Team Seven of Heroes Chapter 7 & 8

7.

If one was to compare Port Onega with Lhasa, then they both shared cold weathers although the later was far from the icy cold waters but it was faced by the icy cold mountains. Lhasa was named the Place of the Gods for its majestic view of the Red and White Potala Palace soaring above the Hoy City with city lined up with the white washed structures.  It did not evade the attention of the then devouring desires of the Western Imperialist powers to the magical city that an invasion was mounted ten years before. Colonel Sir Francis Edward Younghuband led the expeditionary force that colonise the city then. He was the instigator of the invasion with the then Viceroy of India, Lord Curzon.

“Sirs, since the writings of Herodotus (484-425 BCE), the land of Tibet represent a land that intrigued us all in the developed civilisation. The author wrote of fox sized ants who would live nearby the tribes of people and these foxes would dig up the sand to construct their homes. In that very digging, deposits of gold dust would surface.” The Viceroy made his presentation to the assembled men of influence then.

“God? Did he say that?” A man of wealth but of poor hearing asked his associate.

“No, it was gold.” The man with the poor hearing needed no more encouragement to say ‘aye’ to whatever planned.

“I say it will be a disgrace to us if we are to deny ourselves this …… venture when we hold the better … I mean the other half of the continent.” The Viceroy was given his consent and despite the challenge of the French from the Niles to the Russian from the north when Tsar Paul I had led an invasion of twenty-two thousand men across the mountains into India in 1801.

However, there was no gold to be dug there, except in the words of A.H. Savage Landor. An Englishman who had travelled the land then wrote of the Tibetans as deeply religious race, hostile towards strangers, ignorant, immoral, and very dirty. It was a biased categorisation of the people by the Western values. The locals were short of being called the barbarians unlike their counterparts over the mountain into Russia. (https://tibettalk.wordpress.com/2010/01/09/british-perceptions-of-tibet-in-the-late-19th-to-the-early-20th-century/)

Van Helsing tapped the leader of the Dark Wolves and then asked him where they were headed. They were on the streets of Lhasa or in more particular in the hidden sight of the city from the foreign visitors.

“The best way to get any information is from the thieves and scoundrels. We are headed there now to the popular spot. It was not the tavern or the prison but the bath house. Unheard of on the lips of guides or read by tourists, the bath house was situated in the seedier side of the city. Van Helsing took the walk with the trio of assassins from the Dark Wolves leading the path. They were his frontal guards for they cleared the rowdy thugs who took offence to strangers in their territory. There were always the heroes that assumed they were then.

“He is not of here.” The bearded man stood there in their path with the scowl in the expression. “He …”

The leader of the Dark Wolves did not break a step in his strides when he punched the bearded man in the throat with his fist. The man went down clutching his throat and the leader followed through with a downward chop on the back of the neck. Van Helsing saw the move and was impressed with the leader. He pushed himself up and walked beside the leader where he took the time to study the leader. Like the others, the leader was dressed in the thick overcoat that reached the knee but inside he wore the dark tunic and loose pants with the thick boots. He wore the fur lined cap with the rabbit ears on the side. If they were carrying weapons, it was well concealed on their body. He heard that their preferred weapon was the curved dagger named the kukri; the blade is curved downwards where the blade end was flattened wider and sharp. The blade was about a foot-long ad weight close to a pound. Van Helsing patted the Webley he was handed by the leader when he arrived at Lhasa then. He was told it held six silver bullets. He was handed over some extra bullets.

“In case you have to use more than six.”

They soon arrived at the bathhouse which looked like a mausoleum there. It was huge and with the multiple pillars lined up at the front although it was a single level unit. The width of the place was over a hundred and twenty feet and the height at about thirty feet with no idea of the length for it was hidden in between other structures unless you measure the run along the length of the roofing. Incidentally the roof was a flat one with a small dome in the middle of the top. There were four double doors there on the front wall.

“You are not allowed to bring in …” The leader was most persuasive with his stares into the guard there. They were allowed in. The place may had been influenced by the Romans for it was quite similar with the designed bath areas although they have it smaller in the dimensions. There were about twenty of these rooms and most were occupied with varying occupants. Van Helsing was taken to the unit numbered ten or X in the Roman Numeric.

“Maeng Thung, I am surprised to see you.” The man in the bath water greeted the Dark Wolves leader. He was a huge man with biceps the size of most men’s thigh. He stood up from the bath water to showcase his muscular form.

“I am here to see Master Gund. Please tell him of my arrival.” The man named Maeng Thung then handed over the kukri he had inside his overcoat. The guard there took the weapon and stepped aside. Maeng Thung then proceeded to approach the group of five men half immersed in the water.

“Greetings Master Gund. I come with the wishes of the Head Priest of the Mountains.”

“Which one? I hear there was a change in the leadership.” Master Gund was the one in the middle of the five men there. “We of the clans here need to careful with whom we associate with.”

