The Realm of Transition

Yan Da looked at the ring-shaped stone gate that loomed above them and displayed many intertwined dragon bodies. For a moment the design reminded her of her father's throne, and it seemed to her that she was once again witnessing the testimony of a man's megalomania. Yuan Ji ... how can you be the creator of all of us? How could you turn against your own creation out of vanity and lust for domination, and create such a place? The Mermaid Saint came close to Yan Da and put her hand on a dragon's head. "It's beautiful and horrible at the same time, isn't it?" Yan Da swallowed and nodded. A shiny separating layer made it impossible to see anything from the other side. Again she cupped the Tear Stone in her hand, then took a determined step forward. A much darker twilight awaited them on the other side. They stood high up on a mountain peak, the view of the deep valley below them consisted of innumerable indistinct shapes and shadows. The light was just strong enough to reveal the winding down-leading staircase ahead. Small balls of light lined the mosaic path like a snake in the dark, leading to a glistening bright disk on the horizon, the exit portal. The aura of this ancient place was mystical, and its quietness threatening. Even the Predor Mermaid, who already knew this place, had to pull herself together not to freeze in awe. "After you, Queen of Fire", the Predor Mermaid invited Yan Da with a gesture onto the stairs.

Yan Da slowly descended the stairs. Only a few noises reached her ear, such as creaking or scratching. Boulders and rough, unfinished columns formed out of the shadows. Someone had once unleashed a storm of creativity here and had carelessly thrown unfinished works into the dark. The further they went, the more obscure stone figures peeled out of the twilight. Their sheer number seemed infinite, and not two were alike. Wings, heads, bodies, a chaos of ideas all lost to time. These are the templates of life, thought Yan Da with morbid fascination.

And then they saw a movement ahead of them. Yan Da narrowed her eyes. The figure approaching them seemed strangely familiar… could it be? Indeed, it was the old Predor Mermaid. The little light revealed the transparency of her body, which was only a projection of her previous life. The colorless figure eyed Yan Da coldly. "Is your father dead?" The question echoed eerily in the water. Yan Da nodded and swallowed. "That's good. He must have died on the mainland. That at least saves me another uncomfortable company down here." Yan Da looked with uncertainty at the young Predor Mermaid, who stepped forward.

"Your Majesty, Queen Yan Da ended the war and took control of the Fire Tribe. She came here with me today to pay tribute to the dead and to see the consequences of the terrible deeds of her tribe. This is done as part of an aptitude test that she would like to take in order to obtain legitimation from the Mermaid Tribe to marry the Ice Prince Ying Kong Shi."

The older woman in front of them nodded, and then laughed contemptuously. "Do you want to marry that despicable rascal? In my lifetime there was no meeting with him that did not make me shudder. He was smarter than Yuan Ji and your father put together. He is incapable of righteousness or sincere affection. For power, he is able to do despicable things. Look what he did to Lan Shang! Although I have no reason to wish you well, I do hope that you know what you wish for."

Now Yan Da also stepped forward with bowed head, her fist pressed to her chest as a sign of respect. "Old Predor Mermaid, thank you for your advice. Please let me explain what happened since your passing." She summarized the events and described as best as she could her healing through Ying Kong Shi's help, Ka Suo's death and the decision of Li Luo and Lan Shang to continue their reincarnation together in another world. Then she told the Predor of the declaration of peace and the retreat of the Fire Army, the discovery of the Ice Fire Rock and Yan Da's subsequent body transformation, the events surrounding the peace negotiations, the attacks by the unknown assassin, the demands of the Mermaid Tribes, and the efforts of the Fire Tribes to rehabilitate themselves.

