by Resa Nelson
To Jojen’s credit, he maintained a solemn expression. “As you wish, my empress.”
But for a moment, Ti thought she saw him relax a bit and wondered why Jojen would have reason to feel relief instead of the satisfaction of being right.
* * *
After Asu Chu failed to identify the correct village for the seventh time, the ship set course for a place where both he and Jojen had been before.
By late afternoon, the ship travelled inland on a narrow river cutting through the mountains and moored at a bank covered in polished stones. The small and empty port led to a small plaza made of the same type of polished stones covering the bank.
Empress Ti and Asu Chu followed Jojen across that plaza toward a massive stairway made of lumber and rope that climbed up the side of the mountain. Pine trees with twisted limbs jutted from the slope.
Ti looked back at the ship and the crew that remained on board. “Shouldn’t they come with us?”
Jojen shook his head. “If we succeed in finding Njall, anyone will be more than happy to help my empress by offering the use of a boat. But if we find no trace of him—and especially if we can find no villages—we may need to retrace our steps and return to our own ship. The crew will keep it safe in our absence.”
A peculiar metallic taste startled Empress Ti. “Why does the air taste so strange?”
Jojen pointed at the thick vines that curled around the stairway rope. “It’s iron weed.”
After making the vertical trek, they climbed onto a platform at the top of the stairway made of rope. Like the river port below, flat stones were embedded in that platform to ensure good footing.
Jojen pointed at a barely-visible path in the forest surrounding the platform. “This way.”
They hiked through the mountains for the rest of the afternoon. Ti managed to keep up with Jojen’s pace, but Asu Chu began to lag behind.
When Ti looked back to discover he’d disappeared behind a bend in the path, she stopped Jojen. “We have to wait for Asu.”
Several minutes later, Asu Chu huffed while he caught up with them. “I know where we are. There’s a village up ahead where the path forks. We should stay there tonight.”
Ti gave him a questioning look. “You recognize where we are the same way you recognized those seven villages?”
Frowning with hurt, Asu Chu pointed at Jojen. “Ask him. He knows where we are!”
Ti turned toward Jojen. “Is it true? Are we close to a village?”
Jojen’s face stilled as if he hadn’t understood the question and pondered its meaning.
Why is Jojen acting so peculiar?
As if seeing Ti’s question on her face, Jojen snapped out of it. “That might be true. I’m not as sure of our location as Asu Chu. He might be right.”
“I am right,” Asu insisted. “And Jojen knows it.” Still catching his breath from the hike, Asu said, “Maybe Jojen doesn’t want you to know that he knows it.”
“I’m thinking of your safety, my empress,” Jojen said in an even voice. “Asu might be right. There is a village in the vicinity, but I’m not as sure as he is of its proximity. Even if it’s close by, it might be safer to return to the ship where the entire crew can protect you.”
At first, Ti cringed at the fearful thought of being so far away from the secure walls of the royal complex. Although she found the world outside the royal palace to be beautiful, Ti believed that danger could come from any direction at any moment.
Maybe Jojen’s right. Maybe I would be better off on the ship.
“Why wouldn’t the village keep you safe?” Asu Chu said. “It’s the village where you sent Frayka to help them. And Frayka did help them.” The boy gave a scathing look to Jojen. “Didn’t she?”
For the first time, Jojen’s voice faltered. “In a manner of speaking. But the girl who requested help from the empress was killed by the serpent dragon Frayka was sent to slay. The people in that village might not be as welcoming as you think.”
Asu Chu pleaded with Ti like a child wanting to stay outside and play despite the sun setting. “You’re the empress! Everyone knows the only way to see royalty is to go to Zangcheen. Most people stay in their villages their whole lives and never leave. Think of how excited they’ll be when you ask to sleep in one of their homes! Everyone in that village will talk about it for as long as they live.”
Ti took Asu Chu’s point. She turned a questioning eye toward Jojen. “Asu is right. What should I have to fear from any of my subjects?”
