Work Text:
"What do you mean, 'printing is not supported on this printer'?" Shen Wei stared at the error message on his screen in despair. A badly muffled burst of laughter rang out next to him.
"Sorry. It's always hilarious when a newbie first sees that message." The girl grinned. "It just means there's a problem with your driver. Shouldn't be too hard to fix."
"Thank you." Shen Wei turned back to his computer and furrowed his brows. A driver? He banged the side of the computer a few times, imitating the actions of his classmates when they had computer problems. He heard rattling and shifting inside and hoped that the driver was among the components being nudged into place. He clicked print again.
"… Too many errors?" Instead of the nonsensical error he received before, now his screen was covered in multiple dialog boxes, with the top-most error simply saying 'Error: Too Many Errors.'
With a lighter touch, he tapped the top of the computer apologetically. "Please work?"
The screen turned black with only a single error remaining. On it were two words: Catastrophic Failure. Shen Wei covered his face with his hands.
"Wow. I've literally never seen that error before and I spend a lot of time on the computer," a new voice piped up, sounding almost impressed.
Shen Wei looked up and saw that he had drawn a crowd. He gave them a rueful smile. "I'm not very good with technology, I'm afraid."
A girl in a ponytail snapped a picture of the error. "Don't be too hard on yourself, Shen Wei. Being not good with technology is my grandma calling me in a panic because she thought she deleted the Internet. This is just bad luck, I'm sure."
The other girls murmured their agreement.
"I-uh. I guess I'll try this some other time." The girls looked friendly enough, their faces filled with sympathy. But there was something about the intensity of their scrutiny that unsettled Shen Wei.
"Wait. What were you trying to do? I'll help you."
"Oh, no. I couldn't possibly impose," demurred Shen Wei. His eyes flickered around him, noting that the crowd had moved in to surround him. Putting on his best docile and harmless expression, Shen Wei pushed his chair back and shouldered his backpack. "I was only planning to print out the syllabus for my Scientific Computing course. But maybe this is a sign I should stay away from classes with computers altogether."
More protests came from the crowd.
"The students at Dragon City University are kind." Shen Wei inclined his head in acknowledgment. He stood up. "Now if you'll excuse me, I have other business to attend."
To his relief, the crowd parted for him without further resistance. He left the computer lab, feeling their eyes on his back until the door closed behind him.
***
In hindsight, Shen Wei shouldn't have dismissed the strange looks his roommates gave him when he told them he didn't have a computer. Luo Zheng was a computer science major, so Shen Wei didn't bat an eye when he unveiled a monstrosity of a computer complete with blinking lights and transparent panels showing the intricate wiring inside. Lin Tao arrived in an impeccably tailored three-piece suit and a sleek black laptop to match; Shen Wei assumed it was a typical accessory for someone fixated on having the perfect image. Finally, there was Xue Yang, an art major whose MacBook was thrown haphazardly into a desk drawer and then never touched again.
All that led Shen Wei to the incorrect conclusion that much like cell phones, computers and laptops were a popular but ultimately unnecessary part of modern life. Then he showed up for the first day of classes and discovered that every professor had their materials put on something called the 'Internet' and they expected students to make use of it.
He took off his glasses and massaged his temples. Well, at least unlike his last encounter with technology, this time the computer didn't set itself on a fire. The conundrum remained though. Even if it were possible for him to maneuver around the need to use a computer, it was clear people were taking notice of him.
There was the son of an influential politician who cornered him after orientation and subtly questioned him about his personal and academic background for close to an hour. He only let Shen Wei go after discovering that Shen Wei didn't have a phone to keep in touch. And of course, there were the overly helpful girls in the computer lab, not all of whom were in his cohort but who nonetheless showed up to all of his classes.
It seemed ludicrous that in a university with students from all different walks of life that people immediately honed in on him as an outsider worthy of suspicion. Yet he could find no other explanation for the attention he had received so far. Perhaps it was something similar to the way technology reacted to him. On a subconscious level, people must sense his powers. He hated to think that his first foray into Haixing would result in failure on his first day.
Temporarily at a loss for what to do, Shen Wei unwrapped his writing supplies and began working on his Calculus problem set to clear his mind. His power of learning functioned best with structure and consistency, so mathematics was one subject that came easily to him. He worked his way through the proofs and derivations, each step of his reasoning flowing effortlessly to the next. It really was incredibly soothing--
"Oh my God. Shen Wei. Stop moving right now!"
