ROAR OF THE JADE DRAGON

TERROR IN THE NIGHT

"You will need me to guide you," Zhang Mei insisted looking into crown prince Wang Wei's eyes.

"I will always need you," said crown prince softly. He blurted the words out almost without thinking as he gazed into the luminous pools of her eyes.

"There is a short cut I know to the next village," said Zhang Mei. "Shall we go?"

"Yes of course," said crown prince Wang Wei recovering from the momentary dazzlement with with Zhang Mei 's extra-ordinary beauty.

He quickly arose from the chair and followed Zhang Mei out into the cool evening. Wang Li following close behind.

"This way your highness," said Zhang Mei leading the way. "Try to keep up."

Zhang Mei and Wang Li broke into a jog.

Crown prince Wang Wei watched them jog ahead for only a little distance. Then broke into a jog, pacing his breathing to allow for maximum endurance. Enjoying the burst of energy, he quickly caught up Zhang Mei and Wang Li. He could have easily overtaken Zhang Mei and Wang Li.

But he needed Zhang Mei to run ahead and show him the way.

He wished she could run just a little bit faster. When neither she nor Wang Li were looking he would have transformed into a stallion and given them a ride. Only It would have presented another challenge of how to communicate to them to get on the horse.

He could clearly see that he had no other choice but to exercise patience with the girls and jog along at their pace. They proceeded quietly conserving their energy as they advanced further into the forest.

Even in the moon light there were suddenly visible tell tale signs of tree stumps. The sight marking a stark difference from the rest of the forest. Indicating that something unnatural had taken place. As well as hinting the fact that they were approaching the neighbouring village.

"We are close to the village,", Zhang Mei whispered beneath her breath to crown prince Wang Wei.

"I thought as much, from om here on we walk softly into the village. Absolutely no noise. We want to take the mad man by surprise," crown prince Wang Wei whispered urgently to Zhang Mei ad Wang Li.

The village was deserted with half of the houses demolished. A figure in a hooded cloak was moving about with a sword in one hand, the razor sharp blade glittering in the moonlight.

"Stay here," crown prince Wang Wei advised Zhang Mei and Wang Li.at the edge of the forest. He stepped forward alone and approached the figure.

"Come to me," he whispered gently holding out a hand.

"No!'" the figure hissed fiercely holding the sword tightly in one hand and standing with their back to crown prince Wang Wei.

"That is my sword," crown prince Wang Wei announced.

"It is now mine!" a familiar female voice cried out defiantly. The figure quickly turning to face crown prince Wang Wei and dropping the hood to reveal Li Yan's beautiful face underneath.

"Li Yan!" crown prince Wang Wei exclaimed in surprise.

"Are you ready to accept this sword and the hand holding it?" asked Li Yan.

"You did all this, terrorized an entire village? Have you completely lost your mind Li Yan?"

"Only because of you, my dear crown prince, Wang Wei," said Li Yan.

"I didn't ask you to do all this," said crown prince Wang Wei.

"Why did you reject me?" Li Yan asked.

"Seriously!? You murdered my father," crown prince Wang Wei charged angrily.

"May be I was upset because he killed my father," said Li Yan.

"Your father betrayed the crown," prince Wang Wei charged.

"Let us put all that behind us," said LI Yan I am ready to give you another chance Wang Wei. You only have to accept my hand ..."

"That will never happen!"' crown prince Wang Wei boldly declared..

"Do you want your sword?" asked Li Yan in a disarmingly gentle tone."I will give it back to you."

"It is my sword. You had no right to take it," crown prince Wang Wei charged.

"That is where you are wrong. It is the imperial sword and I am the empress of jade heaven," declared Li Yan.

You have no right to hold my sword!" repeated crown prince Wang Wei angrily.

"I have every right, and I will say it again that I am the empress of of jade heaven," Li Yan boldly declared "Look how easily it rests I my hand," referring to the sword in her sword.

"I am willing to forgive all, forget everything. We can move on with our lives together Wang Wei," Li Yan. implored "Just accept me."

"I have already rejected you once. I will not change my mind," declared crown prince Wang Wei defiantly.

"Then you shall pay. The two girls you came with, I can smell their fear from here. I may not be willing to hurt you. However the same can not be said about them, they are fair game," Li Yan threatened, looking away from crown prince Wang Wei's face to the edge of the forest where Zhang Mei and Wang Li were hiding.

Li Yan raised the sword and rushed like a flash of light towards the edge of the forest where the girls were hiding.

Crown prince Wang Wei matching Li Yan's blinding speed moved quickly and placed himself between the girls and Li Yan.

As Li Yan brought down the sword to strike. Crown prince Wang Wei felt righteous anger well up inside of him.

The blade glistened n the moonlight as Li Yan swung it with lethal intent.

Crown prince Wang Wei's anger burst forth like a volcano erupting. He roared with all the pent up emotion inside him.

Li Yan was struck as though by an invisible giant hand knocking her her away like a puppet as she attempted to strike with the sword. She was flung backwards with such brutal force that she fell to the ground. The sword still tightly held in her hand.

Recovering from the sudden shock of the blow, Li Yan noted the sword was still in her hand. Getting back on her feet, she laughed defiantly at crown prince Wang Wei. As though she had just heard a funny joke

Holding up the sword like a prize, Li Yan shot up into the night sky.

Slowly at first the forest suddenly came alive with locals cautiously emerging from the brush where they had hidden. Frightened faces looking around suspiciously as though afraid that Li Yan could suddenly come back. Zhang Mei and Wang Li also emerging from the forest rushed to crown prince Wang Wei's side.

Frightened villagers slowly gathered around crown prince Wang Wei.

Crown prince Wang Wei began wanting to say, "you..." but only a mild growl came out . He was grateful for the intervention of the roar but he also wanted to calm the villagers down.

He could see the fear on the villagers' faces and wanted to reassure them that they were safe. Instead only a mild growl came out of his mouth.

He could feel that the roar was dying down inside him and decided to wait a for few moments for it to go completely. As more villagers frightened emerged from the forest and gathered around him.

"You are safe", crown prince Wang Wei finally managed to say to the gathered villagers.

"What if she comes back again?", asked a frightened looking woman in the crowd.

"She won't come back", crown prince Wang Wei knew that the fear of the roar alone would keep Li Yan from returning. Especially having heard the roar of the jade dragon for herself, Li Yan would assume that the power of the roar had menifested in him. Crown prince Wang Wei had also understood that the roar had only actived temporarily. He still needed the it to fully manifest. If the red dragon were to attack again, he was not sure the roar would activate again

He needed time to muster the power. Time that he would have as long as Li Yan did not realise that what she had witnessed was not a menifestation but merely a reaction. A temporary response that crown prince Wang Wei might not be able to repeat if faced with a similar situation again.

"The roar!" suddenly exclaimed Chen Jun as he and Liu Chang locked eyes. They had both heard the same thing.

"It is crown prince Wang Wei, he must be close", declared Liu Chang.