Enemy Territory

It had only been a week since Captain Black had been released from Hospital, and yet Valerie found herself in the uncomfortable position of being back in the hospital room once again. Though this time, they were all there for Jackie.

He had recently gone to find the Rat Talisman and had returned only that morning; Valerie had been cleaning the kitchen in the shop for when Jade and Jackie would come over for dinner, when Uncle had received a phone call for them to come to the hospital. Apparently, Jackie was able to run off a falling train, fight talisman powered fire-men, leap the tracks of a rollercoaster… and broke his leg in his own room at Section 13. Valerie looked at Jackie with pity as he lay in the hospital bed with his leg suspended in the air from the stirrups, the large white cast making his lower leg seem bulkier and like a child's toy.

"Run down the side of an exploding building, no problem!" Uncle grinned at Jackie who took it all with a grumpy scowl. "But step on a child's toy – break your bones!" Uncle suddenly erupted in a fit of laughter, the apparent hilarity of the situation enough to make him double over to control his wheezing. "Sounds like a Chinese proverb,"

"Uncle," Valerie scolded. "Come on, enough with that,"

"It's all my fault," Jade moaned miserably. Valerie had to feel sorry for the poor girl, it was her toy that Jackie had tripped over, and her mess landed Jackie in this predicament. And she'd felt terrible about it, she'd hadn't stopped saying sorry the whole time.

"Jackie is young and strong," Uncle told the girl with a small smile. "He will heal quickly,"

"Accidents happen, Jade," Jackie reassured her kindly. "But do you now see the importance of tidiness?"

"I'll make it up to you Jackie," the girl vowed as she held her uncle's hand. "I promise,"

A few hours later back at the shop, Valerie was sitting at the ancient computer in the backroom, the thing was chunky as if it had been made from bricks, and ran slower than a snail. Yet Valerie was still drumming her fingers against the table as she waited for the internet page to load. It was a Sunday, so Valerie had an hours break for lunch with no pressing issues to return home for. But instead of having Jade and Jackie to keep her company – for they were in Section 13 until Jackie's leg healed – Valerie was left on her own with Uncle. As she waited for the screen to load, she checked her reflection on the screen, noticing how her bruised face was clearing, though not very fast, as the beating she'd gotten from Valmont had still left her slightly purple across her cheek and around her eye. Her teachers had not been best pleased with it, one had actually pulled her asdie to wonder if she was abused!

"Why did you give most of your translation books to Jackie, when you're supposed to be the one who finds out what these Talismans do?" Valerie asked to Uncle who was pottering about, muttering to himself as he corrected all of Valerie's work – which aggravated her to no end though she tried her hardest to ignore it. "What on earth is the Rat Talisman supposed to do: 'Motion to the motionless'? What does that mean?"

"I don't know! Uncle has other things to do! He also has a shop to run." The old man said.

"I thought that was my job," Valerie muttered.

"It is!" Uncle yelled, close enough that his voice made Valerie's ears hurt as she flinched. "So what are you doing?!"

"I need to buy some books online for my studies. We're doing a paper on the differences and similarities between the Ancient Greek and Roman cultures," Valerie explained.

"On a computer? Are you going to print it out?" he asked.

"No," Valerie turned to look at him. "I meant online shopping. I buy it on the computer and then someone delivers it to me in the post. It's a really easy way to get stuff that most places don't sell. Why don't you have a go?" She hid her smile as she secretly thought that this was going to be hilarious: Uncle on a computer.

"What? Uncle has everything he needs, why would he rely on a machine?" he crossed his arms stubbornly.

"To get into the modern era already," Valerie said as she stood and pushed him into the seat in front of the computer. "Now, let's see… just so you can see how it works, let's buy you, say… a mug,"

"Uncle has antique china tea sets; does not need a mug," he said.

"I know, but we're just doing this to show you," Valerie sighed in exasperation. "Now. First we pick the mug and add it to the basket icon, then we proceed to checkout. Now we got to enter your address,"

"So Uncle can get ambushed by the Tax-Man?! No!" Uncle exclaimed.

"The Tax-Man won't know about it, you have to give them your address otherwise where are they gonna deliver it?" Valerie snapped at him. "Right then, address?"

