Chapter Text
It was like his body was on fire again.
Wukong desperately tried to keep his head up, guiding his cloud closer and closer to the bright red ship just a couple feet away. Since the fight with Nezha, his vision had been covered in black spots. His body had been protesting, trying so desperately to get the king to lie down. To pass out. But he knew he couldn’t. At least, not right now. MK still clung to his waist, and if he fell then the kid would fall down with him. After all the mistakes he’s made so far, holding on a bit longer was the best he could do to keep his successor safe.
He knew he shouldn’t have been so stupid. If it wasn’t for that goddamn “vacation”, MK wouldn’t have had a single scratch on him. Grabbing that map was worth it, sure. But did that really mean putting the group in danger? The kid in danger? Crap. Wukong slammed his fist against the cloud, his tail flickering violently the more he thought of the consequences. He worried the kid would notice his uneasy mood, but lucky for him, they both seemed too out of it to focus on anything but the task at hand.
He’s been dealing with life and death his whole life. He spent years traveling west with his old friends, fighting demons and heaven itself. So why— why was it so difficult to end one, already defeated, monster.
The universe had heard him and karma quickly took hold of the situation. The ship neared but the cloud beneath the two began to flicker.
Wukong yelped for a moment, regaining his balance. He rested a hand on MK’s wrist for precaution, blinking his eyes rapidly in hope it’d somehow keep the cloud in check. It took a moment as the flickering finally came to a stop, but he took no chance of relaxing, letting himself zoom forward dangerously into the deck of the ship.
They had just barely made it in time, colliding into the wooden flooring. He tried to hold on to the kid, but the grip had loosened as soon as they lost balance. Instead, the duo painfully rolled until they had the consciousness to stop themselves. Wukong landed on his stomach, which felt like a whiplash to all his pass adventures. He exhaled sharply, pulling himself upright with weak arms before his body had a chance of shutting down. The air was still. His heart rate paced against his ears while he brought the energy to look to his right, catching his cloud just moments away from disappearing into the thin air. It was gone within a blink of an eye, and that’s when it hit him.
He was powerless.
Sun Wukong was powerless.
“MK!”
His head whipped to the sound of Mei’s voice, ignoring the pounding migraine that began to form. Wukong watched the group huddle over MK, Tang resting a finger against the kid’s neck, predictably for a pulse. His chest clenched tightly, imagining the worse outcome from four-eyes’s checkup. For a moment, his eyes flickered an image into the back of his head.
Just when he started to believe, MK pulled himself upright, rubbing the corner of his head. In return, Wukong followed the action, letting his weight rest on his palms. The place stood quiet while he and MK’s vision came into focus. Instantly, he caught the worry and anger that plastered around the group’s faces, but paid no mind to comment on it. “Hey, bud.” He winced at the sudden burn in his throat, but still continued his tease. “Miss me?”
It was like an alarm had set off in MK’s head, and everything or anything he had been trying to suppress from asking had blabbered out of his mouth within a millisecond. Wukong couldn’t blame him. “Where were you?” He snapped, looking very close to standing and waltzing over. But Mei’s resting hand made him comply. “You could’ve stopped this! We could’ve-“ MK stopped pressing, trying his best to hold in the tears that tried so desperately to push out. He rubbed the corner of his eye, giving his mentor a look of disapproval. It felt like a stab in the chest in Wukong’s eyes.
MK finally mustered a sentence, glancing up at his friends. “We have to go back. We have to take her down!”
“We can’t.” Wukong croaked out, the fire in his chest subsiding at the thought.
He can’t.
His teeth bared, pulling his thoughts back together. If he was powerless, there’s no chance he’d be able to get all three rings on his own. But getting help meant putting MK in danger. He’d never give the kid more work just after dealing with Lady Bone Demon. He was injured. Hell, so was Wukong. They were officially at a dead end.
