Chapter Text
A shadow wisped around the area, slipping its way around the trunks of trees and blades of grass in the forest. Stopping a moment at the foot of a large tree, the shadow slowly began to dissipate, letting Macaque pull himself up from the ground. He settled behind the tree, peering behind it quietly, his tail swaying curiously behind him. His eyes were trained on the campsite he had found minutes before, spying the billowing smoke of the campfire from a mile away. He could see a few people walking around, talking quietly amongst themselves.
He watched as a black haired man walked out of one of the tents, arms settled behind his back. His hair was put back into a manbun and he wore a blue and gray set of armor. He looked as if he was tired, rubbing his temple as he settled himself down in front of the fire on the log. Macaque could see their lips moving, hearing the faint remnants of words that he couldn't quite make out. He decided to get closer, letting himself fall into the shadows below him, moving them behind one of the tents and settling himself there.
"One more misstep, one more mistake, and this war will be over..." The man grumbled, still massaging his forehead with his fingers. "...the enemy will have won, and we will come back to the emperor with nothing to show for our efforts..." He leered up at the group of soldiers before him, who stiffened at the motion. "...if you can even call it 'effort'..." The group shifted, uncomfortably, darting their eyes around each other. The man sighed, standing himself up. "Is this really what you want?" He asked, voice growing louder. "Do you really, truly want to be the soldiers that bring dishonor to our nation? To our ruler?" The group stayed silent for a moment, before sheepishly muttering different variants of "no's". The man (probably a general, Macaque noted) sighed, shaking his head. "Then I suggest you all start giving some genuine effort. Lest you want us to be the laughing stocks of a nation." The man then signaled all of them to disperse, leaving him be by the fire, as the soldiers took their leave into each of the individual tents around the camp.
Macaque chuckled to himself. He often found it amusing, in a sort of "child-like wonder" sort of way, to watch as other humans bickered back and forth about often ridiculous matters. It sort of reminded him of his home on Flower Fruit Mountain with the other monkeys, which often battled each other for their selection of the food, hang out spots around the area, and even places to sleep in the Water Curtain Cave. In other words, it reminded him of home. As much as he wanted to go back now, seeing as it was getting quite late, he decided to pry further. Macaque knew he was a noisy thing, but, in some ways, he took pride in it. Besides, what's the harm in making this guy's day a little brighter (or, more than likely, worse)?
Taking a deep breath, Macaque dived straight down into his own shadow, becoming one with the ground yet again. He slithered himself around the long, oddly shaped shadows produced by the fire, waiting for an opportunity to pop up. He spied through the ink, his vision a bit obscured now by translucent black and purple-ish hues. Squinting, he was able to make out the general yet again.
The older man was staring into the fire, lost in his mind, it seemed. Even through the mist, Macaque could spy dark bags underneath his eyes. It looked as if he had spent many nights similar to this one; fussing at his army, then staying up to contemplate their next move. The man shifted, reaching into his satchel that he had on the ground to pull out a scroll, as well as an ink brush. He tapped his forehead with the thick handle, focusing on the contents of the parchment.
Macaque noodled his way around, quietly coming out of the shadow directly behind the man, being sure to make no noise so he wouldn't be spotted. He carefully peered over the man's shoulder, studying the contents of the scroll. They were war plans. There was a detailed sketch printed in the middle of the parchment (notably printed from a woodblock, considering the amount of detail put into it, Macaque noted again) of the next city over. Thicker lines and arrows that pointed towards the different entrances to the city seemed to have been crossed out, leaving little to no room for any more markings. Macaque cocked his head at the markings, trying to see where they were intended to come from and lead, before shaking his head, tsking quietly.
The sound caused the man to jump in his spot, turning around quickly, with practiced swiftness. Almost as quickly as he whipped himself around, facing the monkey, he had pulled out a sword, pointing it right at Macaque's nose. Macaque's nose scrunched up, trying to keep it as far from the blade as possible, while sending his arms straight in the air, as a sign of surrender.
