I don't own Jackie Chan Adventures and no money is being made with this story. It was written purely for fun.

For those Shendu fans out there; he will be in this chapter but you'll have to wait until the next one before finding out what he thinks about Xu Lin's dreams.

Very special thanks to my beta reader Alan Wilkinson for working faster than ever and catching my mistakes. I also want to thank everyone who has reviewed.

HEING MEH

Chapter 36

Ratso had gone out to get the ingredients Bai Tsa needed and left Finn and Chow with the water demon. In one sense the Irishman was alone with her since Chow was still unconscious and not aware of what was going on around him.

An uneasy silence had taken over the room. Finn sat next to Chow, and Bai Tsa had found herself a place near the window. She stared outside with a grim look on her face.

"I'm not coming back," the Irishman declared then. His voice held determination that surprised even him. The water demon turned to look at him,

"I decide that," she stated. "Whatever happens, you will always be my slave."

Finn frowned, but said nothing. Arguing would have been useless. Nothing would make Bai Tsa think like a decent person and he could only wait until he got the chance to get the business entirely over with.

"What are you doing here? And how did you find us?" he asked. "No, wait. Don't answer the last one. Valmont squealed on us, didn't he?"

The slight grin that appeared on Bai Tsa's face told the Irishman enough. That damned Brit. He wasn't surprised that Valmont double crossed them to safe his own skin, but it still angered him. Why were they working for the crime lord anyway?

The water demon shrugged. "Tso Lan sent me. That friend of yours," she said nodding at Chow, "knows something precious. It'll be wasted if he dies."

"So you are here to try magic tricks on him," Finn muttered in suspicion. He was sick of magic, demons and strange creatures. Now more than ever. He couldn't name one single magical thing that had brought them any good.

"Not tricks," Bai Tsa snapped sharply. "Healing herbs and potions."

"Just enough to get the answer out of him, eh?"

The water demon looked at him with an annoyed expression. "What are you doing? Trying to make me admit that his well-being doesn't matter anything to me?" Finn didn't reply so the demon continued, "You're right, it doesn't. I couldn't care less if he died. But we need to know what he knows."

Ratso looked at Bai Tsa's list and his basket. He wasn't used to doing shopping in the kind of places that he had had to enter in order to find everything the demon wanted. In other words, he had had to see more little Chinese shops than he had thought existed.

"I hope Chow doesn't need to eat this," he muttered as he put the strange root he had just bought in his basket.

He was glad for having escaped the demons. It had been difficult living in the same place with Shendu, and Ratso didn't particularly like the other demons either. Or the Chans. He didn't hate the Chinese family in the same way he felt for the demons, but they had messed up their plans so many times that he couldn't think about them without frowning slightly.

"What on Earth is a claw of a dragon?" he asked aloud after reading the name of the next ingredient in the list.

He wasn't sorry for that Bai Tsa had turned up. Somehow he knew that the demon would help them heal Chow and at the moment that was all he cared about. He knew Finn didn't like the situation though and he was a little sorry for the Irishman.

In one sense she's not that bad, he thought to himself as he moved to the last ingredient and decided to search for the claw later. After all, Bai Tsa hadn't tried to kill them yet and hadn't shown too many desires for actions of senseless violence.

Though, if he had understood it right, she had desired something else. It was quite a disturbing thought.

He finished the rest of his shopping quickly and returned to the others.

Isabelle didn't even nod at him as he walked through the pub, and Ratso didn't stop to talk to her. He sensed she was hurt and he was quite sure he knew why, too. In a way he was sorry for her.

"I'm back," he announced as he stepped into the room. He noticed how Finn relaxed when he didn't have to be alone with Bai Tsa and Chow anymore.

"Finally. Took you long enough," Bai Tsa muttered and rushed to snatch the basket from him. She went quickly trough it and nodded in satisfaction when she didn't find anything missing. The demon didn't thank him though, but Ratso hadn't even been expecting it.

"How's he?" he asked nodding at Chow.

"The same as when you left," Finn replied. Their friend lied on the bed, pale, eyes closed and breathing weakly. Ratso had never seen Chow that calm.

