by Paul Heisel
Later in the afternoon, bleary eyed from work, Feln found refuge in a courtyard. It was cool, not freezing, but chilly enough he needed additional layers to keep warm. After clearing his mind of the morning’s tasks, he decided to train. He spent an hour practicing with the Dragonfly blade, refining skills he had honed during his incarceration at the Emperor’s palace. It made him sore and tired, yet it felt good to get his muscles moving again. A hot bath and new clothes made him refreshed, and by that time Owori returned from her assignments. They ate together, talked about the palace and how secure it was – she remarked how well his staff implemented her changes without question or delay. When they finished, Feln took Owori into the study where he showed her the secret of how to open the hidden door, took her inside the Map Room, and presented the map of Pyndira to her. He opened the box of figurines, first to come out were the Emperor’s dragons. They hovered near Daiwer-dar, while the Emperor and Caleth scaled the walls of the box and jogged to their positions. The Most Favoreds were next; with Shisaru, Hikimi, and Furawa’s figurines laying prostrate in the capital cities of the provinces. It reminded him again that soon Sli would come for him. He would have to take Suun with him as a bodyguard, if she was ready by then, or Zuzhan would suffice. He wished he could take Owori, but she was supposed to be dead. She would have to remain here, in Safun, for safekeeping and anonymity. It would be a challenge as well to keep news of her from leaving Safun. He would have to put thought into how to accomplish that.
“This map was just here?” Owori asked.
“Yes,” he answered. He thought about getting one of the books that had all the names of the Favored Ones so he could show Owori how it worked, but all he needed to do was demonstrate it once and she would understand it. “This is how it works. Dragons of the Emperor, Most Favoreds, the Emperor, and Warlord of Pyndira come out of the box. If I want to see where a Favored One is, all I need to do is tell the map who I want to see. Watch. Show me Ella-en-Xialao-Suun.”
Out of the box came a small figure, cloaked and dark like an assassin. It went to Safun and came to a position offset from the capital. She was up at the mountainside training facility, doing what he had asked of her. He was sure she would live up there until she was ready.
“This can show you anyone?”
“Favored Ones,” he answered. “Anyone with a belt.”
“What about Furies?”
“I don’t know.”
“Show me Ginwata,” Owori said. Nothing happened.
“Show me Ginwata,” Feln repeated.
Another tiny figure came out of the box and jogged to the Emperor’s palace, coming close to the Emperor. The figure shook a menacing fist as it went by. It was then that Feln noticed Caleth, the Warlord of Pyndira, was in Ashimo. The answer to that was on the tip of his tongue, yet he couldn’t coax it out. Why was the Warlord of Pyndira in Ashimo?
“What is Caleth doing?” he asked.
“He’s in Ashimo. I think I know why.”
“Enlighten me.”
“That’s where the Furies are marked. Maybe he’s begun his search for Furies there.”
“Doesn’t make sense,” Feln said. “We know Shisaru is the source of the rebellion. He must be there for another reason. If we can answer the question why he would visit Ashimo or visit the place Furies are marked, we can figure out why he is there. Show me Owori.”
A figure came out of the box. It was shaped like her, a miniature representation of herself dressed in a black fighting outfit. It went to Safun and stood by Feln’s Most Favored figurine. He half expected the figures to hold hands.
“This could be useful,” she muttered. “Show me Tasha.”
It didn’t work. Feln repeated the command and another figure came out of the box, a tiny version of the Fury from Bora. It went to the interior of Safun, about a day or two travel from Feln and Owori. “Show me Pearl.” She arrived and was between the capital and Tasha.
“It only works for you,” Owori muttered, sounding disappointed.
“My belt.”
“I was hoping because your belt broke my binding that it would work for me. Tell me, what are we going to do with our Furies from Bora?”
“They’ve taken up residence in one of the outlying areas,” Feln said. “Pearl will let them know the situation. I’m sure Pearl will be coming back soon to discuss her plans. I don’t see any alternative but to bind them to the family. I know that goes against what I promised. Maybe they will understand.”
Owori nodded and leaned over the map.
“If we had the names of all the Furies, we could find them,” Feln said. “Maybe then we could anticipate their next move.”
“All the names of the marked Furies are kept at Salt Island. There’s a record there. No way could you find unmarked Furies though, no names, unless you make a lucky guess perhaps. I figure the map doesn’t take lucky guesses.”
“Do you think they’d give us a copy of the list from Salt Island?”
