“Looks like we didn’t have to worry about you rushing ahead after all,” someone in the group said. Ash couldn’t identify who was talking, but it didn’t matter anyways. Everyone here was his enemy.
“You’ve made it easy for us. Whoever manages to cripple you is going to get a massive reward,” someone else said aloud.
“Oh grand. Let’s see who wants to step up and get killed first, then,” Ash said. Pressing his focus into the Qi rod in his hand, he turned the flat staff tip to a spear. “Because if that’s your plan, I’d rather kill someone and be kicked out for that.”
Ash leveled his spear and gave it a small flourish, the tip making a figure eight.
All the Deng members stared at the spear tip as if it were alive.
Not wanting to say anything more, Ash stood there letting the situation press his threat. Thinking of his options, he was rather limited on what he could do.
“The examination is complete!” called a distant voice. “Everyone head down immediately.”
Dismissing his chains, Ash focused everything into his Spring Step and simply dove over everyone’s heads.
Pitching himself off the edge of the stairs, Ash fell to the ground in a rapid escape.
Fortunately, he only broke one leg when he landed.
Twenty-Seven
Ash clapped his hands together as Gen was introduced as the newest elder for the Outer Sect. He stood at the rear of the square, as far back from everyone else as possible.
His leg was already healed and mended, but it still felt a bit tender to Ash.
Weak, even.
Painful to put his entire weight on.
The healer had mentioned that since he’d been healed in a similar fashion so recently for his hands, the results would be harder to predict. Injuries requiring this kind of healing were somewhat rare.
The head elder and the rest of the elders looked rather surprised at the situation. Even as they announced the change in status, they seemed unable to process it.
“Was breaking your leg absolutely necessary?” Moira complained, sitting next to him on the bench.
“Eh… not really? I mean, for all I know they could have left me alone at the end, but I didn’t want to risk it,” Ash said. “If you and a bunch of your allies were left alone with your enemy, would you respect the rules?
“I’m not so sure I would. So… out I went.”
Tala snorted and shifted her weight to her other leg. Peering down at him as she stood above him and at his side, she looked annoyed.
“Be grateful I elected to carry you back. It was a gift that you were allowed to touch me so easily,” said the Rabbit woman.
“Speaking of that,” Moira said, looking past Ash to the other woman. “Why were you there?”
“Because Ash doesn’t think ahead, and always manages to get in trouble,” Tala said with a shrug. “You were watching over our home; I assumed I could grace him with my presence.”
“Fair,” Ash said without any sort of disagreement. “Lately it seems I’ve just been rushing blindly ahead. I’ve put us into a clan war without the slightest bit of thought.”
Watching his leg bones become fractured bits of kindling had sent him into a world of agony.
Agony and introspection.
Up to this point, everything he’d done had been rushed. Short sighted and not very well planned.
Centered around his family and little more than that.
“If we’re going to be making a long-term home here, we’ll need to change the way I’ve been going about things,” Ash said.
“I’m unsure you will want to stay, actually,” Moira said suddenly.
“Huh? Why?”
“Your sister was packing up her home while you were away. I noticed as I walked by,” Tala said. “I let Moira know and left.”
“Yes, and after that, she slipped a note under the door,” Moira added. “It read that she was heading back home and leaving the sect.”
Ash sat there dumbfounded. “She… left the sect?”
“Yes. The letter did not say much, other than she felt out of place here. Out of place, and a bother. So she was going to go home and see what she could do for your mother and father,” Moira said.
Reaching into her clothes, she fished out a piece of parchment and then held it out to Ash.
“Honestly, she seemed as if her heart wasn’t in it,” Tala said. “I think she was only here living her role as the eldest sister. Now with you getting stronger and Jing betraying her, that role has ended.”
Ash unfolded the letter and read it over once.
It was more or less exactly as Moira had said.
In fact, if anything, it was less. Moira and Tala were both clearly trying to read between the lines and offer him insight into it.
What it all came down to, though, was she was gone.
She always was the weak one between us. The first to wish to stop whatever we were doing and go home.
Getting into trouble, or even just pulling a prank, was never in her mental wheelhouse.
I guess… this is just what you would expect of her once her older-sister role was rendered moot.
Ash let the letter fall into his lap and looked back up to the square in front of him.
Jia was standing next to Gen, being heaped with praise for her showing on the staircase. Apparently, she’d done extremely well.
“Do you think she’ll leave next? It’s been mentioned that the winners of this examination are often recruited to other sects,” Moira said. Taking the letter from his hand, she tucked it away into her clothes again.
“Mm. I suppose that’s a real possibility now,” Ash said. “Honestly, she was never supposed to come here to begin with. I mean, she said she was more or less a runaway princess, right?
“It’d be best for her to join the strongest sect she could. They could offer her protection from her own family.”
“To be sure, it does seem family is a driving factor, and a limiting factor, in this veil,” Tala said. “I wonder what kind of situation she was put under that would drive her from her familial home.”
Maybe something similar to what happened to Mei?
Is that the difference here? Jia is Mei, but she fled her family at a much younger age?
Something to consider, I suppose.
