A Tiding of Magpies Read online

  As the guard toppled over, Michiko felt something bounce off her foot. She looked down and saw the glass vial just as it broke and exploded in a flash of light. She covered her eyes with her arms, but she realized too late that the vial also held gas and she doubled over, coughing and gasping.

  “Surprised, Monkey Queen?” Ah Sprin smiled. “Men?” he said to the warriors as they rose. “You have your orders.”

  Beth sprinted through the square and into the marketplace, trying to find somewhere to hide among the stalls, resisting the urge to look back. How do I get into these things? she thought. Oh, yeah, working with a hero who drags you off on an adventure without even giving you time to pack clean underwear.

  She could hear the executioner’s angry growls as he closed in on her. Maybe I should try the wand again, she thought. If he’s still recovering from the first jolt, the second will stop him.

  Beth rounded a corner, spun around, and aimed her wand at the executioner as he charged at her. “Zap!” she shouted. The bolt caught him in the stomach.

  He stumbled backwards, his body glowing from the shock. As the glow faded, he glared at Beth. Or it’ll make him angrier, she thought as she stepped back.

  Rage creased the executioner’s face. “Die!” he screamed as he raised his sword.

  “Zap!” Beth shouted again, but the executioner jumped to one side. The bolt flew past him and struck a wooden hitching post, reducing it to chunks and splinters. Beth could see more market stalls down the street, and as she took to her heels again, she started putting together a plan.

  “Should have known there’d be a dirty trick,” Michiko muttered as she tried to catch her breath. She still had stars in her eyes, but she could hear Hong’s men closing in. Ah Sprin was laughing, and Michiko found herself thinking about Beth, hoping she was all right.

  “People of Nui!”

  Everyone turned towards the platform where the aborted execution was to have taken place. Princess Jiao was standing there, her fans spread open, two warriors out cold at her feet. Prince Yun stood at her side, holding a sword he had taken from one of the warriors. “Are we to allow Lord Hong to seize what is ours?” Jiao shouted. “Or are we to be free of his tyranny!”

  The crowd began to murmur. “This is not his land!” the old priestess said. The guards glanced around nervously.

  “We must show Lord Hong that he and his warriors are never welcome here!” The fire in Jiao’s eyes was only matched by that in her voice. “But I can’t do it alone! Not even the Monkey Queen can! We have to stand together!”

  The warriors started to retreat, but Ah Sprin blocked their path. “Don’t be intimidated!” he shouted. “Kill them! Kill them all, except for the princess!”

  “Big talk from someone without a sword.” Ah Sprin turned and quivered as Michiko got to her feet, her eyesight clearing as the smoke dissipated. She pointed her staff at the official. “Let’s see you back it up.”

  Ah Sprin backed away quickly. “Stop them!” he yelled. “Lord Hong will—”

  “Take up arms!” Jiao shouted. “Defend the kingdom! Down with Lord Hong!” She jumped off the platform and charged at the guards, snapping her fans shut. Yun followed, sword raised.

  The crowd cheered, and several people stepped forward, holding rakes and sharpened poles. Behind them, others threw rocks at the guards. “Retreat!” Ah Sprin screamed as he turned and ran.

  The warriors followed him, almost tripping each other in the rush to get away. A few lingered, but a stern glare from Michiko scared them off. They were pelted with curses and empty wine jugs as they fled.

  The dust settled and the crowd cheered as Michiko turned back to Jiao. “Thank you,” she said with a smile.

  “You’re welcome.” The princess returned her friend’s smile as she bowed. “Are you all right?”

  “I’m fine, thanks.” Michiko glanced around. “You haven’t seen Beth, have you?”

  Jiao and Yun glanced at each other. “She’s your friend,” the prince whispered. “You tell her.”

  Beth was starting to gasp for breath as she rounded a corner. She knew that the executioner was closing in, and that Michiko wasn’t going to be there to help. Let’s hope this works, she thought as she ran towards the two adjoining market stalls. One was a simple stand with a thick oak table and several stools, underneath a canvas cover with a bamboo frame. She ducked inside.

