Blue Dragon

CHAPTER FORTY-TWO

‘Listen up,’ Wong said conversationally.

The demons moved forward to hear him.

‘There will be some changes. The King was old and stupid. Times have changed. We are mobile, we are active, and we will use the new technology to its fullest.’

None of the demons moved or spoke.

‘We will travel to the four corners of the world. We will negotiate with the other Centres. We are going to take control.’

There was complete silence.

‘Work is to start immediately on the construction of new hybrids. The old way is gone. There is a new way now. My way.’

‘Lame,’ I said under my breath. ‘You’ve been watching too many Hollywood movies. You need a better scriptwriter.’

The doors flew open at the other end of the hall. There was a huge commotion, but I couldn’t see what was causing it. Then demons began to disintegrate. Blinding white flashes of light burst through their ranks and destroyed them.

‘Holy shit!’ Wong shouted. ‘What the hell is that?’

The source of the flashes cut a swathe through the demons. The beams of light went upwards and outwards and destroyed everything in their path.

‘Stop it!’ Wong yelled. ‘Whatever that thing is, get in there and stop it!’

Two of the senior demons raced down the stairs, weapons in hand. They were destroyed before they were within three metres of it.

A figure emerged between the remaining demons and stopped at the bottom of the stairs. It was Simone. She was wearing her school uniform. A glowing white aura of shen energy surrounded her as she floated slightly above the floor, her arms out from her sides as if to help her balance. Her hair writhed around her head with the static. Her eyes were blinding white orbs, shining with shen energy.

‘Hello, Emma,’ she said, her little voice the same as it always was. ‘I came to get you.’

‘Hi, Simone,’ I said. ‘I’m perfectly okay and happy here. Please go back home.’

Wong rose to his feet. ‘Good,’ he said viciously. ‘You are mine. Both of you.’

‘You want to come home with me, Emma?’ Simone said, the brilliance of the shen energy causing shadows around her.

‘I’m sorry, sweetheart,’ I said, trying to keep the desperation from my voice, ‘but I promised the King that I’d stay here until your daddy comes back. So you don’t have to worry about me. You can go home.’

‘Oh, okay,’ Simone said, her eyes still blinding. ‘Let’s get the King and talk to him. He might let you go.’

‘The King is my prisoner,’ Wong said. ‘I am King.’

Simone seemed to notice Wong for the first time. ‘I don’t like you.’

‘That doesn’t really matter, sweetheart,’ Wong said, walking down the stairs. ‘Because the way you feel about me makes absolutely no difference at all.’

‘Go home right now!’ I shouted.

Simone raised her hands slightly and hit Wong with a blast of shen, knocking him backwards off his feet.

He clambered to his feet, shook himself, and advanced towards Simone again. ‘Not good enough, little girl. I am going to take your head off and put it next to your father’s.’

Simone’s face went rigid and she inhaled sharply. ‘You killed my daddy.’

Wong smiled with malice. ‘That’s right, sweetheart. I took his head off.’

The white light in Simone’s eyes went out. They returned to normal and widened. She dropped to stand on the floor, the aura disappeared, and her hair fell around her face. ‘You killed my daddy!’

‘That’s right,’ Wong said. ‘I killed your daddy. I killed your mummy too.’

Simone stiffened, eyes still wide.

‘I killed your mummy’s brother, and your mummy’s mother and father,’ Wong said without emotion. ‘I killed Charlie. I nearly killed Leo, but I didn’t get the chance to finish him. And now I’m going to kill you.’

He concentrated, and the blue light grew around him. He smiled.

‘NO!’ I yelled and moved to jump between them. ‘Simone, RUN!’

I hit a wall halfway down and slid onto the stairs. It was like an invisible barrier. I couldn’t approach them.

The Snake came out and struck helplessly at the barrier.

The blue aura grew around Wong, crackling with lightning. His smile broadened, he raised his hands and a huge blast of the black stuff engulfed Simone with a roar like an airplane engine. She disappeared inside the dark energy beam.

The Snake struck again at the barrier, with absolutely no effect. I changed back, grabbed the Murasame and ripped it from its scabbard. I slashed at the barrier with it. I filled it with chi and tried to burn a hole through.

The energy was all around Simone; I couldn’t see her. She didn’t make a sound. Wong’s face was twisted into an ugly grimace of satisfaction.

