I don't own JCA and no money is made with this.
"You are going to break into my family's manor? Are you out of your mind? The place is too dangerous to get near!" Necrosis snapped after Hsi Wu had explained his plan. The sky demon had stated that all they had to do was to sneak in, steal everything they needed and get lost before anyone noticed anything.
Po Kong nodded.
"Yes he is. He is in love and that is the same thing," she said.
"Grr..." Hsi Wu glared at his sister, but said nothing. Perhaps his plan was risky, but it was also the fastest way to help Jade. He was ready to try anything.
"Could it really be that difficult? We have done many harder things," Hoyle stated. He hadn't talked much since the demons had arrived.
Necrosis glanced at him frowning.
"It is difficult. I remember when I was a child and the whole place was filled with students and necromancers. We could do it if something special had just happened, but nothing ever changes there," he said.
"But that could be our only way of getting Jade back," Hsi Wu insisted. He ran his claws through the girl's black hair and looked at her pale face. His anger towards Shin flamed and he would have given anything to get the chance to kill him.
"True, but how will we do it?" Tohru asked. He acted cold towards the demons, but hadn't been openly angry anymore. Po Kong had already commented it, but the Japanese hadn't replied.
Hsi Wu snorted.
"All of you are forgetting something important," he said.
"And that is?" Necrosis asked. The sky demon glared at him.
"Watch your mouth, mortal. You are alive only because we need you. Otherwise I would have ripped your heart out by now for helping Shin," he said dangerously.
"We are waisting time. Just tell us what we don't seem to know yet," Po Kong suggested.
"We are going to steal books that deal with dark magic. Who could do it better than two master thieves?" the winged demon asked.
"You mean Viper and Origami? Won't sensei and Tso Lan need them?" Tohru asked.
"We need them more! We have to save Jade!" Hsi Wu said.
"I more than agree with you and so does sensei, but... I don't think that Tso Lan will endager the guardians because of one mortal girl," the Japanese said quietly.
"Don't underestimate my brother. He is stubborn when it is about something he finds important, but he can make exceptions if you know how to treat him," Po Kong pointed out.
"It's worth a try. If he doesn't agree I will find a way to force him," Hsi Wu said. "I have to help Jade."
The others could sense the obsession in the sky demon's voice. No one said anything, but they all had to wonder how much the demon was ready to sacrifice.
"I suppose that the keys the guardians carry have something to do with the portal," Uncle said.
"I have to agree. We only need to find out how to open it," Tso Land replied. He and Uncle had talked about the matter for quite a while and no one else had had anything to do. Viper and Origami leaned against the wall and both looked incredibly bored.
Viper yawned.
"I wish there was something to do..." she muttered to herself. She glanced beside her expecting Origami to say something, but the man was silent. Viper frowned. She didn't like the Japanese at all, but she hoped he could have been at least a bit more co-operative.
"So, what are you going to do after this?" she asked. Origami turned to look at her. Viper realised that she had no idea how old the man was. Probably some years older than her, though.
"Why do you want to know?" Origami asked.
"I'm just curious," Viper said shrugging.
"My plans are none of your business."
"Fine, grouch..."
Viper noticed Hsi Wu arriving and turned her attention to the sky demon. Just like everyone else, she had been surprised because of the way the demon had taken Jade's death -- just thinking about it made Viper's heart feel heavier -- and she followed in interest as Hsi Wu approached his brother. The ex-thief knew that the sky demon was trying to find a way to bring Jade back and she definitely wanted to know how things were developing.
"Tso Lan?" Hsi Wu asked. The moon demon glanced at him.
"Yes?" he asked sounding slightly irritated. Hsi Wu shifted his wings.
"I came to ask for something," he said.
"What do you want?"
Viper watched as Hsi Wu took a nervous step and glanced at Uncle. The woman tilted her head and looked carefully at them.
"In order to know how to help Jade we have to get books on necromancy from the library of Necrosis's family.The place could be well protected and we need experienced thieves to get what we want. We need the guardians, Tso Lan," Hsi Wu said.
"You know how ridiculous your demand is. We need the guardians here to open a portal in Sha Fuju," Tso Lan said.
