Chapter 2: The wrong kind of alleyway fun

Raul checked his eyes one last time to make sure they weren't red anywhere from his cologne mishap before finally being satisfied with his outfit. It was finally the night of the banquet, and he was dressed in his best. A nice tux that had a picture of a transparent circular lock, with a valley within, on its left chest, the insignia of the Vault family.

He smiled roguishly into the mirror. He hadn't left the house since he got the invitation and was feeling a bit frisky. He was banking on finding a nice exotic girl interested in holding a foreign exchange tonight.

He walked out of his cottage with determination. He'd decided that he'd look for a trade to learn after tonight, something that'd take him traveling. He loved the valley and Twin Peaks City, but he wanted to see more of what was out there, and if he couldn't do that as a cultivator then he'd find something else he could do it as.

Though Old George already offered to take care of him, the life of a mortal being rather short and cheap for a cultivator, Raul couldn't accept just being in his care forever. He wanted to make his own way.

He thought about waiting until Tai left before doing it, as the training would undoubtedly cut into their time, but he wanted to progress enough to show his brother that he'd be ok after he was gone.

The party venue was a bit of a walk for Raul, being located near the guest housing. One of the downsides to living close to a strategic location like the family head's house was being far away from any locations outsiders could easily access.

As he got closer, people started passing him on their way. Having grown up in the Vault House, he was used to having cultivators zip pass him, that's why he didn't expect to suddenly feel his shirt tugged or to be dragged into an alley.

Before he could even figure out what was happening, he was thrown into a wall. He inhaled sharply as the pain spread across his back. He couldn't believe he'd just been attacked in the Vault family's own courtyard. He looked up and prepared for the worst as various possibilities for his assailant ran through his mind.

Still, he never expected the assailants to be two people he knew. Jason and Matthew were two of the younger generation of the family, just a bit older than him and Tai. They were dressed similarly to him, wearing a similar tux with the family insignia on it. He didn't get along with them great, but he'd never seen them with such looks of disgust before.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" Jason snarled.

"The hell? I'm the one who should be asking that!" Raul's anger exploded. Out of all the possibilities he'd envisioned, he never imagined he was getting manhandled by his own people.

"We're not playing with you!" Matthew punched the wall behind Raul hard enough for the wood to crack.

Raul eyes widened. The wood in the compound wasn't ordinary, it was at least ten-year old soil tree wood from the forests surrounding the valley, and the force to crack it was enough to pop him like a watermelon.

"Why are you wearing that?" Jason pointed at the insignia on his shirt. "Do you want to make our House look like a joke!" Qi was beginning to leak from Jason's body as his anger got the best of him.

Raul's body trembled uncontrollably as the qi washed over him. He felt like a hare before a jackal. His instincts kept screaming at him Instead to submit, yet instead he clenched his teeth and raised his head to look Jason in the eye. "Why shouldn't I wear it? I'm part of the family, so of course I wear it."

"Because you're a disgrace." Jason growled. "Not only are you not a warrior, you're not even a member of this family Cross!"

Raul's cheeks flushed in anger, all fear for his life forgotten. He sneered as he looked up and Jason. "And who are you to make that call? You're just low-level grunts who'd rather pick on someone defenseless like me than take it up with the people in charge. I may not be a warrior but at least I'm not a gutless coward like you!"

Jason's face twisted in rage as he punched at Raul with qi in his arm. Raul stubbornly glared at the oncoming punch, determined to not cower in the last moments of his life. A loud crack rang out from the alley.

"That's enough." Matthew held Jason's fist in his hand with a frown. "Cool your head." Jason looked at Matthew angrily, but he eased up and backed away. Matthew closed his eyes and inhaled and exhaled before looking at Raul.

"Sorry, he went too far, and this probably isn't the best way for us to handle this. But this is really important to us." He pointed at the insignia on his chest. "This is the symbol of the warriors of the Vault Household. We had to earn it! All of us did. You can play dress up all you want at home, but when someone like you wears that here, in front of the other families, you shame all of us."

Raul was stunned. He looked down on the insignia that Old George had given him and asked himself if he'd earned it. The answer was obvious.

"Who's really shaming us?" A cold voice interrupted. Tai walked into the alleyway with an absolutely chilling expression on his face. Before Matthew or Jason could even say a word they were pinned to the opposite wall by Tai's qi. The two struggled to no avail as terrified expressions overcame their faces.

"My father saw fit to award Raul the right to wear that shirt, are you claiming you know better than your patriarch? Speak!" Tai demanded.

"Nnn-no sir." Matthew stuttered out. Tai turned a demanding eye to Jason.

