-Chapter 270-

Dark Fire


Bamboo Backwoods Zone

As this was going on, Jian had taken Cinder to a safe spot.

"Alright, that should be far enough." She winced at the heat. " Kuso! Atsui.. (1)"

Jian took a breath before manifesting water, using it to cool herself and Cinder down.

"Cinder?" Jian nudged her carefully. "Cinder, are you okay?"

The little bird opened her eyes. "Oneechan…"

Jian smiled. "There you are." Her expression became serious. "What are you doing out here!? I thought I told you not to leave the safe house!"

Cinder winced. "I'm sorry… You said you would be back before the sun went down…" she began to tear up a little. "But you didn't… And I thought..."

Cinder hugs Jian, crying into the tigress' shoulder.

"Shhh… It's alright, Cinder," she soothed as she returned the hug. "I'm not angry, just worried."

Cinder sniffled. "The girl… She said you sent her. That she would bring me to you…"

"Just another one of Flare's stooges, Nothing more." Jian perked as she heard something, readying her bladed tail. "Drat...that must be them. Cinder, get behind me."

As Cinder did so, Jian glared out into the darkness.

"Not one step closer, ryu! Do you hear me!?" She got no response. "I know you're there! So hurry up and show yourself!"

What she got instead of an answer this time was a low, guttural moan. Jian's eyes widened in horror. "Oh no..."

"It's not them…" Cinder gasped. "It's…"

Jian looked up, seeing the sun was down. "No! We need to hide, now!"

She grabbed Cinder and they took off, only to hear more moaning.

"No, this way!" Jian headed another way, only to see shadowy figures shambling in the distance. "That's no good either."

"They're all around us…" Cinder whispered fearfully.

"No, there has to be a way." Jian looked around. "Think, Jian, think…" A clear route caught her eye, eliciting a grin as she grabbed Cinder and ran. "Come on, let's go!"

-X-

Meanwhile, Kat and the others were looking around for both Jian and Cinder.

"C'mon, they couldn't have gone far. Where-" Kat suddenly clutched her chest in pain, wincing.

"Aunt Kitty!" Kaen cried out as Kat dropped to her knees, gasping like a beached fish.

"Kaitian!" Dulcy cried.

"Kaitian, what's wrong!?" Bunker demanded. "Say something!"

Hurts... Kat let out.

"Shifu, what's wrong with her!?" Dulcy demanded.

"She's recovering from Qi Deviation, and she has yet to fully purge her Yin Energy. Something caused it to flare." Bunker perked. "Something dark..."

"Dammit, dammit, dammit!" They turned to see Jian and Cinder running toward them."Every way in this damn forest looks the same!"

"It's them," Bunker noted.

"YOU!" Dulcy roared, flame glowing behind her teeth.

Upon seeing the dragon, Jian skidded to a halt. "Dammit, not you!"

"What did you do to Kaitian, Raiju?!"

Jian held up her free hand. "I didn't do anything!"

"Liar!" Flames leaked from Dulcy's mouth. "I know this is your doing! You did something to her during your escape, just like you did all those people!"

"She's not… lying," Kat managed, wincing. "It's not... from them…"

Another low groan reached their ears, and everyone froze.

"No..." Jian gasped as something shambled through the bamboo.

"What is that?" Dulcy questioned.

"They're here… " Cinder gasped. "The Kongshi (2)..."

Flashback End


"The what now?" Sonic asked.

"Zombies," Kat answered. "Qi-drinking zombies. Really thirsty qi-drinking zombies."


Flashback

What emerged from the bamboo was a gray, clammy-skinned humanoid being with colorless eyes, groaning as it looked around absently.

By the Ancients… Bunker gasped.

"Well…" Kat wheezed, "I think… we know… where that corpse came from."

The Kongshi turned to the group, looking over them before its eyes fell on Kaen and Kat. Suddenly, the Kongshi let out an inhuman wail. Its teeth grew razor sharp, and its nails became sharp talons as its eyes glowed bright red. The corpse suddenly charged at them, moving much faster.

"Shit!" Jian cursed. "It's got a scent!"