"But that is the only way to save Jade!"
"Do you consider the life of a mere mortal more important than the fate of the world?" Tso Lan asked. Hsi Wu lowered his eyes and clenched his fists.
"You don't even know how to open the portal. We are not needed yet and we could join Hsi Wu for a while. I want to do everything I can for Jade," Viper announced. Tso Lan glanced at her briefly, but paid no attention to her words.
"I want to go as well," Origami offered surprising Viper. The woman hadn't thought the man would go voluntarily anywhere they wanted.
"Please Tso Lan... Brother," Hsi Wu said quietly.
Everyone could see the change in the moon demon. He froze for a moment first and stared long at Hsi Wu. Then he sighed.
"Fine, Hsi Wu. But bring them back alive," he said sounding both very tired and relieved.
Hsi Wu let a grateful smile spread on his face. At that moment Viper could have almost said that the demon didn't look ugly in her eyes.
"Thank you, brother Tso Lan."
Hsi Wu was on a determined mood and started to take care of arrangements. He visited San Francisco and prepared a Dark Hand jet and a skilled pilot for them. He believed that it would be faster to fly to England from San Francisco than to try to find a way to civilization from the mountains.
"You are fast," Bai Tsa stated as she watched how the sky demon wrote down everything he thought to be important.
"This means much to me," Hsi Wu replied.
"We should travel soon too. I just haven't got my companions very eager yet," the water demon said.
"You haven't given them a motive."
"And you have?"
Hsi Wu lifted his eyes.
"Actually I have. Everyone who comes with me does it out of free will. They may not be interested in Jade, but they will benefit something," he said. "You should know that. Don't you always say that you can manipulate mortals better than the rest of us?"
"Of course I can! I just haven't concentrated like you yet," the water demon snapped.
"Well, concentrate then. We are traveling to England today and will be back in a couple of days. In that time you should get something done too," Hsi Wu said.
Bai Tsa grinned maliciously.
"Watch your words, Hsi Wu. In the old times you could have been seriously hurt for saying that to me. This task has given you too much self-confidence," she said.
"Perhaps. But if the old necromancer is right I will need all of it."
"Hmh. Mortal tricks. I didn't know you knew anything about stealing."
"Are you trying to annoy me on purpose? Don't you have anything better to do? You know, when someone is annoyed the best medicine is usually -- " Hsi Wu started, but Bai Tsa interrupted him with an angry snap.
"You are mocking me! And what do you think you know?" she asked. She crossed her arms on her chest. "And none of the men here is worthy of me."
Hsi Wu said nothing, merely concentrated on his plans again.
The conversation with Hsi Wu had made Bai Tsa even more determined. She realised that her little brother had challenged her and she was not going to lose. She and her companions would get something important done before Hsi Wu came back.
She snorted at herself.
"We have the advantage. Hsi Wu will see that it is not that easy to beat me," she muttered.
"Did you say something?" Dai Gui asked.
"Nothing," the water demon replied. She believed Dai Gui would appreciate the little competition, but she suspected that he would take it too seriously. "Merely planning our mission."
Dai Gui shifted looking uncomfortable.
"Dai Gui doesn't like water," he stated. Bai Tsa chuckled.
"You are like Shendu!" she said in amusement. "But don't worry brother. I will take care of everything."
"Does that include us too? I never liked swimming that much," Finn said.
"If I want you to come I better tolerate you as well. And you should reconsider your opinion on swimming. It really is a fascinating past time activity," the water demon said.
Bai Tsa's plan was very simple. The Eye of Atlantis had been one of her most precious treasures in the ancient times and she had valued it more than anything else she had ever owned. She suspected it was still in her old underwater empire and it was finally the time to get it back.
She hadn't visited Atlantis during the time she had been free. She had swam near, but seeing the ruins and destruction had made her go back every time. The sight of the city was enough, she didn't want to know what her once so magnificent palace looked like.
It was pathetic to be weak. Bai Tsa didn't like to even think about it.
"And how are you going to deal with us? Nothing along the lines of turning us into... let's say, fish?" Finn asked. "Not that a little fish adventure wasn't healthy, but I don't think it would be that interesting. Scales look really bad on pale skin."
