn’t chosen to share this with her.
The Master attempted to ease the tension between the friends, “I told him to not tell anyone except current Masters, so don’t be upset with him, Lenora. I've been in contact with the other Masters and they're concerned. We might all be targeted, myself included.”
Alexander nodded his head. “It looks like they are taking out each Master individually, but aren't killing all of the students, which is odd.”
"Maybe they think you aren’t a threat to their plans or worthy of killing? We can hopefully use that arrogance to get strong enough to fight them. To them you're nothing but children and can be dealt with at any time,” surmised the Master.
“Why haven’t the Masters come together?” asked Lenora.
“Lenora, let me ask you this: We are vulnerable to attack at any time, including in a crowded area. What would happen if the Master took a plane or train station? You think the Lord of Shadows army won’t use leverage against us with a hostage?” asked Alexander.
“That makes sense,” said Lenora.
“We can’t endanger other people who have got nothing to do with this battle," Alexander told her.
“Plus,” added the Master, “the Masters are around the world and we shouldn’t come together. In doing so we would be making ourselves a bigger target. Let them expend themselves in finding us, that way they’ll need more resources to try and take us out. Brute force isn't the only way to fight.”
“Luray said subterfuge and cleverness is a greater weapon than brute force, and I agree with that completely,” Alexander agreed.
Master Thompson stood. “Yes, Luray was the most tactically minded of the current Masters. Before retiring I have one last thing to do so I can sleep better. Please step forward, Lenora.”
Len
ora rose and approached the Master, unsure of what he was about to do.
“Lenora, as of now you’re my successor in the Muay Thai style,” said the Master as he handed her his own medallion. “Use this artifact to let you know how many of us are left. Alexander will teach you how to use it."
Lenora was visibly shaken. “Are you planning on dying, Master?” she asked quietly.
Master Thompson closed his eyes and sighed. “It’s very possible. We have lost two just recently and Luray a few months ago.”
Alexander walked forward. “Which ones have been murdered?” he asked.
“I just found out that Master Shin of the Wu Shi academy, Master of the Shaolin Fist and Monkey Kung Fu, was killed, and Master Estefan of Brazil, Master of Jijutsu, before him,” said the Master.
“Did Master Shin manage to select his successor in time?” asked Alexander
“Yes. Before he passed, he chose a young monk named Guan Jiao, who's considered a prodigy in the style. He is both honorable and level-headed.”
Lenora bowed her head. “Thank you, Master, for this honor; I shall do all I can to help protect this world from the Lord of Shadows’ evil,” she declared, her voice strong with determination.
Alexander turned to her and bowed. “I shall assist you, Master Lenora,” he said, causing Master Thompson to smile.
***
In the temple on the mountain, five figures were standing in a circle clothed in black cloaks and hoods.
“Good, all my generals are here,” the Voice noted. Two cubes now sat in their places on the pedestals. The crack in the Norse statue had grown further with the addition of the second cube. “I'm at two-fifths of my power thanks to the recent extermination of Master Shin and the burning of his precious academy. I can feel myself growing ever stronger."
Kyral walked up and smirked. “Too bad the only one who failed to get a key was Nicolson.”
Luray’s murderer growled. “Say that to my face, you little punk!” he shouted as he pulled out his sword.
The Lord of Shadows Rises Page 5
