Poison City

Gloria whipped her right leg at the old woman’s waist, but her opponent just turned the wooden staff and shoved it in the way of the kick. Another metal clashing sound exploded, and both of them bounced backwards from the impact.

“You are good. Young woman. Much better than I expected.” The old woman chuckled: “It reminds me of my younger years, and some of my old friends. Who did you say you learn all your skills from again?”

“I didn’t.” Gloria panted: “What kind of style are you using? Why don’t you tell me who trained you?”

“I might as well tell you, since as Watchers, we are not allowed or able to leave here.” The old woman stretched her arms and shoulders slightly: “My style is called Spirit Crane Style, I don’t know if anyone is still practicing it. And I learned it from a Watcher before me - before us. She had served the community as well as the city for three decades.”

“I was trained by my - basically my adopted family.” Gloria let out her answer in a way that was as plain as possible: “I chose my style since I could learn it the fastest.”

“Wise choice. And no wonder you caught my call outs to you so early.” The old woman chuckled as she twirled the wooden staff.

“What?”

“You’ll find out - when you’re ready.” The old woman let out a loud and high-pitched cackle before she stomped the cement ground beneath her feet and launched herself at Gloria. The sharp tail of her wooden staff thrust at Gloria, unleashing a flurry of purple Qi blades and spikes at her.

Gloria shot left and right to evade the attacks, while taking all opportunities she could to shoot claw marks at the old woman. The old woman tapped her right feet on a protruding brick corner on the ground to shift her direction. The dull end of her wooden staff left a long, winding purple trail of light as it shot through the air.

Cement pebbles and shattered bricks flew in all directions, as the hunk of wood gauged from what looked like a sturdy tree knot crashed into the ground. Gloria flipped in the air and swung her leg down at the woman’s shoulder. Her ankle was met with the old woman’s palm. Their Qi pushed against each other. And after a brief moment both of them had to back away.

As Gloria adjusted her position in the air, she slashed the air between the old woman and her with her left hand and unleashed a crescent-shaped Qi blade. It was once again blocked by the old woman’s wooden staff.

Gloria’s fingers sunk into the ground just when she touched down. With a quick raise of her arm, splinters of rocks blasted at the old woman like a wide-spread shotgun.

A Qi shield appeared in front of the old woman. Most of the rock splinters were ground to dust in midair. Three of them, however, were especially resilient with Gloria’s Qi infused, and the old woman had to lower her body in order to not get hit. But still one of the splinters left a gash on her robe.

Gloria broke through the lingering dust between them and unleashed two consecutive kicks at the old woman. The first one was blocked by the staff, and the second ripped the staff right out of the old woman’s fingers.

The old woman gasped and could not help but look back at the weapon. Just when she turned around, the tips of Gloria’s middle and index fingers were already pointing right at her throat. If there was any Qi on her finger it would have left a mark, or way worse.

“Very good. Young lady.” The old woman chuckled.

“Let my friend go.” Gloria demanded.

“Already did.” The old man answered behind her.

“Now. As tradition would dictate, would you like to become the new Watchers?” The old woman waved her right hand and the wooden staff just flew into her arm.

“No, of course not.” Gloria refused without even a hint of hesitation.

“Just like I would expect. Good on you.” The old woman sighed, then gestured to the old man: “Let’s head to the burial site then. That is what you came here for, right?”

“What is in the burial site?” Tae Kuo caught up to them along with the old man.

“You’ll see. And from it - you will understand why this entire community was abandoned.” The old man sighed.

“This is a minor auspicious spot right? What could have turned things this way?” Gloria asked.

“For one, whatever’s going on in the city and possibly the lake.” The old woman shook her head: “And one day, I’m afraid soon, whatever lies here will spread to other areas, through underground meridians of water and the natural flow of Qiyun.”

Just as Gloria was about to follow up with a question, she saw the ghostly woman in a green dress approaching. The old woman extended a hand at the ghostly woman, and the ghostly woman’s figure turned transparent, before going into the old woman’s body.

“This is a part of my soul. The cost of being a Watcher, and the very reason we cannot leave. Our bind, and our curse.” The old woman looked up at the sky: “Unless a very powerful spell breaks this bind and mends our souls, we are to remain here until we die.”

“This can’t be good for anyone, not you, or the one who did the bind.” Tae Kuo narrowed his eyes: “Who are these people?”

“They work for the city and the community collective.” The old man answered: “And they have loyalty to neither. It’s just - layers and layers of temporary measures to keep things from falling apart. But I’m afraid things are coming to an end soon.”