Bai Tsa smirked. Or maybe it was a smile.
"Don't worry, I have been thinking about something else. A scale or two here and there would make you look better though," she assured.
"Are those two flirting or something?" Ratso whispered to Hak Foo. The warrior stared at him.
"What?" he asked.
"I mean, is Finn playing "male salmon fawns on female fish" with Bai Tsa? I don't think Finn's milt and her spawn are meant for each other," Ratso said.
Hak Foo stared at him in shock and took a couple of steps away. He blinked.
"We have to go," Dai Gui announced.
"You are correct, brother. Come. We have to be there today," Bai Tsa said. She had taken the place of a leader and it seemed to suit Dai Gui very well. Everyone knew that the earth demon was happy as long as he knew what to do and could have some fun every now and then. Unlike most of his siblings he didn't feel the need to rule over everyone all the time.
And so the group of two demons and three mortal men left. They walked through the portal in the Chan shop and stepped on the street.
Finn felt instantly better when he could drew air in his lungs in San Francisco. Maybe it wasn't the cleanest air imaginable, but at least he felt home. The happy feeling didn't last very long though because Bai Tsa reminded him of her existence again. The water demon didn't let them stand there, but led them to the docks.
"Are we going to get a boat?" Ratso asked. Bai Tsa stepped on a pier and eyed the dark water in thought.
"No," she said.
"What then? We have no other ways of getting in your empire," Dai Gui pointed out. The water demon glanced at her brother and grinned.
"We don't?" she asked. Then she turned towards the water again. Finn watched as the demon tapped the ground with her foot. She turned around just when he was about to ask something. "Alright, jump."
"What? You can't be serious," Finn said. He looked at the water in disgust. It was dirty and had to be cold. Who knew what lurked under the surface? He didn't think he was a fastidious person, but he would not jump in the sea just like that.
"I am perfectly serious. Do as I say," Bai Tsa said more sharply. Finn glanced at the others. Even Dai Gui looked suspicious and that wasn't a good sign.
"What are you going to do, Bai Tsa? None of us survives underwater. Dai Gui can't even swim," the earth demon said.
Bai Tsa rolled her eyes.
"My own brother doesn't trust me... Believe me, I know what I am doing," she said starting to sound really frustrated. Finn had been with the water demon long enough to know that she would lose it soon. And when Bai Tsa was angry it was impossible to deal with her.
"Fine, fine," he said and walked next to the demon. The water looked disgusting... Maybe it wasn't a good idea after all.
Finn yelped in surprise as Bai Tsa shoved him in the water. It was deep and just as horrible as he had suspected. He sank deep before recovering from the shock and swimming back up.
"Not funny," he muttered angrily through his teeth and spat water. Dude, it tasted bad!
There were three more splashes when Ratso, Hak Foo and Dai Gui joined him. The earth demon seemed to be doing the worst. He had to grab the pier in order to stay afloat. In his true form he might have been able to stand in the bottom, but in his human form he was just like the rest of them.
"Dai Gui hates water," he said.
Bai Tsa snorted at the comment and stepped over the edge falling in the middle of them.
"And now? Are we going to swim there together?" Finn asked sarcastically. Bai Tsa didn't bother to ask, but disappeared underwater with one swift movement. For a while nothing happened, but then Finn and the rest of them felt how something pulled them under the surface. It was so fast that they didn't even have the time to scream.
There was a quiet 'plop' and Finn realised that he could breath. He had automatically closed his eyes and opened them now. To his surprise he found himself in some kind of huge bubble with Ratso, Hak Foo and Dai Gui.
He pressed his palms against the bubble's surface and realised it was like glass. They had air and they could see everything that happened outside the bubble.
Scaly blue face stared back at him and Finn flinched visibly.
"Dude, you scared me..." he muttered and looked at Bai Tsa's features more carefully. It was the first time he saw the water demon in her true form and he had to admit that she was better than he had been thinking. Or fearing.
Bai Tsa chuckled.