"Uncle's Rare Finds,"

"I know that," Valerie muttered. "What is the address?"

"63 Harper Street. Could you not read that every time you walk down the road?" Uncle raised an eyebrow at her incredulously.

"Right then," Valerie growled out as she typed in the address over Uncle's shoulder. "Now I need the billing information."

"Billing?" Uncle exclaimed. "How much must I spend on this junk?"

"Well, the mug costs five dollars and then you've got two dollars for delivery –"

"That is garbage!" Uncle shouted. "I could get better quality for half price at the corner store!"

"Look, I'm only trying to show you –" Valerie tried to say, but Uncle cut her off with a loud screech.

"AIIEEEYYYAAAAAA! Uncle does not need your computer nonsense!"

"But I was just –"

"And one MORE thing! I told you I did not want the mug!" he shouted.

"The mug wasn't important!" she yelled quickly just so that she could be heard. "You're just still stuck in the dark ages to actually get on with modern technology!"

"I know how to work a phone and a radio, don't need other technology," Uncle crossed his arms and stuck his nose in the air.

"Why-why-why-WHY did I have to be stuck with such a goat of a man?!" Valerie hissed quietly to herself, but unfortunately it wasn't low enough.

"Oooooooh!" Uncle's eyes widened with anger. "You want a piece of Uncle?"

"Be careful you don't break a hip," Valerie muttered as she folded her arms over her chest. She was actually rather satisfied to see Uncle bristle at the comment like a dog.

"From what? You breaking a fingernail?!" he snarled. "That's all you ever use when working!"

"Excuse me?!" Valerie rounded on him. "Considering the amount of work I do here, I should think you'd be grateful!"

"Grateful?! Ha!" he barked out the forceful laughter in her face, causing Valerie's eye to twitch with the force of her anger. "Some shop-assistant YOU are! Have not made ONE sale!"

"You never have a customer!" Valerie retorted. "Probably scared off by your garlic breath!"

"Garlic is good for you!" he snapped. "You keep putting things in wrong place!" Uncle continued with a furious scowl.

"I tidy up! You leave things hazardously laying everywhere!"

"And always back-chat your boss!"

"Because my boss is a first prize bigoted old coot!" Valerie yelled.

"You are an undisciplined, bad mannered, bad mouthed little witch!"

"Oh yeah? Well if I'm so bad, then I guess you don't want me here anymore!"

"Never wanted you in the first place!"

"Fine then, I'll just leave!" she stormed to the back room to pack up her bag and grab her coat.

"Fine, go!"

"Fine, I will!"

"Fine!"

"FINE!" Valerie shouted as she threw her bag over her shoulder and stepped outside, slamming the store door closed behind her with a loud "BANG!"

The whole afternoon, Valerie was desperately searching through the newspapers for any form of a job near her apartment. She knew that she couldn't afford to be without one for more than a few days, her month's rent was coming up and she was nearly out of food in the fridge and her last check from the antique shop would only go so far.

She still felt a little bad about leaving. She had loved working there, it was good pay with flexible hours, she loved the people around her, and despite the fact that the adventures terrified her… Valerie had felt alive, more so then she had in months before coming to San Francisco. She had lived an exciting and dangerous life – no matter how much she squealed over it – something she had only ever imagined in her favourite books. But Uncle had just made her so angry, he was a hard man to work for, since day one his little comments and attitude had gotten on her nerves, but she had thought that she had been getting past that and he was actually glad to have her around, even though she'd only been working at the shop just over a week. But apparently not, the man was just too grouchy and stubborn and he had made it pretty clear that she wasn't welcome, so her temper had taken over her head and decided that she was better off elsewhere.

Jackie had already tried to call her, possibly to ask her back, for Valerie knew that at least Jackie and Jade enjoyed her working at the store. But Valerie had ignored the call, she was still too upset and would only become angry again if she heard Uncle commenting in the background. Surprisingly, she'd also received a call from Captain Black; she'd been scared to answer the phone, remembering the little threat of treason charges if she left where Section 13 couldn't watch her every move. But again she was surprised, when she had hesitantly answered, Black had simply been ringing to ask her what had happened and how she was doing. She had asked – rather cautiously – if she was in any trouble, and Black had calmly explained that she was a big girl and able to make her own decisions, and that he trusted her enough to no say something she shouldn't. Valerie had been oddly touched.

