“Huxian,” Cha Ming scolded.
“What?” Huxian said. “Star-Eye Monkeys don’t have this kind of fur. It’s cool. Strange that so many of you have the same fur without being related, but I won’t judge.”
“Huxian…” Cha Ming said. Clever Dusk was clearly uncomfortable, and he was getting more than a few scowls.
“Oh,” Huxian said. His ears pulled back. “Sorry. I didn’t realize I was being rude.”
“It’s fine,” said Shallow Moon tiredly, looking down and to the left. “There aren’t many of us anyway. All of us ‘inferior’ Star-Eye Monkeys are here in this room. The rest are normal, with red, green, gray, and brown fur.”
“Not as interesting,” Huxian said, blowing a tuft of hair out. “Anyway, you guys are cool. I don’t know why they wanted to pick on you, but maybe it has to do with your strange inky powers?”
“How did you—” Shallow Moon started.
“He’s a Godbeast, Father,” Clever Dusk cut in. She held up her hand, and a glob of thick liquid appeared. “It is a slight affinity. A trifle. Yet this affinity constrains us. It pollutes our talents in other areas, and for some reason, none of us are gifted as warriors. In the chieftain’s opinion, that makes us a waste of space.” Her voice was bitter and pained.
“Do you truly have no idea why they were looking for you?” Cha Ming said. She shook her head. “Also, how will you manage on your own? My read on the situation is that you have very few resources and many mouths to feed.”
“That is… accurate,” Shallow Moon said. “But worry not. We will manage. We always have.”
Cha Ming frowned. He thumbed his communication jade. “Huxian, would you mind speaking to them for a moment? I need to contact Captain Xing.”
“Oooh, I have so many questions,” Huxian said, rubbing his hands. “Polite questions.”
Cha Ming held his communication device. Captain Xing, I have a few dozen Star-Eye Monkeys I believe were the main targets of this raid. They may be of special interest.
Do they know why that would be the case?
… No.
As a matter of policy, we don’t aid any victims beyond settling them, unless there is strong evidence they may prove useful later on in the case.
But they were targets.
Yes, but were they the only targets? I refuse to believe that seventy-two caravans, including that one, were attacked merely to capture three dozen fledgling demon monkeys, mutant or not.
Cha Ming frowned. But it could be a secondary reason, could it not?
A fair point, Captain Xing replied. It wouldn’t be expensive to house and protect them, but I’m lazy. It’s your problem. If you feel so strongly about it, have your existing team protect them, feed them, or hire guards yourself. I’ll reimburse you if it turns out you were right. It’s your call. Your responsibility.
Fine, I’ll think of something, Cha Ming replied. In the meantime, can you come to the prefecture’s Northern Guard House?
…
It’s kind of important, Cha Ming said.
You’re on your own for the mission, Captain Xing said.
Fine. It’s important to me personally. I would take it as a favor I would eventually repay. Plus, I have a feeling prefecture lords might be messing with my mission and team.
Quick on the uptake, I see. Fine. You owe me a small favor.
Cha Ming sighed with relief. He knew he didn’t have anything to interest Captain Xing now, but they were trying to forge karmic anomalies in fire. A favor earned now would grow exponentially if he survived.
Cha Ming returned to the monkeys. “Sorry about that.”
“Not a problem, young man,” Shallow Moon said. “Your friend tells the most refreshingly exaggerated stories.”
“That he does,” Cha Ming said. He only wished they weren’t exaggerations. “Shallow Moon, let me be straightforward. I’d hate to leave you and most of your clansmen unprotected. I believe you were targeted for a reason. If you’ll allow me, I’d like to house you and hire guards to protect you.”
The man frowned, and his laughing daughter went silent. Her tail curled around her—did that mean she was nervous? “We appreciate the concern, but we are a proud people,” Shallow Moon said. “We must provide for ourselves. How can we feel at ease if we don’t work for what we eat? You owe us nothing, and I would never consider imposing such a burden on you.”
The man’s eyes were glowing again, Cha Ming realized. No, they were twinkling. Within them, he could see entire galaxies. He barely heard Huxian’s mental whisper as he observed the man.
