I never believed what people were saying about you Mao. I never wanted to believe that you were lying to everyone, and taking advantage of them.
Have I ever lied to you Aang? What we were doing was telling and reporting the plain and simple truth. Whether or not you accepted it as the truth, became irrelevant, because you were never there. I, and so many brave men and women told the truth and the Earth Kingdom wanted to silence us. I only wish that more joined us.
Now that is a low blow. You twisted the truth, you blinded people, and you were the most deluded.
Harsh hards.
The harshest truth is that you were the cause of the breakup of the Earth Kingdom! You're responsible for the chaos! I know how you work! You bribed them didn't you? Maybe put a few ideas in their ideas? Am I close?
You're not even hitting the target. At the time, I had simply let the chips fall where they may.
Then you're admitting it!
Do you know you chop down a tree Aang?
...
You cut down a tree not with one stroke. You chop it down with a series of consistent strokes. And it's a lot easier it is already rotted from within.
As the news pamphlets continued to circulate throughout the world, and they quickly created a following as the latest gossip now created serious discussions about politics, and the state of the world. Thus any explanation that corrupt Earth Kingdom officials gave, were rapidly discredited due to the overwhelming evidence arrayed against them. In the more authoritarian parts of the Earth Kingdom, the news pamphlets served to sow the seeds of rebellion.
In Hakuma, the king was a notorious womanizer, fond of wine, and lived a life of debauchery that would make the Earth King's Ten Attendants a little embarrassed. He also had a bad habit of dipping his hands in the treasury, and made no effort to hide the fact. Hakuma's ministers followed his example, and more or less did the same, within the safety and confines of their palace.
At first, the shenanigans of the king and his ministers were regarded as natural, since the common man was more concerned about what to do about the next day, and the day after. But with the underground news pamphlets, rumours that was once considered to be idle gossip were becoming true. And people who were already disgruntled about corrupt government officials, were now outraged over the king's antics. In one of those rare instances of competence, the low rumblings of rebellion did not escape the king's ministers' notice, as the people became visibly more agitated.
"Your highness," said one of ministers, who he and his fellows gathered their courage to corner their king in his bed chamber. "You must stop gambling. We have just enough to pay all of our government expenses. Even worse there have been reports of famine in the Earth Kingdom and...Well, people are starting to talk, and things starting to look ugly."
"Let them talk! It's nothing more than idle rumor, they don't have any proof! Isn't that right darling?" The young king nuzzled his mistress' neck, her skin color distinctly dark. His mistress smiled reluctantly, trying to make her grey eyes pleasing to him. When he laid eyes on her voluptuous body, he had decided to make her his, for being exotic as well as beautiful. When he found out that she was of mixed heritage, the result of mixing the blood of the Water Tribes and the Air Nomads, he had found her even more appealing in his twisted sense.
He had asked for her for sport, not romance in any sense of the word. He had grown bored with his harem and wanted a wider variety of women to pick and choose from. A few of them proved to be too fragile.
"Yes...let them talk..." the mistress assuaged her lover. "It doesn't matter what they say. Because my lord is the mighty king of Hakuma. He is a man without fault," the mistress carefully added.
"You know your master well." The king started to kiss her neck which made her shiver, but not from excitement, but out of fear.
The ministers glanced at each other warily as this, what seemed to them to be an intimate display.
"But your highness. Our spies tell us there is an underground movement that are spreading stories about your idleness and your bad habits," one of the ministers said to change topics and to get his king's attention.
"Is it those rebels? I thought we got rid of them last year," the king said dismissively.
"They're not rebels, your highness. They spread the latest news throughout the town."
"So they're busybodies. Arrest them since they are snooping into other people's affairs," the king waved a hand dismissively as though he was shooing the minister away like a bothersome child.
"They're not snooping since they ask people to give testimonials or give their opinions. In fact they're not breaking any law, so we can't arrest them even if we do find them."
"So are they rebels or not?" The king asked irritatedly as he got up from the bed to peruse a basket of fresh fruit.
"We can't tell," one of the ministers shrugged his shoulders in exasperation.
"Well find them and arrest them, for being disrespectful to their king." The king began to chew on a peach, making a lot of noise as he ate as he made his way back to his bed of fine silk linen. The juice of the peach dripped from his mouth, and started to make a mess on the silk, but the king ignored it.
"Do you understand what your king has ordered you? Arrest the troublemakers. And if they resist, crush them without mercy. Make an example of them," The king said with his mouth full.
