Jackie Chan Adventures: J: Enesis

CHAPTER ONE

Jackie looked at the clock as he swept the floors of Uncle's Rare Finds.

Four minutes to four.

He looked at the door.

He then checked the digital watch attached to his wrist

Calmly, he counted the seconds along with the timer.

"..Two...One"

The door burst open, a familiar pint-sized leg having kicked through it.

Storming in was an exhausted Jade Chan, trailing her loaded and heavy Super Moose school bag behind her.

"Slow day?" asked Jackie

"The slowest" said Jade. "We're supposed to be putting together a junior news bulletin for the local community stations, and I have to learn how to time out a report, you know what that means?"

"You actually pay attention to the words 'time out'?" Jackie asked

Jade put down her school bag and took out a pen, a note pad, and a home video camera

"I have to constantly watch generic footage of a snowed-in town, trying to convey to a practice audience that there's been delays on the rail network...which is something I came up with myself, figured it'd add a bit of spice to it, but no, you know what happens? Footage of a train speeding by shows up on the screen while I'm saying this. The whole class was in a fit of hysterics."

Jackie smiled, for all the usual hijinks his niece would get into on his own adventures, goofing on a class project was refreshingly normal. He walked over to her and gently patted her on the head; Jade pouted and folded her arms in annoyance. She huffed.

"I could win a media prize if I covered one tenth of the butt-whooping we give Drago and those Ice bandits daily while we spend time chilling with whatever Chi we can get our mitts on"

"Sometimes Jade, the best news to deliver is the ordinary things...to highlight the regularities of life"

"I know you'll always read the rule book cover to cover, but the front page exclusives and the breaking headlines are what widen eyes, and if I have to give this course a crash, I'm going to have to deliver BIG. I just wish I'd gotten this assignment back around my birthday"

Uncle soon made his presence felt in the shop, clutching a cell phone in his right hand tensely. Jackie detected this sense of apprehension.

"Uncle? What is the matter?" Jackie asked

"Our phony wrestler friend down in Mexico, El Toro, was on the phone...he sounded very distressed"

"El Toro with a migraine? Usually he gives others a need for aspirin" remarked Jade

"He requires you to fly out to an arena where he is preparing to perform"

"Has more Demon Chi manifested itself?" asked Jackie

"All he says is he holds in his hands answers to questions years in the making...about the very nature of our present enemy"

"Whoa, some juice on Drago? This reporter's got to get rolling. Can I come with you Jackie? Please? Please? Please?" Jade insisted, tugging at the back of Jackie's trousers. Jackie sighed.

After yet another promise not to steer herself into a proverbial hornet's nest during the trip, Jackie agreed to let Jade accompany him to Mexico.

Section 13 came through for Jackie, arranging a swift and immediate flight to the city in which the wrestling event was being held. Jackie and Jade rendezvoused as soon as possible with El Toro and his young charge, Jade's good friend and occasional rival Paco, who was quick to greet her

"Greetings senorita Jade" Paco said, leaning in to give her a kiss on the cheek, Jade raised her right hand to him

"Save all your kisses for me, just don't ever try cash them in" she asserted. Paco looked at her with a somewhat puppy dog look of dejected disappointment. Jade smiled and elbowed Paco in the shoulder.

Paco elbowed her right back.

She giggled.

"They are learning" Jackie said as he sharply observed their playfulness.

"You will learn something today also my friend, here" said El Toro as he was handed a box by a fellow wrestler, he opened the box and presented its contents to Jackie

It was a small coconut-shaped shell with two talon like handles and a small mirror embedded in it's centre. Jackie looked into it and saw not his reflection, but that of a young woman, flowing jet black hair, piercing eyes, her features, while significantly older, were unmistakeable to him.

"Jade?" he said.

"You called?" Jade said.

"When we were prepping the arena for much-needed maintenance ahead of tonight's big event, we found this embedded in the walls. When I touched it, it came loose and fell into my hands. It spoke many things to me, I tried to ask it many questions, but she said her answers were meant only for one person...you senior"

"That can't be Jade...can it?" said Jackie

"It is best to hold the answers within your own hands" said El Toro, pressing the artefact deep into Jackie's grasp. Suddenly, the mirror glowed a bright yellow, and the reflection of the older Jade projected itself into Jackie's head

"If you're listening to this Uncle Jackie...it means whichever J-Team gigolo who found this has forwarded the Orchant mirror to you"

"How can you be here? Are you from the future? Are we dancing across time and space all over again?" said Jackie as he began to physically shudder, which worried the younger Jade and Paco watching close behind him.

"Just let the telepathic link sooth you into slumber, don't resist it, otherwise you may receive a bit of headache, and yeah, you're sharp, we're definitely doing the time-warp again"

As Jackie surrendered to the sensations around him, he found his thoughts becoming effortlessly louder than his voice.

"What is going on?"

"Believe me, I'm sort of trying to take it all in myself at the moment...ninth and tenth immortals, the incident at Dragon Valley, what I last had for breakfast that wasn't mangled worm and octopus tendrils, the birth of my son...."

"Oh Jade, you shouldn't eat food that might not agree with...DID YOU SAY YOUR SON?"

A surge shot through Jackie's nerves, which in turn unnerved Jade, Paco, and El Toro watching him.

"What did I tell you about the little shock theatre we got going on?" snapped a rather irritated future Jade, "Now, relax, and don't worry about the others eavesdropping. Only you can hear and see everything I'm about to show you...and I'm sorry"

"Sorry for what?" a weary Jackie replied as his physical body slipped further and further into unconsciousness

"You told me to break this to you gently. Kind of slipped on that"