The mountain air is thin and biting, carrying the sharp scent of pine and impending snow. Chun Li stands at the edge of the clearing, her lungs burning from the exertion of her narrow escape. She turns her gaze away from the silent, impassable tomb of granite that was once the grotto.
Chun Li
The scroll is lost to the earth, and the Enforcer is beyond my reach. I cannot linger here in sorrow.
A rustle of wind through the brush draws her attention toward a narrow, fog-shrouded mountain pass leading toward the valley of Xi'an. A figure emerges from the mist, clad in worn travel leathers, leaning heavily on a gnarled staff.
Traveler
The mountain has a cruel hunger today, young one. You look as though you barely kept your soul from its teeth.
Chun Li
I lost something important in the collapse. Who are you to roam these heights?
Traveler
Names are like shadows, they change with the sun. I am merely a witness to the shifting stones.
“Hmm... I scratch my head.”
Chun Li sighs, the tension in her shoulders easing as she reaches up to scratch her head. The simple gesture helps clear her racing thoughts, grounding her in the present moment despite the mountain's heavy atmosphere.
Chun Li
Focus, Chun Li. Dwelling on the debris will not bring the scroll back.