  “A wizard!” the old man seated at the table said. Beth raised an eyebrow as he continued, “You honor my simple massage stand with your presence. May I offer you a—”

  The executioner charged into the stall with an incoherent scream. “Sorry, closed for lunch,” the old man said as he jumped from his stool and ran off.

  The executioner swung his sword at Beth; she ducked, and it sliced through one of the bamboo supports. As she straightened up, he held his sword above his head with both hands and brought it down.

  Beth turned her back to the executioner and crouched down, covering her head and neck with her arms. The sword bounced off her enchanted jacket, with enough force to make the executioner stagger back. Beth was knocked to her knees; she silently and profusely thanked Scylla and Gregor as she grabbed the table and pulled herself up.

  She turned to see the executioner, who was somehow even angrier than before, lift his sword again. Okay, Beth thought, now I really need that clean underwear. She spun out of the way as the sword fell.

  The weapon struck the table so hard that the blade sank deep into the thick wood. The executioner tugged at the hilt, softly first, then harder. It didn’t budge.

  Beth ran to the street outside the booth. She saw that the canvas awning was sagging. She aimed her wand at the support across from the one the executioner had cut through earlier. “Zap!” she shouted.

  The bolt smashed through the tent’s bamboo frame as the executioner wrestled his sword from the table. He smiled and turned towards Beth just as the canvas collapsed around him, a piece of the frame hitting him in the face.

  Beth took a quick glance at the next booth. The vendor there was selling castoff items, including a shelf overloaded with cracked and chipped pottery that had been cunningly braced against the canvas and bamboo frame of the masseuse’s tent, but was now teetering with its support gone. She could see the executioner wrestling with the canvas as she aimed her wand at the shelf, thinking, Please let me hit the right spot. “Zap,” she said softly.

  The bolt struck the shelf near the bottom. It collapsed, falling over towards the stall, dumping its entire load on the executioner. He stopped moving. Beth smiled, waved the wand with a flourish, and then lifted it to her mouth, blowing imaginary smoke off the tip, before she slipped it into a pocket.

  She heard the applause behind her. Her face reddened as she turned to see the crowd that had watched her defeat the executioner, with Prince Yun, Princess Jiao and Michiko in the front. Still, Beth smiled abashedly and bowed like a vaudevillian taking a curtain call, and the cheering grew.

  Michiko walked up to her. “Showoff,” she said, but Beth could see she was trying not to grin.

  “Pot, kettle, black,” Beth replied as some of the townsfolk started to clear away the wreckage. “Who’s the big guy?”

  “I am Yun, Prince of Xia,” he said. He bowed to Michiko and Beth.

  Beth returned the bow as Michiko gaped at Yun. “That’s your boyfriend?” she said to Jiao. “He’s cute!”

  “Tactful as ever,” Jiao murmured. Michiko started to bow, but Beth grabbed her arm. She pointed and whispered in Michiko’s ear.

  Michiko turned beet-red. She pulled her sweater down over the tear in the back of her jeans. “Is it okay if we just shake hands?” she said to Yun.

  Chapter Four

  The Monkey Queen stood near the auldgate and raised her staff. “I’ve been looking for a troublemaker,” she said to the elegantly-dressed faerie girl facing her. “And you could be anyone, hiding behind a seeming.”

  The faerie grabbed the two fans that hung fro
m her belt and held them in front of her. “And you are in my way, Earthling,” she said. “Step aside.”

  Tessenjutsu, Michiko thought as she stabbed with her staff. The faerie stepped aside, pushed the staff away with one fan, and swung the other at Michiko’s head.

  Michiko pulled back just in time. As the fan cut through the air, Michiko sprung away from her opponent and jumped high, readying her staff.

  She started to swing, but to her shock, the faerie leaped in the air and parried the staff with both fans. She kicked at Michiko’s face as she set down; Michiko had to do a backflip to evade it.

  The faerie started to close in, one fan pointing at Michiko, one held back. Michiko swung her staff towards her opponent. The tip sprung out, hitting the faerie in the stomach. She gasped and fell to her knees. “Time to give up,” Michiko said as her staff contracted.

