by James Burke
Seated beside the lead chopper’s pilot, Marx was again trying to call Goyette. He desperately needed to speak with the cult leader about how War had gone off script. As he waited in vain for Goyette to pick up the call, he looked over at the scene of his last death. It was an odd twist of fate that he was now opposite where he had drowned in 1966 — when he was The Hammer — in waters just below the Buddha statue. Now tourist boats puttered about where he had once tumbled off a ferry he and other Red Guards had confiscated.
For Marx such memories, at the very least, were mere distractions from the predicament he now found himself in, one that could cost him the very throne he had bargained for. He now feared mission failure could be upon him. He knew if he couldn’t play his agreed-upon role by getting War to North Korea then he would share the fate of every other condemned soul sent to Hell, a prospect that terrified him. If he didn’t get War back, all was lost — at least from his perspective.
Having finally accepted that Goyette wasn’t going to answer his calls or text messages, he pocketed his phone and began kicking the paneling in front of him out of frustration. His venting attracted the attention of Vacher and Irfan who were behind him in the cabin with three PLA soldiers.
Since they had been in China, Marx’s mental state had worried both of his henchmen. They were already familiar with their boss’ volatility but now, as they waited in the chopper, they suspected he was on the verge of having a complete breakdown. Their concerns began in earnest after he went into mind-boggling fits of rage at both the hospital and then the airfield in Chengdu. The nastiest explosion occurred when Marx watched the CCTV of War and Kristen leaving the hospital area in the stolen vehicle and then joining the other fugitives in the stolen helicopter that they were now chasing.
During their pursuing flight, Vacher also couldn’t help but notice Marx muttering to himself like a madman while sending text messages or trying to make unrequited calls. But as they sat there on the riverbank waiting for their quarry, Vacher actually felt sympathy for his boss. He leant forward and tapped him on the shoulder.
‘Hey Mr. Marx, no need to worry sir. We will squash these rats,’ Vacher said but got no reply or recognition. Indeed, Vacher was confident that their target had little hope of getting out of China and he believed they were already one step ahead of them. Given the two pursuing helicopters flew 75 miles in a straight-line overland from Chengdu they were now ahead of Quintus who was flying low, following the river’s twists and curves.
They’d only been sitting on the riverbank for five minutes when the military jets radioed them to say the stolen helicopter was only minutes away.
Giant Buddha
Quintus flew the helicopter some 70 feet above the brown waters of the Min River now edged on both sides by the beginnings of Leshan city. He glanced at Tina to see how she was holding up. She saw him looking at her.
‘You okay?’ she asked.
He nodded and returned to looking ahead at a bridge and adjusted the chopper’s height to comfortably get over it. After flying over the bridge, they passed the confluence of the Dadu and Min rivers to their right while on their left was the giant Buddha cut into the cliff. Seeing the statue, Quintus banked the helicopter sharply, maneuvering it towards Dadu River.
‘Hold on we need to make a turn,’ he told his three passengers.
As they swung around he noticed two military choppers — both Z-9s — taking off from the riverbank opposite the statue.
‘You see those two helicopters?’ Tina asked him.
‘Yes, sure did.’
‘You think they’re after us too?’
‘I suspect so,’ he said. ‘Those jets still somewhere around Tina?’
‘I can’t see them, I got a feeling they’ve gone elsewhere,’ she said looking about. ‘I think we might have only helicopters to contend with.’
She was correct. Running low on fuel, the jets had turned back to their base.
Tina hoped she didn’t sound alarmed as she spoke, but she was. The lead helicopter following them was cloaked in a dark mist.
‘Quintus is this White Dragon Mountain much further?’ she asked.
‘Maybe 15 minutes,’ he replied.
‘What are we going to find there?’
‘To be honest, I’m not a hundred percent sure. Let’s call it a leap of faith.’