Jojen hesitated for several long moments as if selecting the best answer he could summon to mind. “It is a dangerous world, my empress. Without an army to protect you, I don’t like taking chances.”
I could have brought an army with me. But they would have been cumbersome. And it would have been impossible to leave Zangcheen with an army in tow without my advisors noticing.
And if they notice my absence, they will do everything within their power to wreak havoc while I’m gone. One of them might even wrangle a way to become emperor in my place.
Ti thought better of following Jojen’s advice.
I’ve done the right thing. Coming with only Asu Chu, Jojen, and a small crew will let me look for Njall while Li Chien and Tao Chu convince everyone in Zangcheen that I’m still there but under the weather.
Ti decided it would be fine for the simple people who lived in mountain villages to recognize her. After all, none of them had reason to go to Zangcheen. No one in the city would find out.
“I believe Asu is right,” Ti said. “We should continue to the village.”
They travelled through dusk and into the early evening. This time Asu Chu proved to be useful and recognized the branch in the path that took them to the village before heavy darkness fell.
At the arrival of strangers, people gathered quickly in the town square and soon recognized Jojen and Asu Chu. And just as the boy had predicted, the villagers became excited when they understood that the empress of Zangcheen and the Wulong Province had arrived at their doorstep and competed to gain her favor.
A woman with frazzled hair spoke so loudly that she drowned out her rivals by sheer volume. “Only women live in my house—me and my four daughters. It’s the safest and most comfortable home you’ll find here!”
A man elbowed his way past her and fell to his knees in front of Ti. “Empress Ti,” he said. “It was my family you helped by sending the dragonslayer to us. It was my daughter—Luan Lu—who journeyed to Zangcheen to seek audience with you. Please allow me to repay your kindness by offering you my home for however long you wish to stay.” His face screwed up in pain. He whispered, “You remind me of her.”
Having met Luan Lu face-to-face, Ti saw no resemblance between herself and Luan other than the fact they had appeared to be of the same age.
But the man’s pain reminded Ti of her own father. Guilt crept up on her. She felt ill prepared and incompetent to be this villager’s empress.
After all, Ti had failed Luan Lu’s father in the worst possible way. Her decisions led to the death of his child.
Aware of all the villagers watching her, Ti willed herself to keep from crumbling in front of them. She soothed her nerves by thinking about her own father, Emperor Po, and how he might have handled such a situation. “I regret your loss,” Ti said. “I wish I could have prevented it.”
The man caught his breath and stared at Ti in wonder. “My empress,” he whispered. “Your kindness. Your compassion. You give me far more than I deserve.” Tears pooled at the edges of his eyes.
Ti felt his gratitude, and it softened her heart. “I wish I could give you far more.”
The man blinked back his tears. “Then stay at my house. Sleep where Luan and her sister slept. Do me that honor.”
Startled, Ti said, “Her sister? Did the serpent dragon kill her, too?”
The man stared at the ground. Shame made his voice quake. “I don’t know. Men brought Luan’s body to us. They claimed to be travelers who ha
ppened upon the serpent’s lair when it killed her. They took credit for killing the serpent dragon.”
Does this man think something else happened?
“What do you think?” Ti said.
“I don’t know. My daughter Ling arrived later and spoke against the strangers. She claimed they’d tricked us into sacrificing our girls to the serpent dragon for its protection when all along the creature was a pet of these men. Ling insisted their people manipulated us so they could take our girls as their brides without our knowledge. Ling claimed that her sister Luan killed the serpent dragon but it struck her before it died.”
The thought of men tricking young women into becoming their brides unnerved Ti. She’d had her own close call when one of her father’s advisors tried to capture her as his bride before she became empress. Ti hated to think what type of husbands the girls from this village had ended up with.
“Your daughter Ling,” Ti said, inspired by the story. “I would like to speak with her.”
“She’s gone. Left with her mother.”
Startled, Ti said, “Why?”
