Yuen Huang?

Zen sighed out a pained breath and slowly opened his eyes. At first, all he saw was a blurry light amidst the dripping darkness above him, but as he allowed his eyes to refocus, he realized what that little light was.

Hello there, little soul.

Yuen Huang? The little soul repeated as it danced above him.

Realizing what the soul was saying, Zen slowly pushed himself up, then gently shook his head.

I am not the person you are seeking. I am unsure of where he is at this moment.

The dancing light slowed as it circled his head like a halo, drawing his attention upward so that he could follow its movements.

Young master, Yuen Huang. Young master.

Zen frowned at the odd thing, wondering who it had actually been to confuse him so easily with its master. And prince Yuen was definitely not little any longer, so whoever the soul had belonged to must have passed away many years ago.

Deciding to ignore it for the moment, he looked around the massive cave he had landed in. Thankfully, the water that had swallowed them had shrunk away back into the spongy ground, but as he scoured the area several times with his eyes, he felt his heartbeat pick up uncomfortably.

Master?

He quickly got to his feet, but nearly fell as the mossy ground shifted beneath him. They had been in such a hurry to leave when prince Yuen gave them the chance, that they'd forgotten to grab their shoes. Not that they would have been much help on such a slippery surface.

Regaining his balance, he hurried to a more stable area with firmer footing before looking down at the little wooden seal he'd been given previously. He could feel it humming slightly, as if asking for attention but not wishing to disturb him outright.

Perhaps it can help me find where master has landed?

He reached for it at the same time the little soul began wandering past him toward a tunnel. When it simply hovered by the entrance, he hesitated, looking between the seal and the soul for a few moments before letting go of the seal and hurrying after his new floating friend.

Best not to use the dark seal unless absolutely necessary, he reasoned with himself, already wary of it since it had separated him from his master.

As he got closer, the little soul began to spin excitedly in circles.

I will follow you, little one. Please, if you know where my master is, bring me to him.

The soul paused in its movements for a few moments before beginning down the dark tunnel, lighting the way with its radiance. Zen kept up easily, honestly surprised by the amount of tunnels they began passing as they first ascended, then descended several times. There were several times where the vines hanging above them inched closer, seemingly curious as to who the trespasser was, but each time they appeared to try and reach closer to him the little soul would glow brighter, forcing the flora to retreat back into the darker recesses of the caves.

Thank you, little one.

The soul flickered and danced in response to his thought, drawing a silent chuckle from Zen's lips as they continued on their way. He knew that he should have been a little more cautious of the soul, but such creatures rarely held onto the malice they had acquired in the living world. It also didn't seem hostile in any way, and that was something that could not be hidden once dead.

Do you happen to remember your name? he asked as they found their way out into another large cavern. This one, thankfully, wasn't raining cold water down upon him like the other had.

The little soul shifted to orbiting around his middle as he walked, but gave him no response. As he moved, he felt the ground beneath his feet shift again, but when he realized that it was actually slowly moving in the direction he was going, he stopped walking and allowed himself to focus on the area around him instead of just moving forward.

Young master Yuen, it is best to warm up soon.

Looking down at the soul still spinning around him, Zen smiled and reached up, intending to gently pat it. When his fingertips brushed the outer edge of its light, however, his entire body instantly began to burn with heat as his mind whited out...

The night sky soared way overhead and crickets chirped nearby. It was chilly outside, likely somewhere near the middle of winter. Lying on his back, he blew little puffs of warm air upward and watched silently as it dissipated above him.

"Young master Qi, you skipped your lessons again?"

He sat up immediately, feeling sheepish as he hurried to his feet and dusted off his clothing.

"I know what they are teaching already. Perhaps I could be of use to you instead of wasting my time listening to that old man drabble on?" Qi said as he straightened, offering a smile to the young master before him.

A young version of Yuen Huang stepped forward with a knowing grin on his face before reaching over to pat Qi's head gently. The feeling was so familiar that it immediately calmed his worry, drawing him closer until his forehead pressed against the boy's chest. He actually didn't seem much taller, which would have made them not too far off in age.

"Your lessons are important, your highness... but I suppose that I could use assistance with my new birds, if you are so up to the task?"

He immediately nodded several times against his chest, then leaned away and smiled widely at him.

"I will gladly help you."

Yuen Huang gave a quiet chuckle in response, but he didn't mind the humor he found in his enthusiasm. In fact, he loved the sound.

"Very good then. Let us be off, my prince..."

Jerking upright, Zen took several deep breaths and looked around, frowning as he realized that he must have suddenly passed out after touching the soul. The area around him was very dimply lit, reminding him of when they had first arrived in prince Yuen's lair. This time, however, it was not the man, himself, providing the little illumination, but tiny insects humming about above a reflective length of water. It stretched out for some distance, and as Zen approached its bank, he noticed the little soul that had accompanied him previously was dancing about on the water's surface.

Just the thought of the spirit falling into the water sent a shiver through his own cold, damp body. Stepping forward, he moved to the very edge of the water and called out to it.

