by Kylie Chan
The turtle and serpent had merged.
They were complete.
They were Xuan Wu.
Characters
(Ordered by first name)
Andy Ho: Husband of Emma’s friend April; later turned out to be a demon.
Audrey Au: Wudang Wushu Master.
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.
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.
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.
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.
Elise Alexander: Leo’s sister from Chicago.
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.
Franklin: last vampire in existence. A hybrid of Eastern and Western demons, which makes him very fragile even though he is powerful.
Francis: see Demon King (West)
Frankie: John and Emma’s son; aborted when he was three months old and brought to term in a demon egg by the King of the Demons, who adopted him.
Freddo: Freddo Frog, Simone’s half-demon horse.
George: see Demon King (East)
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.
Guan Yu: Also called ‘Guan Gong’, Marshal of the True Spirit and Guardian of the Gates of Heaven; one of the Thirty-Six.
Jade Emperor: supreme ruler of Taoist Heaven, God of the Centre and the element of Earth.
Jade Girl: Daughter of the King of the Dragons; John’s earthly accountant, now Wudang PR Director.
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.
Justin: A son of the Dragon of the East who specialises in IT. Dated Simone for about two weeks.
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.
Lily: human Immortal; one of the administrators of the Northern Heavens.
Liu, Cheng Rong: the Academy’s Immortal Shaolin Master; married to Master Meredith Liu.
LK Pak: Wudang Demon Master.
Lok: A dragon who was cursed into the shape of a dog and was Wudang residential manager while the Academy was in Hong Kong.
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.
Marcus: Son of the White Tiger, married Monica while she was in the Western Palace.
Margaret Anathain: physician, and headwoman of the serpent people in the Welsh town of Holyhead.
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.
Master (Miss) Lucy Chen: Wudang Weapons Master.
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.
Moaner: Head Demon of Wudang Forge.
Monica: Filipina domestic helper for John and Michelle when they set up house; married the Tiger’s son Marcus.
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.
Peony: the Serpent Concubine. John’s concubine during the Qing Dynasty; became mentally ill, murdered her servants, and was executed.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
Yang Piao: Marshal Yang Piao the Earth Spirit, one of the Thirty-Six.
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.
Zhu Que: the Red Phoenix, Goddess of the South. Her element is Fire.
New from HarperVoyager
BOUND
by ALAN BAXTER
Alan Baxter is an explosive new talent on the HarperVoyager list, and we are thrilled to be launching his genre-busting, urban fantasy series. In one of the biggest Voyager publishing events of the year, the Alex Caine trilogy will be released consecutively in July, August and September 2014, beginning with the gritty and suspenseful Bound.
Alex Caine is a martial artist fighting in illegal cage matches. His powerful secret weapon is an unnatural vision that allows him to see his opponents’ moves before they know their intentions themselves.
An enigmatic Englishman, Patrick Welby, approaches Alex after a fight and reveals, ‘I know your secret.’ Welby shows Alex how to unleash a breathtaking realm of magic and power, drawing him into a mind-bending adventure beyond his control. And control is something Alex values above all else …
A cursed grimoire binds Alex to Uthentia, a chaotic Fey godling, who leads him towards chaos and murder, an urge Alex finds harder and harder to resist. Befriended by Silhouette, a monstrous Kin beauty, Alex sets out to recover the only things that will free him — the shards of the Darak. But that powerful stone also has the potential to unleash a catastrophe which could mean the end of the world as we know it.
Baxter is exceptional new voice in grim dark urban fantasy writing — this is a Voyager debut not to be missed.
‘I was completely blown away when I read this. A classic hero’s journey with a cast of three-dimensional and really interesting characters. He has the bonus of being a true practitioner of Martial Arts and his action scenes are solid and authentic.’ — Kylie Chan
1
A distant roar rose and fell, rose again. Dark grey concrete underfoot, bloodstained, hard. Alex circled to the left. He peripherally registered each panel of chain-link, each steel upright, never taking his eyes from the figure in front of him. The man known as Bull Finley.
Below a heavy brow Bull stared back, cautious. But not scared. He exuded feral, predatory strength, a calm resolve. His hands, raised before his face, were calloused and rough, like Alex’s. Bull’s energy pulsed. Alex watched the man’s shades, the aura of his intentions, shifting around him, saw purpose swell, muscles bunch. One of Bull’s meaty hands swept within an inch of Alex’s nose, breath grunting out between clenched teeth, forward momentum carrying him through. Alex let him go by, twisted, gathered and whipped out a leg in a turning kick to the ribs.
Bull’s exhalation finished its escape in a rush, his face registering shock more than pain. Alex pressed the advantage, following in, hands a blur of strikes and counterstrikes. Bull blocked well, but not well enough, his upper lip and nose flowered scarlet.
His intent changed, a slight desperation entering his mind. Alex saw the shades move, felt the man’s desire to grapple, take the fight down to the hard stone floor. He disengaged, slipped out of reach even as his opponent made the conscious decision to grab. That surprised expression again. Confidence to surprise, surprise to concern, concern to fear, fear to defeat. A journey Alex had seen play out time and again. His opponent’s eyes widened slightly, the corners of his mouth twitching downwards. Surprise to concern. Alex smiled inside. So it begins.