Star-Eye Monkeys have two main abilities, Huxian said. One of them involves improving their mental faculties. If he wants to, he can be many times smarter than anyone else in this room, if only for a few moments, though it will cost him.
As soon as Huxian finished speaking, the man broke into a sweat. He was breathing heavily.
“It is our shame that we were not useful to our tribe,” Shallow Moon said. “We will feed and protect ourselves.”
Cha Ming sighed. “Do you at least need help finding work?” He had always either relied on his professions or his strength to make a living. Living in the Burning Lake Prefecture had given him a new perspective. Cultivators didn’t only fight—in fact, most were noncombatants. Many didn’t even learn martial arts. Some took on jobs selling, building, and managing. Some even waited tables. Every society had needs, and you survived by filling them. What would demon monkeys be good at?
The older man was about to refuse, but his daughter nudged him. “If you could help us in this fashion, we would greatly appreciate it,” she said.
Shallow Moon nodded reluctantly. “We are not in a good position. If we’re not imposing too much, we would appreciate a reference.”
“You guys want jobs?” Huxian asked, his ears perking up. “Great! You’re hired!”
“What?” Cha Ming asked.
“What?” Lei Jiang said, running up to them.
“Clear Sky,” Special Night said.
“Say again?” Silverwing said from across the room.
“What?” Huxian said. “It’s not a bad idea.”
Shallow Moon frowned. “This is too sudden. We would need to consider.”
“Well, don’t think too long,” Huxian said. “It’s really not a big deal. We could use all sorts of help in the tailor shop.”
“Huxian, why don’t we talk this over?” Silverwing said. “We just got out of a fight with them.”
“Clear Sky!” Special Night said, a little louder this time. “Incoming.”
There was a booming sound. Cha Ming cursed and ran out of the room. Many of the watchmen were drawing weapons and abandoning their lunches. Tables were overturned and cups and coffee littered the floor.
Cha Ming rushed past the watchmen, ignoring shouts and yells. He heard another blast, and a door hit the bottom of the stairs leading down to the prison area.
“Sir, please wait,” a pleading voice said. It was Watch Captain Evercut. “The prisoner in question is in protective custody.”
“We don’t care if he’s in protective custody,” said a voice Cha Ming didn’t recognize. “This is well under my authority. Now stop obstructing me, or you’ll be out of a job.”
“I—” the watch captain started.
“He should be down here, shouldn’t he?” another voice said. This one, Cha Ming recognized. It was Lord Dripping Blade. A voice he feared and hated more and more with every passing second.
“What’s going on?” Silver Fish asked as he ran to the front of his cell. Shneraz ran up beside him, and so did Huxian, Lei Jiang, and Silverwing. Crying Toad was nowhere to be seen, as expected of the coward. Special Night was nowhere to be seen either, as expected of someone who specialized in spying and stabbing people in the back.
Two pairs of footsteps slowly made their way down the stairs. The dust was clearing, and thanks to the qi-powered lights in the corridor, they could see the first figure was Lord Dripping Blade,
a tall hook-nosed man with black hair and a cold expression. The second was someone Cha Ming had never seen before. From his clothing and temperament, however, it was easy to determine who it was. The man was tall, had broad shoulders, and his hair was dark blue. His eyes were bonfires in the night, though his expression was calm and relaxed. His robes were a regal blue with hints of red and gold.
“Prefecture Lord Dripping Blade. Prefecture Lord Burning Lake,” Cha Ming said, bowing. “What a coincidence meeting you here.”
Burning Lake ignored him. He looked past him into the cell. “Is this the man?” he asked.
“Yes,” Dripping Blade said. “He is the man who killed your nephew. My son.”
“I’m afraid Silver Fish is an important witness to this case,” Cha Ming said. “I can’t allow you to hurt him.”
Burning Lake’s eyes narrowed. “We won’t be stopped.”
Cha Ming lifted his staff to defend. “I’ll defend him with my life. Didn’t Captain Xing tell you to cease your aggression against me?”
“I don’t think you or your team will be getting hurt,” Lord Burning Lake said. “Do you, Dripping Blade?”
