Legacy Of Nine Gods

The Legacy of Nine Gods (part 1, condensed) By S. Lei Pyke Synopsis: This story is loosely based off of Chinese mythology. Koketai is a boy taken by a Mongol-like tribe and raised as an adopted son. Meanwhile the China-like country of Sho is suffering terrible droughts and plagues. The emperor is on the throne, but the Heavens have not blessed the country. This story follows Koketai and his best friend Mongke Chinua as they discover their place in the celestial order. Author’s note: I originally designed to be the basis of an RPG game or Manga. this is condensed because it has everything I want in it, but I have yet to clarify and expand on a couple of things. Essentially it is a work in progress.

The Legacy of Nine Gods Prologue 876 Yun, vernal equinox, pre-dawn— In the starry darkness before sunrise, the convection already wavered up from the parched earth. Ten long years of drought had ravaged the once verdant land of the Sho Empire. It was only the first day of spring, but the weather made it feel like midsummer. In the heart of the Sho empire, the Siwan palace was already active, the mood tense and troubled. Officials started their day having stayed awake through the night, unrolling scrolls with stiff hands and rubbing at red rimmed eyes that would not focus. High up, behind the throne room, Xahn Yun, the Emperor of Sho, laid gasping for breath as his doctors tended to him. His son, Xi Yun, sat in the edge of his chair at his father’s bedside and counted the seconds between every breath that escaped his father’s lips. Soon, the doctors shook their heads and placed a towel over the emperor’s face. Xi stood and left the room, exiting through the doors to the balcony. Quietly, he looked up at the sky. To the east, in the part of the sky called the Mansions of the Dragon, a meteor shower lit the pre-dawn sky with brilliant streaks. Far away from the palace, on the edge of Sho, the warriors of the Khatt tribe also observed the meteor shower. All around the warriors, a village laid in ruins. They had

attacked the village under the full moon, according to the ways of their tribe, and were settling down to enjoy the spoils of their conquest before heading back to their families. One man was not interested in celebration. He wandered through the wreckage of the village, looking for something suitable for his wife, who had lost her child just before the raid. The house he was picking through had burned and collapsed. When he entered it, however, he discovered that part of the interior had been spared. From the intact part he heard the squeals of a baby. He paused, looking around him to see if anyone else had heard the cry. Quickly, he dug through the rubble, uncovering a table that had survived the roof’s collapse. The adult underneath was dead, but curled in her stiff arms and crying was a newborn baby. Carefully, he picked it up. It was cold and blue from exposure, but it seemed otherwise healthy. He held the little boy to his chest and smiled, tears in his eyes. “What gift for the wife indeed, but you are so blue! So I will name you Koketai.” He offered his finger to the boy’s tiny fists. The baby yawned and fell asleep in Vachir’s arms. Just as the sun rose, red with the promise of long expected rain, every star in the east flared before disappearing into the dawn sky. Chapter 1 891 Yun, Late Spring The blood red sun peeked over the horizon. All around the camp, the animals were stirring. Koketai flipped aside the flap of his family’s yurt and stretched, scratched his head with its mohawk cut, and shifted his armor so that it sat comfortably. It never fit quite right on his lean frame. All of the other boys were stocky, short, and powerful. Koketai was wiry and tall, but was still an equal match for any of the others in strength. He quickly ran across the camp. The people of his tribe shouted their greetings to him as he ran. This was an important day. On his way to the training area, he stopped by the tribal leader’s yurt and peeked inside. Everyone was already up and out except for one snoring lump. It was his best friend. “Mongke! Mongke Chinua you lazy wolf, get up!” The sleeping figure groaned and rolled over. Koketai grinned and pulled out his hunting horn. With a great lungful of

air, he blasted a squealing note on the crude bugle. Mongke Chinua bolted upright, clasping his hands to his ears. Outside, some of the people giggled as they passed, tending to their morning chores. “Koketai, you bastard! Is only dawn!” “Yeah, It’s the day.” Mongke blinked the grit out of his eyes, puzzled about the excitement. As sleep drained from him, the realization dawned. “The day! By the Lord Wolf, we’re late!” Mongke scrambled to his feet, which were still tangled in his felt blanket, and fell over as he tried to free himself. Koketai backed out hastily as his friend thrashed about. Finally, Mongke tumbled out, his hat askew. Both boys ran for the training grounds. Al Arslan, the tribal seer, was already preaching to the gathered warriors. “. . .and it is your sacred duty to reclaim the lands for the Wolf! The Golden dragon has destroyed his land and enslaved his people. See how barren his land has become? Did not the heavens favor the Dragon? Now, it seems that the Heavens have rescinded that favor! Our lands have bloomed while theirs have faltered. It is our duty as Free People to relieve the land of its suffering! As we go forth today, we go to save the slaves. Do not worry about the death you cause! Pray that in their next incarnation they are nearly perfected, so that they might become people of the Wolf.” A gruff shout of affirmation followed the end of the sermon. “Mongke Chinua! Koketai!” Al Arslan called. Both boys proudly walked forward. Both Vachir and the chief, Gan Chinua, waited for them, smiling. “Today, we celebrate these two boys as they go out on their first raid.” Their fathers handed them each a weapon. Mongke received his family’s sword, the Steel Fang. Gan draped a wolf hide mantle over his son’s shoulders. As Gan’s son, he would follow him as the next Chief. Koketai, who was an adopted son, could not inherit Vachir’s blade, but the weapon his father handed him was no less grand. It was a reclining moon blade Kuantao, the mark of the elite horsemen in the tribe. Unlike the infantry weapon of the same name, this one was balanced for use on horseback. It took exceptional balance, strength, and control of one’s horse to master the weapon, and so it epitomized everything a warrior should be. A Moon Blade Warrior could balance and attack with his weapon

while standing on the back of a galloping horse. All of the Moon Blade Warriors were destined to be legends. That he received such a blade meant that he was now recognized as one of that elite number.

He heard the astonished gasps of the other tribesmen as he

grasped the blade. Even Mongke gasped at the presentation. “How I wish you could have taken my blade.” Said Vachir proudly. “Gachin, the smith, said that this was the only weapon that suited you. Will it do?” “Yes, father.” He said quietly, looking at his kuantao. Gachin was a priest smith. He had worked prayers into the blade and haft, which blessed the weapon to handle unnatural creatures such as demons. Protecting their people from such creatures was a hazard of living in the wastes, so every warrior had one blessed weapon. Koketai had worked tirelessly to earn this honor. It was not just that he had wanted to become a Moon Blade Warrior, but that he could never handle a normal sword. It was the feel of metal that made him uneasy. With the kuantao, the wooden haft of the weapon offered enough distance between his hands and the blade that he felt comfortable. The only problem was that if he had failed to ride, he would have been disgraced. Warriors who could not ride were called Dog Warriors. Since they could not keep pace with a mounted raiding party, they remained at the camp and they were given the lowest status. Ever since he was young, the possibility of failure had always haunted him. With both of them presented to the tribe as warriors, Al Arslan dismissed them, and every warrior went to prepare. Khatt tribe raids were holy, and so each warrior had to be blessed. Every married woman was a priestess in her own home, and so the blessing rituals were always done in the family yurts. The rituals would continue until just before noon, when the raiding party would set out. Even though the boys were new warriors, they rode near the front. Koketai rode with the Moon Blade Warriors, and Mongke rode next to Gan. The day turned cool and rainy as the warriors left camp and the weather continued until dusk. This village was farther into Sho territory than the Khatt had been in centuries. With a harsh cry, Gan Chinua signaled the charge. The rest of the men shouted in response and spurred their horses forward. Suddenly, as the first of the cavalry reached the village, they disappeared into the ground. Their horses screamed as they died, impaled on spikes. The warriors pulled up

short, seeing the ambush, but those in the rear were slower to stop, pressing the group in tight. Above them, a rocket exploded, sending a shower of sparks down over their head. The horses panicked and danced, barely restrained by their riders. Some of the less welltrained mounts bolted, carrying their riders in random directions. Most of those carried away also became victims of the pits. Unable to discern where the remaining pits were and unwilling to risk more horses, they began to retreat. Suddenly, another rocket burst over their heads, illuminating the area. Melting from the shadows, the cavalry soldiers appeared, riding demon mounts instead of horses. Their position cut off the only known safe route. “Sorcery!” cried Gan, yanking his horse around to face the soldiers. “Quick, before they fire another rocket! Warriors! Attack!” Gan bellowed and charged the line of Sho cavalry. Equally eager to kill demons, his warriors shouted as they followed their chief. The Sho were not expecting the Khatt to attack so fiercely. It was obvious by their tactics that they were used to winning through fear. The Sho commander was green against the Khatt and ignorant of their blessed weapons. When the first line of demon mounts went down under the Khatt blades, the Sho reacted with surprise. The commander dispatched a group of men back toward their camp. Surrounded by the Sho, the Khatt could not stop them. They could only attack, knowing that they were cornered. There was no other way but to clear the escape route. Unfortunately, they were already outnumbered three to one. In the midst of the battle, Koketai balanced atop his mount and struck out at the demon cavalry as they attacked. His kuantao spun like a whirlwind as he slashed at the throats of the demons and riders alike. With height as his advantage, the attackers could not easily reach his vital points. The blaring whine of a Sho battle horn split the air followed by the fierce cry of Sho infantry mixed with the unholy bay of hell hounds. Both the cavalry and the warriors paused at the sound, but only for a moment, before the hell hounds ran through the battle, snapping at the horses’ legs and leaping at the throats of distracted warriors and cavalry riders alike. These beasts had no direction or training. They were summoned merely to kill. The accompanying infantry were dressed no better than

peasants, but they numbered over a hundred. Still, the Khatt did not falter. Though their position was a trap, it as also a bottleneck. The Sho infantry could not cross the pits like the demons could. Underneath their feet, the ground began to become slick with blood. Overhead, a hail of arrows rained down. The warriors grimly defended themselves, but all they could do was to protect their heads and pray while the arrows rained down. Koketai grunted in pain as an arrow slammed into his shoulder and wedged itself under his left collarbone. As soon as he tried to break it or yank it out, a hell hound leaped at him. He struck out at the beast, crying out at the sharp pain from his wound, and jammed the blade through the creature’s gaping mouth. Grinding his teeth in pain, he hefted this weapon, corpse attached, into the next attacker; a cavalry soldier. The corpse came off the blade and slammed into the man’s chest, sending him sprawling in the dirt underneath the hound’s body. Koketai guided his horse to trample the soldier, even as he stabbed into the man’s demon mount. In half an instant, Koketai jumped off to protect himself as a pudao crashed into his mount, breaking through the horse’s saddle and crushing its back. As he leaped away from the dying horse, he rolled, bringing his weapon up just in time to avoid a blow from a second soldier, wielding a dadao, dressed in little more than peasant rags. All of a sudden, the dadao wielder’s chest burst open in a gout of blood. Koketai dispatched the soldier that had crushed his horse and stood, shaking his hair free of blood. “Hoy! Dog Warriors stay home!” cried the voice of Mongke, pulling his blade free from the body of the peasant soldier. Broken arrows stuck from his friend’s armor and his right eye was swelled shut. Koketai laughed. “The same goes for you Lazy Wolf! Where’s yours?” “Gah! A demon ripped its throat out. Shall we become legends?” “Of course! Our people will remember our names like the stars!” Koketai shouted, plowing into another lunging demon. “As expected of the Golden Dragon to enlist demons as allies, neh?” “His evil knows no bounds. At least we know now that our seers are correct!” They stood back to back, fighting off the soldiers that came at them.