The ministers simply stared at him without moving.
"You are dismissed," the king barked after swallowing.
"Yes, sire." The ministers bowed and left the room.
The mistress watched them leave the room with a troubled brow. She was a victim of circumstance. Was there a faint chance that the rebels would succeed and overthrow the king? Would she be held accountable for position that was decided for her? The king noticed her anxious face and pulled her to him, wrapping his arms around her from behind, pressing his manhood against her. She was familiar with this play as she grabbed his wrists to guide him and as he explored her.
"Don't let idle politics distress you, my damsel. I am the king of Hakuma, anything that I want I will have. So there is nothing for you to fear, so long as you never cross me," the king said as he groped her chest. The mistress let out a restrained moan as he started to nibble her ear.
"So long as you are a good man. The people will love you," the mistress whispered in his ear.
"Ah, but those ruffians are nothing like you. And I find you more deserving of my affections." The king began to tease his mistress more.
In the slums of Hakuma, a pair of cloaked figures walked purposely through the dark streets and alleys. The smell of humanity and their waste hung in the air, courtesy of the exposed storm drains that serve a dual function for discarding human refuse. The part that the pair were in was the roughest part of the town and it was once a hotbed of rebels. The king has yet to rebuild this part of the city from the last rebellion, and the city guard preferred not to patrol these parts, since they felt that too many daggers are trained on their backs, and for good reason. As the pair entered the commons, a rough looking man stepped in front of them, but they continued walking toward him.
"Stop. There's a toll to paid for using these streets at night," said the rough looking man.
The pair stopped and were surrounded by more rough looking men who came at all sides of them.
"Nothing personal. Gotta feed the wife and kids," said one of the rough looking men. But he had less of a hardened expression on his face than the others.
"Liar," mocked one of his fellows. "Just tell the truth that you just want some for your wine, women and song."
The kinder man threw a dirty look at the fellow who mocked him.
"Shut it!" said the first man, who was clearly the ring leader. "Just give us your money pouch and no one gets hurt."
"And if we refuse?" asked one of the pair.
"Then things will get ugly," said the mocking man.
"We've been watching you," the ring leader added. "You're new here around here, so you don't know. The king doesn't give a shit about us, leaving us to fend for ourselves anyway we can. Unfortunately for you this means informal toll booths, if you know what I mean. If you're going to blame anyone, blame the king. He makes us look like gentleman, he does. He steals from the poor and gives to the rich."
"Actually," said one of the pair, "he just steals and spends it all on himself."
"And what do you know?"
"Do we know him? No, never. But I know you lot." The cloaked figure's tanned pointed at the man, who was immediately at alert, since he had his share of fights with Firebenders to be wary of unarmed men and women. "You were a sergeant in the Royal Earth Kingdom Army. And these men here your war buddies."
"Maybe I am. What of it?"
"You were all dishonorably discharged from the Earth King's army with no pay, for striking a superior officer after you refused to follow his, um, questionable orders. You lived in Hakuma before joining the army, and came back to try your hand at blacksmithing. But you got caught up in the rebellion and your shop got burned down by the City Guard."
"How did you know all that?"
"'Because, we're your employers, idiot!" the other said, whose voice was identical to the first as he removed his hood. Revealing his dark face and golden eyes. His twin then removed his hood, revealing an identical face, but with cerulean eyes.
"You're the nomads?" asked the kinder man.
"Yeah, we're Air Nomads," corrected the golden eyed twin.
"Let's not talk here," said the cerulean eyed twin to change topics.
"Right," said the ring leader trying to regain control of the situation. "Do you have our money?"
"Yes we do. But first things first."
"Right." The ring leader led the way and the others followed. Coming up to a boarded up house, the ring leader knocked on the big heavy door twice. Paused and then lightly pounded the door once. The sound of locks being moved behind the door could be heard, and then the door swung open.
Inside, it was spacious, with an exposed balcony above as the second floor. The room was dimly light with the fireplace the only source of heat and light. It was also very spartan with few furniture.
"Brought your friends home with you this time?" The lady of the house barked at the ring leader. "Bad enough that we barely make enough to feed our family, and you come home with your good for nothing friends and expect to have a party. What are you thinking? Oh, wait that's right, you don't think!"
"Dearest," pleaded the man, clearly the husband of the lady of the house. "These two are not my friends. And we're here...for a...little business transaction."
The lady eyes widened incredulously, her beady eyes darted towards the teenage twins. "Then who are they?" her voice slightly gentler noticing the teenagers for the first time.
