Mutiny
The flames died away, and a body was revealed.
Alive.
Jackie looked down at himself, completely confused as to why he hadn't been turned into a complete pile of ash.
Shendu himself was shocked, red eyes widening. "How can it be?!"
As if in answer, Chan looked down at his hand, where Shendu saw a familiar glimmer. He thought his heart lurched. No! This couldn't be right!
"My talisman!"
"I'm sorry–I'll give it back–thank you!" Chan rushed as he leapt back to avoid Shendu stamping on him.
The demon backed him into a corner, growling furiously at the cowering human. Shendu loomed over the man, reaching out a claw to snatch him up. In a last futile attempt to protect himself, Chan thrust out his arm reflexively –
Shendu cried out as he was thrown back across the room. The wind was knocked from his lungs. He felt wood splinter beneath and around him as his massive bed crumbled under his weight. He lay there a moment, completely dazed.
He came too a moment later. What was left of his bed was sticking into him in the most uncomfortable of places. He could hear familiar voices that immediately got his blood boiling.
"Dog makes you immortal; Ox makes you super strong," said the girl. "What else we got? Speedy rabbit, levitating rooster, invisible snake, and explosive dragon. Oooooooh. Good ones!"
So they stole more than one! How had the chi wizard devised such a plan as this? Shendu had thought he was illiterate! And they had practiced forbidden magic on him. His anger couldn't be contained. He growled loudly as he rose from the crushed bed, splinters of wood falling off of him, dust raining to the floor. His lips peeled back over gleaming fangs, his claws were brandished at the ready.
At least the girl had the decency to appear frightened. "Maybe we better not try for the other half dozen…"
They ran. Shendu unleashed a torrent of fire after them that burst through his door. He stood, heaving for a moment, trembling with rage. And then he mentally called to every dragon within the palace, summoning them to his aid.
He stormed into the hallway to find the three humans cornered between a pair of his dragons, a sack slung over Chan's shoulder. Shendu was so furious, he wanted to see their blood coating the walls in order to make him stop seeing red himself.
"Tear them apart!" he ordered the beasts.
"Uh-Oh," the girl squeaked.
The dragons rolled their shoulders, long tongues flickering out to taste the fear in the air. They growled loudly, as eager for the kill as their master. Shendu didn't care if Hsi Wu became upset that he'd killed his Other, the girl had just crossed him, and it was time to put her down once and for all. He was amazed that he'd let her live this long. But then, Shendu growled with shock as he saw her little jaw set in determination as her hand glowed. Using the speed of the rabbit, she suddenly vanished.
The dragons squawked in surprise, snapping their heads at where she'd just gone. They were obviously not used to their prey just zipping off. Before Shendu could even register where she'd gone, she was back in the same spot. And she wasn't alone.
His black heart suddenly leapt into his throat when he saw that Jade held Valerie's wrist in one hand. The woman was in her nightgown, her hair dishevelled, and her eyes wide as she looked around with astonishment.
"Levitation plus speed equals flight!" Jade smirked.
And suddenly, the rug that all four was standing on was flying into the air. The humans lay flat against it and clung to the edge in order to avoid falling off. Three adult screams sounded as the carpet flew down the hall. But none pierced Shendu's ears like the sound of Valerie's.
"Stop them!" he shouted.
The dragons immediately leapt after their target, beating their wings in order to soar after their prey as best they could in the confined space. They snapped their jaws at their heels, and tried to snatch them out of the air. Shendu ran along after them, almost helpless to do nothing but watch.
The carpet rounded the corner, and came to a –
"Dead end!" called the adults on the carpet.
"Dragon blast," said Jade. Using said talisman, she used a bolt of fire to make a huge hole explode through the wall ahead, allowing them to escape into the open air. Unable to fly, Shendu had to stop at the edge of the hole, watching with bated breath.
Now in the open, the dragons had the advantage as they could use their wings properly. They began to gain on them, and Shendu sent mental instructions to bring back Valerie alive and unharmed.
