Silver Fox & The Western Hero: Warrior’s Path

by Johnson, M. H.

  Xun Hu flashed an approving nod when each and every beaker, alembic, crucible, and container filled with priceless spiritual herbs seemed to disappear in his hands. Only the alchemical tomes did he leave behind, after carefully touching each of them. Her delighted grin quickly turned to laughter when his ring claimed the entire massive workstation with an odd slurping sound.

  "I'm strong enough to lift it, just barely, so it counts as just one item," he declared.

  The kitsune smirked. “You’re not going to let anything go to waste!"

  Alex grinned his agreement. “Damn right I'm not. A copy of each Gold tome, and every single treatise written about those cultivation manuals, is now a part of my library. And what could be more useful for the budding alchemist than unlimited supplies?” Then his smile turned fierce. “And I don’t plan on leaving a single shred of knowledge or treasure that our enemies can later use against us. We’re cleaning this sanctuary out, Xun Hu. To the last damned page and beaker."

  Her brows furrowed, pointedly looking at the triple element tome, the true prize within this glorious wing that Alex had stripped bare, that he still held in his hand. “But Alex, what about…”

  She froze stock-still as Alex gently whispered into her quivering ear, a slow, beautiful smile giving life to her too-wan features.

  “Brilliant, Alex. That’s absolutely brilliant!” she crowed. “Of course, if you’re wrong, or you misjudge things even an iota… we’re pretty much meat paste. You do realize that, don’t you?”

  Alex threw back his head and laughed. “Of course. How could it ever be otherwise?”

  Xun Hu gave a rueful shake of her head at his antics. “When you dance with the fox…” she muttered under her breath.

  Alex’s smile only grew, though he deliberately chose not to pay attention to her mutterings as they proceeded with their plan.

  Summon Portal skill check made! You have successfully summoned 5 Complex Portals! (Distance Bridged – minimal. Qi Drain – 50 points.)

  And the thrill of exultation Alex felt surging through his soul at the modest-sized pyramidal structure glowing at the very bottom of the winding stairwell was just as sweet as the rush he got from each of the Gold-tier cultivation manuals he had claimed a copy of, without triggering any destructive retribution at all.

  Fifteen tomes he now had stacked on a hardwood table which he had dragged close to the staircase…

  And a single golden coin effortlessly dropped down the stairwell made it clear they had over a second to jump through the open portal that he and his anxious kitsune companion now stood beside.

  That coin never touched the floor just below the hovering pyramid, but rather seemed to disappear into the ether.

  And a second coin, lobbed up after the first in order for it to have hang time before falling down into the shimmering pyramid of gates below, stretched their window to a good two seconds.

  A nervously swishing tail brushed his leg. “Alex? Um… yeah. If this doesn’t work, if your plan has even one tiny flaw… we’re both going to die pretty explosively. You know that, right?”

  Alex’s madcap grin said it all.

  She chuckled ruefully. “Yeah, I thought so.”

  Alex wiped the furious grin off his features, holding tightly to control. Because no matter how much he wanted to strike at his foes, this girl was counting on him to see her safely to the other side of what would be the final chapter of his life spent at this school, one way or another.

  “You can jump through at any time, Xun Hu,” he said softly. “You don’t have to wait for what comes next.”

  To that she adamantly shook her head, scowling right back at him. “The hell with that! After what those…” She swallowed, too choked up to speak, wiping away sudden furious tears from resolute eyes that gazed back up at his own, followed by a ruthless smile every bit as twisted as his own had been. “I think it’s time we let our enemies know what we’re up to, don’t you?”

  Alex laughed and nodded, and the perfect view of his magnificent palace turned to one far more mundane as he opened a portal to the library once more, allowing for light and sound within the standard spectrum to travel through…and nothing else.

