Ringkeeper - Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings

OOOOO6OOOOO

Valley of Spirits 

1000 Years Ago 

Their meeting - Wenwu certainly made a habit out of fighting people he had just met.

He started out with very little, nothing in fact. But he was a hard worker, and so when he heard of a game changing artifact, he jumped at the chance. 

Leading  a small band of mercenaries, Wenwu took charge and  charted the way to the mystical realm of the Valley of Spirits, where this mysterious and powerful object was supposedly held and guarded: the Ten Rings. Bands of gold, ten as the name suggested, worn on the wrists that imbued the wearer with the greatest of power, god-like. Who wouldn't jump at the chance for that? The chance to even catch just a mere to glimpse of it, let alone potentially hold it yourself?

The Valley of Spirits was a fearsome place, surrounded by rumours and fear. But not for Wenwu. In fact, this only intrigued him more. 

Upon reaching the Valley, the quest led them deep into the mountains, deep within, into a long cavern.  

Upon reaching the centre, they were met by a strange and wonderous sight. 

The narrow cavern widened, and a woman stood there before them, with deep tan skin, golden red hair, and dressed in golden robes - all that perfectly matched the gold bands around her wrists, five on the left, five on the right - five and five; Ten. 

Ten Rings.

The Ten Rings. 

The glimmer in Wenwu's eyes grew upon seeing them. 

She spoke, addressing them in their tongue - he had a feeling she would speak in the common tongue of whoever arrived and faced her. "I know that which you seek.  So you think you are worthy of holding and commanding the Rings?"

Wenwu said nothing, just kept approaching her, shoulders squared, head held high.  

She understood. "Very well, we shall see then if you can pass my test-"

Wenwu commanded his companions to jump into action and surround her. Almost immediately, several - not all - of the Rings flew off her wrists and knocked the other men down with a bonk! to their heads before flying back and slipping swiftly back onto her wrists in a flash of gold and purple - gold metal and purple energy. 

Now it was just them, just her and him. Now it was just the two of them, facing each other down. The determined man and the Guardian of the Rings herself. 

Wenwu did not waste any time in resuming the attack and lunged forward, she swiftly evading him. This continued in a delicate balance of attacks and evades, evades and attacks, she seemingly always one step ahead of him, in control of the whole battle. 

She paused. "You are driven, determined. I can sense it. But is it enough?"

Wenwu didn't answer, just continued to fight back, his actions sharp and forceful in a flash of tightly clenched fists. 

Suddenly, she stopped abruptly once again. Wenwu was breathing hard, covered in sweat and out of breath from the force of the fight. 

"I have seen enough," she spoke. A small, slight smile was crawling up her lips. "What is your name?"

"Wenwu."

"Wenwu. I am Dryaa, Guardian of the Ten Rings. You have proven yourself to me, proven you are worthy of commanding the power of the Rings themselves, alongside myself.  Do you accept such a challenge?"

"I do." The glow in his eyes grew brighter still. 

"Then it is done.  We will go far, together. Together, we shall go far."

The beginning of their long and strong friendship. Honestly, Shaun and Katy reminded Dryaa  of herself and Wenwu's own relationship from all those years, all those decades ago, long ago, in the beginning. At first, he was content with the power he had gained, the power they shared. But, as time passed on, and the more and more he gained, the less he wanted to share and the more he wanted for himself, he and he alone. 

Her biggest mistake had been trusting him, but she had, then, way back when. 

But that was before. Much had changed since then. 

(Happy New Year!

And yes, in response to the comments, the Os around the chapter numbers are the Ten Rings ;) 

The Valley of the Spirits part I found in researching the Rings' origins in the comics! 

And if you are reading my Wenwu love story, I am hoping to update the next chapter soon, I just have to keep working at it, I'm finding that chapter really challenging for some reason - thanks for your patience!

Thank you so much for reading and I hope you enjoyed! :))