Suddenly there was a loud 'BOOM' as the sound-barrier was broken, and the carpet shot off into the dawning light. Shendu stood there, vengeful fury completely eclipsing him until he was shaking from the force of it.
"Centuries of history altered, you're very memory erased! And still, somehow you defy me?!" he hissed. "I shall find you, Chan. And I promise you, I shall erase more than your memory!"
"Valerie? Valerie!" he heard a man shout.
He turned in time to see the thin figure of Valerie's father stumble into the hallway, looking about frantically. When he saw Shendu, he quickly bowed low to the floor, face turning white.
"Were you in league with the conspirators, Lawson?!" Shendu demanded.
The man on the floor looked up at him. "No, sir! My daughter and I were sleeping when the doors burst open and Valerie was hurled out of bed. Please, where is she?"
"Gone," Shendu growled as he looked over his shoulder back at the gaping hole in his palace. "But I'm going to get her."
"Please sire, bring her back."
Shendu nodded. He stormed down the halls. He was satisfied believing that Lawson hadn't conspired with Chan to usurp him. One thing Shendu had always known he'd needed to do was have Valerie's father on his side. According to his artificial memories, it had taken some doing. Lawson was nothing if the embodiment of a valiant knight. In both the old reality and in this one, he fought for justice. But Shendu had found the great flaw in him: Valerie. Whilst John Lawson always held to his principals, they crumbled when faced with the fate of his daughter. Despite his too-good heart, he was not a stupid human. He hated the system, but he knew how it worked. It had taken time, but it was not so difficult for Shendu to carefully manipulate the man's feelings into believing that the best life for Valerie would be in his hands.
Bringing himself back to the present, Shendu stalked into Valerie's chambers. He quickly rifled through the huge wardrobe and plucked out a random robe. It was a personal item, but Shendu knew that concocting a locater spell would take time – time he did not have. But luckily for him, he had a much faster way of tracking down his bride.
As fast as he could, he marched down to the stables. There, he flung open the doors and brushed aside the slaves just getting up for the morning. He flung open the doors to Ryuu's stall and pulled the chain off of the dragon. Sensing his master's agitation, Ryuu rumbled as his tail thrashed through the hay behind him.
Shendu held up the robe to Ryuu's nose, his eyes glowing. "Find her."
Obediently, Ryuu leant forward and sniffed at the silk. A growling purr vibrated out of his chest as he brushed past his master and marched out of the stables. Shendu followed, summoning several other dragons. He jumped onto the back of one, holding its whiskers in his claws as reins. Ryuu leapt into the air and immediately began to soar in the direction that the carpet had fled. Shendu and his other dragons flanked him, and the hunt began.
"I'm slipping!" Valerie cried out not twenty seconds after the speed talisman had taken effect.
Before Jade could stop the super-speed, Valerie's hands lost their grip. With a scream she was flung off of the carpet and into the open air. The wind howled in her ears. Her hair was whipped into her face. Gravity pulled her down with a horrifying certainty. Valerie had never thought her heart could beat so fast, it felt like it would explode inside her.
But then the wind was knocked out of her lungs as she was caught by something. She rolled over, half expecting to wake up in her bed, but found herself back on the damned flying-carpet. Albeit, said carpet was now not going so terribly fast.
"Whoa Valerie, better learn to lose those butter fingers," Jade chuckled.
Valerie, however, did not quite see the funny side to this. "JADE CHAN! Put me down on the ground, NOW!"
The girl looked startled at the screaming woman, but Jackie hurriedly motioned for her to obey. To anyone, it was quite clear that Valerie was freaking out. In her mind, she had every right to, having been thrown out of bed and flung onto the back of flying carpet – defying all laws of reality in the process.
They landed in the woods below. Even in just those twenty seconds of super-speed, they had already travelled over a dozen miles. As soon as they touched the ground, Valerie all but jumped off and hugged a tree, grateful to be back on solid ground. This also gave the other two adults the perfect moment to round on the young girl.
"Why did you bring along that she-devil?!" Uncle practically thundered.
