by Ino Lee
Gao looked at him suspiciously. “The evil must be purged.”
“If we are to burn their remains let us do so wisely. Unan flesh is toxic but it will burn for hours on end. I’ll barrel them and put them in cauldrons outside the temple walls. It will help with security. Their masks and weapons need examination too.”
The grandmaster considered his request.
Jaguan interrupted his train of thought. “It is better for you to concentrate on other things, master.”
“Fine then,” Gao said. “Action is needed—not debate. Let us do so.”
They broke apart.
Tienkow’s body was carried away by the monks. He would be cremated within three days according to custom, and his ashes would be placed in an urn and given a place of honor.
Jaguan ran off to find Tengfei and organize Shaolin’s warriors. His mind filled with the various tasks that needed to get done. Foremost on his list was security. They would need to send out organized patrols until everyone could be pulled within the safety of the temple’s walls.
Gao stood with a few elders and conferred around the pool. Their first task would be to dredge the sludge as quickly as possible, and he worried that the pool would have to be drained and replaced entirely. The weight of such a task was daunting.
A few monks approached Wong. He instructed them to retrieve spades for scooping up the unan remains and empty casks for storing them. After they left him, he walked over to the remains of the unan that killed Tienkow.
The demon’s intact red mask caught his eye. He lifted and examined it. Streaks of black adorned its face, conveying a wild and giddy, yet imposing gaze. This is the image of the unan’s feared fire god, he thought. To wear such a thing, the demon must have been powerful and high-ranking.
He could not take his eyes off it.
7
DAWN BROKE AND ushered in a collective sigh of relief. The sky was remarkably clear, so that the faintest sliver of sunlight stretched out uninterrupted across the expanse and bathed the earth in a warm glow. It was morning now, and the possibility of another Koon Gee attack was unlikely. A new day had begun in Shaolin, though it was unlike any other day. Crowds of warriors huddled in the temple’s courtyard and monks moved frantically about.
Inside the Infinity Chamber, the new grandmaster scrutinized the progress that the temple stewards had made over the night. A great wooden cask was being filled with fresh water from Shaolin’s deep mountain reservoirs atop the pool’s platform steps. Men emerged from the stairs with buckets in tow, forming a line across the chamber, up the platform, under its veranda, and to the wooden cask where the buckets were emptied. Once their task was complete, they methodically continued on and exited down the opposite stairwell to repeat the process over again. Progress was slow, but steady.
Tengfei approached. “Good morning, Master Gao.”
“Morning, faithful steward. How was the night?”
“One cask is complete. Another being built.”
The beginnings of the second cask appeared near the first.
“And what of the pool?” Gao asked.
“Its powers have not yet returned. We cannot make contact with the other temples. I fear to drink it.”
“As you should.”
“Do you think its powers will return?”
“In time. The chi of this space is out of equilibrium. Time may heal its wounds but the unan remains have left a mark. We shall continue plans to replace the pool.”
“How many casks do you think it will take?”
Gao examined the work and considered. “Eight should do.”
“Right away. I’ll let the stewards know.”
The grandmaster pondered his decision as Tengfei rushed off. He focused and held both arms out toward the water. By his estimation, the dark shard had taken a third of the pool’s energy, while the shock and unan remains weakened it to a fraction of its remaining strength. The best they could do to spur its recovery was to transfer its energy to the clean water within the crates, drain the pool, and refill it.
He grunted. It would take many weeks before they were done and even a single day was too much. At least all signs of the battle were gone now, with the blood of the warriors and tar of the unan scrubbed clean. Gao thought the unan stains would have been harder to get out, but Wong knew how to remove them properly by using heat. He wondered what he did with the rest of their remains.
Jaguan approached. He looked tired and walked sluggishly.
“Hello, Shoukoo,” Gao said. “Were you able to sleep?”
“Briefly, but it did not come easy. How does the pool look?”
“Some progress has been made, but we have just broken earth and must now plow a field. At least we know what must be done. In time the pool will heal. How are the warriors?”
“The night passed without incident. Now that the day is upon us, we’ll regroup.”
The elder scrunched his forehead. “Do you believe the unan are gone?”
“Scouting parties will be sent out. We’ll sweep them clear of the terrain before nightfall.”
“If you can find them. Unan are elusive creatures. If they want to be here, they’ll find a way.”
“We can make it difficult for them. Speaking of the unan, Xiong has gathered facts about the attack and will debrief us in the Chamber of Minds. We must confer on recent events. I still feel unsettled.”
“Yes, when waters are turbulent it is easy to veer off course. Now that it is calm we will right the ship.”
“Let us do so then.”
They moved toward the stairway, sliding past the line of monks carrying buckets. Jaguan didn’t realize how tired he was until he saw the faces of the laboring monks. There was a sullenness about them, and while he suspected much of this had to do with the heavy loads of water they carried, there was something more to it. The Infinity Chamber had always been a place of peace and enlightenment. Never before in the history of Shaolin had their foundations been so rattled—the pool was compromised and their grandmaster was dead. An air of uncertainty hung over their heads and worry could be seen in their faces. Jaguan felt it too. He found himself eager for counsel with the others.
