by Kylie Chan
‘All yours,’ Venus said, full of delight. He turned to me. ‘You’ll have to wait a few months before you’re strong enough to drink it, Emma.’
‘Is that it?’ I said, dumbfounded.
‘This is it,’ John said, standing the jug on the desk with reverence. ‘We’ll have to put it somewhere completely secure until you’re ready for it.’
‘Let me smell it,’ I said. ‘I want to be sure.’
John raised the lid and held the jug out to me. I inhaled and the air around me burst into a brilliant symphony of colour and glowing light. The scent was dazzling to the point of making me dizzy.
‘Okay,’ I said, my voice weak. ‘That doesn’t smell bad at all.’
Venus pulled out a modern Japanese notebook with a cute puppy on the front and read from it. ‘Expect the Jade Emperor to be in touch soon; he’ll want regular meetings to coordinate the war effort. The demons haven’t moved yet, but it’s only a matter of time. The Number Ones came back; nothing they tried would lure any demons out. The trees will not sacrifice one of their own unless the need is completely dire. The Elites are still posted at the gateways, though, so hopefully we will find a way up there. We are looking for volunteers to sortie into their Hell again and do more intelligence gathering.’
‘Semias will be back in that damn cell,’ I said. ‘We have to get him out.’
‘You’re not going anywhere until you’ve drunk that booze,’ Venus said.
‘Damn, you’ve been around Emma too much,’ John said.
‘We all have. Refreshing, isn’t it?’
‘Absolutely.’
Venus glanced down at the notebook. ‘That’s all. The Jade Emperor wants the first meeting next week; your stone can arrange a time. He wants to see both of you: Lord Xuan for tactics, and Lady Emma for intelligence on what they’re up to.’ He rose and bowed to us. ‘Welcome home, Dark Lady. Dark Lord.’
‘Thanks, Venus,’ I said.
He bowed to us again and went out.
John rose and came around the desk, holding the jug with both hands. ‘Come on, let’s put this somewhere safe.’
‘In the Grotto?’
‘No, at least five people have access to that. In the armoury.’
We walked through the gardens together, and I revelled in the freshness of the cool air. Winter had arrived and the blue sky was full of the cotton-wool clouds of promised snow.
‘Are you warm enough?’ John said.
‘Yes. Don’t worry about me.’
He raised the jug slightly. ‘One thing less to worry about.’
The double doors of the armoury were kept open during the day. We went in and passed Miss Chen, who was doing a stocktake of weapons.
She looked over her reading glasses at us. ‘Is that it?’
‘Yes,’ John said.
‘Good. About time,’ she said, and turned back to her counting.
We went to the end of the armoury and walked through the wall, then John stopped before the gold-encased bars of the Celestial storeroom.
‘Don’t attempt to come in here. I’ll do this myself.’
I didn’t argue; it wasn’t worth killing myself to go in.
He closed his eyes and walked through the bars, then went to Seven Stars in the centre of the room. The sword hummed gently, resonating with his presence.
‘I’m having something similar to Seven Stars made for Simone,’ he said. ‘A dual pair of daggers with the chakra holders in them. She’ll be the first person besides me able to do it.’
‘She asked you for them?’
‘Yes. She wants to defend the Mountain.’
‘I’m proud of her too,’ I said.
John concentrated and a metre-tall stone pillar with a gold top emerged from the ground. He placed the Elixir onto the pillar and stepped back. A black box appeared around the jug, polished and featureless.
‘Only you or I can open that.’ He glanced at me. ‘If something happens to me, open it and use it anyway.’
‘I won’t want to. I wouldn’t want Immortality if it doesn’t include you.’
He turned back to the pillar and his shoulders drooped slightly. ‘I don’t want it without you either, but I don’t have a choice.’
‘See? Besides, nothing can happen to you, you’re indestructible,’ I said, trying to lighten the mood. ‘We’re nearly there.’
He walked back through the bars and held me, resting his face on the top of my head. ‘I found you.’
‘You did. All you have to do now is Raise me.’
‘And then we can have a huge, tedious, over-inflated wedding where everybody enjoys themselves immensely except for us.’
‘Sounds perfect.’
‘One of three,’ he said softly. ‘I found you, and I will never lose you again.’
‘Can I be with you for the rest of my life?’ I said.
‘Only if I can be with you for the rest of mine.’