Wukong could hear the kid continue his protesting. How hard he tried to convince the Monkey King that they could still win the fight if they didn’t back down. He retorted before the kid could finish his rant, staring him dead in the eye.
“The staff is gone, bud.” Wukong pursed his lips, pressing a hand against his exposed arm. “And, I am in no shape to face her. Neither of us are.” He shifted in place, his eyes quickly laying down-cast. Everything ached and he was having enough with the conversation. He didn’t have to explain himself to MK just because the kid didn’t understand his motive. He’ll figure it out on his own. It’s not like he needed to know every detail.
“I didn’t make it back in time.” Wukong exhaled through his nose, voice thick with guilt. Everyone’s hopes died down at the words, he could feel it. The kid slouched, Mei frowned.. Even then, a spark of anger still filled and a click of a tongue caught everyone’s attention. He glanced up in sight of Pigsy, who’s hands clenched with annoyance.
“Back from what?” The cook asked. He didn’t pause for an answer, “Your vacation?” Tang quickly shouted his name at the sudden disrespect. But Wukong knew he was right. His words filled with venom but Wukong understood why. He shouldn’t have left the kid alone. He should’ve been by MK’s side from the beginning. “No!” Pigsy shot at Tang, turning his attention back to the source of the problem. “What could’ve been so important that you’d leave MK alone to face that- that thing?” His voice shot daggers as he pointed to a random direction. Wukong followed it, his face dropping further than he thought possible.
“ You’re supposed to be his mentor!”
It was like time stopped. Wukong stared at Pigsy in shock, who's face was red with anger despite the glow of pink. He could feel everyone’s gaze on him but made no attempt to look back. Why was he so scared of these people? Why was he so worried about making them disappointed?
Before Pigsy and him could make eye contact, his eyes quickly snapped to the ground in guilt. From the action, the pig scoffed, crossing his arms. “Why do I even bother?” He stood there, watching Wukong’s figure curl in on itself before turning and walking away. As he left, so did the others. First was Tang, who seemed weary about the argument. Chasing Pigsy down in hopes to rationalize. After was Sandy, which was a surprise. He muttered something about making tea for them, saying everyone was just tired with shock. MK stayed, staring Wukong down, or at least that’s what he assumed. He felt eyes baring into him, like someone was trying to read him. The action only made him shiver.
After a minute or so, Mei finally whispered, nudging her best friend on the side. “Let’s go.” MK awkwardly nodded, letting her drag him up to his two feet.
And just like that he was sitting outside alone, with his rigged clothes and broken bones. If he was in the mood, he would’ve laughed at how catchy it sounded, but it wasn’t the time and place for that. He didn’t have the courage to speak up to the gang. He didn’t have the courage to fight Lady Bone Demon one on one. He didn’t have the courage to be the Monkey King everyone knew and loved.
Seriously. Way to give monkeys a bad name.
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“Yea-ah! Pigsy’s Noodles for breakfast, yo!”
As soon as Wukong glanced through the doorway, the smell of noodles hit him. Sandy and Pigsy stood in the kitchen, slamming ingredients together to create the perfect taste of noodles and tea. They looked hard at work, as if breakfast was life or death. Well, it was starting to feel like just that to Wukong. His stomach had been growling since he peaked in. He couldn’t even remember the last time he had a proper meal, or at least a cooked one at best.
Although he was hungry, he worried how angry they’d be once they saw him. He made a mistake and he wasn’t sure how forgiving they’d be. Apparently MK already seemed hyped up for their next adventure, but he wasn’t so sure about the rest of the group.
Instead, Wukong stood at the doorway, picking mindlessly at the wall’s paint. Pigsy was laughing with Sandy. Mei and MK were teasing each other.. maybe they forgot about yesterday? He shook his head, of course they didn’t forget. They nearly died.
He turned to the dining table where Mei and MK sat talking to one another. Wukong took in MK’s figure, scanning him for any bandages. Luckily, none were in sight. Until, well, the kid turned to look at Pigsy. MK’s face was littered in bandages. One sat at the bridge of his nose, another stretched from his cheek to his neck. Wukong pursed his lips, taking a step back like a fist had just punched his gut. His tail curled around his torso, awkwardly listening to a conversation he had no part of.