All of a sudden, time seemed to stop. Koketai looked up to see a dying soldier holding a rocket at them. Koketai had never seen a rocket up close, but he understood what was happening. In painfully slow motion, he grabbed Mongke and dragged him into the bloody dirt. The rocket exploded over their heads; the force blinding and deafening both of them. Koketai, barely managing to stay conscious, looked at Mongke through the starry haze of powder burned vision. Blood leaked from his unconscious friend’s ears and he was burned, but Koketai could feel a ragged, shallow pulse in his neck. Being awake made Koketai dizzy, and he vomited blood and bile as he tried to get up. The ground seemed to pitch at gyrating, unnatural angles, and he fell over, unable to try again. Chapter 2 The feel of water dripping onto his face woke him. It was a steady drip from the leaky ceiling of his wooden cell. He was lying unbound on a rough plank and covered in a dirty blanket. His legs would not obey but his arms still moved freely. In front of his face, a piece of paper stubbornly stuck despite being wet. He sat and tried to brush it away, but touching the paper made his hands burn. It was obviously sorcery. An old man with blood red irises entered the room, dressed in the robes of a sorcerer. His long, wicked fingernails were painted crimson and he stank of medicine and magic. Koketai grimaced at him. “”What have you done you bastard?! If my legs won’t work then kill me! I will not be a slave to the Dragon!” He growled. The man’s eyes glittered with wicked pleasure at what he saw. He said something, but Koketai could understand it. The man touched his head with a crimson talon. “I am a Khatt Warrior, sorcerer! Free me and we shall fight like men!” The sorcerer laughed evilly and touched his own forehead, the stink of magic rolling from the man in waves as his spell took effect. “It is only a binding spell on you. It would be on your arms as well, but the water has washed away part of the spell.” He said in Khatt. “I couldn’t resist capturing you. I was not aware that the Khatt allowed monsters into their ranks.” “I am human, unlike you.” Said Koketai. Again the sorcerer laughed. “Oh? Could it be that it does not know its own nature?” he asked.

“Madman! What did you do to me?” “It’s just a communication spell. Do you not wish to speak with your savior, monster? You should respect me more. I saved your life by dragging you off the field. I can’t say any of your fellow barbarians were as lucky. I do believe we slaughtered them to a man.” Koketai turned away, tears in his eyes. “Go away.” He said, miserably. “Kill me and go.” “Oh no, creature. Remove the binding prayer from a monster that does not even know his nature? Nonsense; he is a danger to himself. You are bound for the capital. I must study you first, and decide how you will serve the empire. I will know what you are soon enough. There are not many magical beasts powerful enough to take human form. Listen beast, you will call me Master Ren. I do not desire your death. When you accept that and let me help you, I will remove that seal.” He got up and opened the door. “I am human you fool sorcerer!” cried Koketai as Master Ren exited. Master Ren said nothing, though his eyes glittered with cruel mirth. The moment the door clicked shut, he could not keep his eyes open. The Sorcerer had cast another spell on him. Chapter 3 Mongke Chinua had the vague feeling that he was dying. He lay on the ground, staring up at the full moon. A wolf’s howl pierced the night. He tried to get up, but his body would not obey, though it did not hurt. In fact, he felt nothing at all, not even the ground he was laying upon. Around him, the souls of his fellow warriors rose up, taking the shape of wolves just as the legends said of true warriors. They joined the lone howl, creating a chorus of lupine voices. He tried to join their chorus, but as he took a breath, a huge paw pressed down on his chest. “Trying to howl with the dead?” asked a deep, calm voice. “You are still alive, brave warrior, though I fear not for much longer.” “Lord Wolf?” whispered Mongke. A tongue licked his face clean of blood. “I have an offer for you, since you and I share the same name.” he said. It was essentially true. Mongke’s name meant “Eternal Wolf.” “I will do anything for you, my lord.” “Ah, but this is a special something. I wish to join with you. We must remind the heavens of our petition. The Dragon has fallen.”

“Join with me?” Mongke asked. “I don’t understand.” “I would join my soul to yours. I have waited centuries for the right time and the right person. Will you accept me? I cannot force myself on you.” Mongke struggled to draw breath, awed by the proposition. “If. . .if I say no?” Lord Wolf whined and his ears drooped. He licked his chops nervously. “You will die.” He said. “You are a warrior and you have earned your place in my pack. The choice is yours, Mongke. Hurry, I can hear your pulse slowing as we speak.” “Couldn’t you heal me?” “Yes, but. . .do you want to be the only survivor?” Mongke tried to sit so that he could see, but he couldn’t make himself move. Lord Wolf put a paw on his chest “Your back is broken. It is no use trying. Well? I do not like pressuring my cubs, but you must choose.” “Yes.” Mongke said, knowing that his god would not ask twice. Immediately, he felt the pleasure of Lord Wolf as he became insubstantial and began to seep into Mongke’s flesh. The wolf spirits gathered around him, howling. Chapter 4 Mongke panicked as he woke, strapped to the back of a horse. The dust of the trail choked him, and he coughed up blood mixed with dirt. “Good morning, my lord.” said his father. The horses all stopped. Mongke could see awe and respect in every eye as Gan untied him. Mongke looked at them suspiciously. “You are dead! I saw you die!” Mongke accused. Gan smiled wistfully. “It would seem so.” He said. “But to serve Lord Wolf, we were all given power to walk again. We are your pack, my Lord.” “Where is Koketai?” Gan’s face grew dark. “Likely, he is captured.” Vachir pulled up next to Gan, his face a mask of calm, but Mongke could see the anguish in his eyes. “The Sho do not take prisoners.” Growled Mongke.

“True, but Koketai was not there when we made our pacts. He was also not among the dead.” Said Vachir. “That assessment is too light, Vachir. He’s either run like a coward or turned traitor! Even if they did capture him, he is dead to us. It means he surrendered” Gan’s anger caused his eyes to glow red. “I will kill you if you say that again! I fell right next to him. Tell me you found traces of him!” Both men shook their heads. “Our noses are blessed by the god. We understand each scent as easily as a face. It comes from Lord Wolf, but even Lord Wolf cannot tell us of Koketai. He says that the boy never had a smell. ” Gan said. “Lord Wolf also told us that it is also probable that he is not human.” Mongke tore at his face, leaving bloody trails that healed almost as soon as they were made. Gan and Vachir each caught an arm. The hands of both men were pale gray and cool; their skin leathery. “My lord, we were dead on the battlefield for a while before Lord Wolf came for us. The Sho army was long gone when we were raised. We were directed to take you with us, though you were still as the dead yourself. It could be that Koketai’s trail was masked, and that he has gone on ahead.” Vachir said gravely. “Are you really holy?” Mongke asked, looking down at their long, blackened fingernails. These were not the hands of humans, but of monsters. “Yes, every one of us, though we walk as the undead.” Said Vachir. “It is strange, what we are, but since it is Lord Wolf that granted us this power—“ “We agreed to run with his pack in our afterlife. This is the form he chose for us now that he has become incarnate within you.” Interrupted Gan. “We are your pack. What would you have us do?” “Find Koketai.” Ordered Mongke. Vachir sighed and looked in the direction they had come. Gan crossed his arms stubbornly. “I tell you it is futile, but if you insist, the two of us will go. He was Vachir’s son, after all. What would you command of the rest of us?” Gan asked. Mongke felt an overwhelming presence rise up inside him. When he opened his mouth, his voice was unnaturally split.

“Gather the tribes. We will assault the capital, drag the Dragon off of his throne and tear him to pieces before the heavens. They will see the sins of Sho laid bare.” Both men put their fists to their chests. “As you will.” Said Gan. As they left him, the presence went back to sleep within him, leaving Mongke with a blinding headache. Chapter 5 Koketai woke to the sound of hail pounding the wood above him, but it had not been the storm that woke him. In his dreams, a pack of wolves hunted him, howling in rage, their red eyes boring into him as they chased. Koketai held his breath, waiting for the door to open. Every night the sorcerer came to torment him. He had lost count of the times, but he had come to expect the man each time he woke. Moments passed, and the sorcerer did not show. Koketai sat up, hoping that the evil man was detained or dead. Annoyed at the piece of paper on his forehead, he gave it a good yank. Pain lanced through him like fire, but the thing came off in his hand. Immediately, the spell on his legs was released. As soon as he stood, a huge hailstone suddenly crashed through the roof; a chunk the size of a human head. It smashed the planks that had served as his bed. If he had stayed an instant longer, he might have been under that stone. Ignoring the door he knew was locked, he jumped, caught the edge of the broken wood that made the ceiling of his prison, and hauled himself out. The wooden cell he had been in was a wagon. He surveyed his surroundings before jumping down. Through the rain and hail, he could see Sho’an soldiers peeking from the safety of their tents. A few of them shouted at him, but none were willing to face him or the weather; they had all seen the damage he had done in battle. Hailstones the size of a man’s fist pounded the ground, leaving divets where the stones landed, but as he stood he had the vague sense that he was safe. Something seemed to be protecting him from the storm. He jumped down and his feet were instantly soaked in blood. The sorcerer laid dead, his head broken by another huge hailstone. Koketai spit on the corpse and ran. Chapter 6

