Chương 42: An Imposible Mission

I tried making excuses.

"Mr. Cheng, I really need to go home. My Grandma called me, said she's having a heart attack, so I've gotta go take her to the hospital."

"That is very impressive for a girl with no phone."

"It was telepathic. Yep, no need for phone bills when you've got psychics in the family. It's really nice, saves us lots of money." He kept his hand on my wrist, dragging me to the acupuncture room.

"Mr. Cheng, I have an exam tomorrow and I basically have to read an entire book tonight in order to pass it. And when I say book what I really mean is a giant encyclopedia." He didn't even glance back.

"When you fail it will be a valuable lesson to not neglect your studies."

"Mr. Cheng, it's just not safe for me to be out so late at night in this kind of neighborhood." Okay, given the subject matter, that one really wasn't the smartest to put out there. His head turned to look at me out of the corner of his eyes.

"It seems you learned this personally." We went inside the room, and I sat on the table as he clicked the door closed. Then he leaned against it, arms folded across his chest.

"You have much to explain to me, Ben Niao." I leaned back against a cabinet. With so many interrogations lately, I should probably be a lot better at lying through them.

"You know, you told me that name means the early bird gets the worm, but I just keep getting the feeling that it means something more insulting. So maybe you have some explaining to do to me." He shook his head and sighed.

"Fine, I will explain your name but after you will explain your wounds to me." My brilliant deflection was not as effective as I had hoped.

"Ok, fine. What does it mean?"

"You are correct, its actual meaning is the clumsy bird flies early." I held a palm up in the air.

"Okay… so it's like the ugly duckling– the one you don't expect to be best ends up outshining the others."

"Not exactly, it means the clumsy bird must fly early to compensate for its lack of natural ability. They must work harder. And you are that clumsy bird." I slumped a bit further on the desk, my lips pouting. And here I thought I'd been given the better nickname than dear brother.

"Why do you want to work with me, then? Apparently, even a stubborn pig is more skilled."

"Clumsiness can change to skill over time, when the student tries to change– and you do. Stubbornness most often only increases and Tianyu certainly does not want to change it." I examined my fingernails. That was a bit better.

"It seems you have been extra clumsy lately. Now, I have explained to you, so you will explain your injuries to me." My neck gave a loud crack as I readjusted my shoulders, the way baseball players' do when they're getting ready to bat.

"Your neighborhood is dangerous, okay? I happened to be walking back from lessons at your place, and I was practicing my yin stuff because you told me to, but it made me walk longer than I should have and at a certain point, I kind of ran into a… Chem Head." Laushu stiffened.

"Go on."

"I didn't mean for anything to happen, but there was a guy who was hurt on the ground and the girl had a gun and so before I knew it, she had just kind of dragged me into a fight." His eyebrows raised halfway up his forehead.

"You fought a woman with a gun? You are flying early."

"I had to do something, she was going to hurt someone."

"It is always a noble thing to help another. You did well, Ben Niao." Warm and fuzzy feelings stirred inside of me and my head dipped down.

"Yeah well, it was a crazy fight."

"I see. And this is where you improved your acupuncture skills so quickly?" He had noticed. But still, I could work with this.

"Yes, I really found that the whole life or death, is-this-mutant-chick-going-to- end-me-or-not scenario really sharpened my focus. I used my chopstick at first and that disabled one arm, but she knocked it away and kept going. So then I had to use my fingers for the second one at the last minute and it worked." Mr. Cheng's face had hardly changed while I talked. His features were neither mad nor surprised, they were just set in stone, unmoving.

"You called her a mutant– what powers did she gain?" I held up my arms.

"A cat's. Well, she got the claws of one anyway. And teeth. And appetite." A wave of nausea hit. I could still see her pupils shaking when I closed my eyes.

"She liked licking my blood." He muttered Mandarin under his breath, standing up and looking through cupboards.

"But you won the fight?" I sat up straighter.

"As a matter of fact, I did. She scratched my arms and tried to strangle me but I won. You should have seen the look on her face when she realized she had two completely useless arms flopping around at her sides. Well, no you shouldn't, because it will haunt your nightmares if you do."

"I have seen enough of their faces. She must have choked you after she lost her first arm then, yes?" Trust a Kung Fu expert to understand how injuries come about.

"Yes. If she'd had both hands, I wouldn't be sitting here talking with you now, except maybe in ghost form so that you could enact my revenge. But she only had one so that gave me the chance to poke her before nearly dying of asphyxiation." Laushu held something in his hands as he sat down in front of me. It was a small tube of something with Chinese characters on it. He unscrewed the top and squeezed an orange-red paste onto my arm, smelling strangely of curry. A warm burning sensation undulated along my skin.

