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Mulan slowed Black Wind to a trot. The steam was too dense to see through and she didn’t want to risk the big horse stumbling on one of the thermal vents that dotted the landscape. For what seemed like hours, but was no more than a few minutes, horse and rider wandered, lost, inside the steam clouds.

When the clouds cleared, Mulan gasped. The barren landscape was a riot of vibrant color. Red lava poured from vents, transforming into lines of black frozen rock as the air cooled. It was as though she had ridden into a whole other world.

And B�0�2ri Khan was nowhere to be seen.

An ear-piercing shriek filled the air. Looking up, Mulan only had a moment to register the hawk diving toward her before she was knocked from Black Wind’s back. She toppled to the ground. Her helmet, knocked loose by the impact, fell from her head and tumbled across the ground. The topknot, kept restrained for so long, came undone and Mulan groaned, her hair falling over her shoulders.

Scrambling to her feet, Mulan reached for her helmet. But before she could get to it, the hawk landed in front of her. Then, as Mulan watched in disbelief, the hawk transformed into a beautiful woman. The woman appeared strong—and deadly.

“You’re a witch�6�2.�6�2.�6�2.” Mulan said, the words sticking in her throat.

The woman nodded. She walked closer, looking Mulan up and down, her eyes lingering on the armor and then moving to the hair that now fell over Mulan’s shoulders. Something flashed across her eyes, a revelation. “You’ve kept your secret. Well done. But now you are in my way. You must retreat. Go.”

Mulan’s eyes widened as she realized this woman could see past her disguise. Rage built inside of her at being called out by the witch. “I am Hua Jun,” Mulan said. “Soldier in the Emperor’s Imperial Army.”

Lifting her sword, she ran at the witch. But Xianniang fended her off. With a wave of her hand, she sent Mulan flying to the ground. Mulan let out a shout and jumped back to her feet. She would not let the witch stop her. Once again, she charged at Xianniang, and once again, the witch brushed her away.

“Your deceit weakens you,” Xianniang said as she wrapped her long fingers around Mulan’s neck. Mulan’s heart thudded in her chest. She was weak, that much was true. Still, she wouldn’t let the other woman see her fear. She met the witch’s eyes as the woman went on. “You would be a fool to fight me—even at your strongest.”

Lifting her sword, Mulan tried to go at the witch. But in response, Xianniang wrapped her hand around the blade and lowered it. “You waste my time,” the witch said, growing frustrated.

Desperately, Mulan tugged at her sword. To her surprise, the blade came back, slicing the witch’s palm. As blood bloomed on her hand, Xianniang’s eyes filled with anger. “Why do you not listen?” she shouted.

Mulan scrambled backward. She used all her strength to keep the sword steady in front of her. Xianniang shrugged and then, pulling a dagger from her belt, threw it at her. Mulan tried to block it, but the force of the dagger was great, and when it contacted her sword, the dagger sent the blade flying from her hand. The sword twirled through the air, end over end, before landing on the ground, where it skittered across a thin crust of cooled lava that covered a nearby lake like ice.

Panic washed over Mulan. Her father’s sword! She couldn’t lose it. Not caring that she had turned her back to the witch, Mulan raced onto the lava crust. Like ice, it was slipperier than it appeared, and Mulan instantly fell, the impact causing the surface to crack around her. She knew there was no way it would hold. Not for long. But she had to get the sword. On her hands and knees, she inched farther out onto the crust as all around her more cracks began to appear.

Behind her, Xianniang stepped onto the cracking lava, her own steps so light that they left no impression on the thin layer of ash that covered the ground. Blood dripped from the wound Mulan had inflicted, dotting the black with red.

Mulan reached her sword. With a triumphant cry, her fingers closed around the handle and she got to her feet. Turning, she saw the witch watching her. “I am Hua Jun. Soldier in the Emperor’s Imp—”

Xianniang had heard enough. “I warned you, Hua Jun,” Xianniang sneered. “You will die pretending to be something you’re not.” In a flash of silver, Xianniang threw another dagger. It flew through the air, striking Mulan square in the chest.

Mulan was lifted off her feet and sent flying backward. As she came down hard, the layer of crust beneath her broke open. Mulan fell through the hole—and into the lake below.

Mulan’s chest burned as she sank deeper and deeper beneath the lake’s surface. Her hand, still clutching her father’s sword, was frozen and she felt powerless. All she could do was sink, weighted down by the armor she wore.

She saw a flash of color, and then something dove into the water above her. At first, Mulan feared it was the witch, coming to finish her off. But as she watched, the shadowy shape took form, revealing itself as the Phoenix. Reaching her, the bird turned and, wrapping its long tail feathers around her wrist, pulled her upward.

A moment later, Mulan burst through the surface, opening her mouth and sucking in air. She lay on the hard ground beside the lake for a long moment, her eyes closed as her heartbeat slowed. She opened her eyes.

Instantly, she wished she hadn’t.

There, protruding from her chest, was the witch’s dagger.

It stuck straight out, the tip of the blade disappearing into Mulan’s armor. But as she stared down, expecting any moment for blood to pour from the wound, Mulan’s eyes narrowed. Lifting her shaking hands, she pulled out the dagger. Ripping back her armor, Mulan saw, to her relief, it had embedded not in her skin, but in the leather binding she had wrapped around her chest.

In a whoosh, Mulan’s breath rushed out of her and she shouted a cry of gratitude. To think, the thing that she had used to lie, the thing that could have been her downfall, had just saved her life.

Slowly, she got to her feet. Turning around, she saw the Phoenix sitting a few steps away. The bird’s feathers were wet and she looked tired, but happy. Meeting her gaze, Mulan gave the Phoenix a grateful nod. The bird nodded.

I’ve got your back, always,

she seemed to say. And for the first time, Mulan realized how much she had needed the Phoenix, now and throughout the long journey.