Kat threw a hand up and fire spewed from it. The flames were tinged black and Chaos corruption crawled up her arm.

"GO!" she shouted.

Dulcy gaped in shock. "Kaitian, what are you–!?"

"Just do it!"

She forced herself to her feet and started running, the Kongshi giving chase, completely ignoring everyone else.

"That's right, you rotten bastard! Come and get me!" Kat blinked before sighing. "So this is what Sonic has to deal with whenever Badniks are in Priority One mode."

-X-

Meanwhile, the others were hiding, Cinder and Jian looking on in disbelief at what had just happened.

"She's... leading them away?" Cinder asked.

"That makes no sense!" Jian insisted. "Those things have been going after Cinder exclusively. Why the sudden change in target?"

"Cinder isn't the only one with exceptionally powerful qi," Dulcy explained.

"Speaking of..." Bunker turned to the pair. "It would appear that we have made a serious error in judgment."

Jian raised an eyebrow. "Is that so?

Bunker nodded. "We were told you kidnapped the Princess. However, it is clear that she is with you of her own volition, and that you share a connection beyond that of a captive and captor."

Cinder nodded.

"Then may I propose a truce, at least until I am able to rescue my student?"

Cinder thought for a moment, then nodded. "Alright."

"Cinder!" Jian objected.

"The kongshi are everywhere, Oneechan! And they're gonna get the human girl! The human girl who was nice to me, and who's already hurt!"

Jian winced. "...right." She took a deep breath. "Very well, let's get going."

-X-

Meanwhile, Kat stumbled through the bamboo forest.

"Damn… I haven't felt this tired since… Angel Island." she collapsed. "I think… I found something more horrifying than robots."

Suddenly, laughter greeted her ears. Dark, condescending laughter.

"What the…?"

Kat turned around to see the black tiger emerge from the forest, a look of smug arrogance on its face.

She scowled. "Oh, right… you again."

"Look at you… Wild Kat Winters, laid low so easily," the tiger mocked. "To think, this is the same girl whose very name inspired fear in all of Eggman's soldiers."

"Oh, so now you decide to speak to me." She groaned, planting her face in the dirt. "I liked you better when you just laughed at me."

"And I liked you better when you weren't such a pathetic, sniveling weakling."

"Shut up!" She turned back to face the tiger. "The only reason I'm weak is because of you! You took my strength from me!"

"And who's fault is that?" The tiger began to stalk around her in a menacing, mocking way. "You know all too well what I am, Kaitian. I may have killed your strength, but you are the reason I exist in the first place."

"You think I want to be like this? You think I enjoy having some stupid striped bastard in my head telling me I'm weak? I am not weak!"

"Keep telling yourself that, Winters. Keep telling yourself that…" The tiger perked. "Ahh, it would appear the zombies have caught up to you. That tends to happen when you waste your time shouting at a figment of your imagination instead of running away."

"Damn you." She tried to get up, but her body wouldn't respond. She coughed, ash coming out of her mouth, eliciting a laugh from the tiger.

"Honestly, if this is any indication, it's no wonder everyone says Mobius is doomed."

"Youuuuu..."

"Alright, alright, I'll leave you alone." And with that, the tiger began to vanish. "Enjoy being eaten alive!"

"Hey!" Kat shouted. "Get back here! I'm not done with you, you–!"

A low, hissing moan cut her off, causing her blood to run cold as the kongshi stumbled in… along with several others. They stopped, before slowly turning toward Kat, staring at her with their dull, lifeless eyes.

"Oh fugg..." Kat managed.

The Kongshi let out a soul-freezing shriek before rushing her. She curled up, gathering her fire to try and shield herself. Suddenly, several kunai struck the ground, conjuring ice walls to block them off.

"What the...!?"

"Aunt Kitty!"

Suddenly, Dulcy swooped in and grabbed Kat, Jian riding on her back to pull the girl to safety.

"Dulcy? Jian!?"

"Save your strength," the dragon said. "We're getting out of here."

Dulcy flew them all away. Kat looked down as the undead horde attempted to pursue them on the ground, only to find her vision blurring and her eyelids getting heavier, until she closed them, passing out.