“You should so do this more often, Pigsy!” Mei plead, shoving a handful into her mouth. She sat up instantly, raising a hand across the horizon. “Think about it.” She began dramatically. “A world with three meal Pigsy Noodles.” MK gasped, “We’d be rich!” Pigsy only rolled his eyes in reply as he approached MK with his own bowl of noodles.
The room went quiet while Pigsy searched for a pair of chopsticks for the kid. It wasn’t strained, though. It was comfortable. Wukong only wished he was part of that comfort. “Kid’s never appreciate ya.” Pigsy muttered, “Give em’ a bowl of noodles and they want more.” MK was next to roll his eyes back at the pig, wavering his hand in the air like a talking puppet. “Yeah yeah whatever. Don’t ruin it for us.”
They smiled at each other, MK taking the chopsticks from Pigsy’s hands. He snapped it in half before digging into the bowl within an instant. His eyes lit up at the taste but was quickly replaced by a sudden wince at the movement of his arm. MK frowned, rubbing his forearm absently while he slowed his eating.
Mei looked up in worry and so did Wukong.
He shouldn’t have left the kid alone. How many times is he going to keep reminding himself that? MK got hurt because of him. The group hated him because he put their friend in danger. Wukong stepped back mindlessly, his appetite going away and quickly being replaced with nausea.
He can’t do this.
Not today.
“You okay, Monkey King?”
Wukong would’ve been lying if he said he didn’t jump the height of the doorway. His fur bushed out ready for battle as he whipped his head around only to find Tang staring at him with curious eyes. He faltered at the sight of Mr. Four-eyes, taking in the pile of books that rested in the male’s arms— the covers seemed extremely similar to the Journey to the West book. Wukong straightened awkwardly, clearing his throat. “How long were you…” he winced, “standing there?” Tang only shrugged, using his free hand to point behind him. “Only just got here.” He paused, dropping his voice down to question. “But.. you do seem a little off.”
Wukong gave a hysterical laugh, waving his hand. “Psh- what!? I seem off?” He mocked, “Why would I seem off? Probably just.. tired from yesterday- or something.” He chuckled questionably, taking in Tang’s expression.
That didn’t change the suspicion in Tang’s eyes, yet somehow was enough to please him. He hummed, waving it off. “I guess you’re right.” He said, letting his head drop against his free hand. “I got to admit, it really was an adventure.” Before Wukong could respond, he walked past him into the room. His nervous laughter finally died down, letting his shoulder stir into his body. He exhaled, stepping forward into the room next.
“Monkey King!”
It wasn’t a second before MK greeted him, shoving another bite of noodles into his mouth before turning to his mentor. “Oh. My. God! You need to try these noodles!” He shouted, rushing over to Wukong’s side. MK shoved the bowl into Wukong’s face, his grin stretching along his face with no sign of pain or anger. Wukong’s awkwardness softened at the sight, but he knew what had happened had still happened. “Pigsy added shrimp- or something into it and now it tastes out of this world!”
Wukong chuckled, pushing the bowl away. “That’s great, Kid. Can’t wait to try it.”
“Just take a seat, I’ll be there in a second!” Pigsy said from the kitchen while he rummaged through the utensils. Wukong nodded despite the pig’s turned head, walking over to the table beside MK. As he hopped onto the chair, MK slid into his, shoving the noodles into his mouth once again. After a moment or two, Pigsy came into the dining room with three bowls. He handed one over to Tang and Sandy before sliding the last over to Wukong. “How are ya wounds?” Pigsy asked, turning to MK who tapped a few of his bandaids nonchalantly. Wukong watched carefully, paying attention to any small wince he could find. But none came. “Eh, it’s healing. It’s not as bad as Monkey King’s though.” MK looked up at his mentor, giving him a thorough look. “You might need to re-patch that.”