The Chamber of Minds was a couple floors beneath the Infinity Chamber. It was mostly a functional room, with a large wooden table, bookshelves filled with manuscripts, and a few porcelain vases of decorative value. Because the temple’s collective heads often gathered there to brainstorm decisions vital to the functioning of Shaolin, it was called the Chamber of Minds.
Tengfei rose and bowed when they came in and were joined by the others. A group of the temple’s leaders had gathered around the table with an intricate drawing of Mount Shaolin sprawled out on top. Most were elders: Woo, former master of the temple at Yaje Piau who returned to Shaolin to become one of Kai’s teachers; Lin, one of several female elder monks; Dai-dao who was blind; and Riyon, one of the few non-monks. The rest of the elders were tending to the Infinity Pool.
Xiong, a respected fighter and high-ranking Shaolin officer, perused his notes one final time and looked at the map.
“Xiong,” Jaguan said. “When you are ready, please make your report.”
“Yes.” He folded his hands. “Let us start at the beginning. A lo-shur demon breached the temple’s defenses and made its way into the Infinity Chamber. It was able to do so with the aid of a chi shard embedded in its chest. This you know.” He paused. “It may have also maintained a psychic link with a black crow, seen at the time of the attack. Its primary goal was to weaken the pool, paving the way for the second phase of the attack.”
“The unan,” Gao commented.
“Yes. Their primary target was Kai since he is the one prophesied to destroy the Koon Gee. The unan could not detect him or get close enough because of the Infinity Pool, but could do so once its powers were negated.”
“Do we know what became of the lo-shur?” Riyon asked.
“Most likely destroyed by the chi energy of the pool,” Gao answered. “It would not be able to exist without the shard.”
“If only I was not asleep at the time,” Dai-dao said meekly. “I might have been able to detect it.”
“We believe it was an attack of one hundred unan,” Xiong said.
“One hundred?” Riyon said incredulously.
“Twenty-five from the northeast.” He touched the map. “Twenty-five from the southeast, northwest, and southwest. When the pool was tainted, there was nothing to hold them back, so they converged at once.”
“They were spread evenly to give them the best chances of finding Kai,” Riyon reasoned. “The closest party would be able to retrieve him.”
“We think so. And the closest party was in the southeast warriors’ quarters, where Kai sneaked off with Hojin to practice archery.”
Woo shook his head. “He should not have been doing that, but who knows what would have become of him if he had stayed at the temple.”
“I heard Hojin was injured,” Lin said. “How is the boy?”
“Healing with the others,” Jaguan said. “He will recover.”
“Good.”
“The northeast squadron split. Some ran off to find Kai; others joined the northwest’s attack on the temple. The purpose of attacking the temple, we believe, was to make sure the dark shard had maximized its effects, or to destroy the pool completely.”
Jaguan spoke. “They probably did not know exactly how the pool would react with the shard. They could take no chances and even sacrificed themselves.”
“What became of the southwest squad?” Dai-dao asked.
“They were detected and bogged down by the warriors there. It was the most heavily populated area of Mount Shaolin. The few that got through may have tried to join the attack on the temple.”
“A lot of moving parts.”
“At this point, the alarms had sounded, the warriors began to mobilize, and the unan’s raid would come to an end. Wong found Kai in the Commons and Chandu brought him safely to the temple—fortunately to the southern gate—where a mass of warriors assembled, including myself.” He picked up his notes. “In the end, thirty-eight unan masks were identified, indicating kills. Of Shaolin’s own, one hundred thirteen were killed, with one hundred twenty-six more injured.”
“Too much,” Woo said. He shook his head. “Too much.”
“It could have been worse,” Lin said. “They could have killed more of our warriors while they were sleeping, if that was their goal.”
“The unan fled east,” Xiong continued, “toward the Forbidden Mountains. A few trackers were sent but have not yet returned. We don’t know more. No ships were spotted, so we are not sure how they arrived from the Koon Kagi. Perhaps they risked the Dragon Pass.”
“The Dragon Pass?” Riyon said. “Of all creatures, the unan would be the first to avoid fire-breathing dragons.”
“Or perhaps they lie in wait, just beyond our reach,” Tengfei said.
“Is that all for your report?” Jaguan said.
“Yes.”
“Thank you for your summation, Xiong. What does the council make of this?”
“I ask how safe is Shaolin? We don’t know where the unan are,” Lin said.
“Perhaps an update on security then,” Gao said.
Jaguan nodded. “At present, the warriors have set up camp in the inner courtyard, behind the temple walls. They should be safe while they are stationed there. Half of our forces are deployed away from Shaolin and what reinforcements can be spared shall be recalled, but the earliest help will not come for several days. Such is the nature of Shaolin’s isolation. Once we are able, a force will sweep the path to the Forbidden Range. We are too vulnerable to do so for now.”
