Still, the longer she looked, the more she saw. She soon discovered the cruel reality hidden beneath the façade and so easy to miss at first glance. Most tourists wouldn’t notice, but Mi Fei was different. She saw stars that were burning too bright and flames that wouldn’t last. This city was dying.
Stargazer City was not a rich place like it implied. It was poor, and everyone here knew it. The residential quarters might not give that impression, and the stronger factions in the city might not let it on, but things were not going well. Prices were exorbitant, and everywhere she looked, Mi Fei saw signs of exhaustion. It wasn’t just the Star-Eye Monkey Clan, but the other clans as well.
Demons were natural warriors, and it was not unusual for them to see combat. Yet here, even most of the laypeople had seen real battle. Many normal workers were wounded or limping. Everywhere she went, Mi Fei saw scars. She saw poor and orphaned demons dragging their feet on the city’s well-made stone streets. No one took them in, despite the communal nature of demons. They lived in the parts of the city located far away from the illusion shown to most visitors, where buildings fell apart and streets were not swept. What little metal there was in these places had long been scavenged and reforged, replaced with wooden parts that weren’t up to the challenge.
In the markets, you could find normal snacks and treats, but according to Xiao Bai, they were more expensive than they should be. No true luxuries were sold. Originally, Mi Fei had been hoping to find cheaper things like raw spirit fruits to advance her cultivation. These were things humans wouldn’t normally use but suited her perfectly. Only there were none to be found.
“This city is on the brink, Xiao Bai,” Mi Fei said. “The people are unhappy. Everywhere I go, I see anger toward other demon tribes, toward humans, and toward their leadership.”
“It happens,” Xiao Bai said. Having found nothing good to eat, she was back to eating moon cakes. The energy dense pastries might make good rations, but Mi Fei couldn’t stand the things. There was something in the very core of her being that rejected them. “Power shifts all the time in demon lands. Cities change ownership, and some bloodlines perish. New ones are born too. It’s nature’s way.”
“Do you think that will happen here?” Mi Fei asked.
“Maybe,” Xiao Bai said. “It’s tough to say. If the Star-Eye Monkey Clan defends and holds their Tree of Life, they could hold the line indefinitely.”
“It looks powerful,” Mi Fei said. “Not of this world. It’s connected to the outside of the plane. I can feel it.”
“Yep,” Xiao Bai said. “There’s a reason why they’re in charge.”
They continued walking through the city, taking in the sights and conversations. The sun eventually set, and when the tree began to shine and light up the city, the mood in the city improved. This city thrived during the day, not the night.
“I wonder when they’ll be done?” Mi Fei said, thinking about Cha Ming.
“When they’re done feasting and getting beat up,” Xiao Bai said.
“Getting beat up?” Mi Fei asked, a bit alarmed. “Why would that happen?”
“It’s a tradition,” Xiao Bai said. “It’s why I didn’t want to go. Silly monkeys love beating each other up with sticks.”
“Actually, that sounds right up your alley,” Mi Fei said. She walked past Xiao Bai toward a garden that was now glowing in the darkness. Like the tree above them, pinpricks of light shone from what appeared to be a naturally grown hedge. They entered it, and the world lit up. Bright leaves and shadows danced, as did half-closed flowers that opened the moment they approached.
The garden became a simple maze, and after a few turns, they entered an open square. A single tree stood in the center. A glittering pattern came to life on its bark. She touched the beautiful tree, and when she pulled away her hand, the glitter flew off it and floated around her. “It’s all so magical,” Mi Fei said.
“Yet it is only a shadow of what once was,” a voice said. Shocked by the sudden intrusion, Mi Fei looked about to find the source of the voice. “Worry not. I mean you no harm. I will come out now.” The tree itself squirmed, and an arm came loose. Then a leg. Then a body. A figure walked out from the tree. Her skin was barky, though the texture smoothed out as she stepped away. She was a monkey demon, and though she had little fur, she had a long tail. Her skin and tail changed color as she moved.
“Please call me Speckled Sky,” the demon said.
“Misty Sea,” Mi Fei introduced herself.
“Lady White,” Xiao Bai added.
