She bowed, then reached around with her beak and
pulled out one of her tail feathers. A few people in the hall gasped.
She changed back to human form and walked gracefully up the stairs to the top of the dais, her red robe flowing around her. She held the feather out to me with both hands and I rose to take it. It was nearly a metre and a half long, but hardly weighed anything.
‘Thank you,’ I whispered. ‘You are incredibly beautiful.’
‘My Lady.’ She bowed, smiling, then turned and walked back down the stairs. She turned to us and bowed again, then returned to the table. She glowered at the Tiger before smiling at me.
I admired the gorgeous feather in my hand.
‘She also greatly honours you,’ John said. ‘A gift of one of her feathers is a rare thing indeed. It has miraculous powers. Look after it carefully, it is very precious.’
‘They’re showing the Tiger up,’ I whispered. ‘They’re doing their best to put his nose out of joint by outdoing him.’
‘You are very perceptive sometimes.’
Most of the remaining dignitaries that saluted me and swore allegiance were people I hardly knew. All of the Generals were there; others were staff from the Mountain. A couple were Westerners and were particularly sympathetic when they swore allegiance.
They all bowed to me in human form and in True Form, if their True Form was different.
It was appalling.
What would I tell my father and mother if they came to visit? The ring John had given me was obviously an engagement ring, even though it wasn’t a diamond. And they’d hear everybody call me Lady Emma. I was in
so
much trouble.
About two hours later, when everybody had sworn allegiance, John led me down off the throne and we sat at the table with the other three Winds. Everybody rose and congratulated us. Bai Hu embraced me, kissed me on the cheek, and shook John’s hand before sitting next to me.
‘Thanks for the ballroom,’ I said.
‘My pleasure. Most of the staff are tame demons. Running costs are really low.’
‘I thought that must be the case,’ I said. ‘They don’t seem at all bothered by anything.’
Bau Hu grinned. ‘I’ll trade you fifty of mine for this one,’ he said to John.
‘No deal,’ John responded, lightning-fast.
‘You don’t give up, do you?’ I said.
‘It’s not fair. I have hundreds of women, and not a single one could possibly hold a candle to you.’
‘She can do level five energy work. She can destroy level fifteen demons with her bare hands. She has nearly completed a part-time MBA, with a High Distinction in Accounting,’ John said.
‘It’s not fair,’ Bai Hu said. ‘None of
my
women has anything beyond a diploma.’
‘Women like me just have too much sense to be carried away by something as despicable as you,’ I said.
‘She has a point, Ah Bai.’
‘A hundred. A hundred of mine. And ten fine Arab stallions.’
‘Still no deal,’ John said. ‘She’s
mine
.’
‘The hell I am,’ I said. ‘I don’t belong to you.’
John’s smile widened.
‘Twenty Arab stallions and fifteen war-trained Arab mares, some with foal at foot.’ ‘You have Arab horses?’ I said.
‘Don’t tell me she rides as well,’ Bai Hu said. ‘It’s really not fair.’
‘Lady Emma is quite a passable equestrian,’ John said.
Bai Hu looked at me with admiration. ‘I would be honoured if you would permit me to give you an outstanding war-trained Arab mare, my Lady.’
I glanced at John, thrilled. He smiled indulgently at me. ‘If it pleases you, my Lady, I could think of no better gift.’
‘I will bring a selection with me,’ Bai Hu said. ‘I will bring some to your house on the hill, and you can choose one, then we’ll arrange for it to be stabled with Dark Star.’
‘Will the Jockey Club let me do that?’ I said. ‘Those stables are only for ex-racehorses.’
‘They’ll do what I tell them,’ John said evenly.
I had a sudden wonderful idea. ‘Could you bring a pony for Simone? I know she’d love a well-trained pony of her own. In fact, you don’t need to worry about a horse for me, just bring a sweet pony for Simone.’
‘Two hundred women, twenty-five fine war-trained Arab mares, twenty warm-blood warhorses, and my best thoroughbred racing stallion.’
‘That’s a good deal, John, you should think about it.’
