After a beating and two days, Mao and Bella come across a village. There are several farms in this village along with a church and a school with various houses and shops near it. Bella brings Mao to a farm where the owners are allowing a few of the kids to ride the horses they have.
“I swear Bella! Your childlike personality is out of control!”
“But look at the horses!”
“I had dozens of them, but you didn’t care much for them.”
“That’s because you had them scarred to mark them as yours.”
“It made them look intimidating and battle experienced!”
“You made them look like a fantasy horse.”
“Which is scarier than a normal one.”
“Right…and I’m the one with a child’s personality.”
Since Mao isn’t too fond of riding the horses, he gets the adults to put him on it as she rides in front and he has to hold onto her back.
“This is embarrassing!” Mao says.
“This is great!” Bella says as she rides around the field with the horse.
It’s always been one of her favorite things to do years ago. She used to race horses with her fellow town’s people and do obstacle courses. Feeling that she still has the skill, she goes through the obstacle course that’s on the farm ground. Since Mao’s teenage body isn’t used to riding on a horse and wasn’t sure about Bella’s risky movements, he threw up after they finished their ride. Everyone who was watching claps at Bella’s performance and the owners tell her she can come back anytime she wants. They give her and Mao an apple pie as they leave.
“Can we eat it now?”
“But you just threw up!”
“And now I’m hungry because of it!”
“Fine.”
They both eat half of the pie before continuing to walk through the town. Unlike the previous town, this smaller one is quieter and less busy. It still manages to stay alive seemingly because of the community and farms around it, but the area itself has nothing of interest to Mao and Bella so they move on to the next area of interest. Along the way, they come across highwaymen robbing a young boy. The boy appears to have already tried resisting to no result.
“They’re mine,” Mao says as he transforms and tangles the robbers in his tendrils.
Everything they have including their clothes disintegrate and the thieves are left with nothing though the boy’s possessions are untouched. They run away from Mao in fear while the young boy stays where he is because he doesn’t know what to do.
Mao transforms back to a human and asks the boy, “Are you alright?”
“Yo-You’re like me?” the boy says.
“We both are,” Bella says, “Now go back to where you’re from.”
“I can’t I won’t,” the boy says as he collects what was stole from him.
“Why’s that?”
“It’s full of terrible people who touch me in weird ways.”
“We’ll deal with them. There’s a farm town not too far from here. Go there and they’ll take care of you.”
“Thank you so much!”
As the boy leaves, Mao says, “This place should be interesting.”
“That means we have to be careful,” Bella says.
“It means we’re going to be encountering a lot of sin and I love ridding the world of it.”
“Don’t be so caught up in violence. It’s what got you in this situation in the first place.”
“It’s what lead me to you, so it’s not all bad.”
“Don’t sweet talk me like that mister or else you’ll be getting my hand on your face again.”
“I love you.”
“…I love you too.”
Bella tries swinging at him, but he dodges it.
“Ha! Missed me, missed me, now you gotta kiss me.”
Bella kisses Mao’s face then smacks it.
“That was worth it.”
The couple makes it to the town the boy was from and it appears to be a cesspool of sin. It even smells the part as well. This town is filled with prostitutes and killers alike that don’t mind showing their private business in the open. Among the crowd, Mao spots a normal looking family that appears to be moving from the town. This familiar sight of a good family in a terrible area brings Mao back to his childhood.
“Do you think my parents are proud of me?” Mao says aloud without realizing, “Did I really let them get the best of me when they died? Do they regret having me after I did? Am I a bastard child? Bella?”
Mao notices that Bella isn’t with him and panics. Back when they were adults, Bella used to be interested in the human figure and liked making art that bordered on pornography. Mao is thinking that she’s watching these people and getting caught up in them for her “art”.
An older woman pulls Mao aside and says, “You’re a cute young man. Want to have some fun?”
Though this woman looks better than Bella, Mao rejects her by saying, “I don’t associate myself with harlots. Besides, I’m married.”
“Who cares about marriage? Trust me, when I’m done with you, you won’t want to be married.”
“I respectfully reject your offer now leave me be.”
The cougar pins up Mao against the wall and presses herself against him
“It isn’t an offer.”
She begins to lick his face. He responds in turn by biting into her neck and tearing her throat out, which he could do since it is self-defense. Mao leaves the woman to choke to death on her own blood as he turns to the rest of the people.