Days after he had joined with Lord Wolf, Mongke still could not believe what had happened. To him, he felt as if he had stepped into one of Al Raglan’s legends. His days were clear to him, but his nights were a blur. While their souls were joined, their egos were still separate. Instinctively, he knew that Lord Wolf’s ego ruled the night, but the men would not say what happened. He looked in the direction they had come. Anvil clouds indicated a devastating storm over Sho. Two wolves were running toward him, one carrying a kuantao in his mouth. Mongke’s heart broke to see the weapon. Holding up a fist, he called the warriors to a halt. Their pupils, red with preternatural light, fixed on him. The two wolves transformed as they neared, taking on the forms of Gan and Vachir. Their clothes transformed with them, so they appeared as men in pristine armor. Mongke was glad of that. He had seen the men without their clothes. Underneath, they were no better healed than the day they had been raised, and since they had been dead at least a day upon the field the sight was gruesome. “My lord,” said Gan, “The storm is not natural. We could smell beast magic in it, and it is wild. We do not think the beast is pleased or aware.” “Koketai?” Mongke offered. Both men shrugged and shook their heads. “We think he is the beast. We found his weapon along the way. Evidently, the Sho are not men enough to use this, but it is coated with the scent of the same beast that caused the storm. He lives but as Gan feared, if he is with the Sho, then he is not human.” Said Vachir, handing Mongke the weapon. “The storm repelled us, so we could not get near it to find him, but the scent of the beast was of one in torment. We are sorry.” Mongke nodded, gripping the weapon. “I don’t believe he is a traitor, even if he is a beast. Has he not served the Khatt with all of his heart?” both nodded. A breeze stirred. Every one of them lifted their noses to the wind, sniffing like wolves. “Corpse Ash.” Gan whispered, looking at Vachir. Vachir nodded. Mongke also recognized the smell. “The camp?” He spurred his horse into a gallop in the direction of the camp. The horses, being undead, did not falter even as they were pressed to gallop uphill at their top speed. His men followed and stopped as they crested the last rise, overlooking their tribe’s settlement. Their camp was destroyed.

They dashed down the hill, enraged and aggrieved, desperate to find signs of life. What they saw caused many of the men to transform instantly, howling in rage and grief at the devastation. Bodies of women and children littered the ground. Yurts were burned to ash, their poles charred and jutting from the ground at odd angles. Rage built up inside Mongke. This was the work of the Sho army, and they had burned everything. He let loose an inhuman howl of his own that shook the ground. All of his pack joined. The emperor would pay. All of Sho would pay. Chapter 7 Alone, suffering from the effects of ripping the seal from his forehead and grieving for his fellow warriors, Koketai dragged his afflicted body westward, trying desperately to escape. He was utterly lost in the Sho Empire. A few villages dotted the landscape, interrupting the vista of fallow fields and withered orchards. Starved peasants, in no better shape than Koketai, looked at him with fear and hatred. More than once he had been assaulted with stones as he passed. They all saw his hair and knew it to be the style of the Khatt. He could not understand the Sho language, so he could not ask for directions. There was no game to hunt or plants to gather, and the only water he was not chased from was muddy and nearly undrinkable. As the scouts had reported, the Sho Empire was as barren as the Khatt lands. Finally, inevitably, his strength gave out. It was morning, and he lay in the shade of the only living tree in the area, next to a muddy hole that would soon dry up. Just as he was about to close his eyes, a low growl sent a chill down his spine. It was the growl of a demon beast. The creature was tiger-like and hellish, with legs that were shaped like a raptor’s claws, and a tail bearing a scorpion’s barb. Its fur was crimson and black, and its pupilless eyes were like molten gold. It stared at him, growling, as if it still considered him a threat. Koketai pulled his weary body upright and took a fighting pose, using his crude walking stick as a staff. “You will not get much from me, beast.” Koketai grated, spitting his words from his parched mouth. He prepared to fight it to save his soul, at the very least. A demon beast ate the soul as well as the body. Koketai braced himself for the impact, but as its horrid talons scratched his chest, the beast fell, fatally wounded. Three white feathered

arrows were embedded in the creature’s side. Koketai sank to the ground in relief and stared at the dying creature, unable to move. The stench of its blood made him queasy. “Hoy! Were you planning to let it eat you?” Called a voice from the top of a small hill. Koketai looked up at the man who had rescued him. From his position he could see a tall archer with platinum hair pulled up high on his head. Next to the man a stunning white tiger stood. That one was a natural beast, unlike the twitching monstrosity dying inches from his feet. Koketai shuddered and collapsed. He woke as a cool towel was placed on his forehead. He opened his eyes, but could see nothing. As he tried to sit, hands helped him up. “Who are you? Am I blind?” Koketai asked. A man’s voice chuckled with tenderness. “Oh! Forgive me.” Said the voice, and chanted a spell. A globe of white light appeared over his head. The man’s eyes were covered by a silk cloth. He lifted one side, revealing a sunken eyelid. There was no orb underneath. He looked like the man Koketai had seen before he passed out, but it seemed impossible that this blind man could be an archer. “Is this light enough for you? It is impossible for me to discern.” “More sorcery? Is all of Sho filled with evil?” Koketai tried to stand, but Bai held him down with a single hand. “I beg your pardon; I am no sorcerer. I am Jian Bing of the Hu archer clan. You may call me Bai if you like.” He pointed to his platinum hair. “I am Koketai. You speak Khatt?” “Ah, no and yes. It is a special ability of mine.” He said, “It might be wise for you to remain still for now. I did what I could to remove the seal on you, but you are still physically weak. Who sealed you? Perhaps you should tell me how you came to be here.” Koketai sighed and recounted his capture and imprisonment. It was owed to the man who saved his life anyway. Bai’s tears stained the silk cloth as Koketai spoke. “You poor creature. What he did. . .” “What do you mean, ‘creature’? I am human.” “No, “ said Bai “You are a beast. The sorcerer saw that, and so was able to bind you with a paper seal, but fortunately he did not know your nature. You are not awakened yet.” he paused, “You are a reincarnation of a god.”

“That’s not possible. How would you know when that sorcerer could not?” whispered Koketai. “Your ki resonated with mine. Only the ki of another god beast could resonate like. I have been waiting for you all of my incarnate life. You are the Azure dragon of the East.” “No!!” Koketai shouted, trying to stand again, but Bai still held him down. “Easy. You know, most would be awed to learn that they are the reincarnation of a god.” “I can’t be. . .A foul god of Sho?! A demon beast? I am a warrior of the Khatt!” “Not a demon beast! Don’t lump us with those of the lowest class! You are a magical beast; neither good nor evil. When you ascend to the heavens you will become a proper and immortal dragon.” “I don’t want to be a Sho’an god let alone a foul dragon.” “Koketai, we are not evil. You are to become the god beast of the spring. I, on the other hand, am supposed to be the White Tiger, lord of the West, and the god beast of the fall. I do believe that even your tribe teaches the celestial order.” Koketai bowed his head and nodded, vaguely remembering the stories Al Arslan told. “We are all connected. When one falls, all three must follow.” “You don’t know what killed this Azure Dragon?” “No. When he died, we also lost our positions in the Heavens and became incarnate. No incarnate creature can have memories of the Heavens, and so our memories are sealed.

What I know of myself is only because of my clan’s divination

and because I was taught the proper stories of the gods. The Hu family, which took me in, is known for their archers and their seers.” “I am not this dragon.” Bai laughed. “Oh yes you are. The world cannot survive without the seasons, Koketai. Unfortunately, we cannot resume our roles in the celestial order until we transcend our current state. We must find the other two and enter the Heavens through the Empire Gate.” “Oh? Yes! Let’s go to the capitol! I will kill the Emperor with my bare hands!” “Eh? Kill a fellow dragon? And who would you put in its place?”

“The Lord Wolf.” Growled Koketai. Bai barked a laugh. “If that is your destiny.” Bai said, stroking his chin, “You might change you mind about that soon, but we must still find the lords of the South and North, the guardians of the solstices.” Koketai hung his head and looked away from Bai, flexing his fists. “If. . .if I am as you say, where would we look first?” “I would go north. The temple of the North Star is dedicated to us. The priests there might have insight.” Bai sat up, as if considering something. Then he began to chant in an incomprehensible language. Koketai watched, uneasy, but unable to divert his attention. The light above Bai’s head faded to nothing, but Koketai could still hear him chanting. Suddenly, Bai’s open palm connected with Koketai’s forehead. Koketai yelped in pain as stars flooded his vision. “What did you do?” “Sorry, I just . As a dragon, you should be able to understand all languages. You will need it to travel further. How do you feel?” “Do it again and I will kill you.” Bai shrugged “If you think you can. I do not need sight to incapacitate you. I did it so that you might have the magic you need to survive our journey. You have inherent elemental magic. You must use it. ” “What is my element?” “Wood, Koketai, just as I am of metal. Did I not tell you that you were lord of the Spring?” Chapter 8 Late Summer The Temple of the North Star was situated high in the mountains on the northwestern edge of the empire. Koketai objected when he discovered the location. It was on a mountain called the Seeping Dragon, and it was considered cursed ground by the Khatt. Just going there was violating everything he had been taught. He protested the journey once he discovered the temple’s location, but Bai reminded him that it would not

matter whether he went or not. As a beast and a magic user, he could not return to the Khatt. Koketai’s journey had been easier with Bai than when he was on his own. Bai lent him an old sedge hat to cover his hair. “Koketai, what do you see?” “I see this cursed mountain.” He said, pulling up his mount. “I also see a temple ahead.” He was riding a huge plow horse that Bai’s tiger had found running feral outside an abandoned village. “Bai, do we really have to go there? If we go down now we may not be cursed.” Bai chuckled “You really believe that? Ah, you must feel it calling as I do.” “No.” Koketai said, shuddering. “I feel it repelling me.” Bai sighed. “Ah so.” He scratched Shina’s ears. “I do not sense anything. Lead me up there.” Koketai started to turn his horse, but it planted its feet. Koketai frowned. Shina growled. Bai looked sternly at Koketai. “Repelling. . .you say.” He muttered, turning his head in the direction of the temple. Koketai had no idea how he knew it was there. “Very well, it would seem that something is not right.” He said. Koketai nodded. “See, I told you! The animals know! It will curse us if we go there.” Bai got off Shina and began to feel his way forward. Koketai leaped off his horse to stop him, but Bai pushed him aside. “No. We must. . .there is another up there, sleeping. I can feel him, Koketai. We have to wake him up!” Koketai sighed and went ahead of him, offering his ki as a guide for Bai to follow. The stench of decay assaulted their noses as they opened the temple gate. A foul miasma floated in the air. Koketai covered his face. The fountain in the center of the front courtyard dedicated to Xuan Wu spat blood from the tortoise head. “I did not sense this. . .”Bai said, shaking. “I can perceive the magic here. . .blood magic. Tell me, Koketai, is there a miasma?” “Yes.” Koketai said. “Foul and clinging.” Bai drew out his bow and pulled an arrow back, chanting a prayer as he let it fly directly into the mouth of the fountain.

