I slowed the flow down to just enough to keep the chill from the stone floor from numbing my skin. Two years, I guess that was how long it took to start moving Qi by reflex.
“Never let a Master know you’ve been working with open ears. They might take you for a thief.” It was an admonishment, but it was a soft one. Too bad it was a day too late.
“Yes, Matron Mei.” That earned me a gentle knock on the head.
“Keep your ears open to me, too, Shui. Just because I’m not a Master doesn’t mean I have nothing valuable to teach you.” Mei was older than she looked, nearly a century old if the rumors the other servants whispered were true. Tales of how she lived so long, while looking like a woman in her late third decade of life, were many and colorful. My personal favorite was that a Master had fallen in love with her and given her a Natural Treasure. An herb or gemstone overflowing with naturally-occurring Qi that was safe for ordinary people to use. A single leaf from an Orous Tree or a cluster of berries from the Trueblood Vine could add a century to someone’s life.
“I will do as the Lady commands.” I bowed deeply to her and redoubled my efforts at cleaning.
Cu MacDann
There is nothing like alcohol from your home to make you feel nostalgic. Gwyn had returned and offered me a small portion of his payback. In Tua’De, refusing such a gift was as good as insulting a man’s mother. Typically, because mothers made such spirits for their favored sons.
“You always play the best games, MacDann,” the Pookah laughed.
“In this land of dour faces, I need a bit of excitement now and again.” I raised the mostly full jar to him after taking a generous swallow of the strong liquor.
“The girl. She is an interest of yours?”
“Of a kind. She’s still just a girl, but I see so much potential for someone so neglected by the wise and powerful of this land. I want to give her a chance to shine. The other Masters would never agree to it. No benefit to the Sect to waste resources on some poor servant girl.”
“An old story, and a common one,” the Pookah said, gravely. “You wish my help?”
“I paid for it,” I reminded him. Friend or not, you needed to hold the Fey Folk to their bargains. They wouldn’t respect you if you didn’t.
“And handsomely. Do your students know that the spirits of Tua’De are a Natural Treasure? Or that it is made by common farmers?”
“My students? One of them might try to murder me for what I have left if they knew that. The Sage knows. I gave him some as a gift when he gave me sanctuary. And he’s of the Rosh. They have a monopoly over most of the Natural Treasures in the Kingdom. One more isn’t going to pique his interest.”
“How do you wish me to help the girl?”
When I told the Fey creature what I had in mind. he laughed uproariously. As his laughter echoed on the stone outer wall of the Sect building, I sipped more of the Silver Water and tried to uproot my uncertainty.
“And you believe this will give the Sage of the Sublime Moon reason to keep you under his protection indefinitely?”
“Maybe. But it might also give me a powerful ally once she advances down her Path. If she doesn’t die first.” I opened a jar of the rice liquor made by the people of the Kingdom. It was far sweeter than I preferred, but it had Qi refining properties of its own that were useful in quieting anxiety. “I know I asked for you to bring trouble, but you nipped a tiger’s tail. Had I been the one to fight the Nue, I don’t know that I would have survived. The Sect might have suffered serious damage. Lives would have been lost. Where did you even find such a beast?” I demanded of the trickster drinking with me.
“Far closer than you might expect. This Kingdom is blind to at least one enemy.”
“What-?” I cut off my question.
Information worth the life or death of a kingdom was worth far more than I could pay without becoming a slave. I examined the creature I’d long called a friend. He’d made a ploy against me, trying to strip me of my freedom, maybe my life. Yet, he’d made me alert to a threat to my current home. He’d done as the Fey do, been both friend and foe within the span of a few words.
“Nevermind. I’ll deal with that when its time comes. One last thing.” I took a piece of stone from my robe. It was small, jagged, and outwardly worthless. But for those who knew the legends of the Tua’De, it was a near priceless treasure. A fragment of the Hearthstone of Scathac, the founder of my homeland. It was a piece of the key to the Land of Shadows where one might speak with the dead. For me, it was something far more precious. “Three days from now, I am to do combat with Master Feng, a master of fire. Bring that stone to me the next morning.”