"State your business, primate!" The man yelled. "Or I'll cut your limbs off!"
"Okay! Okay, okay, okay!" Macaque replied, tensing further as he watched the blade come closer. He attempted to back up, but stopped, not wanting to cause the man any more reason to bring the blade closer to him. "Its just that-" He cleared his throat, then pointed to the open scroll, awkwardly, causing the man's eyes to slowly move to it. "-your plans are... kinda... bad...?"
The man's eyes came back to meet Macaque's, squinting. He seemed to be reading the monkey's intent. He eased up, ever so slightly, but only lowered his sword a bit. "What do you mean...?"
"W-well," Macaque coughed, taking in a breath. "Its just that... why are you trying to attack from the front...?" He swayed his tail behind him. "It'd be wiser to enter the city from the back. They're gonna expect you to come through the entrance."
The general seemed to pause in thought, soaking in the suggestion, before tensing his grip on the sword again, glaring. "And why should I trust you? What kind of war chief would I be if I took war strategy advice from some lowly macaque?"
"Aw, cool! You know my name!" Macaque beamed, slyly.
The general (or, Macaque supposed, "war chief") groaned. "Give me one good reason I shouldn't kill you now, and serve you as dinner to my subordinates."
Macaque tapped his foot on the ground in thought, then smirked. He took a deep breath and dived back into the shadows, leaving the war chief to look around, frantically. He held his sword in his two hands, backing up with caution, eyeballing the area. He felt a cold chill of wind against his back as he found himself wrapped in an inky black goop. He strained, trying to release himself from the grasp, before Macaque popped up in front of him again.
The monkey smiled. "See what I mean?" He asked, tilting his head, watching the man panic as he attempted writhing his way through the mass. "You weren't prepared for me to come from behind, were you?"
The man glared up at him. "Unhand me at once, demon!"
"Jeez, you're no fun..." Macaque yawned, waving his hand in a swift movement as the shadowy ropes dissipated from around the man. He fell to the ground, coughing. "Just thought I'd give you a lil lesson in strategy..." Macaque began to walk away, crossing his arms behind his back, before stopping. He turned around. "Unless your little team there can even pull their own weight..."
The man sat up slowly, looking up at the figure before him. He squinted again, attempting to take another read on his intentions again. He sighed, looking down at the ground, angrily.
Macaque shrugged. "Suit yourself, I guess..." He began to walk away again, whistling.
"Wait."
Macaque looked back, smugly. "Oh?"
***
"And your certain that this strategy will assist us, right?" The man asked.
Macaque nodded. "I'm sure." He tapped his tail on the ground, sipping on a bowl of hot soup that the chief had graciously offered him in turn for helping him strategize. He set the empty bowl down on his lap, sighing, satisfied with the meal. He wiped his mouth on his sleeve. "But there's one other thing I forgot to mention..." He added.
The man raised his eyebrow.
"You're going to have to put me on your team for this mission."
"What?!" The man raised himself from the log, looking down at the monkey in disbelief. "Look at yourself! You're a monkey! A demon! Who knows how you gained your powers! I can't risk putting myself and others in danger when there's a literal animal on our team! M-my reputation... the EMPEROR'S reputation will be stained!"
Macaque set the bowl down beside him and lifted himself up. "Well," Macaque started. "I can shapeshift." He twirled the hair beside his cheek. "And I have to say; I've come to like the human disguise I've been workshopping."
The man stared at him. For a moment, it was in disbelief. But after a minute, he started to think, running his hand through his graying hair. "I..." He shook his head. "You really can change yourself into a human?"
Macaque nodded. "Yep. Sure can."
The man crossed his arms. "Then show me. Then I'll decide."
