59-Courting Death

4/1/6/4353 M.A.C - Muchiri- Ashrama - Noon

That was a good sleep!

Emi let out a groan of satisfaction as she extended her wings; her eyes barely open on account of the harsh light of day.

Come on. I need to get used to the light, or it will be a problem once we are back on the road.

The dense foliage and plush canopy of the forest had meant that even when the sun was at its zenith, its light had been softened enough to create a comfortable penumbra; the ambient light produced by reflections rather than direct sunlight. The short segment of her journey in the rolling hills, on her way to Muchiri, had her moving eastward in the afternoon, so she had been able to press on while avoiding her limitation. Emi had noticed early on that looking in the direction of the sun, even if indirectly, made her vision grow slightly fuzzy with strange multicolor artifacts appearing sporadically. Although she had specialised in audio engineering at University, she had learned quite a lot about camera work as she worked on Ben and Megan's YouTube channel, so even if she wasn't that well-versed in avian biology, she assumed that the particular structure of her eyes was better suited for relative darkness.

I guess my wide pupils compare to a large aperture lens, explaining the strange artifacts. As far as the fuzziness, my retina is probably tailored to low-light conditions as well, similar to an image sensor set to high ISO or one of those found on infrared cameras.

A camera was, after all, loosely based on similar principles to a natural eye, albeit crudely mimicked through mechanical means. Although her terminology was flawed, she had grasped the general drawbacks to her low-light specialisation accurately.

Her mind busy with the analysis, Emi walked down the stairs and into the common room without registering the unusual silence. As she stepped onto the landing, Emi noticed the Mistress standing with her back to her, and the previous night's events rushed to the forefront of her mind.

Oh shit! I forgot about the riot... Well, I am at fault, and I live here; I can't avoid the repercussions forever.

Emi stepped forward, ready to turn herself in, when she noticed a strange scene taking place in front of the Mistress. Three people were on the ground in front of her, head down, their bodies set in a rigid forward plank condition. Suddenly, the Mistress lowered herself and spun with her leg outstretched parallel to the ground, in a wide sweeping motion. Each of the three prone figures pumped their arms in sequence, with a moment's delay between, resulting in a series of three small consecutive hops. The look on the faces of the trio, and the groans they each let out as they landed, would have been enough to puzzle Emi in the first place, but her confusion stemmed from an entirely different source.

Why am I there?

Emi looked down at herself and noticed that she was indeed herself and had not bodyswapped into someone else in a freaky Friday-style scenario. Had she not just woken up, her brain might have instantly made the connection with the resident master of disguises, but instead, she had a minor existential crisis for a few moments before she caught on.

Well, they did say they would share in the punishment. Maybe I can slip back upstairs and wait until this ordeal is over.

Emi slowly turned around, using her Abilities to muffle the sound of her steps, when a whiff of the acrid smell of burnt oil made its way into her nares. She strained, trying to hold back from sneezing, not wanting to get caught. Her heartbeat sped up for a moment, but then she calmed down, sneezed, and chided herself.

Gotta remember my Abilities...If I can muffle my steps, I can also do the same with a sneeze.

Her worries assuaged, Emi confidently stepped back onto the stairs, intent on making her way back up, when she came across an obstacle.

"Huh? You are still here? The Mistress is a saint for letting you stay. If this were my establishment, you'd be out on your feathered ass after your little performance last night. Not sure why Sifu entertains the idea of taking you on as an apprentice..."

Bao stood in Emi's way, his arms crossed as he looked down at her, judgment apparent in his eyes, voice, and aura. Emi had made sure his voice wouldn't travel, but if she let him through, it was inevitable that he would snitch on her upon noticing his teacher being subjected to her punishment on her behalf. Emi decided to go for bust and try a risky tactic since she had nothing to lose.

"Uh, disciple? Is this how you speak to your Sifu? Even though I'm roughing it outside the sect for your benefit?"

Bao blinked, and his demeanor changed abruptly.

"Whoa...I thought you said that she would be hard to mimic because of her peculiar speech, layering two languages due to her Ability. How did you end up working it out?"

