Silver Fox & The Western Hero: Warrior’s Path

by Johnson, M. H.

  Artificer Perception skill check made! -6 Penalty negated with previous exposure!

  All he had to do was study the rows of ancient symbols, the same language as he had encountered in the hall of emperors and gods a full plateau below, to know that he beheld an artifact so priceless that wars consuming entire nations would be fought over this prize which would allow any emperor to rule from the heavens.

  And any upstart disciple of the fox who dared to think he could rule like one of Zheng Yi’s descendants with only seven meridian channels would find his soul tormented by such hideous magics of sea and sky that he would be instantly and irrevocably obliterated upon the spot.

  If he hadn’t spotted and instantly understood the symbols comprising an ancient language the gods above were no doubt certain no mortal outside of the imperial line would know, certainly not an upstart like Alex…

  Alex flashed a fierce smile. “A trap containing such a sweet prize that anyone able to make use of it could do naught but call it the grandest of gifts, though it is only feasible for rulers and emperors and Jade Queens with a god’s blood, however diluted, flowing through their veins. A prize not even your adopted son can use.”

  He chuckled bitterly. “You won’t bypass Fog of War that easily, you bastards, but I’ll admit… you did come close.”

  With tightly clenched fists, he strode past the magnificent throne, having to fight to discern the mist-shrouded staircase some distance beyond, understanding all too well that even those blessed with a twelve-element configuration would be surrendering any further ascent with the grandest of boons. And really, what king or emperor wouldn’t want to make use of a throne that would allow him to communicate with all his men at any distance while keeping his eyes firmly upon any battlefield or area of note within his kingdom, no matter how distant it might be?

  Truly a gift fit for the emperor himself and the gods above, did the latter not already have tools that allowed them to do much the same thing, according to the rules of their world-size game.

  And despite how fierce the currents had become, Alex took that first step upon a staircase of deepest blue-green jade with profound relief, for all that he now found himself leaning ever so slightly into his ascent and carefully watching his footing.

  Time passed as the starry night sky seemed to swirl with ever greater madness around him. He focused every bit of his attention solely on the next step before him, at as much risk of retching from sheer motion sickness and disorientation as anything else.

  Eternal Fox modifiers in effect! Vitality check made! You have saved against seizure. You have saved against vomiting!

  Alex flashed another fierce, bitter grin, feeling like he was being rocked within the depths of a massive galleon caught in a summer storm. He fought just to keep from spewing the contents of his craw, sensing death’s terrible weight, so eager to crush the hulls of his own resolve and send him hurtling through the heavens as a falling star in perpetual torment. A fitting end to the piece that had caused them no end of ire, he had no doubt the gods would declare.

  He slowed only slightly and took a deep breath, clenching his fists and forcing himself out of his terrible nauseous state. If only he could close his eyes… but he didn’t dare, having no doubt that his Qi Perception would be thrown wildly off as well, and then he would be surely doomed.

  Instead, he continued to put one step in front of the other.

  Perception Check made!

  Before realizing a truth that had almost eluded him entirely.

  As awful as he felt, his nausea and dizziness were as much mental as they were physical.

  As far as actual physical or crushing spiritual exertions went… it wasn’t that much harder than uphill jogs in the weeks before track and field started in earnest, and he was determined to train up as fast and as hard as he could and beat all his old records.

  “Faster, Alex, faster! Up that hill as fast as you damn well can!”

  The ghost of his mother’s private coach echoed in his ears, and as bittersweet as those halcyon memories sometimes were, he felt inspired by those words, jerking a nod only he could see.

  “Fast as a fox, coach. Mark my words.”

  He began racing up those steps as fast as his legs could carry him, dizziness and nausea fading within moments of his furious ascent. He was now far too focused on embracing the burn in his legs, the stitch in his side, the fierce desire to beat all his old records in every life he had ever lived before, to worry about a quibbly belly.

  And then, so fast that it happened without any warning at all, he was through.

