DAC 3 Precious Dragon (22 page)

They made their way back to the hotel in silence. It was now close to what, in Hell, passed for noon, and the sky was a brassy, brilliant red, baking with heat. The hotel foyer was empty apart from a bored and unfamiliar demon on the desk. She did not look up from her magazine, but slapped the room keys down on the desk in front of Chen and continued studying what appeared to be celebrity photographs. Chen, Zhu Irzh, and Underling No went up the stairs to Chen's room.

"We need to stand and touch hands," No said. "There are other ways of doing it, but this is the quickest."

"Ah," said Zhu Irzh. "I know what this is."

Underling No spoke a word that made the walls of the room tremble. A black spark of magic traveled down Chen's spine, making the scars on the palms of his hands ache momentarily, and then buried itself in the floor. Chen saw no difference until No broke her grip and he turned to look in the mirror. He was a shadow on the air, nothing more.

"Invisible," Chen said, and the word was a whisper. He heard it inside his head, echoing.

"At least until we reach the Ministry," Zhu Irzh replied. Chen glanced in his direction. The demon, too, had become a sharp shadow, easier to see out of the corner of the eye than directly.

"We can see one another," No informed him, "but not be seen by anyone else. At least, that's the idea."

They went back down the stairs, through the foyer where the bored clerk did not glance up, and out into the steaming afternoon. They had all agreed that it would be safest to walk through the gardens, avoiding the main avenues, just in case. So they moved through the black-spined trees that skirted the grounds of the Ministry of War, shrubs with leaves like sabers that hissed in the wind, bulbous-trunked palms the shape of hand grenades. The air smelled faintly of gunpowder, of smoke, the bracing odor of the battlefield's edge.

As they drew closer to the Ministry of Lust, however, the foliage changed from black to red, becoming fleshier and more pliable, moist, with clefts and folds that secreted a glutinous mucus. The scent of the air changed also, now heavy and filled with musk. Chen found both kinds of vegetation disturbing, and the smell revolted him, but he refrained from voicing his opinion. As the gardens of the Ministry became more formal and increasingly decadent (crimson and mauve-veined fungi, vines loaded with mammary fruit), they stepped into a narrow, artificial gorge cut between contoured rocks. The gorge was fringed with red-fronded ferns; there was little doubt what it was intended to represent. There was a snort of disapproval within Chen's hearing: he attributed it to Underling No, who seemed far too stern for any sexual activity.

When they were halfway through the gorge Chen became convinced that someone was following them. He nudged Zhu Irzh, still visible to him but not, he hoped, to anyone in pursuit.

"Zhu Irzh! There's someone there."

The demon paused and looked round. "I can't see anyone."

"There. Do you see where those fronds are moving?"

"You keep seeing things. It's just the wind."

"Then why is everything else so still?"

"You might be right," Zhu Irzh breathed, after a moment's contemplation. "Do you want to check it out?"

"I think we'd better."

But when they made their way back up the gorge, there was no one there.

"All right," Chen said. "We carry on. But keep your eyes open."

He did so himself, turning swiftly every so often to see if the person was still behind them. He thought of the shadow he had seen in the parkland in front of the hotel, slipping into the night. Hell had spies everywhere; it was only a matter of determining where they came from.

The gorge ended. Chen and the others stepped out onto a red squashy expanse at the back of the Ministry, which rose now before them.

"The entrance isn't far away," Underling No said in Chen's ear. "Just around these rocks."

It was another artfully constructed cleft, this time filled with the phallic, mauve fungi. They moved slowly, drifting in the damp air like clams, their blind heads seeking.

"Don't let them touch you," Zhu Irzh warned.

"What will they do?" asked Chen.

"To be honest, I don't know, but I doubt it would be good."

As they reached a quarter of the way along the cleft, Chen thought he heard something, a faint muffled cry. He swung round but no one was there. He was sure they were still being followed. Then they came to a large cluster of the fungi, a phallic phalanx that stood rigid and quivering.