That’s right, he had forgotten. Wukong blinked with wide eyes, looking down at his own bandaged arms which was already seeped in blood. He was so focused on the kids injuries he hadn’t even noticed his own. Even then, he knew he could handle it. He was immortal for heaven’s sake. MK wasn’t on the other hand.
“Righhhhttt!” He lengthened, stretching his arms out in front of him to get a better look. Wukong gave a crooked smile, waving it off while he pulled out his chopsticks. “It’s fine. I can survive.”
MK gawked, “Does it not hurt?” He whined, dropping his head down, “That’s so unfair.” So his were hurting. Wukong gave a quick laugh, “Of course it hurts! But it’s not like I’m gonna’ die. ” He puckered his face, stirring the noodles. “I’m not some low dumb mortal.”
Pigsy scoffed, “Maybe you should be.” He stirred his own noodle bowl, letting it cool down. “Get a taste of your own medicine.” He said it so casually that no one paid in mind what words exactly came out of his mouth. Except for Wukong, of course. He stared at the pig in shock, quickly glancing back down to his food. The moment the nausea went away, it came back, and he suddenly didn’t feel like eating anymore. Why was he getting under his skin so easily. Wukong was getting soft and he was hating it.
He opened his mouth to reply back, but was quickly interrupted by Sandy’s booming voice. “I’ll help out once we finish eating. Nothing a nice cup of tea won’t fix.” Wukong smiled, Mei immediately chiming into the conversation. She pointed an accusing chopstick, “I’m pretty sure he needs new bandages, Sandy. Not tea.” She glanced over, with a smile. “I’ll patch you up, no worries.”
“Thanks, dragon pony girl.”
After about an hour or so, the team finally finished breakfast. MK, despite all the complaints, had been put on dishes duty while Pigsy and Tang gathered all the bowls and cups. Sandy stood beside the oven, working on the cup of tea he promised Wukong. Even though he truly didn’t want to, Wukong had insisted on helping, but was pulled aside by Mei so she could fix up his wounds. It was nice that she cared, but he didn’t want anyone worrying about him. He didn’t need their help.
“Ow!” Wukong hissed, looking down at the alcohol wipe pressed against his cuts. His tail sat upright while Mei smacked him in the back of his head, rolling her eyes. “Then hold still! The faster this goes, the less it’ll hurt.” He frowned, pretty sure that wasn’t the way pain worked. Wukong complied anyways, slouching as he crossed his legs together. He glanced over to the kitchen, stiffening as he made eye contact with Pigsy. And boy did he look mad. “Hey,” Wukong began with a mutter, turning back to Mei. “I’m.. sorry about yesterday.”
Mei looked up confused, finally dropping the wipe and replacing it with a new one. “What’d you do?” It took her a moment. “Oh right, that. It’s no big, really. I am still a tiny bit mad that you put my best friend in danger but.. you know.” She shrugged and paused for a moment. “You’re Monkey King! It’s what you do… right?” Her way of reassuring was honestly not that reassuring at all. It’s what Monkey King does? Is that really his role? Wukong thought of answering, but after the past few days, he was too drained to respond back. He only nodded back, seeming to please Mei as she went back to work.
They’re kids. They don’t know how to word things properly.
She means well.
But… she’s right.
He doesn’t know how to communicate. He doesn’t know how to play nice. It’s why master had put that damn crown on him. It’s why he’d get shocked even though he had done something good . That he had killed the enemy. Because he wasn’t trust worthy enough. And he wasn’t trust worthy enough to take care of a goddamn friend group.
Wukong exhaled sharply, scratching the edge of his nose. He was overthinking things. Hell, he’s been overthinking things since the moment he met MK. He needed a breather, or at least a break. An actual vacation.
Speaking of which— he hasn’t mentioned exactly why he had gone on that trip. Wukong had been too occupied to even say the words. He worried they’d yell at him.
