Dark Serpent

by Kylie Chan

  ‘We don’t have a choice. He was ordered by the Jade Emperor.’

  He sagged in his seat. ‘Well, shit.’

  ‘But any information you have on the mythology and what could possibly have happened to the Shen over there is most welcome.’

  He grabbed a small pile of USB memory sticks to the side of his desk. ‘Western mythology — all the resources I’ve recently gathered. Some of this stuff is from overseas libraries. I tried to talk to their version of the Archives but couldn’t find one. I couldn’t find any Shen at all. Until about two thousand years ago, their Shen were active on the Earthly, causing the usual trouble that nature spirits will, then they disappeared. From the looks of it, they had a battle in their Heaven, and one god took over both Heaven and Hell and threw everybody else out.’

  ‘According to their own mythology, God and his most trusted advisor had a battle. God stayed in Heaven, and the advisor or Shen or whatever took over Hell.’

  ‘I know that’s the general understanding of the situation,’ he said, ‘but if you do more research into the nature of this Satan thing, it becomes even more disturbing. It appears that it’s a serpent Shen that taught their people about free will and enlightenment — hell, its name is Lucifer, which means Light. The other god didn’t want humanity to have any sort of knowledge or free will so demonised it as punishment. You’re a serpent yourself, you know you’re not inherently evil.’ He touched the pile of USBs. ‘But this god labels all women, all snakes, all things with a reasonable amount of intelligence and scientific curiosity as evil. It’s all in here. Check my summary.’

  ‘Could the rest of the Shen be in exile on the Earthly?’

  ‘That’s a distinct possibility. I don’t know what the result would be if Shen were locked out of Heaven for such a long time. You saw what happened to Lord Xuan; they could have reverted to mindless nature spirits.’

  ‘What about the Buddhas of the West — wouldn’t they have stopped something as bad as this?’

  ‘Buddhas cannot intervene on the lower Planes; they can only guide, advise and comfort. If something of that magnitude happened, they’d retreat to the Heaven of Perfection and Enlightenment and mourn.’

  ‘I really don’t think it’s as bad as you say.’

  ‘I hope you’re right.’

  I gestured towards the USBs. ‘Anything on Atlantis there?’

  He stared at me. ‘Atlantis? You have to be joking. That never existed, it’s a myth.’

  ‘According to modern archaeological theory, yes, but so is the Chinese god of the sea, the Xuan Wu. The Western god of the sea gave Atlantis to his sons to rule on Earth with their human wives. Anything on Nephilim, the evil children of angel/human pairings in the West?’

  ‘That really is grasping at straws. There’s nothing anywhere on Nephilim. I looked them up when one was the main boss for that Tomb Raider game fifteen years ago.’ His expression cleared. ‘I see where you’re going with this. Powerful Shen having half-Shen children, and their children going bad.’

  ‘It’s happened before.’

  ‘Where? I know nothing of this.’

  ‘Just take my word for it, it has.’

  His eyes burned into me. ‘What happened?’

  ‘I won’t betray the trust given to me.’

  ‘I see. Then it’s obvious which powerful god is involved. I can understand him not wanting to share if one of his children went bad; they’re nearly as powerful as he is.’ He spread his hands. ‘If I find anything on Nephilim I’ll let you know, but so far I have nothing.’

  I picked up the memory sticks and rose. ‘Thanks for your help, Archivist.’

  He nodded to me. ‘Just stay safe, dear. I hate to think what would happen if the Dark Lord were to lose you. We need him more than anything.’

  The stone broke in. ‘I say exactly the same thing all the time, Archivist.’

  ‘Keep her safe, old friend.’

  ‘Don’t worry, I will.’

  7

  I leaned on the doorway as Edwin changed John’s dressings the next morning.

  ‘You don’t need me’ I said. ‘I can’t contribute to the court cases, I just sit there.’

  ‘I need your brains. I’m only half what I could be, and there are some cases that aren’t related to the Jade Emperor’s limitations on you.’

  ‘If they’re not related to the management of the Mountain or the Northern Heavens, then you shouldn’t be hearing them.’

