Fiction: Hong Dao Chan: behind the curtain.

"Where are we?" We Wei called out to a Hong.
"This is behind the curtain. You know that, you come here all the time."
"In my sleep?"
Hong nodded and it came back to her and to Michael Jai and to Chun. They knew where they were. They were home in a way. In their own world, but it overlapped with each others.

"Hong is flying by sir!" screamed someone from a ship below.

"Fire at will." said Captain Napin nonchalantly

Bulltes whizzed passed and cannon fire and shells. A whole fleet opened fire on the children.

Hong circled and sliced through the air. His flaming sword made a mark through the sky that slowed down the bullets (but did not stop them.

"Nia get them to the Water Margin!" called out Hong. Nia the blue bird glowed brighter and brighter until the blue ball enveloped the children and Wei Wei. The energy helped the children fly faster (although Nia was slower and used more energy.)

Hong stayed behind and flew on the other side of the fleet where he cursed and spit at them.

"You filthy drug dealers. Cowards all of you. Come and fight you punks!"

The truth was that Hong knew a great deal of these smugglers. A good deal of Hong's playmates boys would join up with them and began to grow up. They had mixed loyalties. The ships provided a way back into the real world, and money, and fantasies not available on the island. And Hong didn't blame them individually. Most of the gun fire missed by a wide margin because these guys didn't actually want to hit Hong.

But there were others who had never known Hong and just followed orders. Captain Napin, hated Hong but being a gentleman, never picked up a rifle himself.

Eventually Nia got the children and Wei Wei to the beach. They were a long way off from the mountains they were headed too but Nia was worn out. All of them were. To go fast they used up all their energy somehow. The way they flew was like swimming, flowing through the air this way and that. It wasn't efficient. It wasn't steady. An so they decided to walk tup the beach and through the forest. That way at least they couldn't be so easily spotted by the ships. But the ships were distracted by Hong at the moment anyway.

"That was so cool!" squealed Chun "I want a sword just like Hong."

"I want a gun so I can shoot back at those jerks."

Wei Wei wondered what she had gotten herself into. Was this the dream world? What did Hong mean by behind the curtain? Wei Wei wondered if her thoughts could be controlled. She knew she was in this world, which isn't always the case when you are asleep. Was there a way to make herself more powerful? To control her surroundings? Was this just like one of the stories she told the children where she was the author of her fate? Or did she have less control? If a bullet hit her.. would she die? She was suddenly mad at Hong for putting them in danger like this. The thought froze her to the ground and the world swirled around her strangely.

"Don't do that." Nia looked at her.

Wei Wei paused and looked at Nia again. The bird glimmered and blurred until she was a beautiful young woman. Wei Wei stared at her. Nia looked familiar and strange. Simultaneously a bird and a woman and a fairy. Simultaneously ravishingly young, and anciently wise.

"Enjoy the moment where you are. Just be where you are. on the beach. The boys know that naturally. You'll ruin yourself, thinking the way you are. We're going into the woods now." And Nia flitted ahead with the boys.

Wei Wei walked slowly, and then skipped along more joyfully into the woods. Yes Nia was right. This was much better. The woods were magical. The trees, the mushrooms, the animals, butterflies. It was magical as anything you could imagine and more so, because it was as magical as everyone else could imagine too. The minds of everyone joined here, the beautiful and the awesome. The light shone glowing so brightly because the shadows were so dark and mysteries, and all of it was wonderful and beautiful and filled her heart with awe.