Prologue
The wind was alive up here. Yesterday it had sang softly and danced across the drifts, but today it was angry. It was screaming and pushing at anyone that dared to go outside.
The wind sheared through Hui's winter hunting leathers, but she did not have the luxury of seeking shelter. She kept her eyes in front of her, following the faint footprints that threatened to be blown clean if she did not move quickly.
Xian Wu did not know she was being followed. The monk only knew that there were some very sociable merchants who had been trapped in the village below Dirge. She only knew that they liked to dice and they found her interesting. She only knew that they encouraged her in flights of fancy and dreams of the riches of the Empire.
She did not know that they were hand-picked Imperial scouts sent to gather information on Dirge and its surrounding areas. Some were spies, some were scouts like Hui. They were here to determine the lay of the land and of the people.
Hui came to a small rocky incline, spotted with Xian Wu's prints, and then realized the trail had stopped at the rock face. She looked up and saw the corner of the Temple high above her. Xian Wu was gone.
Hui smiled behind her face mask. She had found what the Glorious Strategist needed.