White Tiger

distress.
    ‘Enough! Enough!’ John called, laughing. ‘I didn’t know it could do that!’
    I ordered the sword to shut up and my ears rang in the sudden silence.
    ‘Don’t do that again, please, Emma!’ Simone said. ‘That was awful!’
    I bowed to them, then turned to face the dummy. This time I used the sword as a slingshot to throw the energy. The dummy exploded into a million pieces. The force of the blast showered us with straw. John had to shield Simone from the flying debris.
    The chi returned to the sword without my guidance.
    ‘That was only about one-fifth of what I used the first time,’ I said.
    ‘That is correct,’ Gold said. ‘You will achieve five times the power, combined with five times the distance, by using the sword to throw the chi. You also do not need to guide the energy back.’
    ‘Sweet! Hey, John, do you have any demons I can practise on?’
    ‘Sure. I have a jar in the basement. Just hold on, I’ll get it for you.’
    ‘I may play them some tunes as well,’ I mused aloud.
    ‘Leo, I want to go inside right now, please,’ Simone said.
    ‘Yeah, we’re out of here,’ Leo said. ‘Come and get us when you’re finished.’
    John followed Leo and Simone back to the house. Then he stopped, stiffened, and walked swiftly back.
    ‘Looks like we won’t need the jar,’ he said, studying the sky.
    Gold looked up as well. ‘You have sky seals?’
    ‘Yes,’ John said. ‘Let’s see what happens. Emma, fill the sword with chi. You may have your chance right now.’
    I filled the sword with energy and ordered it to be silent. ‘What’s coming?’
    ‘Flyers,’ Gold said.
    ‘How big?’
    ‘Oh, about twenty,’ John said casually, still studying the sky. ‘About twelve of them. Second wave.’
    The flyers appeared as black spots in the cloudy sky. They looked like ravens.
    ‘Are they like crows?’
    ‘Nope,’ Gold said. ‘Completely different. And much bigger.’
    The flyers came closer and I suddenly saw that they weren’t the size of ravens, they were much, much bigger. Their altitude had hidden their true size. Each had a wingspan of probably about two metres.
    ‘Can we handle them?’
    ‘Oh, yes,’ John said. ‘This should be good. They don’t know I’ve given you the sword. They will find out in a hurry. When I tell you, make the sword sing.’
    The flyers were like large flying lizards, or small black dragons. They had scales, four legs, and wings. Their eyes glowed red as they approached us.
    When they were about fifty metres away, I hefted my sword.
    ‘Wait,’ John said without moving. ‘They’re awfully close, John,’ I said, concerned. The flyers sped towards us. ‘Trust me, Emma.’
    The flyers opened their mouths when they were about twenty metres away; around twelve of them. They flew together in a mass of black scaly legs and wings.
    ‘Will they blow fire like the dog?’ I said, clutching my sword.
    ‘No,’ John said. ‘They’re just smiling.’
    The flyers were only ten metres away, and my heart raced.
    ‘Now,’ John said.
    I held the sword in front of me and made it sing.
    Every single one of the demons exploded, dissipating into feathery black streamers.
    ‘Well done, my Lady,’ Gold said with admiration.
    ‘Good. I don’t need to waste any demons out of the jar.’ John grinned. ‘Come inside and we’ll take a break. You have that skill mastered.’
    I lowered my sword and shook my head.
    ‘What?’
    ‘We were just attacked and you’re acting like it was nothing.’
    ‘It was nothing,’ John said with a shrug. ‘The next wave will be the one we need to worry about. But we know they’re coming, so we are prepared. I’m not too concerned about losing my head, particularly when I have you here to defend me.’ His grin widened. ‘I thought I told you to read the Tao.’
    ‘Oh, give it a rest.’ I followed him back to the house.

CHAPTER FORTY-FOUR
    G old shared lunch with us. Ah Yat cleared the dishes when we’d finished. ‘What’s on for this afternoon?’ I said. ‘Demon-binding,’ John said. ‘Leo, this is another energy technique that you can’t do, and it’s not very interesting to watch. Want to do some wudang spear outside instead?’
    Leo’s face lit up. ‘My Lord.’
    ‘Hey, I want to do some spear too,’ I said. ‘There isn’t space for full-on spear work back home.’
    ‘You’re not good enough yet,’ John said. ‘Wait a few more months.’
    Leo grinned with triumph.
    ‘You will both