With the pursuing helicopters a quarter of a mile behind them, Quintus brought the Z-9 up to a higher altitude of around 2,000 feet. He now aimed to fly in a straight line in what he thought was the direction of White Dragon Mountain.
Behind him Kristen was taking video with her smartphone. It could be useful evidence to prove what was happening to them if they survived, she supposed. After a minute of that she put away her phone and spoke into the intercom.
‘Excuse me, pilot, I heard you mention we’re going to a mountain, can you tell me why please?’
Before Quintus could answer, War spoke for what was the first time during the flight.
‘Because it was foretold,’ War said in a deep soft tone that rose the hairs on the back of necks.
By most people’s standards it was an odd thing to say and Quintus was now figuring out that War knew way more than he should.
The remark left them all speechless until White Dragon Mountain came into view through the dull haze 12 miles ahead.
‘There it is, that’s the mountain,’ Quintus told his passengers.
CHAPTER XIII
A Boy and The Dragon
Chinese dragons rarely reveal themselves to people, but the White Dragon made an exception for Kai who was of course different. A fact recognized by the universe. In an earlier life, the boy and the dragon had been long-time friends. Kai of course was once Tai and the bond with the dragon was not broken until 1966 when the Red Guards led by The Hammer desecrated the sanctuary and killed the ancient Taoist.
As the Red Guards dragged Tai out from the cave, the White Dragon was fighting the seven-headed Red Dragon in the sky above the mountain. While the fight was brutal it went unseen to human eyes. The White Dragon lost that battle and afterwards it sought shelter in a cave for a decade to recover from its wounds. It wasn’t until the 1976 death of Chairman Mao Zedong that it emerged from the cave to resume guarding the mountain, hoping that his old friend would one day return.
But when that day arrived the mythical creature was unsure if the boy was able to recall their connection. Nevertheless, it didn’t matter, the dragon witnessed the joy in the boy’s face when they first met, and it could see into his heart, seeing rare goodness within it.
After he arrived at the sanctuary, Kai stayed overnight and slept beside the dragon whose long fury body kept him warm as the temperatures dropped. At daybreak, the boy woke and had himself some of the spring water. The dragon knew that Kai had to leave the mountain to return to his grandparents.
As Kai packed his things and prepared to say farewell, he and the mystical creature heard the approaching drone of a helicopter. They both moved closer to the edge of the terrace and saw the distant black dot of a helicopter coming their way. Further back two more dots followed.
The sight of them filled both Kai and the White Dragon with trepidation. The dragon especially could perceive other things that Kai was not able to. It roared fiercely and shook its head. After taking some steps back, it then ran forward and jumped off the ledge. Kai watched as the dragon flew towards the direction of the helicopters. Halfway across the stretch of air that separated the mountain from the coming aircraft the dragon vanished from sight, slipping into a parallel dimension to fight an old foe.
The Landing
From inside the chopper, Quintus could see how the sanctuary had aged and how the fallen boulders half covered what was the terrace. He then noticed someone standing on the terrace.
Tina saw him as well.
‘There’s a kid down there!’ she said.
Tina didn’t add what else she saw about the boy who, in her eyes, glowed like the morning su
n. His aura was as great if not greater than what she saw in Quintus.
‘Well as long as he moves a bit we won’t squash him because that’s exactly where we’re landing,’ Quintus said.
‘There’s not much room,’ Tina remarked.
‘It’s going to be tight but it’s doable. When we land you need to get out ASAP. Everyone clear about that?’
He heard three affirmatives and then he sent the helicopter into a sharp decent. At the final moment he worked the stick and pedals to level the Z-9 and he then swung it around and it came in laterally towards the terrace.
As expected, Kai moved clear and he stopped just out front of the cave opening. He ignored the wind from the chopper’s rotors and enjoyed the spectacle of watching it land on the terrace. It was a near perfect touchdown.
Inside the chopper, Quintus killed the engine
‘Okay time to get out now,’ he said.