"You go first," said Underling No. "I'll distract them." She was standing at the entrance to what looked like a small cave, a hollow in the rock. This, too, was lined with vegetation: a kind of dank, black fern. Chen and Zhu Irzh, careful not to touch the sides, inched their way into the hollow. Ahead shone a dim phosphorescence. Chen glanced back. The phallic fungi were twisting and turning, seeking No and paying little attention to Chen and Zhu Irzh. After all, reflected Chen, she was female. The fungi did not appear able to see, but then No was invisible. Could they smell her? Chen was not sure. But if such things were to be found outside the Ministry of Lust, then what was it like inside? Grimly, Chen reminded himself that Miss Qi had already found out.

Zhu Irzh was striding ahead, his black cloak outlined by a silvery glow. Chen turned to make sure that Underling No was still behind them and was relieved to discover that she had left the fungi and was close on their tail. They were in a tunnel, which seemed to have been deliberately carved from the red rock: its walls and the low roof were smooth, disquietingly fleshy, like the cliffs outside. The floor seemed hard enough, but Chen was not inclined to touch the walls, especially when they were some distance in and the tunnel gave a sudden convulsive contraction.

Zhu Irzh stopped abruptly. "What was that?"

"Keep going," Underling No advised. "From the map, we're almost at the end."

They walked on. After a few minutes the tunnel began to narrow, convoluting into labial folds. Chen began to feel claustrophobic: He didn't think he'd suffered any birth traumas, but who knew? He certainly had no desire to go through the process again. Another series of folds, coated with beads and globules of moisture, so narrow that Zhu Irzh had to turn and sidle sideways. Then, suddenly, the tunnel widened, arching far above their heads in a blur of pink and rose, and Chen's vision filled with light. They were inside the Ministry of Lust.

Mrs Pa's head felt as though it was a melon, about to burst. She groaned.

"Lie still," said a worried female voice. Mrs Pa made the mistake of opening her eyes and in between the explosions of light saw that Inari was looking down at her. "Precious Dragon?" Mrs Pa heard Inari say. "Can you do anything?"

"Wait." Precious Dragon sounded very authoritative and calm. Mrs Pa felt something smooth and round travel across her brow and it drew the pain with it like a veil being pulled gently aside. She blinked and sat up. Precious Dragon was putting the pearl back in his mouth. Inari sat by her side and the badger was some distance away across the little glade. Mrs Pa looked up into the branches of the tree and saw that they were empty apart from the graying light of dawn.

"Thank you," she breathed to her grandson. To Inari, she said, "What happened to that—that thing?"

"I don't know." Inari sounded bewildered. "It just seemed to open up the air and fall through it. Into Hell, I think. It looked like Hell. It felt like Hell."

"And we might have gone with it," Mrs Pa said, shivering at the recollection. "Inari, I was so stupid. I panicked."

"Oh, Mrs Pa," Inari said, visibly shocked. "Don't blame yourself. You were confronting a demon that was trying to kill you. You didn't see me on the houseboat. I'm a demon myself and I very nearly ran and hid under the bed. If it hadn't been for Precious Dragon, I would have done so. I'm no warrior."

"I nearly got Precious Dragon hurt," Mrs Pa said. Even the most supernatural of children might injure themselves falling out of a tree. But her grandson shook his head.

"I was perfectly safe, Grandmother. I was more worried about you."

"If we all look after each other," Inari said firmly, "then we will be all right."

"It's nearly light," Mrs Pa said. "How long was I unconscious?"

"Only a few minutes," Inari said. "It was nearly dawn when the demon came."

Across the glade, the badger turned. "And twilight when they came the last time."

Inari frowned. "The bleed-times between day and night. They seem to appear then."

"And they may come again at noon," the badger said. "Or midnight. The high and the balance points of the day."

"We should try to get to the temple before noon, then," Inari said. "Just in case."

She made Mrs Pa rest for a few minutes more until they were sure that she was well enough to travel. Then they set off along the woods of the shore, with the badger scouting ahead and Inari bringing up the rear.

"I am so sorry," Mrs Pa said over her shoulder. "If it wasn't for Precious Dragon and myself and our problems, you'd be waking up on your own boat and thinking about nothing worse than breakfast."

Inari laughed. "Mrs Pa, given where I come from, and given my husband's job, there's always something. If it wasn't you and Precious Dragon then believe me, it would be something else. And to be honest, although we're in danger and I don't like that, helping other people makes me feel useful."