"That will help smooth the scars."

"I think I'd rather eat it. I haven't had Indian in a long time."

"Perhaps you should. My porridge doesn't seem to be putting enough weight on you. Now lift your chin." I shrugged, doing as he asked.

"It is the curse of a high metabolism and low income." He took out a pot with some kind of viscous liquid inside and rubbed it on my neck. Cold seeped into my throat all the way to my windpipe, soothing everything.

"You have recovered quite quickly for having fought so hard. You clearly were cut many times, yet the scars on your arms are almost healed. And though you say you were strangled, your neck bears no marks." He stared at me steadily with a raised eyebrow. This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings. My mouth hung open as I tried to think through an excuse.

"I went to a clinic after, and they took pity on me and gave me enhanced medicine to treat it. Crazy stuff, worked like a charm." I raised a hand to my neck.

"But clearly, I should have just come to you." They say flattery will get you nowhere and that's exactly where it got me, going off of the look on his face. Mr. Cheng took out a tissue and wiped his hands.

"I am pleased that what I taught you helped when you were in danger. Let us hope you will be capable of protecting yourself if it happens again."

"I swear, it was a one time thing. I have no intention of doing it again." I couldn't look him straight in the eyes as I said it and the silence that followed after felt long.

"The world is a dangerous place, Ben Niao. You must not hide from it, but instead prepare yourself to meet it." My back straightened.

"Good idea. So, do you have any advice for if I do get into a bad situation like that again?" Mr. Cheng took a moment to think.

"The first thing, and it is the most important, is to understand just how little and weak you still are–" I opened my mouth but then closed it when he raised a finger.

"You are weak, Ben Niao, and do not forget it. The world is full of fools who think they are strong; do not trick yourself into being one of them. Know your weaknesses and work to make them smaller." If only he knew all of the things I was capable of, he wouldn't call me weak.

"I did use the things I can do– and I won."

"Barely. You should not be wrestling on the ground with anyone– especially someone who poisons themselves for borrowed power. That is where they are strong and you are weak."

"I didn't have much choice, that's just where the fight went."

"The thing to understand is that every fighter has their particular skills. Yours is to strike, that is your strength. But if you go up against a grappler, your weakness is their strength. In a fight, you must concentrate on your skills and protect your weaknesses."

"That is my second point. Like life, fighting is about finding the correct moment– the exact right point in time. You are someone who needs this more than most." He glanced at me, just a small thing, yet there was something in his eyes that made me falter.

"Because of my fighting style?"

"Yes… but also because if you don't strike at the right time they will wrestle you to the ground and strangle you to death." Mr. Cheng pointed sharply at my neck to illustrate his point.

"Ok, well what do I do if I miss my moment and wind up with a psycho strangling me to death? Any tips for emergency life and death situations?" He sighed heavily, taking his time to answer.

"There is a way, but it is very likely impossible for you to achieve."

"Why– because I'm a clumsy bird?"

"No, Ben Niao. I believe through great effort you can overcome your clumsiness and fly. I fear this obstacle will require you to overcome your very nature."

"Like mastering fear, or pain? I could learn that. What do I need to do? I can handle it."

"You must make a friend." Mr. Cheng shook his head sadly.

"As I said, an impossible task." My jaw dropped as Mr. Cheng's burn roasted my tiny ego to cinders.

"I have… a friend!" Mavis and then Orion popped up in my head.

"Multiple ones!"

"One that will stand with you when there is danger and help you when you are hurt?" I tried to picture Mavis jumping in to pull cat lady off of me. The best I could come up with was her either curled up in the corner or running for her life. It wasn't her fault. Trauma left Mavis a little broken. Orion had his gizmos, but I couldn't display my powers in front of him. Gran could decimate an opponent with her smack talking, but her bones couldn't take a hit.

"No, I don't have one of those," I said grudgingly.

"But I don't see your fight buddy either."

"I am actually very social. My friend Lee and I play goh every Friday together."

"You said someone to stand with you in danger. I can find people to play board games with, like that homeless guy down the street."

"Lee is a fierce fighter as well as an excellent goh partner. I would trust him with my life if I were in danger. When you stumble and fall in a fight, it can mean death. You need to find your Lee to catch you when that happens. The roster of people I knew ran through my head again, though it did pause on Rigel this time. Still, I sat forward, hands on my knees.