So Valerie was stuck looking for job ads in the newspaper, and it wasn't until the last page that she finally found something interesting. A delivery depo just down the road were looking for a local mail boy/girl. Valerie might not own a car – despite the fact that she had a licence – but she did own a good push bike, and she had been meaning to exercise anyway.

How hard could it be?

Tohru stood before the desk in front of Valmont with the other enforcers, and Shendu felt his patience stretch to its thinnest to see that they were empty handed from another mission. Again.

"We found nothing in the debris, master," Tohru bowed his head submissively, whilst the others just looked nervous as their eyes glanced between Shendu and Valmont.

"The Rat Talisman is the key to my freedom, Valmont," Shendu said with a slight hint of frustration in his tone. "It will re-animate me into flesh and blood,"

"Oh," Ratso's eyes widened with curiosity. "You mean you'd get back all your dragon powers and stuff?"

"No," Valmont said. "Shendu will still require the other talismans and our continued assistance for that," the man said as he looked over his shoulder pointedly at the statue behind him. Shendu would have curled his lip at the man if he could.

"Judging by experience," Shendu muttered icily. "I will remain in this petrified state forever! And you will never lay your eyes on the lost treasure of Ching Xi Hung…"

"Two words," Valmont said to his men. "Mouse-Hunt."

Only a few days later, and Valerie was seriously beginning to regret her decision.

This mail-girl job was nothing short of exhausting! She only had to deliver to close destinations to the depo, but still, Valerie found herself cycling miles in the early hours of the morning before University hours, and then again after. She would literally come home to collapse on her bed, too tired to even change out of her clothes as she fell into an exhausted sleep on her couch. What didn't make it any better was when her new bosses and also customers would stare at her face and the large bruises that were still visible. Valerie did her best to act like she was made of sugar, all sweet and lovely and pretend that nothing was amiss.

Come on, Val. You made your bed, now lay in it! she told herself stubbornly as she pushed herself to cycle harder, shaking her head to snap herself back into focus before she could drift off. She had one more delivery to complete before she could go home, something just outside of the city centre, to a skyscraper, Valerie was surprised to see. It was an average sized box labelled to 'D.H Industries' to one Mr R. Muris. Valerie quickly parked her bike outside and brought out the last box from her bag-pack, before walking into the building.

She was greeted by a large foyer all made with polished marble that was so clean it practically reflected back Valerie's image like a mirror. She suddenly felt self-conscious with her scruffily tied back hair and grubby coat, an oil stain on her leggings and then her dirty sneakers. But swallowing back her own insecurities, Valerie quickly approached the reception desk, where the most stereo-typical secretary that had ever lived was sat. A woman perhaps in her mid to late twenties, a thin as a stick wearing a designer suit, her hair bleached blonde that made her jet black eyebrows stand out on her smooth face. The woman was rather beautiful with big doe-like eyes and small pouty lips, thin and sleek glasses made her nose seem slimmer as she looked over them at the world. The only thing really wrong with her, in Valerie's opinion, was the mountain of makeup she'd piled onto it, her face was almost orange with foundation that contrasted her pale white neck absurdly; her eyes smoky and dark with huge eyelashes and her lips stained the brightest red. The woman sat in her chair as she listened to the phone, lazily taking notes as she sighed dramatically, chewing gum noisily. She glanced at Valerie, and didn't even bother to hide the curl of her lip as she saw the younger woman's clothes.

Valerie felt her hackles bristle as she scowled at the woman, depositing her package on the desk with a rather loud "BANG". The woman flinched from the sound and scowled as she tried to ignore her visitor and listen to the phone call.

"Excuse me," Valerie said in an overly sweet voice, smiling brightly as she batted her eyes at the woman before her, making an effort to be overly nice and patronising. "I hate to be a nuisance, but I'm here to deliver a package for Mr R. Muris of D.H. Industries?"

"Take the elevator to the top floor," the receptionist muttered with a dismissive wave of her hand.