“I know who you are,” said Speckled Sky. “You have been asking difficult questions. Questions most wouldn’t answer. I am here to guide you to one who can answer them.”
“You’re not one of the Star-Eye Monkey Clan,” Xiao Bai said warily.
“In this situation, that is a good thing, no?” said Speckled Sky. “I am good at hiding, and my mind is unburdened by starlight.” She moved toward the tree, and when she did, her skin grew transparent. No, it took on the color of her surroundings. Bark reappeared, and so did the speckled pattern of the tree. She traced the trunk, first vertically, then horizontally, then vertically again. A sparkling outline of a door appeared. “Will you be coming?” she asked as she twisted something and opened the door she’d traced out.
Mi Fei gulped. “Into the tree?”
“Into a starry road,” she replied. “I’m sure your sister understands.”
Xiao Bai sighed. “Fine, act all mystical.” She grabbed Mi Fei’s hand and pulled her through the doorway, and Speckled Sky closed the door behind them. They entered a hallway with a bright stone floor and transparent walls. The floor was suspended in darkness, and there was no other land in sight. All around them, there were only stars.
They walked for a full minute before arriving at a row of doors. Their guide led them past the first door but stopped at the second. She stepped beside it and traced out a third door, this one hidden. She opened it and looked back. “Please follow me inside.”
They did so. The doorway led into a large bedroom in a wooden house. There was a desk and dresser in the room, though papers and personal items were sprawled all over the place in an uncaring fashion. The floor was clean, however, and at the center of the room lay a bed. A graying woman lay on it, and a younger woman held her hand.
Speckled Sky led them up to the bed and bowed. “I have brought them here as you instructed, Elder.” The woman on the bed nodded lightly.
“Go. Guard the road,” the elder instructed.
Speckled Sky retreated. Mi Fei took a good look at the woman in the bed. She didn’t seem very old. Perhaps sixty, as her dark-brown hair was graying, though looks could be deceiving. She was a demon, and they could live ten times longer than a human. Her skin had no wrinkles, but some places were blotched and discolored. Her black eyes showed the twelve stars of the Builder.
“Why have you called us here?” Mi Fei asked.
The woman looked around as though trying to find her, but then gave up.
“Sky’s Expanse, are you there?” the old woman said.
“Yes, Grandmother,” the young woman who was holding her hand said. “I am here. Your guests are here.”
“When the guests are here, remind me to tell them of what we once were,” said the older woman. “A proud people. Builders of roads between worlds. Once, we reached across the stars.”
“I’ll remind you, Grandmother,” the woman said. She looked up apologetically. “I’m sorry, Elder Guiding Light’s mind isn’t what it used to be. The war has taken its toll on her.”
“War?” Mi Fei asked. “We heard of squabbles, but we heard of no war.”
Sky’s Expanse smiled. “What else could it be? We are constantly fighting. Decades wear thin on the minds of our people. What was once a great city is now destitute, for all its expansion. Aggression is rampant when careful thought is needed.” She, like her grandmother, had the mark of the Builder in her eyes.
“The warriors we saw
were exhausted,” Mi Fei said. “Aggressive. Resentful.”
“That much is obvious,” said Sky’s Expanse. “It is a tragic situation, for we all know who suffers an angry man’s wrath first. It is not the strangers in his life, but his family. A drunkard might behave in public but beat his wife and child in private.”
“Yeah, you people are not all there, that’s for sure,” Xiao Bai said.
Mi Fei shot her a glare.
“We do not take offense at her words, human,” the young woman said. “Her words are accurate. Our clan is dying.”
“Daughter? Are they here?” Elder Guiding Light said suddenly. “Daughter, when they are here, you must warn them. You must tell them of the progeny of this dying world. You must tell them of the destroyers, the ones who would seek our doom. They are coming. They are coming!” Then she stopped, and her eyes wandered again.
“My apologies for my grandmother,” Sky’s Expanse said. “I was hoping she would be better, but she speaks only nonsense. Once, she was a road builder. A rare but powerful demon in our clan. It was up to her to maintain the road network until she fell ill not long ago.”