Macaque shrugged. "Whatever you say." He closed his eyes, spreading his stance slightly. He clasped his hands together into a joined fist, lightly raising them over his head with his elbows out, before slowly bringing them back down to his waist. The man watched as the monkey was covered in a dark purple mist. He stepped back, cautiously, covering his face as the mist shone a bright, blinding lavender color. Noticing the light was gone from the area, he slowly removed his arm away from his face.
In place of the primate that was previously before him was a human that looked... fairly similar to the simian. His hair was fashioned into a bun of sorts, similar to the ones that the man himself and his team had all been sporting. He had the same bushy eyebrows, but this time sported sideburns and a slight bit of stubble. The man noticed that Macaque seemed to have copied the armor that he was wearing, except in the similar black, gold and red color scheme that the monkey previously sported. He even had a red cape, though this one seemed more similar in fashion to the scarf he had been wearing before.
"Well," Macaque posed. "What do you think?" He ran a hand through his hair. "I kinda changed it just a little bit... just so I'd fit in more as a warrior here."
The man stared a moment, then cleared his throat. "Yes, well..." He started. "I suppose that will suffice enough, at least for this mission, anyways."
Macaque smiled. "Alright! Cool!"
"One thing;" The man asked, raising a hand up. "What name will you go by?" He asked. "You previously stated that 'Macaque' was your name, correct?"
Macaque nodded. "Yeah. But I could always use my full name!" He said, proudly. "Liù ěr míhó. That's how I can introduce myself. Seems more formal that way, right?"
The man rubbed his chin. "'Six Eared Macaque'... I suppose that will do. Plenty of the soldiers here have nicknames akin to that based on their fighting styles."
Macaque put a hand on his hip. "So, you haven't exactly introduced yourself yet, other than as the 'war chief', or whatever..."
The man smiled, formally. "Shì Zhǎng."
Macaque smiled. "Alright, then, Zhǎng. Guess we got a deal!" He smirked. "Got an extra tent I can sleep in?"
"You're a monkey;" Zhǎng said, closing the scroll and putting away his things. He slung the satchel around his shoulder, walking to his tent. "Find a tree or something."
***
The next few days went by fairly quickly. Macaque was introduced to the rest of team. Zhǎng had explained that he was a temporary ally sent by the emperor, only to be used for this mission to assist. A quick excuse for his powers was made by being a warrior that was sent to learn the Way, and has just now returned from his mission. The team all welcomed him with open arms, becoming friendly towards him quickly. Macaque seemed to have issues adjusting at first, but soon learned to mimic the behavior of the warriors around him. When they teased and played rough, he quickly learned to do the same. They would often bet by playing games, leading them to get in trouble with Zhǎng often. Zhǎng seemed to be a bit more strict to the others than Macaque. When Macaque had asked about this, he simply responded by saying "I expected as much from a simian, anyways", much to his dismay.
Eventually, the day had finally came for the plan to take place. Macaque and Zhǎng directed some of the more weaker warriors to come in from the front to serve as a decoy, while the stronger forces would come in from the back and attack from there. Macaque advised for them to blend in with the shadows, using them to your advantage, as they can keep you hidden from most prying eyes (which, Macaque had noticed, led Zhǎng to be quite impressed with him).
Macaque had led the back team while Zhǎng led from the front. Macaque used his shadow powers to scope out the surrounding areas, telling his crew when they could and couldn't move, and how to maneuver through the city. Because of their plan, the attack was successful. A few of the front forces were harmed, but no casualties were on their side.
After the battle, Zhǎng had been so pleased with the team that he himself had joined them in celebrating. The emperor had heard of their victory and had extra food and wine sent to them as a reward. They all sat themselves around the fire, getting drunk and singing songs and telling stories. After a while, most of the soldiers had passed out, leaving Zhǎng and Macaque as the only ones awake. They had been talking quietly amongst themselves for a while now, mostly about each of their origins and their family lives.