Both Predors listened to Yan Da's narration with increasing attention. When Yan Da got to the end of her report, she put her fist to her chest again and knelt in front of the old Mermaid Saint. "Please believe me, Predors, that I have come a long way in listening to and acting on the good in me. The longer the war went on, and the more terrible my father's and brothers' actions became, the more I understood that I did not want to be like them. I was just a weak woman who wanted to be a warrior and win her family's respect. Now I am a warrior who has recognized that the woman in me was never weak, but rather the low morals of my family. They all paid with their lives for what they did. Shuo Gang died at your hand, but it was his ambition and greed that sealed his fate. I do not seek vengeance, and I will let the dead of my people rest. I long for love and fellowship. I know I cannot undo the deeds of my people, but I will endeavor to make amends until the war between fire and ice is just a legend, the hearts of the living are healed and the name Huo Yi is just a whisper in the wind."

It took a while for anyone to say anything. Old Predor looked down at Yan Da as if petrified. Finally she lowered her head and whispered: "Can it be possible that a pure phoenix has finally emerged from the smoking fire?" She shook her head in wonder, her ghostly hand nearly touching Yan Da's head. Suddenly they heard a movement behind them. Yan Da and Yu Lian looked around in suprise, almost having forgotten about their escort. Hye Quian was on her knees, her face contorted strangely as she spoke. "Forgive me, Mermaid Saint. I let you down. I was unable to save you from the consuming flame of the despicable Huo Yi. I wasn't there when it happened. When I returned to the throne room, I found only the bodies of my sisters and my instructors, and your staff. I knew then that he had not spared you. I lost everything that was important to me that day. You raised me and I have always considered you to be family. To this day I wish I could have protected you. Or at least I would have died with you. "The assassin buried her face in her hands. The former Predor's face took on a soft expression. "You stupid child, you were my most capable servant, even when you were young. You have protected Lan Shang out of the shadows so often, and me, too. Why do you think that I have to forgive you something? It is me who is to blame. I decided to join the Ice Tribe in the fight because of Lan Shang. If I had kept my neutrality, your comrades-in-arms would all still be alive..." The water moved, and brought the whispers and sighs of the shadows with it. "Look, your sisters miss you. They're all down here with me. You have to go on living for them, because they have nowhere to go, neither back nor forward."

She pointed to the darkness behind her, and out of the shadows more figures formed, well-armed warriors with brand wounds on their disfigured ghostly bodies. There were quite a few. They circled the three newcomers and hissed and pointed at Yan Da. Some approached Hye Qian and reached for their comrade with longing fingers of fog. The voices talked at once, their chorus of complaints swelled and carried a clear message to Yan Da's ear: revenge. "Hye, you are the last of us. Don't trust the deceptive words of this Fire Queen. A Fire King has never spoken the truth. Did you not hear? She claims that she no longer owns the Ice Fire Rock. But we know that she was changed by it. We can smell her strange magic. It is the same magic that is keeping us here. Maybe she still owns the Ice Fire Rock? Perhaps she only came to us to take on Yuan Ji's inheritance and enjoy the sight of our bonded souls? She is too dangerous. Don't wait until she's even more powerful ... kill her first!"

More and more souls swirled around the group of the three living, obviously they had heard everything. Yan Da could see deformed, melted faces and mutilated bodies. It almost felt like she was standing on a corpse-ridden battlefield. In its endlessness she could see the insignia of all the clans on the dead people's clothes. The older Predor Mermaid raised her arms soothingly at the crowd, but the gesture had no effect. The souls in front of her had suffered too much from their miserable existence in the Realm of Transition, and madness had long taken hold of them. The noises reached Yan Da's ears, shrill and shriller, and made her stagger. When she turned around, she suddenly seemed to perceive everything in slow motion. The companion of the young Predor Mermaid raised her hand with a twist. Followed by her gesture a cube appeared on the palm of her hand. It glowed red in the twilight of the ghostly dimension. Her further gestures left no doubt that she was preparing a magical attack. The cube opened, releasing a red smoke. Its glow covered the faces of the living and the dead. With a jerk of her fist, Hye Quian whirled the red cloud towards Yan Da.