  “Your weapon,” the faerie said. “Did you steal that from Sun Wukong?”

  “It was a gift.”

  “Not from him, I’m sure.”

  “I’m not related to him,” Michiko said. “I just fight like him. That’s why they call me the Monkey Queen.”

  “Monkey Queen?” the faerie whispered. She set down her fans and slowly stood, holding up her empty hands. “You’re the one I was told to find!”

  “Really?” Michiko kept her staff pointed at the faerie.

  “Are you familiar with Yuandong?”

  “The Far Lands?” Michiko said. “I’ve heard of them.”

  “I need to show you something, then.” Michiko tensed as the faerie picked up a fan. She snapped it open and said, “Do you recognize this crest?”

  Michiko studied the emblem painted on the fan, the intertwined phoenixes. “Not really, but my studies didn’t get that detailed. But hold on.”

  Tucking her staff under her arm, Michiko pulled her smartphone from her pocket and took a photo. As she tapped the screen, composing a text, the faerie lowered the fan. “Wizardry?” she asked as she watched.

  “It just seems like it.” Michiko sent the text. It was quiet for a minute; then, the faerie jumped when she heard the “ding” from the smartphone.

  Michiko glanced at the screen, then back at the faerie. “The royal crest of Nui,” she said slowly. “So you must be…”

  The faerie bowed. “Jiao, Princess of Nui.”

  “I’ve never met a princess before!” Michiko returned her bow. “I’m honored, Your Majesty.”

  “Please call me Jiao.”

  “Only if you call me Michiko.” The Monkey Queen grinned.

  “And that’s how we met!” Michiko said to Beth and Prince Yun with a smile. Jiao nodded as she sipped her tea.

  They were in a restaurant just off the square. It had humble decor and a humbler host, who had made Michiko and her companions dizzy with his bowing and kowtowing. Once he had calmed down enough to get his guests seated, and pretend to be disappointed when Jiao insisted on paying, it had been a short wait for lunch.

  Michiko had taken advantage of the wait to change into the outfit she had bought at a market stall after the fight, not wanting to share a meal with royal company while wearing ripped jeans. She was wearing a sleeveless blue top, darker blue pants that stopped just above the knee, and shoes and a pillbox hat that matched her top. She had already announced that the outfit was “so cute,” and Beth found it hard to disagree.

  “You were right about the food here, Michiko,” Beth said as she reached for a second helping of the broccoli chicken.

  “Told you.” Michiko grinned as she finished her eggplant chow mein. “Your turn, Jiao!”

  “You’re asking how Yun and I met?” the princess asked.

  “Yep!”

  “It’s the old story,” Jiao said offhandedly. “Princess disguises herself as basket weaver to see what life outside the palace is like, while prince who is fifth in line to the throne is doing the same, making his way as a cheeseman. They meet and, after a few adventures and misunderstandings, they fall in love and then reveal who they really are.”

  “I love happy endings!” Michiko said with a dreamy smile.

  “This story doesn’t have one yet,” Yun pointed out.

  “It’s a series!” Michiko countered. “Each book has a happy ending, leading up to the happiest of all! Even with all the troubles along the way—”

  “Michiko?” Beth said.

  “I’m straining the metaphor again?”

  “Yeah.”

  “See what happens when your best friend is an English major?” Michiko said.

  “And a wizard.” Jiao smiled playfully.

  “Me?” Beth said.

  “She does have second sight,” Michiko said.

  “And she dresses oddly,” Yun said.

  “Really?” Beth snorted.

  “Maybe not where you come from,” Jiao said, “but by our standards, yes you do, and wizards always dress oddly. And your clothing repels blades!”

  “That was an enchantment two friends put on the jacket!”

  “And she has a magic wand!” Michiko added.

  “Are you sure you’re not a wizard?” Jiao smiled.

  “Not even in spite of myself.” Beth grinned back at the princess. “So what’s the plan?”

  “We still need to sweep the town,” Michiko said. “Let’s make sure that we’ve chased out Lord Hong’s men. Then we should be free to go home.”