"I live alone back home." Zhǎng explained, taking a slow sip of his cup of wine. "I never really found anyone that I wanted to spend my life with." He swirled the cup, gently, watching the small whirlpool inside form. "I also was mostly focused on my work as a military man, so, I never really wanted to focus on having children or a wife or... anything like that." He chuckled. "I suppose that's what led me to being as disciplined as I am."
"And tired, too." Macaque added. "Don't think I don't see those bags under your eyes." He drank from his cup. "You know, you don't have to work like that all the time."
"And why ever not, simian?" Zhǎng retorted, a bit playfully.
Macaque smiled at the gesture. "Well, I get wanting to be, you know, serious and all... having a solid plan, and what not..." He started. "...but, I mean... where I come from... downtime with your family is... you know, important." He sighed. "You gotta have some time for screwing around... and, you know, surrounding yourself with people who care about you..." He looked off at the moon. "...I actually spend most of my time with my best friend..."
Zhǎng looked over at him, then off at the moon. "...what's he like...?" He asked, quietly.
Macaque chuckled. "A pain." He leaned back, slightly. "Actually, he's pretty cool... he loves to goof off but, at the end of the day, he's a really hard worker..." He looked at Zhǎng. "He's actually where I learned a lot of what I know."
"He must be a pretty good teacher, then..." Zhǎng said, finishing off the rest of his rice in his bowl.
Macaque nodded. "And he cares a lot about the other monkeys at the mountain, too..." He closed his eyes. "He's loyal... and gets himself into trouble most of the time just to help the rest of us out..." He paused. "...as much of an airheaded, self-centered guy he can be... he cares... and that's what I admire about him the most..."
"Often times the most wise individuals can come in the most unexpected packages." Zhǎng added. He looked to Macaque, raising an eyebrow. "I would've never expected that one of my prized warriors would have been a monkey that had wandered off from his home for fun..."
Macaque looked at him and smiled. "Well..." He rubbed the back of his neck. "...dunno about all that... but..." He sighed, standing up, stretching. "I suppose its about time I head back home... I've been gone for quite a while..."
Zhǎng nodded. "I understand." He raised himself up, holding out a hand. "But if you ever need a place to stay, or a battle to win, come and find me."
Macaque looked down at his hand, hesitantly. He smiled, shaking it, firmly. "Of course." He closed his eyes, turning himself back into a monkey with a sigh. "So much better..." He purred.
Zhǎng chuckled. "I suppose I'll take this time to rest before we head back tomorrow." He said, beginning to clean up the remaining bowls and cups of food and drink left over. He looked to Macaque one last time. "See you around, Liù."
"See ya, Zhǎng."
***
Macaque grunted, being knocked to the ground with great force. The earth before him cracked underneath him. He wiped the blood pouring from his nose, looking up with a pained expression to see Wukong above him. He smirked, painfully before phasing into the ground, leading the golden monkey's staff to hit the ground instead of him. Wukong growled, watching Macaque's shadow move around him.
"Macaque!" He shouted. "Show yourself!"
Macaque let himself pop up behind Wukong. He leaned against his ear. "Peak-a-boo~" He whispered. He bent his body in different directions, trying to avoid every swing the stone monkey gave with his staff.
"Enough games!" Wukong tore out a few strands of hair, chewing them and blowing in his hand, creating clones of himself. They all zoomed towards the darker furred monkey, who snapped his fingers to create clones of his own from the shadows.
The clones clashed against each other as the real Wukong and Macaque swung at each other with their staffs. Macaque kicked his foot out and tripped Wukong, sending him against a large rock. He blocked himself with his staff as Macaque lunged forward, pushing against the legendary staff with his own.
Wukong grunted. "Why are you so determined to... beat me...?!" He winced, looking at Macaque through one eye. "One minute you're worshipping the ground I walk on... the next you're trying to KILL me?!"
