by Ino Lee
“A flower?” she said. “You gave me a girly name?”
“I thought you’d like it. You know, since they grow in the Stone Forest.”
“That’s not a very intimidating name for a ninja.”
“Then you can be Fierce Monkey.”
Tae shot him a cold stare. Wong made a confused look like he didn’t understand what she was mad about. He quickly changed the subject.
“We shouldn’t sit still like this in the boat. Maybe I should start paddling.”
She crossed her arms playfully. “Maybe you should.”
Wong and Tae took turns sleeping and paddling through the night. They periodically moved up and down the lake, making sure to stay away from the shorelines lest probing eyes spot them. Their tactic worked perfectly as they survived the night without incident.
Wong spent the early hours of the morning in deep thought. He watched Kai and Tae as they slept and felt strangely close to them. He was now responsible for their lives and he would protect them even at the cost of his own. Yet he felt he must detach himself emotionally from them as well, like a cool and levelheaded temple monk, though it was not in his nature. It did not make sense to form bonds that could not last.
He began to steer the canoe toward land. At daybreak, they would paddle fiercely to shore and make a final mad dash to Guilin.
14
DAYBREAK. THE SMALL vessel crashed ashore. Its occupants jumped out and scurried into the forest, driven by a heightened sense of danger. They moved at a quicker pace than usual, intent on reaching safety as soon as possible.
“So far, so good,” Wong said.
The forest was quieter than expected. There were no Koon Gee waiting to pounce on them as he had originally feared. Instead, there was the sound of birds and the rustle of leaves. This was puzzling.
“There are no Koon Gee,” Tae said. “Where are the Koon Gee?”
“I’m not sure. They have to be close.”
“I feel like we’re walking into a trap. Like they’re just waiting for us and watching.”
“You’re probably right. They might have guessed we’re headed to Guilin. I wouldn’t be surprised if they tried to ambush us ahead.”
Kai sounded agitated. “Then why are we going that way for?”
“Because there’s no other way to go.”
A couple more hours passed. The relative peace of the area made them uneasy, the anticipation of confrontation growing stronger the further they traveled.
Wong wondered about their situation. Perhaps their ruse on the boat had worked better than expected and the bulk of the enemy was on the other side of the lake. Was it possible for them to make it all the way to Guilin without trouble? He sensed movement. It was too much to hope for.
“Don’t be alarmed, but there’s something moving our way.”
“What is it?” Tae asked.
“Dagwais—that way.” He pointed. “Don’t mind them. They’re not too close. Just keep moving.” He shifted slightly right and broke into a stealthy trot. “Guilin can’t be far.”
The danger intensified. A branch cracked in the distance and leaves rustled ahead. A smattering of footsteps pursued. Wong shifted them left and quickened their pace.
“They’re getting close,” Tae said.
“Behind us,” Kai added.
Dagwais called to each other as Kai slipped through their ranks. The further they went, the louder the sounds became. Movement could be seen in the distance when the forest began to thin out. They ran as fast as they could but could not escape the growing tide.
Soon the commotion overtook them and a full-blown chase was in effect. Kai struggled to keep up. Wong threw him over his shoulder and unsheathed his sword. Tae unsheathed her own and flanked them on the right.
A dagwai popped its head out from the nearest tree and screamed. Tae reacted quickly and sliced through its neck. They were everywhere now and coming in from multiple directions.
Wong put down Kai when a band of lizards stormed into their path, forcing them to stop and fight before they could run any further. He motioned Tae to stay with Kai and charged headfirst into the bulk of the onslaught. A glint could be seen in his eye as his chi energy intensified. He pulled out a long knife with his free hand and rushed with both blades angled forward. They came at him with swords and teeth. He parried, swung, and spun—each move made with precision as he cut them down.
Tae had her bow out and started emptying her quiver. Arrows zipped through the air and took down dagwais from afar. Kai listened as the deadly projectiles whistled overhead and crunched into their leathery hides. He began to point out the dagwais as they came in from all directions, causing Tae to fire in turn.