“Doubtful. Furies are their livelihood. They aren’t going allow anything to threaten that. Caleth will not be well-received if he’s looking for the same information.”
“Do you remember where Salt Island is?” Feln asked.
“I don’t know exactly,” she answered. “They keep the location secret, it’s on an island in the middle of a huge lake. Few know the real location and it’s kept secret because they must. From what I’ve been told the lake is full of nasty creatures.”
Feln surveyed the magical map. His eyes fell upon Caleth’s figurine in Ashimo near a blue splotch that represented water. Salt Island. Caleth was there, but why? “Would they have a record of what families the Furies went to?”
“They keep track of everything down to the last coin they’ve collected for Furies,” Owori answered. “They will know what families they were sold to. Having that and the names doesn’t help find unmarked Furies though.”
“Then he must be there for another reason.”
Stretching her arms across the corner of the map, Owori picked up the box of figurines. There were dozens, all shapes and sizes, and some that looked like monsters. “Is this all you have?”
“There are more boxes over there,” he said, pointing toward the corner. “If we put too many figures on the map, it’ll be too confusing.”
Before she could move over to the corner, the box in her hands vibrated. Owori set it down and stood back, not sure what was happening. The box shook, then there was a crack – like the wood had broken. A figurine crawled out of the box, came to the top, and leaped on the map. It was a beast with green skin and tufts of hair sticking here and there. Broad shoulders and muscles were abound, and a long iron spear was grasped in its claw. If the scowl on its little face was any indication of its disposition, Feln knew this was an angry creature. It hopped across the map, heading toward Ashimo. It went to Caleth’s figurine, shoved it to the ground, sped on by, and went to the southern tip of Hikimi. There it fell to its knees and pounded on the map with a regular ‘whack’ of the butt of its spear.
Feln could see inside the box where it had broken through. There was a false bottom. He took out the figurines until the box was clear, used the smashed wood as a finger hold, and pulled the false bottom out of the box. There were seven differently shaped compartments separated by inlaid wooden slats, and inside the compartments were monstrous figures save the empty spot where the green one had been. None of them looked human or remotely familiar.
“What do you think these are?” he asked.
Owori peered into the box. “Don’t know.”
“Maybe we can find someone who does.”
#
They had tea and honey cakes while they waited for Suun to arrive from the training facility. She was the only one Feln trusted seeing the map, and if she didn’t know what these figures were, then she could ask someone who would possibly know. It took an hour and a half for Suun to arrive from the training facility. Feln explained what they saw, opened the secret room, an
d brought Owori and Suun inside. The figures hadn’t changed position and the green figurine was still pounding on the map. Feln closed the door.
“Demon,” Suun said after taking a closer look at it. “Though I don’t know what type. It's not a horse demon, that's for sure.”
“There were seven of them in this box, sealed in a secret compartment. The false bottom is supposed to lift out, but that figurine couldn’t wait and broke through the wood.”
“Seven?” she asked.
It registered with Suun, he knew it. The way she was scrutinizing the little character, Feln could tell this wasn’t good.
“Can you take the others out?”
They were defunct and like statues, unmoving, and Feln laid them out on a small table one by one. They were different shapes and sizes, different colors, one of them had six arms. They looked dangerous if their representations were anything like the real thing.
“These are the Seven Demons banished from Pyndira. Before our history, before the belts, before the barbarian hordes came, Seven Demons ruled Pyndira. All that you see was once a barren wasteland, kept that way by the demons. Legends speak that the Immortals battled these demons and defeated them. The Immortals used their magic to transform the hell of Pyndira into a lush vibrant land, brought humans here to live, along with the animals and cattle, and magical creatures. Each of the Immortals ruled areas that would eventually become the seven provinces. They vanished, but left their legacy. The families, supposedly, were created from the Immortals. Those, like the Sode family in Shisaru, claim through records they can trace every drop of Immortal blood.”
“What about our family?”
“Records exist, but I’ve been told the bloodline was lost.” Suun crossed her arms. “It’s not important. What’s important is the presence of this demon in Hikimi.”
To him it looked as if the demon was trying to break something. But what? “How were these Demons banished?”
“I don’t know. The Immortals did it. The Immortals were beings of great power. They banished the demons back to the Nether and made it so they couldn’t return.”
Feln looked at Owori, who hadn’t said a word and was pensive. He remembered her talking about a barrier being torn when she had forcibly entered the Crypt of Warlords. Was this what had happened? She tore the barrier between Pyndira and the demon world, the Nether? Or did she tear the barrier where the demons were imprisoned?
