Night Tigers Chapter Three

From: Cheryl Baumgartner(C Baumgartner, Posted Date: Nov 18th, 2010

            “Well Mr Gordons I must say this talent of yours is quite handy.” Prince said.  Prince was now inside the circuits of the space shuttle, Mr Gordons was sitting in the pilot’s seat.

            “As is yours Mr Prince.  So you can merge with electronic devices, and I can assume the form of any device.  I calculate that the two of us could go far together.  But before we do we must eliminate a powerful enemy, the House of Sinanju.  The two Masters of this house of assassins have hounded me since my creation.  If you could help me eliminate them we could rule this world.”

            “I too have enemies Mr Gordons, the crew of the Lexx.  Perhaps another deal is in order.  I will help you eliminate your enemy, and in return you help me eliminate mine.”

            “I calculate that that is a fair exchange. Mr Prince.”

 

 

            “Remo I will not enter that conveyance as long as this woman insists on driving!”

            “The moth flies itself, all she does is guide it.  But if it will make you feel better, Remo and I will fly to the Lexx with Xev and you can remain here with Stanley and 790.  I will return to get you.” Kai suggested.

            “And leave me alone with her? No way!  She’s driving me crazy, I can’t get a moment’s peace.”  Remo said.

            “She has not annoyed me since she met you.  Perhaps you should be more careful in using your ‘step one’.  She seems determined to now experience the other 51 steps.” Kai said.

            “Remo you used step one on her and she has not recovered yet?  Now I know I will not allow this woman to drive a conveyance that I must occupy.  Not only is she a woman, she is an empty headed one at that.”  Chuin stopped for a moment and thought.  “Do you know if any of her ancestors carried Korean blood?”

            “Stop trying to match make Chuin, it’s not happening.  I thought you had given this up nonsense when you found out about my son and daughter.  I am not breeding a baby for you now or ever!”

            “I will tell Stanley to pilot the moth and Remo and I will wait here until he can come back and get us.” Kai suggested.

             “Sounds perfect to me.” Remo said.  Chuin wasn’t happy about it, but at least the woman wasn’t driving.

 

            Remo and Kai stood on the front lawn watching the moth as it grew smaller, neither of them noticed the brightly colored ball that rolled towards them.

            Remo suddenly stiffened and yelled “Bomb”  Kai turned toward the sound of Remo’s voice a split second before his vision was over loaded by a bright flash.

 

            “Hold on!” Stanley said as he fought the moth for control.  The concussion from the blast had been felt even up here in the moth.

            “Remo!” Chuin said worriedly.

            “Kai!” Xev said with just as much worry.

            Remo had felt the wave of pressure preceeding the blast and tried to warn Kai as he threw himself into a backward roll ahead of the blast.  Effortlessly rolling to his feet he looked around for the Divine Assassin seeing only a deep crater where Kai had been standing. He heard a faint click and whir, then saw the brace latch on to a limb of the huge tree in the front yard that had survived the blast.  Chuin, Stanley and Xev joined him just as Kai settled on the undisturbed portion of the lawn and released his brace from the limb.  Kai reset his brace and began calmly plucking twigs and grass from his hair.

             Chuin was closely examining Kai, “The boom did not hurt you?”

            “You were standing right on top of it. But you don’t have a mark on you.”  Remo noted.

            “Divine Assassins are almost indestructible.  The decarbonization process makes explosives ineffective against us.  They are annoying at best.” Kai replied plucking the last of the twigs from his bun.

            “You were standing right next to him” Stanley said to Remo.  “How come you aren’t hurt?”

            “I felt the change in air pressure, my reflexes are much faster than you can see.  I am the Reigning Master of Sinanju.  What I do know is someone just tried to off us.” Remo replied.

            Chuin took Remo and Kai by the arm and led them off some distance from Xev and Stanley.  “The attempt failed.  It seems Master Wang’s prophecy is correct in this instance.  Kai, you are just as boom proof as a Master of Sinanju.  The ones behind this booming are obviously amateurs.  We will have to deal with them.” Chuin wandered over to examine the crater.

            “Well you just got promoted. He used the word we.  He may not think you are as good as a master but you are a step up from ‘amateur’.” Remo noted with a laugh.  “Before you know it he’ll be trying to get you to take out the garbage.

However Chuin is right, we need to deal with this.  I need to talk with Smitty.  Whoever is responsible was more than likely after me.  I need to see if anyone has popped up on the radar that Chuin and I need to deal with.”

 

 

            “The Space Shuttle Picard made an emergency landing at a private airstrip 30 miles away from here an hour before the explosion.  I’ve hunted through all the records in NASA’s database, there was no reason for them to plan and execute an emergency launch but they did.  The mission lasted just a little over 36 hours, straight to the moon and straight back.” Smitty was telling Chuin and Remo.

            “So the odds are good that Mr Gordons is behind it, but how?  The shuttle we launched him on had no communications capabilities.” Remo noted.

            “Well, I have a theory on that, it seems that Islambad Prince had some dealings with our friend Stanley Tweedle. Right before his disappearance.  Concerning a craft called the Lexx.  Mr Prince authorized several black launches of shuttles from NASA during his short tenure as head of the ATF.” Smitty noted.