"Don't even ACT like you don't know what you did!" Macaque bit back. "You FORGOT about me! You left me in the dust!" He thrusted his staff, only causing Wukong to shift slightly, losing his grip slowly. "What kind of king forgets about his subjects? Or the ones who helped you get to the point you are now?!"
"I don't even know what you're talking about!" Wukong screamed. He finally gathered his remaining strength, pushing back on Macaque at full force. Macaque cried out in pain, being flung back. Wukong flew after him on a cloud, finally catching up to him, flinging punch after punch at him.
"You're putting the other monkeys in DANGER!" Wukong cried. "And all for what?! So you can get back at me?!"
"MAYBE I'm protecting THEM from getting too CLOSE to you like I DID!" Macaque yelled in between punches. He tried to phase into the ground, but Wukong grabbed him by the collar of his scarf. He struggled, trying to pull himself out of his grasp.
"Well, I for one am getting TIRED of what you're doing here!" Wukong growled, holding the other monkey up into the air. He threw him down on the ground. He walked towards him. "Your reckless behavior is OVER, do you HEAR ME?"
Macaque groaned, coughing up a slight bit of blood on his chest. He struggled to lift himself up slightly. "I... I don't..." He wheezed. "I don't care what you... say to me..." He wiped his mouth, glaring over at him. "I... will never... EVER... be done with you..."
Wukong stepped towards him, his face filling with more rage at every word Macaque spoke.
Macaque chuckled. "I... I will... always... ALWAYS... find a place... in your shadow... t-to haunt you..."
"SHUT UP!" Wukong screamed. Before Macaque could even react, Wukong struck his staff down with all of his force, whacking him straight in his eye. The impact was met with a large "thunk", as the staff crashed itself against Macaque's skull.
Macaque opened his eyes to a world filled with darkness. He noticed that he couldn't quite breath, feeling suffocated and cold, frozen and stiff, yet he still felt as if he were alive. He couldn't see anything, making him want to squirm, but he found that he couldn't. He began to panic, mind racing and trying to recover everything that he had gone through, but he found he couldn't remember anything. He felt himself tremble and choke as if he were crying, yet there were no tears. He wondered if there were even eyes to have tears fall out of.
Suddenly, the world was met with a blue light. He tried to squint, but the light didn't allow him. He heard whispers, and felt as if his body were being lifted into the air. He could barely focus on it, his mind racing with worry and doubt and so much pain. His eye burned like hell through it all and he couldn't even remember why. After a moment, the whispers became louder and louder, snapping him from his thoughts. He felt himself become overwhelmed at the feeling, and the noises around him, before he found that he could breathe again.
He took advantage of this by taking large, quick breaths. He slowly regained feeling in his limbs, and his body began to warm back up. He couldn't stand, still floating, so he grasped at his chest, trying to slow his beating heart down. He kicked his legs desperately, trying to be let down. It almost seemed as whatever was holding him up seemed to understand him, because he felt his back slowly but surely meet some form of a surface. He lifted himself up, blinking desperately to see if he could see. His head pounded as he tried to get used to the feeling of breathing again. Slowly, the world was revealed to him.
He was no longer on Flower Fruit Mountain, but he could tell that he wasn't far from it. He was on the ground near the foot of the mountain, in front of the bank of a river. He felt his throat burn from breathing quickly deeply, so he crawled desperately to the bank and shoveled the cold substance into his mouth.
"Liù ěr míhó..." A voice whispered into his ear, almost sounding like millions of people whispering at once. His six ears twitched, and the sound caused him to jolt up from his place. He looked around the area, frantically, wiping the drips of water remaining from his chin. "Who's there...?" He croaked, throat still feeling dry. He attempted to clear it, but just went into a coughing fit.
As he recovered, he looked up to find the figure of a woman with white, flowing hair standing before him. She looked elegant, and dangerous. He eyed her cautiously, but was too weak to do anything except sit there and watch her in anticipation for the worst.
"There is no need to panic." She stated, holding up a hand. "I am only here to help you."