  “Must you, Michiko?” Jiao pouted. “We haven’t had time to talk!”

  Michiko glanced at Beth, who nodded very slightly. “Well,” Michiko started to say, “maybe we can—”

  The restaurant door swung open, and a priest in a scarlet robe with wide sleeves rushed in, gasping for breath. “Your Majesty!” he shouted as he ran up to Jiao’s table.

  He fell to his knees in front of the princess and began to bang his head on the floor. “Oh, do stop that before you hurt yourself,” Jiao murmured.

  “You must come outside at once!” The priest pointed to the door. “We must speak to you!”

  “We?”

  “There is a prophecy! The gods have spoken!”

  Michiko and Beth looked at each other. “So much for a quiet Sunday afternoon at home,” Beth said.

  Michiko smiled. “Quiet is overrated.”

  They hurried to finish their lunches and stepped outside, only to find there was barely room for them in front of the restaurant. It seemed as if every priest within a hundred miles had gathered there. They all fell to their knees when they saw the princess, chanting loudly. “Good people,” Jiao said, “what is this all about?”

  “Somebody stole the collection plate?” Michiko said.

  One of the priests, middle-aged and well-fed, stopped chanting and stood up. “Abbot Shih!” Jiao said. “What is going on?”

  “A prophecy!” the abbot said. “The gods have spoken!”

  “They do that all the time, Abbot. Half the time it’s something we knew already, and the other half, it takes days to figure out what they meant and we still don’t know if we get it right or not.”

  “This time,” the abbot said, “they have spoken clearly. And it regards you and your beloved.”

  Jiao raised an eyebrow. “Go ahead.”

  “The gods are pleased with your choice, Princess. They have said that for your future happiness, and for the best omens for you and our land, you and the prince must proceed at once to the Bridge to Xia!”

  “The Bridge of Magpies?” Jiao said.

  “You must arrive by the seventh minute of the seventh day of the seventh month! And at that moment, you two must announce your engagement!”

  “Engagement?” Prince Yun said faintly.

  “Engagement!” Michiko squealed. “Yay!”

  “Isn’t today the fourth day of the seventh month?” Jiao asked.

  “It is,” Abbot Shih said, “and—”

  “And that means we stop all this prattle and get going at once!”

  The other priests quickly stood and moved aside as
the old priestess from the square walked up to the abbot. “Auntie Ting,” he said, “what, exactly, do you mean by ‘we’?”

  “What do you think?” Auntie Ting snapped. “I’m going with them! The princess is the only one there who knows her way around, and even she doesn’t know all the back roads and shortcuts!”

  “You’re staying here,” Abbot Shih said firmly. “We have younger men we can—”

  “Younger!” the priestess shrieked. “Are you saying I’m old?”

  “I—I—” The abbot had the look of someone who just realized that pain was imminent.

  “Baka!” Auntie Ting reached up and smacked Abbot Shih on the head. “I’m in better shape than any ten of your idiot bonzes, and sharper than all of them put together! And I’ll bet that out of these four, only the Monkey Queen can keep up with me!”

  The abbot rubbed his head. “Let’s see what the princess has to say about this.”

  Jiao smiled respectfully, with just a touch of amusement. “I’ve heard the stories about you, priestess. I would be honored to have you join us.” She bowed to Auntie Ting.

  “Your funeral,” Abbot Shih said to himself. He walked away, and by ones and twos the other priests followed, until only Jiao, her friends and Auntie Ting were left.

  The priestess gave Jiao a sideways glance. “Take after your grandfather,” she said. “That’s a good thing. Come along.” She set off away from the restaurant, the others following.

  “Where are we going?” Jiao said.

  “We need a guide,” Auntie Ting said.

  “I thought you knew your way around.”

  “Right, but it’s good to have a second opinion. Especially with Lord Hong involved.”

  “What do you mean?” Yun asked.

  “Prince, this was a most unusual prophecy. Every priest within half a day’s travel received it.” Auntie Ting glared at Yun. “Do any of you think it would have escaped the notice of priests loyal to Lord Hong?”