Jade blinked in surprise. "Wait–what?"
Jackie's scowl could've been a younger mirror-image of Uncle's. "Jade, that is Shendu's betrothed – you kidnapped her!"
"Err, yeah, duh."
"Foolish Jade!" Uncle screeched. "In taking her you have surely brought Shendu's wrath on us! He will have locator spells – and dragons – hunting us all right now. She will lead them right to us!"
"Well what was I supposed to do? Just leave her there? If Shendu marries Valerie, he'll bind her to him – you know, become all powerful and unstoppable? I can't let that happen!"
Jackie wrung his hands worriedly. "But Uncle is right, Jade. By doing this, you have only made things worse for us."
"Worse or not, Val's a friend. I don't leave my friends behind."
"I am?" Valerie voiced up in confusion.
Jade looked over at her with a sweet little smile. "Of course you are. And you're going to help us stop Shendu!"
"I am?"
"Yeah, I know you know that what Shendu's doing is wrong. Come with us. We have a plan to put the world back to normal, to stop these demons from hurting anyone else."
"How is that possible? The demons are too powerful."
"Well, we have these," the girl fished out a strange looking stone object from her pocket. A rabbit was etched into the surface. "They helped Jackie take down Shendu, and he doesn't even know martial arts."
Jackie also took out a talisman, this one with an ox on it. He stared in wonder at the object. "I did… perhaps Jade is right, Uncle. I am a hero. Maybe there is a chance to–OW!" he yelped as Uncle smacked him with two fingers.
"There is a big army of Ninja's waiting for us in no-man's-land!" the old man yelled sternly. "No magical trinkets will help us because we will be outnumbered!"
Jade nodded. "Uncle's right."
"He is?" Jackie asked. Valerie was thinking the same thing.
Jade grinned. "If we're gonna pull this off, we're gonna need more muscle – we're gonna need the J-Team!"
All three adults looked at her in confusion and asked in unison: "The what?"
"Uh!" Jade groaned, "did I mention how much I hate alternate dimensions?"
A loud roar shook the air. The entire group was so unprepared for it that they all shrieked as they threw themselves to the ground. Valerie looked up as the wing of dragon floated just past the clearing overhead. Never in her life had she been scared of the dragons before, for they guarded her and kept her safe. Now, though, she was utterly terrified.
"Dragons!" Uncle gasped.
The whole group shuffled to the shadow of the tree trunks. Together, they all peeked over the slight hill behind them, trying to see through the many trees of the woods. In the distance, Valerie could see more dragons on foot, with Shendu amongst them. Even from here, his red eyes were blazing. The dragon that he was following, was Ryuu. The brown dragon had his nose stuck in the air, nostrils twitching, his head shifting in their general direction.
Valerie hid back down out of sight. Her heart was pounding as she looked over at the humans beside her. It was only a matter of time before they were found. What was she going to do now?
"How did they find us so fast?" Jade asked, eyes wide with panic.
Uncle was rocking on his heels as he murmured to himself. "Oh! We are doomed!"
"How are we going to get out of here?" Jackie asked.
Jade pointed to their abandoned rug. "Back to the carpet! We can super-speed out of here, and turn ourselves invisible to make sure we aren't spotted."
"Dragons still have sensitive ears – will hear us!" Uncle whispered.
Jackie nodded. "We need a distraction."
Jade shook her head. "But what do we–"
"I'll go," Valerie blurted.
Everyone looked at her. "What?"
"Valerie?" Jade asked.
"I'll go," she repeated. She honestly didn't know what had come over her rational senses. Since when did she risk her life for strangers? But she remembered Jade's words and felt them strike something deep inside her. She didn't know why, but some instinct said to trust these people. "Your uncles are right, Jade, if you keep me with you, then Shendu will always be able to find me. At least on your own you have a chance."
"You would do this?" Jackie seemed honestly taken-aback that she would.
"Yes. I can distract him long enough for you to get away."
Uncle narrowed his eyes at her. "But why? I do not trust her!"