-X-

Somewhere in the forest

When Kat came to, she found herself inside an underground enclave under the roots of an old tree. A bed mat and a bag of supplies lay in the corner. She looked around, seeing a familiar, red dragonling lying on her chest.

"Kaen?" she groaned.

"Aunt Kitty!"

"Shhh… quiet, Kaen!" Dulcy said quietly, holding a claw to her snout.

"You'll let the monsters know where we're hiding," Bunker added.

Kat turned to see Dulcy sitting next to her, with Bunker examining her as Jian sat off to the side with Cinder.

"Dulcy, Shizun, where are we?"

"Jian's safehouse," Dulcy replied. "They've been hiding here since they escaped Suzaku."

"Then… she's not our enemy?" Kat asked.

"That depends..." Jian and Cinder walked over to her.

"Jian..."

"Ningen."

"Kaitian," Kat corrected. "It's... Wang Kaitian. Thanks for…saving me."

Jian looked away. "I only did so for Cinder's sake."

"Oneechan..." the pheasant chided.

The tigress sighed. "And to repay you for saving us. Seriously, using yourself as bait against a horde of kongshi..."

"It was that... or let them hurt Kaen and Cinder. Fugg that noise."

Bunker cleared her throat, grabbing everyone's attention. "Kaitian's language aside, we were not about to allow those creatures to claim more innocent lives. Which reminds me..." she finished looking over Kat. "It would appear that there is more to this story than we were led to believe."

"Yeah. We thought you kidnapped Cinder

"Well, she did," Cinder explained. "But, only because I asked her to."

The others perked at that.

"B-But Jian is a Raiju," Dulcy stammered. "Weren't they trying to kill you and your siblings?"

"Who do you think hired us in the first place?" Jian asked.

Dulcy's eyes widened in horror. "Wait… you're kidding."

"Do I look like I'm kidding, ryu ?" Jian replied venomously. "You've been to Suzaku. Met with Flare and Ember. Are you seriously telling me you didn't notice anything wrong with them? Like their haughty, condescending attitudes and complete disregard for anything other than their own power? I'm not surprised."

Dulcy growled until Kat threw a small rock at her head.

"Stop it, both of you!"

"Indeed," Bunker chimed in. "Or do you want the Kongshi to find us?

The dragon and tiger winced.

Bunker smiled. "Good." she turned to Jian. "Now, continue."

Jian nodded. "Several weeks ago, my clan received a scroll bearing the seal of the Suzaku Kingdom. The sender wished to hire us to assassinate the royal family. My partners and I took the job, of course, and split up between the three royals, intending to murder them while they slept." she winced. "I... was assigned Cinder."

She shook her head.

"At first, I didn't question my orders. I've killed countless nobles in the past, this was no different. That said, I like to think I have at least some semblance of a soul. So, when I found that my target was a child..." she shuddered as she gripped her arm. "I... couldn't go through with it." He took a breath to calm herself. "I was prepared to abandon the mission and flee, but then she woke up and begged me to take her with me."

Kat blinked. "You what? You wanted to be kidnapped?"

Cinder nodded. "I was already planning on running away. I had been squirreling away food, coin, everything I needed. I was just waiting for a chance, and I took it."

"But why did you want to run away from home?"

"Because I HATED it there!" Cinder screamed, everyone recoiling. "My home, Suzaku, used to be a huge kingdom, and my family used to rule it. But over time, we lost more and more land, until all we were left with was this little city and a few fields and forests." she looked down at her hands, which began glowing with a warm light. "But my family believes that one day, a child will be born with incredible power. And with it, they will be able to return Suzaku to its former glory."

"That child being you…" Dulcy said, getting a nod from the pheasant.

"Considering what she did when she saw you hurting Jian..." Bunker recalled.

"Yeah," Kat said. "I doubt even I could pull that off, especially not now…"

Cinder looked down at her corrupted arm and walked forward. She held her hands out, using her powers to bathe the blackened limb in a shower of warm light. As soon as the light touched Kat's arm, the corruption vanished, along with all pain and fatigue.