“I wouldn’t think so,” Lord Dripping Blade said. “Would you like to do the honors?”
“I believe I shall,” Burning Lake said. “I haven’t gotten any exercise lately.”
A blue-and-red aura surged out from Burning Lake. It was both hot and cold, and from it came an aura of control. Things became more real in its presence. More tangible. Orderly, even. Cha Ming urged his tri-element domain to fight back. He activated Thirty-Six Heavenly Transformations right away. His power surged. Nevertheless, his domain retreated with every step the man took.
“How silly you are,” Burning Lake said. “You cannot resist two rune-gathering cultivators with your pathetic strength.”
Cha Ming trembled as he tried to fight back the aura. It wasn’t just affecting his qi, but his qi pathways and organs as well. His entire body was struggling to keep up. He spat up blood as the prefecture lord’s aura reached within a foot of him.
Can’t… let him… pass… Cha Ming thought. He infused a wall of sand and steel with the Concept of Radiant Construction. Then, he created five talismans with creation qi, reinforcing the wall with all five elements. It held… for all of two seconds before crumbling.
A cold feeling enveloped Cha Ming as he was plunged into Burning Lake’s domain. No, it wasn’t a domain. It was a world projection. Everything that happened here was under his control. If he was so inclined, he could freeze Cha Ming like an icicle. Or burn him up like a matchstick. Yet he did neither of those things.
Lord Burning Lake smirked and swept his sleeve to the side. Cha Ming saw that it wasn’t just he who had been caught, but everyone, including the hidden Special Night, and surprisingly, Crying Toad. He hadn’t run after all. Huxian resisted longest, but they could only watch helplessly as the prefecture lord slid them over by ten feet until some of them hit the other prison cells.
“You can’t…” Cha Ming struggle to say. It was hard to breathe. He had words to say, but they wouldn’t come out.
“Black Fish, Black Fish,” Dripping Blade said, walking up to the cell. He grabbed the door and pulled. It broke off its frozen hinges. The irate lord threw the door across the hallway, and it smashed into a stone wall. “I’ve been looking for you for a very long time.”
Silver Fish didn’t seem affected by the domain. Still, he sat there, cross-legged, waiting for his doom.
“Will you not run away?”
“Hiding is one thing,” Silver Fish replied. “Running from you for any significant amount of time is impossible.”
“At last, you see reason,” Dripping Blade said. “You—” His eyes narrowed. “I see what you’re doing.” He twisted his hand, and a half-activated talisman flew out from Silver Fish’s robes. Dripping Blade caught it and inspected it. “High-quality work. Judging by the seal, it’s Clear Sky’s. Well done. I always knew you’d make a good artisan.”
“You can’t have him,” Cha Ming said.
“And why not?” Dripping Blade asked.
“Just kill him and be done with this,” Burning Lake said. “I give you ten seconds, or I’ll do it myself.”
“He’s an important witness to my case,” Cha Ming said.
“Who cares?” Dripping Blade said. He grabbed Silver Fish by his robes and pulled him up to eye level. “He owes me a blood debt.”
“You’ll be depriving my case of important testimony,” Cha Ming said.
“Has he not given his?” Dripping Blade said.
“Five seconds,” Burning Lake said.
“Very well,” Dripping Blade said. He pulled back his fist. “This is for killing my son.”
“He is a member of my team,” Cha Ming said quickly. “He is a member of the Kingfisher Guard. He is participating in my mission.” He’d waited until the last minute. He hoped he was right. “If you kill him, you are committing a gross interference with my mission.”
“Damn it, Dripping Blade,” Burning Lake said.
“I’ll handle this,” Dripping Blade said. He put down Silver Fish. Roughly. “Tell me, do you have copy of his agreement on your person? If my memory serves correctly, he was not on your mission roster just an hour ago. Besides which, he is not a member of the Guard.”
“I do not,” Cha Ming said. “But a request has been made to add him to our mission as an applicant to the Guard. His application has been accepted and witnessed. The mission is of sufficient difficulty, and as mission leader, I have the authority to accept him.”