A creature sprang from behind a tree, but Wong cut it down with his sword, spun, and let his long knife fly into the chest of another. Another slashed at him and locked swords, then lunged forward with its head and snapped with its teeth. Wong leaned back to avoid getting bit and countered by ramming his elbow under its chin. He grabbed it by the jaw and twisted, snapping bone.
No matter how many dagwais they took down, an equal number appeared. Soon they started filling in the gap between Wong and Tae, threatening to overtake them. Tae stocked her bow and switched to close combat with her sword. She sliced a couple of dagwais and hit another with ninja stars as it reached for Kai. Wong looked back and noted the danger, but his hands were full with multiple enemies. He had to get back to them.
A dagwai thrust its sword forward and overextended itself, leaving Wong with a moment of opportunity. He glanced aside the strike and dropped his sword, grabbing the dagwai’s arm firmly with both hands. He then spun the devil lizard around and launched it into a pile of oncoming attackers, knocking them off their feet. With the space he created, he retrieved his sword and ran back toward Kai.
He flipped, sheathed his weapon, and reached behind for poison darts that were stowed on a belt. He launched the projectiles through the air as he back-flipped, hitting the dagwais as they pursued. Instantly they fell dead. On his final flip, he landed in front of Kai and planted his feet. His hands flashed back as he reached for four more darts and sent them flying. Four dagwais fell dead to the ground.
When Tae ran her sword through the heart of her latest victim, the last dagwai dropped and the forest grew quiet once more. Breathing heavily from the effort, she wondered if the worst of it was over. She looked up at Wong and then over at Kai, who was staring off into the trees. He was locked into position and concentrating heavily.
Wong approached to investigate. Kai did not shift from his trance. When Wong could hear his teeth grinding, he knew something bad was about to happen. In the distance, the crack of wood echoed—it was not the sharp, crisp snap of a thin branch, but the prolonged groan from a large, heavy bough.
“It’s not over,” Wong said.
A deep, booming roar shook the forest.
“Zhuk kwai!”
He grabbed Kai’s hand and started moving him toward Tae, their sights set on Guilin. A giant zhuk demon exploded through the trees, followed by a second. Their thick hooves dug deep into the ground as they accelerated toward them.
To the right, more heavy growls could be heard, as well as the higher pitched cries of the dagwais. Two more zhuk kwais appeared closer to them and joined in the pursuit.
The Weapons Master stopped.
He reached for the Dragon Arm stowed on his back and slowly turned his head to behold the rampaging terror. The demons’ bloodshot eyes fixed on him as they stampeded with their large sword-axes drawn—the oversized butcher blades flashed in the sunlight and threatened to hack him to pieces.
A glint in the Weapons Master’s eyes flamed into a bright spark. One end of the Dragon Arm morphed into a thicker mace-head as he remained perfectly still.
The first zhuk reached him and led with a powerful hack. The Weapo
ns Master dodged by leaping into the air, twisting, and sailing straight over the head of the creature. With the Dragon Arm fully extended, he crashed down on the second zhuk running directly behind, hitting it squarely on the skull with the fat end of his staff and the full weight of his body. The demon toppled to the ground, motionless.
The first zhuk reeled around and swung again. The Weapons Master flipped away safely, but the others were upon him now.
He hammered a blow to the side and countered with three of his own. The beast stumbled back, but from either side charged the other two zhuks with their horns extended. Wong narrowly managed to jump out of the way just as the beasts’ curled horns collided like that of two great mountain rams. His elusive leap, however, left him vulnerable, and the forward zhuk rammed into him headfirst as he landed.
The collision sent him flying back. He tumbled to the ground and scrambled to recover while the zhuk took advantage and hacked with its weapon relentlessly. Wong dodged and parried as best as he could but was unable to fully regain his balance. As the beast drew close, he reversed course, charged into it, and propelled himself away with a two-footed kick. He flipped back, reached for a dart in midair, and let it fly.