"Believe it or not, I don't want to see a little girl get torn to pieces. I want you to take Jade as far away from the demons as possible. Even if you have to go to no-mans-land itself. Just keep her safe."
Jackie appeared genuinely surprised. "I… thank you."
Jade however, didn't see it like the adults. "Val, you don't have to do this!"
Valerie tried to give her a brave smile, but knew she failed. "But we both know that I do."
The little girl tried to argue, but couldn't. Instead, she set her jaw and took hold of the woman's hand in hers. "I promise, I'll come back and get you. I won't let you marry that monster."
Valerie was about to say something, when she heard something shifting through the undergrowth not far away. Her stomach dropped and her heart was beating furiously as she pushed the girl in the direction of the carpet. "Go on, get going!"
The Chans wasted no time, and quickly ran for the carpet. Jade plucked a talisman from Uncle's pocket, and a light shone in her hand. A second later, they and the carpet vanished. Valerie had to blink to make sure she wasn't seeing things. But no, they had gone.
Shaking herself out of her stupor, she quickly picked herself up and ran into the trees. She made her path away from the clearing but to the side of Shendu's position, to draw him as far away from the possibility of detecting the Chan's as possible. She had surprised even herself with how much she meant the words she had spoken to Uncle.
She made sure to make as much noise as possible. Leaves crunched underfoot and twigs snapped as she passed them. Thorns shredded the bottom of her nightdress. She yelped when a splinter dug into her soft feet. Branches pulled at her hair.
Finally, she shouted at the top of her lungs: "Help! Someone! Please!"
The reaction was immediate.
She heard something smash through the undergrowth as a large creature chased after her. Instinctive adrenaline was dumped into her veins, spurring her that little faster in a fight or flight response. Heavy breath was just behind her, and she turned to face her pursuer.
A familiar dragon shape burst through the trees, dipping his head low to greet his mistress as his eyes met hers.
"Ryuu!" Valerie exclaimed.
Hearing her voice, and seeing her unharmed, the dragon chirped happily. His tongue darted out of his mouth to lick her face, and he nuzzled her roughly. Valerie threw her arms around his head, both to keep her balance and because she was actually happy to see him. It warmed her heart to see that her pet had obviously missed her so much.
"Valerie?!" thundered a voice from the trees where Ryuu had just come from.
She lifted her head up to look into the trees. "Shendu!"
His shadow was practically there in an instant. Ryuu moved himself behind his mistress, looking around them to be sure they were safe. Shendu broke through the trees. Valerie could instantly see that every muscle in his body was tensed and primed for battle, his breathing was laboured and his eyes were a storm. As soon as he caught sight of her he froze.
There was a heavy moment of tension, and she could feel his eyes looking over every inch of her. It was another moment before he seemed to sag, visibly relaxing, almost wobbling he looked so relieved. A second later he strode forward and snatched her up into his arms.
Valerie gasped, both because she was filled to the brim with their connected power, and because she was not expecting such an act from him. He'd never been so improper before. But she was actually… touched. He held her so delicately, as if she would break, but she could feel his tension and relief at finding her alive. A smile spread across her face, and she felt her eyes sting. She pressed herself against his chest, ignoring the uncomfortable swell of chi inside her, wrapping her arms around his shoulders as best she could with his massive size.
"You came for me…" she whispered, her heart fit to bursting.
But as for Shendu, he was a little out of sorts. Not even he knew what had come over him in picking her up and embracing her as he did. He'd just felt so filled with joy to see her alright, to be reunited with her at last. He'd feared the Chans doing all sorts of things to her, and it had honestly shaken him to the bone.
And yet, at her genuine emotion, right now, in his arms, he felt slightly odd. He could feel her happiness to be with him, so loved the way she was clinging to him, she was so oblivious to everything but him. She believed in him utterly. So why did he feel like someone had just impaled a rusting rod through his chest?
He leaned back to examine her again, noticing the way her attire was ruined from a run in the woods. He distracted himself by asking, "How did you escape?"
