Shadow Train (49 page)

Master Chin stood amid a knot of partygoers, relating a story that had happened long before any of them were ever born, when he'd had a run-in with Oberon and had taken out one of his eyes using snake-style kung fu. When Raphael and Aimee approached, however, he ceased his tale and embraced them both.

“Ah, so lovely to see you two!” he exclaimed. “Now everyone is here!”

“Sorry we're late.
Someone
takes forever to get ready,” Raphael said, elbowing Aimee playfully. She stuck her tongue out at him.

“Tell me about it,” exclaimed Nass, looking at Dalton who gave him a playful shove.

Everyone was there: the Cunninghams, Dax, Michael, Beet, Benji, Josh, Myka, and Bran Goheen. Bran was quite a bit more subdued than when he'd been hanging out with Rick Banfield, but he looked happy. He and Maggie Anderson were holding hands. Everyone was surprised when they started going together, but they seemed perfect for each other.

“I wish Zhai and Kate were here to see all this,” said Maggie, taking in the room. She looked at Lily Rose. “Have you had any word from them?”

“As a matter of fact, I have,” said Lily Rose, her eyes twinkling as she took
The Good Book
out of her oversized purse. “I looked this morning and found something waiting for me. It's a letter from Kate.”

She opened
The Good Book
and read it to them.

“Dear lovely friends,” Kate had written. “We got back safely. Aimee was able to teleport us right to the enlistment office in Dublin—but it was too late for me to get my brother out of the army. Have no worry—he survived the war, and I'll explain how in a minute. To our surprise when we materialized on the other side, Orias was wearing a priest's collar, of all things. He laughed and said he thought that was fitting. He was willing to live a life of service to others and thought maybe there was some good he could do. He enlisted in the army as a chaplain and went off to minister to the soldiers.

“Not long after we returned to my little village, Zhai and I were married. None of my neighbors had ever seen an Asian gentleman before and for a while they were sure I'd brought back some kind of exotic leprechaun (ha ha), but they soon got used to him and realized they weren't going to find a pot of gold by following him around. We haven't found one either, although Zhai has made a good living as a music teacher and he never lacks for students.

“Now about my little brother. He came home from the war unscathed, thanks to Orias. He wasn't even wounded, for Orias jumped in front of the bullet that was meant for him. I'm sorry to inform you that Orias didn't make it. But, according to my brother, his last words were, ‘I can see the light. I can see it! I'm going home now . . .' and he died with a smile on his face.

“We miss you all terribly and hope to see you again someday soon. Meanwhile, we are happy in our little country cottage and will soon add to our family with our first child. I hope it will be the first of many.

With all our love, Kate and Zhai.”

Everyone was silent for a moment when Lily Rose closed the book. Raphael looked at Aimee, concerned, and when she gazed into his eyes hers were misted with tears.

“It's okay,” she said. “He's okay, now. He did it. He made his restitution.”

“Yep,” said Lily Rose. “I knew that boy had it in him. Orias found his road to glory.”

Above them, from one of the barn's rafters, hung a flag that Violet Anderson had made for the Army of Light. Against a white background, it featured a spiral staircase rising from a ring stitched in blue. At the corners of the flag were the four items the Magician had sent Raphael and Zhai to find in their first quest: a pocket watch, a wedding ring, a rosary, and a lock of hair.

“Cool flag,” Raphael said, gazing up at it. It reminded him of a conversation he'd had with Zhai before he and Kate left.

“The one thing I'm still trying to figure out is that first quest, where the Magician had us get those items,” Zhai had said. “And then we had to get the key. I mean, I understand the key—you couldn't have rescued Aimee without unlocking the Wheel of Illusion—but the rest of the stuff?”

Raphael had nodded and replied, “I thought about that a lot on my train ride through the Dark Territory borderlands. I think each item had a lesson; the Magician is called the Dark Teacher, after all. I know for me, the pocket watch symbolizes time.” He'd tried to channel the Magician's creepy voice, which had made Zhai laugh. “Time is an illusion,” Raph had said. “And we can travel through it. But it's also precious and limited. Like my time with my dad. And I think Mrs. Anderson's wedding ring symbolizes commitment,” he said, thinking of Aimee. “Plus, I never would have become friends with Maggie if I hadn't gone to find it.”

Zhai had considered Raphael's words carefully, and then he'd said, “After our quest, Lily Rose told me to heal Li with faith. That could be the rosary. . . .”

“And what about the lock of Kate's hair?”

At that Zhai had grinned. “That's easy,” he'd said. “It's love.”

When they'd told Chin what they thought, he'd nodded proudly. “Time, commitment, faith, and love,” he'd said. “All necessary ingredients to becoming a Soldier of Light.”

“Yeah, well he sure didn't teach us the easy way,” Raphael had said.

Chin clapped him on the shoulder. “He never does,” he'd said.

Remembering his conversation with Zhai made Raphael miss his old friend, but he knew that somehow, somewhere, he would see him again.

Aimee's voice brought Raphael back to the present. She was addressing Master Chin. “I never got a chance to thank you for those telepathic kung fu lessons you gave me while you were in your coma,” she said. “I'll always be grateful. They saved my life more than once.”

“Of course,” Chin smiled. “You were an excellent student.”

“You know . . . if you'd ever let me take lessons sometime when we're both awake, that would be amazing,” she suggested.

Chin eyed her playfully. “Do you remember what I said when you asked the first time?” he asked, and then he reached into a cabinet and took out a thick wooden board.

“You said when I could break that board you'd train me.”

“Right,” Chin said. “You think you can do it?”