  Edwin patted John on the arm to indicate that he was done, and John hopped off the bed and conjured his black robe.

  ‘One of them is Freddo’s father. He’s requested a hearing.’

  I pushed myself off the doorway, and John went past me and out into the courtyard outside the new infirmary. A young Japanese maple tree had been planted in the middle of the freshly sown lawn and it was already showing the first signs of the autumn colour change.

  ‘Why are you wasting your time listening to a tame demon?’ I said, following John towards the main square. ‘I doubt he has anything important to say.’

  We arrived at the square, where his mounted escort waited, flanked by two black dragons and holding a saddled horse for him.

  ‘Because his owner says we should listen to him.’

  I hurried to catch up with his long-legged stride. ‘Mr Ling loves him; this stallion’s the best horse he’s ever owned.’

  ‘So we will ensure that the demon receives a full and fair hearing. Then we will destroy it.’

  ‘Very funny,’ I said, standing back as he mounted his horse.

  He gathered the reins and raised his voice. ‘Proceed.’

  ‘See you there,’ I said.

  I walked to the back of the entourage and took my place on foot with the most junior servants bringing up the rear. I admired John as he rode, tall and proud, towards the centre of the court, then disappeared. We followed behind him, until the world changed around my group and we were in the great court of the Palace of the Northern Heavens.

  John’s son Martin and Martin’s older sister, Yue Gui, waited at the front of the Hall of Dark Justice with a small entourage. They both wore Tang-style floating silk robes in the black of the House of the North, and Yue’s long hair was bound with black pearls and silver ornaments that glittered as she moved. They prostrated themselves in front of John as he dismounted, chanted the greeting, then rose again.

  Martin began the formal welcoming speech. ‘The Palace of the Northern Heavens greets its master —’

  John waved him down. ‘Skip the bullshit, I have better things to do. Let’s get this over with.’

  He strode past them and ran up the steps two at a time. Martin and Yue shared a glance full of exasperated humour, and ran after him. John’s entourage hurried to follow, but Firebrand, one of the administrators, stopped us.

  ‘The Dark Lord is heading straight to the audience chamber to review the affidavits. Those of you who are on his personal staff are welcome to attend the residences.’ He bowed to us all. ‘This way.’

  I hesitated, unsure of my role in this.

  Stop dithering and get in here, woman, John said into my head. I need you!

  I stomped up the stairs, grumbling under my breath. ‘I am not letting him goad me into another full-on training session; I’m still stiff from the last one.’

  ‘What did he say?’ Firebrand said, still guiding the staff towards the residences.

  ‘Oh, he thinks that if he throws enough obnoxious sexist rubbish at me I’ll call him out, and then I’m to blame for all the injuries.’

  ‘He should never cause you injury, Emma, he is way too good for that,’ Firebrand said with concern.

  I turned halfway up the stairs to speak to him. ‘He’s the one who’s lost a couple of fingers and needed stitches protecting me from my own ineptness.’

  When you have finished catching up on all the palace gossip, I would love to hear your opinion on this, John said into my head. But make sure you share all the juiciest
bits later.

  ‘He needs me, and you have stuff to do,’ I said, and we shared a wave and headed in our separate directions.

  I went into the Hall of Dark Justice and walked unnoticed past the guards at the double doors to the hearing room. As a servant, I was beneath their attention.

  John was sitting at his desk on the dais in Celestial Form, glaring down at the demon stallion, who was standing next to his owner, Mr Ling. Freddo’s father was much bigger than Freddo was; he must have been more than seventeen hands — as big as a carthorse but with the shape of a thoroughbred. His coat was unkempt and his ribs showed; he hadn’t been eating well.

  Lily, one of the administrators, gestured for me to join her at the desk at the base of the dais, and I sat next to her.

  ‘This may not work, demon,’ John said, his expression severe. ‘What will we do with you then?’

  ‘Let me try,’ the horse said.

  I jumped. He sounded almost exactly like Freddo, just with a slightly deeper voice.

  ‘Run and I will destroy you,’ John said.

  The horse inhaled deeply, then whinnied so loudly that the clerestory windows high on the pagoda-like roof rattled.

