Her eyes snapped open.
The room quickly came into focus as Helena awoke. She was in her bed. The moon was shining in the living room window. It was near one in the morning. The meeting wasn’t until ten tomorrow. Why was she awake?
She was in danger.
The window exploded inwards with a horrific crash, splinters of the window frame tearing through the room. Helena rolled off her bed and onto her feet. A dark figure rushed towards her, filling her vision. Helena leaped into the air and flew over her bed to escape.
She jabbed a finger at the intruder and summoned every scrap of will she could to smite it. Her body tensed, then flared with power as lightning coursed through her arm. The darkness turned into blinding light, and thunder boomed as the creature fell back. In the second she had, Helena reached out and grabbed the hard leather of her pouch.
Then it was upon her.
Agony ripped through her chest, then poured over her back as she was flung through the air. Runes of blue light flashed for a moment around her then faded. Her protective wards burning out. Without them she’d be dead.
She needed to do something, anything! She jabbed her finger forwards and she tried to recapture the feeling of power she’d summoned before. The world exploded in white and Helena retreated.
As she flew away reality slowly snapped back into place, piece by piece. The nebulous pain in her body shifted into burning cuts on her back and a heavy throb in her stomach. Her eyes transformed the blur before her into a view of her apartment, both windows now shattered open. Finally the ringing in her ears cleared up, leaving the rush of wind.
The snap of fast moving silk came from above and she dodged to the right. Slashing claws slapped the air against her face, but she’d avoided the blow. She retreated again, flying into the moonlit skies and her opponent followed, the pale glow slowly revealing her attacker.
It was a woman, wearing a buttoned Chinese shirt and trousers. A paper slip stuck on the woman’s forehead hung between her cold eyes, and her arms were stiff, locked in rigor mortis. In the weak light of the moon, the hovering figure seemed like an omen of death.
Perfect unmarred skin showed through the lightning burns in the jiang-shi’s shirt. Worse she was flying. Whoever had animated it was apparently insultingly rich and willing to spend that wealth.
And their investment was paying off. Helena was hurt, in her nightclothes, and had only her traveling pouch to help defend herself. Her physical wards were going to take an hour to reform, and her internal strength was drained from casually throwing around lightning without focusing.
This was turning out to be a very bad night.
The rustle of silk was the only warning before the jiang-shi rushed forwards again. Helena juked up and to the left, away from its claw like hands. The undead woman hopped in the air to reverse course but Helena whirled to the right. That was the trick! She had the maneuverability advantage. If she could stay out of reach she could easily take the monster down.
Helena grabbed a faded peach blossom from her pouch as she dodged the jiang-shi’s wide swipes. She held it in her hand and let her emotions bubble free. How dare this thing attack her, hurt her, insult her! The miasma in her left hand roiled as her fury rose. The rage formed a burning core within her and she channeled it into the spell she incanted. “Return to dust.”
She flung her left arm forward. The blossom unfurled into a wood lance crackling with black energy that screamed through the air at the jiang-shi. The monster almost looked concerned as it extended its arms, palm forward, to block.
There was a horrendous shrieking as Helena’s cursed bolt strained against the unholy might of the undead. Helena grinned viciously as the spear moved closer and closer to the undead woman’s chest.
Cold fear shot through the flame in her blood, and her panicked nerves dragged her to the right. A cold touch dragged against her ribs, and then fresh agony exploded through her body. She shot upwards, away from the pain.
Another jiang-shi floated in the sky, blood dripping from its long nails. This one was male, though he was dressed in the same doublet and trousers combination. The paper talisman controlling its will flapped in the breeze as it hopped in the air to face her.
The chill of fear solidified when the female jiang-shi joined the other monster. There was a deep wound in the undead woman’s right breast, but the spear hadn’t pierced the heart. Helena had almost killed it, but no injury would slow down the undead. The wounded jiang-shi floated forward, waiting with its partner.
Helena held her hand over the cuts and whispered prayers of healing as she continued to retreat. As she did the two jiang-shi split up, moving to encircle her. She could defeat one, but not two. Not now. Escape was the only option, but they were between her and the ground. Here in the open air there was no cover, and while she was more maneuverable, the jiang-shi were faster.
Maneuverability. That was the key. When they attacked she could use their momentum against them and slip past, escaping to the streets below. All she had to do was predict their next move. She slowed, letting the two get closer.
The two bent their knees at the same time, and Helena threw herself towards the distant ground to the left. As they both pounced she whirled right. If she could outpace them here she’d be free!
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There was a flash next to the female jiang-shi’s feet and suddenly the woman changed her direction. Vice like fingers grabbed ahold of her shoulders and Helena found herself staring in the woman’s expressionless dark eyes. She grabbed at her pouch. She needed a spell. What could she do? The jiang-shi opened its mouth, and Helena felt her own breath slipping away.
Cold metal touched her fingers. A pure sweet tone rang out across the sky, freezing everything in place. As Helena blinked it sounded again, and again. The fox bell within Helena’s bag challenged the evil around it, demanding respect for its owner.
Both the undead creatures in the sky shuddered as the cleansing tone of the bell filled the air. The jiang-shi holding her released its grip, and Helena immediately ran. She didn’t pause to look back, just flew as fast as she could away. Her bell triggering was a stroke of luck, but it wouldn’t save her again. The spirit within wasn’t that merciful.