Valerie blinked, tempted to remain and pester the woman some more for her rudeness. But sighed as she thought that it would just save her the hassle if she dropped off the parcel herself and left. This was against protocol, as the receptionist was meant to take the package and pass it on to whoever it was meant for. But Valerie guessed that she was too engrossed with her own laziness to do it herself. So she stepped into the elevator and pushed the button for the top floor, settling against the far wall as she held the package in her arms as the lift carried her up.

As the elevator doors opened, Valerie was ushered in to a long hallway decorated with wonderful red carpet and lush dark walls adorned with all manner of expensive trappings and antiques that made Valerie's inner historian squeal with delight. She could see things from dark-age Europe, ancient Indian statues made of solid jade, huge bronze disks that were decorated with ancient Egyptian hieroglyphs. Valerie was practically grinning as she looked at such treasure, surely all of this must be worth a fortune!

But that alone was enough of an incentive to get her moving as she knew she shouldn't touch anything in here, no matter how much she wanted to. Oh, what she wouldn't give to be able to look over every square inch of these priceless artefacts! She came to a large set of double doors, and seeing no bell, she politely knocked. But there was no answer. Taking a brave breath, she knocked again, this time a little harder –

One of the doors moved a little, creaking slightly as it yielded to her. Valerie felt her heart beat a little faster as she hesitantly held out her hand and gently pushed the door open and popped her head inside the next room.

She entered a long office, the black marble floor broken by a red carpet that led down the middle to a large mahogany desk at the other end of the room. Valerie looked around in amazement as more priceless antiques and objects were displayed around the room. Eastern statues, swords and spears and maces and axes from all time periods and cultures were in glass cases. The entire room stank of wealth just waiting to be spent. Valerie stared in amazement at such wonders… who could possibly afford –

Realisation jolted back into her head as she remembered why she was here, and that no one was in the office at the moment. That could change quickly, and if she was caught, she might be in a lot of trouble for being where she shouldn't.

"Hello?" she called out hesitantly, but no one answered her. With a steadying breath, Valerie quickly marched up to the large mahogany desk and placed the parcel neatly in one corner. She was about to swiftly turn and make her exit, when something caught her eye…

On the wall behind the desk, was a very large statue of a coiling Chinese Dragon with its head sticking out and snarling as it bared its teeth. It was expertly carved, as if the artist had been sculpting a real creature; the face reptilian-like, with a long snout and flat nose with bristle-like whiskers at the side of each nostril. Large fangs curved from its snarling mouth, eight horns framed the back of its head like a crown, and red eyes looked onto the world before it, and Valerie felt her spine quiver as she felt a sense of anger and knowledge in those eyes. She had the creepiest feeling that those eyes were watching her, and as she stared, she found herself mesmerised by their depths, like that of a cobra, it sucked her in, hypnotising her as she felt her feet move closer as if under some silent command.

She moved around the desk as if not realising it until she was face to face with the statue, only a foot separating them. Valerie gazed in wonder at the face before her, as if the eyes were staring right back at her, examining her as she assessed it. The Statue was old, very old; it wasn't worn or broken, in fact it looked as if it had been well looked after, but the way the stone looked, the way it seemed to have been moulded wasn't in the style of how statues had been made in any part of recent history. Valerie would guess that it was centuries old, and if she knew her ancient Chinese – as her pride said she did – she would guess that it belonged to a very-very old Chinese culture, perhaps even on the same time frame as the Xin Dynasty. As she looked closer into the eyes, she saw that there were markings on the face that looked like tattoos: a matching pair of swirls that came from down the snout, up beside the eyes and curled over the brow. Everything about the statue screamed ancient and powerful. Valerie didn't know what it was, but something about it spoke to her most primitive instincts, telling her that this was something beyond her comprehension.

