Black Jade Read online

  Emma? Daddy?

  Simone! John roared in my head, then lowered the volume. Are you okay?

  Wow, loud, she said. I have it open. Hurry up!

  I threw myself out the door and rushed to the dead forest.

  Simone gave a running commentary as I flew in snake form. I went for kilometres all around the portal and didn’t find anything. I didn’t want to call that city guy — what was his name?

  Semias, I said.

  Yeah, him. I was worried someone else would hear if I called him. I see you, Emma. Her voice became strained. I don’t know how much longer I can . . .

  She was standing inside the shimmering portal as I swooped towards her in snake form. A roar like a jet engine sounded some distance away: John at full speed.

  Hold it open, John said, and streaked through the air above me.

  He didn’t stop at the portal; he took me behind the neck and dragged me through it. He stopped on the other side, put me down, and hugged Simone fiercely.

  ‘Let it go,’ he said.

  The portal closed with a sound of metal scraping over ice.

  We were on a wide grassy plain with a forest at the edge. Above us, high sweeping clouds brushed the night-time Heavenly sky. I looked up with wonderment. Enormous oval crystals, the smallest the size of a bus and the largest big enough to carry a city, hung in the air at different altitudes, some of them immensely far off the ground. Cities with glittering towers had been built on the islands, and silvery suspension bridges hung like delicate webs between them. The moonlight glinted off the crystals, causing rainbows all around us. The air was fresh with the fragrance of the living earth and I breathed deeply, flicking my tongue to taste it. This was Heaven, my Heaven, the place I’d come from.

  ‘I feel the same way,’ Simone said. ‘I suppose it’s because I’m half-European.’ She concentrated and the portal opened again, then closed. ‘Cool. I have it.’

  ‘What’s the word?’ I said.

  ‘I say “cool” all the damn time,’ she said. ‘But you’re with Daddy anyway — he’d know if I was a copy.’

  ‘She was just making the point that you still say it too much,’ John said. ‘But I don’t think you do.’ He raised his head as if listening. ‘I can sense a great many demons about a hundred kilometres away.’

  ‘I can’t sense any demons,’ Simone said. ‘I went out looking — don’t worry, I was really quiet — and I didn’t find anyone. I can’t sense that Semias guy, I can’t sense any demons, it’s like the whole world is empty.’ Her voice caught. ‘The towns on these floating islands are very beautiful, but there isn’t a single living thing here; it’s like they have no soul. I went out as far as I could but it’s just so quiet. I’ve never been completely by myself like that before.’ She wiped her shaking hand over her eyes. ‘So I came back and I couldn’t open the portal! It took me ages to work it out, and I was scared I was stuck, and I was alone. It was awful.’

  ‘Never forget you are Immortal and Court Ten is always an option,’ John said. ‘Now open the portal and go out. I’ll reconnaissance here. Open it once an hour, on the hour —’

  She didn’t let him finish. ‘I don’t know if I can open it from the other side, Daddy.’

  ‘All right, you go out and I’ll open it from this side.’ He held his hand out. ‘Show me how you do it.’

  She took his hand and I quickly put my snake chin on her shoulder to watch as well. She opened the portal and John’s eyebrows creased.

  ‘I have no idea what you just did,’ he said with wonder. ‘Do it again.’

  ‘God, Simone, you’re twisting reality through four dimensions,’ I said with similar wonder as she closed and opened it again. ‘That must have been so challenging to learn, and it only took you a couple of hours.’

  ‘I can’t even see it!’ John said.

  ‘I saw how it worked as I came in,’ she said. ‘It’s difficult, but I have it. It’s like a three-dimensional maths graph in my head, but the graph is kind of back to front and the stuff that’s further away is closer at the same time.’

  ‘In four dimensions,’ I said. ‘I know some Earthly physicists who would give anything to see what you just did.’

  ‘I can’t hold it for much longer,’ she said.

  ‘Let it go,’ John said, and released her hand as it disappeared. ‘Emma, I can’t see a damn thing. I have no idea what she’s doing.’

  ‘Can you do it, Emma?’ Simone said.