Uh....

Emi decided that projecting confidence was key, even if she spouted some unlikely excuse, and she'd come up with a plan later in case he questioned her further.

"Come back to the room with me, I'll explain it to you. It is quite simple, actually."

Alright, that leaves me with a few moments to come up with a believable lie...

Bao turned around and prepared to go back up the steps, but then he turned once more back toward the common room.

"I'll go grab us something to eat and ask for a pot of tea to be brewed and brought up. I'll come back in a few minutes Sifu."

Emi panicked, her plan now worthless. She grabbed onto Bao's wrist in an attempt to stop him, but she barely weighed 50 pounds, and her arms were far from muscular. On his end, Bao currently presented as a full-grown man, and to make it worse, he was a well-trained and physically fit cultivator. As her hand closed around Bao's swinging wrist, Emi got flung back and forth like a rag doll.

"Aaaaaah!"

At first, a look of worry crept onto Bao's face, but an angry and suspicious frown quickly replaced it.

"You are not my Sifu! How dare you impersonate an Elder of the Limitless Flesh Sect!"

Bao's aura flashed red as he jerked Emi in front of him and booted her down the stairs and into the common room. Emi was so surprised by the instant escalation in violence that she was not able to do anything to stop herself from being descalated down the stairs.

Emi winced and let out a small cry as she bounced onto the edge of a step, but her coat of feathers managed to mitigate the pain and damage from her final landing onto the flat floor of the common room.

Ah, damn, forgot to muffle the sound...Mistress is gonna-

Emi had somewhat calmed down after her fall ended, thinking the violence had come to an end. Still, she had to stop her stream of thoughts abruptly as she noticed an airborne Bao had jumped after her, an arm bent above his head as he readied a downward punch using the fall's momentum. Emi was too slow and disoriented to get out of the way, and all she could do was close her eyes in apprehension and get her arms in front of her chest and face in an attempt to stop her hollow bird bones from being crushed by the incoming attack.

Huh?

Emi tentatively opened one eye after a couple of seconds had gone by without the dreaded impact taking place.

Mistress!?

Emi opened her second eye to make sure she wasn't seeing things, but it did appear as if the Mistress had somehow made her way across the common room in a flash and grabbed Bao by the ankle between her index finger and thumb. By the time Emi had opened her eyes, the mistress simply stood there, holding Bao's leg up, having made him pivot and face plant from arresting his momentum.

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Next, she saw a flurry of fluffy white fur come in flying from the side as an incensed Arctic jumped toward his sister's aggressor, intent on stomping onto the back of his head.

"Whoa, the Mistress already took care of it. Calm down little guy."

Bao's teacher, in Emi's form, had moved so fast that it looked like he had just materialised in Arctic's path, his arms open as he received the airborne Arctic like a football, taking care not to harm him.

"Your sister is safe, all is fine now."

He kept holding onto Arctic firmly until the young monkey stopped struggling and let out a breath. He then looked at the Mistress and then down at Emi before sighing.

"I apologise for my disciple's action. I told him that this is not how things work in the secular world, but he is too accustomed to the violence of sect life. Here, let me just..."

Boa's Sifu picked him up by the ankle and unceremoniously dragged him up the stairs until he stood at the top of the first landing, his disciple's head and chest getting banged about on each step.

"So...You violently threw a mortal down the stairs using your superior strength? A particularly fragile mortal? And you were planning on finishing her, or at least maiming her greatly?"

A look of dread replaced the one of pain on Bao's face as he realized how angry his Sifu was.

"Huh....Please have mercy. She was impersonating you! According to the sect codes, I had the right to punish her severely!"

Bao's Sifu swung him to the right, then to the left, causing his head to strike the walls on each side with a loud thump.

"This is not the sect, this is the secular world, filled with mortals and laws that stand to protect them from people like us. Care to try again? I'll listen to any excuses you have, but if I don't like what you say, I'll keep shaking you about. Or are you ready to quietly take responsibility for your actions and accept your punishment?"