Hesitating, as if her will was no longer her own, Valerie carefully reached up gently touched the face of the statue. Her fingers softly grazed the cheek and stroked down the jaw as if she were marvelling at a real creature who's power was held in check for just a moment for her to worship. But the instant her fingers touched the cool stone, Valerie felt a jolt run up her arm, and warmth spread through her, rolling across her body like a wave of fire racing through her. She gasped softly at the surprise, her eyes fluttering as she felt a form of energy fill her up, something she had never felt before, something powerful and uncontrollable and raw, and only a fraction of the true potential. Valerie had no idea what was happening, perhaps she was just a little excited and imagining this feeling in the presence of something that was clearly worth more money than her whole university course. She stared once again into the eyes of the creature, as if she were waiting for it to blink – an impossibility, she silently scolded herself, seeing as it was a statue after all. But she couldn't look away, even when something in the back of her mind was telling her that she should be noticing something, something important. But what –

Suddenly, Valerie heard voices coming from the hallway, snapping her out of her trance as she spun around to look at the door in panic, breaking the contact she had with the statue. Her heart was suddenly hammering in her chest, her breath coming in quick pants as she realised she was about to be caught somewhere she shouldn't be!

"This had better be good, Tohru," came a voice that made Valerie freeze in place with absolute terror. A posh British accent that she recognised… dear god… she was in VALMONT'S OFFICE?!

Realising the potential danger she was in, Valerie knew she had to hide and hope for an escape. Looking around frantically, Valerie saw a small door off to the side of the office, perhaps a cupboard? It didn't matter, in her panic she simply ran for the door and hid herself inside the dark little room.

Closing the door behind her, Valerie was enveloped in darkness as she quickly sat down, trying to calm her loud breathing as she tried to be as quiet as she possibly could. It wasn't until she backed up into a feather duster that she began to panic as she clamped her hands over her nose and mouth as an itch began to build behind her nose.

Shendu had been driving himself crazy with impatience as he thought about how the Rat Talisman had been discovered, and it was within this very city yet just out of his grasp! If he needed any singular one of the Talismans, it would be this one alone, for it was the one that would make him a living creature once again. As long as he had it, its power would keep him from turning to stone once again. And yet how typical was it, that Valmont and his fools couldn't even get their hands on that ONE Talisman!

He could sense that Valmont was unnerved by the demon's brooding silent anger at his back, the hot breath of the Dragon Talisman emanating from Shendu in a clear warning of his volatile mood. Valmont had thought it wise to excuse himself in order to get himself a coffee in the staff room where the enforcers usually spent their free time on the floor below. Shendu had watched him walk away, left alone to try and vent his frustration. He was so desperate to be free, it was a like a burn along his scales that he couldn't stop, his skin felt too tight, his ancient bones felt as if they would break and crack when he finally moved. It was a disease, and the cure was just within his grasp that his anxiety was like a choke hold around his throat.

And then, who should walk in but the very last person he expected to see.

Shendu felt every thought in his mind leave him and he became momentarily speechless in shock as he saw Valerie Payne enter Valmont's office. She poked her head in as she called for someone to answer her, but when no one spoke she bravely ventured deeper into the office, her gaze marvelling at all of the precious historical items that Valmont had proudly displayed in various cases and pedestals, a show of his wealth and power to all. Shendu was still shocked to see her here, but thought it would be best if he remained silent and observed, a tiger in the grass, watching and undetected in plain sight. The woman had placed a parcel on Valmont's desk, which made Shendu curious as to why she was here; didn't she work at the antique shop?

But then her gaze had caught on Shendu, and he saw the moment when she beheld him, the wonder and awe entering her gaze as she reverently stepped closer, and it boosted his ego to no end. He was as mesmerised as her as he watched in fascination as she came closer and closer to him, so slowly until she was within a foot of him, painfully close and yet out of his reach with him unable to move. She stared at him, straight into his eyes, and Shendu felt something inside of him spark into a flame under her gaze, a heat blazing through him as he marvelled at how no one had dared to look at him so openly before. She looked at him as if he were something beautiful and awe-inspiring, yet gazed into his soul as if he were an open book for her to read. It had taken all of his self-control to not make his eyes glow, to keep them at the same level in order to keep up his trickery. He wanted to see what she would do.

