“Tiger-Man: Ascension”
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Chapter IV: Cold and Cross-Windy
A half-hour later, Josh was finally able to see a light in a wide, flat area where a tiny village sat, it wasn't more than a few houses, "Is this it?" he asked.
"Yes, our hospital is over there. I recommend our hotel, that's the biggest house in the village." Mei-Xiu said.
"A hotel? Thank goodness." he unleashed a sigh of relief as he made it to their hospital, "This woman was trapped in the snow, and needs a place to rest." Josh said the village doctor looked up at him in awe, "I know I look strange, but there's no time, where can I place her?" he asked. The doctor led him to a room with a small bed as he laid her down, "Are you gonna be okay here?"
"Yes...thank you, Josh," she said as the doctor came with wraps that were steamed.
"Anytime. I'll check on you later." Josh smiled as he rushed down the street to the old wooden hotel and knocked on its heavy door.
"Hello?" a voice asked as a man opened a small hatch so he could look out without unlocking the front door.
"Hello, I am a monk from the Shaolin Temple, and I am on a journey. If I'm not mistaken, the sign says that this is a hotel. May I stay here for the night?" Josh asked.
"Yes. Come, come." The hotel owner rushed, opening the door wide so Josh could seek refuge from the coming snowstorm.
"Thank you." Josh bowed to the man and his family, who were huddled together in front of a fireplace. They marveled at Josh's height and mass.
"Do we have space big enough?" the owner's wife asked.
"We should, he is from the Shaolin Temple. He's traveled a long way to come here." the owner explained.
"I am Joshua." Josh introduced.
"Li Pang." the owner responded, "I don't mean to be rude, but...I noticed your tiger stripes; you wouldn't happen to be the Lao Hu, would you?"
Josh smiled, "I am."
"Well, what brings you to our cold home, Lao Hu?"
"I'm supposed to provide aid to a village a little bit further up from here. The blizzard is too extreme for me to continue up the mountain through the night, so I need a place to stay." Josh explained, pointing up.
"That sounds serious." Mr. Pang said, turning to a keyring that was hanging on the wall, taking it and sifting through the keys, "This is for the biggest room we have, upstairs. It should be comfortable enough to fit someone of your...stature." he said, handing an old metal key to Josh.
"How much?" Josh asked, taking his wallet out.
"For one night? 50 Yuan"
Josh smiled and took out 100 US Dollars, "How about this?" he held out the currency.
Mr. Pang's eyes widened, "A-Are, you sure?"
"Go ahead, take it." Josh smiled as Mr. Pang took the cash with shaky hands.
"I-I... thank you, Lao Hu! Thank you!" Mr. Pang cried as another knock came to the hotel door, "One moment, Lao Hu!" Mr. Pang shuffled to the door, peeking out to see yet another bizarre sight as a woman looked in.
"Hello!" She greeted in her British accent, "I'm looking for someone, and I think I saw him come in here. May I come in?"
Mr. Pang looked over to Josh, "Do you know this woman, Lao Hu?"
"Cross-Wind? Hailie, is that you?"
"Josh? Yeah, it's me." Josh motioned for Mr. Pang to let her in, he undid the latch and opened his door, allowing Hailie to float her way in, "Thank you, sir." she bowed.
"I wasn't aware of guests." Mr. Pang said, looking toward Josh.
"I wasn't expecting any." Josh reassured before turning his attention back to Hailie, who took off her hood and shook her hair, a blonde flourish danced across the dark interior of the hotel as she took her hair in her hands, and placed it over her shoulder, this was the first time that she gave Josh such pause until he snapped out of it asking, "Is everything alright? How'd you find me?"
"You had your location turned on." She pointed to his Evening Eye.
"Oh, I didn't even know this had that." He looked at the green and black piece, "But that still doesn't answer why you're here."
"Everything is okay back home. I thought something was wrong when an alert came onto Jon's tablet that you were losing signal in the mountains somewhere, so I came to check on you." She fibbed.
"Well, thank you." Josh blushed under his mask, "Since you're here now, would you like some tea? I'm gonna be here for the night." he offered.
"That would be lovely, thank you," Hailie said.
"Is it okay if she stays for a while, Mr. Pang?" Josh asked.
"Of course, Lao Hu. Just no funny business. This is still my house, after all."
"Funny business? Oh." Josh blushed again as he took his mask off and sighed, Hailie giggling behind him.
"Thank you again, Mr. Pang." Hailie waved as she followed her teammate to his room.
Josh put the old iron key into the keyhole and turned it, a loud clacking followed as the old door opened to what was a fantastic view of the mountains. Although this view was held behind thin glass, "Wow, this is brutally cold, did you pack enough supplies?" Hailie asked, seeing their breath come out in large puffs.
"I think I'll be okay." Josh put his bag on the small bed and opened it, taking out a metallic thermal blanket and some tea bags. "So, what do you want to talk about?" Josh asked, going over to the corner of the room to a place that could barely be considered a kitchenette; it contained a teapot, just enough silverware for two, a single burner, and a microwave. Josh filled the pot with water and turned the burner on, and set up their cups on the small table.
"Well, if Mr. Pang will allow it, I'd like to stay a bit longer, and maybe you could tell me that story you mentioned the other day when we talked in my dorm room."
Josh became suspicious, remembering that she apparently had a crush on him, "Well, sure. I don't see why not." he agreed as she smiled and sat on the bed, the wood frame was rickety and old, but the bedding was pristine and very clean.
"This place is a hidden gem." Hailie complimented, running her hand on the soft sheets, "Did you give Mr. Peng a hundred USD?" she asked.
"It is, and I did." Josh smiled widely.
"You know how much that is here, right? That was very generous of you."
"It was nothin'." Josh smiled again as the teapot began to sing its shrill song. He walked over and turned the burner off, taking the pot from the heat and to the table where he poured the water and placed the tea bags in the cups, steeping the warm beverage.
"I don't think so. I think you're a great teacher for the team." Hailie said, levitating the cup to her, taking advantage of the cold air, using it to cool her drink a bit before taking a sip.
"Really?" Josh asked, taking his cup and joining her; the wood frame was creaking and sagging under his immense weight.
"Absolutely." She pointed a finger towards his cup to cool it down a bit so he could join her.
"Ah, man. That's good, thanks." Josh smiled as the tea went down and warmed his chest, "Alright. Let's begin."
"Yes, lets!" Hailie perked up, giving him her complete attention.
-Be sure to check out "Tiger-Man Ascension" when it drops February 16th (available for pre-order on Kindle now)! -You can buy "Special Defense Unit Vol. I: Unite!" and "Special Defense Unit Vol. II: Fray" from my website here: southpaw-comics.wixsite.com/so…
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