  Nothing happened.

  John waved at the horse’s owner. ‘Take —’

  The stallion called again, even louder, and another horse, Freddo’s mother, popped into existence next to him. She was wearing a halter for leading, with an anti-rearing ring bit on it and the lead rope dangling. Everybody started talking at once, and Lily jumped up and ran to grab the mare’s lead rope. The stallion’s face was full of smug triumph; the mare looked around, obviously confused.

  ‘Quiet!’ John roared, and there was silence.

  He rose from his chair behind the desk, flicked his robe as he turned, and stalked down the stairs towards the horses. The mare visibly quailed as he approached her. He put his hand on her head and she broke out into a trembling sweat, dancing on the spot with distress.

  John spun and put his other hand on the stallion’s head. The demon horse stood placidly waiting.

  John dropped his hands, turned and strode back up the steps with his hands behind his back. He lowered himself to sit, and gazed at the papers on his desk for a long time.

  Eventually he spoke. ‘Wait here.’ He disappeared.

  The courtroom broke out into loud discussion again. I rose and went to Lily, who was standing between the horses.

  ‘What’s this all about? I missed the first part.’ I nodded towards the mare. ‘How was she able to do that?’

  ‘I kept trying to tell everybody, but nobody would believe me, everybody saw her as a natural horse,’ the stallion said. ‘She came to me. I never broke into her stable, she broke into mine. She’s a demon, and I thought she’d come if I called her. I was right.’

  ‘John should have picked her straight away then,’ I said, turning back to look at his desk.

  ‘He had to,’ Lily said. ‘That’s the one thing we can rely on: his ability to pick them.’

  ‘He’d never seen that mare before. It hid its nature so well I don’t think anybody else saw it,’ the stallion said.

  ‘I am more impressed with you all the time, Lobster,’ Mr Ling said. ‘I should have listened to you when you said you didn’t break out, but I believed Toi when she said you were there.’

  The stallion dropped his head. ‘I thank you, my Lord.’

  ‘Lobster?’ I said.

  ‘He’s gold and precious, like the finest lobster,’ Mr Ling said.

  ‘Lobster isn’t gold,’ I said, confused.

  ‘Red, gold, same thing.’ He nodded towards the dais. ‘The Emperor has returned.’

  John was standing behind the desk. He picked up a wooden block and slammed it on the table, silencing everybody. He came down the stairs again and stood in front of Freddo’s father.

  ‘I went to Miss Toi’s residence and she has left the Celestial Plane,’ John said. ‘Her residence is deserted, her demons destroyed, and all her horses are gone. It looks like nobody’s been there for a while. Can you speak, demon?’ he said to the mare.

  The mare just stared at its surroundings, uncomprehending.

  ‘Low level, almost a natural animal,’ John said. ‘Probably half-demon. It was the only thing Toi took with her when she left. She obviously didn’t have a good enough hold on it and it escaped here. Would you keep this one until I decide what to do with it, Ling?’

  ‘I would be honoured.’

  ‘The answer to your question is yes, you may put your stallion to her and get her in foal again while you hold her. And yes, the foal would be yours.’

  Ling bowed to John, grinning. ‘I thank you, my Lord, for answering the question before I even asked it.’

  John dropped his voice to speak to Lily and me. ‘This explains why Freddo had so many issues. He is three-quarters demon and inherited their oversexed nature.’

  ‘Why did Miss Toi do something like this?’ Lily said. ‘She gave up everything she had on the Celestial Plane — what did she get in return?’

  ‘She won every competition when she rode that horse,’ John said. ‘She did it for the prestige of being the most successful equestrian on the Earthly and Heavenly Planes combined.’ He gestured dismissively towards the mare. ‘It’s probably more than half-demon and stronger than a natural horse, but because of its nature it’s undetectable to anyone but me. She cheated every time she competed on it.’

  He strode back up the dais, sat at his desk and scribbled some notes. ‘I hope Toi finds the prestige worth the price, because she is to be marked as Fallen from the Celestial and her entrance to the Heavenly Plane is hereby revoked. The horse is confiscated and is to be held by Mr Ling at the convenience of the court.’ He glared around at those present. ‘Clear this courtroom; the demon mare and Miss Donahoe are to stay. Emma, hold the horse. Lily, summon Number One and Number Two, set up a conference table and bring tea.’

