Playing With Fire
It was late at night in San Francisco, though it was never truly still, a general hush had fallen over the city, allowing all those to remain in bliss in their dreams. This was also the time when the fabled witching hour could begin.
The office was deserted, the lights turned off, the only illumination being from the moonlight that filtered in through the windows. It was rather eerie, but for one such as Shendu, he had nothing to fear; in fact, he rather welcomed the night and all its horrors, for he was once master of it all. He and his kind had all the monsters that plagued the nightmares of man bow to them, their masters, so Shendu remembered rather wistfully the banshees that screamed in the night, or the flesh eating monsters that came with the moon. He remembered a simpler world, a more primitive one, one that had bowed before the might of Demon-Sorcerers and served them as was their place. Shendu and his own siblings had ruled most of the world at one point in history, but even that was now forgotten, just like this night would be for those who were not even awake to remember it.
With no Valmont and no imbecilic Dark Hand thugs to try his patience, the Demon-Sorcerer found that this was the only time with which he could actually relax and feel his anger dissipate to the night winds. It was also the only time he could do as he pleased with no prying eyes watching him and questioning him. Despite his failure when possessing Chan's niece and then being banished, Shendu was not constrained to his statue prison, he could activate the Sheep Talisman at any time and he could wander the earth as a spirit, spying on whatever he pleased, but he could not enter the Antique Shop where Chan was, he was blocked by a Chi Spell that prevented him from going anywhere near Chan, his family or the shop. Shendu was rather shocked and yet greatly angered by the fact that the Old Man simply called "Uncle" had turned out to be a rather competent Chi Wizard. Wasn't that just a hitch in Shendu's plans.
But there was one who hadn't been protected.
Perhaps they thought that he had no interest in her, or that she didn't know anything important to risk, but Shendu had discovered that the girl, Valerie, was open to him. And it was times like now, in the dead of night, when he could watch her.
Activating the Sheep Talisman, Shendu rose from his statue body, his spirit soaring through the air as he passed through walls and into the night above San Francisco. He knew where he was going, he had had his Shadowkhan silently track and follow Valerie from when she had left the shop to her apartment not too far away from her work. Once they had discovered the location, they came back to report to him. So now Shendu slithered through the sky until he came to the moderate apartment building, nothing fancy nor was it decrepit. He slunk to the north corner of the building, on the sixth floor; there he passed through the wall and entered into Valerie's home.
It wasn't squalor by any means, but it wasn't… it was merely average; that was the only way to describe it: a very small, one bedroom apartment, with an open kitchen and living room and a bathroom. The bare essentials. A double sofa and old Television with a small, cheap glass coffee table made up the living room, with only a few photographs hanging on the wall. The most numerous, was of a man in his late thirties to early forties, with brown hair and large round glasses, he was smiling a huge goofy grin in most of the photos, and they were all mainly of him doing something: cooking, posing in front of the White House, leaning to smile out of his car window, or working at a desk. Shendu found it rather odd to have so many pictures dedicated to one man, and he found it rather confusing and annoying for Valerie to have this. But then, he saw one photograph in a frame stood up on top of the TV, the same man was in the picture, but two others were with him: a woman with golden hair but ever so slightly Asian features in her high cheekbones and rounded chin, and between them, was a young girl, perhaps five years old, with long scraggily blonde hair sparkling water blue eyes.
It was her father, Shendu realised, remembering that Valmont had told him that Valerie's father had died last year, which would explain why she had so many pictures of him. But casting that from his mind, Shendu dismissed his findings for they meant nothing to him, and he ventured towards the bedroom, the door ajar and light spilling through into the dark hallway, quite surprising given the late hour.
Yet when he entered, Shendu found Valerie sitting up in her bed, dressed in white pyjamas, her hair damp and in tangled heaps to just past her shoulders, the thick blanket was across her legs; she sat with her knees up, a cup of cold tea in one hand, the other was resting on the book in her lap and keeping it in place as she read. Her eyes darted from line to line, an animation in their depths as she drank in every word and pictured it in her mind. Curious and knowing that she couldn't see him, Shendu floated above her and peered at the book in her lap to read the title at the top of the page: "The Hunchback of Notre Dame". Shendu remembered that one, his owner at the time when the book had been published had gone on a rant about it, telling everyone he invited about his opinions on the book. Shendu had remained silent throughout, for he had not revealed himself to those who could not help him in the slightest. And yet, Valerie seemed to be enjoying the book much more than Shendu's previous owner had, which was interesting yet again. Shendu leaned over her once again in order to read a single passage.
'I wanted to see you again, touch you, know who you were, see if I would find you identical with the ideal image of you which had remained with me and perhaps shatter my dream with the aid of reality.'
Shendu found himself chuckling at how similar his own situation was.
And then, Valerie yawned, stretching as she looked down at her cup of tea, frowning when she saw that half the cup had gone cold. She then looked at the clock, saw that it was approaching two in the morning, and groaned to herself as she gently closed the book and placed it on the nightstand beside her bed, before turning off the lamp and settling down for sleep.
Shendu waited until he heard her deep and calm breathing that signalled she was asleep, before he slithered towards her and allowed himself to melt into her as he was sucked into her sub-consciousness and entered her dreams.
He was met with a large stone chamber, the ceiling far above, the walls carved with intricate designs and columns; the room was lined with pews and on the far wall was a large round stain glass window with so many colours that as the light shone through, it cast the only occupant into a rainbow. Valerie sat on the front pew, her face upturned into the light as she stared up.
Shendu meant to observe her, he wanted to know more about her, wanted to find the answers to his questions, if he was to have his vengeance then he needed to know how best to destroy his prey. He knew that the sooner he dealt with this problem, the sooner he could forget it and get back to his real focus: finding his Talismans and getting his body back… and having his retribution. But somehow, this one woman managed to draw him closer, the curiosity overwhelmed him as he found himself coming closer and closer to her, wanting to have that connection he had had with her before, feel that strength.
He moved closer, but Valerie heard his approach and turned her head in time to look back towards him, but he slunk into the shadows, wanting not to be seen just yet.
"Who's there?" she asked.
Shendu remained silent.
"I know you're there, please come out," she called. She was in a dream, she thought this was a dream, nothing was real… but Shendu could play along with that.
"You do not want that," he hissed from the shadows, and saw her falter for a second, though she frowned at the shadows, trying to find her way in.
"Why wouldn't I? You're my dream, so you're only as bad as what I imagine you to be," she said. Shendu found the logic rather reasonable, but could not find it appropriate for this situation.
"It should be obvious of the danger posed to you, girl," he growled, a part of himself excited when he saw the lick of fear cross her features which was quickly batted away by determination. Oh, she would be fun to play with, Shendu thought.