“You believe you’ll lose?”
I gave the Fey a flat look. “Those who enter a duel to the death and do not plan for a loss are fools. And fools tend to die badly.”
Shui Lan
“Curse his ancestors to the ninth generation!” I hissed through my teeth.
That damn foreigner had shifted the servants’ schedule, and now I was assigned to his instruction area every day. And on the day of the Ritual, as well! I did not need this kind of disruption on such an important day. Besides, I'd been practicing my version of the Grand Elder’s dance, and I almost had it perfected. I just needed more time.
I walked quickly down the wood-floored hallway, being careful to keep my eyes down and dodge both the students moving around and the priceless works of art sitting on pedestals. My bucket of scented water and pack full of cleaning tools shifted as I went. After two years, I was an expert at moving with that shifting weight while keeping the water in the bucket.
“—when you have nothing left.” Master Cu glanced toward me as I entered his teaching area, a stone garden. I quickly busied myself raking bits of leaves and twigs from the soft white sand of the garden, staying far from any of the students. “Senior student Tong, what is the next thing you must do in the situation I just described?”
“Pull inward, as powerfully as you can manage.” Tong was one of the Rosh and was far more relaxed in his expressions than the Sine’. His pitch-black eyes gave away his national origin, as did the brightly-colored green robe he wore. If he wore such a thing on the steppe, he could be seen for a mile. An easy target for a predator, whether of the human or monstrous type.
“Why?”
“There is a chance you can pull in the Qi of other things in order to fuel a technique for a moment.”
I hadn’t known that. What’s more, it made no sense. Qi was produced within the body and dissipated the further it got from the body. Natural Treasures were natural concentrations of non-toxic Qi, and they were incredibly rare. Was he lying? Or wrong?
“Very good.”
My eyes snapped over to Master Cu. If he was teaching this to senior students, it had to be correct.
“Keep that in mind this evening. It may save your life. Dismissed.”
The students filed out. I stood behind one of the large stones near the exit and waited with my head bowed and eyes looking safely at the floor, until I noticed a pair of feet that paused for a long moment at the exit of the open garden. A slight glance in that direction showed me that Tong was there, and he was looking at me. I snapped my eyes back down and prayed to whatever god or spirit might be listening that he was not actually looking at me. A dozen frenzied heartbeats later, he left.
I let out a breath I hadn’t realized I’d been holding. I did not need more attention. Bad enough a Master knew what I was doing. But a student? And a Rosh? The rumors would be spread to every person in the Sect by nightfall.
“I think he’s interested in you.”
That lilting, mushy voice belonged to Master Cu. Even if he spoke my language enough for me to understand, his accent made him sound as if he was constantly drunk. Si, the language of the Sine’, was precise and orderly. Cu MacDann was not orderly by any human standard.
“The maidservant is unworthy of such attention.”
“Never underestimate the desires of
men. Wars have been fought over such lingering glances.”
I dared to look at the Master, still sitting in lotus position at the center of the garden. His eyes were closed, and he was obviously in some meditative practice. So I started cleaning the garden of debris and raking the sand into proper evenness. The sensation of dense Qi hit my shoulders like a week’s worth of the Sect’s laundry, nearly crushing me to the ground. Everything was suddenly too heavy. I couldn’t move, couldn’t breathe. My own Qi was being compressed toward my stomach. So cold.
“Maybe you are just a maid.”
I went from cold to red hot in an instant. I forced my Qi to run through my chest and my limbs, pushing back against the oppressive weight trying to crush the life out of me.
“If you can’t walk over here and strike me, I will find someone else to attend the students at the Ritual tonight.”
May thirteen generations of his ancestors rot in the hell of the bloody lakes! I cycled my Qi, pushing, driving it into my limbs and back to my stomach. I breathed. It was harsh and labored, but I did. Then I took one step forward.