…
He’ll keep it a secret.
Besides, once he healed, he’ll set off on the adventure alone.
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It’s been days and Wukong hasn’t come close to healing. His cuts were scabs but his abilities were still a no show. He hoped a little meditating would work but unfortunately his attention span hadn’t been good as of late. He was at a dead end, and it was starting to get to him again.
Wukong paced around the deck, letting his tail swivel along as if it thought itself. The others had gone off the ship into the forest, making a quick fire place just a few feet away. He planned on joining but decided to use the break to recover. Without MK bothering him 24/7 it was the perfect moment to try meditating again. But he’s tried so much that no doubt there’d be no progress.
It was probably the gauge in his head. His bandage still wrapped around it, and estimating was at least a few more days, tops.
He didn’t have that much time.
Wukong quickly stopped in place, glancing out into the afternoon sky as he contemplated. Lady Bone Demon was getting stronger everyday, and the more days that past, the more he’d need that fire of Samadhi. He dropped, catching himself with his tail as it kept him upright. He exhaled, closing his eyes while he tried to focus. But everything was distracting. The wind pushed his clothes against his fur, sending a shiver down his spine. The clicking of the crickets waking up put Wukong on high alert. The ship’s engine hummed under him, shaking the deck ever so slightly.
He groaned, his eyelids now squeezed. It was impossible.
“Monkey King!”
He swore they were going to eventually use up his name. Maybe the kid was his distraction.
“Kid, don’t you see I’m in the middle of something?” He frowned, his eyes now half-lid. Wukong glanced over his shoulder, his act quickly dropping. He blinked, taking in MK’s figure. “Bud?” His voice came out pinched, pacing over to the other’s side. His heart rate sped up, the blood trickling down MK’s head enough to catch onto the worry. The smell of metal hit his nose as he came closer, “Shit, what happened? Did you trip over a rock again?” He strained out, hoping just maybe that was the case. But he could tell it was something completely different.
MK tried his best to catch his breath, his body lightweight from all the new injuries scattered around his body. “Lady-“ he exhaled with a flinch, snapping a quick arm to his abdomen. “Lady Bone Demon is here! She followed us here!” Tears began trickling down MK’s face. He hiccuped, stretching his arm out to the woods, which now flashed with light. “Mei’s hurt! Pig- Pigsy couldn’t feel a pulse!”
That set him off guard. As soon as those words sputtered out of his mouth, he went charging into the battle before MK could say anything else. He hopped from tree to tree, really wishing he had his staff. Wukong ignored his straining muscles and the multiple scattered wounds that still had yet to heal. If MK was right, then they were all in danger.
He knew he had no chance of fighting her, so he’d need to grab them and go.
He reached the tree opening, the smell of metal worsening once he finally came to a stop. Wukong’s breath hitched, his eyes rapidly scanning the area around him. Tang was on the ground gasping for air, as if he had tried to fight back. Blood smeared across the grass blades and he followed the path with his eyes. And Mei was just at the end of it.
Pigsy was beside her, tapping her face more and more aggressively each time. But she wasn’t moving. Her chest wasn’t moving. “Come on. Don’t do this to me.” Pigsy rasped, pulling the bangs away from her face. Her head lolled to the right, the pool of blood slightly spilling out of her mouth.
Wukong scrunched his eyebrow, quickly grabbing a branch to drop down beside them. But before he could, something grabbed hold of the back of his head, pulling him to a nearby tree. He cried out in pain, the branch splinters shoving into the side of his cheek. He attempted to scramble free, throwing his hands in the air as he pushed and pulled his way out. It was no use. Whatever had held onto him had no plan of letting go. He gave struggling breaths, finally opening his eyes to get a small glimpse of the enemy beside him.
He’d expected it to be her. But it was still a shock.