"The obscure we see eventually. The completely obvious, it seems, takes longer. - Edward R. Murrow," she said, though he could detect the nerves in her voice.
Shendu had to laugh, a cold sound that echoed in the large space around them. Now she was quoting, no doubt from something she had read somewhere, and what's more the statement was rather true.
"What if I was a monster of your worst nightmare come to kill you?" Shendu asked her, purposefully adding a rasping hiss to his voice to put her further on edge.
"I…I would wake up," she said a slight tremor in her voice betraying how uneasy she felt, but he saw the dancing flames of defiance in her eyes that almost captivated him so.
"Do you not fear death?"
"Not from a dream. Why? Do you?" she asked. "Do you have a good reason?"
Shendu thought about that morbidly. Without the Dog Talisman, it was possible that he could die should his statue form be broken, in which case he would be free of confinement, which was a blessing. But, his spirit would go to no heaven, he was a Demon Sorcerer after all, he would be sent to the Nether World, a realm beyond mortal reach, a dimension where creatures of demonic birth were imprisoned for all eternity; and there were one to seven reasons why he did not want to go there. But did that mean he feared death?
This human was surprising him more and more; she challenged him and yet made him think. He could not say that for even some immortals he had known in his long existence.
"Not in a dream," he said to her instead. He then began to retreat, knowing that his time was short, but Valerie seemed to sense that he was leaving, and reached out a hand towards him.
"Where are you going?" she asked. Shendu realised that she still hadn't discovered that he was the same creature to possess her friend a few days ago, if so, he wasn't going to enlighten her, for that meant he could come back and test her some more.
"To rule a world that has been without me long enough," he smirked to himself as he chuckled darkly.
"You are a prince? Or a King?" she asked.
"I was once an emperor," he told her proudly.
"Then I look forward to seeing the new court Your Excellency," she chuckled as she gave a deep and mocking bow before turning away from him, the image of the cathedral melting into that a vast field of wildflowers.
Shendu watched her for a moment, his red eyes glowing as he thought of the possibilities ahead of him, his mind already planning to return the next night in order to see her again. It was too good an opportunity to waste, and should she learn anything about Section 13 or the other Talisman's, Shendu would know also.
"What's going on?" Valerie asked the next day as she came up to Uncle who was standing outside the Shop with Captain Black by his side. "Is Jackie alright?" she asked anxiously, Jackie had left the day after Jade's possession to find the next Talisman on some tropical island out in the middle of the ocean.
"Jackie's fine," Captain Black assured her with a crooked smile. "Climbing a volcano last we heard last night,"
"That not important!" Uncle snapped as he raised a finger in the air, giving Valerie a stern look before pointing at the shop. "Landlord has evicted me to spray for bugs!"
"Oh, so where are you gonna stay?" Valerie asked.
"With Jade and Jackie," Uncle explained.
"At Section 13?" Valerie's eyes went wide.
"Speaking of which," Captain Black said. "It's time to go, Valerie, you coming?"
"I'm what?!" she gasped.
"Yes she is," Uncle interrupted. "Uncle needs his assistant to carry books," he indicated to the large bags of books that he had managed to get out of the store, Valerie saw all the heavy tomes and held back a groan. They piled into the big van as Captain Black drove them to Section 13, picking up Jade from school on the way as she had to come home early because she'd gotten in trouble for fighting. Captain Black asked if Uncle and Valerie could wear blindfolds to ensure the secret location remained hidden. Uncle point blank refused, and wouldn't let anyone come near him to force it on, Valerie on the other hand, did so without complaint. She would much rather be in the dark for a few moments then one day be potentially charged with treason.
When the blindfold was removed not twenty minutes later, Valerie was helped out of the van with Uncle and gasped when she saw that she was in a large underground bunker, with dozens of agents busying themselves at desks or offices or anything else in between. She suddenly felt like she was in the middle of a Men In Black movie.
"I know, it's cool! Isn't it cool?!" Valerie turned to see Jade beaming up at her with a too wide smile, speaking in such a rush that it was almost hard to understand her. "Hey Val, you love me don't you? You don't want to see me die, right?"
"Jade…" Valerie said slowly, raising an eyebrow up at her expectantly.
"Well, just please don't tell Jackie that I got in trouble at school today, he really doesn't like it."
"I'm not going to lie to Jackie," Valerie told her sternly, but at the crestfallen look on Jade's face, Valerie rolled her eyes before adding in a softer tone: "But I won't tell on you either."
"YES!" Jade exclaimed happily as she leapt on Valerie, making the woman yelp as she stumbled under the force. "Thank you thank you thank you!"
"Valmont," Shendu hissed in that unsettling raspy voice. "Where is the Dragon Talisman?" the demon demanded.
Valmont swallowed, trying to keep his calm façade in place, even when the talking statue drove him crazy with its constant insults, demands and oh-so-superior attitude, when in all truth it was lucky that Valmont hadn't had the thing crushed out of spite. The only reason Valmont put up with the thing was because he was promised a lot of money once this job was over – even if it was costing him a small fortune in doing the job in the first place.
Plus, the dragon statue secretly frightened him.
"My men are on it, Shendu," Valmont replied testily.
"Your men couldn't find their own shadows," the statue's eyes glowed with its mounting anger. "And you incompetence continues to stupefy me!"
"Oh?" Valmont muttered, his own anger flaring at the insult, from a statue was only pouring salt on the wound. Was it not Shendu who had failed at retrieving the other Talismans a few days ago? But whenever his men failed, Valmont was the one who got the blame for it, and so the mounting frustration of both himself and Shendu came to a boiling point. "I'll stupefy you!" he cried, raising his cane as if he were going to smash the –
Suddenly, a hand appeared out of nowhere and snatched at the cane, and Valmont suddenly found himself surrounded by Shadowkhan warriors.
"Temper Valmont…" Shendu murmured, and Valmont could practically hear the smile in the snake's voice. It was all Valmont could do not to growl like an animal in his anger as he quickly excused himself from his own office.
Later, he was pacing in one of the lower offices of the building, his anger had not simmered even a fraction as he quietly cursed to himself.
"The arrogance of that oversized lawn ornament!" he snarled, turning to go back the other way across the room, when he noticed his three enforcers walk in. He was just waiting for them to tell him they had failed, he wanted a good outlet for all of his anger right now.
"Valmont!" Finn cheered happily, holding up a hand. "Check it out!" and in his fingers, Valmont was actually stunned to see the shape of the Dragon Talisman.
"You actually did your job?!" Valmont asked in amazement as he walked up to take the talisman from his employee. "Imagine!"
