Half of My Heart

Epilogue.

This wasn't the same as Mt Kunlun, but Yunlan still put his hand down to see if there was a link, but there wasn't. They had come here fully equipped with everything they could think of and the guards would bring anything else if they needed it.

It had been a week since the last incident and they were both excited to be on holiday here in a freezing cold cave, looking for clues of who used to live in this area. Plus there was a map to follow but first they found a warmer part of the cave to stay for their first night, which was further in, away from the blast of cold air at the entrance.

This was much better, there was even a trickle of water that could be used to fill their bottles and with Yunlan's fire skills, they found it easier to warm the smaller area. The light of the flames lit up some murals on the wall which led to the small sundial being the last image, and they both recognised it. Wei had slipped it into his pocket before they were teleported here and he brought it out to examine it. The dial glowed in the darkness and cast the map in a larger scale on the roof of the cave, which looked fantastic and stayed alight for as long as it was left out.

"Tired Xiao Wei or are you feeling alright? I'll zip the two bags together to keep warm, we should be alright during the night, and the fire will stay lit. Take your boots off but keep everything else on and we can settle down to sleep."

Neither of them had ever been out in sleeping bags at these temperatures, but they did manage to stay warm and cuddled close inside the double bag. Wei felt movement inside and stared at Yunlan who lay smiling.

"What are you doing Ah Lan?" he asked as he felt something slide across his sleeve.

"Me? Nothing. Look two hands, not me."

And they both panicked and instantly sat up to see what was moving inside the sleeping bag and found Apep looking for a source of heat.

"Out. Lie beside the fire, it will be lovely and warm for you for the rest of the night, then you can travel with me tomorrow."

They zipped up the bag again and lay down to sleep, until Wei felt Yunlan's hands slowly undoing his jacket, then his thick warm shirt and sliding inside, under his inner layer of clothing. Any thoughts of sleep were lost as Wei followed the same pattern and they explored while they were in a confined space, with no one to hear them as they groaned and laughed inside the sleeping bag.

In the morning according to their watches, they had breakfast before they began to follow the map while Yunlan lit the way with his flames. They did have torches with them but kept them to use later. The trail was easy to begin with but when it became narrower, they had to be more careful. There were overhanging rocks, too easy to misjudge and bump your head, along with the lower ragged ones which stood out further and could cause bruising or scrapes but they were now using the torches and watched for the sharp ones. Their progress was slower and they took more care with every step because of dampness making the path slippery and they were forced to stop when the trail split into two paths.

The map faded at this point and didn't show which direction to take, so they took the left one first and marked their route making it easier to find their way back. But the ground was rough and the passageway was becoming much narrower until they reached the point where they couldn't go any further and turned back. They followed their marks as far as the split in the path but this was more like hard work than being on holiday, and they headed for their base with the sleeping bags.

In the mansion Ava was cooking but feeding the animals first. Fresh fish for the cat and two raw eggs for Apep. The guards were watching, amused at how the animals were fed first, until the doorbell went and Guard Li answered it, surprised to see Chu and Daqing walking into the kitchen. The cat stopped eating and stared at the youth beside Chu while everyone tried to remain calm. But the furry beast was furious and showing his claws as he hissed. Apep had slipped out of sight, away from the dangerous animal and Chu wasn't sure which one was the shifter because his Daqing had been in his house all night. But from the way the cat on Ava's table had reacted, he was having doubts and he couldn't think of an embarrassing question to ask the youth to prove who he was, but Ava could.

"Daqing have you seen the doctor yet about that small problem you have?" She asked and stared directly at the youth while being aware that Apep was ready to jump.

He just grinned in exactly the same manner as Daqing would have because he had been in the mansion for a few months, but had never seen the cat transform, and informed Ava that he'd been. Apep violently launched himself towards the shifter and gripped him by his neck so fast that the guards never had time to use their dark energy ropes.

"Don't kill him Apep, please. Unconscious yes, dead no. We need him alive for questions." Ava asked and two of the guards fired their ropes around him before Ying entered the kitchen and missed all the excitement.

"Are you sure he's the right one Ava?" Chu asked while Daqing transformed and stared at him.

"Give me a break, I don't have a small problem. My problem is huge with a black coffee addiction first thing in the morning before he goes to work." But then he stopped and thought. "That makes two shifters, where's the third?"

When Yunlan and Wei got back to their sleeping bags, the fire had gone out and Yunlan looked around to see if he could find anything else to burn but Wei suggested teleporting some branches from the nearest place he could find. It would save them from leaving the cave and having to search in the snow. And Yunlan agreed, it made things a lot easier and he wondered where Apep had gone, he must be feeling cold.

He held out his right arm and waited, but nothing happened and he began to worry as he searched the area around their sleeping bags, but Wei told him not to fret, he would appear as soon as he started cooking his favourite meal, scrambled eggs, and Yunlan stared at him with a question in his mind.

"Are you absolutely sure Wei Ah?"

"Yes my love, two out of three."

Yunlan couldn't watch as Wei cracked the eggs and began preparing them before he brought out a pot to use, as they listened for the sound of a snake slithering. It was faint at first before he came into view heading towards Wei, when Yunlan had a sudden thought and fired a continuous violent red flame at the snake and never stopped until he was cooked, and then place him in the fire to burn to ash.

"Apep is safe at home Ah Lan, that was a shifter. They can imitate animals as well as humans. What made you so suddenly aggressive?"

"I was upset at the thought of having to kill Apep even if he was a fake but there was something in the way he moved. They can copy identically and he was going to bite you. If my brain had been working last night, I would have realised that no way would the snake go anywhere as cold as this place, he likes heat. And that one was going to kill one or both of us last night when we were asleep. Did Ying send you a message?"

"Yes he did. They tried to copy Daqing while the cat was having his breakfast, and Apep nearly strangled it before Ava asked him to stop, save him for questioning." Wei explained and they laughed at the thought.

"I've broken these eggs Ah Lan, we may as well enjoy them," and Wei smiled as he began to heat their quick meal.

Wei was able to tell Yunlan that the shifter had been in the mansion for months just watching them and imitating Daqing. That's how the poachers knew where he was going, except they were shifters not poachers, and the substance he was given was probably in his food without anyone knowing. Wei had been a target for a long time and when they found out that he was Black Robe, it was easier to target the human to incapacitate the Spirit.

But for now, he was safe again and had the chance to enjoy his life with Yunlan while they found new and exciting things to do, until Yunlan's age slowed them down, and they had to face that question which they disagreed over for months.

This was Wei's third lifeline and he couldn't face another one without Yunlan by his side but he also didn't want to search for another one after his death. He had almost died twice himself and he could remember Ouyang saying third time lucky. But Wei already felt that he was lucky and this was his third time, so he managed to convince Yunlan that it was alright, he wanted to die with him, but not anytime soon.

"Stay healthy for a while longer my love. But I will happily join you, Ah Lan."

No one disagreed with him, he'd fought for his life more than any of the previous hosts had for a long time, and when he left this world, there were only celebrations for a brave fighter and happiness for the couple who could now have peace.