Dragon Clans B. 02

Ch. 7

The memory bloomed vivid for Michael as he raced into the fortress.

Nicholas standing over Ian's body.

Blood dripping slowly down the dagger's point, leaving a muddy crimson stain in the sand.

Cold dead eyes locking with his for an instant before Michael was dragged away.

'I could have saved him.'

The thought had haunted Michael ever since that afternoon. Watching Ian's life essence slip away while Nigel and Sims had pulled him back from the carnage.

He understood the reasons, understood that he was not ready to face Nicholas or to save Ian that day.

But knowing such things rarely makes the cold truth of failure sit any better.

Michael pulled up quickly and dropped into a half crouch sensing someone coming around the corner. On edge, Michael's instincts took over, he felt Aoife's fiery energy surge forward ready to meet whatever challenge may be ahead.

Sims barely had time to block Michael's low strike to his abdomen as he rounded the corner on his way to meet up with Nigel.

"What the fuck mate!"

Sims' body relaxed with the realization that it was Michael who had thrown the punch.

"Sims...sorry...I didn't know it was you, I thought..."

'You should be more mindful Michael, rushing in blindly is a sure way to meet that which you are unprepared for.'

Michael acknowledged the wisdom of Aoife's words as she receded.

"Sorry Sims, I was distracted, it won't happen again."

"No worries, but damn, I'm glad it was me and not someone else, that strike would have been lethal if it connected."

Sims was more than a little surprised at the amount of raw force that was behind Michael's intended blow as he rubbed his burning forearm.

Shaking off his rash behavior Michael looked at Sims for a moment then with nod started off again.

"Wait, where are you going." Sims called after Michael.

"I have to find Nigel, something is coming, it could be Nicholas or someone else but it has its sights most definitely set on us, we have to get out of here."

Jogging to catch up to Michael, Sims stopped him with a hand on his shoulder.

"We know, Lo-Chan is on the move and headed our way, intel says sometime in the next few days. He is coming for Sin-Cho there is history between Onji and Lo-Chan. Seems Sin-Cho is a distant relation of Onji's, Lo-Chan held her hostage on the mainland. A few months ago Onji put together an op and rescued her. It seems Lo-Chan is coming to settle the score."

As Michael took in this new information, he felt a wave of memories wash over him.

Ryujin, through the bond, gave Michael the memories of Onji, Sin-Cho and Katsimodo.

Onji finding out that Sin-Cho was of his blood...

Sin-Cho's utter despair at being held by Lo-Chan...

Katsimodo's flash of knowing to his soul with one look at Sin-Cho's terrified face that she was meant to be at his side.

It passed in an instant, but Michael felt all of it, each shard like emotion burned into him, became part of him, gave him the understanding and more importantly the necessary clarity to find his balance.

"What about Nicholas?" Michael's face was grim as he waited for the response he was sure would be coming.

"He flew into Singapore just this morning. We are waiting on updated data to see if that is his final destination or not."

A cold menace slipped over Michael with confirmation of what he already knew, that Nicholas was close. Lo-Chan may be coming to settle a score with Onji but Nicholas' intent was different, one that included his death and all those that he loved.

"Sims, stay close to Tera and Valerie, I don't know when I'll be back, keep them safe for me."

Michael hadn't finished the sentence before he was sprinting back toward the entrance. The cliffs called and there was no more time to wait.

-vVv-

"Have you seen Michael?" Nigel was none to pleased with having all of this forced upon him, he hated being on the defensive and that was exactly what Nicholas and Lo-Chan had done.

"I just left him, he came running into the Keep like a bat out of hell, tried to grab my spine through my belly button before he realized it was me. Told me to stay close to Tera and Valerie then ran off again."

Nigel's eyes blazed, he needed Michael to prepare what defense they could.

"Well go find the daft..."

Millie's soft hand on his shoulder cut off his sentence.

"Michael is doing what he needs to do Nigel. Now, what can we do?"

Nigel knew she was right, that the whole purpose of this trip was so that Michael could ascend and truly challenge Nicholas. It didn't put him at ease. Nicholas was ruthless and in that regard Lo-Chan was his equal. If they both came Nigel doubted that anything or anyone could stand in their way.