It was the hardest thing I’d ever done in my life. I wanted to collapse. I glanced at Master Cu and saw the mocking grin on his face. I took another step toward that son of a promiscuous toad. Then another. For the next few steps, I forgot how badly I wanted to fall and only thought of how badly I wanted to slap that look off his face. One eternity later I stood in front of him and struggled to raise my hand.
“Poor little girl.”
My vision went red and I blanked out for a minute. The next thing I knew I was standing without effort and cradling my throbbing right hand. A real, genuine smile was lighting up the Master’s face, along with a slight pink tint on one cheek.
“I-” I suddenly realized that I, a maidservant, had physically struck a Master of the Sect. People had been flogged to death for less. I dropped to my knees and put my forehead to the floor so quickly I saw stars for a moment. “This unworthy servant begs the Master’s forgiveness!”
“I haven’t been struck by a woman in thirty years,” the Master mused with a smile still on his face. “Far too long, don’t you think? Perhaps I should find myself a wife.” He sounded amused, but I didn’t believe that. The moment I offered anything less than pure contrition he would drag me out by my hair and throw me down the side of the mountain.
“Mercy,” I begged.
“Look at me, girl.” I did as he asked and saw a happy smile.
“You did fine. I just needed to be sure. Now, the laws of the Sect prohibit me from teaching someone who has not paid their tribute to the Grand Elder. But there are no laws prohibiting someone from observing what I do. Understand?”
I nodded.
He put a hand on the top of my head and patted me as if I were a favored pet. “Good. Go get cleaned up. You’ll find ceremonial robes for you in your quarters. Once you’re ready, come to the Gate of the First Step. The head maid will tell you what to do from there.”
“Will you be there, Master Cu?”
“Sadly, no.” He tossed me something small. A wooden token with a tiny gem set in the center. “If I don’t come back, take that token to the Clerk, Mu Gon.”
“I will do as the Master commands.” I hurried back to my tiny room in the servant’s quarters and found beautiful white silk robes and a chain covered in semi-precious stones. I quickly washed in a small basin, pulled on the robe, and belted it with the chain. I pulled my hair into the simple bun that the servants always wore beneath their head wraps. Then, I walked to the entrance to the second ring of the Sect’s building. The place where those who practiced a Path would take their first Step.
Cu MacDann
The Gate of the Sixth Step was a bit more menacing than the First. The bones of humans, monsters, and great beasts adorned it. It was not an accident, nor was it mere symbolism. The Sixth Step was the Gate of Death. To pass it, a Qi Master must offer the body of a mighty enemy. For Master Feng, I was going to be that enemy—assuming he won our duel.
“Foreign dog!” The small man approached wearing a formal set of combat robes. All of the ornamentation of a Master was gone. The only ostentatious element to it was the gold thread embroidery in the image of a roaring dragon.
“Short-sighted rat.” I nodded toward him.
My own robes were as simple as ever, dull green cloth tied with a simple rope. I dropped the shell of Qi around me and brought forth a gate in the air above my hand. Into it dropped a long spear of living wood and a head made of crystalline metal native to the Fey realm. A dull red light shone on the tip, a reflection of the bloodlust that inhabited the weapon. Gwyn had told me the name long ago, but I called it Gore. I thought it fit better than Gae Lug.
“Today, you die, and I ascend to the Sixth Step.”
“Still one Step short of perfection, and two short of immortality. And your fellow Masters will always see you as a man without respect for his peers. Are you sure you want to do this?”
“You even talk like a coward.”
That was a word I would not take lightly. The light of the spear grew brighter with my anger.
“Then come; let’s get this done.”
I slammed the butt of the spear into the ground at the base of the Gate, and a field of energy formed around us. It would limit the damage to our surroundings. I leaned back and angled my spear forward, preparing for a thrust or parry, depending on the weapon Feng had chosen. Fire rose about the Master and encased him in a suit of flickering armor. From his right hand extended a lash of liquid fire, blazing like the sun. He planned to do battle with weapons and armor forged purely from his own power. It was one of the great advantages for those who found their strength in the physical elements. Those like me, whose strength was manifested in unusual ways, found direct combat far less simple.