‘It’ll be an anticlimax returning to training after that,’ I said as John drove us back up the hill.
‘Things have changed now, Emma,’ he said.
I sighed and sagged into my seat. ‘I just want to sleep.’ I checked my watch: 3 a.m.
‘Me too.’
We drove in companionable silence for a while. It felt good.
‘Bai Hu will bring the horses in three days.’ He winced. ‘No, that’s the day after tomorrow now. In the afternoon.’
‘That was all for real?’
‘Of course it was. I think it’s a terrific idea.’
‘I don’t really have time to go out riding, John. I’m flat out caring for Simone.’
‘If you can’t ride the horse then Bai Hu can provide someone to ride it for you. And we can hire someone to care for Simone if you like. You are no longer the nanny; you are Lady of the House of Chen.’
‘No way I am! Not until I have that shell of yours safely tied up and nailed down, and a wedding band on your scaly little claw.’
He roared with laughter.
‘What?’
‘It’s not that little. And sometimes it’s a flipper.’ ‘Whatever. Nobody else cares for Simone. It’s either you, me or Leo. I wouldn’t trust anybody else with her.’ ‘As you please. But you are my partner now.’ ‘I wish.’
Some of my feelings came out in my voice, and he changed the subject; probably a good idea in such a small space.
‘Any suggestions on punishment for Jade?’
‘Yeah. I’ve been thinking about that. She feels tremendously guilty, John, she really didn’t think. Don’t be too hard on her.’
‘I won’t be. Because you will be the one to punish her.’
‘Oh,
thank you very much.
What is this: good god, bad god?’
‘Precisely. You want to send her back to the Jade Emperor?’
‘
Back
to the Jade Emperor?’
‘The Celestial has been exceptionally generous in providing her and Gold to help me in my current situation.’
‘Don’t throw her out,’ I said. ‘She loves us both. She’s a dear friend.’
‘Okay, then you’ll need to think of something suitable to allow her to work off the guilt. Shame her slightly, Emma, but not too much. Probably something along the lines of unpleasant physical labour—she’s not used to that, she regards it as beneath her.’
‘Washing windows?’
‘Perfect.’ He smiled slightly. ‘In True Form.’ ‘Oh, now that’s
mean.
She can clean out the gutters as well.’
‘Perfect! She’ll have to get her precious golden claws dirty.’
We laughed together.
‘And no conjuring rain to make the job easier,’ I said, still laughing.
‘By the Heavens, you are wonderful, Emma. I do love you,’ he said, and froze.
He quickly pulled the car to the side of the road, opened the door and threw himself out.
I rested my head on the dashboard, full of joy and anguish. ‘We are both such idiots!’
It took him a long time to regain control. I moved to the back seat of the car. We didn’t speak to each other at all the rest of the way back up the hill.
Dawn was painting the sky a dusky pink as we arrived at the front of the house.
B
oth of us wandered out very late the next morning and met in the kitchen. He looked as exhausted as I felt. We both wore ratty clothes and
both
stopped to tie our hair back.
Ah Yat had made some vegetarian noodles and presented them to us triumphantly, pushing us into the dining room out of the way. She could see that we’d had a great time.
‘Where’s Leo?’ John said.
‘Outside with Simone, sir. They have spent the whole morning together.’ ‘Good.’
We tucked into the noodles without needing to say a word to each other.
Ms Kwan appeared on the other side of the table.
‘Ah Yat!’ John shouted. ‘Another teacup!’
His voice became softer as he spoke to Ms Kwan. He used his chopsticks to point at the noodles. ‘Would you like some, Mercy?’
‘No, thank you, Ah Wu. But you two eat. I can see you had a tiring evening.’
Ah Yat brought another teacup and John filled it for
Kwan Yin. She smiled sadly. ‘Have you spoken to the Jade Emperor recently, Ah Wu?’
John shook his head. Then he put his chopsticks down and placed his hands on either side of the bowl of noodles. ‘Oh, shit.’
‘Ah Wu, really! You have been around that Tiger altogether too much!’
