Making Up (Chomei)

Calm. Darkness. Both surrounded Chomei as he let himself delve into the Mind's Eye. That's what he called it anyway... It wasn't anything fancy—Not a product of his unique Dragon Force. It was something he imagined all Martial Artists did; It was a way to train the mind, not the body. He appeared in a dark, misty void, closing his eyes. Chomei imagined the strongest people he knew. The visages of Jackie, Erbia, and Saiba-Ban hazily drew into being all around him—They stood statically and stared blankly around. 

From here on, he let his mind run wild. Ban stepped forth, Chomei responding by igniting in a blaze of red, foggy energy. They fought back and forth, Chomei leaping into the air, parrying blows through the obsidian void, and then frantically launching back into the black ground. Ban had easily gotten the upper hand on him—Chomei tried to put some distance between them. The fighting in the Minds Eye was influenced by one perception and real-life experience—Chomei knew that Ban was far stronger than him... Even now, this false Ban was only at about half strength. Ban did not seem like the type to have any fighting experience, any knowledge of martial arts... but his raw power easily made up for that.

Despite his efforts, Ban launched a thunderous charge, landing a devastating blow. And then he faded into grey fog. Chomei sighed, watching the other two warily as Ban reformed nearby. Another loss... He groaned inwardly. Scratching his head, he slumped onto the ground. He'd been at it for a while, and perhaps it was because of how little he truly knew about these guys... But he hadn't had any major success. One time, just once... he'd somehow tapped into far more of the Dragon Force than usual, and he actually put up a decent fight against Jackie! But other than that...

He woke himself up, the void disappearing. The familiar sight of his Dojo filled his vision, a sight which was lately saddening him. It'd been a month... He'd had a few familiar faces, some he'd taught and others he didnt... But no true students yet. It was a little discouraging, frankly. Not to mention his growing dilemma with his newfound role. He hadn't found an answer yet. Was he now, as one of the 'strong' guys, responsible for the whole of Earth? Especially if he kept growing at the rate he was? The brief mental battle he'd had with Jackie flashed through his mind. If he ever learned to fully use the Dragon Force like that...

Well... It wouldn't be a question then. He'd not be 'one of the strong guys'... He'd be THE strong guy.

To other people, normal folks... That wouldn't be an issue, he thought. But Chomei had already failed before. Failed A LOT. He'd failed himself, his family, his friends. Could he afford to fail Earth too? He sighed loudly. His mind flip-flopped on this every day. It was a constant annoyance now. He'd always wanted to be the Worlds Strongest. It wasn't until recently that he started thinking about what that actually entails.

A voice outside snapped him out of his mental struggle. "Megis?" He asked, confused. Why was he back? He seemed pretty mad before...

"Uh... Come in man," He asked awkwardly.

Chomei propped the door open for the small Majin man, who took a brief look, and then slowly wandered inside. Chomei got the impression that he was hesitant about something. Chomei briefly recalled their last firey interaction though, all the flame and heat had been on Megis's side. He scratched the back of his head awkwardly. What would he say to him now? He'd had a few days to wonder about what Megis had said. But he wasn't really any closer to finding an answer, yet.

Finally, Megis spoke, and he reassured Chomei that he wasn't back to argue or cause any more issues. Chomei replied quickly, "Listen man, We're not on bad terms. You didnt wrong me, before," 

But the Majin went on. This time, he waited until Megis formally finished. There was a lot to digest there, but he addressed the most important thing first. "You have no reason to apologize to me, friend. We all have heated moments," He said somberly, raising one hand as he spoke. "I didnt explain myself either, and I understand that you're very passionate about this. I should be the one apologizing... It's just that, it's very hard for me to explain exactly what or how I feel about the defense of Earth," He continued, pausing to think carefully about his next few words. How should he explain it? He hadn't really vocalized his thoughts on the matter to anybody yet. "... It's just complicated, man. But I've thought a bit about what you said" He sighed, shifting where he stood before finally plopping onto the ground.

"I used to want to be the world's strongest," He probed slowly. "I know, very cringy... But as a young man, I truly idolized strength. I thought along the lines of—If I'm strong, I can do anything!"

