The Adventures of the Jade
Dragon
Episode 8
The Jade Dragon and the
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Chapter 3
Bandits
Two days later the expedition set out from
It would have been more efficient to take trucks all the way, but where they
were going the roads would deteriorate quickly and the Monsoon season was
only a couple of months off. If
they hadnt completed their journey by then the roads would be impassable
to vehicular traffic. Mules and
porters simply made more sense, and they didnt require gasoline, another
commodity in short supply in
It was an interesting change for the three women, especially Sun
Lin. Strangely, in spite of her
Chinese heritage, both Natassia and Melissa were more Chinese in many ways
than she was.
Melissa had actually been
born in
A second change was the fact that they were going to have to walk farther than most of them had ever walked in their lives. They were urban crimefighters, and although they were in incredible physical condition, they were not used to traveling more than a few blocks on foot. It would be a most interesting experience for all of them.
The first two days of the trek went well.
Sun Lin pulled off her boot. I think, she said, somewhat embarrassed, that Ive got a blister. They had only been walking for a couple of hours and at Hedridges suggestion had just made their first rest stop.
Dont want to rush into things, the English guide said. Its better to break yourself in easily rather than wear yourself out.
Under other circumstances, Sun Lin might had resented the comment on the grounds that the ex-officer was coddling them due to the fact that they were women, but the pain in her right foot made her grateful to stop.
Ah yes, Hedridge said, much to Sun Lins chagrin. Youve got a dandy there. Best to take care of it before it gets worse. Ill get the medical kit.
I could just heal it, Natassia whispered, moving close enough to Sun Lin that Hedridge could not hear. She was now wearing the Dragons Eye under her clothing. The power of the gem enabled her to heal even the most deadly wounds with ease.
No, replied Sun Lin. Youll be healing me every five miles. Ill let Hedridge tend to it. It is the only way my feet will toughen up.
If you say so, Natassia said dubiously.
Hedridge rubbed some foul smelling ointment over Sun Lins
feet. Something I picked
up in
Thank you, Sun Lin said. She waited until Hedridge had bandaged her foot and then pulled her sock and boot on.
Sun Lins assessment proved
accurate. Her feet did toughen
as did Melissas who had to be given the same
treatment. Only Natassia needed
no assistance. The power of the
Dragons Eye healed
any injury she received, no matter how minor, and if her feet suffered any
damage there was no evidence of it.
They moved at easy stages partly to give the members of the party time to
acclimatize and partly to toughen them for the steeper terrain
ahead. Sun Lin also wanted time
to train. Honing her martial
arts skills was an important part of her daily regimen and she and her companions
practiced for two hours every morning in order to maintain their fighting
edge. In
Two weeks into the trek, they were deep into the range of mountains called the Wuliangshan. The rugged mountain terrain slowed them considerably, but Sun Lin kept track of their progress, there was still plenty of time. For the first time since taking up her crimefighting career she felt completely relaxed. She had not realized how refreshing it would be have nothing more to do than look after Huan Yue and hike through the most beautiful countryside she had ever seen.
The terrain they were now traversing was quite
mountainous. They had left the
main road and were trekking up step trails lined with lush
vegetation. Every now and then
they would chance upon a startling mountain vista that soon had both Melissa
and Natassia busy snapping pictures.
It was an almost idyllic
existence. Free for the first
time in years of the responsibility of keeping the forces of evil at bay,
Sun Lin found herself wishing that their journey to the
Saihan Khasar watched the small procession work its way
up the mountain track. Two white
women, a white man, and about two dozens Chinese
servants. Only a few of them
seemed to be armed. It was just
as Roshac had said it would be. The
treacherous European was someone he wouldnt want to trust too often,
but in this case he had come through.
The members of this poorly armed expedition would hardly be a match
for his 200 well armed bandits. He
was curious, however, as to why they were in the mountains in the first
place. This was a most inaccessible
region, which was why he had chosen it as his
sanctuary. As a member of
Sun Lin and her companions were quite unprepared for
the attack. One minute they were
traversing a narrow and seemingly empty ravine; the next instant screaming
demons erupted from out of the foliage on either side of the
trail. The bandits had chosen
their spot well. No one in sun
Lins party had the faintest idea that they were there until they swarmed
over the terrified porters.
With wails of terror, the male porters and the four
governesses attempted to run back the way they had come, but there was no
safe place to retreat, as the bandits had sealed the trail behind the
expedition. In terrified panic
Sun Lins expedition disintegrated as its members fell all over one
another in a futile attempt to escape.