‘Deal. Let’s go and prepare to defend the Heavens. Those demons will never come into our Mountain again.’
He took my hand and smiled into my eyes. ‘Let’s stop them together.’
The Serpent’s eyes are glazed and cloudy;
it cannot die from heat or thirst.
Nobody has come in weeks, it is alone.
Death’s release is out of reach.
The Turtle’s head is full of war;
it studies the time streams, planning defence.
The streams all merge and gather
At a place that spells defeat.
Characters
(Ordered by first name)
Amy Leong: black dragon who can take human form. Gold’s wife, mother of Richard and Jade Leong.
Andrew Black: Emma’s teenaged nephew, brother to Colin, son to Emma’s sister Jennifer and her first husband, Leonard. Kidnapped by demons, raped and tortured; now in hiding with the rest of the family in Perth.
Archivist, The: Immortal responsible for the management of the Heavenly Archives, a collection of all the world’s literature and the Celestial Records. Usually takes the form of a twelve-year-old boy.
Bai Hu: the White Tiger, God of the West. His element is Metal.
Barbara Donahoe: Emma’s mother; in hiding with the rest of the family in Perth.
Ben O’Breen: father of Tom O’Breen. Human Welshman on the run from his demon wife, who used him to produce Tom, a snake-hybrid demon.
Black Jade (BJ): stone Shen, child of Gold, created when he was damaged in battle.
Blue Dragon: Qing Long, God of the East. His element is Wood. Father to Jade’s three dragon children.
Brendan Donahoe: Emma’s father; in hiding with the rest of the family in Perth.
Bridget Hawkes: wife of David Hawkes; executive in a large Hong Kong company.
Chang: human, ex-Shaolin monk. Worked as an assassin/ bodyguard for a demon prince until he refound the Way and returned to the monastic life.
Chen, Miss: human Immortal. Wudang Academy Weapons Master.
Clarissa Huang: human. Was engaged to Michael MacLaren until she was captured and tortured by demons, giving her lingering physical and psychological after-effects.
Da Shih Yeh: the Little Grandfather; ancient mystical demon that wanders the Halls of Hell comforting those who are in most need. Rumoured to be a demonic incarnation of Kwan Yin.
David Hawkes: human executive director of one of Hong Kong’s large family-owned companies; husband to Bridget.
Death Mother: one of the four demons in the Demon King’s research group, which he used and destroyed. Made undetectable copies of humans from demon essence.
Demon King (East): calls himself George. Has several male and female human forms, one of which is Kitty Kwok. His True Form is similar to a Snake Mother (human front end, snake back end) but red instead of black.
Demon King (West): calls himself Francis. Has teamed up with the Eastern Demon King and they are building an army together.
Edwin: Wudang Mountain’s staff doctor.
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Emma Donahoe: human Australian woman who can change into a snake; engaged to Xuan Wu.
Er Hao: tame demon, major domo of the Imperial Residence on Celestial Wudang.
Er Lang: Second Heavenly General, the Jade Emperor’s left hand and John’s assistant in defence of the Heavenly realm. Has a third eye in the centre of his forehead and is most often seen in the company of his Celestial Dog.
Firebrand: dragon Immortal; one of the administrative staff of the Northern Heavens.
Franklin: last vampire in existence. A hybrid of Eastern and Western demons, which makes him very fragile even though he is powerful.
Freddo: Freddo Frog, Simone’s half-demon horse.
Gold: stone Shen, child of the Jade Building Block. Works as the Academy’s legal adviser. Husband to Amy, stone parent to BJ, and human father to Richard and Jade Leong.
Grandmother of All the Rocks: Uluru, the massive stone in the centre of Australia. Spiritual mother of all the stone Shen in the world.
Greg White: human Immortal husband to Emma’s sister Jennifer. Used to be the White Tiger’s Number One son; resigned to marry Jennifer and now lives in Perth with the rest of Emma’s family.
Jade Emperor: supreme ruler of Taoist Heaven, God of the Centre and the element of Earth.
James: former butler at Xuan Wu’s UK residence in Kensington, now retired.
Jamie Anathain: owner of a café in Holyhead; one of the Welsh serpent people.
Jennifer: Emma’s sister, mother to Colin and Andrew with her first husband, Leonard. Divorced, and remarried the White Tiger’s previous Number One son, Greg. Living in hiding with the rest of Emma’s family in Perth.