“Ah, it would seem the showcase is over. Jia will be taken to the sect treasure house for her prizes and then given a banquet,” Moira said. “Let’s go home. Tala managed to run down some game. For a Rabbit, she’s quite the hunter.”
Tala chuckled darkly, her ears standing straight on her head.
“I’m no Rabbit. I’m Kin. We are not a race of Beast people. You should feel blessed to be in my presence,” Tala said, squaring her shoulders and visibly puffing out her chest a bit.
Deliberately glancing at her chest, Ash looked back to her face. “Quite blessed. And thank you for getting us a meal. I admit I hadn’t even thought about it.”
Levering himself to his feet, Ash wrapped an arm around Tala’s hips and leaned into her. “Alright Miss Kin, bless me with your assistance and help me home.”
Tala set an arm around Ash’s shoulders as Moira stepped in front of the two of them.
“You should truly feel blessed I don’t break your hands,” Tala said. “Be sure they do not wander.”
“I’ll do my best,” Ash lied.
“And I’ll lead the way,” Moira said.
***
Ash was sorting things out in the storage space of his ring.
Since purchasing the stall, he hadn’t bothered to go through it. He’d been practically on the run since that moment. Working to train and become stronger. Either by himself or with Jia.
If he wasn’t training himself, he had been working to improve Yan.
And now she’s gone home. Jia is being given a tour of the treasure vault, and possibly being recruited by other sects.
Yue isn’t allowed inside this area as she’s not technically in the
sect.
Which leaves us alone with Moira and Tala.
Finishing up with the ring, he’d now identified everything and gotten it sorted out. What it really came down to was two categories: items he could use immediately, like medicinal pills, or belongings and things he was just holding on to, like the stall and all his pens and paper.
Reaching behind his neck, Ash popped it to one side and then the other, then sank into his chair.
“You seem a bit lost. Restless, even,” Moira said, sitting down across from him at the table. They’d eaten dinner a while ago, and it was deep in the night now. He’d honestly expected her and Tala to be in bed.
Frowning, he wasn’t quite sure what to say at first.
“I could hear you,” Moira said. “I may not have as great hearing as Tala, but I’m certainly more sensitive than a human.”
“Ah. That makes sense. And… yes, I suppose I am,” Ash admitted. “My entire goal up to this point was to help out Yan and Jing. And now I can help neither.
“Yan has fled, and Jing has joined hands with our enemy. It would seem my entire goal is done and over.”
Moira nodded at that, her golden eyes wide and watching him.
“It would seem we must make a new goal then. One for ourselves, no?” she asked.
“Well… yeah, I guess. What would that even be, though? As an outlander myself, it’s not as if I’ll be accepted everywhere I go,” Ash said. “It’s by the grace of whatever entity kicked my ass here that I even had a Dantian. Otherwise I’d have ended up a slave and been long dead by this point, I imagine.”
Moira laid her hands along the tabletop, her long fingers interlacing.
“A fair point. Is there somewhere in this veil where we could simply retreat to and live a simple life? And would you be happy with that?” Moira asked.
“I imagine there is, sure. As for being happy… I dunno. I mean, sure, Yan ran away, but that doesn’t make her any less my sister. Nor Far and Duyi my parents. At least here in this veil,” Ash said. Propping his elbows on the table, Ash rested his chin in his palms.
“What do you want out of this life, then?” Moira said, prodding him when he said nothing more.
“Marriage, kids, a stable life.”
“I’m afraid I can’t help with the first two, as a slave isn’t allowed to marry, and I don’t think our species can interbreed,” Moira said with a shrug of her shoulders. “As to the last, I think that’s a bit more problematic than you realize.”
“Oh?”
“You’ve set the Sheng family up as a direct counter to the Deng family. There isn’t really a back-step from there. If anything, Yan going back provides your parents some semblance of protection.
“For you and Gen who would remain here, you are the most at threat,” Moira said. “A stable life isn’t something you can attain if you remain here in this sect, nor in this part of the Nine Kingdoms.”
Ash blinked several times as that all sank in.
She was right, of course. There was no way back from here that didn’t involve some type of massive bribe or gift.
“When one can’t go back the way they came, and there is no escape, there is only deeper,” Moira said, as if reading his mind. “Assuming you wish to remain here, that leaves you with only one option. Grow an alliance large enough to challenge anyone in the Deng family at an even level.”
Digesting that thought, Ash couldn’t help but agree. If he wanted to stay here, be able to see his family, and live out a life, then that was his answer.
Build an alliance strong enough to neutralize the threat of the Deng family
“Though, I think it’s worth a word of caution. I do not for a moment believe that this is entirely the Deng family,” Moira said, her head slowly tilting to one side. “There is no doubt that the only way such a family could take control of the Outer Sect like this would be with permission from the Inner Sect. Right?”
It’s true. The Outer acts as training and a funnel for the Inner. If one were to control the Outer, one could eventually control the Inner. Which means there’s a power play in action, or one finishing.
Really stepped into the shit this time.
“Of course, this doesn’t really change much. I think it’s unlikely we’ll be able to live freely until you push someone who is friendly to us, or at least neutral, into the sect leader position,” Moira said. “This veil is very ruthless. It’s full of nepotism and vultures. The worst of the worst.