“How did she become this way?” Mi Fei asked.
“War,” the young woman answered. “Like everyone else. The stars are mighty but blinding. Their power must not be overused. My grandmother has warned me and shielded me, but others of our kind are not so lucky. Exhausted and dying warriors demanded that we build them weapons of war. We couldn’t watch them die, so we worked ourselves to the bone.” She sighed. “How could we have known that war would continue so long? We thought it would end after a year or two. But the fighting dragged on, and we grew exhausted. Our warriors demanded more, and in our meekness, we gave in. If not for our control over the Tree of Life, our Star-Eye Clan would have fallen a decade ago.”
“Is that normal?” Mi Fei asked. “Warriors running the show?” If that was the way they acted when they were warmongers, such an arrangement was unlikely.
“Surely not,” Sky’s Expanse said. “We were once known as builders of roads. When demons first came to this land, we expanded the farthest and the fastest. We aided every species, and even the Inkwell Clan respected us. Together with the children of the Clockwork Dragon, the Iridescent Phoenix, the Inkwell Turtle, and the Runebound Python, we ruled this land.” She shook her head. “Then the humans came. Everything changed.”
“I’m sorry…” Mi Fei said.
“Do not be,” Sky’s Expanse said. “Everyone must live. Everyone must expand. Much like the stars in the sky. I simply wished you to know what we once were, and how far we have fallen. Now, we are mortal enemies with those who were once our greatest friends. Perhaps the dragons would have interfered, had the humans not driven them out.”
“I see,” Mi Fei said.
“You do not,” Sky Expanse said. Twelve pinpricks shone in her eyes. “I am a weaver of fate, and I see tight strings pulling you around. Yet you pull back. You can’t help but pull back. And one who travels with you is bound to you almost as tightly as your sister. Your fate together transcends lives, though you do not see it.”
Xiao Bai coughed uncomfortably. “Yeah, enough of that.”
“Perhaps we should discuss the black-haired monkeys,” Mi Fei said. The young woman had no chance to answer, however. The woman on the bed rose. Her eyes glowed with a fierce blue light, and suddenly, she wasn’t a sickly woman on a bed. Gone was the blue haze that obscured her sight.
“Hello,” Mi Fei said. “I am Misty Sea. This is Lady White.”
“I was right to have my daughter bring you,” said the elder. “I have little time. Starlight clouds my mind, and I have no crown to shield me. Our people are dying, child of the moon and stars. You know this. We built the roads that made us great, yet by doing so, we invited warriors. Warriors who know full well how to abuse our well-built roads.”
“I’m not sure I understand,” Mi Fei said.
“You will,” Elder Guiding Light said. “Or perhaps your companion will. One who knows you from another lifetime. Yet why do I see two of you? The you right now is so small and timid. The you from before is what we need. Tell me, where are your sixteen gray wings and your golden sword and your cloak of jade? The one who could settle this all?” Her eyes flickered and shone with a mesmerizing blue light. “Ah, that was a past life. I see now. Now you are weaker.” She looked to Xiao Bai. “Jade Rabbit, why do you coddle her so? If she doesn’t grow, she will perish. She will die without strength. Do you not care for this incarnation?”
“Listen here, you—” Xiao Bai started.
“Silence,” she said. The pressure was overwhelming. Her eyes were all-seeing—they looked at the stars through space and time. “Child, you must grow,” she said to Mi Fei. “All women die, but you never die alone. Your death is the death of nations. You could well destroy us all in the end. I only pray you pity my people, so that some of us may live. The choice is in your hands. Fight. Grow. Expand. Like the stars in the sky above us.”
The words hit Mi Fei like a cold shower. Who was she? How did she know her? She didn’t know the woman, but her words felt so true. A picture of an angel with eight pairs of gray wings and a jade sword came to mind. She was defending a boy from a powerful devil. Then she blinked, and the vision was gone.
The light faded. The elder’s eyes rolled up, and she collapsed on her bed, breathing softly. Mi Fei was out of breath. She felt her cheeks and realized she’d been crying.