“Vulnerable for another attack too,” Riyon said. “It would not surprise me, perhaps with more Koon Gee. Ones focused on bringing down walls . . . mountain beasts, ninjas, dagwais, radiance pools. They made their play and must finish it.”
“The coastline is being watched and hawks have been dispatched. If a siege force is headed this way we will know.”
Dai-dao lifted his hands. “The energy of this place is off balance. I cannot remember a time it has been so. I agree with Riyon—there will be a play on our weakness.”
Gao rose. “Despite our loses, the attack, while painful, was a failure on the part of the Koon Gee. We must remember this.” He stomped his foot. “Do not lose heart. They were unable to secure Kai, and, in doing so, lost a critical tool of destruction—a dark chi shard. While its effects may hurt us more now, if we can get through this time of peril, we will come out stronger for it.”
A voice came from the doorway. “Has anyone wondered how they got this chi shard? If they have more?”
Wong stepped in from the entrance, carrying the fire god mask. He closed the door behind him.
“If they had another shard in their possession, they would have used it,” Gao said. “The Koon Gee do not have such power. A shard would take a hundred years to grow inside their chi pool, minimum.”
“It was not long ago when we suspected they could not have shards at all, because the power of their pools was being incorporated into their demon forms, leaving little else left for forming shards.”
“Do you believe they have another?” Jaguan said.
“No. Gao’s right. They would have used it last night.”
“Then what was your purpose in suggesting it?” Gao asked testily. “Why distract a gathering of the Minds with pointless worry? And why do you carry such an abomination?”
“I wanted to make a point.”
“Enlighten us.”
“We don’t know anything about the Koon Gee.”
There was silence.
“Is there a point to your musings, Wong? This is not the time and place,” Jaguan said.
“Yes.” He looked down at the mask. “There is something I need to show you. You might not like it.”
He raised the mask, positioning it between his face and the biting gaze of the council. When he let go, the mask snapped back to his face, drawn by a mysterious force.
Everyone in the room came to their feet.
“Wong! Get that abomination off your face,” Gao barked.
Wong lowered his hands and shrugged, the mask still attached.
“I know it looks weird, but I’m fine.”
Woo slammed his hand on the table. “Talismans of evil should not stick to your face. Take off the mask!”
Wong chuckled, which sounded more ominous echoed behind the mask.
Gao summoned a light orb. “Irreverence!” He shifted the ball of chi energy closer to Wong’s face, causing him to flinch. “You react as unan do. See how you cringe at the light? See what you have become?”
Jaguan grabbed the grandmaster’s arm and softly lowered it. “Calm, Master. There must be calm to right the ship.”
The light orb dissipated.
“We gain nothing by fighting,” Jaguan said, turning to Wong. “Surely you see the folly in this?”
“I do, but it is needed. I am in control. I feel strong again—very strong.”
Woo stepped closer. “We know you have been losing your connection with light chi, Wong, and that has made you weak. We know your struggles with darkness, but to embrace it is a mistake. You don’t know the effect the mask will have. It is foolish to risk it.”
“You know I have always supported you,” Tengfei said. “But why that mask? Why the face of the demon that killed Grandmaster?”
“It was the most powerful. It was also one of the few undamaged masks left. I had to learn from it, and in a twisted sort of way, it connects me to Tienkow. It’s hard to explain.”
Gao shook his head. “I cannot allow it
. I will not.”
“What if, as you fear—as we all fear—there is still a remnant of the lo-shur that possessed you, that turned your chi to darkness?” Woo said. “What if your actions awaken it and turns you against us? How can we cope with such a thing at a time like this?”
“It is a risk. I admit that. But there’s something more. You are right in that I am now closer to the darkness than I have ever been. I am in tune with it. To a degree, the masks are mystic like the weapons of Shaolin. The talismans were made in the pools of the Koon Kagi and act as a ground for chi energy. They allow the spirit demons to exist in organic form, as unan, reconstituted from the muck and the mud from which they were formed, powering them with dark chi. In such a fashion, they ground the dark chi in me as well when I wear them.”
“What good can come of that?”
“I saw Kai this morning and connected with his mark. I can now sense it unlike before.”
“More strongly?”
“Different—I can also sense the lo-shur demon that marked him.”
Woo appeared dumbfounded. The others were still deciphering its meaning.
“Remember the point I made before?”
“We don’t know anything about the Koon Gee?”
“Well now we do.”
Silence.
“This is an interesting development,” Gao said. “But how can we trust abilities sprung from darkness? What would you have us do?”
“The lo-shur that marked Kai does not feel deep in the Koon Kagi. I believe it is holed up near the pool in the Temple of Masks, the unan stronghold, based on its direction. And right now the unan are weak from battle.”
“We cannot cross into the Koon Kagi to mount an attack. They will tear us apart in their wilderness. Even if we were at full strength.”
“I know. That is why I will find it covertly and kill it. I already made up my mind this morning.”
Lin tried to reason with him. “You can’t go alone. There is a whole army of unan.”
“You walk right into the mouth of the lion.” Woo said. “What if you turn?”