John Chen: Xuan Wu, the Dark Emperor of the Northern Heavens; God of the North and Martial Arts. His True Form is a snake and turtle combined together. His element is Water.
Kitty Kwok: Emma’s previous employer, who ran kindergartens in Hong Kong; revealed to be the Eastern Demon King in female human form.
Kwan Yin: a Buddha, one who has attained enlightenment and has returned to Earth to help others. Goddess of Mercy and Compassion.
Leo Alexander: African-American bodyguard to Simone when she was a child; now a Taoist Immortal. Engaged to Prince Martin Ming Gui, son of Xuan Wu.
Leonard Black: Emma’s sister Jennifer’s first husband; father of Colin and Andrew. Human lawyer working in London.
Lily: human Immortal; one of the administrators of the Northern Heavens.
Ling: owner of the demon stallion that fathered Simone’s horse, Freddo.
Little Jade: Amy and Gold’s young daughter, twin sister to Richie; called ‘Little Jade’ to differentiate her from John’s PR director, the Jade Girl.
Liu, Shao Rong: the Academy’s Immortal Shaolin Master; married to Master Meredith Liu.
Louise: Emma’s good friend for many years; married the White Tiger and became wife number ninety-seven. Lives in the Tiger’s Western Palace.
Ma Hua Guang: Vanguard of the Thirty-Six; one of the Thirty-Six (now Thirty-Five) Heavenly Generals and John’s right hand.
Mabel Defaoite: owner of a guesthouse in Holyhead.
Mandy: Emma’s human sister Amanda; married to Allan with two sons, Mark and David.
Margaret Anathain: physician, and headwoman of the serpent people in the Welsh town of Holyhead.
Mark: Emma’s teenaged nephew, brother to David, son to Emma’s sister Amanda and her husband, Allan. Kidnapped by demons, raped and tortured; now living in hiding with the rest of the family in Perth.
Martin Ming Gui: turtle Shen, son of Xuan Wu, elder brother to Simone, younger brother to Yue Gui; Prince of the Northern Heavens and John’s Number One son. Engaged to Leo Alexander.
Meredith Liu: the Academy’s Energy Master; a European Immortal; married to Liu Shao Rong, the Academy’s Shaolin Master.
Michael MacLaren: Number One son of the White Tiger; son of Rhonda MacLaren.
Michelle LeBlanc: Xuan Wu’s first human wife, Simone’s mother. Killed by demons when Simone was two years old.
Number One: an honorary title given to the most senior son (or daughter). Most rulers have a Number One to assist them in running their realms, and a Number One has precedence second only to their father/mother.
Pao Qing Tian: Celestial Judge of the Tenth Level of Hell. Responsible for releasing Immortals back to the world when they’re killed; also makes the decision on who is Worthy to be Raised to Immortal.
Paul Davies: human housekeeper of John’s UK house in Kensington; husband to the butler, Peta Davies.
Peta Davies: human butler for Xuan Wu at his UK residence in Kensington; wife to Paul Davies, the current housekeeper.
Qing Long: the Blue Dragon, God of the East. His element is Wood.
Red Phoenix: Zhu Que, Goddess of the South. Her element is Fire.
Rhonda MacLaren: the only one of the White Tiger’s wives with the strength of will to leave him. Was destroyed by drinking the Elixir of Immortality.
Richie (Richard Leong): Amy and Gold’s young son, twin brother to Little Jade.
Ronnie Wong: half-demon son of the Demon King; in hiding from his father’s assassination attempts on him. Works as a Fung Shui Master; expert on demon seals. Married to stone Shen, Silica.
Ruby: stone Shen assisting John and Emma in their investigations in the West.
Sang Ye: tree spirit; half-sister to Sang Shen.
Sang Shen: tree spirit resident in the Northern Heavens. Yue Gui is his mother; his father, a tree spirit, died from lack of sunlight while John was absent, for which Sang Shen blamed Emma and tried to kill her. Currently serving a sentence of house arrest in Yue Gui’s custody.
Semias: druid master of a Celestial city.
Silica: stone Shen living on the Earthly to avoid repercussions from a previous romantic entanglement; Ronnie Wong’s wife.
Simone: Simone Chen, Princess of the Dark Northern Heavens; daughter of Xuan Wu and his human wife, Michelle LeBlanc.
Sophia: the Tiger’s wife number Thirty-Eight, a tamed high-level Snake Mother.