"You're not stoked?" Finn asked a little uneasily as he and the others saw the fury in their boss's eyes.
"I'm absolutely giddy!" Valmont sneered as he furiously threw the talisman across the room, where it hit the wall and bounced to the floor.
Suddenly, the Talisman lit up and a burst of fire shot from it. Everyoe shrieked in alarm as they all dove for the floor to avoid the flames. Valmont covered his head, heard the crash as the fire smacked into the ceiling. It wasn't until he heard the rubble clear that he opened his eyes and looked up. The fire had blasted a whole through the ceiling as wide as three men, going through solid brick, cement, steel structure and all.
Carefully walking over to the fallen Talisman, Valmont picked it up with a crooked smile, imagining the possibilities if –
Suddenly, he felt a searing pain when the talisman flashed in a blinding light. He cried out as he felt heat in his palm as his flesh moulded around the talisman. But just as quickly as it appeared, the pain was going, and Valmont gazed down with dark glee to see his hand held the talisman perfectly. He turned back to his enforcers, who were watching him uneasily.
"Puff the magic dragon," Valmont chuckled to himself as he showed them his new weapon.
"And that's when Valmont's men escaped with the Talisman," Valerie heard Jackie say as she and Jade walked down an adjoining corridor at Section 13. Jade instantly tensed, but Valerie tried to give her a reassuring smile, though she couldn't help but think of all the times she'd thought she was in trouble at home for not doing homework or talking back with other kids… Valerie felt her heart drop at the memories.
"You didn't follow them?" they heard Captain Black ask. "They could have lead us to Valmont himself,"
"I was a little pre-occupied!" Jackie retorted.
"You gotta face him sooner or later," Valerie told Jade quietly.
"Yeah, I know, but… do I have to?" she pleaded.
"Yes, now come on," Valerie quickly led them out into the main part of the base as they spotted Jackie near the entrance tunnel with Captain Black, and Jackie looked a little worse for wear what with his clothes singed and burned in places.
"Captain Black, the Dark Hand now has the Dragon Talisman," Jackie was warning Captain Black as Valerie and Jade approached. "If they discover the magic it possess…" Jackie trailed off when Black gave him a stern look. "Err, I said the "M" word, didn't I?"
"Now would be a –" Valerie went to say to Jade, but realised that the girl was gone.
"JACKIE!" Valerie turned to see Jade suddenly throw herself at her uncle, beaming brightly – a little too brightly.
"I missed you sooooooooo much! You look like you had a rough day, can I get you a cup of tea, maybe some cookies?" she said it all in a big rush, once again pointing to her obvious guilt. She jumped down from Jackie, and looked down for a moment. "New shoes?" Valerie looked down at Jackie's feet, and was very surprised to see that the soles of his shoes were melted off!
"Jade, what did you do?" Jackie asked as he crossed his arms over his chest.
"Jade is in trouble at school!" everyone turned in time to see Uncle come into the conversation; Valerie shook her head at him.
"Thank you, master of subtlety," she remarked. "Jade was going to tell him… eventually."
"Not my fault if she wasn't quick enough!" Uncle snarled back, before turning to Jade and murmuring to her: "Cup of tea sounds good, thank you. One MORE thing!" he added loudly as he turned to Captain Black. "Your place is too big! I had to walk very far to find a bathroom!"
"Uncle, what are you doing here?" Jackie asked.
"Landlord made me leave the shop for three days," Uncle said, turning to Jackie. "Said it must be sprayed for bugs. THIS is how I spray for bugs… YA!" he shouted as he stamped his foot on the ground.
"Yes sir-ee, it's a real family affair here at Section 13," Captain Black muttered to himself in an exasperated tone.
"Just ignore him, I do," Valerie whispered with a half-smile. Black snorted in amusement.
"Jade," Jackie focused his attention back on his niece as he kneeled down to her level. "What kind of trouble at school?"
"Miss Hardman just wants you to come to a parent-teacher conference," Jade shrugged, trying to pass off her situation. "No big-ee."
"Oh! Does that mean we get to go home?" Valerie asked excitedly. "N-not that I don't like it here," she added quickly when Black turned to look at her. "But, err, super-secret underground Government bases which I could possibly get charged treason for if I ever breathed a word about… they make me nervous," she finished in a rush. Captain Black chuckled, a warm and hearty sound.
"Sir," someone said, and they all turned in time to see an agent address Captain Black. "The US mints' under siege!"
"Patch me into their surveillance," Black ordered as he marched away, completely calm and serious all of a sudden. Jackie followed him.
"So this place doesn't exist just to catch the Talisman's?" Valerie asked Jade.
"No, its main goal is to stop bad-guys, mainly the Dark Hand," the girl explained.
"What about tea?!" Uncle exclaimed to Jackie's retreating back.
"Come on," Valerie sighed as she pushed Uncle in the direction of the staff kitchen. "I'll make you the tea."
"Good," Uncle snapped. "Because it is your job to assist Uncle, and you're not doing very well outside of the shop!"
Valerie tried to take a deep breath and not grit her teeth at the comment.
"Mmmm," Valmont sighed in bliss as he smelt the wad of cash in his hand. "Hot off the press," he couldn't deny the fact that this was so much more gratifying then the work he had previously been doing. He and his men had taken the opportunity to test the Dragon Talisman, mainly by blasting apart the US Mint in order to take the riches within.
"What?" he heard Ratso say to Chow somewhere behind him as the grey-skinned brute stuffed coins and change into his pockets. "It's laundry money,"
Valmont turned his heard to look at Finn when they heard a small alarm on the device he held. Finn looked up at his boss with a grim yet amused expression.
"We got company," he murmured.
"Take the cash and make a head start," Valmont ordered his group of lackeys as they all hurriedly grabbed whatever money they could and began to make their way towards their trucks. "I'll handle this,"
Valmont waited just behind the truck, allowing all of his anger flow through him, all the insults from Shendu, the frustration at failed jobs and now this plot interrupted by meddling Section 13. He had had enough, and the Talisman fed off of his emotions, causing him to glow as the power of fire flowed through his body. And who should happen to come around the corner, but Captain Black, scouting ahead of his men, gun at the ready. Valmont grinned when the bald man noticed him and held his gun up to aim at Valmont's head.
"Valmont," Black muttered as if the word were a bitter taste on his tongue.
Valmont felt a vein in his head throb as his anger surged once again. He saw Black's eyes widen as Valmont summoned the power of the Talisman, his energy draining from him painfully as he fed it, roaring as he shot his hand out towards Black, the talisman lighting up and shooting out an explosion straight for the agent's chest, even as Black pulled the trigger on his gun.