I opened a gate behind me and shattered a small stone that hung around my neck. Seven creatures of the Fey realm answered my summons. Humanoids, far taller than any man and bearing the antlers of a stag, walked through my portal and pointed their primitive weapons at my enemy. The Udlach would be enough to destroy a small village of normal people. Against someone like Feng, I expected them to last a minute or less.
“Pathetic, to lean on strength not your own.” Feng lashed out with his whip, and I swung Gore to deflect it. The technique shattered on my spear, and a portion of the power was pulled into it. I advanced, commanding the Udlach to advance with me and strike when they found a target of opportunity.
When two Masters, those on the Fifth Step or higher, clashed, it tended to be loud and incredibly destructive. When I moved, the ground cracked under the pressure of my feet. I moved forward so quickly that the air shrieked in my ears. The tip of my spear was pushed aside by a gauntleted arm, and I was forced to twist aside as Feng followed up with a fist aimed for my face. As I dodged, Feng lashed out and split one of the Udlach in two before they were even within weapon range.
I spun Gore over and drove it back toward him with a similarly poor result. But this time, I followed with a punch to his exposed face. He ducked aside, and we locked together for a moment. My skin, toughened by my Path to withstand the energy of foriegn realms, started to cook within seconds. I kicked at his back foot, widening his stance and forcing Feng off balance. I pushed off him using the haft of my spear the moment before two of the stag-men brought a sword and club crashing down on my enemy. Fire exploded outward and cooked them where they stood, but the blast of power was costly for Feng.
I forced Qi into the spear, and it blazed, both with my power and with the power stolen from Feng. I opened a gate between us and thrust the spear through it. Feng cried out in pain as the spearhead emerged from the portal I’d opened at his back and punched through his armor. Fire and heat washed back out of the portal, blinding me and driving me back until I collided against the barrier, several dozen yards from where I’d been. Even with a body strengthened by a Path, and Qi circulating to numb the pain, I was hurting.
; I heard the screams of the remaining Udlach as Feng cut them down in a flurry of whip strikes before he turned back to me. His eyes were stars, burning white with power he’d channeled back into his own body to reinforce his strength and resistance to pain. I must have hurt him badly with that spear thrust.
I opened a gate in front of me, warping the flat plane until it surrounded me, though doing something so contrary to the natural laws taxed my strength severely. Straining, I opened another portal in the air above my enemy. A bare moment later and thousands of gallons of water poured down, swallowing him and dousing his fire. The boiling steam that exploded from the point of contact was safely diverted away from me by the twisted portal, as was the wave of sea water that tried to sweep over everything within the barrier. I closed both a moment later, gasping for breath like a man who’d spent the last two days running.
Feng screamed in rage from the opposite side of the domed arena. He was all but immune to his fire, but the steam had cooked portions of his skin.
“You cheating bastard!”
I picked up Gore and circulated my depleted Qi to give me enough strength to move effectively. I leaped, my movements covered by the fog that now hung thick in the air. Feng lashed a fiery whip wildly in the air around him, either trying to hit me or simply searching randomly for his target. When I was several yards away, one of the lines of flame swept toward my head, and I shattered it with the spear. Feng felt it, and an inferno of flames flowed along the line his whip had followed. It was an unpolished attack, unfocused in its rage. I spun Gore in a sweeping arc, and the pillar of fire was scattered, more of it being pulled into the blazing spearhead.
It was a perfect moment. My heart was beating so hard that I felt my blood rushing through every inch of my body. Any hunter can recognize the anticipation and pleasure of the moment before a kill. Your world narrows down to you and your prey. The moment of ultimate power, being able to choose life or death for another living creature. I loved it, and feared it. When my spear pierced through Feng’s slender chest, the rush peaked, and I screamed my elation to the heavens.
Fantastic Schools, Volume 3 Page 29