“YEAH!! No more Demon World!!” I cried out happily as I raced across the landscape, jumping from floating platform to the next, 'I love how there isn’t any gravity here,' Jade thought cheerfully to herself, as a grin spread across her face, as she leaped for the next floating platform, 'it makes it a lot easier to get to where I want to go fast.'

Skidding across the surface of the platform she had landed on, she see’s Po Kong come flying in her direction because of an attack by the Moon Demon, and Jade quickly went to the edge of the platform, and climbed down and allowed herself to fall to one of the lower ones, as Po flew overhead, completely smashing the platform Jade had just left, into little pieces.

Keeping to the lower parts of some of the platforms to keep out of harms way, when all of the demon sorcerers started flinging attacks and boulders at each other to try and keep each other away from the portal, I soon found myself standing on the platform that was facing the portal that would take me back home, and back to Uncle Jackie and the others.

Happy at my success, I turn around to see how much time I had left before the demons would be there, and I could see that Hsi Wu was the only one in the lead.

As I watch, I can see the smirk on his face as he glanced back to look at his brothers and sisters who were still fighting, thinking that he was the one who would be freed from their prison.

As I watched batboy racing this way, I could see him glance over his should again as if looking for something, and I knew then that he hadn’t seen me in front of the portal yet.

Grinning a bit, I decided to rub it in first, as payback for what he put me through in the past, before I left and called out to him.

“Oh, Hsi Wu!!” I called out, making my voice sound sweet as I called out his name, as I waved at him.

His reaction to seeing me was hilarious. Even from where I was standing I could see his head snap back to look in my direction in disbelief, his glowing red eyes widening in horror as he saw me standing in front of the demon portal.

Smirking a bit, I lifted my hand to my lips and blew Hsi Wu a mocking kiss goodbye. “Only one can go through.” I called out as a reminder, as I turned to face the portal, and started walking the few remaining feet to it, and got ready to jump through it.

As I leaped for the portal, I could hear Hsi Wu scream out in denial over what we both knew was going to happen once I was through the portal, and could feel my smile grow.

'Too bad, so sad, Hsi Wu. I’m going back home. And your going to stay here forever.' I thought happily as I felt the familiar tingling fill my body as I entered the gateway.

I was almost completely through the portal, when I felt a clawed hand suddenly grab hold of the back of my jacket, in a hard, tight grip, just as I was sucked all the way into the portal.

Feeling whatever it was that had snagged me being pulled along, I twisted around as much as I could, to see what it was, and saw Hsi Wu’s glowing red eyes staring back at me, just before pain started shooting throughout my body, as the blue energy inside the portal turned red.

'Uncle Jackie, Torhu...' were my last thoughts as my world slowly became black.

~End Jade’s POV~

On both sides of the Demon Portal, the humans and demon sorcerers could hear the duo’s screams of pain, moments before the portal closed, without either one of the youngsters reappearing.

“Hsi Wu?!” Bai Tza said quietly, her glowing red eyes widening in shock and disbelief at what had just happened.

The portal had closed, but not before all of the demons heard the combined agonizing screams of both Jade and Hsi Wu before the door had slammed shut behind them, causing the other demons to stop fighting amongst themselves.

“What just happened?” Dai Gui asked, as he looked at his brothers and sisters in confusion, as he got up from where he had fallen with unsteady legs, “What the hell happened to Hsi Wu?!”

Jackie, Torhu, and Uncle stared in open disbelief, as the Demon Portal slammed shut without releasing the youngest member of their group, as all three men stood still, visibly shaken by the sound of Jade’s screams combined with the screams of someone else.

Meanwhile, Valmont was gleefully still doing his victory dance on top of the archway entrance of Hong Kong Moose World, over his newfound freedom from Shendu’s procession, completely oblivious to what had just happened below him.

“Um... Was that supposed to happened? Where’s Jade?” Torhu asked as he kept his gaze still on the spot where the Demon Portal once stood, and earned himself a kick in the shins by Uncle. “OW!”

