Four years ago...
A nineteen year old Mina was excited for some strange reason. It was not
her first time in the midst of the teeming masses of Ming Dynasty China.
However, the young woman beside her, three years younger, had come to
this majestic summer palace to introduce the young warrior to her
superior... the emperor himself.
Though she was enthralled by his very presence, she was nervous as all
hell, no matter how much the emperor himself told her to relax. She
explained that the only way to relax, at least for her, was to perfect
her art. And so, on the center stage of that garden lake, she was asked
to demonstrate.
No one expected for her to do so well in the sight of the emperor, as
well as her new friend. Even the most seasoned of veterans in the
Personal Guard, which she was traveling with, broke out in applause.
Blushing, she muttered sheepishly that she was not fully trained yet.
The emperor begged to differ, going so far as to ask her to join his own
Personal Guards. She was in shock, but her friend suggested it. It would
be convienient, and aid in her training. But Mina refused. Until she was
ready for such a task, she would not join this elite. However, she would
keep it in the back of her mind, for the time being.
It was then that the sixteen year old woman began to have her feelings
shift toward the fiery Seung Mina...
Chapter 2: The New Age
________________________________________________________________________
Seung Mountain. A lone woman walks down the stone steps in a state of
thought. 'That presence... I can't shake it. What was it? Could it be a
side effect of this "Evil Seed" that people are going crazy from?' Then,
with horror, 'So that means that MY weapon is possesed by a demon!
Wait... it didn't seem that way. That... thing or whatever helped me out
at the school. But why? And it said something... I think it said 'It
begins.' What begins?' At this point, Mina's head began to pound.
"Whatever. Just think about it later."
As she completes her walk down the mountain, Mina was already feeling
better. She had escaped, and was once again on the road. But, of course,
the effort involved drained her energy; she was hungry, and tired. "I
think I'll stop by Beni's for a snack."
________________________________________________________________________
The local bar was not only the home of the best food and drinks in town,
but also doubled as an inn. However, what it was really notorious for
was the frequent stops of mercenaries and adventurers, mostly seeking
information. And who better to pass out information than an informant:
Benten "The Banshee" Shirou, a former warrior, and an active part of
Heishero Mitsurugi's information network. And this day was no different.
For the thousandth time that day, the door had opened. "Sit down," he
said with an almost indifferent tone, "and I'll be right with ya."
"Really now, is that any way to treat your customers, much less your
friends?" with a surprised, and shocked look on his face, he turns
toward the door to see... "Seung Mina! I heard that you were locked in
the school-" "News still travels fast around here, I see." Beni finally
calmed down and, with a smile, said "Hmph. It's not everyday that one
has the element of surprise on me. I assure you that it won't happen
twice."
Mina ate with a passion, which didn't surprise Beni one bit. "You should
slow down. Don't want you running out of breathing room, do we?"
As she swallowed anoter mouthfull, she said "Point taken; I'll be
careful. So," As she settled down, "What's happened while I was away?"
The informant's face was suddenly stern. "You're sure you wanna hear it?
You might not like what you hear..." Mina stopped eating. "Try me. I'm a
really good listener." "Sure... fine, but I warned you."
________________________________________________________________________
Outside, a woman of age twenty had just entered the town by boat. Her
outfit was white with a black bra. The top had a blue flame insignia on
both sleeves, and a butterfly print on the back. The pants exposed
almost all of her legs, save the hips. Her shoes were blue, and matched
with the outfit quite nicely. But what surprised people the most was
what was at her waist: A chinese double-edged sword. Her innocent look
made it seem like she never engaged in actual combat, but she was quite
skilled. And she had gone through quite a lot to find what she called
her "one true treasure". "Seung Mina... where are you?"
________________________________________________________________________
"So, lemme get this straight... this "evil seed" is only the shards of
the first sword that were spread by the wind?" "Told you. Sounds
impossible, doesn't it?" "No, it makes perfect sense. A sword with that
much influence and power could change anyone, even with a little piece
of it!" Beni was more than impressed. "You know more about this than you
let on, don't you? Anyway, those things are every where, maybe even
here." And he cringed at the thought. "I don't wanna think about it."
'Neither do I... because that would mean my weapon is possesed as well!
Then what would I do?' In the midst of her dismay, she managed to say
"I'm a little tired, Beni. Whrer're your rooms at?" "You forgot the way
already? What's happened to you?"
At the same moment, the young woman from the dock had walked into the
bar. She didn't have to announce herself; the combination of her figure
and her clothes made enough of a statement. 'Hmph. Where is she?'
"Lookin' fer sumthin', little woman?" The lady turned around to face a
drunkard who obviously had the wrong idea. 'Not you, idiot, so move.'
"Did a woman wearing red and orange walk in here?" "'Ey, what're you
intrested in a woman for? I've got whatcha need." "Uh... okay, but I'm
not interested, so please move."
"Yeah, well jus' lemme show you..." He was cut off by a shot to the gut.
"I didn't say you could touch me, now did I? So please move... before it
gets worse." "Hey, girl. You can't do that without paying first." Three
other drunkards stood to fight... "Over here, when ya start a fight, you
have to finish it! Right, guys?" The other two said nothing, but only
smiled and reached for their swords.
________________________________________________________________________
Sleep. A state of outward peace where the body gets to rest... yet the
inner turmoil still exists. 'My weapon... my treasure. I've had it since
I was a baby... how could this happen?' Mina had doubts from the
beginning. Her weapon, possesed? Then it was no longer reliable! Without
her weapon, she was... 'Nothing. You're naive AND predictable, you know
that?' That again. She could get no rest.
'Who, or rather what, are you?' 'It is one of those things that is
difficult to explain. But I will tell you this: I am not a demon...
yet.' '"Yet"? What're you saying?' The stranger replied with 'It's
funny... with all the world's confusion, there is nothing I can say or
do that will convince you. That's why I speak in riddles... to make you
think for yourself, since you say you can.' That didn't help. 'What, no
clues?' 'Only this: "A weapon is only a saint or demon because of the
owner's soul."'
Now, that helped, if only a little. Mina had learned much about the
power within all human beings from both Kong and Edge Master. She began
to consider all that she learned... and one thing came up: "Where your
mind is, there your soul is also." This is why she took up meditation
when she got dragged home again, to clear her mind.
Once her mind was cleansed, her soul would be cleansed also, not to
mention the fact that she felt worlds better afterwards. And if she felt
good, she seemed to have an effect on people, and a good one at that.
But the biggest difference was how she fought. When she fought like
that, it made her think that she was holding back for all this time...
'Hah. You've figured it out.' Mina knew the lesson. 'I think I have. A
weapon is only as good or evil as the one who uses it.' But she still
had no clue. 'Hm. Well, then. You'll know soon enough.' Silence...for
now.
________________________________________________________________________
The fight had ended quite quickly, with Beni's help. After throwing the
lushes out on their asses, he turned to the girl. "I should kick you out
too, but I knew that you didn't start the fight. Besides, you'd have
kicked my a**, too... miss Chai Xianghua." The warrior smiled at the
mention of her name. "You would've figured it out anyway, Benten." "And
don't forget it. By the way, she's upstairs..."
_________________________________________________________________________
Mina had finally awakened. It was late, much later than she expected to
wake up. But the bed was so comfy that she couldn't move. But that
wasn't the only reason: she was frozen with surprise at her new guest...
"Finally... we finally meet again, Seung Mina." She only smiled, and
said, "Hello again, Xianghua."
Yue Dragoon for part 3
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