Bao shut his mouth and went limp, giving up all semblance of resistance. His Sifu swung him back and got ready to chuck him down the stairs at full force, but Emi stood up and protested.

"Wait! It's fine. Aside from a bit of butt bruising, I think I'm all good, thanks to the Mistress. I'm not saying you shouldn't punish him, but don't you think there has been enough unwarranted violence already? If he is willing to swear he isn't going to try and do me in again, I'm fine with letting him off."

I mean, look at him! His nose is a bloody mess, and I can already see at least three different lumps starting to form on his head.

Bao looked incredulous. The mortal he had callously been about to punch out of commission was standing up for him and trying to stop his Sifu. His face and his aura both showed evidence that he was second-guessing his actions and starting to feel guilty. The Mistress put a hand on Emi's shoulder, and the smile on her face frightened Emi.

"I don't think that is quite right. Bao broke my rules by getting violent in the Hen House. I don't know why you think it is in your power to spare him from punishment, but it isn't. In fact, weren't you in the process of dodging your own punishment when this all happened?"

The Mistress's grip tightened, pulling at the base of Emi's feathers and threatening to rip them out.

"Ow, ow, ow! Stop, you are going to pluck them out! Alright, I won't try to dodge out of the lecture and punishment! But when it comes to Bao, isn't his Sifu breaking your no-violence rule?"

The Mistress looked pensive for a moment, and then turned to look up the stairs.

"You know what, she is right. What you do with your disciple outside of here is up to you, but you went and broke the house rules. Not only that, but you've also been tricking me for the last ten minutes. I should have known something was up; Emi staying silent for this long should have tipped me off."

"-but Parvati, we are peers, aren't we? And you! Why did you have to point it out to her? I've been trying to make it easier on you by sparing you from punishment!"

Sorry, but you reminded me a bit too much of some of the abusive officers who lived back on base that Dad had to keep in check or get reassigned. Violent corporal punishment is barbaric.

"If you hadn't been so busy stealing my identity, I wouldn't have been able to pass myself off as you, and Bao wouldn't have attacked me. Also, as his Sifu, you are responsible for Bao's actions and are as guilty as he is, if not more."

"-And I already told you in no uncertain terms to stop calling me by that name. Peer or no peer, you are joining back in the punishment, except this time, you are planking on one finger!"

Bao's Sifu looked around and found that he had no allies willing to speak on his behalf. He let go of Bao's ankle, bent his head down, and looked at his feet in defeat.

"Well, what are you all waiting for? Resume planking position!"

****

"Do you understand what you did to deserve this!?"

Bao, his Sifu, Fabio, Emi, and Arctic surrounded the Mistress as they maintained their position, their arms trembling from the effort. The Mistress lowered herself and did yet another spinning sweep, forcing them to push themselves up one after the other, their queue to answer.

"Yes, Mistress!"

Fabio was eager to get over the punishment and did not want to anger her further.

"I do."

Bao had a complicated look on his face as he responded.

"Yep."

Emi knew that she had messed up the previous night and thus offered no excuses.

"He does."

Arctic could not respond himself, but, from the colors present in his aura, Emi could tell that he felt guilty.

"I don't thi-"

Bao's Sifu did not seem entirely convinced as he started voicing his doubts. Upon hearing the first hint of a protest, the Mistress suddenly reversed her spin. She swept his finger from beneath him, interrupting him and making him have an unexpected intimate encounter with the floor.

The Mistress straightened and made the others remain in position for another minute. Although most appeared to struggle, Emi's hollow bones and high strength-to-weight ratio made holding the position significantly easier than she let on, but she acted as if she were on the verge of failing.

If I make it look too easy, she won't feel like I've been punished enough, and she'll start getting creative. Gotta sell it.

" -And who do you disrespect when you break the house rules?"

This time, the group answered with a simple "you!" as they pushed up to avoid the sweep, aside from Fabio, who decided to stick an extra "Mistress" to his reply.

"Will you break my rules again?"

Another minute later, and the Mistress went for another spinning sweep.

"Never!"