Shen Wei froze, calligraphy brush in hand. He blinked against the flash of the camera as Luo Zheng snapped three pictures in quick succession.
Lin Tao pushed Luo Zheng aside and gave a low whistle. "Wow. Calligraphy. That's some good aesthetics."
"I assume you two will have a reasonable explanation for this," said Shen Wei dryly, placing his calligraphy brush on his ink stone.
Luo Zheng nudged Lin Tao. "Go on."
"Right," said Lin Tao, clasping his hands behind his back. "We have a business proposition for you, Shen Wei. What do you think about being paid to model for us?"
"I'm a biology student."
"Well, sure, but who doesn't like making a bit of extra money, right?" asked Luo Zheng.
"And you don't need to do anything fancy," added Lin Tao. "No need to learn how to pose or walk down the runway. Just let us take some pictures of you like we just did with the calligraphy."
Shen Wei frowned. "I can't say I like the idea of having my picture publicized. This isn't for some sort of university promotion, is it?"
"No, no. Not at all," said Lin Tao. "Think of it more like a private commission. You're not going to be trending on Weibo if that's what you're worried about."
"Although… I mean, if somebody posts that on their blog, we can't really do anything about it." Luo Zheng got an elbow to the stomach for his troubles.
"Look, there's entire marketing industries dedicated to making topics trend on Weibo. It will take more than a post by a nobody university student to make a picture trend."
Luo Zheng shrugged. "If you say so."
"I do." Lin Tao turned to Shen Wei. "So? What do you think? Easiest modeling job in the world. We'll give you a third of our profits."
"Ha! The Shen Meiren[1] Fan Club got to you guys too, huh?" Xue Yang waltzed into the room and grinned.
"The what?" Shen Wei felt the onset of a headache coming.
"Too bad we don't need any more people on this team," said Luo Zheng, completely ignoring Shen Wei.
"Like I would sell out my artistic integrity to paint my roommate for profit," scoffed Xue Yang.
"Wait. A fan club? For people whose last names are Shen?" There were many things in modern culture he had yet to understand.
Lin Tao finally took pity on him. "No, Shen Wei. A fan club for you."
"Oh. But why?"
"Do you own a mirror?" quipped Xue Yang.
Shen Wei stopped to think. He had no frame of reference on whether it was normal for a university student to gain a fan club or not. Or even what fan clubs were supposed to do. Collect pictures? But this request presented an interesting opportunity.
"All right," said Shen Wei. "I'll agree to be your model, but I'm not interested in the money."
Lin Tao sat down on his bed and raised an eyebrow. "Now that's a first."
"I want someone to do my paperwork for me. Print out everything I need from class websites. Type up my homework if a professor doesn't accept hand-written answers. Just. Anything requiring a computer."
Lin Tao turned to Luo Zheng.
"I get Shen Wei's share of the profits if I do this," said Luo Zheng.
"Deal."
So, his mission on Haixing wouldn't be ending in failure on the very first day. Listening to the easy banter between his roommates, the knot in his stomach eased. Shen Wei laughed, a carefree sound he hadn't made in millennia.
Luo Zheng snapped another picture.
***
The president of the Shen Meiren Fan Club was a cheerful, five feet tall literature major with short, cropped hair and a boisterous voice. She was also Shen Wei's number one suspect in the recent vandalism spree against the Special Investigations Department. He had been making productive use of his nights since he settled down at Dragon City University, so he supposed it was only a matter of time before the backlash happened against those who enforced the laws.
Pretending to be absorbed by his reading, Shen Wei bumped into her just as she finished reaching for a book. This close, there was no mistaking the flare of her power as it cushioned her fall.
"Oh, I'm sorry! Here, let me help." Shen Wei took her arm in his and helped her stand. "Were you hurt?"
She stared up at him, slack jawed.
"Do you need to see a doctor?"
"No!" She finally found her voice. "No. I'm fine! Zhou Rong. My name. Hi."
Shen Wei knelt down and picked up the fallen books. Checking that they were stacked solid, he stood back up and handed them to her. "I'm Shen Wei."
"I know. You're really strong."
Shen Wei paused. Was this just an off-hand comment or was she pointing out a flaw in his disguise as a harmless biology major? He smiled. "I enjoy going to the gym."
