by Ryan Kirk
The princess leaned her head on her hands, considering his answer carefully. She was silent as she turned his words over in her head. Then her eyes came up. “With the power you possess, why haven’t you done more? I am well aware of the events in my father’s land. Why have you avoided action for so long?”
Lei gave a small shrug. “Though I can control my own power, the results of my decisions echo far beyond the action itself.”
The princess wasn’t satisfied. “But how do you decide when to act?”
It was Lei’s turn to pause. It was a good question, and a hard one. He had often relied on Daiyu to help him make those decisions. She had always had a clarity around what she wanted and the wisdom to know how to pursue those goals.
And like that, he knew his answer. He met the princess’s gaze. “I had it easy. I was married to a woman who helped me make those decisions, and make them well. If there is one thing I can say, it would be this: don’t rely solely on yourself. That is a path towards eventual ruin. Surround yourself with advisers you can trust, who will want what is both best for you and for the empire. Finding such people may be difficult, but having other viewpoints from trusted individuals is a precious gift.
“I would also suggest this: have a vision for where you want this empire to go. Without a goal, you are only making random decisions, or the decisions that seem best at the time. Know what you are striving toward and let that be your guide. Once you know that, when difficult decisions present themselves, listen to your advisors and listen to your instincts. You will probably make mistakes along the way, but in the grand arc of your life, I believe you will be satisfied.”
“Are you?”
“Am I what?”
“Satisfied.”
Lei shook his head. “I was. But no longer.”
“You need a new vision, then.”
Lei grinned at his words being turned on him. “Visions are for the young. I need peace.”
“Then fight for it.”
Lei met her eyes. He’d never spent any time around nobility. He’d briefly interacted with Lord Xun’s father many, many years ago, but that was the extent of it. He’d never met a leader like her before. If anyone could straighten out the problems facing the empire, it would be her. “You want my oath?”
The princess shook her head. “I’d settle for your sword for now. We haven’t seen the last of the wraiths.”
Lei imagined Daiyu, grinning in the afterlife. Her hopes for him had been fulfilled after all.
He’d never regretted following Daiyu’s suggestions while she lived. He might as well try following them after her death.
He gave the princess a short bow. “My sword is yours.”
42
Bai looked out over Jihan from the walls of the monastery. She felt Lei’s presence behind her as he joined her high above the surrounding buildings. The soft glow of lights in the distance cast warm shadows everywhere she looked.
The city slept, though Bai knew she would get none tonight. While most citizens slept, hoping that the disasters they had heard about were over, she worried about her future, and the future of the empire. The message that rustled in her pocket confirmed her worst fears.
Their battle had just begun. They had rescued the princess, but accomplished little else. The wraiths still had the upper hand, and Delun was dead.
She glanced over at Lei as he also took in the sight of Jihan below them. She almost thought she could see through him. The power emanating from him set her teeth on edge, but he seemed lesser, somehow, as though one of the strong breezes coming up the wall would blow him away.
Lei interrupted her melancholy thoughts. “The view from the monastery above Two Bridges is much better.” His voice was strong, despite his appearance. She couldn’t believe he could even stand after all he had done.
Bai gave a wry smile. “I’ll have to add it to my list of destinations to visit.”
Lei laughed. “One day, monasteries across the empire will welcome you, and then you will have no more excuses.”
“I doubt that I will ever see that day.”
“Don’t be so sure. The last time I visited this monastery, I had to escape through a hole in the wall because I feared they were going to imprison me forever. Now they treat me as a revered guest. Time changes people and institutions.”
Bai conceded the point. She didn’t believe, but the hope was pleasant. “Very well, someday I will visit. But on one condition: you must visit with me and show me the sights.”
Lei smiled at that. “Few journeys would bring me greater joy.”
They looked out on the city together. “It’s too quiet,” said Bai.
“Quiet is good.”
“Unless your enemy is right behind you.”
Lei nodded and they leaned against the wall. Bai fished the letter out of her pocket and handed it to Lei. He held it up to a nearby torch and read. He sighed. “That explains much.”
“The entire empire has turned against us.”
“It is not so bad as all that.”
“Lord Xun makes it pretty clear that all resistance to the wraiths must be eliminated. That’s as good as saying the emperor wants all monks who don’t agree with Chao to be killed. It includes the princess, as well.”
“Which means the emperor and his advisers have been plotting with Chao. It doesn’t mean the whole empire is with them.”
“It might as well.”
They stood in silence, each trying to solve the problem. Bai didn’t have the slightest idea where to begin. “What should we do?”
A hint of a smile appeared on Lei’s face. “All I know is that we must leave Jihan. The warehouse was a trap. If they attack the monastery, more innocents will suffer.” Lei’s hand swept across the sight of the nearby buildings. “Beyond that, we must ask the others. Perhaps they will have better ideas.”
Though the night was late, it didn’t take long for Bai to summon most everyone together. It appeared few people were getting the sleep they needed tonight. Bai wondered if Delun’s death hung over them all.