  He crossed his arms with fierce satisfaction as he beheld a red-faced Sudong, roaring at the terrified pair of Golds who were desperately struggling with the portal, and he felt absolutely certain that it was fear motivating the man’s panicked threats. And as for cold, arrogant eyes so clearly mirroring Bingwen’s own… Alex felt a sudden chill of understanding. It wasn’t that Sudong looked like Bingwen, so much as both looked like Zheng Yi, Lord Justice, who in Alex’s opinion, was anything but.

  Of course his nemesis would be using his own descendants, countless times removed, to assure that no outsider, whether Ruidian or kitsune or Terran, ever got a hold of a single resource of note at any college of renown. Alex couldn't help but shake his head. He had really been such an idealistic fool to ever think for even a moment that the cards wouldn’t forever be stacked against him, that his journey could be anything other than the eternal struggle it had always been.

  Alex chuckled softly, finally accepting the bitter truth for what it was. He was furiously happy to refuse to play by their rules any longer, more determined than ever to do what it took to win this game.

  What he wanted, he would take.

  And he would destroy any obstacle that his enemies, for they would forever and always be his enemies, put in his way.

  “You had best open the gate now, fools, or Dongfang Hong won’t be the only master to fill your nights with terror!” Headmaster Sudong roared at the frantic pair of Golds, their ruby earrings clearly visible despite the shimmering veil of protective enchantments incorporated within their exquisitely tailored garments, now that Alex was looking for it.

  Both Golds paled but kept their concentration, and Alex could feel their pressure like the faintest of surges. It definitely helped that his Tier 3 golden gate was, he suspected, a higher rank than their own. For ascending even to Rank 1 Gold was a miraculous feat that, on average, only one citizen per sacred city might achieve. And of course, the frequency of Golds grew significantly scarcer for each rank above the first.

  Of course, in this case, he wasn’t hindering their ability to slip through the gate at all. It was the fact that it was superimposed over the entrance that was the library’s own that they couldn’t get past, likely thinking the library gate was malfunctioning, as opposed to a second gate layered on top of it. And to the best of Alex's knowledge, the library gate was considered unique, so even considering that he might have any sort of gate mastery was probably utterly outside their paradigm, such a feat relegated to the tales of a certain divine general whom Alex now despised beyond all others, save for Hao Zei himself.

  He’d succeeded in setting a trap so utterly outside their paradigm that he knew it had gotten the best out of even the one Gold among them who might actually outrank his dimensional portal.

  And he couldn’t deny the sweet surge of satisfaction he got as he peered down at the trio of startled Golds and the handful of frightened Silver guardians, all of them looking up at the portal now revealed so clearly upon the ceiling above them, only to find a smirking Alex holding not one, but two, Gold tomes.

  “Are you looking for these, Sudong? What a shame! Fifteen priceless Gold tomes, one ideally suited for an alchemist that even our beloved Emperor would fight to have on his staff, and it looks like you and your damned army of sycophantic lickboots won’t ever be able to access a single one ever again!”

  Alex laughed at the sudden roars of fury his taunts caused, even as the Golds and Silvers flinched and darted away as the ultimate wujen of the school was suddenly surrounded by fierce, stormy clouds of ice and wrath.

  “You will open this portal and surrender all the treasures within, you foul piece of Ruidian filth, or I swear I will dedicate the rest of my life to purging every single Ruidian from the face of this realm!”

  The air its
elf seemed to reverberate with the potency of Sudong’s oath.

  Such a dire curse would have horrified a younger, more innocent Alex, perhaps, but the one who was smirking down at the headmaster attempting to shoot massive bolts of ice and lightning at Alex—attacks that deflected off the gate harmlessly, though at least one shield maiden’s sudden desperate scream was cut short by death—only smiled and gave his foe the finger.

  “Good thing I don’t give a rat’s ass about any piece you would think to use against me, you asinine blowhard. But I’ll be sure to let Dongfang Hong know that you have just sworn to kill his own relatives. Everyone might pretend those Ruidian ancestors aren’t there, but you and I both know they make up so much of his bloodline that I actually sent you all scurrying from the library like the cowards you are! When I implied that I was his relative, his descendant, you actually believed me. And how I laughed! Laughed at your foolish backs, after outfoxing you all!”