"Really? And no one told us!" A beat. "I mean. A friend of mine works at the gym and he knows all the regulars, so I thought. But you probably go to a gym outside the university."
"Yes."
"Good. That's good. It's so good that you take care of your body. Your health, I mean."
They stared at each other.
"Right. I'll see you around, Miss Zhou."
"Definitely!" She turned and rushed down the stairs in a whirlwind.
All in all, an inconclusive meeting. Shen Wei shrugged and picked his own book off floor. He tilted his head as a sheet of paper fluttered loose. On it was a pencil sketch of him reading.
***
In an unusual sight, the SID office was dark, their night shift workers nowhere in sight. Shen Wei wrapped his cloak tighter around himself and teleported inside. The air was still and there was no sound except for the ticking of the clock. He extended his senses and detected a small glimmer, almost imperceptible, in the SID Chief's office.
Shen Wei crept closer. In his office, Zhao Xinci sat stone-faced in the dark, a gun in his hand. The SID was his territory and rogue Dixing citizens his sworn enemies. There would be no mercy today.
Shen Wei bit his lip. It should be easy to assert his authority over the punishment of Dixing's criminals. Zhao Xinci hadn't been the same ever since his wife's recent death, his wounds far too raw to lend his work the required objectivity. But who was he to talk a man out of his grief?
He remembered the gray veil covering his eyes that sapped all the color and vibrancy from his world when he lost Kunlun. For too many millennia, he existed without living. Even now, it was only the escalation of Dixing activities that brought him aboveground.
The decision was taken out of his hands when a brick crashed through the window of the Chief's office. Zhou Rong leapt into the office at the same time that Zhao Xinci fired his gun. Acting on pure instinct, Shen Wei conjured up a shield of dark energy that stopped the bullet inches in front of Zhou Rong's face.
"Chief Zhao."
Zhao Xinci turned around, his face twisted with bitterness. "Lord Envoy. I did not think these trivial cases concerning the safety of the SID merited your attention."
"No, but you murdering every Dixing citizen you encounter should merit his attention!" shouted Zhou Rong. She dropped to her knees and pressed her forehead to the ground. "Lord Envoy, please, give justice to my brother. He was innocent!"
Shen Wei saw Zhao Xinci raise his gun again and leapt in front of it. "Chief Zhao!"
"Move aside. You really think I won't shoot you?" Zhao Xinci snarled.
Shen Wei felt the gun's barrel push hard against his mask and closed his eyes. "I have no doubt that you would. To lose a loved one, the other half of your soul… I understand throwing yourself into your work to find something, anything to fill that emptiness."
Shen Wei trailed off. In a softer voice, he spoke again. "I've waited ten thousand years. The void will never go away. You can't let slavish devotion to duty overcome your sense of justice and honor."
Behind him, Zhou Rong gasped.
The clock ticked. Zhao Xinci's arm wavered. Then his eyes glowed yellow, and he stumbled back. When he looked up again, it was Zhang Shi staring in shock. "Lord Envoy!"
"Take care of him, Zhang Shi." With a curt nod, Shen Wei took Zhou Rong's hand and teleported her to Dragon City University.
"Is your brother's name Zhou Xuefeng? He shares your ability to fly, which is rather uncommon."
Zhou Rong trembled. "Yes. How… You know all this."
Shen Wei placed a hand on her shoulders. "He did not mention any family, perhaps to protect you. His offense was not serious and he will be allowed to see you once his sentence is complete."
"Thank you, Lord Envoy. I am prepared to accept punishments for my crimes as well."
Shen Wei sighed. "You only wanted to get my attention for what you thought was an injustice. If you swear not to commit any further crimes, I will let you go this time."
"I swear!" Zhou Rong knelt again. "I am forever in your debt."
***
The next time Shen Wei ran across Zhou Rong in the library, she barely glanced at him as she continued her sketch. He had already heard from Luo Zheng that she recently resigned from his fan club, which was a relief. Without her, enthusiasm and organization of the fan club experienced a steep decline. He actually asked Luo Zheng if he would need to take over paying him for his computer help if the club lost interest, but Luo Zheng waved off his concerns, mumbling something about going on-line and international.
Unable to resist, he peeked over her shoulder to see what Zhou Rong was sketching.
It was the Black Cloaked Envoy stopping a bullet in mid-air.