With her this close, he was also able to see first-hand her injuries. It had been days since he had last spied on her, and now he could everything for himself. She had a large purple bruise in a crescent shape around one eye, and further discoloration across her cheek, the flesh ever so slightly swollen and flushed around the edges from blood induced trauma. Valmont had hurt her, badly, it would take a few weeks for these marks to fade completely, and Shendu felt his anger return within him like an inferno as he saw the damage caused to his things by someone who was to careless when playing with it! What good would his vengeance be if she was already too broken to be satisfying to break himself? He wanted to speak to her, demand to know that it was Valmont who had done this, but reigned his impulses in, knowing that now was the time to observe the prey, not spook it.

And then, she had touched him. Voluntarily. With her own bare hands. It was not like before, when Shendu had been wearing another's skin, which separated them from true contact in spirit. Now, it was her flesh against his, just her hand as she softly, reverently, stroked the side of his face from his cheek and down along his jaw. And at the contact, Shendu had to choke back his involuntary gasp as he felt a rush of energy take place between them, something flowing into him, a chi unlike anything he had ever felt before, filling him up until he thought he would burst. It melded with his own demon-magic, giving it a boost he had not felt in centuries, not since before Lo Pei's spell. It made him feel whole, completed, feeding him from a hunger he hadn't even known he was starving of. And from her reaction, Shendu could guess that she felt it to; a shiver ran down her spine, causing her to gasp softly, her eyes fluttering closed for just a moment. When she opened them again, Shendu was once more shocked to see a dull red glow in the very depths of her pupils, one that looked remarkably like his own. But with a blink, it was gone.

It can't be… Shendu thought as he stared into her eyes, searching for any sign of what he thought –

But then, they had both heard voices coming from the hallway outside, the voices of Valmont and his men approaching. Valerie had broken the contact and spun around in panic, the connection between them instantly breaking and Shendu lost whatever power he had felt when she touched him. He had been tempted to summon his Shadowkhan to stop Valmont before he could enter, but to do so would only make Valmont suspicious, and Shendu wanted to keep this secret to himself until he knew exactly what was going on between him and this human girl.

Valerie quickly ran for the cupboard at the side of the office and closed the door behind her as she hid. And not a moment too soon, as Valmont entered not a second later, his enforcers close behind, Tohru holding something squirming in his grasp.

"What is it Tohru?" Valmont asked irritably as he sat behind his desk with his elbows on the desk and his fingers interlocked. "Did you find the Talisman?"

"We did," the Japanese behemoth grumbled out in his usual deep voice.

Tohru then deposited something on the desk in front of Valmont, and Shendu would have blinked in surprise as he saw a toy moving about, squirming in place as it fought against the bounds that tied its wrists and ankles together.

"Troll armies are amassing!" the thing cried out in a gravelly voice as it continued to struggle. "Gnome Cop must be liberated!"

"What is it going on about?" Valmont asked in deep confusion as he frowned at the living toy on his desk.

"Turbo Troll is Gnome Cop's arch enemy," everyone turned to look at Ratso, who was twiddling his large thumbs as he rattled off this useless information as if it was nothing. Shendu seethed as he watched the idiot with growing impatience. "See, the emperor of Troll Castle hates gnomes because Gnomes possess magic from the great crystal. So Gnome Cop uses his power belt to…" Ratso trailed off as he suddenly noticed that everyone was looking at him with extreme annoyance. "Err, I collect them," he said sheepishly. "Hey, is that mine?"

The man's eyes had caught on the parcel on the desk that Valerie had delivered earlier, and quickly ripped open the packaging as he beheld the toy inside, still in the box. He hugged it to his chest as he beamed with excitement like a child. Shendu thought it all to be rather pathetic.

"Achoo!" came a little squeak from the cupboard. It was hardly noticeable, but in the silence that had followed Ratso's little speech, Shendu felt a sense of alarm sweep through him as Valmont turned to look for the source of the –

"Enough of Sprites and Fairies!" Shendu roared viciously, his voice so loud that it jolted everyone in the room back to the topic at hand, and thankfully away from Valerie's hiding place. "The Talisman, Valmont!" he ordered with a snarl.

Valmont picked up the toy and looked for where it could have stored the Talisman, before looking at the back and the battery compartment. Upon opening it, Shendu could practically see the Rat Talisman and his key to freedom!

"Argh! Gnome-Cop escaped the Bald-Headed-Giant's fortress!" the toy snarled out defiantly. "He will escape you as well!"