"They dropped their guard long enough for me to make a run for it." She looked sheepishly at the ground.
Shendu nodded, and looked over his shoulder at the other dragons that had followed him. "Search the perimeter. Find them. They can't be far." The dragons, except for Ryuu and his own steed, all but jumped to obey him. Shendu however, turned his eyes back to Valerie. He did not regret keeping her safe in his arms as he stood. "I'm taking you home."
He kept his hold on her for the entire journey back, cradling her in one arm whilst holding the whiskers of his dragon in the other, not letting go once. A fear whispered in his mind, that if he let her go, even for a second, she would be taken away from him again. They both endured their duelling chi's, even when it became uncomfortable. Valerie didn't seem to mind, she held onto him just as tightly. Ryuu followed them dutifully the entire journey.
When they arrived back at Shendu's palace, he barked out commands to his slaves to summon the healers. He could smell blood on Valerie, even such a small amount, it called to the blood in his own body. He wanted this treated as quickly as possible. If the Chans had hurt her purposefully, he would make them suffer a fate worse then death. With Valerie still in his arms he carried her back up through the fortress to her chambers. As soon as he walked through the door, her father emerged from his spot in the corner, and seemed to visibly crumble with relief at the sight of Valerie alive. Shendu didn't put Valerie down until he reached her bed, and only then, reluctantly, did he take his claws off of her. They both disguised a sigh as their power left them.
The healers came bustling into the room and checked Valerie over, every inch of her. He waited, constantly tensing, for the anxious ten minutes that they took, working as quickly yet thoroughly as they could. When they reported that all that was wrong with her was mere cuts on her feet, Shendu acted. He didn't want to wait for their useless remedies. The horse talisman was one of the six that the Chans hadn't taken from him, so he used it. With a mere touch, not only did he feel their power join, but he pushed the healing effects of the horse into Valerie's body. She sighed as the cuts on her feet closed over.
"All is well with Her Majesty, Emperor Shendu," one of the healers said with a deep bow.
"Good." Shendu nodded. He turned to one of the other slaves by the door. "Gather the dragons. I leave at once." The slave nodded and all but sprinted out of the room.
Valerie's head snapped up to look at him as he strolled towards the door. "Leave? Shendu? Where are you going?"
She sprang off of her bed and followed after him. Her flesh passed his in a ghost of a touch, but it was enough to make him pause and turn to face her.
"I have traitors to deal with."
"You're going after them?"
"Valerie, they kidnapped you. For all I know, they could've meant you harm. I cannot let that happen again. I don't want anyone to hurt you ever again." When she still seemed a little uneasy, he reached out and ran a claw through her hair. He had to make her believe he was the good-guy, and he used all of his sweet charm to pull it off. "Trust me, my dear, I'm going to do what is right to keep us safe."
"What are you going to do?"
"Don't worry. I'm simply going to find these traitors and take care of them."
"But, what about our wedding?"
"I won't miss it," he insisted, leaning down to look into her eyes. "I promise you, I'll be back before the sun sets. We'll have our wedding tonight. Nothing will get in the way of our happiness."
She nodded. Her voice was a husky whisper. "Then I'll hold you to that promise."
Before he could do anything, she leaned forward and pressed a kiss against his scaly lips. His eyes widened in shock, and they both stiffened at the current of energy that passed between them. But still, Valerie continued her tender kiss. He was socked speechless.
A second later, she broke the kiss and whispered, "Hurry back to me."
Shendu was only capable of nodding as he slowly straightened. Once again, he felt that pinch inside his chest, a wretched feeling like a rotting wound. She looked so innocently up at him, completely ignorant of his thoughts, of his plans, of everything he had done. A niggling doubt wormed its way into his mind. Would she still feel this way if it were in the previous reality? Was he right in what he had done to her? Did he deserve such devotion from such a lovely creature, wicked thing that he was?
But he shook his head, banishing such thoughts. He couldn't think on these things now, he had more pressing matters to attend to. And so, without a backward glance, he left.