He took himself a chair and set next to Finn. "Isabelle seems really angry," he stated and the Irishman only sighed muttering something. Ratso decided to let the subject rest and concentrated on watching Bai Tsa instead.

"What are you doing?" he asked. The demon stopped her bustle for a moment and turned to look at him.

"I'm going to prepare a drug that should make him feel better," she stated pointing at their sick friend.

"Can I help?" Ratso wanted to know. For a while the water demon stared at him with a surprised expression on her face, but then she nodded.

"Bring me hot water and mix this in it," she ordered.

"What do you think you're doing?" Finn asked his friend as Ratso stood up and was about to head downstairs.

"Helping her. Chow will get better faster this way," Ratso said. It was simple, why did Finn even need to ask? The Irishman looked like he would have liked to make him sit down again, but in the end he decided to remain quiet.

Ratso hurried downstairs, got some water -- remembering to thank Isabelle even though it didn't make her feel any better -- and returned as fast as he could. He splashed some of it on the floor, but he didn't think it mattered at all.

"Here," he said and placed the water on a table next to Bai Tsa. The water demon was cutting the roots Ratso had bought. Remembering what she had told him to do he poured brown powder in the water and watched how it received a dirty colour.

"What can I do now?" he asked.

"Eager to help, eh?" Bai Tsa asked not raising her eyes from her work. "Fine, crush that into small bits and add it to the water. And stir it after a while, will you. It shouldn't stand for too long," she advised.

And Ratso started working. He had never before been involved in making magic or drugs like this and the work was surprisingly fun. Almost like cooking exotic dishes. At some point he noticed how Finn glared at them with an irritated expression on his face.

"You want to help?" he asked, but the Irishman shook his head.

"Nah, I wouldn't want to mess with the two of you, seeing how well you get along," he said. Ratso got the impression that Finn regarded him as a traitor of some sort. Probably because he had managed to form a truce with the demon so fast.

He's so childish sometimes, he thought.

Captain Black brushed sweat off his brow. His absence had really been noticed in Section 13 and he cursed himself for not turning up sooner. He had arrived there just in time to stop a national search.

While assuring all agents that there was nothing abnormal behind his disappearance -- after all, magical problems had become all too common in his life -- he had taken care of several other arrangements, like checked out the updated news from the monster in China.

This creature, which most likely was the Heing Meh or Nameless feared by Uncle and the demons, hadn't done anything new. In a way it was good, but it also made Black worried. He couldn't have just disappeared, so the demon was probably waiting for his moment somewhere. Perhaps he had a plan?

He was so in his thoughts that he almost collided with someone. At the last moment he managed to dodge a young Chinese man who gave him an expressionless stare as he passed.

Strange, as if I knew him, Black thought to himself. The man's eyes had made him feel uneasy and he found himself stealing glances around even after the mysterious man was long gone.

I must have seen him in Chinatown while visiting Jackie, he decided then and pushed the matter out of his mind.

Shin's thoughts had been interrupted when he had almost collided with a bald mortal in the street. He hadn't seen the man coming at all, and it had been fortunate that the mortal had had the sense to step aside.

It's somewhere in this city, he thought to himself and glanced around, as if that would have helped.

He didn't know the geography of this world and therefore wasn't aware that many would have found it weird to see him searching in San Francisco. "Go to China," they would have told him.

Not one thought like that bothered Shin as he went. At least not after he felt a warm wave of magic inside him and knew he was close. He started running not caring about the surprised and angry shouts he received in return.

The feeling inside him grew and even when his lungs burnt and feet ached he felt the taste of victory. Finally, after running and dodging people for almost half an hour he could stop, lean on his knees and grin at himself between gasps.

"The perfect place," he muttered as he watched the park in front of him. One of the most beautiful in San Francisco.

Soon it would flood with blood.

"Xu Lin, is something wrong?" Jade asked as she saw her friend's shocked face. Her eyes were red and it looked like she had cried. Jade couldn't understand what had happened.

"No, I'm fine. Here's your chocolate," Xu Lin replied a bit too quickly and forced a normal expression on her face. Unfortunately Jade wasn't fooled that easily. She didn't even glance at the candy bar, but kept her eyes tightly on her friend.