“That is why I am here. The High Priest would like to know whom you currently calling the leader now.”

“I think that answer is very obvious.” The voice belonged outside the five figures. It was at the far corner and with its dim light, only the shadow of the figure was seen on the wall there. Van Helsing stepped up and faced the one who spoke. It was all too familiar the voice.

“Dracula…You are here. I had seen you many times to know your face.” 

“A mere assumption of yours but we will accept that for now.” The one assumed to be Dracula replied. “I am seen by many yet I hardly knew them all.”

It was also in Oxford that Watson thought he had seen it all but that was his first time he was stepping into the Theology Studies Section of the University there. He stood there after the doorway. He was expecting to see a church or a library of books but was greeted by sight of a huge hall that looked it was designed for Arthur and his knights. There was the line-up of knight armours and there was the fire place with the long table. On the walls besides the deep colour tapestries, there were the paintings of the previous masters of the Section.

“Some of the brothers before my time were knights and they left their amours to us. I guess for their remembrance although we do not condone fighting as a mean to solve conflicts.” The man who spoke was in the frock and collar. “My name is Father Robert Lewis. And this is my apprentice, Brother Hathaway.”

“Good day, Father. Have you seen this man before?” Sherlock pulled the poster out.

“Yes, I do. He is one of our students before. His name is Tu Xia from the Far East.” Father Lewis replied. “He was taken away by people unknown and never seen again.”

Father Lewis then coughed which the younger priest advised that he was to rest. The senior priest looked to his apprentice and nodded.

“Yes, we will speak another time.” Sherlock replied and then he left having shook hands with the priests.

8.

Back in the countryside of the isle, Mrs Hudson stepped out to the small garden of the SOE safe house soon after supper. The two protected guests of her care had retired to sleep. She took the wicker chair there besides pulling the coal stove nearer. She was dressed in the tight blouse and skirts with the knee height boots. She had on the gun belt with the Colt guns and for extra firepower, she had leaned the Enfield rifle with the full load of ammo. It was part of her favourite attire from her previous choice. She kept her eyes off the stove and looked at the flat terrain ahead. One of the reasons the safe house was selected was that it was on a low hill, with a good firing field of over two hundred yards without cover. She was not overly concerned for the gunshots could be heard by the villagers about half a mile away. The other agents could be there before the turn of five minutes. Or more if they are in their nightdress.

“Can I join you?” Mrs Hudson turned to look at the lady who asked to be with her. She nodded and the other lady pulled up another chair. The Chinese lady was dressed in a dark tunic and loose pants with her feet tucked into the wooden sandals.

“Black Cat? I wondered if you …”

“I was given that name when the Emperor when I was presented to him as a child but he decided to make me a warrior. I was trained by the masters and became his daughter’s companion.” The lady known as the Black Cat sighed. “Lo Suee is not an easy person to handle. She held her father’s character; head strong and ambitious. We went to India to sought the treasure to please her father but we failed and lost so many of our warriors.”

“Have you considered about yourself, uh….” Mrs Hudson trying to call the other by her name.

“It’s Fu Ling. That’s my real name. I have on the few occasions when I longed for my own family but the Princess” reverting to the care of her by the rank once more. “Can be troublesome if I were to leave her side. What about yourself?”

“Me? I have been Mrs Hudson for some years now. A name I carried on despite the missing half in my life. My love then had died serving the country and for myself, I guessed like the grass in the fields, I may wither but survive I will tomorrow. I have no other life other than being Mrs Hudson, caretaker of the home I have at Baker Street, and the few undisclosed incidents with intruders.”

“Intruders?” The other lady asked.

“Sherlock was not your typical tenant. He attracts …. how may I delicately put it…. dubious characters that never used the front door.” Mrs Hudson leaned back on her seat. “Professor Moriarty was one of the …best.”

“You picked your words well.” The Chinese lady smiled. “We do that when we are in the palace. The Emperor prefers us to whisper when he is within ear shot. My apologies for the intrusion on your tale. Please continue.”

“Professor Moriarty was the best. He still is. He disliked Sherlock on the works he done. Sherlock and the Emperor are opposites of the same. His associates knew it. And they came. Once they arrived at my front door dressed as priests but they have their finger nails broken like those miners. I almost took it in but three miners cum killers should had better afternoon manners. They ruined my cups and saucers but I took off them their hearts for any charity. My shotgun covered the three with the scattered pellets. They were dead before they hit the floor.”

Both ladies laughed then the Chinese lady turned to Mrs Hudson.

“I counted five.” The Chinese lady spoke out. Mrs Hudson replied with her fingers. It was five.

“If you want, I have more guns inside.” The Chinese lady shook her head. She reached for her back and withdrew the belt of small daggers.

“My knives”, the Chinese lady name for it. There were six of them here. “I am fine.”