            “Smitty you might want to call Stanley Tweedle, have him bring Kai in to meet you.  If this Islambad Prince is somehow mixed up with Gordons,  things will get really ugly really fast.  Kai has told me some things about Prince and about President Reginald Priest that maybe you should know.” Remo said.

 

            “Yes 790 I am pleased that you were not damaged.” Kai said for the tenth time.  Luckily only the front half of the house suffered moderate damage from the explosion.  790 was in the back room where Kai’s modified cryopod-freezer was kept.  Xev and Stanley had also breathed a big sigh of relief seeing that Kai’s container of protoblood had also survived the explosion unscathed.  The four of them were now in a moth headed to Folcroft Sanitarium which was the cover for the CURE headquarters.

            “ I really don’t know any more than what I told you Kai, Mr Smith is asking to meet you on Remo and Chuin’s recommendation. But he did ask me if we had ever met Prince.” Stanley said.

            “Why would he ask about Prince?” Xev questioned.

            “Mr Smith knows what I am thanks to Stanley.  Prince was an important government figure here.  It may be that he wants to know what happened to Prince.” Kai said as Stanley settled the moth onto a pad on the roof.  Immediately the pad began to descend down a large elevator shaft.  After a few moments they emerged into a large underground cavern where Remo was waiting for them.

            “Chuin and Smitty are waiting for Kai in the conference room.”

 

 

            “The contract must be renegotiated Emperor Smith.  You are now getting the services of three assassins for the price of one.  When Remo gained master status, I did not increase the price of services.  But now you are also benefitting from the services of Kai.  He is mentioned in the Scroll of the Great Master Wang which means that technically, by extension although not a ‘master’ he is still attached to the House of Sinanju.  The contract must be renegotiated to reflect this.” Chuin was informing Harold Smith.

            “Ah but you are now Master Emeritis.  You have retired so you are technically no longer providing services, that leaves me with two assassins for which I am grandfathered in from paying for those services for the past few decades.  In fact, Kai is not even officially on the books as it were, which means that I am paying twice as much for one assassin.  Which translates into an increase in my premium.” Smith countered.

            Remo laughed as he and Kai entered the room “I think he has you there Little Father.”

            “You find this amusing?  And when we must send our babies home to the sea for lack of food then what?” Chuin sputtered.

            “You support children who will starve if payment is not made?” Kai said with some alarm.  “I do not find that amusing.”

            “See my own son would allow our villages babies to starve.  Kai shows appropriate concern for the welfare of Sinanju.” Chuin said.

            “Kai it’s Chuin’s standard snow job.  Several centuries ago during the time of the Masters Wang and Ung, The village had a run of bad luck brought on by the villagers being too lazy to get off their asses and fish for their food.  That’s when the Masters of Sinanju figured out just how valuable a good assassin is.  Every Master since then has gouged their employer and loaded their earnings into the storehouse back in the village.  There’s enough treasure in that storehouse to feed the village for the next 10,000 years.  No one is going to starve.  It’s simply Chuin’s preferred method of trying to make me feel guilty.” Remo explained.

            “Oh so this is why the House of Sinanju pimps itself.  Now I understand.” Kai responded.

            “Remo! What have you been telling this innocent one?  Masters of Sinanju are not pimps!” Chuin exclaimed.

            “Excuse me Master Chuin but this meeting is to discuss Mr Gordons and his possible return to Earth and exactly how Islambad Prince figures into this situation.” Smitty interrupted.

            “Of course Emperor Smith, we will continue the negotiations at another time.” Chuin drew his frail body up as straight as he could. “Emperor Smith, you know of the prophecy concerning Remo and have even seen that prophecy played out.  Both you and I have been present when Shiva has taken over his earthly avatar.

            That Prophecy was made in two parts.  The White Tiger is not alone, there is a Black Tiger also spoken of.  One that comes from beyond the void.  The Black tiger is dead and cannot be made whole again.  When the two tigers meet they would choose to combine forces or destroy each other, both Remo and Kai sit here as allies.  The choice was made.”

            “I take it this has something to do with what we are here to discuss?”  Smith said impatiently.

            “Yes Emperor, it has everything to do with what we are here to discuss.  Remo read the scroll but he did not read the entire prophecy of Master Wang, only of the meeting between the tigers.  There is more.  There is a second scroll bearing the complete prophecy which is kept under lock and key in the storehouse in Sinanju.  It tells of the events that would follow the meeting of the two.

            The meeting of the tigers is a crossroads.  One path, to destroy each other led to certain destruction of the world.  It is why the scroll is kept locked away,  it is a possible prophecy of what you call ‘Armageddon’.  Each tiger bears the weight of a powerful enemy.  Had they destroyed each other these enemies would have been free to destroy existence itself. 

 

The other path’s outcome was not clear to Wang.  So it may offer us hop that all is not lost.  He only knew that just as the tigers chose alliance, so would their enemies.  Just as Remo and Kai now stand together, so do the enemies of the night tigers.”

            “So Gordons has an ally in Islambad Prince.” Smith said. “Kai perhaps you should tell me what you know of him.  He was suddenly appointed to the position about 6 months ago and I can find no record of him before that.”

            “You can find no record because he was on the Planet Fire along with your President Priest.”