WAY OF THE FLYING CRANE
by Ulquiorra9000
Chapter 12
Early the next morning, Tashi woke with a jolt and bolted upright in his bed in the hotel; someone was pounding impatiently on the door. His gut churning, Tashi shook Jinpa awake in her bed, then swung open the door. Two of Shahzad's guards stood there, coated in dragonscale armor.
"Tashi, Jinpa, follow us," one of the guards said crisply. "Shahzad requires an audience with you at once. A carriage will be provided."
Tashi and Jinpa exchanged glances, then put on their everyday clothes and followed the guards to the hotel's courtyard, where the promised carriage waited. No one spoke on the way to Shahzad's massive palace; nothing needed to be said. Not even the warm air and bright sun could lift Tashi's spirits. This mission had gone from bad to worse!
"There you are," Shahzad said sharply once Tashi and Jinpa found themselves escorted into his meeting room. "Have a seat."
Nervously, Tashi sat at one of several empty seats, Jinpa settling in the chair next to him. Shahzad sat at his usual seat at the table's head, and on his left sat Sahar, and to his right, Khan Anafenza herself. The woman rested her elbows on the table, her chin in her hands as she watched the proceedings. Three guards stood behind her, their expressions guarded.
Aside from these impressive figures sat more of Shahzad's usual officers, plus Leila. The young woman flashed Tashi a quick smile that he tensely returned.
"Now, then," Shahzad said, slapping a hand to the table. "Tashi, Jinpa... you were here when my private vault was broken into. That you know. But what you don't know is that everything in there was left intact... other than a rare ritual knife that Sahar secured from Ukud Necropolis. It was easily the most valuable item we obtained from the Sultai Brood."
Tashi swallowed. "I assure you, Shahzad, that Jinpa and I had no hand in the theft. The other actors and support staff from the play can tell you that we were under watch the whole time."
Shahzad nodded impatiently. "For a time, in a fit of rage, I suspected you and Jinpa to be complicit in the theft, but I have been advised otherwise. Anafenza and Sahar suggested, and I agree, that the thief operated alone, and without inside help. You see, the vault's guards were killed, and the door shattered. See?" He placed a shard of wood on the table. "Now, who would operate alone and commit such an act? None of my men, I assure you."
"Lady Sangye," Jinpa said grimly.
Everyone looked at her, some with shock, others with fury. Khan Anafenza, for her part, just watched Jinpa passively. Tashi could almost hear the Khan's mind whirring with this information.
"Yes, a visitor," Shahzad said with venom. "I trusted you Jeskai in this city, as did the Khan, and now look what happened." He bolted to his feet. "Lady Sangye was clearly not acting in either clan's best interest! She has deceived us all. And now you, Tashi and Jinpa, will tell me why you're really here."
Jinpa folded her hands together on the table, and she lifted her chin. "Tashi and I traveled here to track Sangye, suspecting her to be involved with Chodak the Mad."
Murmurs broke out among the officers, and Sahar raised her lip in a snarl. "Explain yourself, Jinpa!" she barked. "I met Chodak once, when he visited for diplomatic reasons. But even I know that he's been dead for years."
Jinpa motioned to Tashi. "Naturally, Chodak's legacy is a sensitive issue among the Jeskai. Recently, Lady Sangye visited Chodak's tomb, then immediately traveled here under the pretense of scholarly interest."
"A lie," Shahzad snorted. He sank back in his chair, chest heaving. "I have heard that Chodak the Mad attempted to learn Abzan and Sultai secrets of death and spirits in order to become immortal, and lead the Jeskai clan down a path of madness by usurping Khan Orzat. Is this true?"
Tashi felt a cold chill. "Yes, it is. My grandfather was tainted by black mana and forbidden secrets, and it took great sacrifice to defeat him and seal him away. But I've always wondered if a tiny piece of him is left to continue his ambitions. It would seem so."
"In that case, Sangye might be under Chodak's control?" Shahzad said incredulously. "His spirit lives on in his body, and he exerted that power over Sangye when she visited his remains?"