Bai began by sharing the letter with everyone. The look on the faces of the monks broke her heart. She couldn’t imagine what they must feel, the betrayal of the very empire they had all sworn to serve.
“Why?” asked one of the monks.
The princess answered. “My father has struggled with the monasteries for years. The abbots are indecisive, and most prefer being locked up behind their walls instead of patrolling the empire as they once did.” She shot a withering glare at the abbot, who shrank from the accusation. “I believe Chao has promised him the obedience of the wraiths, a gift my father can’t refuse.”
Rong challenged the letter. “Chao has been one step ahead of us the entire time. What’s to say this isn’t another trap?”
Lei shook his head. “It’s possible, but the whole warehouse had been set to blow. I don’t think this was meant to be found.”
Bai interrupted the argument. “We need to decide on a course of action. If this letter is true, Chao will certainly attack us soon.”
“We must leave the city,” Lei added. “I will not fight again within the walls of the capital.”
There was silence around the table. The abbot spoke first. “I will send word to all other abbots. They will know of this betrayal.”
It was the princess who stepped forward and solved the problem. “There is an abandoned fort, about a week’s journey north of here. We can use it as a gathering place, where we can decide how to react.”
The abbot nodded. “If you will let me know the location, I can let the abbots know where we can be found. Some will prefer to stay within their walls, but some will come.”
“And some, with their backs to the wall, will join with the wraiths.” Rong spoke the fear no one else had the courage to voice.
The princess stood tall. “Alliances will fall where they will.” She turned to the abbot. “If I may, there are some who I would like to contact as well. The true
monasteries are not without friends.”
Bai wanted to believe the princess, but it was hard to from where she stood. The city was quiet. No one had come to their aid.
The preparations happened quickly. Monks hurried to and fro, packing food and supplies in barrels and crates. Carts were loaded, axles groaning under the weight. Bai stood apart from it all, nearly useless thanks to her injured arm.
The gates were open, and two or three monks left without a word to their brothers. Bai knew that by sunrise, they would be numbered among the wraiths. No one tried to stop them. No one had the heart to fight a brother.
Not yet.
The streets were still quiet when they evacuated the city before dawn.
For the first time in hundreds of years, the monastery of Jihan stood empty.
43
Lei meandered the plains that surrounded the abandoned fort they all now called home. The fort was situated on a small rise that was the only elevation for miles in any direction. According to the princess, the fort had once served as an outpost. Though it had been empty for years, the walls stood strong. The building meant little against the forces that might be brought against it, but the comfort of thick stone walls couldn’t be understated.
Despite the number of years behind him, Lei had never been to this part of the empire. Travel throughout the land wasn’t difficult. The roads were well-maintained and for the most part were safe. In recent years, especially, he could have traveled as fewer people paid attention to his exile. But he’d always been content in the quiet mountain valley he called his home.
Now that Daiyu was gone, Lei found himself revisiting many of the decisions they had made together. Maybe they should have traveled more, seen more of the empire. Both of them enjoyed the pursuit of novelty and of unknown vistas.
It was too late now.
He heard hooves behind him, and he turned to see the princess ride up to him. She slowed her horse with an expert hand, stopping less than five feet from him. “You look thoughtful,” she said.
Lei shook his head. “If only any of it was useful.”
“What troubles you?”
Lei struggled to put his thoughts into words. “For years, I have felt—something—growing.” He grasped at the air, trying to capture the vague feeling. “Tell me, do you believe in fate?”
The princess shook her head. “We find our own way through life.”
“I used to believe the same.”
“And now?”
“Now I’m not sure. I’ve felt a change in the air now for years, the shifting of forces I thought I understood. Here, I feel it stronger than ever. This is where the old dies and the new is born.”
“A good omen, then.”
Lei shrugged. He didn’t know what change was coming. All he knew was that he belonged here.
The princess turned to the business at hand. “Scouts have returned with news of an approaching army.”
“Lord Xun’s?”
“Yes.”
Lei sensed them, a presence on the fabric of reality miles away. “They come with the wraiths.”
“Yes.” The princess couldn’t hide the worry in her voice.
“So your father does intend to wipe us all out.”
“It looks that way.”
Lei stared out in the direction of Jihan, where the army came for them. A tremendous weariness settled over his bones. He did not want to be a part of an empire where fathers plotted against their daughters for power. With Daiyu gone, he wasn’t sure how much he wanted to be a part of anything. She had anchored him.
The princess gestured to her horse. “Climb on. We are gathering to discuss our options. Your presence is needed.”
Lei took one last look at the endless stretch of grass in front of him. Then he accepted her hand and climbed up into the saddle.
He paid little attention to the content of the meeting. His eyes were only for Bai, watching his one-time student with undisguised amusement. He didn’t think she noticed what had happened.