Stone: the Jade Building Block of the World; the stone that sits in Emma’s engagement ring. One of the stones created by Nu Wa to hold up the Heavens when the Pillars were damaged by an angry god, but was never used for this purpose. The ring Emma wears was created for the Yellow Empress.
Toi: owner of the mare that was mother to Simone’s half-demon horse, Freddo.
Tom O’Breen: half-demon son of Ben O’Breen and a Chinese demon Mother. Transforms into a male Snake Mother.
Venus: God of the planet Venus; emissary for the Jade Emperor.
White Tiger: Bai Hu, God of the Western Heavens. His element is Metal. Michael MacLaren’s father, and husband to more than a hundred wives.
Xuan Wu: Dark Emperor of the Northern Heavens, God of the North and Martial Arts. His True Form is a snake combined with a turtle. His element is Water. English name: John Chen Wu.
Yanluo Wang: God of the Underworld and the Dead. Administrative manager of the Celestial side of Hell.
Yellow Empress: wife of the Yellow Emperor, a fabled ruler from ancient times who taught humanity the basics of civilisation.
Yi Hao: tame demon, Emma’s secretary on Celestial Wudang.
Yue Gui: turtle Shen; Xuan Wu’s older daughter, older sister to Simone and Martin Ming Gui, mother to Sang Shen. Manages the Northern Heavens’ administrative side.
Zara: a diamond stone Shen that works as John’s secretary. Used to be the stone that was in both Rhonda’s and Clarissa’s engagement rings.
Zhou Gong Ming: the Tiger General, one of the Thirty-Six Heavenly Generals.
Zhu Bei Niang: one of the Thirty-Six Heavenly Generals; sister to Zhu Bo Niang. Resigned her commission when John’s Serpent was captured.
Zhu Bo Niang: one of the Thirty-Six Heavenly Generals; sister to Zhu Bei Niang, also a Heavenly General. Resigned her commission when John’s Serpent was captured.
Zhu Que: the Red Phoenix, Goddess of the South. H
er element is Fire.
Research Notes
The research notes and bibliography for the Chinese mythology are included in the other two trilogies, so I won’t re-list them here.
My work on researching druids is the basis for my lecture on research at the University of Queensland, and I’ll run through some of my processes and resources here for anyone who is interested.
Many of the texts I used were out of copyright and have been digitised, with the resulting e-book available free from a number of sources. Rare books that cost a fortune in original, hundred-year-old hardcover format are now being digitised by the institutions that hold them and are freely available. This has made my task both difficult and easy at the same time. Difficult, because it’s sometimes hard to pin down exactly when something was written and what references were used; and easy, in that I no longer have to seek out hard-to-find print copies of old texts.
I’m not a historian; I researched purely to find interesting facts for my planned story. My research is not academic, and when a data source becomes repetitive I drop it and seek elsewhere. I’m more interested in ‘fun’ than ‘informative’, and I had a great deal of fun researching the ancient Celts and druids.
I’d like to state upfront that modern druids are a charming, gentle group of nature-worshipping neo-pagans and I have a great deal of respect and admiration for them. I was genuinely surprised to discover the bloodthirsty nature of the ancient Celts; many depictions of them in modern literature gloss over their more brutal aspects. With further research, the reasons for this brutality became apparent: they were a product of their time, and most civilisations during the Iron Age fought constant, sometimes horrific, wars with each other.
When researching these ancient peoples, I went first to descriptions of them by their contemporaries. The most interesting and detailed account was written by Julius Caesar (yes, that Julius Caesar), who described his ongoing campaign against the Celtic/Gallic people (Iron Age Celts were also referred to as Gauls) in De Bello Gallico (available in a number of different formats and translations, many of them free in electronic form). Caesar was a prolific and talented historian who kept records of everything he did and published them for the edification of his fellow Romans as an obvious form of self-promotion. It is said that history is written by the winners, and Caesar was the winner, so some colouring of the Celts as the ‘bad guys’ was to be expected. He paints them as a bunch of savages who collected the heads of their enemies as trophies and whose druids presided over ghastly human sacrifices of their captives. Caesar glosses over a couple of ‘unfortunate’ episodes in which Gallic towns were burnt to the ground and the entire population, including women and children, were put to the sword by his ‘over-enthusiastic’ soldiers, but these give an idea of what war was like in those times.