The white emperor
Chapter I – A new man
"Do not dwell in the past, do not dream of the future, concentrate the mind on the present moment" - Buddha
Two weeks had passed since the white peacock's death and the people of Gongmen were slowly recovering from his spartan regime. But although it had retrieved it's freedom, the city was still haunted by the shadows of fear and uncertainty.
After the departure of the furious five and the dragon warrior, the master's council had dissolved and the city was left ungoverned; and that frightened everybody, because while having a leader, even if it was Lord Shen, it existed some form of control and safety; but now, chaos was taking over the streets. Encouraged by the absence of the city guard and the wolf army, a crowd of thieves, thugs, raiders, smugglers, pirates and other criminals of the worst kind had arrived from the countryside and had literally taken over the city. No one dared to go out of home after nightfall, trade had frozen and ruin hung over the province, but it was then that Lord Qiao arrived.
He was the son of Lord Jian Yu's brother, Lord Shen's cousin. After a detailed study of the royal peafowl clan's bloodline rights, scribes had found out that, without the master's council, Lord Qiao was the rightful lord of Gongmen city and the entire province of Xu. Upon hearing of the city's desperate situation he had traveled there with a full company of boar warriors to "retake" the city. The days following his arrival he swiftly cleaned the city and most of the criminals were imprisoned or executed. He then proceeded to revive the city's economy, and before anyone could notice, it had been almost a week since his arrival and normality was being reestablished.
The lord was now standing in the middle of the Dōnggōng palace's front garden. He was watching the sunset behind the city, enjoying the warm pink light in his blue feathers and, despite the weariness in his eyes, his beak bore a satisfied smile. He closed his eyes when he heard the ticking steps of another peafowl.
"You should get inside and get some rest, dear" said the peahen "you haven't stopped working since we got here"
"The hard part hasn't begun yet" replied Qiao. He opened his eyes and looked at Lady Xiu, his wife. She put her wing around his shoulder and looked at the city.
"It's beautiful" she said. Qiao nodded, unsure if she was talking about the city or the dawn. The couple remained there until the sun had set off completely and then returned to the palace.
The Dōnggōng palace was located at the eastern edge of the city, right over the coast, it was meant to be the royal peacocks' summer house. It was a large, square, three floors, construction, with a base of about ten square kilometers and a large garden in front of it. The new lords had established there with all of their entourage of assistants, due to the absence of the Tower of the Sacred Flame.
"Where is Shu?" asked the peacock as they crossed the door "I've noticed that she's a little distant"
"It's because of the trip and the confinement, she gets bored" answered Xiu, and then added "and she's not the only one that's being a little off lately"
Qiao smiled, accusing his wife reproach.
"I'm sorry, I promise that after I've taken care of the mess I'll spend more time with her. And... with you" he ended the phrase stroking her cheek.
"Don't get me wrong, I have a lot of work to do as well" smiled the peahen, leaning her head in her husband's hand.
They were standing at the bottom of the stairs of the main hall when they heard a young voice and clicking steps beneath them.
"Mom! Dad! Have you sen Wen?" They turned around to see their daughter walking towards them "He promised to play Mahjongg with me but he's nowhere to be found..."
"Well hello to you too" said Qiao "How was your day, Shu?"
"Pretty boring, actually" she replied "not that there's much to do in this huge empty palace" she placed special emphasis in the word empty.
"We'll let you go to the city in a few days, honey" said her mother, as they headed up the stairs, heading to the royal chambers.
"Yeah, and I'm to hibernate until then, right?"
Lord Qiao and Lady Xiu laughed at their daughter's acid humor.
"We're not sure it's completely safe for you to go out yet" said the lord.
"Yes, yes, I understand, it's just that I'm so bored, that little weakling was going to give me the rematch..." she said, looking at the wooden box that she was carrying, then she muttered "I'm sure I'll be able to beat him the next time"
"Now that's some competitive spirit" laughed her mother "But why don't you let the poor man get some sleep, he's been working so hard that I wouldn't be surprised if he fainted before picking up the first token. Why don't you play with us?"
They had arrived to the corridor that led to the living room and the sleeping chambers.
"Alright, I'll show you how much I've improved..."
"Lord Qiao!" The three peafowls looked at a black and white snake that was rushing towards them from across the corridor.