' I just wish I had some clue as to what Nicholas was planning.' Nigel never liked being on the defensive, offense was always a better play to make.

Millie's light squeeze on his shoulder made him stand a little straighter. They had been through dire situations in the past, this was just another in that long line. Always the three of them had come out on top. Ian was gone, but there were new forces on the board, powerful players that while not hardened by time and trial, they were strong and resilient none-the-less.

With a reassuring squeeze to Millie's hand Nigel turned to the job, as he always had.

"Sims I want minders for Millie and Valerie then track down Tera and both of you get back here asap, we have work to do."

-vVv-

The meeting with Bin-Fong had been enlightening.

It seemed that Lo-Chan's normally logical mind was a bit clouded where Onji and the woman Sin-Cho were concerned.

"Darion, do we have any information on this Sin-Cho?"

They had met with Bin-Fong for only a few minutes at the private terminal, he had given them a brief run down of what had occurred between his clan and Onji's over the past few months. It was out of character that Lo-Chan or Onji would take direct action against the other.

Darion rifled through a few files before finding the one he was looking for.

"The information is sparse, seems she spent her early years in a brothel in Beijing, a few years ago she came to the attention of Lo-Chan. He basically kidnapped her and had held her prisoner in one of his mountain strongholds. That is until a few months ago when Onji and his right hand Katsimodo staged a raid on the facility. There were..."

Darion paused and looked up at Nicholas, shock showing on his face.

"Well?" Nicholas was growing more impatient by the moment.

Darion composed himself and continued.

"It seems Onji brought a contingent of a hundred men, the only ones who left alive were Onji, Katsimodo and the girl."

Nicholas looked at Darion for a moment, it was not uncommon, at least in the past, for clan against clan battles to leave many more casualties in its wake.

"It isn't a huge number Darion, in the past clans would loose ten times that amount." Nicholas didn't understand Darion's surprise.

"Well yes, but it seems there were approximately thirty-five of Lo-Chan's forces guarding the compound...and neither Lo-Chan nor Bin-Fong were there when the attack came."

Nicholas let the information sink in.

A hundred of Onji's men, most assuredly well trained and led by Onji himself and his right hand were basically decimated by thirty-five on the opposite side without a chosen leading them.

It sent a shudder through Nicholas. He knew he was missing something and that was a feeling he loathed. As they pulled up to the gated entrance to Lo-Chan's compound in the mountains overlooking Singapore Nicholas was bound and determined that he would know what that missing piece was even if he had to wring Lo-Chan's neck to get it.

It was a cold and calculating Nicholas that walked into Lo-Chan's spacious office overlooking the valley below.

"Lo-Chan." Nicholas said with a nod. He was in no mood for pleasantries and got right to the point. He had a creeping suspicion of what Lo-Chan had done. If he was right then Lo-Chan may have crossed a line that Nicholas could not allow. His body tensed, as he cut to the chase and asked Lo-Chan.

"How many men do you plan on taking when we attack Onji?"

Lo-Chan regarded Nicholas with a wary eye. He understood now that somehow Nicholas had gotten a hint of what he was working on.

'Damn Bin-Fong to the seven hells.' Lo-Chan thought briefly before answering.

"Considering the forces Onji currently has at his stronghold and at his disposal I have brought roughly twenty operatives for our trip to Japan."

"Twenty Men!"

Nicholas was enraged.

"I fly half way around the world to help you deal with your oldest enemy and you insult me by bringing only twenty men. Onji could destroy them with a thought you fool!"

Lo-Chan walked away from Nicholas, sitting quietly behind his desk, wondering not for the first time how this dilettante had ever been chosen in the first place. Maintaining his calm demeanor Lo-Chan spread his fingers out on the desk regarding the livid expression on Nicholas' face for some time before finally speaking.

"Much has changed since last we met Nicholas. Gone are the days when there was a need for massive armies made up of cannon fodder when facing a chosen. Clan Tengshe has been busy these last decades, working to understand the nature of the gifts bestowed upon those of us who have been chosen. We have been trying to unlock the keys to that gift so they may be passed on, in part, to those required to face such conflicts."

Nicholas felt the words hang in the air. A growing dread finding purchase in his mind as the full spectrum of consequences to what Lo-Chan implied blossomed in his psyche.

