Prologue

The fierce wind broke through her jacket and she shivered slightly. She pulled her jacket in tighter, trying to stay warm. She pulled the collar up of her jacket and she then stuffed her hands into her pockets, keeping her arms tight by her sides, hunching slightly. The wind howled once more, carrying crisp golden leaves through the air, and died.

The streets of Shanghai were deserted, the street lamps flickering uselessly. The street grounds began to unravel as the smooth concrete sidewalks turned into hard packed soil; she began to walk faster, her breathing creating small puffs of smoke which escaped her painted lips. She checked over both of her shoulders, then proceeded to putting on her hood, making sure not to ruin her delicate braids.

The streets were broad with dark, empty stores which lined up opposite each other. One of the street lamps flickered off, leaving her in perfect darkness. She cringed when suddenly one of her heels got stuck in a pothole. She jiggled her foot anxiously, looked around, and then continued to shake her foot free of the earth's grasp. Out of the corner of her eye she saw a shadow near one of the lamp posts on the opposite end of the street. Failing to admit that she had seen anything, she continued to work on her heel which was jammed into the hole.

Then, very distinctly, a footstep was heard from behind her. She straightened up and swiveled around to see a lone shadow illuminated under a street lamp. Slowly, it began to move towards her, limping slightly on one leg.

She froze in cold dread, sheer panic overwhelming her. Her blood began to rush to her ears and she felt as she were drowning in them.

The Black Hand. Everyone had heard of the notorious legendary gang that dated back to the 40's, as their generation carried on. They were known to be the top drug lords in all of Shanghai as well as their other various bad deeds. But what they were most famous for was avoiding the law. None of them ever got caught and no evidence of their actions were ever revealed. They avoided the police and the police avoided them - it was a done deal.

But now, she was about to become one of their victims.

She was never taught self defense, her mother frowning at the possibility of her daughter learning how to fight. "Fighting is for men," she remembered distinctly when her mother admonished her in disapproval. "Leave it to them, Leifang."

"But I want to learn how to fight!" she had complained to her mother.

Her mother's eyebrows had knitted togetherwhen she had answered. "Woman bring life into the world; they do not take life." She had started to whine, but her mother had slapped her. "Enough, Leifang. It's time you learn proper etiquette for your future husband."

She remembered those words now and hot tears sprang into her eyes. I can't give up, she reprimanded herself, but there was nothing she could do as the lone shadow advanced on her. Four more silhouettes joined the first, all of them walking in a slightly drunken fashion.

Another round of shadows came up from behind her surrounding, and she began wishing even more desperately. Finally, she managed to yank her heel out of the pothole and then she ran to the nearest store, almost tripping, but hastily catching herself.

She tumbled into the dusty bar, running to the far side of the room, when suddenly a face appeared in front of her. She opened her mouth to scream, but the spirit slapped its hand over her mouth and grabbed both of her wrists in its other. Its hand was cold and clammy and it felt as if it were sending shocks throughout her body, holding her prisoner. The spirit had black hair and soulless black eyes, entrancing her with its morbid beauty.

"Leifang," it whispered, its pale lips moving silently when it mouthed her name. she felt herself go numb with cold, as if her mind was slipping away from her body. She fought despairingly against the spirit from possessing her, finally breaking the connection by kicking its shin.

It hissed in pain, letting go of her to grasp his bruised shin. She twirled around him, running towards the back exit when it grabbed her ankle and she fell. She kicked its hand away as it slowly got up from the ground and stood over her, his expression deadly.

She shrank away from it, turning, and hiding her face from the horrible creature who stood at her feet. She screamed when suddenly, she was interrupted by a high keening sound that made the hair on the back of her neck stand up. She opened her eyes to see the creature that had once been so close to her, now lying on his hack, trying to get up. Instead, an actual human stood in front of her, his back to her, poised as if in battle. His white shirt seemed to glow in the darkness that surrounded her as she looked upon her savior.

He turned around…