"Yes," Tashi said. He clenched his fists. "When Sangye visited his bones, I can't say whether she at first intended to ally with him, or had innocent, scholarly interests that became exploited. Either way, I believe that she's acting on his behalf. And that's why I was so determined to come all the way here to Arashin. I'm sorry, Shahzad, but I didn't care that much about fighting the Sultai or making you look good. I'll pursue even the slightest possibility that Chodak's will lives on."
There was a second of silence. Then -
"Then pursue Sangye again, of course," Anafenza said.
Tashi recoiled. "Excuse me?"
"The trail's still hot," Anafenza said doggedly. "Tashi, if this is all true, then no doubt Sangye is headed for Chodak the Mad's remains in Sage-Eye Stronghold. Her carriage left only last night; there is time to catch up to her and her assistant Narbul, and apprehend them."
"That's right," Shahzad added. "Tashi, Jinpa, you both are still bound to my contract. You proved yourselves at Ukud Necropolis; now, stop Lady Sangye's insanity and return that ritual knife at once. Sangye broke her contract to me and stole from me, and what's more, this may ruin the Abzan-Jeskai ties that we're trying to build. I consider Sangye no less than a traitor, even a war criminal."
Tashi nodded grimly. Shahzad had an invested interest in the Jeskai Way not for the clan's own integrity, but their capacity to aid the Abzan against the Sultai. If Chodak took power and overthrew Khan Orzat, or worse, that alliance would fail, and the Abzan would face the vengeful Sultai Brood alone. Orzat was interested in inter-clan friendship; Tashi doubted that Chodak ever would be.
Shahzad looked at Sahar. "You and your daughter are to accompany them."
"Us?" Sahar said. "Shahzad, we are needed here to maintain the frontline against the Sultai."
"But you and Leila have experience with the Jeskai now. You've told me yourself that Tashi and Jinpa are reliable and faithful, even worthy of the Abzan Houses," Shahzad told her.
"Well..."
"Mom, we should help," Leila put in. "I know the war against the Sultai means a lot to you... but we can do a lot of good out there. Our platoon will get along without us. Shahzad will see to that, I'm sure."
"You and your daughter were trained for covert ops before you joined my army, did you not?" Shahzad asked Sahar.
"Yes." Sahar cleared her throat. "Very well. Tashi, Jinpa... we don't have much time to waste. We'll take your carriage back to the Purugir trade post, then secure transport from there to Sage-Eye Stronghold."
"We can take a mantis from Purugir to Sage-Eye Stronghold," Tashi offered. "We'll need payment, though."
"Let me handle that," Sahar said confidently. She got to her feet, as did Leila. "Shahzad, if we may?"
Shahzad nodded. "Go. May your ancestors watch over you."
*o*o*o*o*
"I'm sorry, Lady Sangye, but the Khan is meditating!"
Khan Orzat's wife, Halla, wrung her hands nervously as Sangye confronted her deep in Sage-Eye Stronghold's combat school. The sun had just risen over the misty mountains, a sight that Sangye had missed in the miserable Abzan desert.
Sangye tossed her hair. "It's urgent, madam. I have returned from Arashin with urgent news for the Khan."
"If you relayed the news to me, I may -"
"Only the Khan may hear it," Sangye said dismissively, waving a hand. Beside her, Narbul nodded sternly. "It's of a sensitive nature. He would know best how to make it public. For now, it must be between us."
Bewildered, Halla glanced at the closed sliding doors that separated the two women from the Khan. She smoothed a crease in her expensive silk robes, then glanced down and nodded mutely. She slid open the door and backed away, hands clasped behind her back. Narbul similarly backed away, arms folded.
Sangye held her chin high as she strode into the large, sparse room, her slipper-clad feet padding lightly on the floor. It didn't matter how quiet she was, though; legends held that Khan Orzat could hear a dragonfly land on a leaf from a mile away.
Whatever.