“Ssssinnnnnn,” Mao says in a snake-like voice as he transforms into the white devil.
He uses his tendrils and the people of this place receive their judgment.
“You have abandoned God and He has abandoned you in turn. You’re all mine now, which means you get my favorite execution. Shred and rip them apart!”
Blades and thorns come out of the ground to slowly cut and tear apart everyone. Blood and guts splatter the ground as Mao searches for Bella. He finds her naked with a piece of paper with one of her drawings on it. It doesn’t appear that she was harmed or sexually assaulted, so he quickly carries her away as the entire village sinks into the earth. During the next morning, the runaway boy goes back to this place with a couple escorts and only finds several objects that were stolen from other villages and towns. Mao is still carrying Bella who is still naked, but he isn’t in his devil form.
“How long do you think it’s going to be until I get another pair of clothes?”
“Hopefully soon.”
“Why’s that?”
“…Is there a correct answer to that?”
“Yes. Pick it.”
“…So no one sees you naked? But you being naked isn’t something that I mind!”
“That’s right.”
Bella kisses Mao’s forehead. As they keep moving, a traveling merchant appears from behind them. Mao turns around to hide Bella’s nakedness.
Mao says to the merchant, “Excuse me sir. Do you mind if we buy a pair of clothes from you? My wife here got them stolen.”
“Of course! You can have them for free. I have a perfect dress for her.”
It may be a coincidence, but the merchant gives Bella a red and white dress that she had from before. She gets changed and thanks the merchant and tries to give him money for his gift.
“It’s no problem my dear,” he says, “I don’t ask for anything from the needy. May I ask where you’re heading?”
“Wherever the road takes us,” Bella tells him.
“How about you two travel back to my house with me? Rest for a bit then leave?”
“Thank you. We’ll take your offer.”
Mao whispers to Bella, “Are you sure?”
“I’m sure.”
Mao and Bella board the carriage. As they travel to the merchant’s house, Mao falls asleep and rests across Bella’s lap.
“How far did your husband carry you?”
“Maybe ten miles at the least.”
“He must really love you then.”
“Of course he does. He’d do anything for me.”
“So why are you on your journey? If you don’t mind me asking.”
“It’s for his redemption and that’s all I’ll tell you I’m afraid.”
“Well that journey should be coming to an end soon. A man who would carry his wife for miles can’t be all bad.”
“I know he isn’t, but some people won’t see that.”
“Give them time. I’m sure your boy will show them who’s better.”
Once they arrive at the merchant’s house, they put Mao to bed who is still sleeping. Bella repays his kindness by helping around the house and fix his merchandise. She teaches him a couple recipes to use when selling food that she remembers from the royal chefs she had as a queen. After all that, Bella tells the merchant to prepare a special event for Mao when he wakes up. Mao eventually wakes up a couple hours later and doesn’t know where he is. He grabs a nearby object as a weapon to protect himself.
“Bella? Bella?” he says while wandering the house.
He eventually sees candlelight in the kitchen to which he goes to.
“Surprise! Happy birthday!” the merchant, his family, and Bella say as Mao turns the corner.
He almost swings but then says, “What?”
“Were you not keeping track of the days?” Bella asks, “Today is your ‘fourteenth’ birthday!”
Mao is embarrassed and sheepishly says, “I-uh. Thanks but I don’t think I deserve it.”
“Of course you do!” the merchant says, “You carried your wife all the way to help. Now you’re what I call a real man!”
The merchant’s wife says, “Now would you do the same thing?”
“Of course I would especially if you weren’t wearing clothes!” he responds.
They all laugh, but Mao is still surprised by the celebration.
“Come on Mao! Sit down.”
The family and Bella have a cake made for Mao with candles on it. They sing him happy birthday as he sits at the head of the table. Bella sings while she holds him and while this is happening Mao is trying not to cry, but he can’t help but smile. He feels loved in the same way that he did with his family and Bella. His armies never did anything for him like this nor did they love him as his family and Bella do. Mao blows out the candles and everyone cheers. They then eat the cake and celebrate Mao’s birthday. The first birthday in a while that he felt good about. He eventually warms up to the family and talks to them though he doesn’t tell them who he and Bella really are. The couple leaves the next day with food, water, and good memories of this family. Starting the day after the family met the couple, the business they have starts to thrive as tons of people start buying food, clothes, and various other products from the father. He says to this day that both Mao and Bella are a blessing to this world.
No comments:
Post a Comment