For several seconds they circled, the roar rising, falling, rising, falling. Bull’s bulky frame heaved with his breath. Alex, leaner, more athletic, waited. He was calm. Bull looked for an opening, a gap that wasn’t there. Alex feinted in and out, his opponent flinching, lips tight. Concern to fear.
The tension grew. Alex drew his breath in deep, sank his energy low, gathered himself. A deliberate drawing away, taunting his opponent to follow him in, to attack. Fear brought with it a lack of focus, lack of patience, a desperate desire to take back control. That desire pulsed off Bull like a wave. Alex moved in and to one side exactly as Bull made his assault. A clumsy move, all physical strength, no breath, no finesse. The man closed the gap to where Alex had been, launching fast punches. Alex exhaled, struck back across Bull’s arms, drove a knee up hard and sharp. The big man’s nose and ribs cracked almost simultaneously, pain escaping in red and black waves. As his opponent stumbled, Alex whipped in one last punch and a kick to finish him. Broken and unconscious, Bull collapsed against the chain-link fencing as though his skeleton had been removed.
Alex turned away as the dull roar boomed into his ears. He honoured his opponent by not relishing the defeat as he let the rest of the world back in. The stench of steel and concrete, blood, sweat and popcorn. The glare of overhead halogens, the stamping of hundreds of feet on wooden stands, hundreds of throats screaming approval, baying for blood. A loud, brash voice burst over loudspeakers and Alex walked past the man with the microphone, as he always did. A gate swung open and he let the darkness of the tunnel to the dressing rooms swallow him away from the spectacle.
Alex pulled a T-shirt over his sweat-slick chest, ran a hand over his close-cropped dark hair. He stretched as event officials jostled around him in the tiny room. A clipboard was thrust under his nose, accompanied by a chewed biro. He signed without reading, knowing the agreement by heart.
‘Way to go, Alex. Man, how are you so fast?’ He ignored the question, kept his head down, resumed his stretching. ‘Ha! You’re a legend, man, a fucking legend!’
The man with the clipboard scurried away. A doctor tipped Alex’s head back, shone a tiny light in each eye. ‘Anything?’ Alex shook his head. The doctor nodded once and left, scribbling on a clipboard of his own.
Alex rubbed his face and hair with a towel and concentrated on his breathing and stretching as the activity around him faded. He heard movement in the hallway, a voice raised in concern. Another voice, angry, and a man walked into the dressing room. The man was big and ugly, a product of mean streets and bad attitudes. An obsequious little rat scurried in behind. Alex sighed. ‘Go away, Eugene,’ he said. ‘You too, Karl.’
Eugene sneered. ‘You gotta fight for us, Alex Caine. The boss won’t have it any other way.’
‘Your boss can kiss my arse.’
‘You can’t talk like that about King Scarlet,’ Karl said, his voice piping.
Alex laughed. ‘Really? Still calling himself King Scarlet? It’s like a bad Saturday morning cartoon. Fuck off, the pair of you.’
Eugene took a step forward, meant to be threatening. Alex watched his shades, saw the nerves and concern drifting off him like a bad smell. He stood quickly, took one fast step forward. Eugene staggered back, sudden concern clear on his face. He bumped into his insubstantial friend, sent Karl bouncing off the doorframe.
‘Fuck off,’ Alex said again.
Eugene waved one finger. ‘You do what King Scarlet wants, Caine. Or else.’
Alex raised his chin. ‘You threatening me, Eugene?’ He made the man’s name sound like a disease.
Eugene shoved Karl ahead of him out the door. ‘This isn’t over.’
Alex ignored them, let them leave
. Finally everything was silent and still.
A moment later, a quiet presence moved just outside the door. Alex sighed. No peace at all tonight. ‘Can I help you?’ he asked, not looking up.
‘I know your secret.’ The voice was soft and friendly, with an upper-class English accent.
The man in the doorway was elderly, though vibrant looking, well dressed in an old-fashioned suit and waistcoat, impeccably polished shoes. ‘My secret?’ Alex asked.
The old man gestured back over one shoulder. ‘Problems?’
‘Nothing I can’t handle.’
‘You know, you really are very good.’
‘I’ve done it for a long time.’
The man considered Alex for several seconds. Alex let him, wondering what this man could want. People always wanted something. He read the man’s shades and saw nothing but calm curiosity.
‘Why here?’ the Englishman asked eventually. ‘Aren’t there organised events held all over the world? Big promotion, massive prize money, fame and glory? Better rules and protective equipment? Legal?’
‘You’ve just listed all the reasons I’m not interested.’
The old man’s eyebrows raised. ‘Even the money?’
There was a cough and movement in the corridor. ‘’Scuse me.’ A small, gruff-looking man with a shiny bald head pushed into the room. ‘Shit, Alex, one of these days you’re gonna at least get hit, aren’t ya?’
Alex smiled. ‘I get hit pretty often, Gary. Just not tonight.’
Gary let out a strangely high laugh. ‘Thanks for stepping in at such short notice.’