"Business associates," the cerulean twin replied as he produced a large pouch and placed it onto a table. The ringleader practically leapt at it and almost ripped it open. When he looked inside his face cracked into a smile for the first time, and walked slowly to the fire to get some light.
"Is it all there?" asked one of the ring leader's mates.
"Yes. For the work that you have done so far. You can count it if you want," said the golden twin.
"Don't use the dead drops from on," added the cerulean twin. "The king's spies have found out about them. Use them again and you'll be marked for death for sure."
"For what sort of work are they doing?" asked the lady of the house suspiciously.
"Ask your husband. We don't know ourselves. We were just told to pay him," the golden twin answered gruffly.
"We should be going," said the cerulean as he and his twin made their way to the door, the kinder man opened the door for them and handed a few scrolls. At the doorway, the lady of the house grabbed him by the shoulder and turned him towards her.
"Who are you?"
"Nobody."
"Nobody?" The lady scoffed. "Nobody carries so much money and gives it to the likes of us for no good reason."
"For your sake, and for the sake of your children, it would be better if you knew as little as possible," replied the golden twin as he grabbed his twin, and disappeared from sight. The lady of the house watched their retreating backs and closed the door sharply behind her; she was convinced that her husband was up to no good and she was going to talk some sense into him.
"I can't believe that he actually took us to his house," said the golden twin who was surprised by the turn of events, and being a Firebender, was stereotypically quick tempered. His brother being a Waterbender, was more philosophical about it.
"Maybe that was the only place he felt safe," the cerulean eyed twin offered. "A man's house is his castle."
"Yeah, but now his wife knows about us. Soon half the city will."
They walked silently until they reached the warehouse district. After showing their pass to the guard at the gate they walked toward the docks and boarded the ship that had the flag of the Air Nomad Kingdom of Kanto flying over head. As they went down into the ship's hold, the familiar powerful smell of ink permeated the air, it was something that they gotten used to during their time in Hakuma, working the presses. The sound of the presses being used was muffled, working the presses inside the yurts and with multiple layers of wall rugs. With the yurts inside the ship and being surrounded by insulation, the physical barriers would effectively absorbed the sound. Not that the presses made that much noise anyway. One would have to be physically standing next to the yurt, in order to hear the faint noise of the press being manually operated. The precautions were a little redundant, and it made working the presses in the yurts a laborious, stuffy, and odious work. But without the yurts or the layers of rugs, one could hear the presses being worked from outside of the ship.
As the twins continued their reverie, a young woman came from one of the yurts, stained from head to toe with black ink. The sweat on her brow and her energetic personality made the twins keep themselves on their toes, and their hormones in check.
"Toshirou!" a young woman greeted the Firebending twin and then turned to face the Waterbending twin. "Kikujirou, what's the latest scoop?"
"See for yourself, we haven't read it yet," replied Toshirou as he tossed one the scrolls to her who quickly opened it. He then busied himself as he grabbed a teapot that was filled with cold tea, and started heating it with his Firebending.
"...The king awards noblewoman a hundred sovereigns for best dress at his dinner party last night. Second place was awarded fifty sovereigns. Third place twenty-five," the young woman mused in a montone voice. "Well that's a good story. That comes out to, um, a hundred seventy-five sovereigns; ten years worth of wages for most." The young woman opened up two more scrolls from Kikujirou. "...City Guard beating people for no apparent reason or are being unreasonable... Unsolved murders and the government officials doing nothing about it, except grabbing random people off of the streets." Kikujirou handed a larger scroll that looked promising. "...Oh, here's a juicy one. Hakuma's royal treasury reports that ten thousand gold sovereigns have gone missing. Government officials and the king's ministers are being uncooperative, and unable to give reasonable explanations. And the City Guard is giving some bull shit explanation as to why the money has gone missing... Looks like our informants have been working hard." The young woman carefully placed the scrolls down onto a table.
"We'll be sure to give them a bonus on their next payment," replied Kukijirou as he Waterbended hot tea from the teapot into a rice bowl. He then handed one to her and his brother, serving himself last. "Anything on our cousin, Makoto?"
"...No. How long has it been, since you last saw her?"
"Nine months now. She was with us when we were traveling with Mao and the Avatar. When we were trying to get to the North Pole. Had it not been for her, who knows how it would have turned out."
"What happened?"