  ‘No way. It’d break my brain. I wouldn’t even try.’

  ‘Oh, come on, you know you’re smarter than me. You’re smarter than just about everybody.’

  ‘Humph,’ I said. ‘Don’t underestimate yourself. Remember who one of your fathers is.’

  ‘The Serpent is female, so it’s one of my mothers.’

  ‘Whatever. Have you found anything, John?’

  John’s eyes were unfocused; he’d been searching the area while we talked. ‘I need to travel north and see what’s there. I think it’s demons but I’m not sure.’ He snapped back. ‘Can you open the portal anywhere, or does it have to be here?’

  ‘Here,’ Simone said. ‘Something about the alignment of the crystals in the sky affects the Celestial Harmony.’

  ‘Both of you wait here —’ He saw Simone’s expression. ‘Never mind. Let’s go.’

  He took Celestial Form, summoned a cloud, and I rode with him in my larger human form. Simone flew next to us in her usual human form, wearing a pair of jeans and a tatty sweater with a Harry Potter owl on the front. After twenty minutes of travel John slowed and reduced altitude. We edged over the top of a range of hills and John stopped. He hid us from view, and we approached the demons.

  It was all I could do to contain my astonishment. It looked like a traditional army encampment, but with no sleeping tents or cooking fires. The demons stood unmoving in neat ranks, and there was a cluster of marquees at the end of the rows on the far side, which obviously held the administrative support. The demons covered the plain, an orderly unmoving engine of destruction.

  Those humanoids are close to level sixty, John said. They have ten battalions to one brigade — by the Heavens, there are a hundred thousand demons here.

  The cohort on the aircraft carrier was nothing compared to this, I said.

  I know, he said. There’s another thousand armoured demons acting as centurions, stationed at the end of the rows of humanoids. We are in serious trouble.

  There’s more on the far side, Simone said, rising higher and moving away to see.

  Another twenty or thirty thousand toxic and ranged support troops: flyers, dogs, worms and slimes, John said.

  There’s no way we can defeat them, Simone said. What do we do?

  Pre-emptive strike, John said. I’ll bring the other three Winds and as many Number Ones as we can gather, and we’ll yin yang them.

  You can’t use yang and yin at the same time — Simone began. Never mind — one then the other.

  Can you take them all out? I said.

  Maybe about half with a couple of Number Ones along, then the other half if they don’t move. You’ll need to help as well, Simone. Let’s go back and call everybody.

  My phone doesn’t work up here! Simone said.

  Of course not, there’s no network, I said. Your phone probably went flat searching for a signal. I’d say the Demon King’s set up a small network using Gold’s tech that they stole from us, but it’s localised onto their main strongholds.

  Open the portal and I’ll summon them, John said. If you’re not sure whether you can open it from the other side, we’ll wait this side for them.

  Okay.

  * * *

  Twenty minutes later we arrived at the portal and hovered above it. Ten big armoured demons were standing at the location, guarding the Demon King, who was in their centre looking smug.

  ‘Shit,’ Simone said. ‘Now what?’

  Don’t you dare use Seven Stars on him, I said. If you destroy yourself now to take
him out, that army will still conquer our Heavens.

  John floated closer until he was directly above the King, who didn’t move. John put his hands out, palms down, towards the King and generated a concentrated column of yin that made the demon guards fall back. The yin snapped off, leaving a crater in the ground below the Demon King’s feet. He floated above it, exactly where he’d stood before John attacked him.

  One of the demon guards drew his weapon to retaliate, but the King waved him down.

  ‘It was worth a try,’ the King said. He gestured towards John. ‘Let’s talk.’

  ‘Stay here,’ John said to us, and floated down.

  ‘You know what comes next, Ah Wu,’ the King said when John was standing in front of him. ‘Save your people a great deal of anguish and end it now.’

  ‘I know. I will return and advise the Celestial,’ John said. ‘We will be in touch shortly.’

  ‘This is why I love you so dearly, Turtle,’ the King said. The demon guards shifted away from the location of the portal. ‘You have seen how merciful I am prepared to be. Go talk to the Jade Emperor and I will wait for your call. If this can be resolved without more conflict I am prepared to be extremely merciful.’