"I, would, never, dare." Jason trembled.

Tai nodded. "I see, then you understand that you're both guilty of assaulting a fellow family member. As your punishment, you'll be retraining with the cadets for the next three months, maybe then you'll remember the rules. Oh, and you can forget about tonight's festivities, I wouldn't want to show the other families shameful warriors who'd attack their own."

The two nodded with pale faces. Tai snorted and let them go. He didn't bother to watch them scurry off as he turned to Raul. "you good man?" He asked in concern as he helped him up.

"Yeah. Yeah, I'm good." Raul said in a low voice, his gaze on the insignia on Tai's shirt. Here was a man who'd definitely earned it.

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"Like I said before, you should've just come with me. Those two are lucky they didn't hurt you or else they would've gotten a lot worse. I'll find some way to strip them of their ranks before I go." Tai was concerned they might retaliate after he left for the academy.

"that's a bit much." Raul finally tore his eyes away from the insignia and onto Tai's face. "They didn't actually do anything in the end, there's no need to make this bigger than it is." Actually he was pretty sure Jason was a second away from killing him and wanted to pay the bastard back, but if he used Tai's power for that he felt he'd just be proving him right.

Tai looked him over a bit before saying, "Alright, if you're sure." He then patted Raul on the shoulder and said, "Don't let those guys sour the night, we still have a party to attend."

Raul slowly nodded. "Like I'd pay attention to those scrubs when there are immortal ladies to chase." A lecherous grin spread across his handsome face.

"You know, maybe I should just bring you home." Tai looked far to serious for Raul's liking.

"Just kidding man. Non-cultivator servants only, I know the rules." Raul raised his hands in surrender.

"I'm serious Raul, if you piss off another house it'll be your ass." Tai warned.

"Would you relax mate? Just because I've never been doesn't mean I don't know how. Don't forget I had to take the same lessons you did on this junk." Raul rolled his eyes.

"With your pea brain I'll be surprised if you remember any of it, much less how to use it." Tai glare.

"Oi, are you picking a fight? Because no one will see it if I dust you in this alley." Raul warned while taking a stance.

Tai snorted and rolled his eyes. "Your delusions aside, I'm trusting you to be on your best behavior tonight man. Let's go." He reached to grab his shoulder, but Raul stepped back.

"Woah! Give me a minute, can't you see my current state?" Raul motioned to his messed-up clothes. "You go on ahead, I'll clean up a bit and meet you there."

"I don't think that's a good idea." Tai frowned.

"Relax, they weren't gonna do anything." Raul rolled his eyes. "I'll be fine, but you'll be in trouble if your late for this thing. Go man."

"You sure?"

"Just go man. This might be my only time at one of these things and I need to look my best." Raul waved him off.

Tai hesitated a bit, but eventually nodded. "If I don't see you soon I'll come looking for you."

Raul nodded and started fiddling with his shrinking bag. It shrunk inanimate objects in it but retained their weight. It was no spatial ring, but it didn't require qi and was the best mortals like him could do. He pulled out his morning after shirt and glanced up to see that Tai was gone.

He couldn't take it anymore and slammed his fist into the wall. Over and over again, until he was panting in frustration. He didn't even know when he started bleeding.

He grabbed his shirt with his bloody hand and pulled so that he could see the insignia clearly. "Shame, huh." He muttered, finally understanding why Old George never let him attend any of these events. 

His eyes turned unbiddenly to the crack in the wall. His gaze locked on it as he pulled his sword from his shrinking bag. It was short, sharp, and well cared for, but it was made of entirely ordinary metals. It couldn't cut the wood used for the Vault compound buildings.

Raul calmed his breathing and held the sword steady. Inhale, exhale. Slowly his frustrations fell away, the world fell away, all that existed was him and the spot on the wall. It was stupid, it wouldn't change the fact he couldn't cultivate. It wouldn't achieve anything, but… if he could make a mark on this wall like someone who'd earned it, then maybe…

He could feel the primordial essence dancing in the wind, he moved with it. He didn't control it, but rather flowed with it, enticed it to continue along the same path it was going. A sharp clang rang as the blade ran over the wooden surface just above the crack.

He staggered backwards, as the world came into focus again. He felt empty and his vision was blurry. He looked at the wall with hazy eyes. It was unblemished except for the crack. Of course it was.

A self-mocking grin spread across his face. "Idiot, didn't you already decide to live a normal life?" He taunted. He picked up his dropped shirt and left the alleyway.

He was unaware that when the next wind blew the top layer of the wood disintegrated to reveal a fine line cut above the crack. He was even more unaware of the cold eyes that'd watched everything from start to finish.

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