The man’s voice became quieter by the moment. “Ling accused the strangers of wrong-doing. She was out of control. I asked one of your guards for advice.”
Ti looked at Jojen, but he shrugged.
“I don’t recall,” Jojen said. “It happened a long time ago.”
The man’s voice became insistent. “The guard said Ling should go to your court and receive a punishment of being stoned. I told Ling she brought shame upon this village.” The man hung his head even lower. “I charged her with falsely accusing these good men of murder. Ling disappeared that night, and her mother, too.” He sniffed back tears. “I haven’t seen them since.”
Ti waved Jojen over to her side. Her tone darkened. “You were here that night? You allowed this to happen?”
“I don’t remember,” Jojen said. “It was a chaotic night. My concern was for Frayka, not the village girl. I don’t recall if this man spoke to me or one of my men.”
The father of Luan and Ling Lu looked up. “I didn’t know who to ask! I didn’t know who was in charge!”
“I see.” Ti squatted to the ground, causing the villagers to gasp in shock. Royalty never dropped to the level of commoners. Now face-to-face with the father of Luan and Ling, Ti said, “My father never would have accused me of any crime.” Her voice softened. “My father loved me. He did everything within his power to protect me.” She paused, remembering the events that led to her decision to murder him. “Even when it put him at risk.”
The father of the Lu girls whimpered.
Ti whispered, “I wouldn’t sleep in your home even if it was the only building that could keep me safe from a hoard of dragons.”
She stood and walked away from the still-kneeling man. Ti walked up to the woman with the frazzled hair and said, “It would be my honor to sleep in a home where every woman knows she is safe.”
The woman with the frazzled hair beamed with delight, but her happiness faded when she looked at Jojen and Asu Chu.
“Don’t worry.” Ti glanced back at Jojen and Asu Chu. “My men can sleep with their own kind.”
CHAPTER 19
The next morning, Frayka placed her infant daughter on a large floor pillow so she could watch the child while helping GranGran strip the husks from spheres of yellow sun grain as large as her fist. Now hungry, Frayka bit into a raw one, delighted at its buttery taste and sweet fragrance. Later, GranGran and TeaTree would take the grain to the communal outdoor hearth and help cook the mid-day meal.
“Well,” GranGran said. “How was your walk in the light of the blood moon?”
Frayka placed the partially-eaten grain ball in her lap. “Fine. I fell asleep as soon as I got home.”
“And have your portents returned to you?”
Frayka shook her head. “No. But I had a dream about the dragon god of water.”
TeaTree opened the door of the small house and entered with a basket of fragrant bread in the form of buns. He handed one bun to GranGran and another to Frayka. He placed the basket on the ground and sat between them. “The dragon god? You convinced him to help you?”
Frayka cradled the warm bun in her hands, and her stomach rumbled. “No. I dreamed about him.” She took a bite, satisfied by the soft texture of the bread and its filling of minced vegetables in a pungent paste of spices and herbs.
“Dreamed?” TeaTree sat up straighter and looked at GranGran. “But that’s how your portents come to you!”
A wave of warmth shot through Frayka’s body. She didn’t know if it happened because of the food or the revelation about GranGran. “Your portents come to you in dreams?”
“Not at first,” GranGran said, putting aside the bun from TeaTree in favor of working to husk the sun grain balls. “I used to have portents like you. They would come unannounced. I would leave my body and go to another place. And when the portents ended, I came back.”
GranGran smiled. “But after I had my first child, the portents changed. Perhaps they recognize the importance of a parent needing to be present for the child. Perhaps it happens for another reason unknown to me. Ever since, my portents have come to me in dreams.”
Frayka finished eating the vegetable bun and then began husking again. “So maybe I didn’t have just a dream. Maybe it was a true portent.”
“Possibly,” GranGran said.
“What did you dream?” TeaTree said.
“I dreamed about a place I know,” Frayka said. “And I think I met the dragon god of water when I was first there.”