Immediately, the blood ceased flowing. From every corner of the temple came an unearthly cry, shaking the entire structure Then, there was silence. With the blood stopped, there was no movement. No wind stirred the dust, no bird called out; even the flies ceased their drone. Koketai looked at Bai, who had a white knuckled grip on his bow, another arrow nocked and ready to pull. Overhead, sinister clouds blotted the sun. “That’s not natural.” Whispered Koketai. “Where is the sleeping one?” “Below us.” Said Bai. “Guide me.” Koketai started toward the temple entrance, but just as he set foot inside, a sinister sound issued from the shadows like a chittering insect. Green eyes blazed from the shadows as the chittering grew louder. Finally a creature emerged, and then another; pitiful, wretched corpses given a semblance of life “No. . .Chittering plague. . .” Koketai shrunk against Bai. Of all the plagues the Khatt feared, this one was the most horrid. It spread from certain strong demons, transforming mortal men into walking, plague bearing corpses that could wipe out entire tribes. Bai’s face grew grim. “The priests?” he asked quietly, firing an arrow into the closest creature. “They are dressed like priests.” Said Koketai, “But—“ “No, there is no hope. We must destroy the source of this infection before it spreads to the village at the bottom of the mountain. They are no longer men.” “We will be infected.” “Perhaps. I am sorry Koketai. It is the miasma that carries the plague. I am probably immune, but since you are a reincarnation, your body is mortal so you are probably afflicted already. I don’t know its effects upon one with the soul of a god, but…” “Please. . .Bai! Cure me!” Koketai’s hands shook with fear. “We must destroy the source. That is the only way.” They battled the corpses, attacking one after the other as they worked their way deeper into the temple. The temple was actually built on top of a huge cavern structure, with each natural cave carved over the years into stunning art, all dedicated to the elemental guardians.

They ran around a sharp corner into a huge chamber filled with art. In the back, a gong stood, twenty feet in diameter and made of burnished brass. Bai stopped. “What is wrong?” asked Koketai. “Nothing. This place is sanctified. We can rest here. The undead cannot come into this chamber.” Koketai relaxed. The fight getting to this chamber was difficult. Now that he could sit back for a moment, he marveled at the bas reliefs carved into the walls. He stopped at one image of two dragons bearing fangs at one another, though their tails were twinned. “Hey, Bai, what is this?” he explained what he saw. Bai walked over and touched the wall, feeling the contours of the parts of the bas relief he could reach. “Oh, this is part of our legend. There are two dragons. One is you. The other is the Golden Dragon. He is also a guardian beast, did you know?” Koketai backed away. “He can’t be! No. . . .that’s not possible!” “I told you there were things about Sho you do not understand. People forget, because there are only four seasons, but there are five directions and five elements. The Golden Dragon is the Ssu Ling, the lord of the center. His element is earth. He forged the Sho Empire from his own flesh and bone, Koketai. When he had finished, he entrusted his soul to the emperor, the leader of the humans who would tend his body, thus forming the first dynasty, but because his body now formed the empire, he could no longer ascend to the heavens. According to legend, each of the four of us decided to alleviate his seclusion, one after the other. So the seasons were regulated within the empire, and the land became prosperous.” “That is not how we were taught. Why are they arguing?” “I believe that they are probably talking. Dragons can’t help looking fierce. What does it say?” “I can’t read the Sho characters. We use a different system.” Koketai said. “We are taught that the Golden Dragon learned to use blood magic and tainted the land with his sorcery. He enslaved humanity to build on it in an attempt to cover his sin. That is what I think this means. The Azure dragon is fighting with the golden one over what he did to the land.”

“That is. . .a matter of perspective. I am sure that we have not always been peaceful to one another. I suppose one day we will know the truth. Come on. I can feel him close by.” “And the source.” Said Koketai. “That too.” Said Bai. As they rested, Bai wandered around the sanctuary. He stopped at the huge gong and tapped it with his cane. The gong did not sound for a few moments before a low, booming ring reverberated in the room. “Koketai, your weapon, if you don’t mind.” He said. Koketai handed it to him. Bai took his robe off and wrapped the top of the weapon in it. Then he raised it high and slammed it into the gong. This time, the sound shook the columns of the room. Above them they could hear the screams of the corpses at the sound of the holy instrument. As the sound died away, another sound of stone scraping against stone grated behind the gong. Koketai looked down into the darkness. The sound of hissing issued from it. “Who am I? What am I?” a sibilant voice hissed from the darkness. Bai held his breath. “Not. . .it couldn’t be.” He backed up a pace. Koketai leaped to his side, grabbing his weapon from Bai. “Zhi Ming!” called Bai. “You are the Xuan Wu!” an inhuman hiss came from the darkness. “Is it now? Am I now? Yesss you are right.” The voice said. From out of the darkness, came a man with black and yellow scaled flesh. Starting at his hips and extending another twenty five feet into the darkness, he had the body of a cobra. “NAAGGGAAAA!!!” cried Koketai, once he had gotten over his shock of seeing the creature. He charged it, but he was no match for the serpent-man, who reacted simply, stunning Koketai by whipping him with the tip of his tail and then grappling him to the floor. “Human! Be lucky I am not a constrictor. Or. . .perhaps you should wish I was.” The serpent man unhinged his jaw and extended his fangs. A drop of dark venom splashed on Koketai’s cheek. “Zhi Ming! Koketai! Stop!” Zhi Ming paused, looking up at Bai. Koketai struggled to free himself.

“Who are you? You called my name.” “I am Jian Bing, known as Bai of the Hu archer clan of humans.” “You are? It. . .you make sense to be a human, tiger. Scales never suited you. Who is this?” “That is the reincarnation of the Qing Long. His name is Koketai in the Khatt tongue.” “Hah! The Khatt are feral beasts. Why would Lord Mang Zhang choose to—“ “He did not choose.” Said Bai. “Mang Zhang was murdered, and so he is now this boy. No creature has a choice in reincarnation, not even the gods of this kingdom. The place, time, and nature are chosen by the heavens.” “Foul serpent! By Lord Wolf, I am sworn to slay the naga!” cried Koketai, wheezing from being crushed by Zhi’s weight on his chest. Bai sighed. “You are sworn to kill an amazing number of things.” Bai struck Koketai lightly over the head. “You are not human, and not Khatt, so stop it. He is an ally. Don’t make me seal you.” He held out his prayer beads menacingly. Koketai went limp. “But Bai, he’s a Naga! Maybe the Sho are too dumb to remember that they enslaved humanity!” Zhi got off of Koketai and straightened himself, towering over both. “We never enslaved humans. You were our pets; that’s a great difference!” Bai looked shocked. “Pets?!” Koketai spat. Zhi slithered to coil around Bai. “Yes of course, pets. A human ages seven years to every one of our adult shedding cycles. We domesticated them, you see. Trapped them from the wild, bred them, and when they got intelligent, we trained the little monkeys to make tools, fire, and clothing. For centuries, they provided us with companionship all of their fleeting lives. Without us, they’d still be shivering in shallow caves and hiding in the bushes! How could we have known that the filthy things were would turn on us and convince the Ssu Ling to petition the heavens for recognition? You should remember, Jian. You were the one that allied with us when the humans sought to eradicate us during Lord Wolf’s rebellion. You put us under this mountain to preserve our clan!”

“See? What do you say to that, Bai? He even admits it!” Koketai got up, but broke out in a cold sweat. Standing made his heart skip. He leaned against a carved stalagmite. “How do you know about your people, Zhi?” asked Bai, ignoring Koketai, “Did you not just wake up?” “Yes. I have been sleeping for as long as I can remember. My people, the Earth Nagas, went to sleep long ago. You put us to sleep, Jian Bing. Don’t you remember?” “Er. . .I. . .is your memory not sealed?” Zhi touched his head. “We nagas have a collective conscience. We share our lives within our dreams; but about what you said. You are the first to name me. I know what you said is true. I am. . .an incarnate of Xuan Wu.” “Yes, just as I am of Bai Hu.” “Why?” Bai pointed to Koketai. “I told you. It is because somebody killed his previous incarnation. Do you remember anything?” “My memory of myself is sealed as well. It is just that my people have such long memories that I was able to learn. I admit that in my dreams, I did not know who I was, and none of my clan could name me.” “Why is he an incarnation?!” demanded Koketai “I thought incarnations were supposed to be mortal forms!” Zhi laughed. “You think we are immortal? Oh!” Zhi collapsed into hissing laughter “Oh! So that is what mankind has made of us. Hah-sss. No, little dragon, we are the first of all mortal creatures created to serve the gods. Thousands of years ago, our empire stretched over all of the Middle lands, and our Water Clan cousins ruled the seas. Can mankind boast that?” “Not quite.” Said Bai, pushing past Zhi. He had finally noticed Koketai struggling. “Koketai! Your ki is. . .” Koketai looked at Bai, but when he opened his mouth to speak, his jaw suddenly seized, and he emitted a sinister chitter. He clasped his hand over his mouth in horror. Bai paled and flung his beads over Koketai, chanting a prayer. Chapter 9

