"Yes," he agreed, "how dare I!"
Curtis turned his back on Shurleen and took a seat by the chubby thespian. He proceeded to apologize for his unkind remarks of the past and to compliment Passepout on his bravery of the night before. Shurleen turned her back on the two, and fumed to the waves.
Chiun was standing by Volo at the junk's helm, the Isles of Wa just coming into view.
"Chiun, last night you said something about 'sending undead elven assassins to do a man's work is cheating,' " Volo commented.
"Yes," Chiun responded. "Elves are not native to Kara-Tur. Training them as ninjas is abhorrent. Involving them in Kara-Tur affairs is even worse."
"Who is involving them in Kara-Tur affairs, and how?"
"The corrupt shogun who desires the child dead has a patron who goes by the name of Dragon Claw, who is in reality a petty fiend. He is the arch nemesis of Mad Monkey, and the one responsible for the cheating."
"Why are he and Mad Monkey at odds?"
"Many years ago they fought a contest of fighting styles. Mad Monkey won, and an agreement was reached whereby the Mad Monkey school on the Isles of Wa would be considered a sanctuary for those wishing acceptance."
"I see," said Volo, fingering his beard.
"There are rules, of course," Chiun said, adding pointedly, "not unlike the ones you must follow in your eastward journey."
"Rules?" Volo asked innocently. "Us?"
"Requirements such as the dropping of the necromancer's gems along the way while never retracing your steps."
Volo was taken aback. "Did Passepout tell you about this?" the master traveler inquired.
"No," Chiun replied. "I saw the gems in his possession, and recognized them."
Volo was still slightly uneasy.
"Don't worry," Chiun explained. "Mad Monkey will watch out for you."
Volo was still unsure and wanted to pursue his inquiry when the old priest pointed to the largest isle.
"There is the harbor for the school. It is our destination. The place where the child will be safe."
The junk made port at an unattended dock, as per Chiun's instructions.
"You must take the child to the school at the end of the path," he instructed.
Curtis asked, "Won't you be going with us?"
Chiun shook his head, and said, "Mad Monkey say 'The needs of the young may precede the concerns of the elderly.' I will meet you there later." The old man then set off down a different path along the shore.
"Well," Volo instructed, "no time like the present to get things started. The sooner we get the kid to the school, the sooner the kid's safety will be assured."
"Mad Monkey say," Passepout jibed, " 'can't we have lunch first?'"
The entire group groaned, ignored the suggestion, and headed down the path.
After an hour's walk along the carefully slated path, the Mad Monkey school began to appear in the distance.
"Looks like we've got this kid home free!" Shurleen declared, nuzzling her charge and beginning to miss him already.
A sulphurous explosion erupted before them, blocking their path.
When the smoke cleared, they were standing face-to-face with the dreaded fiend Dragon Claw.
Dragon Claw was repulsive-fatter than Passepout, covered in scales, with the head of a dragon, and four arms, each ending in a tightly gripped hooked sword, which was the signature weapon of his school of fighting.
The scent of fire, sulphur, and brimstone was heavy in the air. The fiend let loose with four fireballs as a show of force. Each one exploded right before the travelers, leaving a scorch mark at their feet.
"Give the child to me!" the Dragon Claw demanded.
"No!" Shurleen screamed. "Over my dead body!"
"No," cried the fiend with a laugh, "that comes later, for all of you."
Dragon Claw began to bear down on the group, swords slicing through the air with lightning speed as the fiend showed off his skill before going in for the kill.
"Hey," cried a familiar but frail voice, "over here, you pustule on the Celestial Bureaucracy's rear."
Chiun had appeared, once again seemingly out of nowhere, to challenge the demon.
Chiun raised his staff, and declared, "The son of the samurai has achieved sanctuary. You can harm him no longer."
Dragon Claw laughed at the frail mortal.
"The son of the samurai will be my appetizer. You will be my supper," the fiend replied.
"You have violated the terms of our agreement by interfering with the quest of these mortals.
Their bravery has saved them, even after your otherworldly interference has threatened them. The child will receive sanctuary, and the travelers will have their journey vouchsafed."
Dragon Claw continued to laugh and crow, bolts of fire and lightning framing his awe-inspiring figure.
"I have made no agreements with mortals," the fiend replied.
"I am not mortal," Chiun replied, and with a flash of blue light, the old coot became transformed into his demigod form, even more awe-inspiring than that of Dragon Claw. "I am Mad Monkey!"
Dragon Claw growled, smoke emanating from its ears. Quickly the growl turned into a roar and the smoke into flames of purple fire. Like an on-rushing dragon, the fiend let loose a bellow of sulphurous gas and sprang at the demigod.
Raising his staff, which was also revealed now as the iron bar of power, the demigod struck the lesser fiend across its infernal countenance, knocking it out and allowing the travelers to pass with the child.
Carefully the travelers stepped around the prostrate body of the denizen of the abyss, their nostrils assaulted by the noxious fumes that emanated from its unconscious form.
On the other side of the brush behind the petty fiend was the door to the school. As the group approached, several priests came out, and took the child from the hands of Shurleen, without saying a word, they carried it into the inner sanctum of the school.
"Wait," Shurleen called. "I just wanted to say good-bye."
The demigod Mad Monkey reappeared at their side.
"They do not understand you," the demigod explained. "Common is not spoken here. It is only because I am part of the Celestial Bureaucracy that I have been able to communicate with you."
"I should have known that," Volo volunteered.
"You had other things on your mind," the demigod offered. "Though I am prohibited from transporting untried acolytes to my school, I am allowed to assist them, provided they prove themselves worthy, as indeed you have."
Mad Monkey continued his proclamation.
"The child will be safe. He will be trained as a samurai, and his father's legacy will be secured. He will not be allowed to leave the sanctuary of this citadel until he is able to protect himself. You who are not disciples of Mad Monkey cannot receive the sanctuary of my school."
"Great," Curtis replied unenthusiastically.
"Dragon Claw will awake soon. He will be angry, and though he cannot hurt Mad Monkey or his disciples, he can hurt you," the demigod confessed.
"Wonderful," Passepout remarked, thinking about just what else could go wrong at this point.
"I cannot protect you from him," the demigod explained, "but I can see that you are safely escorted from the lands in which he dwells before he awakens. I could offer you a shortcut to the east, you might say."
Mad Monkey gave Volo and Passepout a wink, overlooked by the others, to assure the two travelers that he realized the needs of their arrangements. Then with a wave of his staff, the demigod opened a hole in the fabric of reality that was the Isles of Wa.
"Go quickly," the demigod instructed, "and follow the path that lies ahead of you. Observe whatever you want along the way, but stop to talk to no one except each other. There will be a light at the far end. Go to it."
"Where will that be?" Volo asked.
"A place farther east," the demigod replied. "Now go! Time is short. Already that petty fiend Dragon Claw is drifting into consciousness."