  The infuriated howls resonating through the library were enough to make the building tremble and shake, and the red-faced headmaster seemed ready to explode with rage.

  “You’re him! The enemy beyond all others. The monstrous abomination my clan has sworn to destroy whenever and wherever you show your ugly, unforgivable face!” Sudong's gaze sharpened to a killing fury. “WiFu’s damned disciple! He’s you!”

  Alex had the gall to wink. “It’s the hair, right? I always think about dyeing it a nice shade of brown whenever I pop back into existence with more delicious mischief in mind, but then I think, why not live a little? It’s far more fun to make fools of my enemies when they’re forced to accept that they should have known all along who and what I am. And to know that I was laughing in your faces the entire time! Speaking of which, how’s Duo Ku feeling? Face still melted off? Major improvement, if you ask me. And I bet Dongfang Hong absolutely can’t wait for you explain to him exactly how I managed to destroy his lackey so easily, and scare you fools into leaving this library completely defenseless!”

  The ringing echo of Alex’s laughter was an easy match for his enemy’s howls as he began juggling multiple golden tomes for the sheer pleasure of the outrage the act caused, happy to feed his enemy his worst fears in exchange for the headmaster’s howls of fury.

  Only when his normally savvy, perhaps even brilliant, foe was near apoplectic with outrage, did Alex think it right to tease him with one final delicious taunt.

  “I will juggle these tomes for just as long as it suits me and use the rest for wiping my ass just for the sheer joy of knowing how deeply it will pain you. After all, what use does someone like me have for your so-called sacred treasures? Simply the joy of making you howl like a monkey! And unless you can summon Dongfang Hong, or force the power of the Red Prince to bend to the will of someone as flawed as you… there is absolutely nothing you can do that will succeed in anything save giving me sweet, sweet pleasure in your fury and despair.”

  Alex swept into a mocking bow. “There. I have given you the one hint to unraveling this puzzle that living legend has sworn to impart to mortal ears, even ears as unworthy as your own! But I have outsmarted you even there, Sudong. For I happen to know that Dongfang Hong is countless miles away. So, it’s just you and me and the delightful sound of your furious, desperate howls, while I dream of all the ways your crimson master will torment you for letting me absolutely destroy his library!”

  It was almost chilling how fast the headmaster’s unbridled outrage turned to frigidly focused intensity. Alex pretended utter indifference as he continued to juggle priceless tomes and mock his enemy, as if he were a youling jester in truth… or a character right out of a play.

  “Now it makes sense. You’re not even mortal, are you, creature? A figment of legend. The curse of the Fox, bound to his covenants and strictures!”

  And with what seemed an enormous act of will, Sudong dragged his gaze down from the screen-like portal on the ceiling, averting his eyes from Alex’s mockery as he glared at his men. “Quit flinching like cowards! The answer is obvious! To the stacks.” He turned his stony glare upon the pair of trembling guardians. “You two. Have every loyal librarian attend us.” He then turned to the Golds. “Gather every Silver, instructor, and aspirant, no matter their rank, who has given his oath to serve. All of them! They will all present themselves by the library entrance in one glass, or I will have their heads!”

  The Golds actually slammed fists to chests in salute. “At once, headmaster,” the pair said in unison, turning and leaving with a certain amount of decorum, though the Silver guardians had fled just as fast as their feet would take them.

  Alex finally closed the golden gate, flashing his friend a fierce smile.

  You have closed Wilderness Escape Portal from your Eternal Palace Suite.

  You have closed Fishing For Suckers Portal linking Inner Sanctuary to Outer Library.

  One Portal designated as Princess Escape Tunnel leading to your Eternal Palace Suite has been restored. One Portal superimposed over Library Portal has been left intact. Two Oathbound portals allowing Royal Phoenix Academy cultivators escape to your realm have been left intact. Six Portals securing Divine Artifact over River of Souls have been left intact. Four portals comprising Pyramid of Vengeance have been left intact.