Lo-Chan leaned back in his chair, putting as much distance as he could between himself and Nicholas without fleeing the room as Nicholas's burning fury changed to ice cold menace. It took a moment for Lo-Chan to break away from Nicholas' frosty stare and collect himself once more.

"What...have...you...done?" Nicholas' words seemed to steal heat from the air.

"Only what evolution requires of all of us Nicholas, to push the envelope to see the edge of the abyss, to find it and then move beyond it."

Lo-Chan stood, turning his back to Nicholas as he looked out over the verdant valley and Singapore beyond. A light fog enveloped the dense primordial forest along the mountainside as it fell away to the teeming city below.

"We started with my blood, my genetics to see if we could isolate what factors determine who will become chosen. It took years before any headway was made. Finally, with the genetic markers and keys found we could unlocked the mysteries, start to look for others who at least held a hint of the magic."

Lo-Chan turned back to Nicholas, hoping that he had calmed some. Nothing was further than the truth.

As Lo-Chan had explained what he had been doing Nicholas' rage only grew.

He should have seen it coming, should have been more prepared for this eventuality. He had thought of it himself when genetic testing had first started in the mid sixties. But the idea of dissecting the gift, of purposefully providing it to simple mortals, even for his own ends had been so shockingly abhorrent that he put the thought out of his mind almost immediately.

He should have known that others of his kind would not have the same fundamental understanding of how foolhardy it was to dilute their gift.

With nothing but Nicholas' continued stare forthcoming Lo-Chan continued.

"For the past twenty-five years every child in China has been genetically tested at birth for a myriad of genetic characteristics. With the samples cataloged and stored it is easy then for us to pick and choose any that show even the slightest signs of having the ancient markers in their genes."

"When one is identified they are procured and brought to one of several compounds throughout China. They are evaluated, taught and monitored twenty-four hours a day for six years. After gaining that baseline we then move forward, choosing what specialty they are most apt to fill."

"None are given the full gifts obviously. We play to the individuals strengths. If their gifts manifest in a physical way then they are trained as foot soldiers. Stronger and faster than any normal human we augment their natural gifts with drug regimes that enhance their strength and reflexes further. Including a mild psychotropic as well as subliminal sleep training we make sure the dogs leashes are firmly held by us."

Lo-Chan had ceased to be totally in the now. Nicholas saw that his eyes wandered as he related the details of his life's work. This was a man with wide dark dreams of power and control. 'This litany about his bastard creations may be the last words he utters if I can't get him under control.' Nicholas's thoughts became more controlled, understanding that Lo-Chan was far more dangerous than he believed. He watched Lo-Chan with a wary eye as he continued.

"The ones with more...esoteric abilities are trained longer. Keeping control of these individuals has always proven to be much more of a challenge. It has only been in the last five years that we felt they were ready for work in the field. Each is highly specialized, their abilities ranging from creeping into someones consciousness to hurling one ton boulders with their mind."

Lo-Chan's voices trailed off as he came fully back to the present. Locking his stare with Nicholas's he continued.

"The twenty I have brought are the absolute best, fifteen warriors and five with...other gifts. They will be more than enough for my purpose, and yours."

Nicholas' voice was mere whisper as he finally spoke.

"And what does Tengshe think about this Lo-Chan?"

Lo-Chan was silent for some time, contemplating his answer.

"She is...unaware of most of the details."

Nicholas was across the desk with his hands at Lo-Chan's throat in an instant.

"And how can that be?"

Nicholas hissed out the statement with such ichor that for a moment Lo-Chan believed his death to be imminent, but looking into Nicholas' eyes Lo-Chan saw not only rage but also something else, buried deep beneath the swirling emotions so often seen from his rival, there in the dark recesses of thought that are so closely guarded they rarely see the light of day Lo-Chan saw...hope.

-vVv-

A fog had come up, shrouding the hills in a dense mist. Michael moved through it like a great cat, muscles tensing as he felt his way quickly over the uneven ground.

Nicholas was coming once again, trying to take what was his, to hurt those that meant everything too him. "It will not turn out the same way this time," Michael fairly growled as he followed the growing cacophony of the waves hitting the cliffs.