"It is sometimes so useful to be able to bend water in my will," she said and tapped the bubble. It didn't give in and she nodded at herself. "The bubble will follow me on its own, all you need to do is to sit back and look intelligent. Could turn out to be quite difficult for some of you."
The water demon hit the water with her tail and turned around. Finn watched her and he had to admire the Bai Tsa's agile movements in her own element. Her body was long and slender and swimming didn't look difficult at all. The demon was exactly like a mermaid and had she had a human face she could have been beautiful too.
And in her own way she was. The water demon's beauty didn't please a human eye, but it was something deeper and more natural. There was no way Finn could have said that the demon was his idea of a perfect woman, but there was something fascinating in her.
And I thought she would be a crab or an octopus, he thought to himself in slight amusement.
They traveled underwater and it was very difficult to measure how much time had passed or how far they had gone. Sitting in the bubble had turned out to be rather boring and Finn thought he was sitting closer to Dai Gui than he wanted.
"Everything has been rather comfortable to this point," he announced.
"Yeah. Nothing dangerous has happened," Ratso admitted.
"Dai Gui doesn't think anything will happen. There is no one in Bai Tsa's empire," the earth demon pointed out.
"That's good," Finn said. He leaned his side against the hard surface of the bubble and stared out. They could see around surprisingly well because the water had became cleaner once they had left San Francisco.
He suddenly thought of something.
"Isn't Atlantis supposed to be somewhere in the Atlantic Ocean? San Francisco is on the shore of the Pacific Ocean. Are we going to go around the whole continent?" he asked.
"Bai Tsa is not stupid," Dai Gui said. "Dai Gui is sure she has thought of everything."
"Hope so. Think of the cramp we'd get if we had to sit here until she has swam around whole America," Ratso said.
Finn concentrated staring out again. Bai Tsa swam ahead of them and didn't show any signs of tiredness. On the contrary, Finn thought she was going faster every moment. He didn't know how fast exactly they were going, but he suspected their speed was great nevertheless.
"We are almost there," Bai Tsa announced suddenly and Finn startled. He realised he must have fallen asleep because he had no clear memory of what he had been just thinking. His muscles were also sore for sitting in the same position for who knew how long.
"This soon?" he asked. "Shouldn't it take longer?"
"Are you saying you know where my empire is?" Bai Tsa asked.
"Well no, but everyone knows that Atlantis has to be connected with the Atlantic Ocean," the Irishman replied.
"They say that no mortal knows where it is. How could you have given it a name that tells its location, then?" the water demon asked.
Finn couldn't reply and Bai Tsa nodded. She swam for another moment before starting to slow down. First Finn thought that they were there, but then he saw they were only nearing the ruined city.
The sea bottom was covered by pieces of old columns and buildings, but they lay hidden by dirt and corals so it was very difficult to recognise them as something else than mere boulders. There were strange fishes here and there, but they cowered from their way.
We must be really deep. We shouldn't be able to see anything, Finn thought to himself. He wasn't that surprised though, Bai Tsa had already shown that she could do almost anything in water.
And talking about the water demon...
Finn saw the demon swam past destroyed buildings trying to pretend that they were invisible, but every now and then she stayed with some of them for a bit longer or touched a fallen column barely noticing it. The movements were small and the Irishman didn't think anyone else had seen them. He frowned in thought.
Something told him that Bai Tsa was sad.
It was a strange thought to him, until now he had seen the demon express only two emotions; anger and some kind of happiness mixed with excitement. He had never thought the water demon could be sad. And in order to feel sorrow one had to love something first, and Finn didn't think demons could love. It was difficult enough for humans.
They went through the ruins until they arrived at a some sort of palace. It was built against a massive underwater mountain and had suffered damage during years as well. It was still in a better condition than the rest of the place, though.
Bai Tsa dove inside the palace and disappeared for a moment. At first Finn thought -- and perhaps hoped too -- that the demon had forgotten them, but then she came back.
"There are parts that have air. We don't need the bubble anymore," she said and led them in.
An earthquake or some other catastrophe had damaged the palace, and the corridor they found themselves in had fallen apart in some places and looked very wrong.
The bubble appeared on the surface of the water and broke apart. They were in water again, but this time it wasn't that uncomfortable. The water was much cleaner than in San Francisco.