"Don't even try it. Something has happened. Do you want to tell me about it?" she asked. Xu Lin turned her eyes away for a moment and took a seat next to her friend.

"I met Shendu," she said shortly.

"Oh," Jade said and grimaced with compassion. "I bet he didn't have anything nice to say."

Xu Lin shook her head. "I told him about my dreams and he was furious. He wanted to know what they mean, but I didn't know what to tell him... He scares me, Jade. He's so cruel and horrible. And now he's out there."

"Don't worry. We've kicked his scaly ass before. As soon as possible Uncle will prepare a spell and we'll banish that lizard back where can't hurt anyone," Jade encouraged, but to her surprise Xu Lin didn't smile. "What?"

Her friend looked ashamed. "Even though Shendu is like that, I don't want to banish him anywhere," she admitted.

"What? You can't mean that!" Jade exclaimed in surprise. "Do you know what he'll do if we let him roam free? He'll hurt thousands!"

"I know and I hate it. But I don't want to banish anyone into an empty prison, no matter how horrible they are. It's better to die than be trapped forever," Xu Lin said quietly and suddenly Jade understood.

"The Lotus Temple..." she muttered. Xu Lin had experienced what it felt like to be imprisoned by magic, to be helpless and with no means of escape. On top of that she was much sweeter and more understanding than Jade. It was quite natural that she didn't want anyone to share her fate.

But... They were talking about Shendu!

"Do you think we should kill him?" she asked.

"I don't know. I don't like that either, but we can't let him be free and hurt anyone. Oh, I wish there was a way to make him calm so that he wouldn't be a problem anymore," Xu Lin sighed.

Jade chuckled. "And Tohru will learn to love fish in the process!"

Xu Lin didn't look like she was having fun and Jade grew serious again as well. She was sorry for that Xu Lin was sad, but she felt no sympathy for Shendu. Xu Lin hasn't seen what he is capable of doing, she reminded herself.

Well, she would learn sooner or later.

"But we don't really have an option. We do imprison criminals and most of them aren't even nearly as bad as Shendu," she pointed out.

"True. Maybe I'm being stupid for even thinking about it. It's just that my dream..."

Jade suddenly realised that she hadn't talked with Xu Lin about the dreams in a long time. She had no idea how much her friend had had them lately.

"What about your dream? Do you have any idea what they could mean?" she asked.

"Only that someone dies," Xu Lin replied.

"What?" Jade was surprised to hear how sharp her voice sounded. "And you didn't say anything?"

Xu Lin looked even guiltier. "I've told Jackie and Shendu, but nobody seems to care. And I can't believe that it means anything anymore, either. I doubt my dream will come true," she said. Jade had to admit that she wanted to agree.

Unfortunately she felt that sooner or later they would see exactly what her friend's dreams meant.

Then a smile spread on her face. "But guess what did turn out to be true?" she asked playfully. Xu Lin blinked in confusion.

"What?" she asked. Jade's grin only grew and she drew something from the sleeve of her nightgown. It was the Horse Talisman.

"Take a look at this!" she said happily and jumped on the floor. "I have never felt better!" Her friend's face brightened and thoughts of Shendu were washed away.

"Jackie got it!" she breathed. "Did it help you to remember?"

Jade shook her head. "I still can't be sure what happened. But it doesn't matter. Those memories are of no use to me and I'm sure I won't miss them," she admitted.

Night fell on the United States. It was a quiet night in San Francisco. Thick clouds patrolled the sky and not a single star could be seen. It didn't matter. Nobody would have been out looking at them anyway.

Origami was asleep. He hadn't returned to the apartment the Dark Hand had arranged him, but had chosen a small motel after emptying several pockets in the streets. Despite that after getting his hands on the magical paper he had become a master thief, he hadn't forgotten how to pick a pocket or do a small job.

The vase he had stolen from Uncle's shop stood on the nightstand. As soon as he was back in business Origami would find it a better place, but right now it couldn't have any special treatment.

The window to his room quaked faintly, but the Japanese thief didn't wake up. He only frowned not realising that something peculiar was happening in the night.