He picked his chopsticks up again. ‘Tell us the worst.’
‘What, John?’
‘Emma. Dear Emma.’ Ms Kwan sighed. ‘Let me tell you a story.’
John opened his mouth but she waved him down. ‘Let me, Ah Wu.
‘Once there was a very foolish Shen who fell in love with a human woman. He married her, and had a child with her. He gave up his duties and dominion to be with her. It was a scandal throughout the Celestial. He was warned by the mighty Jade Emperor that such a dereliction of his duty was not acceptable.’
‘I told the Jade Emperor where to go.’ John’s eyes sparkled over the noodles. ‘You should have seen his face. He nearly had me executed on the spot.’
‘The Jade Emperor decided that if the Shen was in love to such a degree—if it made him insane enough to show such open defiance—then Heaven should not stand in the way.’
‘I still can’t believe I got away with it. Nobody in the history of the world has ever done such a thing. Nobody, I think, ever will.’
‘His Celestial Majesty gave the Shen permission to spend a human lifetime with the woman.’
John dug his chopsticks into the noodles. ‘And there were quite a few noses out of joint.’
‘A great many of his advisors wanted the Shen thrown from Heaven.’
‘There are always people who want me thrown from Heaven. I am what I am. But I am also a good General and the best Heavenly Administrator. No one can fault my performance. The Northern Heavens are the best run of all.’
‘The Shen returned to his wife and child. The wife was killed by a demon. The Shen was given permission to stay with the child.’
‘Good thing, too,’ he said through the noodles. ‘I would have stayed with her anyway, regardless of orders.’
‘You are absolutely incorrigible,’ she said.
‘That’s why you like me.’
‘And that’s why I love him.’
‘You, Emma, are just as bad.’ Her voice softened. ‘And now he has done this.’
I understood. My Regency. His oath to me.
‘You are in very serious trouble, aren’t you?’ I said to him.
‘I don’t think even he realises the depth of the trouble he’s in,’ Ms Kwan said. ‘Tell me the worst.’
‘You are in danger of being demoted, Ah Wu. You may lose the Northern Heavens.’
‘Good,’ he said crisply. ‘The Northern Heavens are a hell of a lot of work and take up far too much of my time. If I didn’t have to do that, I could spend more time with my family.’ He smiled at me.
‘You may lose your Mountain, dear heart.’
His smile disappeared.
I knew how much his Mountain meant to him. It was a part of him. The damage caused by the demons still tortured him.
‘Can he take it all back, Ms Kwan?’
They both stared at me.
‘Don’t you want to marry me and live on my Mountain, Emma? Why didn’t you say so?’
I tapped his arm with the ends of my chopsticks. ‘Of course I do, don’t be ridiculous. But I don’t want you to lose your Mountain for me.’
John and Ms Kwan looked at each other, then back to me.
‘Don’t sacrifice your Mountain for me. I can’t bear the thought of you losing what you love. If you can take your oath back, then you should.’
I turned to Ms Kwan. ‘Please, tell the Jade Emperor that this was all a big mistake. He’ll forget about me and return to his duties. If it costs him this much suffering, then it’s not worth it.’
John looked away, his face full of pain.
‘You are truly worthy,’ Ms Kwan whispered.
He slammed his chopsticks onto the table and rose.
I put my head in my hands. ‘Oh no, here we go again.’ I slapped him lightly on the behind. ‘Sit down, Xuan Wu, there’s no need for theatrics. Let’s just talk about this.’
John sat back down with a bump. ‘I stand by my oath.’ He picked up his chopsticks. ‘Theatrics or no. She is mightily worthy, as you have seen. I want her by my side. If it means losing my Mountain, then so be it.’
‘If you lose it, then how can we go live on it?’ I said. ‘Maybe we should just let our relationship go.’
‘No. The Jade Emperor can go to hell,’ John said. ‘I stand by my oath. Emma deserves nothing less.’
‘You are a tremendous fool,’ Ms Kwan said. ‘But I’ll do my best for you.’
