Free Crane by Jeff Stone

perch and landed in a silent roll, protecting her injured arm, then hopped to her feet. She ran along the side of the prison to the front of the building and poked her head around the corner. The main street was empty. She waited for a few moments, but didn't see any guards at the entrance.
    Hok decided that the most obvious route might also be the best one. She headed for the prison's main doors. They were unlocked. She glided inside and drifted silently through the lantern-lit entry, keeping her body pressed tightly against one wall. Hok felt completely alone. She wondered if Ying was even there.
    Hok turned the room's first corner and choked back a startled cough. In front of her was a single large cell with iron bars for a front wall and stone everywhere else. Inside it was Ying. She barely recognized her sixteen-year-old former brother.
    Ying lay in the back corner, curled into a ball. His carved face had been beaten to a bloody pulp, and his eyes were almost swollen shut. He breathed through his mouth like a sick animal, wheezing loudly every time he inhaled or exhaled. His forked tongue hungout of his mouth like a dog's, lying over his pointed teeth. Ying looked like he had lost at least one-third of his body weight, perhaps more. Hok had never seen someone in such condition. He had been beaten to the very verge of death.
    Based on the sound of Ying's breathing, Hok could tell that one of his lungs had been punctured, probably by a broken rib. Every breath Ying took would be utter agony. If left untreated, he would surely die a long, slow death. Someone wanted to make him suffer.
    While Ying was a horrible person, Hok didn't want to see anyone have to suffer like that.
    Ying seemed to sense her presence and looked up. Even through his swollen face he managed to see her. Or perhaps he sensed her
chi.
Either way, his scabbed lips twisted into a grotesque scowl. He forced himself to wheeze two words: “Go … away.”
    Hok shook her head. She approached the cell's iron bars. “I need your help.”
    Ying wheezed loudly several times in rapid succession. Hok realized that he was laughing. “Look at … me. What could I do … for you? What could you possibly do … for me?”
    Hok stared at Ying's broken body. He didn't look like he would survive long without some sort of treatment. It gave her an idea.
    “Malao has been kidnapped by Tonglong,” Hok said. “I'm hoping you might have some idea where they took him. In return, I will prepare healing tonics for you and sneak them in here.”
    Ying slowly shook his head. “No …,” he wheezed. “I want out. … Get me out … and I will help you…. You have … my word.”
    Hok blinked. Break him out of prison? While the last thing she wanted was Ying on the loose, she had a strong feeling he wouldn't be able to go very far. He would most likely get recaptured. Even if he wasn't caught, he could very well die from the strain of being on the run. If he remained here, though, he would surely die. As much as she disliked Ying, she wasn't sure she could leave him to that certainty. It seemed to Hok that breaking Ying out might be the best option.
    Hok stared, unblinking, at Ying. “I agree to your terms. How do I get you out of here?”
    Ying nodded behind her.
    Hok spun around, and froze. A man stood between her and the prison's main entrance. In his hand was a single key. “I have an idea,” the man purred. “You could use
this
to get Ying out of his nest.”
    It was Tsung. She should have guessed Ying wouldn't have been left alone.
    Hok knew to be ready for anything. She took several steps forward, putting space between the front of Ying's cell and her back. The last thing she wanted was to be pinned against something by Tsung.
    “I see you are coming to meet me in the middle of the dance floor,” Tsung said. “Such a forward young lady you are. Are you sure you want to do this? You'll need two good arms to swing with me, you know.” He flashed a big toothy