I put the black stuff into the sword and tried to use it to blast my way through the barrier. Nothing. I threw the sword to one side and pounded my fists on the invisible wall, crying out. Simone. No. ‘No!’ I sagged down the wall and pounded it helplessly. Simone. I wiped the tears out of my eyes; I couldn’t see. I rested my forehead on the barrier. No.

Wong snapped his wrists and the beam of energy stopped. There was complete silence.

Simone stood there completely unharmed, a sweet smile on her little face.

Wong took a step back, unsure now, then raised his hands and began to gather the blue energy again.

‘It’s okay, Emma, this is my fight,’ Simone said with a smile. Her eyes went black. Wong hesitated.

‘You killed my daddy,’ Simone said absently. ‘You killed my mummy.’

She raised her hands.

Something formed above her head. It was difficult to see, because it was so dark. It was a whirlpool of nothingness. Black, empty, cold nothing. The creeping cold coming from it was colder and darker and emptier than anything I had ever felt.

Simone snapped her wrists above her head without looking up. Some of the blackness shot out of the whirlpool and gathered like writhing tendrils around her hands. She watched Wong with her black eyes.

Wong took a step back. ‘No.’

‘You killed my daddy. You killed my mummy.’ Her little voice was as sweet as ever. ‘You killed my Charlie. You hurt my Leo.’ The black oily mist writhed around her hands and expanded.

Wong was paralysed. ‘No.’

‘I don’t like you.’

He was frozen with terror. ‘Yin.’

‘Yes,’ Simone said, as if from a million miles away. ‘My daddy is yin.’ She smiled serenely at Wong, her eyes still black. The whirlpool above her head grew and a cyclone of yin detached itself and spun around her head, making her hair fly upwards. It lengthened and darkened into a black writhing mass of shining strands. ‘I am yin too, when I want to be.’

The moisture in the air around her froze, forming swirling icy sleet. Simone had gathered pure yin. Pure, dark, cold, absorbing death.

‘Are you yang or yin?’

Wong was speechless with horror.

‘I suppose it doesn’t matter,’ Simone said calmly as she approached him, her eyes still black, her hair writhing above her. She smiled sweetly, held out her hands and the yin leapt to him. ‘Because you won’t be around long enough to tell me.’

The yin spiralled. Wong watched it surround him. His mouth was open but he didn’t make a sound. The yin spun like black ribbons around him; where it was close to him, he was sucked into it. Small parts of him separated and flew into the spiralling force. The holes in him grew larger. He raised his face, his mouth wide but silent.

Simone smiled as her black hair whipped around her head.

The yin spiralled up around him and circled his head. His eyes rolled up. His head dissolved. The rest followed. He was completely sucked into the yin. He was gone.

Simone held out her hands and the yin leapt back to them. She raised her arms, her face became a mask of rapture, and the whirlpool above her head absorbed the yin. It spiralled out of her hands, upwards into the vortex. The vortex shrank and disappeared.

Her eyes snapped back to normal and her hair lightened and fell to frame her face.

The barrier disappeared and I fell forwards. I pulled myself to my feet.

‘Now,’ she said, ‘let’s find the King and get you out of here.’

‘I’m here,’ the King said behind me. ‘Hello, Simone.’

Simone’s eyes went black again.

‘No!’ I shouted. ‘Don’t hurt him, Simone!’

‘He took you away from me,’ Simone said.

‘He had to,’ I said softly. ‘It was the only way he could get both you and the bad demon here, so that you could destroy it.’

‘Well done, my Lady,’ the King said. ‘I was right about you all the time.’

‘Why did he do that?’ Simone said.

‘Because you were the only one strong enough to kill the bad demon,’ I said. ‘Even stronger than your daddy, right now. And the only way to get you here was to have me here first, so that you’d come and find me.’

‘I want to take you home,’ Simone said. ‘If he doesn’t let you go, I’m going to yin him.’

‘He’s not holding me here, Simone,’ I said. ‘I promised to stay, to keep you safe. I’m here by my own free will.’

She dropped her little head and her tawny hair fell forward around her face. ‘I want you at home with me, Emma,’ she whispered. ‘You’re all I’ve got left.’

‘You are released from your oath, my Lady,’ the King said. ‘You can go home with her if you choose. The choice is yours.’

‘I’m free to go?’ I said.