An explosion of light surrounded them, brick and debris fell from the ceiling and smoke filled the air, and at the end of it, Valmont was still standing, smoke rising from the palm of his hand as the sting of the heat slowly faded. The British gentlemen smirked as he looked down at his feet at the crumpled body half buried in the rubble and unmoving.
"The Dark Hand waves 'bye-bye' Captain Black," he chuckled.
"So you guys are not going with Captain Black?" Valerie asked an hour later, taking off her blindfold as they were driving away from Section 13.
"I know!" Jade moaned. "Jackie totally needs to go and whop Dark Hand butt!"
"No I don't," Jackie retorted from the driver's seat. "Valmont and his thugs are robbing a bank and Captain Black and his men have gone to deal with them; I am an archaeologist, not a secret agent. And neither are you, Jade," he added pointedly.
"Will they be alright?" Valerie asked.
"I'm sure they'll be fine…" Jackie said, though the way he trailed off made it very clear of the uneasiness in his voice. They then pulled up outside of Jade's school, and climbed out of the car. "Sorry Valerie," Jackie said to her with an apologetic look. "I promise I'll take you home as soon as I'm done here,"
"No problem," Valerie murmured. "I'll wait here… good luck Jade!" she winked at the kid, who only groaned before they disappeared into the school.
Valerie only had to wait forty minutes, in which time she read more of Hunchback, before the Chan family emerged once again.
"A whole week's detention?!" Jade screamed as she slammed the door open.
"Didn't go to well, huh?" Valerie winced.
"No!" Jade scowled. "Miss Hardman didn't even care for the fact that Munson is a bully and then Uncle just had to rub it in by saying everything wrong, and THEN Miss Hardman doesn't think I'm disciplined. So now I have A WEEK OF DETENTION! What a rip!" she crossed her arms with a huff as she glared daggers at the floor.
"Jade," Jackie sighed. "Maybe now you will remember that the greatest victory is the battle not fought,"
"Unless it is fought against bugs," Uncle growled as he stamped on a passing ant.
"Err, yes," Jackie shook his head before hurriedly turning back to his niece. "And in your case, that means watching your temper," he scolded.
"But Munson called me shrimp!" she whined.
"The best way to deal with a bully is not to give them the satisfaction," Valerie said, a dark frown on her face as she remembered the times she was picked on in school, how people still avoided her as the 'weird one' now. Every time, just because she liked books.
"You were bullied, Val?" Jade's eyebrows rose.
"Bookworms are easy targets," the woman muttered.
"Valerie has a point," Jackie said. "You need to keep calm and not rise to the bait of others," Jackie opened his mouth as if he were about to say more, when all of a sudden his phone rang. "Jackie," he said as he answered, but suddenly gasped, eyes going wide as his face went as pale as a sheet. "No!"
"What?" Valerie asked, her body tensing. "What is it?"
"Okay," Jackie said, not answering her as he hurriedly spoke into the phone. "I'll be there as soon as possible!" he hung up and jogged back to the car. "Captain Black has been hurt, he's in the hospital!"
"What?!" both Jade and Valerie said simultaneously.
"I don't know the details but he hasn't woken up, I'm going to the hospital now,"
"We're coming too!" Valerie said as she pulled herself into the front passenger seat.
Jackie was too worried to argue.
They walked through the hospital corridors, the burning scent of bleach and disinfectant making Valerie's nose itch as she hugged her arms, trying to take up as little space as possible as she followed Jackie and Agent Simmons towards Black's room. Valerie felt her skin crawl as she looked around at the hospital, the too white walls and floors, the doctors with morbid expressions, the constant beeps of machines measuring the lives of others… it made her shiver in revulsion. So she tried concentrating on the conversation in front of her. Simmons was explaining how they had cornered Valmont but he had used some weapon to cause a small explosion and the other agents had had to dig out their Captain… who had not been in very good shape.
"The doctor says he's lucky to be alive…" Simmons said gravely as they entered Black's private room. Valerie felt her stomach turn as she saw the great and strong man she had come to know lying broken and beaten on the hospital bed, bandages on his head, tubes sticking into his arms, an oxygen mask on his face, his eyes bruised and swollen, slight angry red burns on his chest. It made Valerie feel sick, it was all too familiar to bear. "Valmont used some advanced explosive device," Simmons was saying. "Powerful stuff,"
"The Dragon Talisman," Jackie gritted his teeth, his eyes blazing furiously, and Valerie was a little unsettled by this sudden anger.
Jackie and Simmons spoke more, but Valerie was no longer paying attention. She walked up to Black's bedside and sat in the chair beside him, awkwardly trying to move his arms into a more comfortable position than the one he had been put into. She wanted to help, she felt absolutely powerless just sitting there watching him, she wanted so badly to help, but didn't know if it was the right thing to do seeing as she barely knew the Captain. The conversation was interrupted however, when a nurse rolled in a trolley with a very large and extravagant vase filled with flowers. Everyone looked to the nurse in confusion.
"Who sent these?" Simmons asked to no one in particular as he walked to the flowers and started looking for a card. He soon found one, the agent's face contorting with his own anger as he glared at it. "Valmont."
Valerie could actually see the volcanic fury mounting in Jackie as his eyes narrowed and he bared his teeth before roaring in fury and swinging his fist at the vase.
"Jackie!" Valerie shouted.
Jackie stopped, halting his fist a centimetre before it could touch the vase, his fist shaking with the energy still boiling within him, Jackie himself looking shocked at what he had done.
"Simmer down Jackie," Simmons said soothingly.
"I'm sorry," Jackie whispered to the room as he tried to breathe deeply. "I just… saw red."
There was a faint cracking sound, before the vase on the table fell apart.
"Hey," Valerie murmured as she walked up to him, placing a comforting hand on his shoulder. "I know this is hard," she said, feeling very awkward at that moment, but felt as if she had to push ahead, knowing that Jackie needed someone to help him. "But you need to keep it together, for Black." She then took a deep breath, familiar words coming back to haunt her and making a part of her choke with her own grief. "You go ahead and catch that rat," she told him with a fierce look. "I'll stay here with Black, I'll call you if there are any changes, okay?"
"Okay," Jackie whispered, and then suddenly wrapped his arms around her, pulling her close as he hugged her tightly. Valerie froze, completely taken aback and not sure how to proceed, before awkwardly returning the gesture, patting his back in what she hoped was not a patronising way. "Thank you," he murmured, and she could hear the weakness, how he needed someone's help. This was his friend, someone he cared about, and he had no idea on how to handle the situation.
"No problem," she whispered back.