Having told GranGran and TeaTree little about her travels before coming to the Far East, Frayka explained the events that occurred within the past few years.
Frayka told the story of how ice dragons had attacked her home of Blackstone in the Land of Ice, which she believed had been sent by a sorcerer secreted away somewhere in that country. She talked about her friend Greeta, a Northlander woman who lived in the Great Turtle Lands on the other side of the vast western sea and how they tracked down the sorcerer and freed his prisoner. When the sorcerer escaped, they followed him to a sunken island that Frayka recognized from the stories her father had told her about the Northlands.
“It was Tower Island,” Frayka said. “But it was under water. In my dream, I swam down to it, and that’s where I met the dragon god of water. I asked for his help, but he won’t give it.” Frayka slumped in defeat. “He told me I’m wasting my time. He said it’s impossible to make amends with the Northlander gods. He won’t raise the Gate of Water. And without his help, I’ve failed.”
“Are you certain?” GranGran said. “Do you see no other way?”
“He’s right,” Frayka said. “It’s impossible. I must have the help of every dragon god or goddess. Without the dragon god of water, I’m lost.”
“There is always a solution to every problem,” GranGran said. “The trick lies in finding that solution.”
Frayka wanted to argue with her great-grandmother but remembered the first lesson the old woman had taught her.
Respect your elders.
So instead of squabbling, Frayka considered GranGran’s advice.
There is always a solution to every problem. The trick lies in finding that solution.
Kikita, the dragon goddess of air, agreed to help Frayka. Wendill, the dragon god of earth, and Fiera, the dragon goddess of fire, also promised to make amends.
But the dragon god of water refused.
A new thought occurred to Frayka.
“Norah,” Frayka said. She put down the sun grain, distracted by the act of husking it. “The woman held prisoner by the sorcerer. When we found Norah, we set her free. She’s supposed to be a dragon goddess of water!” Staring at GranGran, Frayka said, “But how can that be? Isn’t there just one dragon god or goddess for each element?”
GranGran kept husking. “For the elements that take only one form. Air, earth, and fire—each has only one way of being. But water ta
kes more than one form.”
Frayka frowned. “What do you mean?”
“Water falls from the sky as rain,” GranGran said. “Water takes the form of mist. It rises from a boiling pot as steam. It freezes into ice or forms frost.” GranGran smiled. “Because water takes so many forms, it needs more than one dragon god.”
Frayka felt a spark of optimism. For the first time since arriving in the Far East, she felt her confidence grow. “If I can find Norah, she would help me. That sorcerer trapped her for years. Greeta and I set Norah free. Without our help, she would still be a prisoner.” Frayka’s mind raced. “But how do I find Norah? I don’t know where she is.”
“Do what Madam does,” TeaTree said. He nodded toward GranGran. “She asks for help from the portents themselves. Why wouldn’t the portents be able to find the dragon goddess for you?”
“GranGran? Is that true?”
The old woman retained a nondescript expression. “Before I go to bed, I ask the portents to come to me. Then once I’m asleep, I ask for whatever it is I want or need.”
“And that works?” Frayka became so excited that she jumped to her feet. “The portents themselves help you?”
“As long as I treat them with the dignity and respect they deserve,” GranGran said in a dry voice.
Remembering her early lesson about respect, Frayka attempted to calm herself. “Of course. My portents deserted me because I was impolite to them. I’ll never make that mistake again. It’s been miserable to be without them for so many months.”
Frayka paced in the small room. “I’ll do what you say, GranGran. When I go to bed, I’ll ask for help. And if my portents come to me in my sleep, I’ll be respectful and ask if they can find Norah for me. I’ll tell them how important it is that I find the dragon goddess of water.”
Dagby squirmed in her sleep and appeared to be on the verge of waking up.
Frayka lowered her voice and walked with a softer step. “I could try it now! Will you watch Dagby while I try to fall asleep?”
“This is just a thought,” TeaTree said. “But I don’t see how you can fall asleep when you’re so excited.”