‘Yes, but please consider, Emma,’ the King said. ‘If you go with her, all deals are off. I won’t make any attempt to keep her safe any more. And if the Dark Lord touches you while you are like this, you will be destroyed.’ He smiled and shrugged. ‘Stay here with me instead. When he returns, I will make you whole and the two of you can be everything you want for each other.’

‘I want you at home with me, Emma,’ Simone said, her voice small. ‘I need you.’

I approached Simone and crouched in front of her, not touching her. ‘Look inside me, Simone, very carefully.’

I felt her Inner Eye and stiffened with the agony. It snapped off before I screamed from the pain.

Simone’s face screwed up and she turned to the King, furious. She pointed at me, glaring. ‘Did you do this?’

‘No, I swear, Princess,’ the King said. ‘I had nothing to do with it.’

Simone turned back to me and her little face softened. ‘I don’t care, Emma, I want you at home with me. Please come home.’ She reached out to touch me but I pulled away.

‘Stay here, Emma,’ the King said. ‘If you go with her, you will never have a chance to be whole.’

‘I’ll find a way to change her back,’ Simone said fiercely.

The King just smiled indulgently at her.

I rose. I hesitated, watching the King.

‘There isn’t much of a decision to make, Emma,’ he said gently.

‘You are quite correct,’ I said. ‘If I were to stay with you instead of being with Simone when she needs me, then neither Xuan Wu nor I would ever forgive me. We would never put our needs before hers. There’s no decision to make at all.’

I pulled the remaining black jade earring out of my ear and passed it to him. He held one hand above it and the diamond post floated out of the black jade coin. He returned the diamond to me without a word.

‘How will you get me home, sweetheart?’ I said.

‘Hold my hand,’ Simone said. ‘I’ll take you home.’

‘I can’t hold your hand, Simone. You know what I am.’

‘They’ve done something to you, Emma, and we’re going to take you home and fix it.’ She held out her hand. ‘It’s okay. You know we can touch things without hurting them when we want to.’

I trusted her. I reached out and took her hand. I felt my shape dissolve, but held her hand anyway. Simone’s eyes widened. She dropped my hand and I returned to normal.

‘You looked like a Snake Mother, Emma.’

‘I know, sweetheart,’ I said. ‘If you want to leave me here I would understand.’

‘Bye, King,’ Simone said. ‘Don’t come and visit us. You’re not welcome.’

‘I’m sure I’m not, Highness,’ the King said with a wry smile. He took my hands, pulled me close and kissed me on the cheek. ‘I would forsake my kingdom for you, you know,’ he whispered into my ear.

I pulled away and he didn’t attempt to hold me.

‘I have something for you,’ he said. ‘A gift.’

He held out his hand and a braided lock of long, black hair appeared in it.

I suddenly found it very difficult to breathe.

‘Take it,’ he said. ‘Remember.’

I took the hair out of his hand. It was smooth and silken. I raised it to my face. It smelled of the sea.

‘Thank you,’ I whispered.

‘You are most welcome,’ he said. ‘Remember: any time.’ He shrugged. ‘Come and visit, I’d love to see you. Until he returns, that is. After that you probably won’t be able to come for coffee.’

‘Where’s Leo?’ Simone said loudly. ‘I want him to come too. I know he’s here somewhere.’

‘Leo is in the holding cells of Court Ten,’ the King said. ‘I have no control over the workings of the Courts, Princess. They are incredibly busy right now; they have more Immortals there than any time in recent history. The Celestial himself is managing this particular case. I suggest you take it up with him.’

‘The Celestial?’ Simone said.

‘He means the Jade Emperor, Simone,’ I said.

‘Oh,’ Simone said, very softly. She straightened. ‘Okay, I’ll go and talk to him.’

‘You do that,’ the King said.

He picked up the sword that Wong had dropped. He moved a few paces, collected the scabbard and put the sword away. He held it out to Simone. ‘This is yours, I believe, Princess.’

Simone didn’t move.

The King pushed the sword towards her. ‘This is Dark Heavens. And until your father returns, my dear, it belongs to you.’

Simone silently moved forward and accepted the blade.

The King gestured towards me. ‘The Murasame is yours. Use it well. I won’t attempt to touch it, but you can call it when you are home and it will come to you. You are its master.’

‘Come on, Emma,’ Simone said, and held out her hand.

I didn’t take her hand. ‘One thing before I go, King.’