Kat sighed in relief. "Thanks, I... needed that."

Cinder nodded, before frowning in concern. "You have a lot of Yin Energy in you."

"I know, I'm... working on it."

"I can stop it from hurting you, but I can't make it go away."

"Yeah, it's my problem to fix, not yours."

Dulcy thought for a moment, before turning to Cinder. "Cinder, you said that you hated living with your family."

"I do," she replied. "They want to use me as a tool. A Vessel for Suzaku's Flame so that we could reclaim our kingdom."

"Suzaku's Flame?" Kat asked.

"Our family's sacred treasure, a stone said to be an unlimited reservoir of pure Fire qi. Otousama (3) said that it had been stolen by the dragons during the days of the old kingdoms. And Flare says with its power, we would be unstoppable."

Bunker grimaced. "Indeed it could be, and your power is certainly great. But, you are far too young to house such things."

Cinder lowered her head in shame. "I know… Maybe if I could, Ember wouldn't hate me so much."

"Because you're too young?" Kat asked. "Or because she has to wait for you to hold the power"

Cinder shook her head. "Because I have it. I was born with the power of the phoenix, even though I'm the youngest. And she's always resented me for it."

"She's jealous of you…" Kat's eyes perked. "If that's the case, then…"

Dulcy looked on in horror. "Kaitian, you don't think…"

"A princess with a younger sibling born with more power than them, Dulcy," Kat pointed out. "It's a classic Wuxia inheritance dispute."

"But…she was nice when we met her!"

"Yeah, she's good at that," Cinder explained.

"The scroll containing our mission didn't mention who the client was," Jian began. "But, I've met with Ember in the past, and she's… " she paused for a minute to think of the word. "Ambitious. Honestly, she's so ambitious, you can smell it."

"I see…" Bunker nodded in understanding. "She wants the Phoenix's power for herself, and from what we saw at the village, she's after Flare's throne as well."

"Mean birdie!" Kaen declared.

"Yeah…" Kat scowled. "Very mean–" she froze. "Shit, Yukiko! She's back at the palace! She's right where Ember can get her! We have to save her!"

She tried to get up, only for Jian to push her right back down again.

"Are you crazy!?" she demanded. "We'll never get past all those monsters!"

"Yes, you will," Kat stated. "Because I'm going to lead them away."

Everyone is frozen in horror at Kat's declaration.

"Kaitian, you can't be serious!" Dulcy whispered frantically.

"I'm the only other person with strong enough qi, Dulcy. It has to be me."

"At least let me or Shifu come with you! We can–"
"No!" she took a breath. "Listen, I'm dead weight, I'll only slow you down. Besides, you need to protect Kaen."

"Aunt Kitty..." the young dragon said nervously.

"I'll be okay, Kaen." Kat gently patted him on the head. "I promise. This isn't the first time I've narrowly escaped a horde of hunters trying to kill me." She chuckled, then winced. "Just... keep everyone safe. Please?"

Kaen let out a soft whine but nodded in acceptance. And with that, Kat headed out.

"Come on," Dulcy said. "Let's get going."

The quintet waited until the Kongshi had left. Afterward, Bunker and Cinder hopped onto Dulcy and Kaen's backs; Jian riding with the older dragon.

"Next stop, Suzaku Castle!"

With that, the two dragons took flight.

Flashback End


"Okay, I know I've asked this a thousand times, but are you crazy!? " Knuckles asked vehemently.

"Let's see," Kat mused. "Jumped a Dark Chaos creature, threw myself off buildings, literally fought gods…"

"That's not the point! You played decoy against a horde of zombies!"

"Yes I did, and I'd do it again!"

"You… And you all… I..."

Sally put a hand on Knuckles' shoulder. "Knuckles, settle down."

"But Sally–!"

"I know, I'm upset as well." She turned to the Shijin Warriors. "But I'm more upset that none of you tried to stop her."

"Yes, it was far from ideal," Bunker admitted. "None of us were happy with it, but we had no choice."

"Hang on, what about Yukiko?" Tails asked. "What happened to her?"