Kristen and Tina exited and made their way towards Kai some 40 feet away while War went and sat himself on the smooth rock that’d been sat on a million times before. Quintus soon followed.
The Text Messages
From the front of the helicopter, Marx could see the stolen Z-9 parked on the sanctuary’s terrace. Its rotor blades were slowing to a halt. He saw people nearby and counted five of them. One appeared to be a youth. The fact that Quintus had reached the sanctuary further unnerved him, but he reminded himself he needed to focus on retrieving War. Nothing else at this stage mattered.
Marx turned to his Chinese pilot and ordered him to land on the terrace.
‘There is no room to land,’ the pilot replied in Mandarin.
‘If those fools can do it, you can too.’
‘With that helicopter already parked on it, there is simply not enough space.’
‘If you can’t land just get us as close as you can so me and my team can get out onto the mountain,’ Marx said sternly. The pilot still looked unconvinced. ‘Unless you want to spend the rest of your life in prison you’d better do as ordered!’ Marx shouted. ‘Find a way to make it happen!’
Now more fearful of the crazed foreigner than a dangerous landing, the pilot dropped the helicopter’s nose towards the terrace.
Marx looked back at Vacher and Irfan with the PLA soldiers in the cabin. Both men were prepping their FN SCAR assault rifles they retrieved from the Crow before boarding the chopper.
‘You two, remember we just need Ivan alive, the others I now no longer care about,’ Marx said. ‘Just don’t screw this up. Everything is riding on it.’
His minions nodded but still had no appreciation of the seriousness of the affair. Their job, they thought was simple, get War.
Marx felt a buzz in his pocket. It was a text message. This better be Chuck Goyette finally replying, he thought. By the time he’d pulled out his cellphone two further messages were received but he soon discovered none of them were from Goyette. They were all from Lin and for Marx each one was a horror story.
The first text read: ‘My father (General Zhou) just died of cardiac arrest.’
The second text read: ‘We’ve lost control of the situation at the airfield/the hospital. Deng has fled, wants to defect.’
The third text read: ‘You’re now on your own. Leave China while you can. Do not contact me anymore.’
As you’d expect, Marx immediately wanted to vent but as the chopper descended towards the terrace, he managed to bury his fury. He reminded himself that he had to remain composed and motivated to complete his mission. The mess back at the airfield and the hospital had to wait.
Just Run
A bewildered Kai was glad to discover at least one of the people from the helicopter spoke some passable Mandarin. She was the only Asian among them and she introduced herself as Tina. The young woman said she was an American who had escaped from some bad people, of which he had no doubt.
He was bemused by the bearded man on the rock who pulled out a pen and a small pad from his coat pocket and began sketching.
How odd, the boy thought, given the circumstances. More curious than afraid, he went and looked at what the man was drawing. To his surprise, he saw it was the beginnings of a sketch of the White Dragon fighting the seven-headed Red Dragon in mid-air.
‘You can see?’ Kai asked War.
‘Yes,’ replied War in perfect Mandarin. ‘They’re fighting just beyond those approaching helicopters.’
‘Who is winning?’ Kai asked.
‘It’s too early to tell at the moment.’
‘The White Dragon is sure to win,’ the boy said.
They were interrupted by Quintus whose sole concern was the choppers which were dangerously approaching.
‘Everyone has to get out of here, now!’ he yelled.
He saw Kai with War.
‘Who is the kid? What’s he doing here?’
‘He said he’s here to help,’ Tina replied.
‘Take him with you, you all gotta get off this mountain!’ he yelled.
‘What’re you planning to do?’ Tina asked.
‘Don’t worry about that. Pretty soon one or both of those helicopters are going to try and land. I’ll stay to hold them off,’ Quintus said.
The Z-9s were getting nearer. Their engines were ominously beating like war drums.
Kristen called out to War.
‘Ivan come on, we have to go.’
War continued to draw while shaking his head for no.
There was no time to argue his answer.