‘Hmm?’ His gorgeous face lit up.

‘Do you know what I am?’

The King looked at me blankly, then roared with laughter. He fell over his knees laughing. He pulled himself up, still chuckling. He wiped his eyes. ‘Oh, my.’ He studied me, a huge grin on his face. ‘Oh, dear.’ He shook his head. ‘The answer to your question, my Lady, is: yes. I do know what you are.’ He chuckled again. ‘The irony is superb. Goodbye.’

Simone and I were back in the living room of the Peak apartment.

Three green and gold baby dragons gambolled on the floor, rolling Gold’s child between them, all of them squealing with delight. Jade, Gold and Amy watched them indulgently from the couches. The windows were fixed and the furniture had been restored.

When they saw Simone and me, they rushed over and embraced me tearfully. Then they all started talking together, asking me what had happened, then turned to Simone, checking that she was okay.

Michael and Rhonda came in, and Monica and Ah Yat too, when they heard the noise. Michael rushed to Simone, lifted her and pulled her close for a hug, making her squeal. Then he gently lowered her and threw his arms around me. Rhonda hugged and kissed us as well.

‘Don’t you ever go off by yourself like that again,’ Rhonda scolded Simone, then grabbed her and held her tight.

Something moved in the corner of my eye. The ring had been sitting on the hall table next to the front door. It floated into the air, then the stone took human form. He came to me and embraced me. He pulled back and held my face in both hands. ‘It’s good to have you back, dear,’ he said, his pale blue eyes shining under his white hair. He dropped his hands onto my shoulders. ‘Now, hold your hand out. I want to go home.’

I put my hand out and he folded up, back into the ring, which slid itself onto my finger.

That feels so much better, it said. It’s good to be home. Who was buying your clothes? You look like a street sleeper.

I didn’t have a chance to say something scathing. The doorbell rang and everybody froze.

‘It’s two small demons,’ Michael said softly. ‘Everybody back.’

I knew who it was. ‘It’s okay,’ I said, and went to open the door.

Yi Hao and Er Hao stood uncomfortably on the other side of the gate.

‘Come on in, ladies,’ I said. ‘Come and meet the family, and then I’d better find something for you to do.’

The two demon servants came in, obviously intimidated by the large number of people in the living room. Yi Hao held a small box wrapped with red and gold paper.

‘It’s okay, nobody will hurt you,’ I said, and closed the door behind them. ‘These two little demons looked after me.’

‘This is for you, ma’am,’ Yi Hao said, holding the gift out to me. ‘I don’t know what it is; he said to give it to you.’

I took the gift to examine it.

‘What is it?’ Michael said.

‘I have no idea,’ I said. ‘Simone, what’s inside it?’

‘A CD,’ Simone said. ‘And a phone.’

‘What on earth for?’ I said. ‘Simone, is it safe to open?’

‘Can’t you see inside it yourself, Emma?’ Michael said softly.

‘It’s safe to open,’ Simone said.

I knelt next to the coffee table and opened the box. The little dragons raced up, wide-eyed with curiosity. The baby stone lifted itself and hovered above them, watching as well.

Inside the box was, as Simone had said, a CD and a phone. The CD was a writable one, obviously containing files. There was a note on top.

Call me. Come and have lunch, I’d love to see you. Here’s your story. Please send me a copy when it’s all finished. Have you thought about publishing it? It’s a great read. I loved your description of me.

George R.

I put the lid on the box and pushed it to one side, then turned to sit on the sofa.

‘I suppose I’d better tell you where I’ve been for the last three weeks.’

We sat around the dining table: Jade, Gold, Michael, Simone, me. It was five of us now, and would be for a very long time.

‘Can you see him?’ I said.

‘Yes,’ Gold said. Jade nodded. They didn’t elaborate.

‘Tell us,’ Simone said.

Jade and Gold shared a look.

‘Something’s wrong,’ Simone whispered. ‘Is he okay?’

Jade sighed. It was Gold who spoke. ‘Underneath the icecap of the North Pole, where the water is freezing and dark, swims a great black Turtle, its shell half a li across.’

Simone grabbed my hand before I could pull it away.

I changed, knocking the chair over behind me with my tail.

Michael, Jade and Gold all shot to their feet. Jade moved into a guard stance, but Gold and Michael both generated enormous balls of chi and hurled them straight at my head.