  His eyes widened with speechless wonder to find himself bursting through misty clouds, only to stumble upon warm, wet sand, the sound of the roaring surf and crying seagulls behind him.

  He took a deep breath of air tangy with salt and iodine, taking a few tentative steps through thick green foliage heavy with the ripest, juiciest mangoes he ever did see, only to behold the most magnificent garden he could possibly imagine. Rows of roses, tulips, marigolds, lobelias, and a myriad other exotic varieties of blossom, both real and imagined, all graced the earth surrounding the trunks of countless blooming cherry and apple trees. The grove’s boughs were heavy with exquisitely ripe fruit, leaves rustling in the softest of breezes, and at the heart of it all stood a tree so magnificent, so grand, it seemed to tower over the entire massive garden, branches laden with golden fruit kissed by drops of honey-sweet dew. A shuddering Alex knew it was no coincidence when the closest branch gently lowered its fruit-laden bower, a single grapefruit-sized golden apple hovering directly over his reflexively outstretched hand.

  Alex felt a shiver of incredulity as he beheld the perfect ideal of fruit, even as he sensed the sudden appearance of a pair of doors manifesting countless miles away, waiting for him to make his choice on the far side of this mystic grove filled with countless spiritual treasures, Qi infused flowers, fruit, and brilliantly glowing herbs as far as the eye could see. The entire grand garden was backlit by countless Silverbell Blossoms ringing like tiny golden flutes in the breeze, a gentle haunting melody that took Alex’s breath away.

  And why should he be surprised? He had only ever seen them before in environments where the air was almost reverentially still. But here, on the Olympian shores separating transcendent mortality from the truly divine, the Silverbells could sway in the breeze, as did countless other arboreal wonders, such as the massive tree, heavy with golden fruit, that served as the magnificent crown sheltering this tiny realm.

  And just as Alex knew that the Golden door would announce his transcendent glory to the world, opening countless avenues of opportunity through the Emperor’s ties, just as he knew that to leave by the door of mist and shadow would deposit him hale and hearty before the school gates while gifting him with anonymity—the greatest of prizes he could ask for—he also knew that to claim the prize shining like golden fire before him would mark the end of his glorious ascension.

  And what a glorious prize it was, he thought, gazing wide-eyed at the magnificent apple being offered to him.

  You have detected Divine Spirit Fruit. Do you wish to consume Divine Spirit Fruit? Qi flow is aligned with… Longevity & Ancient Wisdom.

  Alex felt a delicious thrill as his Qi Perception and Biochemical Mastery skills made it clear just how priceless a treasure was bobbing in the breeze before him. He had already consumed one mystic fruit of supernatural properties, and he knew just how precious a boon this fruit would be, at least for most cultivators. Their lives would undoubtedly extend for centuries above and beyond what they would otherwise accomplish, and with Wisdom so firmly correlated with personal power in this universe, any wujen would kill for such a gift. Even Alex was awed by the thought of raising his Qi Pool beyond the Rank 4 Silver he currently enjoyed. Perhaps, with this fruit, he would even unlock Gold.

  Yet still, Alex hesitated from claiming this prize.

  The soft rustling whispers of twigs and leaves made it clear Alex was welcome to tak
e as many spiritually infused fruits and blossoms as he wished, in addition to the tree’s own incredible gift.

  But there would be a price.

  How could there not be?

  These glorious fruits, so filled with heavenly Qi, were ripe with Earthly spiritual energy as well, and so fitting for a creature of body and spirit like himself, like all the countless billions of mortals below. And he would prosper consuming these fruits, as well as making excellent use of these countless herbs and cuttings, he had no doubt.

  But the moment he plucked his first blossom, or claimed the golden apple wavering so delightfully upon the branch tip before him, his journey would be over.

  Having ascended to the heights of Jade, within sight of the heavenly realms…

  He would ascend no further.

  He chuckled softly.