‘You three need to run before it’s too late. I’ll look after him,’ Quintus said referring to War.
After shouldering his rucksack, Kai threw Quintus his walking pole and indicated that it could be used as a fighting stick.
‘Thanks, now get moving,’ Quintus said to them all. ‘If everything works out, I’ll find you,’ he added as they finally turned to leave in the direction of a mountain path.
As they took the path, Quintus turned back to War on his rock.
‘Why don’t you go?’ Quintus asked him.
‘I should ask you the same thing,’ War replied. ‘You’ve done what you had to do.’
‘Do what exactly?’
‘You fulfilled the prophecy; you came back to White Dragon Mountain at the right time. That is all you had to do,’ War said.
‘Are you an immortal?’
‘In the human sense of the word I am.’
‘So, who the hell are you?’
‘That Quintus would take way too long to explain,’ War replied as the closest helicopter approached to land at the sanctuary. Marx was now visible in the front of the chopper.
‘This man will surely kill you. He and his sycophants hate you with all their being,’ War warned.
‘I’ve dealt with them before,’ Quintus said. He then looked in the direction where Kristen, Tina and Kai had fled towards. ‘Can you protect them?’
‘I cannot alter their fate. Neither can you. You should leave.’
‘I can’t do that.’
‘Then at least you’ll die a good man,’ War said in what was the last thing they could say as the noise of the helicopter — now less than 100 feet away — began drowning them out.
The Chinese pilot adjusted his approach so the Z-9 would also land laterally on the remaining space on the terrace. Behind them the other pursuing chopper peeled off to fly in the same direction in which Kristen, Tina and Kai had just run off towards.
As Marx’s helicopter got nearer, one of its side doors slid open and Quintus saw Vacher and Irfan inside it armed to the teeth. He held their gaze for a second and then dropped the fighting stick which rattled on hitting the stony ground. He looked at War and offered a parting nod as he swiftly retreated into the cave.
War kept drawing while ignoring the helicopter that landed in front of him. Despite the small space available and the close proximity of the cliff wall, the pilot managed to successfully put the chopper down. The first to exit it were Vacher and Irfan with weapons at the ready. Moving in
a crouching run, they bypassed War on his rock and went to the cave where Quintus was last seen going inside. They stopped at its entrance and awaited orders from their boss who was exiting the Z-9. The three PLA soldiers did likewise but were somewhat confused by what was going on.
Somehow Marx managed to maintain his composure as he walked the 18 steps from the chopper to War on the rock. Upon reaching War, he coughed to herald his presence, old-school style. War ignored the gesture and kept sketching. After the sound of the Z-9’s engine finally died down, Marx spoke.
‘It’s been an appalling morning Ivan but despite it all, I’m ready to let bygones be bygones,’ Marx said. ‘You and I have obligations, ones that are larger than both of us. You know what they are so let’s not mess about, please get on my helicopter.’
War looked up at Marx for a second but then he returned to his sketching.
‘I don’t know where all this treachery is coming from but I’m not having a bar of it,’ Marx sneered.
To avoid having a complete meltdown, Marx left War and went over to Vacher and Irfan by the cave’s entrance.
‘Where is he?’ Marx asked about Quintus.
‘Inside the cave, somewhere,’ Vacher said.
Marx shoved Vacher aside, so he could be next to the cave’s entrance.
‘Quintus! Have you found your grandmaster’s bones in there?’ Marx yelled into the cave.
There was, of course, no reply.
‘Actually, no you wouldn’t, that’s because we dragged his filthy flea-ridden carcass out of there and shot him dead. Then we flung his body over the ledge. Odd thing is, the Red Guard who pulled the trigger was my recently expired comrade who needed your liver. Funny how it all kind of ends up isn’t it?’
There was still no reply.
‘Quintus there’s nowhere for you to run to!’ Marx shouted. ‘I don’t know why you bothered to return. The magic disappeared from this place a long time ago. It’s just a tomb now, your tomb.’