Macaque blinked, wincing as the motion stung his eye. "Wh-who are you...?" He asked, noticing his voice being a bit clearer now.
The figure closed her eyes. "You do not need to worry yourself with such pleasantries." She said. "All you need to know is that I was the one that saved you from the underworld."
Macaque felt his heart drop. "I... I died...?" Suddenly, memories started flooding back into his head, quicker than he could have ever been prepared for. He saw images of his best friend, his mentor, his closest cohort, Sun Wukong, hitting him with all of the force that the mystic monkey could muster, straight into Macaque's eye. He looked down at his reflection in the river. He could tell that he now had a severe scar on his left eye, which he could see was now completely red, as if all the blood vessels popped. Now that he was calmed down enough to think, he could notice that he was blind in that eye now, seeing as though the world seemed less clear than it used to be.
The woman nodded. "Yes. Unfortunately, you left this earth for quite a while." She motioned towards the sky. "You've been gone for many months, even years at this point." She looked towards Macaque again. "You should feel very fortunate that I was able to rescue you from the clutches of death before it was too late. A few more years, and my powers would not have been strong enough to free you."
"So I escaped by the skin of my teeth, essentially..." Macaque muttered, staring at his reflection.
"Yes." She replied, bluntly. "Although, that was the least I could do for you. I was able to watch your story from start to finish, and I felt pity for you. Its quite unfortunate that your partner would treat you in such a way, is it not?"
Macaque didn't respond.
The woman looked off towards the sky once again. "However, I do wish to ask you for a favor."
Macaque looked up at her. "A... favor...?"
She nodded, then turned to face him once again. The figure held out a key in her hands. At least, Macaque assumed it was supposed to be a key. The top sported a skeleton head with blue eye sockets, while the bottom had what looked like small copper bars bending out in various directions. Her eyes seemed to glow now, making Macaque nervous.
"You see, I have also been sealed away, just as you have." She explained. "I am using the remainder of my powers to communicate with you." She dropped the key in front of him. "I need you to use that key to free me from an ancient tomb."
Macaque picked up the key gently, moving it around between his fingers, curiously. "Ancient tomb, huh...?" He muttered.
"If you can free me from the tomb, I would be forever indebted to you." She explained. "We could create a perfect world, where others would not underestimate our powers."
This caused Macaque to look back up at her, bewildered.
"It would be a second chance to enact your revenge, and I would be at your mercy. We want similar things, and I think that you could be a helpful asset." She watched as the monkey shifted, uncomfortably, his fist tightening around the key.
She sighed, turning away. "I see you're... conflicted..." She stated, looking back towards him. "Very well. I will leave you alone to make your decision." She turned back towards him, then rushed towards him, creating a cold wind, hovering beside him.
He tensed.
"But I will warn you, Liù," She began, whispering in a cold tone. "If you decide to decline this offer, the consequences will be great."
As she faded away, Macaque could hear whispers in his ears, like the ones before. "Choose wisely."
Macaque held the key in his hand tightly. He stared at it, intently. Was this... worth it...? She did save him, but it just didn't feel right to him. The things she said, the look of the key. They seemed suspicious. And while Macaque was hurt, was he really ready to release his anger onto everyone? Innocent people who didn't deserve it? Was he really ready for the possibility that, maybe, it could end the world, too?
He slowly raised himself up, wobbling slightly. Once he regained his balance, he looked back down at the key again. He sighed, letting the key drop on the ground. He lifted the scarf over his mouth and began heading towards the emperor's palace.
There was someone he wanted to see after all this time.
***
Macaque finally found himself at the entrance of the city. He looked up at the dark sky. It appeared to be darker than usual, dark clouds billowing over the moon. He held his breath as he dived into the shadows, slithering himself past the guards. He popped out from the ground behind a wall, away from prying eyes. He lifted his hands up and down, letting himself transform into his human disguise. He chuckled. "Been a long time since I've used this..." He muttered to himself. Taking a deep breath, he walked out from behind the wall, making his way towards where the army men usually stayed in the town. He found a few of his fellow warriors, taking a few moments to recount stories and catch up for the time being.