The zhuk stopped when it felt a sharp pain surging through its body. It eyed the dart stuck in its chest and pulled it out with a roar. Whatever poison was in the dart seemed to anger it more than hurt it. Its nostrils flared and saliva dripped from its jaw.
Though the sight was enough to unnerve most men, Wong stood expressionless and clutched the handle of the Dragon Arm tighter. Once again, the runes on the staff lit, causing the mace end to return to normal before two sharp blades protruded from either end.
The monster charged. The blades of the Dragon Arm spun wildly and Wong took the offensive. The zhuk kwai tried to fend off his attacks with the length of its sword-axe but the double-bladed attacks came too fast. Holding the staff by the tip of one end to extend his reach, Wong back-swung the weapon and sliced the zhuk kwai across the shoulder. As he came around, he reached back with his other hand and let two more darts fly. The beast dropped to its knees.
The battle was not over. There were still two left, and a single zhuk was usually more than a match for any one man. After seeing their companions fall, the remaining zhuks approached more cautiously and strategically attacked in unison. Despite their raw size and likeness to common beasts, they possessed a greater intelligence than their appearance suggested. One blow after the other was delivered in a coordinated attempt to keep the Weapons Master on the defensive.
Wong turned and ran. He dodged back and forth between the trees, making it hard for the zhuks to mount a unified front. He used the trees as shields—a similar tactic employed against the zhuk in the forests near Tzhiang Doon. The beasts, in turn, pursued and tore the forest to shreds with their sword-axes.
The battle was taking too long. Wong had to get back to Kai and needed to end the fight quickly. He didn’t have to kill the creatures outright, he reasoned, he just needed to stop them from pursuing.
After rounding a tree, he pulled out a throwing knife and aimed it at the leg muscle of the nearest zhuk kwai. His throw was accurate and the mountain demon tumbled to the ground.
“Gotcha.”
Though not a deadly hit, it was enough to hobble the beast and prevent it from chasing.
Wong continued to run from the remaining zhuk and pulled out a second throwing knife. The landscape changed drastically ahead, dropping sharply as he emerged from the foliage atop a steep hill. He could hear the zhuk kwai crashing through the forest after him and came up with a new idea.
He stowed his knife and reached into his pocket for several round objects. Turning back toward the forest, he waited for the zhuk to arrive.
When the demon was nearly upon him, he threw the objects to the ground and they exploded with fury, sending a thick gray cloud of smoke around him. The blinded zhuk did not see the drop-off until it was too late. It tumbled headfirst down the hill, over and over again, until it disappeared into the forest foliage below. The sound of it finally crashing into a tree could be heard, followed by a deep groan. The treetops shook and a plume of birds popped from the canopy. Amused by the comical look of the zhuk as it rolled head over heals, Wong smirked in satisfaction.
He walked over to a spot on the ground where the zhuk had dropped its weapon. The large sword-axe glimmered in the sunlight, making it easily noticeable. No sense in leaving this around, he thought, in case the demon decided to crawl back up again to retrieve it. He picked it up and stood the enormous weapon on its hilt to admire it. The blade was taller than he was.
He held the weapon and closed his eyes for a moment longer as a cool breeze passed by. As soon as he reacquired a sense of Kai’s mark, he ran off.
Tae and Kai had kept on running when Wong originally stopped to fight the zhuk kwais. Though Tae wanted to stay and help, a glance from Wong told her to keep on going—Guilin was their main priority now.
They ran freely at first and then encountered sporadic resistance by small pockets of dagwais. Tae quickly disposed of them with her arrows, but another threat appeared when she saw the outlines of sleeker figures in the distance. It was difficult to see clearly, but the dark ninjas’ forms and movements could not be mistaken for dagwais. The nimble figures danced in the distance and lurked in the treetops. They swiftly moved in around them. Tae knew it was only a matter of time before they caught up and pounced.
The cluster of dagwais soon thickened, hampering their progress. Lizards shot out from the gaps and lunged to reach them. Arrows flew and dagwais dropped to the ground, but still they came. Tae unsheathed her sword and struck down the obstacles as they crowded their paths, but the distraction was enough for the masked threat of the ninjas to close in.