Her innocent smile plastered over the vessel’s face, and for a moment a flash of blue fire and bones replaced his vision before carrying him back to reality. He gasped suddenly, his tail tightening around the arms of Lady Bone Demon in hopes it’d somehow loosen her hold. She only giggled, slouching over so Wukong could get a better view of her expression. “Awe, look at you.” She smiled, pouting in exaggerating worry. “You know, just a few centuries ago I was the one being pinned down . How event changing!” Lady Bone Demon dropped her mouth beside Wukong’s ear, “I’m going to have fun killing you.”
Wukong laughed, despite his position. “Watch it, lady. Monkey King over here doesn’t do dying.” He smirked, “Go find another play toy! Preferably someone, I don’t know, not here?” Her smile immediately dropped to a scowl, her hand pressing further into his skull. He screamed at the sudden pressure, shoving with every muscle in his body, hoping that just maybe she’d finally loosen her grip. And she did… just not for the same reason.
Something or someone had pushed her off of him, sending her flying in the open field ahead. Wukong exhaled a breath of air, letting his body fall to the ground as he recollected himself. He placed a hand against his chest, building up the energy to look up. MK stood fearlessly in front of him, his knuckles now covered in blood. Wukong frowned, knowing how terrible this was going to end. “Kid-“ he began, ready to tell him to retreat. They needed to grab Mei and the others and go. They were not going to win this fight. Monkey King was reckless but not reckless enough.
But a quick venomous glance from MK stopped him from speaking. “I should’ve never trusted you.” He stared at Wukong, paying no mind of looking LBD down at all. He grunted, ruffling his own hair. “Ugh! How have I not seen it? You’re literally Monkey King! You don’t care about others! You don’t care about me!”
“What? No, MK, listen-“ Wukong stuttered, finally gaining his balance to stand up.
“I’ll just end up dead like the rest of your friends. Wouldn’t I?” Suddenly there was a flash, and MK’s head dropped, his usually glistening eyes now dark in depth. His nose bled, his mouth bled. A hole gashed out of his chest, and on the other end, held her fist. Lady Bone Demon’s fist.
Wukong yelped, scrambling over to MK’s side as he dropped to the ground. His chest weaved in pain, pushing the kid’s hair away from his eyes. “Kid?”
Lady bone demon gave a sigh of disapproval, looking the two down. “That was a bit easy, wasn’t it?” Wukong hiccuped, eyes watering up. “Honestly I was expecting more of a fight.” She took a step forward, taking in the kid’s body.
“MK, talk to me. Stop playing around.”
She hummed, tapping her chin. “Well… you did say find a new play toy.”
“Bud-” Wukong shoved MK’s head slightly.
“That really is a shame, though.” She frowned, glancing down at Wukong. Despite the mess of hair, he returned the glare, his eyes glossed in pain. “Really seemed like he had no idea how to use his powers.” She rose an eyebrow in question..
“ Aren’t you supposed to be his mentor ?”
And it was like everything came falling down. The forest around him fell in darkness and suddenly he was back on the deck of the ship, gasping for air. He lay there on all fours, choking on his spit while his eyes puffed red with tears. Wukong rubbed the side of his face, a flash of what he had just witnessed wrapping the back of his head.
It almost felt too real.
He turned to look beside him, taking a moment to stand before approaching the side of the ship. He needed to make sure they were okay.
Wukong scanned the trees before catching a glimpse of orange and red— the fire they had set up a couple hours ago. They were okay. Uninjured and safe. Mei and MK punched each other jokingly while a hand held a marshmallow on a stick. Pigsy sat beside talking to Tang, enough to ease the Monkey King’s worry. He sighed, but a hint of sorrow still lay.
If he didn’t get his abilities back, that’s what was going to happen. If he didn’t leave MK out of it, he was going to die.
MK was going to die.
Wukong quickly rubbed the tears away from his face before anyone could see. He sniffed, letting his body fall to the ground as he lay against the railing. His heart stilled pumped fast, and he exhaled for a moment as he came to a sudden conclusion.
He’d need to leave as soon as he could.
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