Everyone in the room, from the abbot of Jihan’s monastery to the princess of the empire, looked to her. Bai didn’t speak the loudest, or the most, but when she chimed in, every eye and ear was attentive. The meeting was purportedly for the group to come to a consensus about their position. In reality, it was a chance for Bai to listen to the others and make the decisions the rest would follow.
Lei could guess the outcome. They would sue for peace, but if it wasn’t accepted, this land would be the site of a battle of unimaginable energies. Lord Xun’s army and the wraiths were already stretched out beyond the walls. Lei could feel their collected power pulling at the fabric of the world.
He watched Bai, so clearly uncomfortable in her new role. Ten years ago, when he had first trained her, he hadn’t imagined this future. She had always cared deeply. Though she tried to hide the depth of her feelings, she had always cared for others. In that way, she was a far better person than Lei. He had never cared much beyond his own happiness.
Others were drawn to that concern like moths to flame. Combined with the strength of her gift, she made a natural choice for others to look to. But it was more than that, Lei knew.
She made decisions.
Simple enough to say, but hard in reality. The princess possessed the same quality, but as the new arrival to the group, she deferred to Bai. Most people preferred to wait, to be convinced, to react to the world around them.
Not Bai. She listened, then made her decision. A small quality, but one that had landed her the leadership of this group.
Eventually, the group broke apart. Lei focused his attention as Bai came to him. “Can you fight?”
He wondered how he appeared to her, that she even had to ask the question. He was still connected to the currents of energy flowing around them. He worried that if he severed the connection his heart would cease its constant beat. “If I must.”
Bai offered him her hand. “We’re sending out a delegation. I’d like you to be there.”
He let her help him up. Like the princess, Bai was a woman worth following.
A few minutes later the gates of the fort opened and Lei saw their enemy for the first time. He had never seen so many people at once. Lord Xun’s army stretched across the field, lined up and ready for battle. Lei identified the cavalry and the infantry, impressed by the sheer force that had been collected to destroy them. They came with siege engines, ready to make war. All in all, they had brought far more than seemed strictly necessary.
Lei knew little of Xun’s army. To his knowledge they had a stellar reputation as disciplined fighters, but beyond that, he had never bothered to learn much of them.
They certainly looked fearsome enough from a distance.
A small contingent broke from the main ranks with a white flag in the air. Lei watched them advance until they were a few hundred paces away from the fort. They might be traveling under a white flag, but that didn’t mean they would put themselves in bow shot of the walls.
The abbot had brought a looking glass, and Lei heard him gasp. “The emperor is there!”
That, more than the letter, proved the emperor’s betrayal. Lei felt no anger, though. He only felt disappointment. He had hoped for more from the man who led the empire. But he couldn’t summon the hate he might have felt as a younger man.
“What kind of man would plot the death of his own flesh and blood?”
Lei heard the fire in Bai’s voice. She was upset enough for both of them.
Their own little group gathered just outside the walls of the fort. The abbot signed a shield but held it.
Bai looked around and issued orders. She might claim she wanted no part of command, yet it fit her like a fine robe. She would figure that out for herself soon enough, Lei decided.
Before long, he, Bai, the abbot, and the princess approached the emperor’s party. As they neared, Lei could make out the emperor, Lord Xun, Lord Xun’s questioner, and Chao. They stood as close as conspirators. Lei saw now they
had all been manipulated from the beginning. A flickering fire lit in his gut as he saw them all together.
They stopped ten feet from the emperor. Lei paid particular attention to the dynamics between father and daughter.
The emperor seemed an entirely different man than Lei had met earlier in his palace. This one was even colder, made of unbreakable stone. Lei saw the true nature of the man who ruled the empire.
The emperor spoke first. “There can be no quarter given. By the time the sun sets on this day your fort will be overrun. Those of you who have completed the rites of passage through the monastery may surrender and pledge yourself to Chao. If you do not, your fate will be the same as the rest. Those are your choices.”
Lei’s side looked to the princess. This was her negotiation. If she was intimidated by the cold glare of her father, she didn’t show it. “And what about those of us who haven’t completed the monastic rites, Father?”
“Your lives are forfeit, princess. The empire has no place for you.”
Even though he had expected the answer, the proclamation caused Lei to take a step back. The emperor and Chao wanted nothing less than complete control over the gifted, over the power itself.
Lei saw the error right away. Yang had told him that more unusual gifts were being discovered every day. The emperor and Chao were trying to seal a box that had already been shattered. No matter how they tried, the gift wouldn’t be contained. Even if the emperor won this battle, his war was already lost.
“You are wrong, Father,” the princess said, her voice steady and strong. “There is a place for us here, and I do not think you can stop us. Is there no way we can avoid bloodshed? Many will die on both sides.”
There was a moment of silence. For a few heartbeats, Lei thought the princess might have gotten through to the emperor.
He shook his head. “There is no other way. This must be done.”
The princess looked like she had taken a beating, but she kept her chin high. “Goodbye, then, Father. Thank you for teaching me what lessons you could.”