"There you are, you sneaky little COWARD!" yelled Shu. Her mother elbowed her and said "Good afternoon, Wen"
The reptile bowed to them while breathing hard.
"Hi there, Shu" he said "I was delayed by an issue"
"Ha! You are just scared of me destroying you" replied Shu.
"Hehe, not quite, but I can't play with you right now" said Wen, and he faced Qiao "Mi lord, there is an urgent matter that requires your immediate attention"
"Alright, Wen, I'll take care of it" said the lord, and then turned to his wife and daughter "I'll be done as fast as I can, why don't you start without me"
"Alright, let's go, Shu" Said the oldest peahen, putting a wing over her daughter's shoulder. Before leaving, Shu looked at the snake and pointed a feather at him.
"Don't think you got rid of me so easily, Wen! The next time we play I'm going to crush you!"
When they were gone, the peacock and the snake headed for the lord's office.
"Looks like she's determined to beat you" Commented Qiao
"She still needs to practice" said the snake.
Wen was the lord's most trusted adviser, he was a banded wolf snake who was always extremely nervous and agitated, he had dedicated his life to science and he had a vast knowledge of math, astronomy, alchemy, laws, economy and engineering, he always carried a notebook, a brush and a flask of ink, and was Qiao's right hand at administrating the city. The snake was also his daughter's best friend. Even with his duties with both him and his wife, the reptile could still find time to entertain the princess AND read those huge alchemy volumes. One of the peacock's worst fears was that his valuable assessor would suffer a nervous collapse, which seemed most likely to happen sooner than later.
When they entered the office they sat down at the table, facing each other; lord Qiao spoke first:
"So, what's the urgent matter?"
"The search party at the factory failed to find one of the artifacts or a copy of the plans" Said Wen "nor have they found a living wolf in the city or it's surroundings, it seems that the few ones that survived the battle have fled the city"
Lord Qiao rubbed his eyes with the tips of his wings and sighed
"Look, Wen, I'm tired; and so are you, get to the point and let's..."
"Your men were able to retrieve three mostly unspoiled artefact's from the debris at the bottom of the harbor" interrupted Wen
The blue peacock stared at him with his mouth and eyes wide opened
"Three of them, you say?"
"Yes, sir" nodded the snake "I already instructed your men to move them to an abandoned barn so we can study them away from curious eyes, although I'd like to ask you to wait until tomorrow, I'd really like to have some decent sleep tonight"
The blue peacock was barely listening to him
"What? Yes! Yes, of course, you may leave now, Wen"
The snake made a reverence and left the room.
Lord Qiao leaned his face in his hands for some minutes and then his shoulders rocked, it was silent at the beginning, but he soon gave himself into a burst of laughing. He stood up, still laughing.
"Well well, dear cousin, looks like that twisted white brain of yours had some use after all"
He walked to a showcase that contained a long white object. He opened it and carefully took the light object. He raised it high so he could give it a good look. It was a white feather, it's length exceeded one and a half meter and near the tip it had a mark that resembled a red eye.
The blue peafowl began to walk up and down the room fanning himself with the white feather, all his weariness had been replaced by excitement.
He had known the white peacock since he (Qiao) was ten years old and his cousin four, and he had hated the heir of Gongmen form the first time he saw him. He soon discovered that the feeling was mutual. Their fierce rivalry had only gotten worse when they were sent with a kung fu master to learn the traditional peafowl martial art. His blood even at the present day continued to boil whenever he remembered Shen, the "little ghost" as he liked to call him in his mind, surpass him, win the master's favor and receive the Yín yè spear as a symbol of his skill. The blue peacock growled and then smirked.
But he was dead, he had been killed by his own weapon, the weapon that according to witnesses had demolished the Tower of the Sacred Flame in less than five minutes. That weapon, was now about to become his, once he had figured out how it worked and how to build it. Wen would analyze it and soon he would have the power to defeat his enemies, and he would use it. Oh, he was already looking forward to it. His home, devastated by the harsh weather of the north and the merciless hammer of war, would know no fear, his enemies would be destroyed, their nations would be subject to his will, he would conquer all of the northern province, and then the rest of China... And after that, the world...
"Lord Qiao?" asked a quiet voice, startling the peacock, who quickly turned around to face the old goat standing in the doorway and gave a relieved exhalation.