Valmont stood by the truck whilst his men unloaded the vans filled with cash into the current establishment, an abandoned warehouse in the middle of nowhere, one of several that Valmont owned for instances such as this. He was studying his hand, the Dragon Talisman still embedded in his flesh as he rubbed the rough stone texture with a delicate finger.
"Valmont, you're da BOMB!" Finn cheered happily as he passed by with the other enforcers, their arms heaped with boxes of cash that they all couldn't wait to spend. "Pun totally intended," he grinned.
"Hey," Ratso said gruffly. "Ain't old dragon-breath gonna start wondering where his rock is?" he pointed out.
"Pity," Valmont murmured. "It's doing wonders for our cash flow," And it was; but no matter how much Valmont wanted to keep the pebble, he knew he had to return it to Shendu, for he had a contract and if he ever wanted to see the Lost Treasure he had been promised, the dragon statue needed every single Talisman. Which unfortunately meant giving him this one, at least it would shut the stone lizard up for a little while at least.
"One more heist, Big V?" Finn asked excitedly. Valmont thought about it for a moment: give Shendu the talisman now and save the hassle of his snarky comments, or milk the situation for all it was worth and be a little richer for the trouble as well.
"One for the history books," Valmont agreed.
Valerie sat in the hospital chair, reading aloud to Captain Black as she read through her current chapter of Hunchback, completely unaware of the spirit that was watching her. Shendu hovered around her head, interested as to why she would be here and not at home. It was late evening, the sun had just set, but Valerie was in a hospital sitting beside a man that Shendu recognised as Captain Black. The way she held herself suggested that she was not comfortable, perhaps even on the verge of breaking down due to the atmosphere, a fact Shendu would remember for later. It was all very strange, Shendu wondered at what had happened to the human man, and why should the woman be here watching over him? Were they close? Shendu felt a spark of anger at the thought, but he pushed such thoughts aside. He was here to study his prey, nothing more.
"The Egyptian lifted her eyes to his face to thank him," read Valerie. "But could not utter a word. The poor fellow was absolutely hideous. She drooped her head with a thrill of horror. Then he said to her: 'I frighten you. I am very ugly, am I not? Do not look at me, only listen to me. In the daytime, you will stay here; at night you can walk about all over the church. But stir not a step out of it, either by night or by day. You would be lost. They would kill you, and I should die.' Moved by his words, she raised her head to reply, but he was gone. Alone once more, she pondered on the singular words of this almost monstrous being, and struck by the tone of his voice, so hoarse and yet so gentle."
Valerie then stopped, sighing as she put the book away, rubbing her tired eyes as she looked at the sleeping human man helplessly. Shendu snaked his way around her shoulders, as is he could touch her, prevent her from reaching out to grasp the Captain's limp fingers.
"You need to wake up," she whispered. "Jackie needs you; he doesn't know what to do without you. He needs his friend back,"
Shendu watched with growing irritation as Valerie sighed and hung her head in her hands. Why was she so concerned? And why did it bother him that she was? He should not care what she did, he only wanted her for his vengeance, despite the addictive power that she gave him when they touched. So why did it matter? There was suddenly the sound of a small beeping, and Valerie reached into her pocket to retrieve her phone.
"Hey," she said as she answered. "Wait, what? Jade, slow down…" there was a pause as the woman listened to the chatter on the other end of the phone. "Jackie did what? Gone? Fort Knox Kentucky… right, come pick me up I'm going with you!"
And just like that, she picked up her things in a hurry, and left. Shendu was left hovering in fury, for he could not follow if she was going with the Chan family, for they had protective spells that prevented Shendu or "evil spirits" from approaching. He snarled to himself as he passed through the walls and slithered through the air back towards the skyscraper and back to his stone prison.
He wondered if Valmont knew anything about this…
Hours later, and Valerie couldn't believe that she was breaking into the US Gold Reserve. And what's more, the Dark Hand were there too!
"This isn't safe!" Valerie whispered as she followed Jade and Uncle who were in turn following the path of the tunnel they had found. They had followed Section 13 to Fort Knox, but had been lucky when they'd found the tunnel the Dark Hand had made in order to break into the base. "This is the very opposite of safe!"
"Come on, Val," Jade whispered back. "We gotta make sure Jackie's okay!"
Valerie's mind was still whirling trying to believe that Jackie – calm, collected, funny, sweet Jackie – was going after the Dark Hand! Section 13 had received word that Valmont had blown up a warehouse district which just so happen to be spitting distance from the US gold reserve. It didn't take a genius to realise their true target, and so Section 13 had mobilised with Jackie in tow. Jade had tried to convince Jackie not to go, and despite Jackie reassuring her, Jade knew that he was out for vengeance. That's when she had phoned Valerie in a panic, and Valerie – despite her better judgement and the voice screaming in her head telling her not to – immediately jumped into action to help save her friend… and was starting to regret it as she shook with fear.
"Jackie's anger makes him too unpredictable," Uncle mused. "Too likely to make mistakes."
"So what, we're going to break into a gold reserve?!" Valerie hissed.
The other two ignored her as they continued through the tunnel, obviously made recently where someone had blasted the rock apart in order to create this passage big enough for trucks to come through. Valerie tried to keep her breathing steady as she thought that the Dark Hand could come back down the tunnel towards them at any moment!
"I'm a researching book-worm, I don't work well in the field!" she whimpered as she held back her squeal when she saw a large cockroach scuttle past.
"Then why'd you bring a baseball bat?" Jade raised an eyebrow at her.
"We're going up against bad-guys," Valerie said in a low voice. "I don't know how to work a gun, I don't know martial arts, I'm using what I know!" she hugged the bat tighter to her chest, wringing her hands against the polished wood nervously.
"Hold up!" Jade whispered as she held up a hand for them to stop. "This is where the tunnel stops, all the Dark Hand are up ahead; we gotta sneak in,"
"Brilliant." Valerie muttered.
Everyone was working hurriedly to load the forklifts with as much gold blocks as they could before loading them on the truck just outside the tunnel. Valmont oversaw everything, knowing that sooner or later authorities would be in bound to stop them, and he would rather his men be gone with the gold bricks rather than one of them mess up and be caught. And besides, he was already pushing his luck with avoiding Shendu, it wouldn't be long before the demon realised that something wasn't right with Valmont's absence.
"Faster Tohru," he ordered the gigantic behemoth of a Japanese man that struck fear into the hearts of all men, other than Valmont who ordered him about like the faithful dog he was. "And lift with your legs," he instructed as Tohru gripped a pallet loaded with gold bricks, his huge muscles struggling to lift the weight all on his own – something rather rare in Tohru's case.
He continued to watch his men as they worked, and then looked down at his palm where the Dragon Talisman was nestled. Who knew such a little thing could make all this possible?