"She led the Fire Nation soldiers away using herself as bait. After that, we don't know what happened to her. We've been searching for her since the Seige of the Northern Water Tribe," replied Toshirou as he looked down on his tea bowl. "At first we tried to look for her at the Fire Nation's garrison at their military port near the North Pole where we last saw her. We almost gave up when we heard rumors of human trafficking in the Earth Kingdom black market and the Fire Nation. That's why we joined cousin Mao and became Kazekage."
An awkward silence filled the space between the trio. It was a cold hard reality that they had to contend with. As much as they did not want to admit it, the odds of finding her now in this cold and dark world were very slim at best.
"Eventually," the girl said to break up the awkward silence and to change topics, "the king is not going to put up with us reporting the news and is going to start cracking down."
"Yes, but the harder he cracks down, the more informants we'll get," replied Toshirou. "The problem is trying to get these pamphlets to the countryside, outside of the city. I've heard that ever since last year's rebellion, the City Guard has doubled their patrols."
"Not to mention they're more stingy and suspicious at the city gates," added his twin.
"But there's nothing out there," replied the young woman. "Even though the king's authority is more limited outside the city walls, there are fewer people in the countryside, and not as many people can read, so what's the point?"
"There are a lot of unemployed musicians here in the city. Maybe if we pay them, they'll go out to the countryside and sing songs about tales of woe from our pamphlets?" suggested Kikujirou.
"Or they'll simply take the money and run," Toshirou retorted.
"Then maybe it's too soon? We'll just keep printing more pamphlets. And then everything else will follow. That's what we were ordered to do in the first place."
"Yes," the young woman said slowly, "but eventually they'll trace the pamphlets back to here. What is to stop the king's men from boarding the ship?"
"It is because this ship is considered to be sovereign territory of Kanto, simply because we have the country's flag flying over us," replied Toshirou.
"But that doesn't mean that we have diplomatic immunity, since Hakuma doesn't have diplomatic relationships with Kanto, and doesn't have a consulate here. Once we set foot off this boat, we have to obey Hakuma's laws," added Kikujirou.
"So wait, once they find out that we've been spreading these pamphlets, wouldn't they simply try to arrest us?" asked the young woman.
"It wouldn't that far as a stretch that they'll hang as us as spies," Kukijirou said thoughtfully.
"We've managed to recruit informants in the City Guard and the government. If they start sharpening their swords, then we'll have to back off," replied Toshirou.
"If all else fails, we'll just hand over the equipment to more deserving people to continue the good work," added Kikujirou.
The trio paused as they let their new information sink in. And then the young woman made a fist and tapped it onto a palm.
"Why not start right now, giving printing presses to more people?" the young woman asked brightly, but immediately noticed that the twins' attention were else where. They were looking at her, but not in the eyes. "Ah, boys?"
"Yeah Yoko-san?" asked Kikujirou.
"Keep, talking we're listening," added Toshirou.
"My eyes are up here." Yoko pointed at her eyes. Both boys averted their eyes back to her eyes after gaping at her more womanly features.
A month later the King of Hakuma was reading one of the latest news pamphlets that have hit the streets. The one that was reading was that he, the king had been dealing in the black market for slaves, and had developed a 'taste' for dark skinned woman and Air Nomads. There were similar allegations, now more than ever, with greater variety, some with more vivid descriptions, some with illustrations; these were the most popular. Despite his latest ban on pamphlets, the more appeared, as though to mock him. And his fury was starting to boil over. What was even infuriating was that the miscreants had the audacity to deliver a whole stack of them to his front gate. Now the whole servant staff were gossiping behind his back and cackling at him at his own expense. He tore the pamphlet into pieces and threw it into the fireplace.
"Those impudent fools! How dare they mock me!"
"Your highness," said his mistress to try to soothe his rage, but tried to backhand her causing her to flinch away from him. Despite her title as the King's Mistress, it was just a facade to conceal the king's his abusive behavior towards her.
"Stay away from me whore!" The king spat.
"Your highness," the mistress whispered incredulously.
"You're just like all of the rest! Talking behind my back!" The king pushed her to the ground.
"No!" the mistress pleaded again and again.
The king grabbed an iron rod from the fireplace, and raised it above his head as he stood over her shrunken form.
"The only person who could have told them everything about this, could only have been you!"
"It was not I, my lord!" The mistress raised a hand, as though it was enough to shield her.
The king swung the rod into her arm, causing a distinct and clear cracking sound when it connected to her, and could be could be heard from the hallway. At first the mistress was in shock after the impact, but the pain immediately came as she screamed and grabbed her broken arm. But the king, in his blind fury struck her again and again determined to break every bone in her body.