"Bald headed giant?" Valmont echoed as he paused, blinking as something shimmered behind his dark eyes. "Could he mean Captain Black?" he shot a look at Shendu.

"Does. It. Matter?!" Shendu hissed with mounting desperation. "Give me the Talisman!"

"Shendu," Valmont tapped a finger to his chin, eyes shifting as he thought. "If this gnome escaped from Section 13, then perhaps it can lead us there,"

"Ahhh…the other Talismans…" Shendu breathed as comprehension finally dawned on him, making his anger dissipate as he thought of all his other Talismans, all his lost powers.

"Mighty Warrior," Valmont said to the gnome as he lifted it to face him. "We just received word that Turbo Troll has claimed the bald headed giant's fortress as his stronghold,"

"ARGH!" the tiny creature roared. "I will have his head!" Valmont smirked to his enforcers.

"Take him back to where you found him, let him lead you to Section 13," he ordered as he gave the toy back to Tohru.

"Yes Master," Tohru bowed his head before turning as he and the other enforcers left.

"Your men had better succeed, Valmont," Shendu growled warningly. "I should hate to lose this Talisman to your negligence,"

"So long as Jackie Chan doesn't interfere before my men can do their job, then I have no doubt that they will succeed," Valmont replied in a smooth and cold tone of voice.

"Not one week ago, your men were overwhelmed by an old man, a child and a woman armed only with a bat," Shendu muttered.

"I have ways of eliminating such complications, should they become too bothersome…" a slight smirk tugged at the human's lips, one that Shendu wanted to claw off. "Section 13 has the antique shop covered with surveillance, but they haven't installed such measures around Miss Payne's apartment as of yet. All I need do is make one phone call and she will be dead in the morning,"

"Leave the girl, Valmont!" Shendu growled icily, trying to pretend that he didn't notice the sharp intake of breath that he heard coming from the cupboard. "You are not to tamper with her,"

"And why not?" the man asked defensively. "If she is getting in the way of the hunt for your precious Talismans then –"

"It amuses me to watch your men be beaten senseless by someone of far less skill then they. And when you have remained as I have, you take entertainment where you can find it; boredom is the one thing able to drive you to madness." Shendu said coldly, hoping that the half-truth would be enough. "The girl is of value to me Valmont, so do not touch her,"

"Very well," Valmont sighed. "If you so wish,"

"And besides," Shendu said with an obvious smirk in his voice. "I should like to think that you will not be outwitted by a young woman,"

"We know where she lives; we can handle her should it come to that," Valmont replied coldly. He stayed in the office for a few minutes longer, simply directing his network through his computer and taking a few calls, before he excused himself once more.

It was a full minute after he left that Valerie finally emerged from the cupboard. She was shaking and seemed physically terrified as she looked about to see if anyone was watching her. Shendu watched as she then ran for the office door and slipped out into the hallway beyond. He watched her go, and was half tempted to summon his Shadowkhan once again in order stop her, to reveal himself to her and have that power he always felt when she touched him.

But not now. Now was the time to wait, and he needed to think, to see if this was truly what he thought it was.

Valerie didn't stop running until she'd reached her apartment and locked every bolt and lock on her front door, closed all her curtains and retreated to the very corner of her bedroom floor, bringing her knees to her chest as she struggled not to have a full panic-attack.

The Dark Hand… she had just been inside their headquarters, or at least, Valmont's office. She'd been so close to getting caught… what would they have done if they'd found her? She gingerly touched the bruise on the side of her face, a phantom pain rippling across her skin as she remembered facing down Valmont and the ruthless look in his eyes as he struck at her with the power of the Dragon Talisman. If he'd found her in his office, he would have surely killed her, or would have tortured her for the location of Section 13. Valerie could only thank her lucky stars that she hadn't been caught. But she had managed to learn some very valuable information.

