Liu plucked a lock of hair from her head and tied it around the end of a chopstick. Sun took a small piece of rice paper that had been hidden in a secret pocket on the inside of her sleeve.
“That’s the paper and brush, but what are you going to do for ink?” Liu asked.
The Steel Shadow pulled out one of her ornate hair pins and pricked her finger. “There’s always ink, child,” she said, sliding the pin back into her hair. Sun took the chopstick, swiped the makeshift brush over her bloody finger and daubed a character Liu didn’t recognise onto the paper.
Liu watched intently, for this was the first time she saw magic done.
Sun stood up and turned her back on her companions, murmuring unheard words. Then she flung the paper through the bars of the cage. It landed in a brazier, and was incinerated amid the red-hot coals.
“It won’t take long,” the sorceress said. “Be ready.”
Guan Shi got to his feet and held out the end of the rope that had bound Liu’s hood. “Tie this around your wrist.”
She eyed the rope like a deer staring at a rock floating downstream and wondering if it were a crocodile. “Are you sure this is necessary?”
“How can you doubt big brother?” Guan Song asked. “How can someone with that much grey in his moustache be other than wise?”
“Fine.” Liu tied the rope around her wrist, over her sleeve to avoid chafing her sore skin.
“It’s coming. Time to show us your strength, Jade Lion,” Sun said.
Guan Song smashed his boot against the lock, and the iron buckled beneath his power. The door swung open, and black fog swirled down. Sun grasped his hand just before the darkness was all-encompassing.
Liu had been told what would happen, but could barely see her own hands. It was as if she had fallen into a giant inkwell. The sound of guards shouting in panic was all around.
“Come on, Liu. It won’t last long,” Guan Shi told her.
Roaming Tiger ran from the cage, and she followed as best she could, feet pounding unseen ground.
“I can’t see a frigging thing!” she complained.
“The prisoners!” a guard behind shouted.
Men screamed as the soldiers attacked one another in the confusion.
“Use your ears, not your eyes,” Guan Shi advised, slowing to a jog.
Footsteps ran this way and that, one pair chasing her. Liu thrust out a foot and caught a guard, who fell to the ground with a cry. Ears pricked, she sidestepped and felt the rope cut.
“Vile sorcery can’t save you, criminal scum!” a soldier shouted, his words giving away his position.
Liu danced to one side and felt the rush of air as he lunged with his spear. She grabbed the weapon and pulled him towards her. Her foot met his groin and he collapsed to the ground, clutching his bruised plums.
“Liu, it’s me,” Guan Shi announced himself, before grabbing her wrist and dragging her away from the groaning guard.
They burst from the black miasma into night, but even the stars and moon seemed bright. Liu glanced behind her, the swirling darkness still enveloping the encampment. Beyond it, a long road stretched, trees and undergrowth hemming it in. Roaming Tiger let go of her hand and strode towards the wayside.
“Come on. It’ll only last a few minutes longer and we need to catch up with little brother and Sun.”
Guan Shi ran into the forest, and Liu followed in his wake. The canopy blotted out the stars and invisible branches whipped her arms and face as she ran. A tree root snagged her sandal and she stumbled forward, but before her head could hit the ground someone caught her.
“In future,” Roaming Tiger said, helping Liu regain her footing, “throw away a blade when you’re falling. To be killed by an enemy is a sad fate, but to disembowel yourself with clumsiness is just embarrassing.”
Liu Shanshan dusted herself off. “Thanks, old man.”
“You’re welcome, whippersnapper.”
Behind them, ferns rustled and men shouted. Blazing torches were heading their way. Guan grabbed her hand, and they ran deeper into the forest. Thorns stung Liu’s skin but Roaming Tiger didn’t slacken the pace for even a moment.
“Psst! Over here,” someone hissed.
Guan stopped and Liu ran into his back. “Little brother?” he asked.
Liu searched the darkness but there was no sign of anyone. A holly bush rustled, and Guan Song’s broad face appeared above it.
“There’s a hidden cave. Come on,” he said, before disappearing once more.
