"Ten... twelve... fifteen..."
Martial Kim counted under his breath, eyes fixed on the tall grass swaying around the isolated cabin. To an ordinary observer, the scene might appear calm. Only the grasses and dense shrubbery shifting like waves across a golden sea. But to Martial Kim, every carefree rustle and sway felt charged with tension.
Everything looked quiet on the front. But the silence it felt loud in his heart.
Unease continued to grow inside of the young master as he pulled back his gaze to peer through one window angle after another. He moved with caution, shifting through the house to close as many windows as possible – bottle-necking any strategic points. Alas, the foreign mechanism on them resisted his attempts and frustration didn’t help his nerves.
Turning a corner he stumbled into Keekee, huddled in the shadows of the kitchen and trembling.
--- What is she doing back out here? I thought she locked herself in her room... What kind of weapon is she carrying?
"Miss Keekee?" The young master raised an eyebrow, "I did not take you for a quarterstaff fighter."
"Quarter what? Th-this is my grandma's hunting rifle!"
Keekee gripped onto the weapon with both hands, even harder than her white knuckles could bear, and tried to shuffle to the front to take a sniper’s position...well, ‘sniper-like’. "I-I've shot it, on-once or twice. You know, f-for game animals, so—"
Martial Kim stopped his friend from proceeding any further and pushed her back by towing the metal shaft of the weapon like a rope lead. He would gently guide her back to her room and begin to close the door for her. All with a kindred smile.
“Miss Keekee, you need not bloody your hands.”
“...K..Kim.”
“Stay here and cover your ears if you must. I will return shortly.”
Martial Kim drifted away from the door – only to be anchored by a grab of Keekee’s hand.
“K-Kim! Please, do-don’t go out there alone! L-let me call the police!”
“The enemy is about to knock on our door. There is no time. Please worry not, I will be fine. I swear to protect you.” Martial Kim patted her hand, before slipping out of her reach, “Everything is going to be alright.”
“KIM! WAIT!--”
The young master politely closed the door on his friend. He waited for the scared pounding to fade away, before he loosened his grip. It was only when he felt something akin to a lock put in place, and perhaps some furniture dragged to the door, did he finally let go of the door knob.
--- To think even in this utopia of a strange world, villains believe they can do whatever they so please.
“Shameful, most shameful.”
And like any knight-errant of the great martial world – it was time to redress this wrong doing.
Martial Kim reached for his trusty sword-stick, leaning just within reach in the corner of the kitchen. He grasped it with practiced ease, feeling the familiar weight settle in his hand as he closed the back door behind him. With a quick and controlled twirl he tested its balance, recalibrating himself to its heft, every movement smooth and measured.
However, his ear twitched at peculiar sounds hidden within the ambience.
“One weapon will not be enough for their reinforcements.” He muttered under his breath. He searched about to find a bonus item to arm himself. “Ah, lovely. Just the right size and weight.”
Martial Kim walked over to the pile of firewood leaning against the cabin wall. He shifted through the collection, as if picking which piece to carve out of, until he felt pleased with one peculiar kindling. He gave it a test flip in his hand and a swing or two.
“Excellent. Now, to greet our guests.”
The young master then turned to the grass, as if hailing a friend.
“Must be tiring, to crawl through the grass like rats.” Martial Kim chuckled. “Miss Keekee is a gracious young woman. If you all kowtow as an apology, she will accept it and let the matter slide. It is not too late, to put down your blades and turn to a righteous path! To turn over a new leaf!”
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“No? Last chance!”
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“Very well.” Martial Kim crouched into a sword stance. Main hand armed with his sword-stick, his secondary turning the kindling around like a reverse dagger. He wound up his body like a coil and-- “I call this manoeuvre – Moon Snake in the Sleeve!”
The first move was made!
Martial Kim unleashed his wind up into a violent spin, firing off his inner energy as shot of Sword Force that ripped through the ground and cutting through the tall grass. Every projectile of raw force energy wove through the fields like a hunting snake and they lashed out to bite onto their prey.
“GAAAAAAAAAAH!” Several men in black were launched out of the grass fields, ejected by the whips of the force snakes that collided into them!
Martial Kim followed up with a second move; he helicoptered up into the air and delivered flying waves of force from his weapons to bash and beat the grass and bushes as if driving out an animal!
Men in black were tossed out of their hiding places, send them scattering and breaking their well planned formation. Wh-what the hell was that, they thought, a god damn meteor!?
"Deliver your grievance upon me!" Martial Kim barked as he landed in a soft stance, "There is no honour in bullying a defenseless lady!"
The chaos breaking out in front of the cabin may have served as a makeshift signal.
More men and women in black rushed up the trail and fields to surround the young master from all angles. What surprised the warrior, was the fact t hey weren’t armed. Correction, they were armed with strange weaponry that he had never seen before.
--- Hand crossbows? I thought they were still in their prototype stages back in the Baek-Je Monarchy, they should not be in circulation. Better question, where is the string and bow?
Given the circumstances, there was only one thing he can do – hit them before they pull the trigger.
Martial Kim would continue to use his Dance of the Moon Sage swordplay to sweep through the crowd. Unlike the fight with the 200 skull warriors, he can feel a sense of purpose and intent with the enemy movements. Not at all play acting. And these attackers, were full of surprises.
When he tried to land a strike on one enemy, another would intercept them with a strange shield!
--- A glass shield? Strange, no matter how many strikes I deliver, it is not breaking? Impossible!
The enemy regained their footing and formed up. They created a wall of tall ‘glass shields’ and tried to force the young master back into whatever corner they could muster. They would even try to intimidate him, beating clubs against the shield in marching unison.
BEAT! BEAT! BEAT! BEAT! BEAT! BEAT! BEAT!
--- Why does something feel off about these attackers? None of them look like the ones that tried to rape Miss Keekee. And how could mountain bandits be this well armed and coordinated. Who did Miss Keekee offend to send such assassins after her?
The way the attackers kept changing their tactics, glass wall formations, even trying to lunge at him at random angles, started to put Martial Kim in a complete disadvantage. His sword-stick shattered when he knocked one shield out of his way and he knocked one attacker out by throwing his kindling dagger like a hatchet to the head—KLONK.
Just when the enemy thought they have the high ground, Martial Kim flipped those tables – WITH HIS MARTIAL BARE HANDS!
Martial Kim’s didn’t miss a beat to deliver head whipping punches, chest crushing palm strikes, limb twisting kicks, and neck strangling leg locks between his knees. Once he figure out their rhythm, he disarmed them of their hand crossbow and glass shield one by one.
In one final push, the attackers charged the young master to bury him in a dog pile. No escape! Martial Kim braced himself, eyes narrowed in focus. At the last possible second, he unleashed a burst of his inner energy and channelled it into a flying shockwave!
With the force of crashing ocean waves, it swept the attackers off their feet and tumble across the ground like leaves thrown in a storm. And Martial Kim roared like the storm’s thunderclap.
“You shall not pass!”
“KIM! WAIT! S-SURRENDER, QUICK!”
The young master twitched at the familiar scream and whipped his head around, “M-Miss Keekee? Quick, get back inside or—”
“It’s a misunderstanding! Kim d-don’t fight them any more!”
“Wh-what do you mean, misunderstanding?”
“They’re the police!”
“.........Oooooh.”
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