"Oh, of course," Bunker recalled. "Well, while we were dealing with the Kongshi, she was neck deep in research, research that bore fruit."


Suzaku Royal Archives

Yukiko was doing her best to look over Kat's phone for research, but couldn't seem to get the hang of it or get a signal. Finally, she lost her patience, setting the phone aside.

"These contraptions were definitely cooked up by a bored warlock or something…" she huffed before turning to a sizable stack of books. "I prefer the old ways of research, anyway."

She grabbed one, opening it.

"Interesting. It seems Princess Flare is interested in qi cultivation." She began flipping through the book, and as she did, she noticed several pages had several scribbles and notes in the margins, while a few sentences had been underlined.

" Very interested," she said with a grimace.

She continued perusing through the stack, each time, finding more and more notes and scribbles in each book. Then, at around the twelfth book, she flipped through the pages and came across a chapter whose intro page was practically covered in notes.

"What's this?" She looked at the title. "'Monsters of Qi'?"

She resumed turning the pages. Most of the pages were left untouched. Then, at about halfway through, she found something: a page with a picture of a creature with the word "Kongshi" written next to it. The image showed a beast with pale skin and long, claw-like nails, arms outstretched and donned in old Chun-ese robes. Yukiko's eyes widened, both at the sight of such a horrible creature, and the fact that its page was covered with scribbled notes.

"By the Light of Gaia…" Yukiko uttered in shock. "The Chun-ese hopping vampire... I should have known." She turned the page and began reading.

"Summoned to serve as vessels for their masters, these living corpses seek out and drain the qi of their victims, becoming savage killing machines to hunt them down." That last part made her perk. "Kaitian... Bunker-sama… They're in danger!"

"I'd worry more about myself if I were you."

Yukiko spun around, seeing Ember enter with several guards flanking her.

"Lady Ember... you're behind this?!"

"I don't need to explain myself to a filthy barbarian," Ember spat. "Sadly, you don't possess the right qi."

"All of those innocent souls…" Yukiko clenched her fists. "You monster!"

"Remember your place, Yukiko!" Ember snapped. "You are in the presence of a princess of Suzaku, and you will show me the proper respect I deserve!"

Yukiko grabbed her bow. "I'm about to."

"Kill her!" Ember shrieked. "Do not let her leave this palace alive!"

Yukiko found herself surrounded

"Just give in, Overlander!" One of the guards jeered. "You're surrounded and the doors are locked!"

Yukiko chuckled at that. "Yes, but I'm not locked in here with you…"

The tip of her arrow began to glow with qi.

" You're locked in here with me."

Flashback Ends


"To put it simply, she escaped, in a rather violent and spectacular fashion," Bunker said. "We reunited just outside Suzaku territory."


Flashback

Bamboo Backwoods Zone

Bunker and Yukiko met up, Bunker's eyes widening to see the miko bearing several bruises and cuts.

"Yukiko, you're hurt…" the tortoise said in concern.

"It's nothing serious," Yukiko insisted before looking around. "Where is Kaitian?"

"She… she drew the Kongshi away from us," Dulcy replied.

"Damn it all... I'm too late," Yukiko looked them in the eyes. "Lady Ember is behind the Kongshi and the disappearances. She and her thugs jumped me in the library."

"No…" Cinder gasped. "Ember, why?"

"She said that I had the 'wrong qi'."

"Because she needs Fire Qi."

Yukiko nodded. "Then we need to find Kaitian before she does."

"Aunt Kitty!" They turned to see Kaen holding Kat's headband.

"We're too late!" Dulcy cried.

"We need to get back to the palace," Jian insisted.

"Yes... let's."

Flashback End


"Wait.. you got captured?" Keith questioned.

Kat nodded morosely, grimacing at the memory. "I collapsed from pain in less than an hour. And when I woke up..."


Flashback

Suzaku Palace Dungeons

Kat slowly woke up, honestly surprised that she was able to. She half-expected not to ever again, but she set that aside to focus on the present.

"Ugh… Okay…" She groaned a bit, sitting up and quietly taking stock of her situation. She was in a dark cell that seemed to be carved into thick, solid stone. There were bars set into the wall, and as she got up, she found herself wearing flimsy, rusty chains, which she easily snapped.