She frantically searched for a way out. Wong was gone and there were too many Koon Gee to contend with. She didn’t know what she was looking for, but she knew it when she saw it—a bright ray of light in the forest ahead. A large stone mass prevented trees from taking root, creating a patch of earth where sunlight appeared. Because dark ninjas were sensitive to direct sunlight, they would not be able to follow them into the clearing, and Tae and Kai needed every advantage they could get.
They raced toward the sunlight with a pair of ninjas hot in pursuit. Tae guided Kai ahead of her and told him to start climbing the boulder when he reached it. As soon as they crossed the border where the trees ended and the sun beat intensely on the ground, the ninjas stopped. Tae turned with her sword up to make sure they didn’t follow, but the ninjas held their ground and shifted nervously in place, just as she had hoped.
She followed Kai up the rock structure, which extended forty feet high. Once atop it, she knew they would be trapped, but she saw no other recourse; the forest was crawling with Koon Gee and there was little chance they would make it to Guilin alone. This would keep them alive until either Wong returned or she could think of another plan.
Helping Kai up a final ledge, she looked down the cliff to reassess their circumstances. Dark ninjas waited in the forest shadows, but to make matters worse, a crowd of dagwais formed at the boulder’s base. Some of them had already started climbing. More dagwais poured in from the forest to join the growing pack and a raucous clamor ensued. The lizards screeched giddily at the sight of their cornered prey and moved in to completely surround them.
Tae examined her quiver and counted the number of arrows. She bit her lip, then plucked an arrow from her middling supply and fitted the nock to her bowstring. Taking aim at the highest lizard on the rock face, she fired. It fell on the dagwais below, maximizing the effectiveness of her shot. But when more climbed within reach, she restocked her bow and swiped at them with her sword. She ran from side to side on the boulder to see where the dagwais had made the most progress, but the boulder was wide and she had trouble keeping up.
Seeing Tae overwhelmed, Kai began to
run around the boulder too, frantically pointing out the closest lizards. He began to pick up large rocks and toss them over the side, successfully thumping a couple on the head and causing them to fall.
Several dagwais made it over the crest of the boulder and charged Tae. She waited for the first one to attack and sidestepped its swing. The creature missed and its momentum caused it to lunge past her, so she smacked it in the back with the flat end of her sword and sent it toppling over the opposite edge. The remaining trespassers were taken down with ease, but the flow of lizards overcoming the climb was becoming steady.
Meanwhile, more dagwais progressed up Kai’s side of the boulder and he began to run out of rocks. One of the dagwais that he had kept at bay peered behind a crevice and noted his lack of ammunition. It slowly started back up, wary of more projectiles that might be thrown its way, and looked to exact revenge on the pesky boy.
Kai frantically looked around to see what else he could throw, but the only thing left on the plateau were the dagwai carcasses Tae had just cut down. So he ran over to a body and leaned into it, slowly rolling it toward the ledge. With a final heave, he shoved it off the rock just as the dagwai below was about to reach the top, hitting it, and sending it tumbling to its death. Kai looked below as it fell, only to see a new wave of lizards attempting the climb.
The Weapons Master finally arrived back on the scene after returning from his battle with the zhuks, running through the forest and approaching behind a line of dark ninjas. With their attention focused on the action of the rock mountain, he snuck up and attacked with his newly acquired zhuk sword.
He heaved the great weapon overhead and came down on the first ninja’s body, causing the spaded axe head to slice halfway through; the weight of the weapon alone was almost enough for it to cut through its flesh. A second ninja turned and tried to lift up its sword to defend, but the axe head was already upon it.
Ignoring the other ninjas in the area, he stepped into the sunlight of the clearing. He continued toward the boulder and swiped at the dagwais along the way. Once he reached the rock wall, he started climbing it, pulling off dagwais and using their faces as stepladders to aid his ascent. When he got to the top, he peeked over the ledge and dodged a kick by Tae.