  ‘I thank you,’ John said.

  The portal opened.

  ‘Go through,’ the King said. ‘I won’t stop you or harm you. I’ve achieved my goal.’

  Simone and I hesitated, floating above the open portal.

  ‘Go through,’ John said without looking away from the King.

  We swept down, through the portal, and landed on the blackened ground next to the destroyed trees. John followed us and the portal closed.

  ‘Wait a few minutes, give him time to leave,’ John said.

  We stood silently in the dead forest.

  It seemed forever before John spoke. ‘Can you open it from this side?’ he asked Simone.

  Simone concentrated, then stopped and walked in a small circle. She crossed her arms in front of her chest and concentrated again. She stepped back and put her hands out towards the location of the portal.

  She shook her head. ‘It’s like it’s locked or something.’

  ‘He closed it behind us,’ John said. ‘We must return to the Celestial and tell him we have no chance of victory.’

  ‘We can yin and yang them when they come out to attack us,’ Simone said.

  ‘We have enough to take out about half of them, Simone,’ John said. ‘Then the Four Winds will be exhausted and the remaining demon soldiers will overrun Heaven. The refugees need to be moved into hiding on the Earthly, because once the demons occupy Heaven no civilian will be safe.’

  ‘We need to hide Simone as well,’ I said.

  ‘Simone blazes like a dark sun. She cannot be hidden,’ he said.

  ‘The civilians come first,’ Simone said.

  ‘The best we can hope for is to hide the mortals,’ John said. ‘Mo Wang made no attempt to stop us when we came here; he wanted us to see his strength. The King can be merciful when the mood takes him.’

  ‘How is that merciful?’ Simone said. ‘We’ll lose. All of us will end up in the Pits!’

  ‘Not if we can negotiate something,’ John said. ‘But now we know what our chances are, and we have time and opportunity to move the weakest somewhere safe. It is a kindness.’

  ‘Don’t you dare offer to go into that fucking cage,’ I said, my voice low. ‘I’d rather be lying dismembered in a pool of blood with you, than alone in a golden palace with you in a cage.’

  ‘When the time comes I do not think we will have a choice,’ he said. He changed to True Form. ‘We need to head back quickly. Come and sit on my shell and I’ll carry you.’

  As soon as we entered the Asian Heavens, my head filled with voices.

  We need the Dark Lord to sign the transfer of the securities, Jade said.

  And the cistern’s overflowing with sewage — there isn’t enough water, Meredith said.

  Nothing for breakfast tomorrow. We can’t even make congee because there’s no rice.

  I know that having no laundry detergent isn’t as major as . . .

  Without his medication his heart will . . .

  Five babies that need formula . . .

  The last of the antibiotics . . .

  The voices went silent.

  ‘Thank you,’ I said.

  ‘A brief respite,’ John said. ‘We’ll deal with all of them as soon as we’ve spoken to the Celestial. Then we need to arrange a safer place for everybody. I’ve asked Gold to contact the Grandmother — she may be able to help.’

  ‘I’ll head home and start organising things,’ I said.

  ‘No. I want you with me when I speak to the Jade Emperor. He can order me around but he can’t bully you,’ John said.

  ‘I’ll go to work on it. You two talk to the Jade Emperor,’ Simone said.

  ‘You are wonderful, Simone,’ I said, and she grinned without humour and flew away.

  * * *

  The huge red gates of the Celestial Palace opened for us, and we were greeted by chaos in the main square. It was full of refugees, sitting outside their tents sharing stories, listening to music with headphones, or silently pensive. Others walked between the stacked belongings, carrying water or plastic takeaway boxes with the meals the Palace was providing. A couple of men were arguing loudly close to the wall, and some Elites rushed to quell the altercation. Some who saw us fell to one knee, but others sat silently on the pavers, their eyes turned inwards.

  John, still in combined True Form, nodded his heads to those who acknowledged him as he strode through the cleared corridor up the centre of the crush. Nobody approached us, and some cringed away from John, intimidated.