"Where'd you get that nasty scar, Liù?" One of the men asked.
Macaque chuckled nervously, waving a hand. "Ah, just from some training gone wrong and stuff, you know the deal..." He cleared his throat. "So, uh, hey," He started, awkwardly. "Where's Shì Zhǎng? Been uh, meaning to catch up with the big guy, you know?"
The warriors looked at each other, nervously.
"Uh," Another started, rocking back and forth on his heels. "well... he's in his house, but, I really wouldn't--"
"Got it!" Macaque said, giving him a strong pat on the back. He began hurrying towards Zhǎng's house, waving to the group. "Thanks, guys!"
The group tried to call him back over, but it was a bit too late. Macaque had already reached his house. He bounced on his toes, eagerly. He wasn't super close with the man, but he had to admit, the times with him during his "warrior" days were fun. And after the recent events, he just... really needed someone he could lean on. Now more than ever.
Knocking on the door, he heard crashes from behind it. He cocked his head to the side, curiously, but tried not to think much of it. He began to twirl his hair, waiting patiently. After what seemed like a lifetime, he finally was able to see his old friend.
"Zhǎng!" Macaque shouted. He bounced on his toes, slightly, unable to help himself. "I was just-"
Macaque stopped. He noticed that Zhǎng looked... wrong. His eyes were completely white, his face was contorted into a smile that almost seemed never ending. There were blue streaks on the side of his hair. Even his stance seemed odd, standing as though he was limp. He had the disposition of a reanimated corpse, that was a bit too happy to be alive.
"Yeeeees~?" Zhǎng sang, tilting his head to the side, unnaturally. Macaque could almost swear he heard the man's neck snap.
Macaque stepped back. "Zhǎng...?" He repeated. "Are you...?"
"Okaaay? Why, yees~! I don't know why you'd ever think oootherwise, stranger~!" Zhǎng replied, clasping his hands together, happily.
Macaque felt ice cold again. Zhǎng didn't remember him. The one person he had left. He didn't remember. And he looked... wrong. Very wrong.
Macaque felt sick.
"Did you neeeeed something~?" Zhǎng asked, leaning forward.
Macaque didn't even reply. He looked down at the ground, clenching his fists. Yelling out in anger, he dipped into the shadows, racing to god knows where. He ran as far as he could, before he felt himself get tired. He let the shadows spit him out, rolling on the ground, pathetically. He stayed there for a moment, face against the cool grass. He stayed curled up in a ball, slowly phasing back into his normal self. Tears began to fall as he screamed out into nothing, saying nothing, slamming his fists on the ground. It felt like a tantrum, and it made him feel like a child, but it felt better. It wasn't like he had much left to do, now, anyways.
He screamed for what felt like ages, eyes burning from how hard he was crying. He smacked his head, kicking at the ground in anguish. He knew what the icy hand of death felt like, at the hands of his best friend. He had nobody, and even the last person he could rely on didn't even remember him.
All he wanted was someone to count on, like the rest of the monkeys. They had best friends, people close to them. Macaque had always preferred to be alone, yes, but he at least wanted somebody.
And he had somebody. He had the best somebody to ever have. His best friend was the Monkey King. Someone wise and loyal and caring, despite his flaws. And even after all they went through together, all of the demons they fought together, everything they did, it meant absolutely nothing. Wukong left him. Then, he found a friend in a war chief. It wasn't much, but by god it was something. And now, that was gone too. There was no one.
No one.
Nobody.
Liù ěr míhó was alone.
And as he laid on the grass, splayed out, eyes drying from his breakdown, he finally realized how weak he really was.
And by god, he was going to prove to the world that he wasn't. No matter what it cost.