Red Phoenix

parents. They’re the ones that they’re after.’
    ‘We are all the ones that they’re after,’ he said. He smiled into my eyes. ‘I am so proud of you.’
    ‘Just go,’ I said impatiently.
    The changing room was packed with people talking loudly and getting ready. I stopped inside the door and checked carefully. As far as I could tell, everybody was an ordinary human. I lined up, received my robes, and then found a corner to drop my gear.
    ‘Once you are robed, please take your place in the line for the procession. The ceremony will commence shortly,’ Jan said loudly from near the door.
    I was right after the Chows. There were about a dozen of them collecting awards. Everybody stopped and carefully smiled for the camera as they received their certificate. I made sure that I did too; John had demanded that I stop so that he could take a photo.
    When the ceremony was finished, everybody met and mingled in a reception room. John took photos of me with all the members of our family, even Jade and Gold. Leo gave me a huge hug. Simone was overexcited and starting to tire. My parents couldn’t stop grinning.
    ‘Time to go home,’ I said to everybody. ‘Enough. Let me return my robes, and we’ll head off.’
    I made a quick detour to thank Jan, then went back to the changing room to return the robes. Jade went with me, just in case. Absolutely nothing happened.
    We threaded our way back through the gardens to the overpass that would take us back to the Hung Hom car park. There was nobody for miles.
    ‘Stay alert,’ John said quietly.
    ‘Can you sense anything?’ I said.
    ‘No,’ John said, looking around. ‘Anybody else?’
    ‘Nothing,’ Simone said. Jade and Gold shook their heads silently as they walked beside us, guarding the flanks.
    We walked over the Cross-Harbour Tunnel. There were a few people on the overpass, and some hawkers selling fake CDs and designer handbags.
    ‘Nothing,’ John said softly.
    The other end of the overpass turned left into a long, enclosed walkway lit with glaring neon. There weren’t many people there. I began to feel extremely nervous. Our footsteps echoed eerily through the tunnel. It was unusual for the underpass to have so few people. It was normally very busy with people walking from the Polytechnic and Tsim Sha Tsui East to the Hung Hom station.
    ‘Anything?’ Leo said under his breath. ‘Something doesn’t feel right.’
    ‘If anything happens,’ John said, ‘Jade, take Simone, Gold, take Mrs Donahoe. Get them out of it.’
    Jade and Gold were silent.
    ‘What?’ I said.
    ‘Simone is already too big for either of us to carry,’ Jade said, miserable.
    ‘I suppose I should be pleased,’ John growled. ‘But this is not exactly the best time for you to tell me this.’
    ‘Don’t be silly, Jade,’ Simone said. ‘I’m much smaller than Mrs Donahoe.’
    ‘On the inside you are already bigger than a human being, my Lady,’ Gold said. ‘You are a very special person.’
    ‘Oh.’
    ‘Emma’s parents, then,’ John said under his breath. ‘If you have to, get them out.’
    My mother made a small gasping sound and I moved to take her hand. ‘We’ll be fine.’
    The entrance to the Hung Hom KCR station was directly ahead. We turned right out of the tunnel into adead end. It was the lobby for the lifts to go up to the car park. John glanced around the lift lobby. ‘Something does not feel right.’
    ‘Can you sense any demons nearby?’ I said as John pressed the button for the lift.
    ‘No,’ he said. ‘Jade? Gold?’
    ‘Nothing, my Lord,’ Gold said. ‘But something definitely does not feel right. Something feels…’ He hesitated. ‘Something feels very wrong.’
    My mother clutched my hand so tightly it was painful.
    ‘You’ll be fine, Mum,’ I said. ‘If anything happens, you’ll be right out of here.’
    ‘But what about you, sweetheart?’ she said. ‘I can’t leave you here alone.’
    ‘I’ll be fine,’ I said. ‘We can all take care of ourselves.’
    The lift doors opened and my mother screamed.
    It was definitely some sort of demon hybrid. It appeared to be made of stone, about three metres tall. It had to bend to come out of the lift. It was roughly human shaped, but it had no recognisable features. It was brown and coarse and seemed to have been put together quickly.
    We moved to put my parents and Simone behind us. The demon walked casually out of the lift and stood menacingly over us.
    I felt them before I