Fabio gave it his whole, bootlicking so hard that the others couldn't help but groan.

"I won't."

Bao agreed without fuss, glancing at Emi as he replied.

"Not on purpose."

Emi decided to add a qualifier to her answer, thinking she might need a loophole in the future. The Mistress's leg slowed for an instant, but Emi's answer must have passed muster because she continued with her spin.

"He technically hasn't, but he'll be more careful."

Emi responded on Arctic's behalf again, as the Mistress's leg moved on to the final target.

"As long as I am under your roof."

Bao's sifu also added a qualifier, but the Mistress seemed satisfied by the responses as she straightened back up and let her usual expression return to her face.

"Alright, you can stop now. I'll let you off easy this once. Do not let there be a repeat offense. I will be a lot less lenient if you cross me again. Especially you, unlike the others, you had no excuses. You were in complete control of your emotions, purposefully broke the rules, and I know that this little punishment barely fatigued you. I'll have you spend a couple of hours in the scullery if you want to keep your room here tonight."

The last bit of her speech had been directed at Bao's Sifu, and Emi was in total agreement. The only part of the punishment that seemed to have pained him was admitting he might have been at fault, and she could tell from his aura that he still did not think he had done anything wrong.

"Come on, really? All I did was disci-"

The cold glare the Mistress shot his way made him rethink his position, and he proceeded to nod silently.

Still thinks he is in the right... Bet he just decided that washing dishes was more tolerable than getting on the Mistress's bad side.

Clap Clap Clap

"Impressive!"

Senior Brahman Viraj, who had returned unnoticed at some point, stood in the doorway, clapping, Kshatriya Aniya standing behind him with an amused look on her face.

Emi looked up to the Mistress and saw a glimpse of her underlying unease.

What is that about? Did I miss a development?

Emi was unaware of the details, but she clearly noticed the Mistress's apprehension. Arctic siddled closer and discreetly formed letters on his forearm, in between the singed areas, so only Emi could read them.

"He saw her chew me and Fabio out this morning. Then ran away when she greeted him."

Ah, Viraj got scared away when he saw that the Mistress drop her mask and act strong and decisive. That doesn't match with the clapping and the current colors fighting for dominance within his aura right now, though.

Senior Brahmin Viraj put a hand in his pocket as his aura displayed his internal turmoil. Emi could spot shades of fear, hope, excitement, apprehension, courage, and shame; all shifting around like an erratic emotional storm.

"I apologise for rushing out earlier, but there was something I really had to do before I lost the nerve."

Hope and courage flashed within Senior Brahmin Viraj's aura as he hastily pulled out a decorated bangle from his pocket and thrust it forward in the Mistress's direction.

"Mistress! May I ask your permission to court you, with the sincere hope that it may lead to marriage? I confess I have little experience in these matters, but upon glimpsing more of your true self with each encounter, I have come to the realisation that you are the personification of my ideal partner. You are like the winds, a gentle breeze upon my soul, yet capable of great strength when a storm is needed; will you allow me the opportunity to try and be the sun that warms you and gives you strength?"

Everyone in the room froze, mouth agape, aside from Aniya, who seemed to know this had been coming and was doing her best to profit from the situation herself by winking in Fabio's direction, her hint as subtle as thunder. Fabio seemed to break into a cold sweat as the others shifted their attention to the Mistress, fascinated with the developments and waiting for her response.

"I...I...I..."

The Mistress's complexion took a turn crimsonward as she began stuttering, and she then dashed up the stairs too quickly for anyone to intervene. She turned and met Viraj's gaze one last time before disappearing into the second-floor corridor.

"Wow, you want to court Parvati? Good luck with that. A few of the more powerful cultivators tried their hand back when she stayed at the sect, and not a single one managed to make a dent."

Bao let out a long sigh as everyone present turned and glared at his Sifu.

"Sifu, look at what you did to the poor man."

Viraj's expression had already turned ashen as the object of his affection ran away from him, but that last bit had brought him down to his knees, his eyes unfocused as he loosely held on to the courting bangle with his fingertips.

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