Not all members of the expedition
ran. Hedridge, supported by three
of the men he had hired, fired into the bandits as they attacked, but such
resistance lasted only seconds.
They went down in a hail of gunfire from bandits posted higher up
the slopes of the narrow defile.
Sun Lin quickly assessed the
situation. The men attacking
had no firearms. Apparently the
bandit force lacked weaponry. The
greatest danger, therefore, came from the riflemen posted above the
ravine. They could easily kill
anyone on the floor of the ravine including the four
children. Her eyes swept the
ravine looking for someplace to hide.
Two massive boulders on one side of the ravine provided the refuge
she sought. Quickly she directed
the mules carrying the four infants into the space between them and then
backed into the narrow space herself.
Melissa and Natassia followed.
We have to wait until they get close, Sun
Lin said. If we can get
amongst them we will be too close for the men above the ravine to shoot at
us without endangering their comrades.
Melissa and Natassia
nodded. Ill go after
the men at the top of the ravine, Natassia
said. With the power of the
Dragons Eye to aid her, she was the obvious
choice. She would be able to
scramble up the side of the ravine before the men with rifles had a chance
to hit her.
Lets go, Sun Lin
said. Several of the bandits
had appeared at the entrance to their boulder
refuge. They were an ugly looking
bunch, apparently armed with whatever weapons they could
scrounge. The men facing them
had everything from curved swords to axes, and wicked-looking
knives. Several of them were
even wearing what appeared to be leather body armor and metal helmets from
Chinese antiquity. The leading
bandits grinned when they saw the three
women. They were clearly not
expecting any opposition from three unarmed
females.
Melissa and Sun Lin went first, clearing the way for
Natassia. The two highly trained
heroines moved among the men facing them like ghosts, easily avoiding their
uncoordinated and stunned efforts to kill
them. But they did more than
avoid the attacks of the bandits.
Their fists, elbows, knees, and feet carved a bloody path through
the startled bandits, leaving a pile of injured and unconscious men behind
them. Neither woman moved too
far from the shelter of the boulders.
They didnt have to. As
they eliminated the first wave of their attackers more swarmed in their
direction.
Natassia ignored the men charging toward Melissa and
Sun Lin. They were not her
concern. It was imperative that
the bandits armed with firearms be eliminated and with her enhanced speed
that was a job she could handle better than either of her
companions.
From his position overlooking the trail, Khasar watched
astounded at the incredible spectacle in the
ravine. His men had routed the
members of the expedition with ease, but now something unbelievable was
happening. Fighting from the
protection of two large boulders, two of the women he had thought to capture
were systematically eliminating his heavily armed
troops. They moved almost too
quickly for him to follow their actions.
Even more fantastic was the fact that a third woman had swept past
the men in the ravine and was tearing into the riflemen he had posted over
the ravine. Already more than
a dozen men were down and the rest were on the verge of
panic. In a few seconds his entire
force would be routed.
He cursed vividly.
Roshac did not warn me about this, he
muttered. He had to move
quickly. He ran to his most prized
possession. It was a weapon he
had only recently acquired and it had cost him a months tribute from
the villages he controlled. It
was a Vickers heavy machine gun, and it was to be used only in the most extreme
emergency. He had set it up,
thinking confidently that it would not be
needed. Surely such weak opposition
did not warrant the use of so expensive a
weapon. He gained it just in
time. Already his men were streaming
away from the demoness that raged among
them. Shoving the two wavering
gunners who were supposed to be manning the weapon out of the way, he flicked
off the safety and swung the gun toward the charging white
woman.
Natassia grinned in
triumph. In her wake were more
than a score of bandits. Using
the power of the
Dragons
Eye she hurled
herself at the attackers, striking left and right at the swarm of
bandits. Each blow was deadly,
breaking bones, and hurling bodies right and
left. Within moments she had
ripped a swath through the stunned
bandits. The battle was almost
over, the remaining bandits taking to their heels and running for their
lives. She chanced a quick look
over her shoulder to see how Sun Lin and Melissa were
doing.
Below her the ravine was littered with the broken bodies
of bandits. It appeared that
those who were not
hors
de combat were
running for their lives. The
battle was theirs. At that moment
something struck her in the stomach with the force of a
sledgehammer. The impact lifted
her up and dropped her over the edge of the
ravine. She tumbled down the
steep slope aware only of the terrible pain from the bullets that had hit
her.