"A shame Captain Black won't be visiting today," Valmont called out to his men with a self-satisfied smirk. "I understand he had a doctor's appointment," everyone laughed darkly at the little joke, Captain Black and Section 13 had been a thorn in their side for many years, it felt good to everyone to have a little pay-back.
Suddenly, they heard a loud "CLANG" of metal, and everyone turned around and looked up, to see none other than Jackie Chan on the bridge above them, his hand on the railing where he had punched it. He only gave a slight squeak as his arm shook, before yelping and bringing back his hand and holding it pitifully.
"Chan…" Valmont murmured. So this was the man who always caused him so much trouble nowadays. With a thrust of his hand, Valmont sent a blazing arc of fire into the bridge, breaking it apart, and Chan screamed as he fell down to the ground and landed in a heap in the rubble. Tohru and Ratso quickly moved to seize him before he could gain control of his senses, holding him by his arms so that he was suspended off of the ground. "Jackie Chan…" Valmont grinned as he stepped closer to the groaning man. "Finally we meet… it was nice knowing you."
He held up his hand, the talisman glowing menacingly.
"Captain Black was lucky," Valerie heard a well-educated, articulated British accent and she peered over Jade's shoulder to see out of the lip of the tunnel, she saw the back of a tall man with platinum blonde hair in a money-green suit. "But my aim has improved with practise,"
So that is the infamous Valmont, Valerie thought as she glared at his back, instantly taking a dislike to the man.
"We gotta get in there!" Jade whispered.
"How?" Valerie asked.
Jade only smiled as she held up a target dummy that Valerie hadn't even seen in the dark tunnel.
"Where did you –"
"Ask questions later!" Uncle hissed, pushing them up and out of the tunnel.
The all stood squashed behind the dummy, Jade at the legs, Valerie holding up the shoulders, and Uncle standing closely behind them in their shadow. They edged their way across the room towards the pallets lined with bricks of gold. Valerie might have taken a moment to be astounded at the sight of so much gold, but she was too busy trying not to be noticed by the Dark Hand and save her friend who was currently being held in place whilst Valmont pointed his glowing hand at Jackie's chest, and Valerie didn't need to guess that the Dragon Talisman was what he held. They edged closer and closer to the pallets, knowing that they would provide better cover then the dummy that stuck out like a sore thumb in the bunker.
They managed to reach it, and Valerie and Jade snuck a peek out to look around… just as a guard was turning to look at them –
Uncle appeared behind him out of nowhere, his fingers pinching the man's shoulder and instantly knocking him unconscious as he dragged him behind a pallet. Valerie blinked, her eyes wide in surprise as she and Jade dove for cover behind the pallet.
"How did he move so fast?" Valerie whispered, completely amazed as she stared at Uncle.
"You want the other Talismans!" they suddenly heard Jackie say, and all three of them poked their heads out just enough to see him as he spoke to Valmont. "Don't you Valmont?"
"Continue…" Valmont ordered in a sneering voice.
"I will make you a deal," Jackie said, his eyes flickering for only the briefest second to their hiding place. Was he stalling? "Show you where Section 13 is,"
But then, Valerie saw that the grey-skinned man Ratso, who currently held one of Jackie's arms, was turning his head to look over their way, and Valerie quickly ducked back behind the wall of gold, pulling Jade and Uncle along with her.
"Was that always there?" they heard him say, and Valerie looked over in stupefied horror to see that they had left the dummy out for all to see!
Suddenly, they heard a giant "crack" and Valerie poked her head out to see Jackie pull his two captors together, smashing their heads against one another as they stumbled to the floor, dazed. But suddenly, Valerie saw that someone had turned and spotted her, running towards her –
"HIYA!" Jade screeched as she picked up the dummy and smacked it into the thug's head. However, she was unprepared for the second man who came and tried to wrestle the dummy out of her hands. Nor did she see Valmont raise his hand to blast her with the Talisman.
"JADE!" Both Valerie and Jackie shouted at the same time, Jackie leaping at Valmont to try and wrestle the Talisman from him, Valerie running from her cover, baseball bat in hand as she came to the aid of the little girl. She quickly grabbed her by the shoulder and hauled her away, even as she pushed the man and dummy with her other hand to knock him off balance. The pair then ran off towards cover.
"Why you little shrimp!" the man called.
Suddenly Jade stopped in her tracks, a furious expression on her face. She turned around, screeching as she leapt into the air and aimed a flying kick straight for the man's face, knocking him out cold as her heel connected with his nose, sending him to the ground. As she landed however, she came face to face with Uncle's disapproving scowl and Valerie's wide eyed astonishment.
"I'm working on it," she muttered.
By then, everyone in the base realised they were there, and Valerie held up her bat protectively as she looked from face to face, her heart beating at a million miles an hour with her fear.
"What do we do?" she whispered in a shaky voice.
"Show these guys the ancient art of butt-whop!" Jade smirked. But Valerie didn't say anything, she swallowed heavily to try and calm her shaking knees.
She watched as Valmont and Jackie wrestled, Valmont managing to kick Jackie far enough back for him to roar as veins throbbed on his head as he unleashed a blast of fire that broke a whole in the wall where Jackie had been standing not two seconds before. Valmont fired blast after blast as Jackie leapt, ran and summersaulted to be out of the line of fire, Finn getting caught up with him as he too ran from the explosions, not watching where he was going as he ran straight into Uncle's fist. Another thug calm running for Uncle, who held up a gold brick as the man made a swing for him, his fist connecting with the brick and causing him to run off, crying as he held his now broken hand.
"Respect your elders," Uncle snapped at the man, but was unaware of the thug coming up behind him.
"Uncle, look out!" Valerie cried, and before she knew it, she was swinging her bat, hearing a loud crack as the wood connected with the man's back, causing him to fall to the floor gasping and moaning. "Sorry…" Valerie whimpered.
"One more thing…" Uncle said to the man on the floor, before promptly flicking the side of his head, and knocking the man unconscious. Valerie looked from the frail old man in front of her to the beefy man on the floor; how on earth had he done that?!
But she didn't have time to contemplate anything else, as she heard the "boom" of an explosion and yelped with fright, turning in time to see Jackie leap out of the way as Valmont tried to blast him with the power of the Dragon Talisman. Of all the Talisman's she'd seen so far, this was by far the most powerful, and seeing its work in action, Valerie actually began to understand why these things had to be contained. It was horrific and left her feeling sick to watch Jackie dodging death by mere inches at a time.
"Why are you here Chan?" Valmont demanded. "Was it because of poor old Captain Black? Tell me, how is he doing?" he sneered.