“Aiya! Of course that wasn’t ‘supposed’ to happen!!” Uncle shouted, as he started to pace, “This is not good.”

“Uncle, what happened?!” Jackie cried out in panic, bringing his hands up to rub the back of his neck, before spinning around to face Uncle, “What happened to Jade?! Why was she screaming like that-OW!“

“How would I know!” Uncle snapped after twapping Jackie on the side of his head, as he scowled at the younger man for a moment, before he started pacing, “I’ve never encountered something like this happening before! There’s nothing in the books I studied about this kind of situation”

“Can you reopen the portal and get her back, sensei?” Torhu asked worriedly as he stared back at where the demon portal once stood.

“Aiyaah! Don’t you think I want to, but it’s too late,” Uncle exclaimed as he rounded on his assistant, his face becoming saddened, “It’s just like what happened after I sealed Bai Tza’s portal. Nothing will be able to reopen Shendu’s portal again. And even if I could, I don’t think Jade is even in Demon World anymore.”

“But she could be in danger!” Jackie cried, his eyes bulging out as he stared at the older man in disbelief for a few moments, before starting to pace, “If the final portal is sealed permanently. Jade must still be in Demon World.”

“I don’t believe Jade may still be in Demon World any longer.” Uncle said.

“What do you mean sensei?” Torhu asked.

“Those screams were coming from directly inside the gateway, which means if Jade was in the gateway when it closed she could be anywhere by now. And I don’t’ think she was alone when it happened.” Uncle said as he also started pacing around in circles as he tried to come up with a solution for what had just happened. “But who did that other voice that we heard screaming come from? It sounded almost familiar.”

“That’s because that second voice you heard screaming was our brother Hsi Wu!” a familiar loud screechy voice called out from somewhere nearby, causing the three men to jump in fright, as they looked around in search of it’s location.

“That sounded like the water demon, Bai Tza’s voice,” Jackie said, as he looked around in search of where the voice came from, but didn’t see anything unusual in sight, “Where...”

“Over here you idiots!” another voice thundered.

Jackie, Uncle, and Torhu all turned around to look towards the car they had arrived in earlier, to see the windshield was now glowing, and was showing the floating heads of seven of the Demon Sorcerers.

“What did you do with our brother?!” Bai Tza demanded as she glared at the group of humans with narrowed glowing eyes. “He didn’t come back on this side, when the portal closed.”

“What did you do with my niece?!” Jackie countered, anger filling his own voice, combined with a hint of worry in his tone, “She didn’t come back on this side.”

“We don’t have your blasted niece!” Dai Gui growled out.

Jackie ran a hand trough his hair uneasily, as worry appeared on his face, “Well we don’t have Hsi Wu, either. Neither one came out of the portal on our side before it slammed shut.”

“Well neither one came back out on our side.” Tso Lan said in a reasonable tone, though you could hear the barely repressed anger and worry in his voice. “Hsi Wu grabbed hold of your niece just as she was about to enter the portal, and both were sucked in together. And we already know what happened after that.”

“But the demon portal is supposed to only allow one person to go through.” Jackie said incredulously, as he immediately rounded on Uncle with a questioning look on his features, “Uncle, do you think that’s what went wrong? Because both of them went through the portal at the same time?”

“Aiyaa! Everyone be quiet! I must think about this some more.” Uncle shouted, as he pulled open the passenger door of the car and sat inside. “I don’t know how to explain what happened any better than you do, Jackie!”

“But Uncle-Ow!”

“Didn’t Uncle just say he needed quiet?” Uncle snapped as he glared up at his nephew, as he lowered his hand back down, “There’s nothing in my research that tells about something like this happening before! If the portal did let them out, they could be anywhere in the world.”

“If we don’t have them, and they don’t have them, then who has them?” Torhu asked a few seconds later, when the two groups lapsed into silence once more. “Where in the world are they?”

“Or they might not even be in this world anymore.” Tso Lan said.