"Okay, strength's there." She put a hand to her stomach. "Still a lot of Yin, but manageable, meaning I was purified like what Cinder did. So they need me alive… for now."

She approached the door, seeing a single guard asleep outside.

"Just one guard..." She looked at the bars, grimacing. "I tear my way through, he wakes up, and it's more than one..." She spotted a ring of keys on his belt. "That'll do."

She tore the bandages off her arm, using them to muffle the hinges before slowly reaching through the bars and snagging the keys. She tried a few, then found the right one.

Yes! She let out under her breath. Opening the door slowly, she carefully slipped out, looking left and right before tip-toeing away.

"What is this place? Clearly some sort of underground dungeon, or... hideout?"

She perked, ducking around the corner as she heard two guards approach, talking amongst themselves.

"I still say it's a bad idea. That ningen's qi is powerful, sure, but it's tainted.

"Regardless, Ember-hime has commanded us to claim it. She has more than enough for that bastard..."

"Shhhhh!" the first guard hissed. "What if he hears you!?"

"He?" Kat mouthed to herself.

"Regardless, we have our orders," said the second guard. "Let's go pick up the brat so we can drain her."

The first guard sighed. "Alright."

As they walked off, Kat scoffed. "Drain me… Yeah, been there, done that, got the nightmares. I'll pass. Still, who's this 'he'? Flare, maybe?"

She perked, sensing a massive amount of fire qi.

"Whoa… that's a lot." she focused, pinpointing the signature. "This way..."

As she followed the signature, she talked to herself.

"So... the victims are being drained… and from the amount of qi in the air, they were Cauldrons as I thought… but to take so much… Who could handle this much Fire Qi?"

Kat stopped short as she heard low, labored breathing, along with the sound of machinery (4).

"Machinery… In Suzaku? That... makes no sense…"

Kat kept walking before noticing a door, a sign labeled "Recovery" in Ryuese over it. The breathing was coming from behind it.

"Please be a victim," she prayed, crossing her fingers. "Please be a victim…"

She slowly creaked open the door to find it was completely dark. All she could hear was the breathing. Tentatively, she summoned a small flame to her hand, grimacing as it turned dark red. As corruption crawled along her fingers, Kat immediately clenched her fist, snuffing the flame out.

"Damn Yin energy…" she cursed.

"What's this?" came an electronically-distorted voice, Kat jumping out of her skin with a yelp. "That smell… It smells like...fire… Sweet… beautiful… fire… But, it's wrong… It feels...tainted… Corrupt… And this smell… You aren't a pheasant..."

"Who are you?" Kat demanded. "Show yourself!"

"That voice… A child… Come closer… Let me get a good look at you..."

Alarm bells were going off in her head, her instincts screaming to run.

"Who… who are you? What are you doing down here? Are you a Cauldron too?"

Suddenly, Kat was shoved into the room by something, landing with a heavy thud.

"Ow… What the hell?!"

"Hold on… I know you..." The being paused for a moment before chuckling darkly, the hairs on the back of Kat's neck standing on end as it broke into full-on maniacal laughter. "Ohhhh… Isn't this perfect? I sensed a powerful source of fire qi enter the city. But I never expected it to be you… Kathryn Winters. "

Kat froze. "How do you know that name? I've gone exclusively by Wang Kaitian since I got here…"

"You don't remember me? I suppose I shouldn't be surprised. Here..." The being raised a hand. "Let me jog your memory..."

He snapped his fingers, causing a tiny flame to appear. The flame revealed only his face. The face...of a red dragon. Kat recoiled at the sight.

"YOU!"

"Hello...human..." Zan wheezed out, grinning evilly.


Author's Note:

(1): Japanese for "Crap! Hot!"

(2): Literally translates to Empty Corpse

(3): Formal way of saying Father in Japanese

(4): Darth Vader's breathing, more or less.

Gasp! Zan?! Say it ain't so!

Next chapter will be the conclusion of this arc. Stay tuned…

Please R&R. Until next time!