Finn climbed out of the water and looked around. The palace looked like a huge diving bell to him because the only way in was through water, but after that there was air and solid stone to walk on. He found it a bit odd that there was any air in the water demon's palace, but then he suspected that the situation had changed when parts of the palace had collapsed.
He turned his eyes on Bai Tsa. When he saw her closer she turned out to be bigger than he had thought and the demon's scales glittered with water. She had got out of the water as well and being on solid ground didn't seem to bother her at all.
"My palace is ruined. All water has escaped," the water demon said angrily.
"At least we have air to breath," Finn stated. He didn't think he could have taken it any longer in the crowded bubble.
"Yes we have. My human slaves wouldn't have survived without it, but the air used to be in the lowest floors. They must be covered in water now so most of the air is up here," Bai Tsa said. "Come with me, we can take care of this fast." She started to wriggle on like a huge snake.
The palace looked very interesting. It was built of stone and the walls and the floor were covered in decorative plates. Most of the colours had faded away, many plates were broken or totally missing, and some kind of plants and dirt had appeared everywhere.There were cracks in the stone and at times it looked like the whole thing was going to collapse, but Finn could still imagine what it all had looked like in the ancient times.
"This has been ridiculously easy. Something horrible is bound to happen soon," Finn said to Ratso. He nodded.
"Knowing us, it's certain," he added.
Suddenly they noticed that Bai Tsa had stopped. She had lifted a broken vase from the floor and showed it to her brother.
"Do you remember this, Dai Gui? Ko Ha gave it to me," the water demon said. Dai Gui took it in his hands and examined it. Then he shook his head.
"Dai Gui does not remember."
Bai Tsa frowned.
"Of course not. That is not a miracle," she said and put the vase back where she had taken it. Finn glanced at it as he walked past. He didn't think it was that special.
They walked on the corridors that were decorated by columns and the deeper they got the better was the condition of their surroundings. It was still obvious that the palace had been empty for very long, but now it didn't disturb them like in the beginning.
Then the corridor opened into a huge round hall.
The floor was destroyed and small ponds with something disturbing plants were here and there. Peaces of columns and other rubbish lay everywhere and the once so beautiful hall was completely ruined.
In the middle of it stood a small column and a huge blue pearl lay on it. But that wasn't what made them all stop.
The floor around the pearl was covered in skeletons of different size. Some of them had fallen apart, but most were still complete. The biggest one was high and in a very good condition and it looked like as if someone had placed it there on purpose. It looked like the remnants of a huge sea animal, perhaps a whale.
"What are those?" Finn asked and looked at the bones in suspicion. They weren't dangerous, but didn't look very pleasing either. One had sharp teeth and a really nasty long tail.
"My servants... " Bai Tsa said surprisingly quietly and wriggled to them. "They must have gathered here after I was banished."
"Why would they have stayed here to die?" Dai Gui asked.
"Because they were loyal to me!" the water demon snapped angrily. "At least I know what happened to Shao Wan now..."
Finn watched how the demon leaned against one of the skeletons for a while and suddenly he felt pity. It couldn't be easy to see the bodies of former servants and perhaps friends just like that with no warning.
Bai Tsa sighed once and tore her eyes from the bones. She wriggles to the Eye of Atlantis and caressed its smooth surface.
"It has been long since we last met," she said eyes half closed. Then she lifted it in her arms.
Finn had always hated the scene that was in every adventure film: a treasure was lifted from its place and that caused the whole place to collapse. He thought it was an old and very dry scheme to create supposed drama and excitement.
Now he hoped that reality was as boring as movies.
Something seemed to move under floor and the palace shook. Boulders fell from the ceiling and the last statue that had been standing collapsed. The skeletons refused to stand as well and the whole hall was in chaos in the matter of several minutes.
"Don't tell me you triggered your own trap!" Finn shouted at the demon who hadn't moved an inch. There was an open surprised expression on Bai Tsa's face.
"But I never set up a trap here! Nothing should have happened! Someone else must have done it," she shouted back and hugged the pearl against her chest.