Guan Shi bounded after his brother, and Liu sighed before following, the sharp leaves scratching her skin even more. A shaft of moonlight poured down a hole in the ceiling, illuminating Sun Yang. The Steel Shadow was sat crossed-legged on the damp floor, one arm on her leg, resting her head on her fist. The Jade Lion wrapped his brother in a bear hug.
“A glorious night!” Guan Song declared. He let go of Roaming Tiger, strode over to Liu and slapped her on the shoulder, sending her reeling. “We bust out of our cage, right under the nose of Lord Ximen! We really should pay someone to write a poem about it.”
Guan Shi rolled his eyes. “We’re hiding in a cave, hoping nobody notices us. Perhaps you should keep your voice down?”
Guan Song curled his biceps. “Let them come! You think I’m scared of sniffling Ximen or his rat-soldiers? I could beat up fifty of them before breakfast, no problem!”
“It’s not Ximen that concerns Roaming Tiger,” Sun said. “Did you forget how you were captured to start with?”
The Jade Lion lowered his arms and trudged away from the entrance. “Ok, ok, I’ll be quiet. But only because big brother suggested it.”
Guan Shi nodded. “I’ll keep watch. The rest of you, keep your voices down and be ready to fight in an instant.”
Roaming Tiger moved to the entrance, and Liu crept beside him. He waved his hand for her to go back.
“No way,” Liu said, gripping her spear in case a soldier came close enough to stab. “I’m not your slave. I’ll do what I want, and I want to watch.”
Guan Shi sighed. “Fine. But keep quiet. I don’t want to die in a cave because a girl couldn’t stop her tongue wagging.”
Liu mimed locking her lips together and throwing away the key.
Nothing happened for a little while, but soon soldiers bearing weapons and torches were tramping through the forest, calling for the escaped prisoners to surrender and be granted mercy. Some drew close to the cave’s entrance. One of them was illuminated by a torch; it was the soldier with a port-wine stain darkening his cheek.
Liu tensed, ready to thrust her spear into his side, but Roaming Tiger clamped a hand over her mouth and grabbed the spear to keep it still.
“Move,” he whispered very quietly, “and we’re all dead. And if it’s revenge you want, then Ximen should be your target, not this man.”
Liu relaxed, Guan released her, and together they listened. It seemed the man she recognised was in command.
“General Ba, we’ve found no sign of them. Perhaps this is the wrong area?” a soldier asked.
Ba cuffed him around the ear. “Are you blind? The Jade Lion’s as subtle as a bull in a china shop, just look at all these snapped branches! Of course they’re nearby. We’ll set up an outlying camp here and have the men search until they’re found.”
Another soldier hurried over, clasped his hands and bowed his head before Ba. “General Ba, orders from Governor Ximen,” he said, tugging a scroll from his belt and handing it over.
Ba unrolled the paper and snarled in frustration. “Everybody! The search is ended! Lord Ximen is concerned we’re leaving him vulnerable to attack if the escaped prisoners return to assault the encampment. Everybody, back to the encampment!”
A gust of wind swept into the cave as hundreds of men all ran back the way they had come, until only General Ba remained. The general sighed, casting his eyes all around. For a moment, Liu thought he was looking right at her, but then his gaze moved, and she exhaled in relief
.
“The black fog was clever, but this is only luck, and nobody’s luck lasts forever. I caught you before and I’ll do it again. Run fast, foxes, but don’t think you can outrun the hounds.”
With a shake of his head, General Ba followed his soldiers and returned the way he had gone.
Guan Shi and Liu headed back into the cave and said what had happened. Guan Song laughed until Sun shushed him.
“I told you Ximen was a scaredy-cat,” Guan Song said. “Now he’s trembling at the mere thought of us giving him a beating.”
“If that’s the case, we should leave now before soldiers are sent after us in the morning,” Sun said.
The four of them left the cave and walked to freedom.
What became of the four heroes? Did the hounds catch the foxes? Read on, if you would know.
Phoenix Rising (Wandering Phoenix and Roaming Tiger Episode 1) Page 2