“What?”

“The portal could have sent two of them into another dimension, wouldn’t you agree, brothers and sisters?” Tso Lan asked as his floating head turned towards his siblings for confirmation.

“What do you mean?” Jackie demanded.

“Even if he was simply lost somewhere there in the human realm, then something is wrong. If Hsi Wu was still in this dimension we would have been able to sense him by now.” Tso Lan said, as he turned his attention back towards Jackie, eyes narrowing. “And I haven’t felt anything from him this whole time we’ve been talking.”

“That’s a bad sign is it?” Jackie asked.

“What do you think Chan,” Shendu snarled as he glared at Jackie and the others from his spot on the windshield. “Under the circumstances, if we are unable to sense Hsi Wu, it could mean one out of two things. One Hsi Wu is completely out of our reach in this reality, or he’s...”

“Don’t say it!!” Jackie yelled, visibly paling as he realized what the demon sorcerer was going to say next, 'If their telling the truth, then Jade could be...'

“We don’t know for sure if Jade and Hsi Wu are dead, right?” Torhu asked, cutting into the conversation, as a worried looked appeared on his features as he looked at the stricken looks on Jackie and Uncle’s faces. “They could still be alive, and the portal could have sent them anywhere. All we need to do is find a way to bring them back.”

“Torhu is right,” Uncle announced as he looked at Torhu, as a thoughtful look appeared on his features, “There must be a way to bring them back. All I need to do is some research on the matter.”

Jackie nodded his head in agreement to Uncle’s declaration, “I’m not giving into the idea of Jade being dead until I see her with my own eyes.”

“We’re helping too!” Po Kong’s voice rumbled, though it was almost drowned out by the protests of her siblings.

“Why should we work with you?!” Uncle demanded, as he glared at the Mountain Demon’s astral form, “You demons are evil, and no good will come from allying ourselves with the forces of darkness!”

“I don’t see why not, Chi Wizard. By working together, all of us get what we want.” Po Kong said simply, as she eyed Uncle, as a smug look appeared on her features as she smiled, before continuing, “If our working together works out, then you mortals will get your niece back, and we will get our brother back. It’s that simple.”

Before Uncle could say anything further, Jackie quickly jumped in.

“We’ll do it!” Jackie announced, ignoring the shocked looks he was getting from Uncle and Torhu. Especially the angry look Uncle was shooting his way, as he quickly ducked one of Uncle’s blows as he continued speaking, “I may not like it, but I don’t see what other choice we might have, Uncle.”

“Jackie! Don’t go making deals with them! I don’t need their help in bringing Jade home.” Uncle cried out, as he glared at the demons floating heads in frustration, “Making deals with their kind will lead us down the wrong path!”

“I know that Uncle. Jackie looked over at Uncle uncertainly, as a pained look appeared on his features, “I don’t like it either, and especially after everything we’ve been through lately. But...”

“What have you to lose from working with us, chi wizard?” Po asked, as she looked the old man over, seeing the tenseness in his body, “We are still trapped in the Netherworld thanks to you, so we can’t do any harm to you from here, now can we?”

“You stay out of this demon!” Uncle shouted, as he turned his attention fully onto Po, eyes narrowing in distrust.

“We can discuss this further at a later date. It’s already been settled, old man, so get used to it.” Po said dismissively, cutting off Uncle’s tirade, as her image along with the image of the other demons started to fade, “We have planning to do if we want Hsi Wu and Jade to return soon, and we can’t waste another moment now can we?”

“Wait a minute! Nothings settled” Uncle started, but it was too already late.

The demons were gone.

“How dare you go around making decisions like that without consulting me first, Po!” Tchang thundered as he glared up at Po Kong from his perch, “As the oldest, I’m the leader of this family, so what I say goes! Not you!”

“Just what were you thinking, Po, to ally us with the Chans?!” Bai Tza exclaimed angrily once they were alone, “Those humans can’t be trusted, especially that blasted chi wizard!”