"SOMEONE HELP ME!" The mistress screamed in agony which excited her tormentor.
The door burst open with the king's personal body guards at the door. There they saw an assailant drunk with blood and pure malice with a bloodied rod in hand as he swung down on his helpless victim. The victim was in a pool of blood who was still moving, but if they did not act immediately she would be dead by the next blow. The guards' training kicked into overdrive, as they immediately realized the danger. In one motion they apprehended the assailant, and restrained him against the wall before he could do more harm to his victim.
"Unhand me, or I will have you hanged!" The king howled as he tried to swung the rod at his own guards. One of the guards punched him in the midsection knocking the wind out of him, causing him to drop the rod on the ground. The rod made a deafening clank as it hit the marble floor, one of the guards kicked it away to the far corner of the room, safely out of reach.
"Send for a doctor!" ordered the captain of the guard as he crouched over the mistress. "Your ladyship?" the captain whispered.
The mistress struggled to open a swollen eye, her more healthy one, slowly crept open.
"Captain?" she whispered faintly. "I can't see."
"I'm right here. I've sent for a doctor." The captain clasped his hands over hers.
"Unhand me!" The king tried to wrestle away from his guards who were now not as sure as they once were.
"Belay that order," said the captain who now positioned himself to shield the mistress. "Not until her ladyship is safely out of reach."
"What's all this?" asked the doctor when he had arrived. His face hardened when he saw the mistress and crouched over her.
"She's still breathing sir," said the captain.
"Bring a stretcher, we'll need to take her to the infirmary."
As the captain led the stretcher to the infirmary he could hear the king continue to howl in his chambers.
"How dare you betray me! How dare you betray your own king! All of you including that tramp is dead!"
A few hours later the captain approached the royal physician when he came out of the infirmary. The physician was wiping his brow that was perspiring.
"How is she?"
"Resting now. Had you not stepped in when you did, a moment later she would have died for certain."
"Will she live?"
The physician was studied his young friend, he saw all too many injuries on the women of the palace similar to the king's mistress. Not all of them lived.
"Only time will tell. It would best if you prayed."
The captain glanced over the shoulder of the physician to look into the infirmary. The mistress laid still, the nurse tucking her into bed, her head covered with fresh bandages. The captain felt as they he was gut-kicked.
"May I post sentries here by the infirmary? Only you or me may enter and leave this room."
"...Yes you may."
Later that night, the captain was awoken by a couple of his lieutenants after he had turned in early that evening.
"The king wishes to speak with you."
After washing and dressed himself in his uniform, he followed his lieutenants to the throne room where the king sat slouched on his throne. The captain bowed before the king.
"I am disappointed in you, captain."
"If this is about earlier sire. I thought it best at the time to save your mistress' life. You could have killed her. If you had practiced more restraint-"
"Are you lecturing me?!" the king bellowed. "How dare you presume to lecture your king!"
"My humblest apologies my liege. If you had killed your own mistress in blind rage it would have caused a scandal."
"I AM THE KING OF HAKUMA! I WILL DO AS I PLEASE!" the king shot up from his throne, causing it fall. But the captain stood unperturbed by the king's tantrum.
"My liege. Would it not be best to simply do what we had talked about earlier?" said a silky voice from the corner of the room. A handsome man in the uniform of the king's royal guard stood, and faced the king, as he was in between the captain and the king. "The order given by the captain of the king's personal guards to lay hands on His Majesty's person, is an assault on the King. Surely, the offender, that is the captain should be justly punished."
"I prevented the king from taking an innocent life," said the captain dangerously to the handsome lieutenant. He did not like where this was leading.
"But you are the captain of the king's personal bodyguards, who is sworn to offer life and limb to protect His Majesty. Can you be trusted for the king's safety, when you have personally ordered your men to lay their hands on their own king? Knowing who to trust is everything in our line of work. Especially in these tumultuous times. Our spies have reported that survivors from last year's rebellion are still at large, and may still be plotting their revenge. Some of whom have already infiltrated the king's court. It is becoming difficult to know who to trust anyone now these days."
"Are you accusing me of treason?"