I closed my eyes and waited. Nothing happened. I opened my eyes.

‘They did something to Emma, everybody,’ Simone said, her voice small. She had risen to stand next to me and was still holding my hand, her other arm protectively in front of me. ‘Don’t try to hurt her. It’s really her. Okay?’

Michael turned his Inner Eye on me and gasped with the pain.

‘Whoa,’ he said. ‘You’re half demon.’

‘Who did this to you, my Lady?’ Gold said.

‘One Two Two,’ I said, my voice hissing. ‘It’s still me, I swear. Simone’s touch forces me to take…’ I hesitated, then took a deep breath. ‘True Form.’

‘We’ll need to tell your students,’ Gold said. ‘And the staff of the Mountain. So that nobody attacks you.’

I shook Simone’s hand free so that I changed back. I picked up my chair and flopped into it. I put my elbows on the table and my head in my hands. ‘No. Please. I don’t want them to know.’

‘Don’t tell anybody,’ Simone said. ‘We can fix it.’

‘My Lady,’ Gold said.

‘Geez, this really sucks, Emma,’ Michael said.

‘What’s done is done,’ I said. ‘Tell me about the Turtle. Under the icecap of the North Pole.’

Gold looked down. ‘The Turtle has no memory of what it is. It has no intelligence. It is…’ He looked straight into my eyes, his own filled with anguish. ‘It is a beast. It has no consciousness, no sentience, no awareness. All it knows…’ He breathed a deep sigh. ‘All it knows is that it has lost all that is dear to it. It searches through the darkness and cries.’

‘No,’ Simone said softly.

‘At least now he’s whole,’ I said.

Jade and Gold looked at each other again.

‘He did rejoin?’ I said. ‘He did become whole?’

‘No,’ Jade said, barely audible. ‘The Serpent is swimming in the stormy freezing waters of the Antarctic, half a world away.’

Simone moved to grab my hand again but I managed to avoid her.

‘He has lost everything,’ Jade whispered. ‘Only the Heavens know when he will return.’

Gold looked back at me and his voice became firmer. ‘Remember, my Lady. He has promised. He will find you. He will Raise you. He will marry you. And you will go to live on his Mountain with him.’

‘Oh my God,’ I said softly.

‘What, Emma?’ Simone said.

Jade and Gold looked at each other again.

‘He didn’t think at all when he made that promise to me,’ I said. ‘He is so stupid sometimes.’ I glared at Jade and Gold. ‘Why didn’t you tell us?’

They both looked down.

‘What?’ Simone said again.

‘He’ll have to find me,’ I said softly.

‘But you’re not lost,’ Simone said. Then she understood. ‘No.’

‘It wasn’t just an oath, Simone. It was a curse,’ I whispered.

‘I’m going to be very cross with him when he comes back,’ Simone said.

‘Wait in line.’ I leaned back. ‘Well, whatever happens, he’ll Raise me and marry me. I don’t care about the meantime. I’ll just wait.’

‘I’ll wait with you,’ Simone said. ‘We’ll find a way to fix you up, we’ll go and find Leo, and then we’ll wait together. We have each other, and we’ll be fine, whatever happens.’

She hopped off her chair and climbed into my lap. I wrapped my arms around her.

I changed again. I lowered myself onto my coils, wrapping my tail around so that she could sit on me. She sat on my black scaly body and we held each other close. ‘I love you, Emma,’ she whispered, leaning her head on me. ‘Everything will be okay.’

I buried my face in her hair and held her tight. ‘I know.’

I wandered through the darkened office. Neon lights from the Wan Chai street lit up the ceiling. Complete silence. I paused for a moment, enjoying the solitude. Not another living thing; I could sense the security guards on the ground floor, far, far below, but that was all.

I’d stayed late to review the reports for the latest recruitment drive. Gold had done well. Some of these kids would go far.

I sighed. Time to go home. I went to the corner of the building. I couldn’t help myself; it was a ritual I indulged in every evening before I went home.

The door was closed. I opened it and went into his office.

The desk was immaculate; I’d tidied the paperwork after he’d gone, to tie up the loose ends he’d left. He wouldn’t recognise it when he returned.

I went to the chair, stood behind it and ran my hand over the back, looking out the window. For a moment it was as if he was there with me, searching for me, and then the feeling left me.

Time to go home. The family would be waiting for me. I turned and went out, closing his office door behind me.