  After everyone had gone, John changed to human form, came down from the dais and sat at the table. Lily poured the tea. He glanced at her, she bowed and went out. John sat and waited, his expression grim as he stared at the table, occasionally sipping his tea. I held the mare, who lifted and dropped one foot occasionally but otherwise was well-behaved.

  Martin and Yue Gui entered, saluted John by quickly shaking their hands in front of their faces, and sat. Martin poured tea for them.

  John ran one hand over his face. ‘Of the other three Winds, only the Phoenix is able to come. The Tiger and Dragon have sent their Number Ones. I can see why Toi was willing to risk having this thing in her residence.’ He glanced at Martin. ‘Is that a horse or a demon?’

  Martin looked at the mare, then back at his father and said with confidence, ‘Natural horse.’

  I made a soft sound of distress despite myself and Martin and Yue both glanced at me.

  John eyed his teacup. ‘Go up and touch it, and tell me that again.’

  Martin rose and went to the horse, which watched him placidly. He stroked its nose and it rubbed its head on his hand.

  ‘Is it a demon hybrid?’ Martin said. He peered into its eyes. ‘Now that I can see inside, it looks different somehow, but I’ve never seen anything like it before. I definitely don’t see it as demon, though.’

  I ran my free hand through my hair. It was still short and thin, but at least it wasn’t falling out any more.

  ‘I see it as completely natural,’ Yue Gui said. She rose and put her hand on the horse’s neck, then shook her head. ‘Still completely natural.’

  There was a tap on the door and the Phoenix, in her red robes, entered. Michael came in as well, in the white uniform of a Horseman, accompanied by another strongly built white-haired Horseman — the Tiger’s Number Two. They saluted John and stopped at the end of the table. John rose to greet them. He and the Phoenix formally nodded to each other, and he accepted the salutes of the Horsemen. Everybody ignored me.

  John gestured towards the horse. ‘Ah Que,
do you see that as demon in any way?’

  Zhu Que studied the horse, then went to it and put her hand on its neck. Martin and Yue Gui moved back to give her room.

  ‘I’ve never seen anything like this before,’ she said with interest. ‘I don’t see it as demon, though, I see it as a natural horse, just with something slightly different about it.’ She turned to John. ‘Sometimes I am very glad we have your abilities, Ah Wu. I’m sure you are able to see its demon nature from very far away.’

  John waved the Horsemen forward. ‘Come and see what you think.’

  Zhu Que patted me on the shoulder as she went past to the table. She picked up a teacup and filled it from the pot, then watched Michael with interest over the rim of her cup as he and the other Horseman inspected the mare.

  ‘This is a demon hybrid?’ Michael said. ‘I can’t pick it. Rohan?’

  The other Horseman shook his head. ‘Can’t see it.’ He ran his hand down the horse’s neck. ‘I know this one — this is Toi’s mare. She boasted that she won so many ribbons on this horse that she had to build a special room to hold them. Cheating dragon bitch.’

  ‘It’s a part of our nature,’ the Dragon’s Number One son said with good humour as he approached us. He fell to one knee and saluted John and the Phoenix. He wore wide grey pants with a pale blue kimono over the top: the dress of a traditional samurai. His electric blue hair was held in a topknot and fell down to his waist, strands of gold shimmering through it. He stopped to clasp Michael’s hand and thumped him on the back; then did the same with Rohan, the other Horseman. He nodded to Martin and Yue Gui, then studied the mare, gazing into its eyes. ‘And you say this is half-demon?’

  ‘At least half, could be more,’ John said.

  The dragon came to the table and poured himself some tea, then turned to study the horse again as he sipped from the cup. ‘Dad’ll lay eggs.’

  ‘How far away can you detect it, Ah Wu?’ the Phoenix said.

  John glowered at his teacup. ‘I don’t see it as demon unless I touch it. Even then, as you say, it is something completely different. It doesn’t seem to be demon at all.’