“What is this?” demanded Zhi. “It can’t be—“ “Chittering plague. You and I are probably immune, but Koketai is not. The temple above us is all infected.” “You brought it here?! My people are below!” Zhi slapped his tail against the floor in anger. Bai winced. “The upper floors are all infected and the source demon is still here. Koketai felt it before I did. Perhaps . . . perhaps he was infected before we even reached the gates.” “Why the hells did you ring the gong if you knew?!” “I was not sure what would happen! I thought it would bring you up, but I wasn’t expecting you to be a naga. Your folk are rarely seen, and this temple is three thousand years old! How could I have known what would be below the temple except xianren priests? Besides, even with this room protecting you, the demon would find a way to your people.” “I can’t sense the demon. How do you know?” “The demon hides itself well. The magic in this place disguises it. I think Koketai felt it and it reacted by guarding itself further. Gods. . .if I had let him guide us back, he would have infected everyone we came in contact with! I just didn’t see it because he didn’t want to be here in the first place. At least now I know why!” he looked at Zhi. “You are a god beast, so help me out here. You must have some of your own magic! A paper prayer seal would work best, but I cannot write.” “Don’t ask me; humans invented writing. We naga do not need such things. Our dreaming is enough.” He picked up Koketai, weaving hypnotically and forcing Koketai to make eye contact. “Where is the demon?” he hissed as Koketai began to quit struggling, “Lead us, I command you!” Koketai’s jaw clacked and he squealed. “I am no slave.” He said, straining to get the words out. “Obey me, boy. You will show us, or you will succumb to plague and I will kill you and then Bai.” “Hey!” Bai interjected. Zhi glared at Bai and flicked his tongue in and out. “Nothing personal, mammal, but you brought the plague to my door. If Koketai cannot find the demon, infected as he is, you will be at fault. I do not care if you are Jian

Bing!” Zhi’s eyes glowed gold as he carried Koketai to the cave entrance. Koketai cowered and doubled over in pain. “It repels me.” Koketai said. He hesitated for a few moments, then closed his eyes and ran blindly into the deep darkness of a hewn hall. The section of the temple complex that Koketai ran into contrasted with the artfully carved natural structures of the rest of the caves. It was recently excavated, and was as appealing as a mine shaft. In some dead ends, Bai and Zhi could see the undead clawing at the stone with hands of steel. Some foul overseer had permanently affixed metal tools to their undead extremities. Koketai was moving faster than either of them could manage, with the twists and turns of the cave confusing their sense of direction. It was only Bai’s ability to sense ki that allowed them to follow.

Chapter 11 At last they came to the final chamber, where Koketai was already prostrate at the feet of a blind human monk. Koketai was shaking and chattering, trying to fight the disease, but he was losing. The human monk had just reached down to pet his head when Bai and Zhi arrived. The monk settled his milky eyes on Bai. “Cousin, I knew you would come. I am Xianren Hu Zhou. Do you know me?” “Immortal cousin!” Bai cried. Zhou laughed. “Yes, Shenxian Xi Fang Bai Hu Jian Bing.” Bai went utterly still. “You know my full name?!” “I should. Don’t you remember? It was I who divined it!” he continued to pet Koketai. “Help, Bai.” Pleaded Koketai. “Wait, this human is immortal?” Zhou leered at Zhi. “Yes, naga. What your race never achieved, some of us have accomplished, one way or another.” Said Zhou. “Present company exempted.” “What are you doing?” Bai asked suspiciously. Zhou laughed heartlessly. “You are too late, Bai. Why did you not come when I sent the summons? We could have stopped this plague, you and I.”

“I am sorry! The Onyx Tang murdered our clan a year ago! I escaped into hiding with Shina. They have been tracking and killing anyone with Hu family business!” “Hah! So, it was fated, after all. Naga, you should at least understand who the Onyx Tang worships. The Onyx Dragon has been searching for your people.” Zhi pulled himself to tower over Zhou. “We learned our lesson, human. That tainted dragon can rot in hell for his deception!” “Oh, of course. You are only a naga in the flesh, though, am I right Zhi Ming? I wonder if your people can resist as easily.” “You are corrupted!” cried Bai, drawing his bow like lightning. Zhou pulled Koketai up by his neck. Bai could see desperation in Koketai’s eyes. “Ah, ah! Now, don’t go trying that. Your blessed arrows could hurt me, but they would kill young Koketai, here. He is alive still, just barely. Oh, it would only take a little slip!” Bai lowered his weapon. Zhou lowered Koketai, who returned to his prostrate position. “You are too late for me, Bai. This demon was too strong. It overpowered even me. I. . .thought I could stop it and kill it. I was the only Xian monk in residence, so I was the only hope. I failed, and actually contracted this disease. Bai. . .Think of it! A Xianren contracting illness!” He continued to pet Koketai, “Soon, this boy’s body will be dead, and it will trap Lord Qing’s soul within, just as my body entrapped my own soul. Slowly, tortuously, the Qing Long will be bent to conform to his undead form, and he will be forever corrupted. With him trapped and you three sealed incarnate, the Ssu Ling will die and all the middle empire will be another extension of hell!” “You were corrupted long before your possession, cousin.” Said Bai, in anguish. “Me? I am. . .I was. . .Xianren! For two centuries I have been a Hu clan seer! How could I have fallen?” Bai turned away. “It was simply too strong. Now, at least I will have consolation that even a Shianxian dragon like Qing Long could not withstand this demon. If he cannot overcome this disease, then there was never hope for a lower immortal like myself after all.” Zhou laughed insanely and knelt to Koketai’s level “Boy, give up; it will be easier. Your body is already mine.” Koketai forced himself to look into Zhou’s eyes. His own were blazing with blue light

“A warrior will never fall to a lowly demon.” He growled in a split voice. Zhou backed away. Instantly, he received two arrows in the chest from Bai as Koketai arched and released a massive amount of power from every point of his body. Despite his illness, he stood erect, blazing with blue light. “Demon of Plague Zhou! I will crush you!” Koketai grabbed his weapon from his back and sent power through it. Branches and leaves sprouted from the wood, reaching out like tentacles to envelop Zhou. With a deadly thrust, Koketai impaled him through the diaphragm. Black blood spurted from his back and dripped down the haft of the weapon. Even impaled, Zhou managed to utter an unnatural scream of maniacal laugher as his entire body split open like a ripe melon. The demon that emerged was a grotesque mass of flesh resembling a giant maggot. Yellow, viscous ichor and tainted blood oozed and dripped from the creature’s pale flesh in sickening slimy tendrils. It wore Zhou’s face like a mask embedded into its own flesh. Still entangled in the magical vines, he strained against them. It attacked Bai and Zhou with a cry of revenge, spitting acid out of its true mouth; a gaping hole at the top of its body. It was all Koketai could do to hold the creature immobile with his magic and rapidly dwindling strength while his allies battled the creature. Finally, fatally wounded, the demon turned Zhou’s face toward Koketai. “Damn you dragon! You can’t! You are almost undead! How are you resisting me?” the maggot Zhou whined. Koketai barked a laugh, panting and staring up with his blazing eyes though it was apparent that he could barely stand. “As if you could take me, lowly fiend! I am a Khatt warrior! Know your place!” At that moment Zhi’s magic slammed into the demon, destroying it by injecting it with magical water until it exploded. Koketai remained standing, leaning on his weapon for support. As he looked around, he wobbled and passed out in the puddle of water and gore. Chapter 12 Koketai woke slowly, blinking his eyes a few times before he discovered that he was underwater. He immediately panicked. He had never been underwater in his life. He was chained to the wall with blessed manacles. They were not worked with writing,

but they were magical all the same. Soon he realized that he was not drowning, but it did not ease his fear. Hearing the clink of the metal chains, a naga swam into the room with him. Unlike the cobra-like Zhi, this one was definitely aquatic. Its tail was made like a sea snake’s, but the end also bore a decorative, blood red frill like the tail fin of a male beta fish. “What is your name?” asked a female voice in his head. Koketai was confused. The female voice repeated her question. “Um. . .who are you?” he asked. The naga in front of him crossed its arms in frustration. “What? Can’t you tell I am talking to you?” Koketai’s jaw dropped. The naga in front of him looked like it had a male torso. “You are female?” “Yes, of course I am! Honestly. Can’t you tell? Perhaps you think that a female naga should have breasts like a monkey?” she swam up to him and unlocked his manacles. “So, what is your name?” “Koketai.” He said, still shocked. The naga smiled. “Ah, good. Greetings Lord Koketai, I am Selia. We were worried that you would lose yourself after using all of that magic.” “Am I alive?” “Of course you are silly, you are a dragon. It doesn’t matter what form you are in. Lord Bai was quite worried, but we showed him. Silly mammal that he is, can’t fathom the thought of breathing as we do, dragons and nagas, I mean.” Koketai looked down at his arms, but they were still human arms. “I really am not. . .human.” he said, looking at Selia. Selia wrapped herself around him gently. “Oh no, Lord Koketai. You are very much a dragon. One day you will shed this ugly skin and emerge as beautiful and blue scaled as you were always meant to be.” She ran a taloned finger sensuously down his jaw. “Back away Selia, he is not safe.” asked Zhi, swimming out of the darkness outside Koketai’s cell. In his hands, he held a set of clothes made from naga slough.

“Lord Zhi! Ah, yes! Please excuse me for freeing him.” “It is alright if he uses his manners.” He looked down at Koketai. “Well, brat? You will not attack my people while you are here; do you understand?” Koketai paused, and then nodded. “Good. I do not like you, brat. The heavens made a bad mistake in how you reincarnated. My people will not kill you, but we will not hesitate to teach you manners.” He sneered at Selia. “Since this fingerling has a crush on you, she can lead you back to the surface.” He turned and swam out quickly. Koketai glared at his retreating form. Selia looked sheepish. “Fingerling?” “Ah heh, yeah, I am only fifteen years old. A child.” She held up a finger. “When we are born we are only this big. Fingerling, understand?” Koketai did not know how to respond. Selia helped him dress. Naga slough was not flimsy and brittle like normal serpent’s slough. This material was supple, somewhat thick and opaque, and it stretched. Selia moved back to assess Koketai’s appearance. “Well. There you are. It is strange to see a dragon wearing someone else’s scales, but that cannot be helped.” “Lord Wolf will never forgive me.” grumped Koketai “Why Lord Wolf? He is a murderer!” Selia took Koketai’s hands. Koketai tried to yank them away, but she had him firmly. “Lord Koketai. . .please understand. You are not subordinate to Lord Wolf. You are above him in the celestial order.” “I can’t. Even if I am a god, I was still raised by his people.” Selia shook her head sadly and dragged him to the surface. He crawled out and coughed up water. “Lord Koketai, please. Please. Everything is wrong about worshipping Lord Wolf. He is the god of humans. You are a god over an entire season! The entire world depends on you. Please, for me forget the wolf clan. I am one of the priestesses of your eastern palace. Do not abandon us. ” “Come up with me.” Said Koketai. Selia shook his head and showed her tail. “I cannot. I am a Sea Clan Naga. I cannot slither like the Earth Clan does. I would have to drag myself with my hands. Will you come back? Your room is down here in the water as it should be.” Koketai looked down.