Someone slashed the lock open and the window opened soundlessly. The lock fell to the floor and this made Origami sat up straight in his bed. He turned his eyes to the window and tried to see something in the dark. He didn't notice anything strange, but faint breeze from the window told him it was open.

Did I imagine it? he asked himself. However, soon there was a loud crash when his new vase fell to the floor and was smashed into pieces.

"No! What did you do?" Origami shouted at his invisible tormentor and jumped to the floor. He knelt next to the remains of the vase even when he already knew that it would be impossible to repair it. A valuable piece of Eastern art was gone forever!

"Who are you?" he asked angrily as he stood up. "And what are you doing here?"

"I don't recall giving you the permission to go," a low, hissing voice said making shivers go down Origami's spine. It couldn't be...

He tried to back towards the door, but managed to take only a step before Shendu grabbed his collar and forced him to stop.

"You already got what you wanted! Let me go!" Origami snapped drawing surprising courage to defy the demon. He got the answer as Shendu threw him to the floor. Even in his human form he was stronger than the thief.

"I didn't get what I wanted!" the demon hissed. His eyes glowed red in the darkness and Origami considered whether he'd have the time to rush out and escape. Heck with everything, he'd leave this city behind him forever!

He wasn't interested in what Shendu was after. As far as he was concerned, the demon could never get it.

"I'm not doing anything for you again," he muttered angrily. His heart was killing him and he could almost hear blood rushing in his veins. But this time he wouldn't give up. He was almost free and if Shendu really needed him, the demon wouldn't dare to hurt him.

Shendu slit his eyes and Origami heard the demon inhale deeply.

"We shall see about that," he said and suddenly the room was lit by bright flames. Origami could only watch as Shendu took his real form and breathed fire everywhere. The bed, curtains, doorframe... Everything was on fire in mere seconds and he found himself without a way to escape.

The heat tickled his skin and reminded him of that his magic wouldn't help him now either. And in his pyjamas he wasn't exactly suitable to fight for his freedom in any way. The only thing he could do was to repeat what he had said earlier. He felt confident with the fact that nothing could happen to him. Shendu needed him...

And then the demon, much bigger than him, grabbed him again, lifted him from the floor and looked him into the eyes for a while. As he stared into the demon's eyes Origami saw promises of cruelty he had never dared to imagine. He suddenly regretted disobeying the demon at all.

"You sealed your fate, mortal," Shendu growled at him. "Once I have received what I want, I shall kill you in the most horrible way."

Suddenly, before Origami even realised the meaning of the words, Shendu grabbed his hand -- the one that had been marked with the binding spell -- and pushed it into the raging flames.

Origami screamed as the fire licked his skin and he tried to struggle free, but Shendu's hold was like iron. Tears of pain fell down his cheeks, the skin on his hand started to peel off and he could no longer feel his fingers in the middle of the cutting pain.

Then Shendu lifted him from the fire and let go. Origami fell into a wailing heap and closed his eyes so that he wouldn't have to look at his destroyed hand. The pain was worse than anything he had ever felt and he almost hoped someone would come and cut his hand off.

"Maybe you now understand who you need to obey, slave," Shendu hissed taking pleasure in the thief's agony.

Valmont had made up his mind and nothing would change that. He had wasted his time enough. It had been made clear that he wasn't needed anymore and nobody seemed to want to do anything to help him.

"So," he announced, "I'm leaving. I'll return to taking care of my business and my life."

"You're a fool. Are you so self-centred that you think you'll be safe in a situation like this?" Tso Lan asked sternly. Valmont only shrugged with a small smile.

"As safe as now. You said yourself you wouldn't do anything if Heing Meh, or the Nameless or whatever he is, came after me. I better face him in my own element," he explained. His voice was confident and he stood straight in front of the demon, but inside he was not that sure. There thought of facing the Nameless alone...

But he couldn't do anything else. There was no reason for him to stay with the demons anymore. He couldn't stand them, he had nothing to offer them and they didn't want or couldn't do anything for him.

He could see from Tso Lan's eyes that the moon demon understood, but didn't like the decision. Valmont didn't want to think why the demon wished him to stay. He didn't have time for pondering the demon's thoughts.

