149 Exciting

 Xin bounced and laughed, clapping her hands like a child. "So excited!" She exclaimed as she continued to bounce around Bǎo's legs. He smiled indulgantly and watched as her carefully constructed rags, wafted in the breeze and for all intense and purposes, created the harmless outline of a young woman. Truth was, they hid an arsenal of weopens and powders all designed to dispatch any wrong doer who happened her way. She looked every bit the part of a rabid ghost out to have fun, but it was clear from the expression in her eyes, she was in a very dangerous mood.

"I'll be watching you Missy!" He said, smirking at her playfulness. Every bit the child, every bit a dangerous hellcat when she was in full flow.

"You'll be watching?" she said, circling him seductively, "you'll be ready to rip their throats out so I can continue to play?" She mischieviously ran her finger across his jaw, which tensed under the seductive power of her touch.

"Behave!" He grabbed her arm, stopping her mid seduction. Without batting an eyelid she turned to him, "Does the big bad man want to play with Kitty?" She grinned and he slapped her on the behind. "I said behave, and stay safe you minx. We'll be following and watching. If anything gets out of hand, or too much, then use the safe word."

She grinned and nodded. "Promise. So let's get going. Let's start with the outlying streets, see what we can find. I've not played this game for a long time and I'm itching to perfect the art."

"You already have, you already have...." Bao's words trailed after her as she walked into the back streets and into the darkness that surrounded them. Within a matter of minutes, Bǎo heard her begin with her first 'customer' of the night. A scream followed by running feet; soon it would be known a malicious ghost walked the streets. Next, a few killings and the myth would begin. Bǎo shook his head, 'she's in her element. God help the men she encounters tonight,' and with that he stepped forward to follow, other men fanning out to hunt and destroy Mu fighters.

Niao returned to camp. She had bagged a stag as promised and quartered it. Half was stashed in a tree, whilst the other half, she dragged back, being careful not to drip blood as she went. Within a very short while, these two pieces were sliced down into thin strips ready for the fire.

"How are the men from the infantry?" Niao held a small slice of meat over a flame and watched as the fat dripped. Not much, but enough to make a puff of smoke. "Watch the cooking we don't want a tell tale sign going up."

Everyone nodded, holding the meat off the flame and letting what fat there was, drip into a cold bowl of water.

Silence. Everyone was eating. The only sounds were the familiar ones associated with this part of the forest.

Niao stopped and held put her hand in the gesture, "Stop!" She'd heard something and it was human, moving quietly, but coming closer. 

Silently, she put down her food and took out her knives. Before anyone could react, she was gone.

 

"Come here pretty boys, wouldn't you like to taste me?" Xin swayed and swaggered as she went. "Aw, come on, play with me. I won't hurt. All I want is your soul." She threw some dust at their eyes.

They ran, screaming.

Xin back tracked. "Change over time. Where are my male ghosts? Time to get active instead of me. I'm taking the shady route. Bǎo, you follow me, the rest, take out as many Mu as you come across and remember to rip out the throat. Its a sign of the malicious ghosts. Oh, and a few deep base of the neck wounds where I've fed on their blood. Let's really give these people a fright. You have the hallucinagenic powder?" They nodded. "Good. Allow some to live but throw a small quantity into their eyes before you engage. All set?" Again they nodded, "Right, let's go."

 

Niao followed the noise. It was faint but distinctively bipedal. Circling, she dropped down into the shrubbery and waited until the person came level.

 One, two, three steps and....

Niao stood up and reached round the back, placing one knife to the throat and the other to the gut. "Move and your dead. Who are you?"

"Niao? Is that you?"