“What should we do now?” Feln asked.
Suun made no reply – she was already moving toward the door. An icy stare went to Owori, then she proceeded outside and disappeared. With outstretched hand, Feln took Owori and led her into the study, locked the secret door, and hid the key. Still Owori hadn’t said anything. Suun sat in a chair, arms crossed, plainly displaying her disdain.
“What should we do?” he repeated.
“The Seven Demon Lords have terrible armies,” Suun said. “One demon must have broken free of its prison and arrived in Pyndira. It must be trying to break another barrier or prison, perhaps to bring demons to help.”
“Any of this familiar?” he asked, directing the question to Owori. When Owori hesitated, he added, “I trust Suun. Speak openly.”
“It’s my fault,” she answered. “They told me not to enter the Crypt of Warlords. All the time they had been talking about Qio being allowed to enter, not me. I forced my way in with the power of your belt, but in the process, tore a barrier. It must have been where this demon was – confined within the barrier. I tore it, now it’s free.”
Suun’s face became flushed. Owori collapsed in a chair.
“This is upsetting you, I know it. Talk to us.”
“The reason the spirits of the Warlords let me leave the Crypt is they said I was the only one who could fix it. I was the only one who could repair the tear. Maybe I’m the only one who can defeat the demon. I don’t know.”
“Pyndira was a desolate wasteland when the Demon Lords ruled,” Suun said, teeth clenched. “I warned you about using his Most Favored belt!”
“I’m alive because of her efforts,” Feln interjected. “In some way shape or form, so are you. Who went to the Sode manor at great peril to rescue you?”
“A few good deeds don’t counterbalance what she’s done! My life, your life, is not worth letting demons return!” Suun stood and smoothed her dark uniform. She was fuming over this. “I’m going back to the fortress. Seems that I need to learn to kill demons.”
“Suun!”
The assassin snapped around. Clearly the movement caused her pain.
“What should we do?” he asked.
“If you inform Hikimi they won’t believe you. They will send a patrol to investigate the area and they will be slaughtered. You have to do this yourself.”
“I’ll inform the team in Hikimi to take a look.”
“Is there anything else?” Suun asked. "Is there anything else!"
“If you have something to say, then say it,” Owori told her. "We're in this together."
“I never should have told you where the belt was hidden, that I regret. It would have been better if we would have suffered terrible deaths than bring the demons back. Your actions will destroy all Pyndira! You're responsible!”
“It wasn’t on purpose.”
“Just stay away from me,” Suun said. She turned to Feln. “Send for me if you need me or if you get a report from the Hikimi team. Goodbye.”
“I’m not afraid of her,” Owori said, her voice cool and loud enough for the departing Suun to hear.
“I don’t need you two at odds, as it does neither of you or me any good. Let her calm down and I’ll speak with her in two or three days.”
“How am I to fix this torn barrier? That would send the demon back, would it not?”
“Seems logical,” Feln said. “We just need to figure out what you have to do.”
“What about the Fury rebellion?”
“Worrying about the Fury rebellion is going to pale in comparison to these demons based on Suun’s reaction,” Feln said. “What worries me is fighting two foes on two fronts."
“Where should I start?”
“I want you to continue your work here at the palace until we can formulate a strategy to address the Furies and the demons. We don’t have enough information to make plans and I want to involve Pearl in this. One advantage we have is we can track these Demon Lords with the map. We’ll be able to watch where they go. For now, there is only one in Hikimi.”
There was a knock on the study door. “Enter,” Feln said as grabbed a nearby book and took a chair. Owori followed his lead and sat down.
De came through the door and bowed.
“What is it De?”
“You’re needed in the main hall. Two unexpected visitors have arrived. One is a young man named Paq. He’s asking for Pearl. Says he will only talk to the Most Favored or her, and that he has important news concerning Furies.”
“Paq,” Owori whispered. “He left Salt Island?”
“The artist who makes marks?” Feln asked.
“Yes. He came here looking for Pearl. It may be a stroke of luck for us and Pearl’s Furies.”
“And the other visitor?” Feln asked.
“He wants to speak with Owori. I think both of you should talk to him.”
“Who is he?” Owori asked. “I don’t know anyone here. No one knows I’m here!”
“He won’t name himself, though he claims to be one of the Immortals.”
#
Here ends An Emperor’s Fury: The Warlord of Pyndira. Continue the adventures of Feln and Owori as they battle against the expanding Fury rebellion, are faced with the return of the Seven Demons Lords, and race against time to locate the reclusive Immortals.