Re: Chapter 1.3: Great Ghost Dance
Catching the gesture at the edge of vision, Xiao just barely realises Thunder Walker's movement is a friendly caricature of white camaradarie rather than a blow and braces instead of twisting to block it. Given their relative sizes, it still makes the kid cough.
Thunder Walker does get a small half-smile, though. The Professor's words, however, quite erase it as Xiao looks over there. "Please excuse...I think there is a prace for science that it accept laws of...spirit, also, my people have this old way...but for guns and rifles - these are only for death, and they get...more good, as tool for what they do, they need less the skill. It is no good warrior, without...each-day-spirit-balance," Xiao seeks language skills on far too little sleep, "-dicipline the self. Wicked, child-mind warrior with gatling gun...he is new, bad thing people here have no old way to fix, or forgive, what can they do but kill more, any way, for stop him fast? Also...the white Empress, she send Blitish with many good thing for Science to my homeland, but try make all Chinese to be more good in Blitish way, most of all with the way of trades, it...crash into, break many things, old things, and the lawmans fall down all over...much death and dishonour for that."
Xiao swallows and looks up. "A way is old, or new, it is not good for that quarity only, and sometimes...where he who is doing is, how he knows his blood that was before, and his land, it is more important. All the people, any colour need to be more good under Heaven, but in ways for that people, on their land - they make their own mistake, not get white man 'better' with old white man mistake inside, like poison, or Chinese 'better' with Chinese mistake, so. We all to listen each other to become noble, not talk until we only hear us. I speak enough."
Too bold? Xiao looks down, hiding trembling hands deep in the overlarge sleeves of the 'borrowed' shirt but not cringing.