"Good evening, soothsayer" he bowed his head, and she mimicked him.
"Remembering old times, I assume?" said the goat, with her eyes fixed on the white feather held by a blue wing.
"Ah, this... Ehhh... I was just..." mumbled Qiao, but she didn't allow him to continue:
"I understand your men made quite an interesting discovery in the harbor" her eyes where still on the white feather, slightly narrowed.
That goat made him nervous, she had been one of the closest ones to Lord Shen, and now he was insulting the last remainder of his memory. Qiao wanted to put the white feather back in the showcase but he didn't dare. He remembered her commentary and cleared his throat.
"Ehem... Well, the thing is..." Why was he so nervous? She was an elder! A commoner! She had no authority over him!
"My lord" She finally took her eyes off Shen's feather an looked at his face... It was not an improvement "I would like to give you a little advice"
"P- Please! Go ahead"
"The weapon that lord Shen created, such a destructive and cruel device, should not be allowed to see this world again" So she knew about it. Of course, it was to be expected from a soothsayer "It's ability to destroy is not only limited to buildings and boats. Such a terrible power will end up destroying the one who attempts to own or use it, like it did the first time"
Lord Qiao felt a chill running through his back, that was no advice, it was a warning. The light in the room seemed to have decreased and the shadows had taken long, menacing shapes. He felt that he was missing air, he couldn't move, he staggered and thought he was going to faint, but suddenly the spell was over, and he gave a relieved sigh.
"Do not fear, soothsayer, because I have no intention of using such an evil invention"
"Very well, then, so you will order the three cannons your soldiers have finished moving right... Now. To be cast back into pots and pans" said the bearded lady. Qiao opened his mouth but he couldn't answer, she could read him like an open scroll. She nodded at his bewilderment.
"My lord, could I have one of your feathers?"
"What?" He stepped away from her
"A feather, my lord, I believe you will find this quite helpful in the future"
He stared at her for a few seconds and then plucked out one of his neck feathers and handed it to the soothsayer. She took the blue object and extracted an old bowl of her bag. She placed it on the ground and put the feather into it.
"What are you..." asked Qiao, half curious and half apprehensive.
"The future is not, as most people believe, a neat road which we follow calmly and safely to get from one place to another" Said the goat "You should think of it as a narrow, dirty and neglected trail, full of traps, detours and crossroads"
"Why are you telling me...?" Tried to ask the lord, but he was once again interrupted.
"Because you are now in front of one of those crossroads, Lord Qiao, you have to choose which trail you are going to follow. I have the ability to make an accurate prediction of the outcome of events that your choice will unleash" The soothsayer grabbed a handful of white dust of a small flask of he bag and dropped it into the bowl. A cloud of bright colored smoke rose from it and the room darkened.
"This, my lord is what is going to happen if you make the wrong choice..."
Qiao looked at the smoke as it turned blue and adopted the shape of a peacock, he realized that he was staring at himself.
"The one who attempts to dominate the steel dragon..." recited the soothsayer with a grave voice "... will discover that it only has one master..." The blue peacock was petrified, his hands were shaking, he couldn't look away from the smoke figure.
"... the one who tries to tame the steel dragon will have his soul destroyed..." The smoke peacock blurred "... by the only master of the dragon, the one who conceived it and brought it to this world, the one who has escaped death and has always worn it's mark..." the smoke peacock figure collapsed into an agitated twister of blue smoke. Both the soothsayer's eyes and Qiao's widened, as she pronounced the last part of the prophecy
"... he will return to claim his creation and will bring death and ruin upon the one who dared to defy..."
Her heartbeat was rumbling in her ears. The smoke turned bright red and a new figure appeared; a large red circle, containing a smaller black one.
"...The White Emperor"
The soothsayer saw the peacock's horrified expression under the crimson glow. A moment later the smoke dissipated and the she leaned against the wall, breathing heavily. She must have made a mistake, it was not possible...
Lord Qiao was frozen, the words of the goat were still lingering in his mind: the white emperor... the only master... will destroy his soul... Then he slowly looked down, at the object he had been holding and unconsciously stretching and twisting. The red eye at the tip of the feather was exactly like the one that had appeared in the smoke, and it looked as if it was staring right at him.