  How eager he was to claim that exquisite fruit, even as a single brush of his trembling palm against the leaves, swaying so seductively, made clear the oath bindings keeping even this divine relic under the accords of the gods above.

  He could sense that it had once been a child of the greater forest far beyond, before ascending between realms; a chance fertile bud infused with Divine promise caressed by Zheng Yi’s heavenly winds, which gently funneled up this magnificent pillar of creation before coming to rest on pristine Silverbell blossom laden soil, where it grew strong and proud. Its grand roots rested beneath untold debris and all of its own discarded fruit, flowers, and fallen leaves, all of which turned gradually to mulch and richest loam. The tree had grown vast, becoming its own provider of sustenance and nourishment, along with the heavenly sun shining down.

  But still, it yearned for more.

  In a flash of insight conveyed by Wood, Spirit, and Water Qi, Alex could sense that truth. In Dark Qi as well, with the seemingly chaotic, random whispers of rustling leaves and restless roots, he could sense the mighty tree’s growing discontent.

  It had been consigned to one lonely pillar bestriding Heaven and Earth, doomed never to grow or expand itself beyond its own tiny realm.

  A heavenly purgatory.

  Each golden fruit it offered would benefit those very few in any world that could make this journey, which had perhaps inspired who knew how many daring aspirants in millennia long past. One would think it the perfect opportunity for the magnificent tree before him to spread its influence. Yet the very nature of a cultivator’s ravenous appetite for power and advancement meant that the golden fruit would always be consumed in its entirety. Not a single seed would survive the journey between realms and a cultivator’s perpetual desire to advance at all costs. Even if said aspirant was willing, carefully swallowing the seeds and seeking to adjust his own metabolism, Alex had no doubt that their own bodies would betray their good intentions in the end, greedily devouring every trace of potency said fruit and seeds could offer.

  A cynical suspicion revealed as nothing less than the truth by the sad rustling of the leaves before him.

  Yet Alex couldn’t help grinning for ferocious joy, wondering if perhaps he knew of a way to benefit them both.

  He already knew the price he would be forced to pay if he devoured that apple immediately, or accepted the burden of its weight.

  But what if there was another way?

  He smiled at the rustling tree. “I am protected by Fog of War, a boon atop countless banes stacked upon my soul, so I may speak freely. But I’d caution you to stillness, lest a single untoward rustle give away the key to your freedom.”

  And just like that, the rustling stopped. Not just the rustling, but the seductive susurrations of countless Silverbells also came to an abrupt, jarring end.

  The heavenly breeze itself stilled, the air growing thick and heavy.

  Alex shivered with sudden apprehension as he felt the pressure of the ancient tree’s presence in truth. A wild, terrible power it was, so like the Golden Realms forests below. This source of incredible potency and potential, railing against bindings millennia old, was not something to be taken lightly.

  Alex drew a deep, ragged breath, surprised to find himself at an anxious loss for words before a tree, of all things.

  And yet, somehow, he knew that this ancient sentinel could destroy him utterly, as alien as such an act would be.

  Should he be trifling with an arboreal sentience a half-step from the divine…

  He coughed, forcing himself to speak. He briefly wondered if what he dared was utterly beyond the pale, but he knew he had nothing, absolutely nothing to lose in the offer.

  Save perhaps his life if he delayed any longer, feeling increasingly impatient roots beginning to brush against his feet…

  Alex jerked up his brass ring, which he knew meant absolutely nothing to this tree.

  “My name is Alex Hammer. Disciple of Silver Fox.”

  And just like that, the dreadful shiver that he had believed to be roots rustling against his ankles, getting ready to pull him in and consume him, or tear him free of the mortal realm entirely, was gone. Nothing but mulched and leaves caressed his ankles, for all that he sensed deadly peril just a single mistake away. It curiously felt like the reverse of how a certain grove had actually cared enough to hold Alex’s soul suspended between life and death for countless weeks or months that had never happened… which had even allowed him the time, and perhaps the stability, to channel every last ounce of his fading soul into a single cleaving strike that had brought him crashing back to life, with the core of a deity to call his own.

