They had hardly progressed down the street when armed men clad in black suddenly appeared, some running towards them from further down the alley, others raining down from the rooftops.
Meili just had time to register that their faces were covered, and that they carried unusual fish head sabres like she'd only seen in pirate novels, before they found themselves under attack.
"Kill the princess!"
"There's two. Which one is she? Bright blue?"
"Probably, kill them both to be sure."
Meili started to shake like a leaf. Sofya grabbed her and pulled her close.
"Meili! Princess!" shouted Bai Li. "Stay close. Stay together. Don't move. Don't run. We can't protect you if you run."
"Yes Commander," shouted Sofya. This was not the first battle she'd seen.
Meili couldn't speak. She also couldn't run, so that wouldn't be a problem.
In unspoken agreement, Mei Renlong and Bai Li took up positions on either side of the two women. The four guards filled out the loose circle around the two women.
Tricky was crouched in an attack position, growling and barking fiercely. That woke Meili from her fearful trance.
"Tricky!" she shouted. "Stay with me. Heel!"
The assassins launched their attack. There were more than twice as many attackers as they had defenders, if you counted out the two unarmed girls.
The clash of swords rang out in the alley as a vicious battle commenced.
The fish head sabres were a big heavy weapon. It gave them the advantage of heft and the ability to strike right through limbs and maim an enemy, but it required strength to wield them, and the trade-off was speed and stamina. They worked best in a surprise attack on unarmed victims.
Sofya watched as Mei Renlong and Bai Li successfully fought off two to three attackers each with their superior swordsmanship.
Horrible screams rang out, as men were mortally wounded in the battle.
Meili saw a man get stabbed through the neck by Bai Li's sword. He dropped to his knees, making a horrible rattling sound, like he was gasping for breath.
She felt herself struggling for breath as she watched. She was suddenly lightheaded, her vision coming and going. She tried to breath evenly and stay on her feet so that she wouldn't be a burden to the men.
One of their guards received a deep wound to his fighting arm and he dropped his sword. It clanged to the ground at the girls' feet. Sofya picked it up straight away, wielding it in a defensive stance in front of her and Meili. Even if she didn't fight, she felt better having a sword for protection.
Meili dropped to her knees and crawled forwards. She grabbed the wounded guard by his shoulders and tried to pull him back with her. His assailant came to finish him off now that he was unarmed. Even better, one of the potential princesses was there with him! My God she was beautiful, what a pity to kill her, he thought.
"Are you the princess?" he pointed his sword at her.
She shook her head mutely staring up at him with her beautiful big eyes. "I'm Mei Meili," she said without thinking.
"The one in blue and white is Lord Mei's daughter," he shouted to the others. "Electric blue's the target."
Bai Li fought his way to her and struck the man's sabre right from his hand, then stabbed him through the guts.
Meili screamed without knowing it.
"Get back Meili," he shouted. "Leave Yu Lei where he is, he's too heavy for you to move. I've got him."
Tricky helped her by grabbing the man's top and dragging, and she did what she could. Together they managed to move him a few feet out of harm's way. She tried to tear her new skirt to bandage his wound, but the fabric was too thick. She tore the sleeve from her thin white top, wrapping it tightly around Yu Lei's wound as she tried to staunch the flow of blood. The man was going into shock, and Meili was not behind him. She shook uncontrollably now, her teeth chattering, her face white as a sheet.
"Hang in there Meili," shouted Sofya, who was using the sword to keep anyone that made it through the ring of defenders, at bay.
Tricky saw First Brother struggling under a fierce attack by two men. He tore off from Meili's side and leapt onto the chest of one of the assassins, knocking the man flying. He ripped the cloth from the fellow's face before savagely biting him. The man screamed and dropped his sword.
"Tricky!" cried Meili, her voice breaking in distress. "Come, boy!"
She tried to run to him, but Sofya grabbed her by the wrist. "Absolutely not Meili. Stay here."
"Tricky!" she screamed in terror. "Come!"
The dog listened to her now thank goodness and ran back to her side. His muzzle was covered in blood. She checked him for injuries, but it seemed to be blood from the man he had bitten, which smeared over her hands and wrists, mingling with the blood from Yu Lei's wound.
The sounds of clanging swords ceased, and the black-clad assassins who were still alive disappeared back down the alley at a run.
Meili crouched down on the ground in a little ball, trying to breathe. She felt herself lifted up into the air, wrapped in a large set of arms. She looked woozily at Bai Li. He carried her off to a stone bench and sat down with her on his lap.
"Put your head between your legs Mei Meili," he said gently. "You're in shock. That's it. Now breathe, deeply and evenly."
He patted her gently on the back, while Tricky lay at his feet, patiently watching on, until she had stabilised her breathing and felt that she could see straight again. She sat up cautiously.
Bai Li looked at her bare shoulder and he flung his cloak over her, wrapping it around her shoulders to hide her from view. He pulled out his handkerchief and wiped the blood from her hands and arms.
She dashed the tears from her face as he did so, her thoughts with the man whose face had been savaged by Tricky.
"It's okay," he said to her, "we're all safe. Yu Lei will recover."
She nodded, trying to staunch her tears, but they kept on flowing, and now she started to sob.
For the second time in not very long, she buried her face in his chest, and he held her while she cried.