The cliff face came up quick, Michael pulled up short looking down over the face to the sea below. Closing his eyes he searched for a direction to take, a blind man seeking the light.

'There is a small path just to your right, follow it until you find the cave, I await you.' Ryujin's voice echoed in his mind as he turned, finding the path and made his way down. The path was well worn, as if hundreds had used it often over the long centuries, making the same pilgrimage as he.

The cliff wall became wetter the further he descended, the spray from the waves soaking into his clothes. Near the base of the cliff the rough hewn stairs ended at a massive cave opening into the stone. Carved from millennium of waves beating relentlessly at this soft spot in the earths armor, its jagged thirty meter high opening a black void holding the promise and fear that all such voids do.

Michael paused before it, the waves rolling into the cave lower down the face, another moment of transition at hand Michael wondered if he was up to what lay ahead. Pushing his fears aside, the faces of Valerie and Tera taking their place his will hardened, none would take what was his. Michael stepped purposefully into the darkness to find whatever edge he could to ensure their survival.

-vVv-

Nicholas held Lo-Chan's gaze like a viper freezing its prey before the strike. Lo-Chan took a deep breath, as deep as possible with Nicholas' fingers wrapped around his throat.

"How?" Nicholas ground out once again as he released just enough of the pressure to allow Lo-Chan to speak.

Filling his lungs a few times to get the oxygen circulating to his brain again, Lo-Chan understood Nicholas' wonder.

Since the time of the great transference each clan leader had been linked to their sire. Once one was chosen and became, the link was made and had always been inescapable. Lo-Chan's research over the many long years had revealed that the Chosen on the other side of the table experienced their link very differently than those on his side. For them it was a natural extension of themselves, a joining of equals that enhanced both.

For Lo-Chan and his kind it was far different. Always it was a struggle of wills, one trying to dominate the other.

The sires usually won.

If you lived long enough, had enough energy, possessed enough inner strength, you could shroud the bond, dim what the sires see for a time. But it was always short and never complete.

Lo-Chan understood better than most the glimmer of hope that had flashed deep in Nicholas' eye.

"We can, I trust, talk of this openly?"

Lo-Chan's question was only prudent. The sires, while not friendly, did interact, what one knew the others would as well in due time.

"Yes you fool, would I have asked if it were not." Nicholas' words were clipped, the strain of holding Lo-Chan coupled with blocking his sire evident on his face.

"Early in our work I had my scientists break down the genetic markers of all the chosen we could, looking for the markers to make better soldiers. That was what I presented to Tengshe, she agreed that this line of study could bear fruit."

"However, aside from identifying those with the potential to be chosen it also provided a unique look at what a chosen was from a genetic standpoint. One of the first things we found was the genetic characteristics that allow the sire bond to take place."

Nicholas released Lo-Chan and took a step back. His face was still a hard mask but Lo-Chan understood that he had sparked the mans interest enough for his rage to cool a bit.

He sat back in his chair, adjusting his shirt collar before continuing.

"Everything that makes us chosen is locked in our DNA. All the things we can do, our long lives, our abilities, its all tied to the joining. Back to when the first ones gave whichever long lost ancestor the original gift and bound our kinds together."

"Finding the genetic key for the bond allowed us to make a type of...vaccine. It does not destroy the bond, it gives the user control over it, without the sire ever being the wiser."

Lo-Chan sat back, watching Nicholas, wondering what was going through his mind.

It was lucky for Lo-Chan that the lacked this ability. Seeing into Nicholas's mind in that moment would have been a life ending mistake.

Nicholas let the understanding of what the man said sink in.

An end to the constant pressure.

The constant pain.

The constant disease that was his sire.

Over the years Nicholas had found a modicum of control. It had been hard won and not without its own price. It could only be maintained for short periods within which he indulged himself in the quiet, a singular state where he could plan and fantasize about his sire finally understanding who the true master was.

And now Lo-Chan had laid a key to his prison at his feet.

"I want it Lo-Chan, I want it right now."

Nicholas' words were just above a whisper, the menace in them was almost a physical thing that traversed the distance between them, coiling around Lo-Chan's' soul.

"Of course Nicholas, give me a few moments and it shall be yours." Lo-Chan said with an unsteady smile.