Namely, that Valmont wasn't in charge, he was working for someone, or someone had hired the Dark Hand's resources through Valmont. That was the person who was orchestrating this, this "Shendu" character, whoever he was, he was the one who wanted the Talismans, the Dark Hand were just the muscle to get it. Valerie realised that if she picked up the phone at that precise second she could call Captain Black, tell him where to find Valmont… But then she would think on the last part of the conversation she had heard, when Valmont had talked about her specifically… We know where she lives… it would take just a phone call and she'd be dead by the morning…

It made her feel physically sick to think that someone could be watching her apartment right now, planning to put a bullet in her head, and she wouldn't even have known. No, if she went to Black, Valmont would know it was her for sure and she might as well sign her own death certificate. But what could she do –

Jackie.

She remembered, Valmont had sent his men along with – and it still sounded crazy to her – the toy Gnome-Cop to find Section 13 and retrieve the other Talismans. Valerie couldn't let that happen, if her own experiences had taught her one thing, it was that people got hurt when bad-people had powerful objects. She had to warn them, she had to try and stop this!

Snatching her phone from her purse and quickly retreating back to her corner, Valerie quickly punched in Jackie's phone number and was practically shaking again with anxiety as she waited for Jackie to pick up. She prayed that he would pick up, that he hadn't left his phone somewhere out of earshot; please, please, PLEASE! Thankfully, he picked up on the second ring.

"Hello?"

"Jackie!" Valerie burst out with an emotional sob as all of the pent up terror in her came spilling out all at once.

"Valerie?" Jackie exclaimed, his voice filled with urgency and concern. "What's wrong? Are you alright?"

"J-Jackie, listen to me!" she stuttered, before taking a deep breath and trying to regain control of herself. "Don't ask me how I know this, just listen! I-I know it sounds crazy, but the Rat Talisman? Motion to the Motionless?"

"It brings inanimate objects to life, yes, I know," Jackie muttered with a frustrated sigh. "Jade activated it in her Gnome-Cop toy, we're trying to look for it now,"

"Jackie!" Valerie almost shouted in alarm. "You have to do something! The Dark Hand have Gnome Cop! They're using him; they're gonna follow him back to Section 13 to get the other Talismans!"

"BWHA-?!" Jackie exclaimed, and she could practically picture his eyes go big in his head. "How did you –"

"Jackie you have to stop them!"

"I will. Look, listen, Valerie… please come back to the Shop," Jackie said in a pleading tone. "Jade and I really miss you, and we could really use your help –"

"I'd love to Jackie," Valerie whispered as she tried not to sniff to give away the tears of fear and sorrow that stung her eyes. "But Uncle made it pretty clear how he felt, and I can't come back until I hear an apology from him,"

"But I –"

"Jackie!" Valerie heard Jade say urgently on the other side of the phone.

"You need to go, make sure the Dark Hand don't get anywhere near Section 13!" Valerie whispered to him urgently.

"I will, thank you Valerie," he said to her softly.

Valerie hung up, and drooped in her corner, miserable and feeling utterly alone.

Shendu sensed Valerie even before he saw her as his astral form swept through her walls into her apartment and he hovered in the air above her. He watched her, as white as a sheet, shaking as she tried to control her fear, her breathing unsteady and her eyes shining with tears. In that moment, she looked like a frightened rabbit more than a woman.

Shendu grinned to himself.

Notions of revenge, thoughts of her death to satisfy his bloodlust, all were gone from his mind, for now he knew what connection he had with Valerie; it had taken him a while to figure it out, and then a while longer to be sure. But after her little visit today, he finally had all the pieces of the puzzle in place. There was no mistaking it.

Valerie was his Other.

It was always known that there was a constant balance in the universe: a yin and a yang to all things. Magical beings were all made of either light or dark Chi, each being one side of the coin. Legends spoke however, that should one find their Other, the yin to their yang, then they will be completed, the powers of both boosted by their partner. That was what Shendu had been feeling, every time he and Valerie touched, he was feeling a transfer of energy as the other half of himself was made whole. She was his perfect match in every way, there would be none other like her, they were made to fit together. In her presence he would be at his strongest, his demon magic responded to her and was much more potent from her chi, but that was only a fraction of the true power due to the fact that he wasn't even living flesh like her. He could only guess that when he regained his true form, and they touched skin to skin, it would finally have the full effect and he would be unstoppable!

Valerie had no idea, but she was suddenly incredibly valuable to the Demon-Sorcerer who secretly watched her.