Disclaimer - I don't, and have never claimed to, own Marvel or its Intellectual Property. This is all just so that I can take my maladaptive daydreaming and turn it into something so that it does not ruin the rest of my day.
DoorMan #29
Chief Office, Ta-Lo [January 19, 2008]
–Colin Baxter–
He sat in the Chief's office, the official ruling body of Ta-Lo, not that there were many conflicts in this place. The Dragon's presence along with the faint presence of its bloodline in the denizens of this pocket dimension meant that everyone here paid their respect to their superior in terms of bloodline.
He had learned a lot since the first time he came here and was confused about their traditions. As it turns out, the fantasy books were right. Bloodlines did matter in certain circumstances. The Water Dragon was a real Dragon. However weak it might have been in the realm of fellow dragons, which was also debatable since this particular dragon was vastly more versatile than others, even if the Dragon did lose some of its peak firepower in exchange, it was far more powerful than humans.
With the faint traces of Draconic bloodline in the humans here, they could be considered a whole other species but more importantly, it was ingrained in their very DNA to pay respect and deference to a being with a higher level bloodline. That is why the Water Dragon's words are gospel to these people.
Hence, the a lack of any true disagreement in this place. Everyone loved the Water Dragon who protected everyone and so, all of the disputes, rare as they might be, were handled by the Village Chief, who was sort of an emissary for the Dragon, and as he sent yet another pulse of CHI through his feet, he raised an eyebrow at the stoic faced Elder who was sipping his life giving tea.
He sensed a significant portion of his CHI being diverted straight to the Village Chief's body, making the man straighten up due to the added vitality. It made sense because the Village Chief was the strongest being in the village, by far, and that was probably due to the high level of Draconic bloodline as well as his CHI strengthening the old man.
If his senses were correct, well, let's just say that no one in Kun'Lun should have the honor of being the strongest CHI masters on the planet anymore. The sheer life force coursing through the old man was so strong that he had a solid chance of disorienting even the Hulk for a moment if need be. It made sense when one considered that CHI came from a strong body and the old man literally had the strongest Draconic bloodline in the village.
The only one who came close was his granddaughter, and she was rumoured to be way weaker than her older sister who defected from Ta-Lo to go out and live in the mortal world.
Of course, the Water Dragon stripped the woman of all of her gifts, which probably also included CHI and its bloodline, leading to her death in canon.
Well, he might have to see what he could do about that. Having the wielder of the Ten Rings in his debt might just come in handy, not to mention the fact that Shang-CHi would be an absolute powerhouse when given generous amounts of CHI during his early training and was also armed with the Ten Rings.
"Done sensing everything, Colin?" His vision focused as he snapped back from his senses, seeing the smiling face of the elder who was now reclined back in his chair, one that he brought from the outside world as a gift, and staring straight at him.
Smiling sheepishly, he drank the tea in a single gulp, and after setting the cup down as if it were a shot of liver destroying alcohol instead of rejuvenating tea, he replied, "Yup, was just surprised, that's all. You are one hell of an old man, I'll give you that much,"
This was actually the first time he had seen the CHI transfer in action since all the other times, the Water Dragon was the one who took the lion's share. He supposed that the Dragon had healed itself enough that it could now afford to strengthen its troops.
He heard Ying Nan, the next in line to be Chief, bristle and step forward, probably for physical assault when it was all stopped by a single hand by the Village Chief. He still did not know the geezer's name and he had to wonder if that was because the man was, by far, the most dragon out of all of them, and that somehow led to him getting a True Name?
"I don't suppose you are here to fight an old man like me, are you? Because that would draw shame upon your seven bloodlines," The man said as Ying Nan stepped back into her place and the Village Chief lounged in his chair, without a care in the world.
Spreading his senses far and wide, something that was made easier with the Dragon's consent and also because of all his CHI running through every single mile of this place, he sensed the Dragon, deep beneath the Lake, sleeping but keeping a close eye on the conversation happening here. His senses almost reached the sealed mountain but were abruptly stopped and then gently pushed back by the Dragon as he opened his eyes and sighed in disappointment.
He saw the Village Chief's eyes glaze over and gain a bluish tint to them as the Dragon spoke, through the village chief's face, "It is not yet time for you to meet the Endrbinger. You are still young. We cannot afford to lose you." Saying his piece, the Dragon left, and in his place left the Village Chief.
"I assume you wished to test if you were finally strong enough to begin directly affecting the seal with your miracle powers?" The Chief asked him, even as he waved his hand to his granddaughter, to empty his office.
Once they were alone, he raised an eyebrow at the incredible CHI manipulation on display. Apparently, that was enough of an invitation for the Old Man to start explaining stuff to him.
"I have grown every single piece of bamboo and wood in this office, by myself, by giving them my lifeblood, bit by bit. There is not a single thing in this office that I cannot control by myself,"
He looked around and yup, he was right. He wasn't sure if the Old Man would have used up so much CHI for something as trivial as sealing his office if he had not recently come into an essentially unlimited supply of CHI but even so, it was impressive. The thin layer of yellow with stars dotted in the middle reminded him of the advanced prison force fields in Asgardian Dungeons.
"Alright, I get it. I am not ready to handle the seal but I don't understand why. You guys won't even tell me what I need to be ready. I can figure something out. Do we need Holy elemental powers? Because I can get those, soon."
The Chief shook his head, "You misunderstand, Young Colin. You are still too young, too blessed, and simultaneously cursed with your power. It would be a catastrophe if you were to come into contact with the seal. Far better men than you have tried and failed,"
The better men part irked him a bit but he let it go. It was not like he was the strongest being on the planet, but he was aiming to be one and soon, within like a decade, he will be.
Until then, "Fine. I won't try anything about the seal anymore."
The Chief's eyes crinkled as he smiled, "Good. Now, what else can I do for you? Your scheduled delivery was still a bit away if my memory serves me right."
He nodded, "Yes but I will be busy for a while. Significant events happening in the mortal world will force me to divert my full attention there, and so I came early so the CHI delivery would not disrupted. Also, I needed an increase in my meat quota for the year."
The geezer, purposefully, hmmed and stroked his beard, "Hmm. That is difficult, you know. We just had a lower than expected yield. How much more do you need?"
He cursed internally at the old man. They literally could not have low yields. The Dragon made sure of it. And what did low yield have to do with their meat?
They were all vegetarians, as was the Water Dragon. The Dragon did eat spirits but he did not know if that could be classified as meat.
He ground out, "An extra CHI session for the year, in exchange for 30 more pounds of meat."
"Done." The man said with the speed of lightning, his hand in front of his at dizzying speeds. He blinked at the outstretched hand for a bit before he shook it in a daze.
Dammit! He should have asked for more.
"You know, for someone whose supposed lifelong mission is to contain the biggest evil this side of the world, you sure are slimy,"
The man had the audacity to beam at him, "That…I am, young Colin. That, I am."
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