She had been hit at least three times, once in the stomach,
again in left shoulder, and again in her right
thigh. The bullet holes traced
a diagonal line from her thigh to her
shoulder. Even the power of the
Dragons
Eye
could not
protect her from such damage. Blood
pulsing from her wounds, she lay in a pile of bodies at the bottom of the
ravine, dimly aware of the fact that whoever had fired the machine gun had
killed several of his own men to get her.
Ruthless bastard, she thought, and then she
fainted.
Natassia!
screamed
Melissa. Charging toward her
friend, she found her way barred by half a dozen
bandits. She made short work
of them. Spinning like a dervish
her deadly feet shattered the jaw of the man closest to her and knocked him
into the others. Using the
opportunity provided, Melissa scoop up the curved sword the man had dropped
and used it to deadly effect against the
others.
Trained since infancy as a member of the Assassains
Guild, Melissa had mastered all of the hand weapons of ancient
Natassia was breathing, but not
conscious. Incredibly the terrible
wounds that the bullets had inflicted on her were no longer bleeding, but
the heroine seemed to be in a deep sleep.
The
Dragons
Eye must be
healing her, thought Melissa.
Without thinking she unbuttoned Natassias blouse,
revealing the pulsing green stone.
In the shade of the rock it glowed with a powerful intensity as it
sought to heal the comatose heroine.
Weve got to keep her safe,
she said to Sun
Lin. The
Dragons
Eye will heal
her injuries. She just has to
be protected for awhile.
Sun Lin nodded.
While Melissa stood guard over Natassia, she watched for any further
efforts by the bandits to continue their
assault. Behind her were the
four children, strangely composed in the bloody chaos that surrounded
them. With any luck the bandits
would not come back, but that hope was almost immediately dashed when several
men armed with rifles appeared at the entrance to her
refuge. She acted immediately,
giving no time for the men to fire their
weapons. Her movements were so
fluid it was almost as if she was dancing as she moved among the men who
had sought to capture her. But
it was a very deadly ballet. Faster
than any eye could follow, her feet and hands flicked
out. Each blow found its mark
with unerring accuracy. A knife
hand crushed a larynx; a knee ruptured a groin; a foot shattered a
kneecap. Within seconds more
than half the men were down and the rest were fleeing for their
lives.
Khasar watched in disbelief as the Chinese martial artist
destroyed his men. What kind
of women were these? He had thought
the small band of men and women would be an easy target, but it had already
cost him more than
Khasar grimaced in
approval. More than anything
else he wanted these women alive.
And he wanted to capture them without taking any more
casualties. With a shout he ordered
his men to break off the attack and then stood up where the remaining women
could see him.
I know where the children are, he
shouted. Surrender or I
will direct my fire into the rocks that shelter
them.
Sun Lin looked toward the top of the
ravine. A powerfully built man
of far more than average height stood with his hands on his hips looking
directly toward her. Behind him
were a score of men armed with rifles.
She glanced quickly behind her and saw that the children were still
sheltered. But for how
long? She was surrounded by dozens
of armed men. She and Melissa
couldnt hold them off forever, not with only her bare
hands. And Natassia was badly
wounded. If the battle continued
it was likely that her friend would be
killed. But of even greater concern
was the danger to the children.
Even sheltered by the large boulders she could not be sure that they
were safe. A ricochet might hit
any one of them or the bandits might have
grenades. She had seen no sign
of such weapons, but if they had a heavy machine gun there was no telling
what other weapons they might possess.
She looked at
Melissa. Her young companions
face was grim. She knew what
had to be done. With a brief
nod she showed that she understood.
Taking a deep breath, Sun Lin stepped from her hiding
place and slowly raised her hands in a gesture of
submission. There was still a
chance. It was obvious that the
bandit leader did not want her or her companions
dead. If he did then he would
have simply shot her the way that he had shot
Natassia. He wanted her alive,
and that meant that there would be a chance to
escape. It was her only
chance. She couldnt risk
the lives of the children. Beside
her Melissa got to her feet.
Raising her hands she stepped out from between the
boulders.
Immediately several dozen bandits swarmed over
them. They were roughly seized
and then securely bound. Between
the two large boulders several other men found the unconscious
Natassia. It took only a few
seconds for them to spot and remove the belt containing the
Dragons
Eye. Melissa
watched helplessly as the bandits dragged her still unconscious companion
from her hiding place. She could
only hope that the mystical gem had been given enough time to heal her fallen
friend. Then she and Sun Lin
were marched off into captivity.
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