  He changed to human before we entered the Hall of Supreme Harmony. It was also full of refugees, this time the elderly and mothers with children. Babies cried, their wails echoing off the clerestory windows above. A few laughing children played tag along the corridor through the mattresses lined up on the floor. Women called our names as we passed, and both of us nodded a response.

  The Imperial Elite Guard Cloud was waiting on the other side of the hall to escort us.

  ‘Where is Er Lang?’ John asked her.

  ‘He is with the Celestial, Highness.’

  We went through the smaller gardens and courtyards, again full of refugee humans, to the Jade Emperor’s private quarters. The echoing voices went silent as we stepped through the moon gate into the empty courtyard outside his Residence. The Jade Emperor and Er Lang stood together under a peach tree.

  We stopped and fell to one knee in front of the Jade Emperor, then rose. He guided us to a gazebo next to a small pond, and we sat around a ceramic outdoor tea table.

  ‘Majesty,’ John said.

  ‘Lord Xuan. You have news?’

  ‘Simone found a way into the European Heavens.’

  ‘Good!’ Er Lang said. ‘Can we move in? Did you find any demons there? We can attack them before they attack us!’

  ‘There are a hundred thousand troops there, each of them equal to one of ours. There are a thousand black-armoured demons, and another twenty thousand support troops. We cannot win. We need to begin the negotiations for surrender, because if they march on the Heavens many innocents will die.’

  ‘Are they active? Or just parked?’ Er Lang said.

  ‘Parked, but not dormant.’

  ‘Can we fly in and drop a nuke on them? Take them out in one go?’

  ‘The portal is closed. The Demon King allowed us to enter to see the size of his force to spur us into surrendering without a fight.’

  ‘We can’t!’ Er Lang said, shocked.

  ‘We should. We have no chance. We need to negotiate terms for surrender,’ John said.

  ‘There must be something pre-emptive we can do! They’re just standing there, a sitting target, and you want to surrender before they even move?’

  ‘Majesty,’ John said, addressing the Jade Emperor, ‘we need to start negoti
ations to protect the mortals and keep non-combatant Immortals from the Pits. If the demons march on the Heavens, we will lose. We may be able to salvage something out of this now, if we do not fight.’

  The Jade Emperor hadn’t moved during this entire exchange. He just sat, pale and withdrawn, looking at the table. We waited for a reply.

  After a couple of minutes I prompted him. ‘Majesty?’

  He glanced up at me. ‘Yes, Lady Emma?’

  ‘Lord Xuan suggests we begin negotiations for surrender.’

  ‘I know.’

  ‘Do you want me to initiate proceedings? I can manage it,’ John said. ‘I will do my best to salvage the dignity of the Celestial —’

  ‘We will not surrender,’ the Jade Emperor said. ‘We will fight.’

  All my breath left me in a long rush. ‘That’s suicide.’

  ‘Ready the defences on the plain outside the Northern Heavens. We will face them there.’

  The three of us were silent for a moment, then realisation hit us at the same time and our expressions filled with wonder.

  ‘What aren’t you telling us, Majesty?’ Er Lang said.

  ‘We have a chance?’ I said. ‘You think we can still beat them?’

  ‘Prepare the defences, Generals.’

  ‘Are you sure, Majesty?’ John said. ‘Unless there’s something you’re not telling us, there is no way we can win this. You must tell me if you have a secret weapon that will ensure success.’

  ‘I cannot tell you.’

  Relief filled me. ‘You know something. We’ll win!’

  ‘Majesty?’ John said, still unsure.

  The Jade Emperor rose and nodded to each of us. ‘Prepare the remaining troops for a last stand outside the Northern Heavens. The demons will attack in five days.’

  He turned and walked into his Residence without saying another word.

  ‘What the fuck is wrong with him?’ John asked Er Lang. ‘We can’t possibly win. Even if he pulls an army of fucking qilin out of his ass, there’s no way we can beat them. The Winds and their children can yin yang about half of them, I can destroy another few thousand before I go down, and then the Heavens will fall.’ John looked from Er Lang to the Jade Emperor’s pavilion. ‘What isn’t he telling us?’