He held up the board and braced himself, ready for Aimee to strike it as she had the first time she tried. The rest of the Army of Light surrounded her, watching eagerly.

Aimee looked at the board for a minute, crestfallen, and then shook her head. “I can't do it,” she said. “It's too thick. There's no way.”

Chin laughed and set down the board. “Then I'll train you,” he said.

Aimee's face lit up. “What? Really?”

“I cannot train someone unless they understand their own limitations. Now you understand yours,” he explained.

Aimee smiled and gave her new kung fu master a bow.

“And I have a surprise for you, Sifu,” Raphael said, and everyone gave him their attention. “I've finally figured out the Strike of the Immortals.”

Aimee looked at Raphael, confused, and he explained. “The most advanced technique in all of kung fu, the move that can never be defeated, that can't be taught, only figured out.”

Chin nodded. “Very well,” he said, gesturing toward his Mook Jong, the kung fu wooden dummy that stood in the corner. “Show me.”

Raphael nodded. With everyone watching, he walked over to the Mook Jong, but instead of attacking it he just stood there.

“Go ahead! You can do it!” Josh said.

But Raphael simply looked at the dummy for a moment longer before turning back to Chin.

“Do it, Raph!” Nass said eagerly, but Raphael only smiled.

“He did do it,” Chin said, beaming with pride.

They all looked confused.

“Come on,” said Beet. “Show us the move.”

“That's it,” Raphael explained. “That's what the move is—nothing.”

“The Strike of the Immortals is the strike not thrown,” Chin said softly, his eyes a little misty. And then he grinned. “It is peace. And nothing—
nothing
—can defeat it.” He gave Raphael a tearful embrace. “You're a master now,” he whispered. A moment later he pulled away, wiping tears of joy from his eyes. “And now, we dance!” he said exuberantly, taking a remote control from his pocket and aiming it at the impressive sound system he'd set up on one side of the barn.

“Just a second,” Raphael said. He had spied his mom at the far end of the room, holding his little brother. “Hey, Mom,” he said, meeting her in the middle of the barn.

“Hey, kiddo,” she said, bobbing the baby up and down in her arms. “You want to hold your little bro?”

Gingerly, Raphael took the baby from his mother. “Hey, Gabe,” he said. He was getting more and more comfortable holding him. “What's up, little guy?”

Maggie, Aimee, and Dalton gathered around, oohing and cooing at the adorable child.

“I've got to ask,” said Dalton. “How did you decide what to call him? Is Gabriel an old family name or something?”

Savana smiled. “It was an easy choice. Raphael is named after an angel. I thought it would be appropriate for this one, too. My two angel boys.”

“Mom—come on,” said Raphael. “Stop before you embarrass me.”

Savana laughed, and Gabriel squirmed in Raph's arms. He looked up at his big brother and a huge smile spread across his tiny face. Suddenly, a halo of golden light surrounded his perfect little head, causing everyone watching to gasp. Then, the baby was glowing all over, bright and beautiful, just like he'd glowed in the womb. Everyone stared at him in stunned silence.

Chin approached, glanced at the baby, then at Raphael and he clapped Raph on the back. “Well, it looks like the new generation of warriors for the Army of Light is already among us,” he said pleasantly. His smile was infectious, and soon the others were smiling and laughing, too, even Raphael.

“He's going to be great—especially with a big brother like you,” Aimee said, kissing Raphael on the cheek.

“So . . . can we dance already?” Chin asked with boyish impatience, and they all laughed.

“Yeah!” Aimee and Maggie said at once.

“All right,
Sifu,
” Raphael said. “Let's dance.”

The End

Acknowledgments

This book is dedicated to you, reader. You, who have come on this nearly 1,500-page journey with us. You, who have persevered to the end. You, who have learned the Strike of the Immortals. Thank you.

Thanks also to: Carol, Kim, Peter, and everyone at HCI Books, Robert Vahovich and the Battle Creek Traditional Wing Chun Club, my extraordinary family, Charlene Keel, and the gorgeous, peerless, fearless Melissa Kay Hart.

—J. Gabriel Gates

For all the inspiration that happy childhood memories provided, I want to thank the playmates of my youth: my siblings, Bennie, Mike and Becky; cousin Margaret Ann and Willie Howell's brood—Sandra, Elaine, Gloria, Charles, David, Edward, Charlotte, and Allen; Pat, Wayne, Jimmy, Billy, and Jaylene Mitchem; all the Keel cousins, especially Larry and Sandra, Diane and Douglas, Frank and Bobbi Jean, George and Nancy, and their Susie and Lloyd; Jot and Phyllis Coker; and my first best friend, Sally Sellers. And most especially Lugene Lewis, my very own Lily Rose. I treasure all the hours of make believe, laughter, love, and encouragement they gave me.

—Charlene Keel

About the Authors

J. Gabriel Gates
is a Michigan native and a graduate of Florida State University. He has worked as a professional actor, written several Hollywood screenplays, and coauthored the teen fantasy series The Tracks. His novels include:
Dark Territory
,
Ghost Crown, The Sleepwalkers
, and
Blood Zero Sky.
For more information, visit his website:
www.jgabrielgates.com
and follow him on Facebook and Twitter.

Charlene Keel
is an author and screenwriter whose TV credits include
Fantasy Island
and
Days of Our Lives
. Her other novels include
The Lodestone
,
Seventh Dawn of Destiny
,
Dark Territory:
(The Tracks, Book 1), and
Ghost Crown
(The Tracks, Book 2). For more information, go to
www.charlenekeel.com
and follow her on Facebook and Twitter.