“Where are my things?” “What things? Your rags and stick were destroyed by the plague demon. There was nothing we could safely save.” Selia shuddered. “You really did almost die, you know.” Koketai wandered around the temple, above the water and below. He found Bai in a room filled with statues, and he was talking about magic with the naga wizards. Finding their conversation confusing, Koketai left him and continued looking around. The naga were busy repairing the temple and cleaning out the bodies, dragging the dead priests into the main courtyard, where a huge pyre had been burning the entire week. The naga had clamed the temple as their city and were repairing the damage the demon had caused. Koketai was badly shocked that the Naga did not act as evil as his people taught. In his opinion, they acted very much like the Sho citizens he had seen. Some were leery of his appearance. They all seemed to remember the Khatt as being bestial. Just as with the Sho, now that he had awakened to his draconic heritage, he could understand and speak Naga. Some of them also spoke to him in draconic, which was closer to the Sho language. What he did not see were children. The youngest naga at the temple was Selia, and she was a Sea Clan Naga. As he went back to his rooms, he stopped in the sanctuary and looked up at the entwined dragons again. Something bothered him about the picture, but he did not know what was wrong with it. He was still staring at it when Zhi entered the room. “You have minded your manners well. I understand that you have had no problem with our language.” “Bai says that as a dragon I can speak and understand any language. He can also, but I think it is because he is a god.” “Yes, but even Bai cannot speak Naga. You are a strange human, Koketai, and a strange dragon.” Koketai stared up at the bas relief. “I have never seen water deep enough to cover my head before. I never learned to swim. Now, my rooms are down there. If I am not human, I cannot be Khatt. I am lost.”

“Not lost. You are just beginning to molt. Bai told me how he woke you, but I think you were beginning to wake even before that. Our young are born fully aware. They can follow us in our dreams, and we already know them even before they hatch. The first time they molt, most are very afraid. They think they are going blind, or that they are going to lose all their scales, or explode from the pressure their sloughing skin is putting on their growing bodies. Your human form is very much like that. You are stuck in it now, but one day, you will take your form as a true dragon. This outer shell must die first.” “Bai and Selia both said something like that.” He looked at Zhi. “Why are there no children here?” Zhi sighed and coiled himself up, sweeping his hand to indicate the wall. “We are a dying race.” He said. “Long ago, the Onyx Dragon was our patron god. He was the dragon of luck and lived with us, incarnate, but he became corrupted. We do not know why. He led a rebellion against the Jade Dragon, trying to usurp its power. We, who followed him, were punished with him. The heavens decreed that no soul would become an earth naga. That meant that even if there were eggs, our hatchlings were nothing more than mindless, soulless beasts. We became lower than humans.” “But Selia?” “The Sea Clan Naga were never under that curse. They worshipped you almost exclusively, and were our enemies for a long time. This relief tells the story of our punishment, and of the rise of the human race. We made this relief long ago, but the humans have changed it. They have put writing here.” He stretched himself to scratch at the writing. It crumbed under his talons. In a great cloud of dust, the writing came off the relief, revealing a dragon inlaid with onyx. Koketai looked at the new image, stunned. “That is what is bothering me. What is that dragon I am pointing to?” “That is Lord Onyx. You are pointing to him, arguing that if the golden dragon sacrificed himself to give humans magic, he was going to eventually become corrupted like the Onyx was.” “I knew that they were arguing.”

“Well, a dragon would know the expression of a dragon. Bai is a mammal to the root of his soul. They were brothers and nest mates. That is why their tails are entwined.” “You said earlier that I was a mistake.” Zhi folded his arms and flicked his tongue. “I may have spoken in anger. You have been raving or most of the week. Sometimes you seemed lucid, and you did attack me first. That and you claim to be Khatt.” “I can’t claim that. Not anymore.” “I know, but you must know that the Khatt are humans that forsook the sacrifice of the dragon so that they could remain true to their original nature. Lord Wolf was the patron god of humans long before the golden dragon. It was because of the Golden Dragon’s sacrifice that Lord Wolf rebelled against the heavens. He did have a legitimate reason, but he was not powerful enough. That is why it bothers me that you were reincarnated into the Khatt tribes.” Koketai bowed his head and turned away from him. “I was adopted. My father found me in an burned out house in a peasant village on the Sho border.” Zhi seemed to relax. “I see. Well. We have a long trip ahead of us tomorrow.” “Where are we going?” “Selia’s mother and Bai both believe that Nan Fang Zhu Que, the vermillion sparrow, may be in the southern port town of Fan Chai. There is a temple there to the Phoenix. We believe that if there is any creature in the Middle Lands who would know the location of the Sparrow, it would be the Phoenix.” Selia greeted Koketai as he entered his room. He felt very awkward, knowing that she was his priestess. When her mother also came in to sleep, he did not feel comfortable kicking both out, so he accepted their attention. Still, he managed to sleep, with both naga coiled around him as if he was one of their hatchlings. Somehow, this was more comforting to him than sleeping in his yurt had ever been. Chapter 13 Early Fall

The long trip South was filled with more monsters. The villages they saw were either dying or dead, from disease, starvation, and monster attack. They were well received in the towns that still had people. News that the Earth Clan Naga were awake had already made it as far as the capital, and just as swiftly, proclamations had gone out to receive the Earth Naga as allies of Sho. The port of Fan Chai baked in the sun. It had once been a burgeoning town, filled with traders and ships, but the sea had flooded the original port district. A few people had built makeshift docks to accommodate fishing ships, but the only sea trade was coming from the naga, who had begun to live in the sunken buildings. The people of the city continued in their business as usual, though most of them went to decaying businesses from equally crumbling homes. Even those who were once wealthy were dependent on the government rationed rice dolled out by the city garrison. The city gardens were all dead, and the bath houses were dry and vacant. The path to the temple passed through the city’s red-light district known as the Hen’s Roost. The Phoenix cult’s priestesses were all temple prostitutes, and their dormitories were there. Other prostitute houses naturally moved in around the dormitories, and the dormitories had built houses similar to the business prostitutes so that it was hard to tell who was from the temple and who was working for profit.

The

only way was by the phoenix brand burned into the back of every priestesses, and the gold inlaid etching on the door posts of the official houses marking them as property of the temple. All around the district, a wall separated the Roost from the city, and guards stood at each gate, guarding the citizens of the district from leaving. Koketai stared wide eyed at everything, having never seen a city as large as Fan Chai. It was mid morning as they passed through, and the streets of the Roost were relatively empty. At the gate they had been required to deposit their arms and armor. As they passed by, every house called out to them, excited to see Zhi. Zhi was quite embarrassed by the whole idea, and was considering turning around, when the door to an official house opened up, and a scrawny man in nothing but a loincloth few out as if thrown, landing in a graceless heap in front of Zhi. “Hey! I had clothes!” The house matron looked out the second story window. “That is him.” Said Bai, astounded, “Zhi! That is the sparrow!”

“We will sell them as payment for your damage!” cried the matron, “Tell my sister I have had enough!” “Oh come on, Auntie Willow, sweetheart! You can’t sell a sorcerer’s robes!” In half a moment, the robes, weighted with rocks, smashed him in the head. He stumbled into Zhi and stared up, gave him a thumbs-up, and passed out. The woman gasped as she realized what she had done. She disappeared from the window. “It cannot be this easy.” Muttered Zhi as he looked down at the man. “Oh, my lords, please excuse me!” she bowed deeply and knelt to see what she had done. “That is quite alright.” Said Zhi. We were going up to the temple.” Willow shot them a caustic glance. “Nobody goes up to the temple without meeting with us first. Come. Come in my lords.” She picked up the man without any trouble and beckoned them into her house. She closed and warded the house as they entered. The whole house smelled like smoke. The man came to, drowsily, and fixed his eyes on Bai as Willow prepared the room. “Well hello Jian Bing! What’re you doing in a place like this?” he groaned and clutched his head. Bai leaned forward. “You are Nan Fang Zhu Que.” “Yeah, that I am. I am called Tsi here. It is quicker.” Willow came back and slapped an ice pack on Tsi’s head. “My lords, why are you here? Don’t you know the Phoenix cult is murdered?” “What?” exclaimed Bai, “But that cannot be!” “You are still alive.” Said Zhi. Willow nodded. “I am alive because they left most of the priestesses alive. They couldn’t just slaughter us. We are the most visible members of the clergy.” She whispered. “They killed all the priests, who are never seen. Now, all of the Roost is owned by them.” “How did this happen?” asked Koketai. “How does a whole group of people get murdered without anyone knowing?” Willow looked at Koketai. “Who is the bumpkin?” she asked, pointing a thumb at Koketai.

“That is the azure dragon, if my senses are correct.” Said Tsi. Everyone nodded. Willow’s jaw dropped. “By the Heavens! I thought you to be fools, but I never expected you to be gods!” “You seem to know who Tsi is.” “Tsi? Don’t let that liar fool you. He’s a street sorcerer and maybe a xianren. Who knows? He’s just a vagrant that my sister Sunflower took a liking to and adopted. This bastard is a fire elemental summoner and a con man, nothing more.” “How long ago?” “Oh, I don’t know. He came to her shortly after the Onyx Tang took power, but he’s not with them. Sunflower’s a fool. She found him wandering about without a memory in his head and an enormous amount of magic. If he’s alright, you better get him the hell out of here. I want no magic in my house. That’s Sunflower’s thing. This is just a simple pleasure house. A ruined one, thanks to that bastard. He fell asleep in one of my rooms and lost control of his magic again. That’s the third time in a year. I can’t afford to keep the place as it is! There’re no petitioners during a crisis like this! There’s no phoenix to offer our prayers to!” “No Phoenix? But the emperor is—“ “Yeah, well, nobody knows except us priestesses. Nobody is allowed into the temple anymore except the Tang. As long as we shut up about it, the Tang won’t kill us.” “Why don’t you speak out?” “Huh? When the phoenix returns, he has to have a clergy to serve him. The Tang can’t do that. The phoenix will read their hearts in an instant!” she snapped he fingers under Koketai’s nose. “You’re a savage as well as a bumpkin. Hell, I don’t know what’s going on in the heavens! The phoenix flies away and the emperor falls ill, the Onyx tang takes over the temple, the land shrivels, demons roam the countryside, the seas flood the docks, the Earth Clan Naga have awakened, the Khatt are invading, and now the gods walk among us! Tell me, gods, is the world coming to an end?” Everyone looked at one another. “We are trying to restore the world’s balance.” Said Bai. “Somebody killed the Azure dragon thirty years ago.” “Wait, the Khatt are invading?”