Dripping Blade smiled. “Yet you have no proof of this,” he said. “How convenient for you to bring this up just now. Why not bring it up first? I can only conclude that you are lying.” He walked back to Silver Fish and raised his fist. A silvery liquid formed on it. “You should ensure that you keep all adequate paperwork on your person in case a misunderstanding occurs in the future. That’s just the basics.” He looked down at Silver Fish, then with a yell of rage, he slammed downward. There was an explosion that distorted even soul force, and for a moment, everyone went blind.
Cha Ming blinked. He could only see dust. He ran toward where Silver Fish had been and found only rubble. “You bastard!” Cha Ming said. He summoned the Clear Sky Staff. “I’m going to kill you.”
“You will do no such thing, unless you wish to lose my protection,” a voice said. The dust cleared, revealing Captain Xing. And, to Cha Ming’s surprise, Silver Fish. His body was badly mangled from Dripping Blade’s attack, but somehow, he had survived.
“Captain Xing,” Lord Dripping Blade said. He pulled his hand off the blade at his back. He’d been ready to counterattack the moment Cha Ming lost his cool. “What is the meaning of this?”
“Lord Dripping Blade, Lord Burning Lake,” Captain Xing said. “I normally wouldn’t impose, but it seems that you are attacking one of our division members’ teammates.”
Lord Dripping Blade grimaced. “I checked for documentation when he claimed this, but he had nothing. It’s just a simple—”
“Misunderstanding,” Captain Xing finished. “I completely understand how that could happen, which is why I haven’t cut both of you down.” He handed Silver Fish over to Shneraz and walked over to Cha Ming. He handed a jade slip and a silver trial pin. “Here you are. Try not to do this too often. I’m not a courier.”
“Much obliged,” Cha Ming said.
“Carry on, then,” Captain Xing said. “I don’t want to interfere too much in this mission.” Dripping Blade’s face twitched as the man began walking away.
Burning Lake, however, was much calmer. “Captain Xing, could I please clarify something?”
“Of course,” Captain Xing said, looking over his shoulder.
“This protection afforded to his team,” Burning Lake said. “It only extends for the duration of the mission? Regardless of success?”
“Naturally,” Captain Xing said. “The personal protection he is a
fforded will last until I inform you otherwise, but his team’s protection only lasts until the mission ends.” A shiver ran down Cha Ming’s spine. “Though, I would like to warn you that as a prefecture lord, you might be afforded certain rights regarding blood debts, but anyone not directly involved in your feud must not be targeted. Because that’s murder and bullying of the highest degree.”
“Of course,” Lord Burning Lake said softly. “I wouldn’t want to get any innocents involved. Only the original members of the team present when Ember Lake died should be held responsible.” He grinned toothily at Cha Ming, then the others. “I bid you all a good day.”
There was a flash of gray, and both prefecture lords were gone.
“You have powerful enemies,” Shneraz muttered. He pulled Silver Fish up to his feet. Silver Fish took a black vial from his pouch and drank its contents, and color returned to his cheeks.
“Sorry,” Silver Fish said. “You should have just let them take me.”
Cha Ming sighed. He looked guiltily at Special Night and Crying Toad. Both of them were nursing a headache from getting thrown against the wall. “I’ll think of something,” he said.
“I think if I run away, he won’t bother chasing,” Crying Toad said. “People don’t like getting hit in the face by poison.”
“Then you don’t know Lord Burning Lake,” Watch Captain Evercut said. He’d just entered the room from the stairwell. He gingerly stepped over Silver Fish’s broken cell door and shook his head at the damage. “This is going to take a hell of a chunk out of the budget.”
“Prefecture Lord Burning Lake is prone to obsession,” Special Night agreed. “I have read his report.”
“Did you talk to the monkeys?” asked the watch captain.
“Yeah,” Cha Ming said. “We were going to find them jobs.”
“I’ll take care of it,” Huxian said nonchalantly.
“I’m still worried about them,” Cha Ming said. “Huxian, why don’t you, Lei Jiang, and Silverwing escort them back to the tailor shop? Keep them busy. While they’re there, I want you to do a little investigating.”
“On what?” Huxian asked.
Crown of the Starry Sky: Book 11 of Painting the Mists Page 24