"And so I'm off. Ta-ta," he announced and started his proud stroll towards the gate that led to the Chan shop. He could imagine how furious the old man had to be at that his shop had turned into a public traffic route. The thought amused him.

Nobody tried to stop him and it didn't take him even a minute to step out of the portal, enter the shop and then the street.

It was night. Despite everything that had happened, he wasn't tired or stressed. In fact, he was surprisingly good.

Valmont drew a deep breath as he stood alone in the street. The air was cool and he felt free. Now demons can't tell me what to do, he thought in satisfaction.

He started towards the Dark Hand HQ. There mere thought of what must have happened there -- he wondered what his secretary had done -- angered him, and so he tried to avoid thinking about it. The night was too perfect to be ruined.

The next morning he'd be back in his business and earn all the money he had lost during this adventure.

And he'd keep his eyes open for the Nameless.

Valmont wondered what his men had done. He would have never thought them to be courageous and spontaneous enough to escape the demons like that. I have to admit, those fools can do something when they want to, he thought.

Having told Bai Tsa about Isabelle's pub didn't bother him the least. What else could he have done? Surely nobody expected him to think about his Enforcers when he was in danger himself, right?

Tso Lan crossed his arms in irritation. He hadn't expected Valmont to be stupid enough to just walk out. Didn't the man realise the possible danger he was in?

He shook his head. He wasn't interested in Valmont's life, but he was afraid of him revealing something to their enemy before dying. Like how to enter Dai Gui's palace, for example.

"He's a fool," he said to Uncle whose company he had sought. Despite the late hour the old man wasn't asleep. For a mortal he was surprisingly strong.

"I think he was right," Uncle replied, surprising Tso Lan.

"What do you mean? You don't think he can defeat Heing Meh, do you?" the demon asked.

"No, but that's not the question. He knows it's no use staying here and so he leaves to be useful elsewhere. Just like we are doing," the old man said.

Tso Lan blinked. Had everyone gone insane? "You are leaving as well?" he asked keeping his voice calm. Uncle nodded.

"We did what we were supposed to. The portal to Sha Fuju was opened and we received an answer -- even if we don't know it yet. Once we have got that we'll return home and reconsider the situation," he said.

"You may still need us after that," Tso Lan said.

"True, and Uncle won't cut off the co-operation. We only don't see it necessary to remain here. It wasn't so important in the beginning, either. I need a familiar place to work at and Jade must get back home," Uncle said.

Tso Lan felt how he was growing angry, but he kept his feelings at bay. The old mortal was making more sense than he wanted to admit.

"Do as you wish," he said then. Perhaps it would be good for his family to be on their own for a while. Dai Gui had already complained about the mortals ruining the atmosphere. He only hoped they wouldn't have to regret the separation later.

"The mortals are leaving," he said to Po Kong a few minutes later. She stared at him with a surprised expression on her face.

"All of them?" the mountain demon asked. Tso Lan couldn't say if his sister had a special reason to ask the question, or if she was just curious.

"I suspect so. I don't know about the two who arrived with us from Shin's palace, but I don't think they'd find it reasonable to remain with us. Valmont, his men and one of the Guardians are already gone. Soon only our family will be left," he said.

"Why, that's good," Po Kong said.

"Is it?"

"What do you mean?"

"We know more of ancient times and spells, but the mortals still have more information on this world. They have grown in it, while we have only seen the surface during these five years. We may make a mistake that we could have avoided had we been with them," Tso Lan said.

"You're growing soft," Po Kong stated. It made the moon demon frown.

"Hardly. I'm only sensible. Unlike others," he said.

"And what was that supposed to mean?" Po Kong asked with a hint of irritation in her voice.

"You know what I'm talking about. You haven't noticed it that I've kept an eye on you. And him."

"You imagine too much, brother. You obviously don't have enough in your mind if you find time to imagine that much," the mountain demon stated. Her eyes were glowing in a way that Tso Lan recognised better than well. He was playing with a subject his sister didn't want to talk about.

It only increased his suspicions.

Master, I have found what you were hoping for, Shin said to the Nameless in his mind. He lay under an oak in the park and enjoyed the night around him. A breeze shuffled the leaves in the tree the noise of the city were almost soundless. How peaceful.