Jackie's face contorted with rage as he roared, leaping through the air with a sidelong kick. Valmont blocked him, but Jackie kept coming with hit after hit, yet incredibly Valmont matched him move for move, able to hold his own. Valerie had thought that Jackie was the best martial arts fighter she had ever seen, even in the movies, but Valmont was staying his equal, and if he kept on at winding Jackie up, eventually Jackie's rage would make him mess up. Valerie could see it, Jackie's moves were becoming sloppy and uncoordinated in his attempts to just land a damaging blow instead of focusing on hitting one. Suddenly, Valmont seized Jackie by his sweater and threw him across the room, making the poor man cry out as he took the brunt of the force on his shoulder as he rolled, moaning in a heap where he lay. Valmont raised his hand, talisman glowing –
"No!" Valerie screamed as she suddenly leapt in front of Jackie, hand out and eyes pleading with the man before her. "Please don't!"
"Ah, you must be Miss Valerie Payne," Valmont murmured as he looked at her, and Valerie had to swallow the bile in her throat as her fear almost consumed her, hands and knees shaking as she tried to keep herself focused and her heartbeat even. It scared the living hell out of her to know that this maniac knew her name.
"Valerie," Jackie murmured. "What are you doing?"
"You should have taken a different job Miss Payne," Valmont sneered as he raised his hand towards her. "This one is very hazardous to your health,"
A blast was released from the Talisman, as it sailed through the air towards her, a huge orange and red plume of fire. Valerie tried to back pedal out of its reach, bringing her bat up in front of her in her panic as a form of shield. There was a deafening "BANG" as the flames hit the bat, causing it to explode and shatter; the force of it was enough to knock Valerie off of her feet and send her flying through the air. She felt a wave of scorching heat roll up her chest, and something smash into the side of her face, igniting a white hot pain across her cheek and jaw as she felt her skin open up and her flesh boil.
Valerie screamed.
"Valmont, where are you?" Shendu called out, his voice echoing through the office in its huge booming tone. But the man did not appear before him, in fact he had been gone all day, when before he hardly ever left the office. "Val – ARGH!"
Shendu suddenly screeched in pain as he felt a flash of agony wash over his face and down one side of his neck. It was a hot burning pain so intense that he thought his stone skin might be melting off. But after a moment, the pain faded, and Shendu was left gasping and confused. Where had that come from? He had never felt pain before, not in this form at least, and he had not been harmed, he was on his own hanging on the wall, what on earth could have hurt him? Unless…
The girl, Valerie. Shendu knew this with an instinctive certainty, he didn't know how they were connected suddenly, but he had felt her pain as if it were his own, for however briefly. But how?! He felt oddly alarmed to think that she might be in pain somewhere and he had no idea what was happening, a form of rage overcoming him that someone would dare touch her.
"VALMONT!" he roared, but still he received no answer. Suspicion reared its ugly head inside of the dragon, and his eyes flashed blood-red in the dim light of the office. What were the chances that Valmont should be missing at the same time as Valerie being in pain, and there was also the fact that Shendu still did not know where his Dragon Talisman was. "Something is amiss," he muttered to himself.
With the power of his will, he summoned a troupe of the Shadowkhan, the dark warriors materialising from the long shadows in the office and moving at lightning speed with which to stand before their master.
"Find Valmont," he ordered them in a hiss. "Find my talisman." The ninja's nodded, before melting back into the shadows and disappearing off into the city.
If what Shendu suspected was right, it meant that Valmont had lied to him and kept his property from him, neither of which would be good for Valmont's health when Shendu had him in his sights…
"Valerie!" Jackie yelled as he came over to her limp body, holding it in his arms as he frantically tried to sweep her hair out of her face so that he could see her. He leant his ear to her mouth, and almost collapsed with relief to hear her breathing. She was unconscious, he could see the wreckage of the explosion where her baseball bat had shattered, a large chunk of it had hit her in the face, which was angry red from a minor burn where the wood had been on fire, but the flesh around her eye and across her cheek was already turning purple and black with bruises. Her top was blackened and burned from the fire, though she miraculously managed to not get any wounds or burns that would last. But what Jackie really worried about was whether she had concussion or not.
"And so ends Jackie Chan," came Valmont's voice above him, and Jackie looked up in fear as he held Valerie's body closer to himself protectively, as Valmont lowered his hand, Talisman lighting up –
"Hey, big bully!" cried Jade, and both Valmont and Jackie turned in time to see the child racing towards them on a forklift, a furious expression on her face. "Eat heavy machinery!"
Valmont only just managed to jump out of the way in time as Jade came shooting towards him, and he landed on his truck where his men were already climbing and starting the engine. Jade screeched to a stop, beside Jackie just as the truck, with Valmont on top of it, disappeared into the tunnel. Jade jumped out of the forklift and came running at Jackie, her eyes wide with horror as she looked at Valerie.
"Oh my gosh!" she gasped, eyes tearing up as she stared. "Is she gonna be okay?"
"I think so," Jackie murmured as he lifted the unconscious woman up into his arms and walked towards the fork lift. A stab of guilt swept through him as he looked upon all the hurt he had caused; his temper had done this, if he hadn't acted out, if he hadn't of even come here then his family and his friend would still be safe. He seated Valerie in the forklift, strapping her in so that she wouldn't fall out. "We need to get her some help," he said.
"First, you need to retrieve the Dragon Talisman," Uncle said as he came to join them. "Or more people will end up like Valerie and Captain Black, or worse…"
"Uncle, what are you doing here?!" Jackie asked as he spun around to face his uncle.
"Making sure you don't lose your temper and do something foolish,"
"Good job, Uncle," Jade muttered sarcastically.
"Come on," Jackie said as he climbed into the forklift with Jade and Uncle on either side of him, Jade constantly worrying and fretting over Valerie's limp form. Jackie drove the forklift into the tunnel as they followed Valmont's truck, they saw that it passed through a new hole, the tunnel suddenly turning as they saw a light ahead where Valmont was blasting apart the stone ahead of them. Finally, they reached the outside, and found themselves at the bottom of a cliff in front of a pier, where Valmont's truck was driving towards a boat waiting at the end. Jackie stopped the truck at the end of the tunnel, and quickly leapt out to run after the truck. "Wait here," he said to Jade and Uncle.
"But Valmont's still dragon powered!" Jade stressed. "How are you gonna take him down?!"
"By not fighting…" Uncle murmured in an omniscient tone.
Jackie ran ahead, across the pier to the barge, leaping onto it just before it could be out of reach. He leapt over Ratso, shoving him into the water at the same time, leaving only he and Valmont on the barge. Valmont scowled down at Jackie, and Jackie had to employ all of his will not to allow his anger and hatred of what the man had done to his friends overwhelm him.