‘I’m an even bigger fool,’ I said. ‘You warned me what I was getting into, and I walked into it with both eyes open.’
‘We’re a pair of fools together,’ John said.
‘You forgot happy,’ I said.
‘Eat your noodles,’ Ms Kwan said, sounding like a long-suffering mother. She disappeared.
We ate in silence. Words weren’t necessary.
The next day Gold returned and we resumed training. We only had a few more days in the house on the hill and there were still things we needed to learn.
‘Only Emma can do the first exercise—it’s energy weapons,’ John said. ‘You’re not big enough to do this sort of weapons training yet, Simone. You can stay back here with Leo if you like.’
‘Can we come and watch?’ Simone said.
‘No need, guys,’ I said.
John shrugged. ‘If you want.’
‘Oh no, please.’ I ran my hands through my hair. ‘Do you have to watch?’ ‘Yep,’ Leo said.
We went to the top of the hill. Gold stood me about twenty metres from a straw dummy and passed me my sword.
‘Stand well clear,’ John said, moving Leo and Simone away from me. ‘This could backfire. Emma, please be very careful.’
I glanced at him, concerned.
‘You’ll be fine, just take it slowly.’
I shrugged and turned back to the dummy.
‘Take the sword out, Lady Emma,’ Gold said, ‘and hold it in front of you.’
I did as he said. He took the scabbard and put it on the grass away from us.
‘Now. Move some chi into the sword. Do it slowly, feel the sensation. Hold the sword with both hands and move the chi in. It will feel strange, be ready for it.’
I held the sword in front of me and concentrated.
‘Only a small amount, Emma,’ John called.
Gold raised his hand. ‘The Dark Lord is quite correct, my Lady, only a very small amount.’ He bobbed his head. ‘My apologies.’
I held the sword out, concentrated, and moved about a golf ball’s worth of chi into it.
The recoil knocked me backwards off my feet and sent the sword spinning out of my hands. I landed smack on my behind. Simone giggled. Leo guffawed. Even John laughed.
‘Do that again, Emma, that was funny!’ Simone squealed.
‘Wish I had a camera,’ John said. ‘The look on your face is priceless.’
Leo didn’t say anything. He was bent double, speechless with laughter.
I pulled myself to my feet. ‘You will all keep!’
Gold had difficulty controlling his face. ‘Less than that, I think, to start.’ He fetched my sword for me. ‘Try again. Hold it tight. You’ll have less recoil as the sword becomes used to it.’
‘The
sword
has to get used to it?’
‘Just try it and feel it,’ John said. ‘I could explain about the sword, but it might be better if you just practise first.’
I took a firm hold of the sword, held it in front of me and gingerly moved a minuscule amount of energy into it. The sword vibrated, but I could hold it. I moved more in, and the vibration intensified, but I could still hold it easily.
I eased more chi into it until I reached a normal working level. The vibration intensified, then the sword stopped shaking and sang with a pinging crystalline whine that ran straight through my head like a glass blade.
I pulled the energy out of the sword and it went silent.
‘All the demons for miles will run when they hear that,’ I said. ‘What an annoying sound.’
‘It will do more than annoy them,’ John said. ‘It will destroy any small ones that are close, and disable them if they are within earshot.’
‘How small?’ I said.
‘That depends entirely upon your own level of skill. The more you practise, the larger the demons you can destroy with it.’
‘I hope I didn’t hurt the house staff,’ I said, concerned.
‘I sent them down to the city,’ John said. ‘And they’re your staff too, now.’
Leo snorted with amusement.
‘Give it a rest. That’s a really useful technique, Gold, thanks.’
‘That is not the technique. That is just an interesting side effect of the particular nature of this sword.’ ‘What’s the technique then?’ ‘Put the sword down and I’ll show you.’ I placed the sword on the grass.
‘Using a standard chi blast of about so big,’ he said, indicating a ball about the size of a basketball, ‘hit the target.’
I generated the chi and threw it at the dummy. I wasn’t accurate; the chi hit the dummy slightly to one side and it burst into flames.