"Great..." Finn muttered and turned to look at Ratso. He looked surprisingly calm considering the situation.
"Everyone out!" Dai Gui ordered taking over and no one objected. Finn, Ratso and Hak Foo rushed out of the hall. Finn noticed that neither of the demons was in a hurry and he glanced behind his shoulder.
Fallen skeletons had caused that Bai Tsa couldn't wriggle away, but was trapped in the middle of the the rubble. Dai Gui was doing his best in trying to help his sister, but the earth demon wasn't doing that well. He had taken his own form as soon as they had got out of the bubble, but it didn't help him much.
Especially after a falling boulder hit him in the head and he fell on the floor out cold.
Finn stopped. He didn't know why, but he did it. After that he did something even stupider; started to run back to the demons.
"Finn? Where are you going?" Ratso asked.
"We will never get out of here without the demons!" the Irishman shouted as a reply. It made Ratso and Hak Foo stop as well and think about it. It took only a second before they had rushed after Finn.
Finn knew he was being more than stupid, but it didn't make his feet stop. He was determined to survive this mess and go on with his life. He had never planned to die in underwater ruins and he was not about to change his perfect plans.
When he arrived there most of the hall had been severely damaged. Dai Gui lay covered in boulders, but Bai Tsa had managed to avoid being hit and had prevented the Eye of Atlantis being broken. The water demon wriggled in the middle of boulders and bones trying to find a way to safety not caring if sharp stones damaged her scales. A huge crack had appeared on the floor.
"You there! Go help my brother! I will be fine!" she hissed angrily and for a short moment Finn thought of Shendu. Then he shrugged.
"My pals will do that. You are more important, only you can take us home," he said in determination and hurried to move boulders from the water demon's way.
"You stupid, ignorant -- " Bai Tsa started, but never finished. A huge boulder fell and the demon was crushed under it.
Maybe crushed wasn't the best way to describe it because Bai Tsa's body turned into water and splashed everywhere. Finn was too surprised to even wipe his face.
Bai Tsa was gone.
The Eye of Atlantis hadn't suffered the same fate, which was quite a miracle. The pearl seemed to be really hard because the boulder that had destroyed Bai Tsa had been split in two because of the pearl and the pearl itself didn't even have a scratch.
Finn lifted his eyes and examined the ceiling. It looked like that boulder had been one of the last to fall. It was good, he didn't want the whole place to come down and let the ocean fall on them.
They would really have to reconsider the situation after everything calmed down and invent how the heck they were going to get away without the water demon.
He turned to look at the spot where Bai Tsa had been a moment ago and saw that the water her body had been turned into was already flowing in the huge crack he had noticed a while ago. He didn't know why he paid attention to something like that and didn't even care.
The Eye of Atlantis lay on the floor and Finn decided to go and get it. Not that it would be any use for them, but he was ready to try everything.
The surface of the pearl felt cold. Finn lifted it in his arms and patted it.
"Hello baby," he said to it and turned to look at his friends. They had cleared some of the boulders that had buried Dai Gui, but the earth demon was still unconscious. The situation didn't look good.
And it would only get worse.
Boulders weren't falling anymore, and it seemed like the trap hadn't been planned to destroy the whole palace. It had one more card in its sleeve, though.
Finn felt as the floor started to collapse under him and he could only yelp in surprise when he fell through it in the awaiting darkness.
Valmont stared out of the airplain window. There were clouds and some sea under him and he found it very boring.
Everyone seemed to be using the Dark Hand fortune all the time. Shendu had done it by traveling around the world freeing his siblings and now he had to share his money with the demons again.
How he hated it!
Valmont had to admit that it was harder for some others though. He would have never said it aloud, but maybe he pitied Chan little -- very little. Or not, he was merely sorry for that it had happened.
Chan seemed to take the situation very well, Valmont had to admit that. He had always thought the archaeologist got nervous easily, but he had kept himself in control this far. Many others would have broken or done something dramatic after seeing the death of their niece.
He glanced at Jackie. The archaeologist stared out of his own window and seemed to be thinking of something. Valmont looked at him for another moment and concentrated in his own window again.
It didn't quite beat television, but...
To be continued...