“Though… it’s at least easy to understand. If everyone has a knife, one can expect how they’ll treat you.”
Grunting, Ash sat up straight, letting his hands lie on the table.
“I suppose that’s it, then. Our long-term goal is to gain stability for ourselves. Short-term goal, oppose the Deng family and neutralize them.”
Moira gave him a bright smile and ducked her head once. “So it would seem.”
Feeling better now that he had a direction, Ash turned his thoughts toward building an alliance.
And realized how isolated he was—and felt immediately lonely.
Moira would help him. As would Tala and Yue. But they couldn’t act directly in the Sect. Not really, at least.
Jia was likely carrying out her own plan right now on her way to another sect. Yan was gone.
That left only himself in the Outer Sect, with Gen as an elder.
Gonna be an awfully long road ahead. Awfully long and bumpy.
“I want to ask you a question, and I want a direct answer,” Moira said, her voice snapping through his dark thoughts.
“Oh? Uh, alright. What’s up?”
“If I told you to come to my bed tonight, or that I wanted to get in yours, what would you say? And why?” Moira asked.
Well that really is direct, isn’t it?
“I’d probably say no. As to why, well, that’s a bit complicated,” Ash said, spreading his hands out in front of himself.
“We do have time. I’d like an answer,” Moira said.
Clicking his teeth together a few times, Ash thought on it.
“Ok, I’ll answer. But I want to hear your own thoughts first on the matter. Why sleep with me? I mean, don’t get me wrong, you’re beautiful and I’m interested in exploring your body, but… why?”
Moira’s cheeks turned a faint shade of red and the corners of her lips turned up.
“I’m flattered at the praise. Now… why?
“Because as I understand it, you cannot release me. Ever. Either I’ll have my ownership transferred to another, or I’ll die in your care,” Moira said. Ash nodded once. “So, I find myself with an owner who treats me like an equal. My understanding is that is fairly rare in this veil. Not impossible, but certainly rare. You treat me as an equal, and not simply a plaything.”
Ash frowned at that. His immediate response was that it was only as it should be.
Except he knew it wasn’t.
The very reason he bought her was because it wasn’t that way.
“I can’t really go looking for another man to sleep with, as everyone in this veil views me as anathema. On top of that, I cannot go very far from you without repercussions.
“And those who would want me would only use me as a means to an end. Doing such a thing with a complete stranger with not even a cursory relationship… doesn’t particularly sit well with me,” Moira said, nodding to her own words.
“Now, as to you. I find you attractive. You’re not of my race, but you’re pleasing to the eyes. I enjoy looking at you. And I’ve felt your eyes on me many times.
“Do I love you? No, I’m no lovesick young girl like Yue. Nor am I looking to get anything from you in this, like Jia perhaps.
“Though with the amount of time we’ll be locked in each other’s presence, I wouldn’t rule out having some sort of affection for you after a while. Truth be told, that almost seems like a guarantee, actually. It’s not as if we can escape one another,” Moira said, holding one hand palm up towards him. “And maybe that all sta
rts with simply enjoying one another in the bedroom.”
It all made sense, actually.
Everything she said rang true to him, in a strange way. She was a stranger in a strange land where no one would want her. And the ones who would take her would do it for purposes that would best be avoided.
He was the same.
“Nevermind,” Ash said. “My reasons were stupid. I’m stupid.”
“Something along the lines of ‘I can’t, it feels like rape, I don’t want to give her the wrong idea, I might have to end it at any time’?” Moira asked, watching him with a smile.
“Errr, yeah. Something like that.”
Nodding her head, Moira stood up and stepped to one side, pushing her chair in.
“So… your bedroom? Or mine? Though Tala will hear it anyways, I’m not sure I’d like to give her an eyeful at the same time,” Moira said.
“Ah, my bedroom, then.”
Moira gave him a bright smile, and a wing expanded rapidly, indicating the doorway to Ash’s bedroom with its tip. “After you.”
***
A hand lightly smacked Ash in the chest, startling him awake.
“Go get the door, someone’s knocking,” Moira said, sleep tinging her voice.
One of her wings unwound itself from around him, and he found himself incredibly colder without it there.
Getting out of the bed, Ash stepped into a pair of pants and pulled them up quickly. Snatching a tunic, he pulled it on over his head and left his bedroom. Making sure to close the door behind him, he walked over to the front door.
Opening it, he found Yue standing there. She had dark circles under her eyes, and her skin looked pale.
It reminded him of when he’d stayed up far too late playing video games as a kid.
“Ash!” she said, smiling at him widely. She shoved her hand into his and deposited a pill there. Then her hands clamped around his tightly. “I brought you this. I heard you broke your leg, so I made a pill for you.
“You were healed with Qi too recently, which means they probably couldn’t fix it perfectly. I dug through all the memories you gave me and this one seemed to fit the best and then I couldn’t stop until I made it and I had to make sure it worked so I—” Yue stopped talking and then coughed twice, having run out of air.
Cultivating Chaos Page 29