‘Pathetic,’ John said.
‘Leave her alone, Daddy, that was really good,’ Simone said, shoving him.
Gold concentrated and the fire went out. ‘Now, load the sword with chi and use it like a slingshot to throw the energy. Only use about this much.’ He indicated a ball about the size of a tennis ball.
I picked up the sword, held it front of me and filled it with energy. It sang. ‘That’s really annoying. How do I shut it up?’
The sword went silent.
‘Okay, obviously I just ask it.’
‘Just tell it what to do,’ John called. ‘Tell it to sing again.’
The sword sounded without me saying anything. I ordered it to shut up and it went silent. ‘Is it sentient?’
‘No,’ John said. ‘Has the stone in the ring said anything yet?’ ‘No.’
‘Stone in the ring?’ Gold said. I held the ring up for him to see. ‘Are you sure that was a good idea, my Lord? It will waken eventually.’
‘Emma can handle it,’ John said.
‘If anyone can, she can,’ Gold agreed. ‘I look forward to it waking. It’s been a long time.’
I tried something. I ordered the sword to sing, and it sounded. I ordered it to make the sound lower, and it obliged. I ran it through some excruciatingly painful scales.
A dog barked some distance away and others picked up the refrain. The hillside echoed with their howls of distress.
‘Enough! Enough!’ John called, laughing. ‘I didn’t know it could do that!’
I ordered the sword to shut up and my ears rang in the sudden silence.
‘Don’t do that again, please, Emma!’ Simone said. ‘That was awful!’
I bowed to them, then turned to face the dummy. This time I used the sword as a slingshot to throw the energy. The dummy exploded into a million pieces. The force of the blast showered us with straw. John had to shield Simone from the flying debris.
The chi returned to the sword without my guidance.
‘That was only about one-fifth of what I used the first time,’ I said.
‘That is correct,’ Gold said. ‘You will achieve five times the power, combined with five times the distance, by using the sword to throw the chi. You also do not need to guide the energy back.’
‘Sweet! Hey, John, do you have any demons I can practise on?’
‘Sure. I have a jar in the basement. Just hold on, I’ll get it for you.’
‘I may play them some tunes as well,’ I mused aloud.
‘Leo, I want to go inside
right now,
please,’ Simone said.
‘Yeah, we’re out of here,’ Leo said. ‘Come and get us when you’re finished.’
John followed Leo and Simone back to the house. Then he stopped, stiffened, and walked swiftly back.
‘Looks like we won’t need the jar,’ he said, studying the sky.
Gold looked up as well. ‘You have sky seals?’
‘Yes,’ John said. ‘Let’s see what happens. Emma, fill the sword with chi. You may have your chance right now.’
I filled the sword with energy and ordered it to be silent. ‘What’s coming?’
‘Flyers,’ Gold said.
‘How big?’
‘Oh, about twenty,’ John said casually, still studying the sky. ‘About twelve of them. Second wave.’
The flyers appeared as black spots in the cloudy sky. They looked like ravens.
‘Are they like crows?’
‘Nope,’ Gold said. ‘Completely different. And much bigger.’
The flyers came closer and I suddenly saw that they weren’t the size of ravens, they were much, much bigger. Their altitude had hidden their true size. Each had a wingspan of probably about two metres.
‘Can we handle them?’
‘Oh, yes,’ John said. ‘This should be good. They don’t know I’ve given you the sword. They will find out in a hurry. When I tell you, make the sword sing.’
The flyers were like large flying lizards, or small black dragons. They had scales, four legs, and wings. Their eyes glowed red as they approached us.
When they were about fifty metres away, I hefted my sword.
‘Wait,’ John said without moving. ‘They’re awfully close, John,’ I said, concerned. The flyers sped towards us. ‘Trust me, Emma.’
The flyers opened their mouths when they were about twenty metres away; around twelve of them. They flew together in a mass of black scaly legs and wings.
‘Will they blow fire like the dog?’ I said, clutching my sword.
‘No,’ John said. ‘They’re just smiling.’