“I’m sorry,” Sky’s Expanse said softly. “I didn’t know you would catch her on a bad day.” She shook her head. “She used to be the best of us, but now, her mind is warped. She can barely eat most days, and soon, all of us will be the same. Unless this war ends, that is. Now come, ask your questions.”
Mi Fei calmed herself before speaking. “We intercepted a caravan attack in Star-Eye Monkey territory. There were three dozen of your clan members. They had black fur. They said they were exiled.”
“It is unfortunate,” Sky’s Expanse said. “It is the chieftain who decided, but not without much pressure from his elder council. Normally, we would have defended them. Found them a place. But our elders were apathetic or incapacitated in the war. Only aggressive elders remain to guide the chieftain.”
“Is he a warrior as well?” Mi Fei asked.
“Yes and no,” Sky’s Expanse said. “He was a warrior, but he wears an ancestral crown. It protects him from the influence of the Warrior constellation, and it grants him some power over the Builder constellation. Yet he is only one demon. He requires the support of his clan. A clan which is close to collapsing. He didn’t want to exile them, but he was forced to. He sent them with what he could, with what little we had.”
“What’s wrong with them?” Mi Fei asked. “What makes them inferior?”
“They are not inferior,” Sky’s Expanse replied. “They are different. It is unheard of for so many of the same variant to appear in our species at the same time. When they were born, my grandmother said they were special. That they were important to the clan and should be nurtured and protected. But now? The elders see them as a potential threat, and say that their impotence makes our clan look weak. Better to exile them, they said, than to let them waste resources.” She shook her head. “Every demon has a talent. Every demon has a place. No one in our bloodline would be born useless. Our ancestor built the Bridge of Stars itself.”
A memory came unbidden to Mi Fei then. A short flicker of light. She saw the Bridge of Stars and Jade Moon Planet in all its wonder. There was a missing patch of land where a garden should be. Was it the Concept of the Jade Moon and Starry Sky that showed her this or something else? She couldn’t say. “Thank you for telling us,” Mi Fei said. “What is it that made them useless?”
“They could not fight effectively,” Sky’s Expanse replied. “Their demon weapons were weak. They were not natural warriors. They could not grow plants. They could manipulate plant matter, but not well. They could not carve wood. They could n
ot build roads. They showed no affinity for fire or metal or earth, and only slight affinity to water. We tried to discover what they could do, but we found nothing. So they did the most menial of work, work any in our clan would find demeaning.” She sighed. “I hope you can help them. I was friends with many in their group. I grew up with Clever Dusk.”
“Do you know anything about the caravan raids?” Mi Fei asked.
“Nothing,” Sky’s Expanse said. “The builders do not stray outside the city these days. And speaking of the city, it is not a good place to be. You would do well to leave and not stay the night. The chieftain controls the warriors, but they may feel you are a threat. Best to flee before they change their mind.”
“We will do as you say,” Mi Fei said. She agreed with that assessment.
“Speckled Sky?” Sky’s Expanse said.
“I am here,” Speckled Sky replied. The camouflaged demon appeared beside a now-glowing door.
“Please take them back,” Sky’s Expanse said. “The trees tell me their companions are just leaving the banquet. They are bruised but healing thanks to the clan’s poultices.”
“Do you have any other instructions?” she asked.
“Yes. Show them the way to the edge of the forest,” Sky’s Expanse said. “Let’s not give the warriors a chance to find them.”
“We have many doors in the woods outside the city,” Speckled Sky answered. “I will do as you said.” She exited the door, and Xiao Bai went first.
Mi Fei followed. Yet the elder’s words echoed in her mind. You will destroy us… pity my people… the choice is in your hands.
She shivered and wondered what it all meant.
Chapter 18: Ghost Story
“Have you ever heard a ghost story?” Wei Longshen asked one of the younger boys in the crowd. He was sitting on a bench in a public park. The sky was clear and sunny, and there were more than a few other youngsters sitting cross-legged not far away.
“You mean a scary story, sir?” the boy asked.
“Not at all,” Wei Longshen said. “I meant what I said. A ghost story. Have you never heard one?”
Crown of the Starry Sky: Book 11 of Painting the Mists Page 29