"I've seen a lot these past few years, lots of disasters and fights. Rampant death and destruction. I've failed other people, I've failed myself as well. All these years, and I'd never thought about what being the world's strongest actually meant. I had confidence in myself, once. Now? Im strong. Strong as hell! And if I'm being honest with you, I don't doubt that I'll be the strongest on Earth soon. As arrogant as that sounds. This Dragon Force inside of me? It's constantly growing, and I alongside it. And even if I'm not the world's strongest, does it matter?"

"But things aren't nearly so simple. Being strong does not mean you can do everything. Being strong simply means you're the only one who can do anything, and the only one who can fail," And more than anything, that was what Chomei feared. "I rejected your offer for selfish reasons, I'll admit. I'm not afraid to defend the Earth whenever the need arises, It's my home... But being on a team like that is an additional weight. You have everyone's expectations thrust onto you. The world's expectations. I hear people complain about Task Force Shield all the time, because they barely do anything. I've fought trickster demons twice in the past few months without a word from them,"

"I'm not really ready for the responsibility I'll soon inherit. The responsibility I already have, maybe... But if I fail?" When he failed, "I'd rather it not be under a spotlight, Megis,"

Chomei stood anxiously, hands clasped awkwardly. He dreaded the thought of how Megis might respond. Sure, he might get angry again... But if he really had cooled off, he'd probably tackle what Chomei said from a more dangerous angle. And it seemed that was doing precisely that. Chomei groaned quietly, his inner thoughts growing more angsty the longer the pink Majin went on. Most of what he told Chomei was what the man expected to hear. Expected, but was loath to listen to. The long and short of it was 'Buck up, and do your job'.

Megis seemed of the opinion that Chomei would be the strongest Earthling soon, and that he was responsible. It was the logical, moral answer. But gods above, Chomei hated hearing it from someone else too. Megis was going beat by beat, tearing down all his arguments until all he was left with was a selfish desire to hole up somewhere. He didnt know if Megis was really right about a team lessening responsibility, either. Earth wasnt particularly filled with powerful people. It was more like they had hundreds, maybe thousands of passable powers roaming around. Alongside two or three standouts, for example, Ban or Jackie. Would Megis even be able to scrounge up anyone else, people who wouldnt become liabilites when things hit the fan?

He sighed audibly, slouching slightly. "Maybe you're right, Megis... But I dunno," He groaned. "What's your plan for this new team anyways? You recruit anybody else yet?"

Chomei sat with crossed arms, listening quietly as Megis spoke. It was a... basic plan, that the Majin had in mind. Atleast from his brief explanation. Though to be fair, Chomei probably couldnt come up with anything specific beyond what Megis suggested either. He didnt mind though—A lot of the issues with the previous attempts were the people involved. Chomei couldnt remember anyone of significant strength hanging around those groups.

Chomei was truthfully, much more invested in whoever his potential teammates were. Earth had a lot of fighters, but none of them (except maybe the Robot or Chervii) really measured up to him. And he surely wouldnt trust either of them to fight alongside him. With the obvious exceptions of people like Jackie. At the very least, he hoped Megis had found folks who wouldnt be dead weight, were Chomei to fight. As arrogant as that sounded... But Chomei had found it exceptionally difficult to fight in recent days, when he'd also had to look out for others around him. At West City, he'd had to take a lot of damage on behalf of Kim nearby instead of dealing with the primary threat.

The mention of fighters from West City made him wince, especially since he didnt recognise either of the mentioned names. "Y'know... I was there too Megis. And most of those folks were ill-suited for the fight," He commented. "They were kind of a distraction... That's not to say they can't grow... But, you're gonna need folks who are a lot stronger than them,"

What Megis said next startled Chomei, and he became visibly stiff. "You are NOT to involve Yogu with this. I dont want him anywhere near these fights or this team. He's just a kid," Chomei said sternly, almost angrily. "That hot-headed kid gets into trouble way too often for his own good. If I had to look out for him in the middle of some crisis..." Chomei scratched the back of his head. "Well, to put it bluntly. It'd be a disaster,"

To the first, Chomei's reaction was one of leisurely acceptance. If that happened, he would simply deal with it. He was confident he could beat an army or two if necessary. The Dragon Style was destructive in nature, but he Chomei usually went out of his way to prevent the large-scale damage that his simple movements would create, normally. And he'd fought people far stronger than him and gotten the upper hand before (Though, not necessarily of only his own effort). He'd admit that the prospect of fighting strong people was not as exciting to him as it once was... But his skill could maybe make up the difference, he thought. Most of the time...