  No one knew better than him how close he had come to death, or how much he owed the Golden Realms forest below.

  And no one knew better than him the terrible peril he faced, should he dare to insult this half-divine arboreal wonder, so long cut off from all others of its kind.

  But still… it seemed that, perhaps, the fox had had his own dealings with the forest below, so long ago that even this tree recalled them.

  Which, all things considered, if Alex wanted to keep on living, was a very good thing.

  He swallowed, forcing his racing thoughts back in order.

  Forcing himself to speak allowed him to reveal that which he feared to say, even with Fog of War in effect.

  “This ring isn’t just a ring.”

  And how strange it was, he thought, to feel the pressure of the tree’s regard, just like sight, seeming almost to squeeze and crush his ring and finger into an odd two-dimensional silhouette… while doing nothing to harm him at all.

  Alex steeled his resolve. “It’s a gate to a world seed.”

  Raising his eyes to the leafy crown, he took a deep breath. “My own.”

  Abruptly, he felt the terrible pressure of the tree’s regard crushing him completely.

  Its intense focus began stretching him out in ways too horrific to imagine, like a three-dimensional cutout blown up countless added dimensions…

  Yet not moving a single hair on his suddenly sweat-covered scalp.

  “It’s thirty-two miles in circumference right now. Pretty much a baby planet, and glad I am that it’s not crashing into this world. It’s a relief that physics in this reality means gravity and air pressure and solar radiation haven’t turned my pocket realm into an instant wasteland, which probably means nothing to you, but is pretty damn important to me and has nothing to do with this conversation… except showcasing what I’d like to offer you.”

  Countless leaves rustled in a polite query.

  Alex forced himself to continue, his ring held just high enough to be caressed by a chance leaf upon the swaying branch. “I won’t risk triggering whatever oathbindings or wardings now constrain you, so I will ask you for absolutely nothing in return, since I’m all too familiar with the way a certain pantheon thinks.” He flashed a bitter smile. “Kindness for its own sake is utterly beyond them, so let me offer you such freely, without reservation.”

  His found his heart filled with unexpected reverence for the magnificent tree now shifting its leaves so hopefully, and he couldn’t help smiling
for sheer joy at beholding such a wonder, let alone realizing he could do something for it that perhaps no one else could.

  “Would you like to spread your seeds to my world?”

  And how the tree trembled, like it wished for nothing more than just that.

  Alex chuckled softly. “I understand, and it’s alright. A gift isn’t a gift if it isn’t freely given. I ask for nothing in return. Not even the fruit off your limbs. But if your seeds would like fresh new soil to grow and blossom upon, they may have it. And they alone can decide if anyone, including myself, is worthy of the blessing of their fruit.” He raised a quick finger. “But no eating any of my people! Or turning them to mulch or loam, or what-have-you. For I sense your power, and I would ask for your offspring’s forbearance. In return, I’ll counsel my people… my future people… that any tree bearing golden apples is not to be cut, only moved, if necessity dictates. And they may eat no fruit not gifted to them or dropped upon the forest floor.”

  And you would claim nothing from me?

  Alex broke into a wide grin. “Nothing you would not give freely, for friendship’s sake alone.”

  When he forced his now fiercely glowing brass ring to rise, he felt as if he were pressing against fate itself. Without warning, a pair of golden apples fell from the branch and upon his ring, then vanished before his eyes, instantly transported a world away.

  He shuddered, falling to his knees as he was rocked with an insight so profound it left him breathless, in that instant sensing the connection between himself, the sacred tree before him, and this Olympian mountaintop cresting the world.

  A pristine moment of transcendent wisdom condensed like a snapshot into a single perfect card.

  Congratulations! You have forged your first Card of Fate! A Gift Freely Given! You may place your card upon the Board of Fate and claim all cards in play of this card’s rank or lower! This will take up One Turn!