"No. I simply offer my professional opinion. Your actions are your own. It is my job to root out the conspirators. Come to think of it the king's mistress is a foreigner, so she could very well be a spy. And the way you worried about her-"
"She's not a spy, she's a slave," the captain shot back. "She's an innocent girl who got caught up in the war and was captured by the Fire Nation and forced into bondage. She was brought here to Hakuma against her will. Yes I pitied her. And I felt a moral responsibility to look after her after the beating that she got. We don't even know if she'll live or die."
"Your first and foremost duty and responsibility is to your king. It seems as though you have developed a wandering eye that has led you astray. It would appear that you are emotional compromised and unfit for command."
"Lieutenant," said the king, prompting the lieutenant to turn and bow him."Captain, your services are no longer needed. Lieutenant, you are now captain of my personal bodyguards."
"Thank you my liege. You have made a wise choice," said the Lieutenant a sly smirk on his face.
The captain was ordered to clear out his living quarters which he had the sergeants take out his belongings. But before leaving he had convinced a few of his most trusted lieutenants help him smuggle the king's mistress out of the palace. And in the a blind rage, the king of Hakuma ordered that city guard scour the city in search of the pair.
Early the next morning, the captain peeked through a crack of the window that overlooked the street. The city guards who were hunting him were searching house to house but had overlooked the one that he stayed at, since their superior officer was living there. The captain turned away from the window to look at the king's mistress who was resting on the bed. The lady of the house was redressing her bandages, the old ones were stained with her blood laid in a heap in a bucket, as to be burned later.
"She's very fortunate to be alive," said the lady of the house.
"I'm sorry for intruding on you like this. Thank you," said the captain as he approached them. He was at a loss for words.
"You are safe here. Rest now."
"I'll rest later, I must speak with your husband the general."
"He's downstairs. He should be in study at this time of the day."
The captain crept downstairs and made his way to the study. He knew the compound well enough from his visits to the general during the war. At one point it was used as his forward headquarters when he had to put down the rebellion last year.
"General?" The captain knocked on the door to the study.
"Ah, Captain Chiang." The general was standing by a bookshelf and snapped a book shut. "Please have a seat, have some tea."
The captain sat but did not drink the tea and instead eyed it warily.
"Don't worry it's not poisoned."
"I'm sorry. I'm just a little skittish is all. General Sun Yat Sen."
"I owe my life to you. And you're my son-in-law. And it's actually a good thing that you escaped from the palace when you did."
"Why?"
"I want to talk to you about the king."
"What sorts of things?" Chiang furrowed his brow.
"I am afraid that the king has grown to be nothing like his father. Now, he is nothing more than a tyrant."
"General," said Chiang aghast. "Be careful of what you say."
"We should no longer be worried of being so brazen now, young Chiang. The king is a tyrant and he will not sit long on the throne. He has only been able to keep the throne is through the blood spilled by the Hakuma's army, and the money given to him by the Earth King of Ba Sing Se."
"The man who sits on the throne now, is the man who we had sworn to serve and protect."
"I wonder why we should swear allegiance to one man. In Kanto, their military oath of allegiance is very different from ours. Instead they swear to a piece of paper."
"A piece of paper?!"
"Yes, that little piece of paper is what they call the constitution, that is the legal documents that governs their country. In those documents, it expressly says that the people should rule, through their right to vote for their leaders. And the people entrust their elected officials to carry out their will. Their leaders live within that right and that will. Thus that piece paper carries the weight of a higher moral principle, the soldiers of Kanto make their pledge to affirm their belief that they are ruled by the rule of law, not the rule of one man."
"Then that is no different from us. We entrust the monarchy to carry out the will of the people, to serve and protect the nation," Chiang shot back.
"But the king has failed in his duties to Hakuma and ruled by his own desires and appetites." Sun Yat Sen leaned forward from his chair.
"Corruption is an inpurgeable shame. And it is stain on the honor of Hakuma. But it is no excuse for treason." Chiang rose abruptly from his chair, wanting the conversation to end.
"The greater shame is betraying the moral principles that gave our king the right to rule in the first place." Sun Yat Sen called from his chair, as the youthful captain opened the double doors leading out to the compound's elaborate garden. The gardener was busying himself raking up leaves into a corner of the garden to burn later. Chiang turned to face his father-in-law and mentor.
"Remember what you taught me? Who is more honorable? The one who serves an honorable lord, or the one who serves his lord honorably? You told me that the greater honor is for those who carried out his duties with all his strength, even if it leads him to certain death. It is never honorable to betray your lord. Treason can never be tolerated. Death before dishonor."
"Yes. I did say that," Sun Yat Sen replied slowly. "There is no honor in treason. But it can be justified."