“Quiet all of you. And don’t give me that look, Tchang,” Po chided as she glared at all of her siblings, silencing them instantly “We have as much at stake here as you Chans. Hsi Wu is our brother, and we won’t give up on him either until there is proof of his demise.”

“What?! No way! The runt can stay lost for all I care!” Shendu exclaimed, his eyes blazing angrily, ignoring the looks he was now getting from the rest of his siblings because of his choice in words, as he look up defiantly at Po Kong, “I would sooner die first before I’d work with Chan!”

“Well then, it’s too bad that you’re already dead now, isn’t it, Shendu?” Xiao Fung commented cheerfully, though the glare he shot at the floating Dragon spirit made the cheerfulness sound false. “So you don’t have much say in it, now do you?”

Shendu’s eyes widened in shock at Xiao’s comment, snarling angrily as he turned his heated glare on his brother, but remained silent.

“Xiao, Shendu behave!” Po Kong commanded as she glared at her two younger brothers, frowning at both demons, “This is no time for us to argue amongst ourselves.”

“Well someone had to say it, Shendu,” Xiao said, ignoring Po for the moment, as he grinned mischievously over at Shendu, Xiao turned his attention back towards Po Kong, cocking his head to one side as he looked up at her curiously, “Though I must admit, that I don’t want to work with the Chan’s either, Po.”

“I don’t see what choice we have at the moment,” Po said, as her frown deepened, “As long as we are trapped here in the Netherworld, we don’t have the resources that is needed to find Hsi Wu on our own,” When Tchang opened his mouth to interrupt her, she quickly continued, “Despite what some of you may say to the contrary.”

Tchang Zu grumbled to himself, as he glared up at Po Kong menacingly, before settling down as he realized that she was right for once.

“I agree,” Tso Lan said, nodding his head in agreement as he looked towards Po, then back at the view screen that still showed Jackie and the others talking amongst themselves even though the humans didn’t know they were still being watched, “I want to find Hsi Wu at all costs, even if it means having to work together with our enemies to do so.”

“This could work to our advantage,” Bai Tza said as understanding filled her, crossing her arms over her chest as she looked around, “If His winds up reappearing in the mortal realm, he can get us out of here, unless he gets caught by the Chans.”

“Jackie!! How could you make a deal with the forces of darkness!!” Uncle shouted, as he glared at his nephew angrily, after twapping him twice on the side with his finger, “Nothing good will come of it!”

“I know Uncle, but I don’t see what other choice we have.” Jackie said, rubbing his sore head as he looked, “It’s Jade we’re talking about here. We have to bring her back from wherever she is.”

“Jackie are you sure you made the right choice in agreeing to work with the demon sorcerers?” Torhu asked, worry filling his voice, “What if something goes wrong, or they...”

“There’s no telling what the demon door took her and Hsi Wu, and we may need all the help we can get in bringing them back.” Jackie said, as he looked over at the spot where the doorway once stood, half hoping that the gateway would reappear and open back up to release Jade, with no luck, “The demons seem to want Hsi Wu back as much as we want Jade back, so I don’t see what harm it could do to work with them for the time being.”

“I say there, Chan!” Valmont’s voice suddenly called out to them, causing everyone to turn their attention towards the crime boss. “A moment of your time if you don’t mind.”

They could see that he had finally finished with his victory dance and was now sitting on the archway, with his legs dangling over the side, with a worried look on his face, as he look down at them from his perch.

“I don’t mean to be a bother right now.” Valmont started, once he saw that he had the other’s attention focused on him now, as a sheepish look appeared on his features, “But can you fellows help me down from here? I’m still stuck up here you know.”

============================
Author’s Notes:
So tell me, what do you guys think? Should I continue this story? Or let it die a slow death here?

If you all think I should continue this, could someone send me a fanart picture of Teenage Jade and Hsi Wu (in human form with maybe his wings), if anyone’s interested? Forbidden Love - Prologue.doc 12/9/2007 8/8