The city expanded around her as she descended, and Helena aimed for one of the dark alleys. The lit streets might keep the jiang-shi away, but if their master was willing to make a public spectacle of her she’d be dead in seconds. She needed to hide.
With a hastily whispered incantation she threw a burst of light behind her, then slipped into the alleyway. There was refuse everywhere and a stack of barrels partially blocking a boarded up door. Good enough. Helena slipped in, ducking behind the makeshift wooden barricade. With luck they wouldn’t find her.
She hid in the darkness, the chill of night slowly leeching the heat of battle from her. Her back felt every sharp edge in the brick wall, adding their light pain to the stinging cuts on her body. The aching in her gut made her stomach roil. Her body began to shiver.
Two meaty thumps echoed from either side of the street. Bright silk flashed in the moonlight before the wearer hopped further into the alley. How? How had they found her? Helena’s shivering changed to uncontrolled tremors as she curled up to make herself smaller. How was this possible?!
The figure behind the barrel shifted towards her and she tensed. She tapped into her will to hold still, not even daring to breathe. The figure shifted away and she exhaled, her body relaxing.
The creature whirled towards her again and her body locked up. But her mind kept working. Breathing. That was it. Jiang-shi could see people’s chi through their breath. No matter where she hid they could find her. Unless…
She sucked some air into her already burning lungs, then reached into the depths of her magical power. It was hard. Working magic without incantations or movements to guide her thoughts always was. But she could push through and form the words in her mind. Raw magic crawled through her body, stilling the jittering muscles. It expanded from her center into her lungs, and as it did Helena changed her lungs. Making it feed off ambient magic instead of air.
Soon the pain in her chest lessened. Her spell was a half boiled attempt, which meant her body still thought it needed fresh air. But she wasn’t suffocating anymore.
The jiang-shi were hopping slowly around the alley now. Peering behind each sack of trash and into every corner. Fortunately the lights from outside the alley deepened the darkness within. Helena could only see the outlines of the jiang-shi’s figures. The undead would have an even harder time seeing. But they would still find her eventually.
A door slammed outside the alley, and Helena kicked herself for missing the obvious. Her flare of light should have drawn a lot of attention. If nothing else the locals would be coming to yell at the caster for being a public nuisance. She just needed to draw that attention here. The jiang-shi might be willing to kill her in public, but a running battle would be going too far.
She was using much of her magic keeping her lungs working, but a curse would be easy. Helena slowly reached behind her and drew her finger across a cut, bringing fresh blood to the surface. Carefully she moved and traced runes on the barrel next to her. Symbols of bad luck, of prey escaping, of misdirection.
The misfortune in the alley responded. Every curse at the bad smell, every twisted ankle, a brutal beating that happened a month ago. The miasma roiled up like a dark fog and lapped at the bloody runes, growing fat on her own dark power. A haze settled over the alley, and the undead creatures twitched.
The sound of heavy footfalls on the cobblestones caused the jiang-shi to pause. A beam of light shot into the alley from the side, blinding everyone within. “Hey. Who’s there?!”
The two jiang-shi hesitated for a moment, probably seeking orders. Then they leaped out of the alley, disappearing into the sky with the rustle of silk. The policeman who’d just walked in fumbled with his flashlight, but it was too late to do anything.
Helena let out a sigh of relief as she dispelled the magic that let her hold her breath. Then she reached into the barrel and used her magic to grab her hat and a loose dress. If she wasn’t going to be killed she could make some effort to salvage her image.
The policeman heard her moving around and pointed the flashlight towards her hiding place. “Show yourself! What’s going on here?” A few residents started appearing at either side of the alley as well. Either curious or part of the local watch.
Now that she was wearing something other than just her shift Helena stood. Her stomach ached but she turned her hiss of pain into a smile. “I’m very glad to see you, officer. I’d like to file a complaint. Those two woke me up with their noise. Also they tried to murder me.”
“Murder you?” The policeman lowered the flashlight a bit as the crowd shifted back. “Why did they attack you? And do you know who they are?”
“They attacked me because I’m working with the police to solve the Liang murder,” Helena said. “I don’t know who they are, but I know what they are and can give a description so your department can hunt them down.”
“The Liang case? With Inspector Kilduff?” The man blinked a few times. “Wait! You’re the witch the captain hired?”
“Yes. And I’d like to request sanctuary,” Helena rubbed her stomach. “My home is apparently no longer safe.”
“Right.” The policeman nodded, then pulled out a pen and paper. “Do you need an ambulance ma’am? Or can you walk?”
Helena closed her eyes and mentally took stock of her injuries. She needed to heal the claw wounds quickly before they festered, and the hit to her gut had probably torn something, but she could heal both now that she wasn’t under attack. “I’ll be fine. I can heal as we go. Just walk slow.”
The officer gave her a careful look over, probably deciding if she was just putting on a brave face. Fortunately it seemed her injuries didn’t look bad enough for him to call for immediate assistance. “Right. I’ll escort you to the next patrol box, and we’ll wait there for transport to the station or the hospital.” He took a step back as Helena floated her way out of the alley, and pocketed his flashlight. “Now if you’re up for it, could you describe what happened when those people assaulted you?”
Helena took a deep breath. The benefits of a civilized society. She started telling the story in between healing her cuts.