“Yeah, haven’t you heard? There is a great army of them led by a pack of demon wolves and a man who calls himself Monkey—“ “Mongke Chinua?!” Koketai leaped to his feet. “Yes! That’s the barbarian name. They say the man is a half beast! How frightening! They say that he fights in the shape that is half wolf, half man, and that his soldiers all turn to wolves when they are not riding their skeletal mounts.” “That’s not possible!” shouted Koketai. Willow looked at him, alarmed. “Hey. . .you’re not one of them, are you? Now that I think about it, your hair—“ “I told you he is a dragon.” Said Zhi. “He is not a Khatt.” He wrapped the end of his tail around Koketai’s waist. “There is nothing we can do about the Khatt. Tsi is the one we came to find. We need to leave for the capital right away.” “That will be a problem. If Tsi is not lying about this, he still can’t leave. He is a citizen of the district.” “There is no other choice. He is the Mang Fang.” “By the Phoenix, you are not joking.” She breathed, “I can smuggle you out. We just have to be cunning. I will send you to Sunflower. She has more magic than I do. She is gifted as a seer, and is one of the few who were allowed to live. Tsi has to get dressed though.” Tsi blew smoke in Willow’s face from his lit pipe. “That’s fine sweetheart. All of my clothes are with mama. Besides, I don’t like the way you do laundry. You always leave rocks in my pockets.” Willow thumped him on the head. He yelped as her knuckle brushed a knot. “I will never forget that you owe me one. You’d better not die.” “Yes, Auntie Willow.” Said Tsi. “Get going. If I visit, her people will get suspicious, but you’re her. . .thing.” she said, and waved them out the door. Zhi donned his robes and walked out, tying them and swaggering as he stepped out. “Ah, Willow’s true to her name. She just gets more graceful with age; even if she does droop to the ground.” He stretched just in time to have a bath pan dropped on his head with a resounding clang from the window. “I heard that you old cock rooster! Get going!”

“Right! You’re in luck! Mama Sunflower is the high priestess around here. Well, of all the old crones that is.” He ducked behind Zhi and looked up, but nothing came from the window this time. “Whew! She’s in a mood this morning.” “Did you really burn her room?” asked Koketai. Tsi shrugged. “Yeah, well, I was experimenting with my juggling. I’m up to sixteen now.” “Juggling?” asked Bai. “Yeah. Fireballs. I suppose you wouldn’t know. I’d show you, but Zhi is causing enough eyes to look our way as it is.” “Don’t you see nagas all the time?” “Well yeah, you know, but rarely here. I mean, here in the Roost. The Phoenix cult is human exclusive, you know. Maybe once in a while there’ll be a trade delegate for finished goods to the temple, but they come in the rickshaw. They can’t move on land, you know.” “I suppose so.” Said Zhi. “I mean, you’re an Earth Naga! Gods! There must have been parades all of the way here for you! The Emperor received your delegate, I heard. I mean, couldn’t you, you know, disguise yourself? You know, change your form to walk on two legs? The legends say that nagas could.” “Do the sea nagas change?” asked Zhi. “Well no. But I mean, they’re different, right?” “Not so different.” Said Zhi. “We can’t grow legs and walk like a human any more than you can make fins and swim like a fish. Dragons are the ones who can change.” “Ah ha! I knew I had it backward. Well that explains everything.” He walked through the district quickly, and with his head down. Soon, they came to a lonely, small house surrounded by lush plants. “It’s so green!” said Koketai. “Its like an oasis!” “Yeah, this is the pump house. It’s where mama and I live. All the houses have to draw their water from here. There’s no other well in this district. Every servant comes here, drops off the night’s letters, Gets blessed by mama, and goes back to their house.

That’s how we’ve always kept in communication. Otherwise, the women of one pleasure house would go to another. All of these men and women are paid for by their crones. “Slaves?” Koketai asked stiffly. Tsi shook his head. “Indentured servants. They’re paid until they work off whatever got them sold here. Then they work off their living expenses. The priestesses, well, all of them chose their path. They work here for life, and die very young unless they are very good.” “How awful! Humans kill their mates?” Tsi stopped. “No. They are presented to the phoenix, who takes their name and eats it, and then gives them a new one. We say death, because literally everything is erased from them. They are given a new memory chosen by the phoenix. Thereafter, they are under the emperor’s care for the rest of their lives. Women are so lucky that the Phoenix can give them a rebirth.” He opened the door for them, and they went inside. “Tsi, what is the phoenix?” asked Koketai. “What is the phoenix?” asked an elderly female voice. A woman appeared with a blazing phoenix brand on her throat. She was dressed the most expensive silks. “You are all gods and you do not know?” she adjusted herself. “The phoenix bears the emperor’s mortality. As long as he bears the dragon mantle, the soul of the golden dragon grants him authority over the middle lands. His own soul is kept by the phoenix.” “The emperor lost his own soul?” “Or it was stolen, killed or kidnapped.” Sunflower sniffed. “When you go, find out which it is.” They escaped from the city and traveled east, only to Find Mongke waiting for them. He had tracked down Koketai at last. Mongke stood on a hill. The instant he saw Koketai with Zhi, he was filled with grief and rage. He believed that Koketai had betrayed the Khatt. As he attacked, just as willow said, he transformed into a wolf. Zhi and Bai both held Koketai back as Tsi cast a spell to let them escape. They raced across the land with Mongke pursuing them, until they collapsed running through the gates of Siwan, the capital city. They were brought to the palace, where the emperor received them, but everyone was troubled. Something about the emperor seemed odd, but everyone felt the draconic

presence within the emperor. Finally, they were brought to the Empire Gate. There, The emperor quickly seized everyone. They were thrown in the deepest dungeon. In prison, Koketai, Bai, Zhi and Tsi were placed in a cell with a maimed man named Jen. He was once the leader of a rebellion in Sho that had stormed the palace. He didn’t understand why the emperor spared his life, but it was the emperor who tore his arm off at the shoulder. The cell that they were in had a loose stone that covered a passage out of the dungeon, but for the entire time Jen had been there, he could not access it because it was impossible to move with only one hand. In return for opening it, he pledged to fight alongside them. Meanwhile, Mongke’s band descended upon the city. With the guards distracted by the invasion, they hoped to get through the gate. Jen protested, but they insisted that there was something wrong with the emperor, and they intended to try to open it without him. They snuck back up to the gate and stood before it. Each of them tried to open it, but it did not budge. Jen, being human, stayed away from the gate. Just as they were about to give up and sneak out, the emperor melted out of the shadows. “Ah. I am so glad you decided to break out. You will never reach heaven now.” He said with an oily look in his face. Jen stepped forward. “You are a false emperor!” he accused. “Harm these four, and I will kill you as I should have.” The emperor barked an evil laugh. “Oh?” he said, “Do you want to lose the other arm as well? I have plans for these four, plans that Xahn Yun began, but his mortal soul was too weak to finish. He only succeeded in killing off the azure dragon alone. Now that everyone is distracted by Lord Wolf out there, I believe I will consume all four of you.” “You’re insane!” cried Koketai. The Emperor chuckled. “Oh no, Koketai. I am lucky.” He said as his face elongated and blackened. Silver horns shot out from his skull and vicious teeth erupted from his mouth. Zhi backed up in horror. “I am lucky today that I will not have to powder myself gold to fool anyone any longer! I will remove the Jade Dragon from its high perch! For that, I will thank you all for providing me with your power. Of course, you may writhe in torment

as I digest your souls.” With that he attacked, snapping his huge jaws and lunging at the party. Suddenly, the entire palace shook violently and the sound of a demonic wolf’s howl cut through the air. The gate opens upon hell, jarred by the force of the howl. In the same instant, the onyx dragon whipped around, shocked and distracted, and with his tail, swept Koketai and his companions into the gate. In Hell and free of the middle land, everyone assumed their original form, but corrupted by the pull of evil that taints hell. Koketai, a dragon for the first time, had to learn to use his body to fight his way to one of the many exits. When they returned to the mortal realm, they were forced back into their original human forms by the emperor of Sai; the city on the edge of hell. Back on the mortal plane, partially freed of their formal restriction, they found that they could change for a limited time, but doing so also corrupted them further. Since they entered hell instead of heaven, they became demonic versions of themselves. Even Jen, who had no alternate form, seemed corrupted. To cleanse the corruption, they were tasked by Sai to gather the eight talismans scattered across the world, and present them to the temple atop the highest mountain. After a long quest to find the eight talismans, they traveled to the mountain as instructed. At the base of the mountain, as they began the trek up to the shrine, they were met by Mongke. The change in him tore at Koketai, who still loved him as a brother. Mongke was starved to the point of death, but Lord Wolf had been pressing him beyond his limits. He attacked them blindly, and was still devastatingly powerful, but after a brief battle, Mongke’s power left him and he collapsed, panting, in his hybrid form. “Well, dragon, traitor, naga, demons, will you fight to the death? I have failed! The Onyx Dragon will destroy this plane. You are corrupted, I am dying, and there is no hope. The Onyx dragon is going to shatter the pillars of heaven and plunge all of creation into hell.” “Mongke,” said Koketai in his dragon form. “You merged with Lord Wolf on behalf of the Khatt. The Golden Dragon is gone. Join us. We have to cleanse ourselves, but then we will go and drag the usurper off the throne. You can have it. None of us as the right to take it but you still have that right. Mongke. . .Lord Wolf. Join us, please.