"You are helping us," Mrs Pa said. She reached out and squeezed Inari's hand. Inari took her arm and supported her. It was now quite light, with the rim of the sun just starting to rise over the tops of the skyscrapers across the harbor. As they left the trees and set foot on the shore road, Mrs Pa looked back at the houseboat. It rocked gently in the middle of the harbor, with nothing out of the ordinary about it. But the sight of this peaceful scene made Mrs Pa shudder all the same and she was glad when they reached the end of the harbor road and made their way into the maze of alleys that was the southern end of Ghenret.

"Do we have to walk all the way?" Mrs Pa asked. "Couldn't we catch a tram?"

Inari sighed. "You can, but I can't. After the problems last year, the city's governors put a demon-block on public transport—if I set foot on it, I'll set off an alarm. Then I'd be arrested and the police department would find out my connection with Chen. But Mrs Pa, if you want to, you go on ahead without the badger and myself. I don't want to make you walk all that way."

"I'd rather we stuck together," Mrs Pa said. "I'd feel safer. Anyway, I don't know where this temple is. Is it difficult to find?"

"It's not very easy, I'm afraid. I suppose we could put you in a taxi."

"I don't have enough money for a taxi all the way across town. It's miles and miles. Do you have any?"

"No," Inari said, frustrated. "I left the boat in such a rush, I didn't pick up my bag."

"Then we'll keep together. I don't mind walking."

Inari pointed upward, to a block that towered over the shanties and roofs. A red bird blazed across the structure and some of the scaffolding was still up.

"Paugeng," Inari said. "My husband's police partner is going out with Jhai Tserai."

"He must be a very brave young man," Mrs Pa mused. "Although I suppose he is a demon."

"He's either brave or foolish," Inari said. "But one might say the same about Jhai. I wish I felt able to trust her. But I just can't. This might sound strange, coming from me, but she's had too many dealings with Hell." She lowered her voice when she spoke about Jhai, Mrs Pa noticed, and understood why. The companies had ears everywhere.

"I heard so many rumors, when there was all that trouble with the feng shui place," Mrs Pa said. "But this city is full of rumors and it's hard to know what to believe sometimes. Wasn't Jhai supposed to have been behind that goddess who went mad?"

"It was a bit more complicated than that," Inari said. "But she did kidnap the Celestial Emperor's son and conduct experiments on him."

"But that's terrible! And she got away with it?"

Inari grimaced. "I think they struck a deal. That's the trouble. Sometimes Heaven can be as cold as Hell. It's all a question of diplomatic negotiation."

"And this poor experiment is the person—the being—whom we are going to see?"

"That's right. Maybe he'll tell you about it himself."

"I should have thought," said Mrs Pa, "that it was something he'd be keen to forget."

They were trying to keep out of sight as much as possible, walking as quickly as they could beneath the shadows of shop awnings and away from the main streets. Most of the folk whom they passed paid no attention to Mrs Pa: just a little old lady out for a walk with her grandson. But sometimes Mrs Pa saw a head go up and the person would stare sharply at Inari, then down at the shambling black shape of the badger. Once, the badger hissed, displaying sharp, yellowing teeth, and the man who had come too close backed hastily away.

"We're too visible," Inari murmured. "If anyone asks, they'll know that we passed this way. But there's no other way to get to the temple."

"At least it's morning," Mrs Pa said. "If this was nighttime we'd be in even more danger and not just from demons."

Inari nodded. "People think that where I come from is Hellish. But this city, sometimes, seems far worse to me. Demons don't have much choice to be as they are but even then some of us prefer to do the right thing and not the wrong. But humans all have a choice, and so many of them choose wrongness."

"It's just the way it is," Mrs Pa said. "All you can do is go your own way and not worry about other people."

But that, she thought, was easy for her to say: Inari had fewer options.

By late morning, they had left the reconstructed Paugeng building far behind. The dome of the Opera House rose now above the tiles. Inari stared at it uneasily. They were entering the Pellucid Island district, one of the more bohemian quarters of the city and a place where Mrs Pa only ever went to undertake cleaning work.

"My husband was attacked near here the other night," Inari said. "You hear stories about the Opera House, too. I'll be glad when we're on the other side of the city."