"Lady Sangye," Orzat said simply, but he didn't move. The old man sat cross-legged, his hands clasped before him, blue mana humming and throbbing between his fingers. The sheer energy made the hairs on Sangye's neck and arms stand up, almost like static electricity. He wore a set of navy robes trimmed in red and white, and a hairpiece in his topknot.
Sangye stood patiently for a few seconds, waiting for Orzat to finish. She looked around the room. A paper lantern hung at each corner, and a potted plant sat along each wall between them. On the north wall hung a tapestry, depicting a spear-wielding warrior grappling with a silver dragon, each combatant circling the other in a sort of deadly dance.
Finally, Orzat powered down his spell and stood, turning to face Sangye. He cracked a smile. "So good to see you in the flesh once again. Not anyone would be allowed to enter this chamber this time of day."
Sangye bowed her head. "Forgive the intrusion, my Khan, but I bear urgent news I entrust to no one else. I crave your wisdom at this pivotal time."
Orzat drew his robes around himself. "What did you learn?"
"Not what I learned, but what I obtained." Slowly, carefully, Sangye drew the Sultai knife from her robes and lay it out on her hands for Orzat to see. "I allied with a local nobleman named Shahzad, and with his forces, I raided Ukud Necropolis. This was among the spoils of war... a rare artifact of untold power."
Orzat reached a hand to touch it, but drew back at the last second. "My scholars should see this at once. I trust that you've shown it to no one else?"
Sangye shook her head. "Only Shahzad's own advisors, who deemed it safe for transport." In fact, she had not shown it to Shahzad's men. Still, even though the knife had set off a security spell halfway across the Abzan desert, Sangye had easily suppressed the protective enchantment and dissolved it. "And this is the important part: this knife is steeped in necromantic magic, and I was told all about it. Apparently... it can destroy Chodak the Mad's cursed remains for good."
"My word!" Orzat took a step back, his eyes wide. "We never found it in our power to destroy that man's remains, hence the tomb. But you really can destroy his bones? You're certain?"
"I checked with all of Shahzad's advisors and mages," Sangye lied. Actually, only Chodak the Mad's guiding words were needed for this. "We can finally destroy Chodak's disturbing remains and set his living descendants at ease. Arba, and his son Tashi, should be glad to hear it."
"Yes, I should think so," Orzat said carefully. "On a similar note, Arba sent me a messenger bird a while back. It would seem that Tashi also traveled to Arashin, but I was not told of his reasons. I suppose that you met him there?"
"Yes. In fact, Tashi and a mage friend of his have signed a contract with Shahzad, as I did," Sangye smiled. "They will help you attain your dream of a permanent Jeskai-Abzan alliance against the Sultai Brood."
Orzat clapped his hands together. "Wonderful! Now, do I have your full assurance that this knife will end the problem of Chodak's remains?"
"Absolutely. I confided this in utter certainty." Inside, Sangye was laughing. Khan Orzat trusted her so much, he'd take her word for it on an exotic Sultai relic! She had once heard a quote from a wise sage: "Admiration is the emotion furthest from understanding." How true that turned out to be!
"What preparation do you need for Chodak's destruction?" Orzat asked eagerly. "And when will you return to Arashin? I imagine that there is much work to be done there."
"For the former, I merely need to enter the tomb and have your guards seal it tightly behind me. No need to risk collatoral damage. For the latter... I'm not sure. I trust Tashi and Jinpa to make strides very soon. I suppose that you will soon receive a letter from them saying as much."
"I see. In that case, I shall write a note that you should present to the tomb's guards," Orzat said. "Please make haste, Lady Sangye; I have never rested easy knowin that my would-be assassin's remains lie in my city, silently taunting me."
Sangye merely smiled.
Satisfied, Orzat turned on his heel and strode from the meditation room, no doubt headed to his office to write the promised note.
Although Sangye couldn't hear Chodak's voice, she could almost feel his approval, his anticipation. How funny that the Khan's official note to destroy Chodak's remains would seal his own fate instead.
Sangye always loved irony.