All I ever wanted was to see you on the throne. You are my brother.” Mongke snorted and fully transformed into a wolf. With a sharp bark he ran away. In his tiger form, Bai stared at Mongke’s retreating form with his ice blue eyes. “If it is your destiny.” He said to Koketai. “Shall we pursue him?” Koketai shook his head and looked up at the mountain trail. “No. If he wishes, he may follow us. This task is more important.” He said, melting back into his human form. “Let’s go up the mountain.” The god of the temple was a qi’lin, a unicorn-like beast second only to the jade dragon in power. This one was a female, and she accepted all of them, even Jen. In their time atop the mountain, the qi’lin took Jen aside and spoke with him privately. After Jen returned, the qi’lin cleansed them and sent them onward with the blessings of heaven and a plea for haste. The gates of the palace were still broken, but they were heavily guarded. They had to sneak in through the prison. Now that they were no longer strictly bound to their human forms, the prison could not hold them, and they destroyed the door on the other side of the secret tunnel. They fought their way through the demon infested hallways and into the darkened throne room. The last time they had been in the throne room, it had been filled with people. Now, it was empty, with all the lights extinguished. The Onyx dragon was in the gate room, and the demons that were not attacking were celebrating the coming demise of the celestial order. As they walked through, A voice called to Jen from behind the throne. Jen looked up to see a spirit dressed as a prince “Jen, you cannot fight this battle.” The spirit says. “Who are you?” “I am Xi Yun.” He said sadly. Everyone looked at him. “You are Xi Yun?” Bai asked. “Yes, sadly. You must undo the evil I brought to the middle kingdom, but cannot defeat the Onyx dragon as you are.” “What do I need?” Xi looked at the other four. “Do you accept him as an equal?” asked Xi. Everyone nodded. “He’s been to hell and back with us, even though he’s only human.” Xi chuckled.

“Only human? If I understand things correctly, you recently considered yourself human as well.” Koketai blushed blue. Xi beckoned Jen up the dais. From out of nowhere, he pulled a mantle of translucent golden scales. “Jen, this was never mine. When the Onyx dragon overtook me, I managed to flee my body before he consumed my soul. I wandered for a very long time. Eventually, I found my way to the Qi’lin to ask why this had happened to me. She told me a very strange story. You and I share the same birthday. My father, corrupted by the Onyx Dragon, chose to interpret the signs in the heavens as relating to me, his son, but I was born without the dragon seal that all emperors have.” Jen clutched his right side. “My dragon mark.” Xi nodded. “The Onyx Dragon ripped your arm from you because you were a danger to him, but he could not kill you. He needed you alive because you are the true emperor. If you had died, the heavens would have been permanently sealed from the Empire Gate.” He unfolded the mantle and draped it over Jen’s shoulders. The effect was instantaneous. Jen doubled over, clutching his side as light poured out of his mouth and eyes. Everyone stepped back as his human body transformed into the hornless golden dragon. He stood, coughing as if something was caught in his throat. With a noisy wheeze, he dislodged it. It was a wad of flame that exploded into a brilliant phoenix that filled the room with its mournful cry as Jen returned to his human form. This time, his missing arm returned, but it was scaled and taloned like Zhi’s. He stared at his new arm, flexing it in wonder. The phoenix settled on it, its feathers flaming, and looked up at Jen. He stroked it with his human hand. Xi smiled sadly. “Go on. Kill my body and let me go where I deserve to be. I was told that the Qi’lin would petition before Sai on my behalf if I completed this task. I am ready to be truly dead, but it will mean nothing if the celestial order crumbles.” Xi faded away. Jen descended from the throne and Koketai embraced him. “I don’t quite know how I will reconcile this with Lord Wolf, brother.” “You did not know.” He said, hefting his sword with his new arm. His eyes had changed to pupilless, radiant gold. “Let us go. We are risking the entire world by dallying here.” He opened the door leading deeper into the emperor’s cambers and ran through, Koketai, Bai, Tsi and Zhi following behind.

As they crashed through the door leading to the empire gate, the Onyx Dragon roared in rage as his spell was interrupted. Mad with sinister purpose he attacked them once again. This time, the battle was equal. The Onyx dragon was alone, but he was a powerful entity. All around them the palace crumbled to dust in the wake of their battle, with each of the god beasts in their true forms as they fought against the Onyx. The skies churned with roiling black clouds. Lightning dug into the ground around them. Finally, exhausted and drained of all their magic, they defeated the dragon. Around them the Siwan palace and the surrounding city were in ruins. The five gods stood in front of the Empire gate and amongst the twenty four pillars, the only structures still standing. The gate itself was held up by some unseen frame. The pillars no longer held up a physical ceiling, but they were still standing. The body of the Onyx dragon coiled around the gate and the pillars, oozing tainted blood. Koketai sighed and put his hands on the doors, but they would not budge. Jen shook his head. “Koketai, I am the Ssu Ling, guardian of the Empire Gate. Only I can open it upon heaven.” Koketai backed away as Jen walked toward the door. Just as he touched the handles of the gate, the earth shook, tossing everyone to the ground. The Onyx dragon twitched and raised his head, uttering the last two foul words of his spell and grins, exposing all of his teeth as the first of the pillars crumbled to dust. “Fools! You are too late. If I cannot survive, then nobody will. I will not let you stop this.” As everything begins to fall apart, the Onyx dragon attacked again, this time as an undead creature. They fought against the dragon, but he was more powerful, now that he was absorbing the negative magic from the destruction of each pillar. Every time a pillar crumbled, he healed all of his wounds. Everyone fought grimly, but they knew that there was no hope this time. Still, they were determined to fight as long as they could. Just as the last pillar began to crumble, the howl of the wolf god split the air. In a flash of magic, Mongke appeared in the place of the final pillar, sacrificing himself to hold up the heavens. His hybrid lupine and human muscles bulged and shook as he held up an unseen load.

“Dragon! Quit fighting this demon and open the Gate! Only the Jade dragon can stop this now.” Koketai also broke off. He could not see what Mongke was holding.” “I will help you.” He said. “No! You need to go through. I will hold the heavens until the end of time if I have to.” “You can’t! You’re still mortal, just like me!” Mongke laughed. “Not like you, brother. Lord Wolf and I reached Apotheosis. We are the same immortal creature now. Shed your human form forever. Go on. The Middle Lands are my domain, and they always have been.” He howled in pain and desperation. Spirit wolves appeared all around him, stepping in to help him, holding up the invisible burden with their shoulders. Jen pulled on the gate and it flew open, blinding light streaming from the portal. When their eyes adjusted, hey could see the bridge to heaven. Standing at the entrance, the Jade Dragon waited in an androgynous human form, with Xi Yun beside it, cloaked in white and grinning. Everyone except for Mongke bowed low. The Jade Dragon stroked Mongke’s fur, and he instantly turned to stone. His spirit leaped out of the pillar in full wolf form and collapsed. All of the spirit wolves also turned to stone, forming the new pillars. Mongke whimpered as he watched, too weak to do anything to stop it. “Dear Lord Wolf. They will serve all of the middle empire forever. From now until the end of time, emperors of Sho will have to look upon these pillars and see the wolves inside. Why did you sacrifice your body? You could have lived forever incarnate. The gate would have opened for you as well.” Mongke looked away. “I was the only one with arms to hold it.” He said, looking up at his petrified hybrid form. “What is the point of a body if there is no middle land to run in? Someone would have had to be sacrificed. The four god beasts could not. The Ssu Ling was already sacrificed and had just inhabited a new emperor. Everyone else is dead.” “You and the mortal Mongke Chinua—“ “We are the same now. We have become each other.” “I see that. Your personalities have perfected each other. You gave up your singular chance to overtake the Golden Dragon so that he could open the gate. You would not have done it before.”

“I was content with what I had.” Calmly, the Jade dragon stroked Mongke’s head. “Mongke Chinua, you are needed in the celestial order once again. The golden dragon needs you. Now that your body is inside the pillar, you will forever inhabit this place.” Mongke whined in grief and licked his nose, his ears laid back. “How will I serve?” “You will protect the empire. I would never force your people to dwell as those who chose to follow the Ssu Ling, but as you are now holding up the heavens, you must protect them. Your position will be equal to the emperor. Both of you will work under the blessings of heaven for the benefit of all the middle lands; the Ssu Ling as the administrator and you as the protector. You will inhabit a living human, just as the Ssu Ling does. I do believe you father granted you a wolf fur mantle?” Mongke growled. “I accept that arrangement.” The Jade dragon stepped up to the pillar and pulled out a mantle just like the one Gan had given Mongke on the day of the fateful raid. He handed it to Xi, who bowed. Jen looked at him. “Xi, you are—“ “Yes. I was given exception. I am the last of the Yun line. When my penance is done in service to the Jade Dragon, I will rest together with the first Emperor and by doing so close the chapter on the era. I handed you the dragon mantle, as was my duty because my father’s soul was corrupted and destroyed. Now, I will wait for a child with a wolf mark to appear, and begin the line of wolf emperors to stand beside the dragon emperors.” The Jade Dragon picked up Mongke in his arms. It looked at everyone. “Well, are you coming?” it asked, and went through the gate. Fifteen years later The land recovered miraculously once the celestial order was in balance. Not only the empire, but the Khatt wastes bloomed as never before. The Earth Naga slithered down from their temple home to help prepare the land for the Emperors’ coronation. They had been working for the last fifteen years, hand in hand with the Khatt and the Sho, to rebuild and replant the land. Jen returned to the middle empire along with the guardian god of winter. He ascended the throne on the first day of the year, fifteen years after the battle, and

proclaimed the first year in the Han Legacy. The guardian god of winter, in the form of the naga Zhi Ming, was in attendance, as it was his season to visit the Golden Dragon. The Dragon Emperor had been declared immortal. No longer would the Jade Dragon allow the golden dragon to have descendants. The people were declared to be his children. As long as the emperor behaved in line with the celestial order, he would rule with eternal youth. The people of Sho were proud to hear the legend of their new emperor, and how he went to hell and back to save the world. He was worshipped as a legend before he ever made his first proclamation, which was to hunt down and kill the Onyx Tang in Fan Chai. Along with his proclamation, his phoenix went, symbolically carrying his humanity to the Phoenix temple, where it would guard it forever. As spring approached, Zhi left for the hidden temple of Water, far underneath the northern mountains. Jen watched with anticipation for the arrival of Koketai. As he stared out at the distant ocean to the east, he missed the sinuous blue form of the Azure Dragon flying in from the southwest; the direction of the Khatt wastes in the desert beyond the hills. On his back was a female human wearing a familiar wolf hide mantle. On her neck, a grey stain took the image of a howling wolf. Transforming in delight, he shouted for his attendants before flying up to meet Koketai and the new arrival. The first Wolf Emperor would be an empress.