The next bit made him shift uncomfortably. He hadn't realized that the guardian was missing... He recalled that he briefly tried to look for them after the battle at West City. That whole portal situation was yet to be resolved. Mention of Vale also soured his tongue... He chose to believe the Shinjin and had been lied to. Chomei would not forget that, the next time he and Vale met. As Megis went on, Chomei's mood soured slightly, his face warping into a grimace. "Maybe he can! He's always been a tough nut. I could tell how strong he was a few weeks ago... But he's always trying to prove something. I love him to bits, but he is not ready for the kind of responsibility we're talking about. He's brash, and immature. He would crumble under the weight," He grumbled, pointing at Megis. "If he's ever that desperately needed to defend Earth? Then I've already failed. I can't let him be on the frontline, Megis. That's my burden,"

Chomei knew he was being unreasonable and unfair towards his younger cousin, and it was all purely out of selfishness. When he was twelve, he'd held that kid in his arms. He'd seen the pure innocence in that kid's eyes. Yogu was like a brother to Chomei. Miru and Krim were still missing, despite his efforts to find them. Maybe they'd died already, a horrifying... Terrible thought. He couldn't let the same thing happen to Yogu, it would destroy Chomei—And set him on a path far darker than he'd been before...

"I'll temper him, get him ready for the future... But I cant let him be a part of this yet. Not until he's ready..." Which might be never, he told himself. But he would make sure that if he failed, Yogu might still have a fighting chance on his own...

It was evident to him that, Megis was somewhat desperate for martial artists. Fighters who could give credence to his efforts, and actually be an effective force. He seemed rather insistent on Yogu's entry into this group... Or at the very least, he didnt seem at all opposed to eventually letting him in. At the same time, the Majin was incredibly critical of Chomei's cautious approach. And the reasons he brought up had merit.

Chomei wouldn't go as far as to call himself the strongest earthling, yet. But, however much he disliked it... He couldn't disagree with him. Chomei had wanted to avoid the new responsibilities he'd inherited—Mainly out of a fear of failure, or maybe from simple fear. Was he afraid?

No, not for himself... In his mind, the visage of Yogu, Miru, Krim, his other family... All of them flashed by. Visions of destruction, the ruins of the four major cities. Perhaps a reality in just a few short years?

Megis's approach was working wonders, not that he could really tell. Chomei kept his face carefully stern, unchanging as the Majin went on. On some level, he knew Megis was right. Well... It was more like he'd always known. He'd just needed someone else to tell him straight out. If he didnt man up soon, other people would. It was in the blood of all noble earthlings to stand up for what was right. Yogu was brash and adventurous, but he also carried some of that kindness.

He'd go off and fight all he wanted, even at the risk of his own life. Putting him on a team was definitely a bad move, but maybe that was the best way to protect Yogu after all? Chomei paused, then let out a long, drawn-out sigh. "... I know, Megis... I know you're right, as much as I hate it," Crossing his arms, Chomei slouched to one side. "I don't think I can ever bring myself to agree with Yogu joining up, but If I'm gonna be a part of this, you might as well tell me your whole plan,"

Megis seemed... Confused? Chomei listened to his plan, which sounded eerily similar to his previous one about the team. Quickly, it occurred to him that he hadn't exactly been specific. "No, no sorry. I meant your whole plan. Like what are you gonna do as president? I understand you're going to get rid of the accords and open up martial arts schools everywhere... But what next?" 

Chomei started to pace back and forth as he went on. "I mean, obviously that stuff's number one on the list. I'm not a politically-minded guy. But there are other things you gotta look out for—A whole boatload of issues left unaddressed. You know anything about the economy? I sure don't. What about the wider galaxy? I saw it randomly the other day, in the village's electronics store on TV, but those iceling folk have a new emperor! What are his ideas about earth? You're gonna need a guy to advise you about that,"

He stopped to emphasise his point. "The elections are getting close now, and there aren't too many contenders. Derry hasn't announced anything yet, which I think is pretty strange... You've got a real chance to win, especially if he ends up deciding not to run. I'm with you now, for better or worse, whatever my reservations were before... So we have to make sure we do this good and right, Understand?"