"I don't know if I can do that." He nodded.

"As I said, it is very likely impossible for you to make a friend." I huffed out air.

"I can make a friend. I'll have you know I've recently become one of the most popular people in school." Of course, it would only last a week and it was based on nothing.

"I just don't know if I can find someone I can trust."

"Ben Niao, that's exactly what a friend is." I didn't have much to say to that. My shoes became very interesting as I sat there and contemplated some of my recent choices, until Mr. Cheng's voice filled the silence.

"Ah, but you are right. This was a one time thing that will never happen again, yes? So it is very lucky that you are not out there looking for trouble and won't need anyone to help you. Better to stay safe and alone. If we don't trust anyone with our secrets, then no one can hurt us." Visions of lying to Gran, Mavis, Orion, and even Mr. Cheng right now flashed through my mind.

"It's not… I don't…" Words failed me as I struggled to find the right thing to say. He smiled down at me as he looked into my eyes.

"It's ok. Your journey is very new. You still have time to find your way. Just promise me you won't walk it alone." I swallowed hard, eyebrows pinching as I forced my eyes to look at him.

"I promise." This was one of the strangest pep talks I'd ever received, but I hadn't had many so it was hard to tell. How much did he know? Was my journey just some Chinese allegory for my life or did he know about my powers? Mr. Cheng patted my shoulder as he walked around to the dummy in the corner.

"Now show me what you can do with those impressive fingers. If you hit the dummy three times with no mistakes, I may show you the next chi point." I had been making consistent progress with the dummy and got it right most times last week. This would be the first time using it since the fight with cat lady and Brandon though. After them, poking a motionless dummy would be like taking a test for kindergarteners. I looked up at Mr. Cheng.

"I have been training my fingers, but I should probably use the chopsticks. Do you have any extra ones?" Mr. Cheng shook his head.

"You were quite impressive with your finger strike against Tianyu. My dummy is softer, you will be fine." I straightened my spine and closed my eyes. Bright sunlight flowed down over me on a breezy spring day. My feet moved into the proper stance, my lungs breathed deep, and I opened my eyes to see only that single dot next to a collarbone. My fingers lashed out, straight and stiff, rushing forward till they connected perfectly to that tiny dot. The dummy lit up yellow, signaling my success.

Before I could congratulate myself, Mr. Cheng's voice snapped out.

"Again." I had only just pulled my arm back when I struck a second time. Once again the dummy lit up and Mr. Cheng's voice, crisp and stronger than usual, repeated, "Again." I could do this. One more and he would teach me another chi point. Soon I would be a Kung Fu ninja, knocking enemies down and making them pee their pants… or whatever other things chi points could do. Thrusting my hand forward again with my two fingers extended, I connected and the light flashed a third time. Looking over my shoulder, I saw Mr.

Cheng's sharp eyes watching.

"Very good Ben Niao. Your aim has improved quickly." I bowed my head.

"Thank you Laushu."

"The strength of your fingers is particularly impressive. You seemed to have mastered the diamond finger technique."

"Yes, sir. I saw you do that on the first day and have been practicing at home." I mean, I'd pictured it a lot in my head. A small smile grew on his face.

"You must have seen me perform it years ago and have been practicing it for some time. The diamond finger technique requires years of training. Three months of striking a bucket of dried beans with your fingertips. Then three more with a bucket of sand. After that you switched to river rocks for six months. It would have been painful but the training paid off. Two more years of practicing against wooden boards. It's clear why I took you as my student when you came to me with such proof of your dedication."

He gestured at my hands dramatically. My mouth hung open. I felt more like I should have taken notes on my imaginary training routine. I spluttered.

"Umm, yes?" Mr. Cheng sighed.

"Be sure to tell any that ask about the long and grueling training that was needed to shape your fingers into such weapons." I faltered for a second as my brain made the necessary connections, then bowed deeply a second time.

"Yes Laushu. Thank you." He knew something wasn't normal about me, and was helping me come up with excuses. Mr. Cheng was the best Laushu.

"Now it's time to learn your next Chi point. You are not the tallest student I have taught. What you need is a way to bring your opponent down to your level." He pointed to the dummy just below the hip. If you strike the chi point here you will disrupt the chi flow to the knee and your opponent will not be able to straighten it." Visions of chem heads trying to move around with one or both legs disabled filled my mind.

"How long does it last?"

"Several hours. It's the same as the arms."

"Perfect," I said, sliding into the fighting stance.

"I'm ready to learn."