  You now have one out of fifteen Portals available to you.

  “Alex? What exactly…” Xun Hu bit her lip, looking suddenly anxious. “Is it true?”

  “Is what true?”

  Xun Hu flushed. “Are you really, um… a living figment of story or dream? Half real, half divine echo, living life like scenes in your eternal play, surprisingly powerful and easily underestimated, but forced to give your enemies hints on how best to defeat you, like in the story books?”

  Alex blinked in surprise, then laughed out loud. “I knew it was a shot in the dark, but if you actually… wow. Now I know this crazy plan might not be a complete disaster, after all.” He furrowed his brow. “Assuming I haven’t completely overestimated just how powerful that Jade vault door is below.”

  The kitsune frowned at his glib tone. “Maybe you’d better explain to me why you’re giving our foe hints, then?”

  He flashed his companion a maverick grin. “Because our foe let slip that not only did he hate me personally, but also that his entire clan has sworn to do everything they could to wipe me from the face of the Golden Realms from the moment they figure out who I am. So of course, the next logical step, after cutting out the absolutely pointless railing at the vindictive gods above who hate me so damned much, was using his clan’s obsession against him.”

  Xun Hu tilted her head curiously. “Please explain.”

  Alex shrugged. “I mean, if I’m that much of a boogie man to these people… Did that translate? Anyway, if I’m that horrible a figure, they must have stories and legends about me. I already know that the library below is absolutely packed with tales about the gods and I guess their favorite pawns, maybe? They’d be heroes and demigods, if they were tales from my world. Here, I bet they’re more like tools quickly used and thrown away.”

  “Of course,” Xun Hu said. “Few fates are worse than becoming a tool of the gods. Though there are exceptions,” she quickly amended.

  Alex smirked. “Anyway, I already had suspicions when several sparring classmates assumed that I was somehow destined to fall to their stupid gambits and eventually lose all my winnings if they just kept challenging me, as if all Ruidians had the same flaws as a certain character they all read about. And I have yet to read a fairy tale that wasn’t tweaked to paint the favored power as noble and just, and the villains as foolish idiots, easily tricked, or, if they dared show cleverness, as being fatally flawed.”

  Xun Hu nodded. “Of course. But that doesn’t…” Trailing off, her eyes widened. “Wait. What you said…”

  Alex could see his smile reflected in the kitsune's too-wide eyes, though he was surprised to find himself looking so damned vicious.

  “You’re not just trying to goad the h
eadmaster, are you, Alex?”

  He slowly shook his head. “There’s only one way this can end, Xun Hu. You already know that.”

  The young kitsune stared at Alex with something very close to horror, but didn't say a word.

  55

  "This farce is over, cursed disciple! Do you hear me? I have solved your damned riddle!"

  Anxious eyes widened as Alex peered down through the window-like portal he had purposely left open so he could keep an eye on his enemy's progress, all the while throwing down worried glances and the occasional empty threat that made the headmaster smile as he did indeed manage to gather the prince's power. It seemed that nearly every student and master who had sworn themselves to that invader's cause had converged below, all of them glaring at a larger than life Alex with hate-filled eyes that glittered nearly as brightly as the rubies upon their persons, their allegiance utterly clear.

  Alex quickly turned away from the sight.

  Lest a single twitch of his features give the game away.

  But even that quick glance had shown Alex everything he needed to know.

  Pretending he hadn't seen eyes filled with fear as well as fury, feeling more than a twinge of sympathy for those students who had made a bitter choice that never should have been forced upon them.

  The haunted look in Xun Hu's eyes made it clear she had seen it as well.

  "Alex?"

  She paled, instinctively stepping back from whatever she saw in his gaze.

  "It's time,” he said, his voice hard as ice.

  The kitsune swallowed nervously but didn't hesitate to nod. "I understand."