Excellent, the Nameless' reply came. How is it for our plans?

Fine, Master. It's not in the centre and big enough to offer all the room we need, Shin replied. Though we'll have to destroy everything before getting started.

It almost felt like the tree he was leaning against had sighed.

Are you sure it's the right place? the Nameless made sure.

Completely. If the square of Ze Zeng can be summoned somewhere, this is the place.

"Well,is it working?" Finn asked after it had been half an hour since Bai Tsa had forced Chow to swallow the magical drug she and Ratso had prepared. The water demon hadn't been very gentle and the unconscious man had almost choked before Finn had stopped her.

"It won't do anything immediately! Patience!" Bai Tsa snapped.

"Then when?"

The water demon suppressed her desire to give the Irishman a slap. During the entire time he hadn't done anything but stared at her, snapped at her and demanded her to work faster. Finally even his friend had got enough of the Irishman's behaviour and had gone to grab a bite downstairs.

"When it's time. It shouldn't take too long anymore," she said. Finn didn't say anything to that, but didn't look very pleased. It didn't surprise Bai Tsa, but she still didn't understand -- nor did she want to -- the man's behaviour.

"I want him to heal as much as you do," she said then. Finn only glared at her with an angry expression in his green eyes.

"How can you even say that? You want him to survive so that your damned family can fight with one of your own and continue plaguing our world. I don't care what happens to you. I only want Chow to live!" he snapped.

"Do you have to argue with me all the time?"

"Shut up for a while then or say something that doesn't insult me."

"You have no right to say that to me, or -- " Bai Tsa started sharply, but Finn interrupted her before she had the time to finish her sentence.

"Don't say it! I'm sick of hearing how you try to push me around and treat me like a slave. I'm not! Either you start treating me as an equal or go annoy someone else!" the Irishman said.

The water demon blinked. "That's what you'd like?" she asked.

Finn looked like he was surprised to hear the question. When he replied almost all hatred had disappeared from his voice. "At least it would be an improvement."

"You need to earn my respect before I can treat you as anything but a slave," Bai Tsa pointed out.

"And how does one do that?" Finn asked sounding like he didn't really care. The demon grinned at her. She would have fun explaining.

"There are many ways. The more imagination you use, the better," she said. "Let me tell you what one of my slaves once did to earn his freedom," she added and leaned closer to whisper something in the man's ear. She had hardly started when he turned to look at her with an expression of disgust and surprise.

He moved his chair farther away. "Did he really do that?" he asked. "No, wait, I don't wanna know."

Bai Tsa was sure that her smile told enough. "He was quite flexible for a human, I have to admit. Do you think you could do it?"

"I'm not in a hurry to find out," Finn replied.

"Really? And I thought you'd like to try new things," Bai Tsa said, clearly liking the man's discomfort. Even after meeting each other she had known that Finn wasn't an innocent man, and that's why it was so much fun to make him look like he was sitting in a nest full of ants.

"Well, I don't -- " Finn started, but luck was on his side. At that moment Chow moved and they both turned their attention to him.

"I think he's waking up," the demon said in enthusiasm. Chow's eye lids moved and he mumbled something. Then his eyes snapped open and he sat up so fast that both Finn and Bai Tsa flinched.

"Heing Meh can never be destroyed!" Chow exclaimed staring at the wall. Then he fell back to the bed and closed his eyes again. "He can never be destroyed..." he muttered, this time in a much more quiet tone.

"What do you mean he can't be destroyed? Tell me!" Bai Tsa snapped, but Finn pushed her roughly away. Anger flared inside her, but she let it be. Perhaps it would be better if Chow was surrounded by familiar faces. He'd probably regain his senses faster.

"Chow? Are you okay?" Finn asked. He didn't give a damn about Sha Fuju or the information, he only wanted to see how his friend was.

Chow turned to look at him. The Chinese looked tired. "When his blood colours the square of Ze Zeng, some of the damage can be repaired," he said. Then he sighed, as if he had wanted to get that off his chest for ages.

Bai Tsa didn't need to know more. The only thing she could care about was telling Tso Lan about the new, shocking turn of events.

She was out of the room before Finn realised she had even moved.

To be continued...