Mrs Hudson stood up grabbing the rifle then. She levelled it and took her first shot with it. The .303 calibre released at over two thousand feet a second with the effective range of over five hundred yards blew the assailant on the face. The impact blew the head back on the spine before it went to the right. By then the brain have ceased functioning and body went into a motionless form. The four crawling assailants crouched up and then charged at the two ladies. They were at a distance of a hundred feet away but given the capability of the ladies, they were brought down in seconds. Two went down with the daggers in their faces. They were Chinese in origin,

“I know them. They are part of the assassins from our palace.” The Chinese lady spoke up. “Needless sacrifice.”

“Well, we make a team.” Mrs Hudson smiled at the other when they heard the scream. It was from the Princess. Both ladies rushed to the bedroom allocated for the Princess. They stormed in and saw the dark figure standing before the Princess holding a bloodied head. The head had on a long pig tail and with the long thin moustache.

“The Emperor is dead!” The dark figure turned to look at the two figures who stood by the broken-down door. The assailant was dressed in the dark tunic and pants with the face darkened.

“Wu Sung!” The Black Cat called out. She recognized the other as one of the trusted warrior of the Emperor. Wu Sung held no weapon for he was skilled martial art masters and his deadly fist could crack a skull with one blow. He turned back to the Princess.

“Stop your search for the Emperor. He is dead.” With that Wu Sung tossed the head at the Princess. He then turned to the two ladies.

“Take care of her.” With that Wu Sung charged at the two ladies. He was swift in his move that Mrs Hudson could not levelled the rifle to shoot before she was chopped at the right wrist while the Black Cat sidestepped to avoid the kick aimed at her head. Wu Sung had then got in between the two ladies and lashed out with punches. Mrs Hudson fell backwards from the blows but the Black Cat matched the punches. She blocked the punches and snapped in her own but Wu Sung was a formidable opponent in that fight. He blocked the punches and then with a straight jab of the clenched fingers of his left hand, he hit her on the right shoulder. It was a blow delivered with the clenched fingers on the hit but the clenched fingers drew back to form a fist to follow through. The blow caused the lady to fall on the back.

“Stop!” The voice of the Princess was heard then and the figure had jumped at Wu Sung with the raised right leg at the assailant’s back. The Princess kick impacted on the assailant’s back and he fell forward. The Black Cat had then recovered from her blow lashed out with the right leg from her seated position to drop the assailant. Wu Sung fell on his back and was immediately jumped on by the Princess with the fists delivering a series of blow to the face. Wu Sung reaction was then pushing his body up to topple the Princess and then he went into a half crouch with his arms in the front posing the Tiger Fists Stance. He lashed out with a wide swing of his left arm to hit the Black Cat who was then charging at him from the rear. The lady sidestepped to avoid the blow and blocked the assailant clenched fist with the hard chop on the wrist. The other felt the hit on the wrist but he was focused on the Princess which he had then moved in with the right leg doing a low round kick. The kick was aimed at the left thigh to shatter the bone there but Wu Sung never completed the kick.

Wu Sung had his face impacted on the flooring.

“Never did like the threesome romps. One might get left out.” Mrs Hudson lowered the rifle stock which she had used as the battling bat. “Who is he? Kind of cute but I prefer my man with some finesse.”

“He is Wu Sung, the leader of the personal guard of the Emperor. He was my father’s trusted warrior.” Princess Fa Lo Suee looked at the man knock unconscious on the flooring. She then turned to look for her father’s head. She picked it up and then tossed it aside.

“That was not of my father’s.” Princess Fa Lo Suee looked at the Black Cat. “I think there was a message to be conveyed here.”

“He could be the double for my father but why the killing? And why bring the head here? I am confused.” Princess Fa Lo Sue was then hugged by the other lady. The Black Cat then consoled her.

“We can’t find the answers here. We need to go back home.”

It was then a huge figure rushed in with the Webley in the right hand. It was a Man and he was almost greeted by the bullet that Mrs Hudson shot.

“Mrs Hudson, I …” It was Mycroft standing there swatting his left coat sleeve where a tear was seen. “You could have killed me.”

“Mr. Holmes, I should have. I missed you when I was aiming for the heart.” Mrs Hudson lowered the rifle. “I must be out of practice.”

“Why are you here? I thought you were with Sherlock.” Mrs Hudson flared out. “And where are the others?”

“We heard the shots and rushed over. They are outside looking at the dead bodies while I came to….” Mycroft looked at the unconscious figure. “Is he dead too? We do need some to ask some questions.”

“That is Wu Sung, personal guard of the Emperor.” Mrs Hudson then motioned to the bed. “That is. or maybe the Emperor. You can have them both. We are leaving for the Far East.”

“No…. You can’t leave. Sir Fleming asked me to take …. I meant protect all three of you. If you are going Far East, then I am coming too.” Mycroft smiled. “I like those shrimp dumplings.”

“Bring extra pants. I am not washing them if you wet them there.” Mrs Hudson reminded the man.

“Sherlock told you of my ….” Mycroft was not amused of his embarrassing moments when his diet did not agree with his digestion in India.