"You really go for the gold, Mr Chan," Valmont said bitterly. "Fools gold,"
"You know, Valmont," Jackie called up to him, swallowing back his nerves as he hoped this plan would work. "I was wondering… what is one of these worth?" he asked as he held up a brick of solid gold and pointed to it. "An all-expenses paid trip to Melvin World?" he then tossed the gold overboard where it splashed loudly into the river.
"You'll pay for that," Valmont growled angrily as he glared at the man before him.
"What about these?" Jackie then held up two gold bricks in his hands, raising his brow at Valmont defiantly. "A new Ferrari?" they both went overboard as well.
"Chan!" Valmont snarled.
"A summer home?" Jackie grinned as he threw four more gold bricks into the water. "Your own private island to build it on?" he grabbed handfuls and began throwing them all over the side of the barge. "A robot butler for that home?" dozens and dozens were lost as Jackie put all of his concentration into throwing as much as he could over the side.
"ARGH!" Valmont roared with fury as he unleashed the power of the talisman, his hand erupting with fire as it shot towards Jackie, who quickly leapt out of the way and dived into the water. However, the explosion managed to blast a whole straight through the bottom of the barge, allowing water to bubble up and begin to sink it.
Jackie quickly surfaced by the pier in time to see the barge sink completely with Valmont still on it, and all of his gold lost to the depths.
Valmont surfaced near the rocks as he clung to them as his suit weighed him down heavily in the water. Ratso was standing on the rocks, looking paler than usual.
"A little help?" Valmont demanded as he held out a hand.
"Ur, boss?" Ratso murmured shakily. "Visitors…" And then from the shadows of the cliffs appeared almost two dozen Shadowkhan as they all leapt down onto the rocks, one kneeling right in front of Valmont. The ninja seized his wrist with one hand as he pulled at the talisman with the other, ripping it from his flesh as it did so. Valmont sagged with exhaustion as he felt the energy leave him. And then as quickly as they came, the Shadowkhan left as they leapt from rock to rock to go to their master.
Valmont could only muster the energy to be as pale as Ratso as he thought of what was now waiting for him back at his office.
"That was bad, right?" Ratso asked nervously.
Valerie couldn't believe it. Her first real adventure and she had not only been a wimp, but she had also been knocked unconscious and now had a huge bruise that no make-up on earth could hide. She had awoken in the hospital the morning before, after all the excitement had been and gone, her slight burns had been treated – she was still thanking god that she wasn't going to scar – and the doctors had only wanted to keep her in the hospital in order to check that she didn't have a concussion. But now, Valerie was actually pleased to be free to leave, she hated hospitals, and despite the fact that Section 13 authorities had made the excuses to the University, Valerie wanted to get back to her studies.
"How are you feeling?" she heard Jackie's voice and looked up with a smile to see him leaning against the door with a sheepish smile.
"Better, thanks. It's not every day I get hit in the face with an explosion, so I think I'm doing well," she chuckled.
"I'm sorry Valerie, if I had kept more control of my temper, this wouldn't have happened," Jackie's face flashed with grief, and Valerie put a comforting hand on his shoulder, almost surprised at how normal such a gesture felt.
"Don't worry, we all lose our tempers sometimes, but a wise man I know once said: 'the greatest victory is the battle not fought'," she winked at him. "Now come on, I take it you're here to see Captain Black as well?"
They made their way to Captain Black's room, but were almost alarmed to hear the shrill constant sound of the heart monitor. Both Valerie and Jackie rushed forward in a panic, bursting through the door… only to see Captain Black sitting up in bed and pulling the wires out of his arms.
"Take it easy boss," Jackie grinned as he held the man's shoulders to try and prevent him from getting out of the bed. "The doctor says you can leave in a few days if you rest,"
Black only grunted in agreement.
"You feeling any better?" Valerie asked.
"Yeah," the Captain murmured. "My neck aches though, probably from when I…" he trailed off as his gaze landed on Valerie and his eyes widened. "Good god Valerie, what happened to your face?!"
"Pretty, aren't I?" she teased as her fingers fumbled with her hair, embarrassed as her cheeks turned crimson. "Was at the wrong end of an explosion – Valmont packs a mean punch,"
"That son of a –" Black snarled but was interrupted when agent Simmons walked through the door and approached the Captain's bed.
"Sir, good to see you up and at 'em," the agent said fondly yet formerly. "Salvage operation recovered the booty from the river bottom."
"Valmont?" Captain Black asked with a hint of anger, though not directed at his agent.
Simmons shook his head.
"Which means the Dark Hand still possess the magic talisman," Jackie said gravely. Valerie felt it too, that was one powerful rock, if the Dark Hand still possessed it… she dreaded to think what they would do with it.
"Jackie," Black murmured in exasperation. "The 'M' word?"
"But you saw it!" Jackie gaped, and Valerie had to agree: surely Captain Black would have seen the Talisman's work with his own eyes? "The dragon power injured you – it hurt Valerie!"
"I had Valmont in my sights," Black explained. "The rest is a blur,"
Jackie sighed in defeat, and Valerie couldn't help but chuckle.
Shendu would have been shaking with rage if he could move. Valmont had had his Talisman and had not thought to hand it over?! What's more, Valmont had wasted time and resources for his petty thievery when he could have been searching for the next Talisman and he had been the one to harm Valerie.
"Shendu," the man pleaded pathetically. "Please, I –"
"WRARGH!" Shendu snarled as he used the power of the dragon talisman and a jet of fire spewed forth from his frozen snarling mouth. Valmont screeched as he ducked out of the way, the fire barely missing him by inches. "You dare to take what belongs to me, and then you try to destroy what is mine!" Shendu snarled viciously.
He paused for a second as he registered what he had just said. He had meant the talisman with the first statement but why had Valerie come into this? And why had he referred to her as 'his'? Well… wasn't she? She held his attention for the time being, he was interested in the power she could give him and the way he had felt her when she was in pain. He wanted to know exactly why they were connected, and what impact it might have on him and his rise to power, and finally how to deal with it. And besides, no one would touch her, she was his to torment if he so chose, and therefore that meant that Valmont had greatly overstepped the line.
"You are lucky that I need you, you fool," the dragon hissed at him. "But do not overstep your bounds again, for you will not like the consequences,"
"Shendu, I beg your forgiveness," Valmont whimpered in front of him.
"And you may earn it Valmont." The demon's eyes glowed as he beheld the man, a smirk entering his voice as he looked into the Valmont's eyes, speaking in a condescending tone and watching the anger dance in the human's depths, the demon mentally daring him to try something. "Rumour tells of a Talisman at the North Pole… dress warmly,"