Please return, little one. Your master will surely be worried if you mistakenly harm yourself.

"Stop."

Zen's body immediately seized up, freezing him in place as he felt the tendrils of the curse in his injured hand begin to crawl up his arm. His body temperature, which was already quite chilled due to still being in wet clothing, began to drop considerably faster, making him shiver harshly.

He was unable to turn his head and look at his attacker, but prince Yuen appeared beside him only a few moments later, a scowl on his face as he ignored Zen and, instead, addressed the soul that had paused above the stretch of water.

Zen tried to fight the man's control, but he could neither break the immobility spell, nor fight off the curse that was still marching up his arm.

"You know better than to play out there," said the prince, surprising him by how gentle his voice sounded all of a sudden.

The soul didn't seem scared of him at all, either, because it quickly hurried back to shore, then spun around them both as it sung.

Yuen Huang, young master is here! Yuen Huang is here!

The prince calmly reached out so that the warm soul could rest in the palm of his hand, then looked over his shoulder at him.

How did you get that soul? The memory seemed like it was my master's from when he was younger...

It made no sense, though. His master was still quite alive and well. Wasn't he...?

"If it wouldn't kill him, I would let my father's curse destroy you right now," prince Yuen hissed as he closed his eyes for a moment, then blinked them open at the same time Zen felt the curse immediately retreat back to his hand and the paralysis within his body fade.

The sudden retraction made him gasp and cough several times as the horrific chill left his body.

"Prince Yuen!" came his master's voice from far behind, making Zen turn and hurry toward him.

He looked fine, albeit a little tired. It was such a huge relief. The second he got close enough, his master reached out and took his injured hand, examining it gently before looking over Zen's shoulder.

"Why must you torment him so? What has he done to you in order to be punished?" he asked, clearly angry.

Zen turned to look at the man, too, though his master refused to release his hand and was, instead, allowing some of his energy to flow through their connection and warm his chilled arm.

Oh, the little soul is gone...

"He touched something that did not belong to him," the prince said as he calmly walked closer with his arms clasped behind his back.

"Besides, I did not attack him with it."

Zen found that hard to believe, and so did his master, considering how Qi's eyebrows narrowed and he stepped forward, meeting the man toe to toe.

"I saw you activate the curse. Yet now you deny it?"

The look on the other prince's face was hard to decipher, but when he reached forward, Zen darted in front of his master with his hand grasping the hilt of his sword.

The action made prince Yuen huff out an annoyed breath, then look past him to his master.

"I did not activate the curse, I simply stopped holding it at bay."

Neither of them were convinced, but it seemed like the prince had already planned to prove himself, because he reached forward again and settle one hand on Zen's shoulder. It was clear that he wanted him to move aside, but...

"It's alright, Zen," Qi said, making him obey immediately, but hesitantly.

He watched with his hand still on his sword as the other prince calmly shrugged the right side of his robe off his shoulder, revealing part of his pale chest.

"Seal my chakra points."

Zen's mouth dropped open from shock. The man was requesting that they seal his abilities? He looked to his master, praying that he would see through whatever rouse the other prince was concocting.

Unfortunately, Qi seemed very intrigued by the suggestion and was already reaching forward.

Master!

As if hearing his plea, Qi looked over to him and smiled warmly.

"Fear not, Zen. He has had many opportunities to attack us, especially while we walk freely within his lair, where he can easily control what he wills, yet we are both still standing well."

That might have been true, but he still didn't like it. He was also worried about the soul he'd found earlier. It had disappeared after he'd gotten distracted by his master, and the last one to have had it was the other prince.

Mind your business, little curse.

Zen scowled at prince Yuen as he spoke into his thoughts, but the man was paying him no mind as his master pressed his fingers to his chest and calmly completed the simple hand signals against his skin in order to seal away his spiritual abilities.

The flash of pain that followed his actions was like nothing he'd ever felt before. White hot agony burned from his hand as it shot shards of ice not only up his arm, but straight toward his heart. He felt as if he were getting struck by frigid lightning.

Barely a second before that bolt could strike his heart it disintegrated, taking with it the frostbite and melting the ice that had accumulated along his skin in those few short moments. He could tell that he was in his master's warm arms, but there was no way he had the strength to open his eyes or communicate.

"You speak the truth," Qi eventually whispered after a long stretch of silence.

The vibration of his voice from within his chest had Zen nuzzling closer with an exhausted sigh. He wanted no more of this country and its dangers. All he wished was for his master's safety, and yet he could not even protect himself from a curse he'd been so easily tricked to contract without the help of that country's prince.

His mind was about to move further into despair when he felt a gentle hand settle atop his head. It calmed him quickly, but could not completely erase his worries.

"Why have you been protecting him," Qi finally asked as Zen felt his light body being lifted.

The dark laughter he heard in response made him wish that he could be of more use at that moment.

"I would prefer he die as quickly as possible, but until I can figure out how to break the tethering portion of the curse you are both under, I have no choice but to keep him alive... in order to keep you alive."