EDIT: Hey everyone, just to let you know there WILL NOT be a new post this Thursday (8/6) because I am in the middle of strike week for the shows I worked on. HOWEVER! To make up for it, I will post TWO chapters the following Thursday (8/13)!

Sorry for the late notice and the extra wait time. D:

See you in a couple weeks,

Betty B.

Chapter Twenty

Escort

His earrings were different. That was the first difference he knew right away as he woke from a heavy sleep. As he tried to sit up, his battered body and head ached while his ears burned. It was enough to make him wish he had stayed asleep for another month.

Without having to draw back the opaque curtains around his bed, he knew where he was. The room and all the furniture were new and luxurious, but the feeling he had sprouting from his gut was more than old and familiar. His teeth clenched as he slid to the side of the bed, pushing the fabric aside, making his head pound hard enough that it forced his eyes shut. Feels like a train hit me.

Like his bed, the room, furniture and décor placed around it were all extraordinarily intricate and elegant. It did not surprise him to see phoenixes carved into every surface or as the focal point of all the artwork. What did shock him was the hot meal made up of rice and fragrant meat sitting on the table in the center of the room. Bacchus felt his stomach ache for the nourishment, but his suspicions were stronger for the time being.

He walked to the vanity to inspect his new jewelry in the mirror. His miniature wooden gourd shaped earrings had been replaced with jade green hoops that hugged snugly to his lobes. He was far from fond of how they looked and tried to figure a way to remove them. Somehow he wasn't surprised that he couldn't.

Magic suppression. He grimaced at his reflection and noticed the new bruises on his face accompanying the earrings and new clothing as well. As he stared at himself, examining the way the black and soft blue tunic and pants hung from his body, the door opened. A fair young woman stood in the doorway with a pot of tea and a pair of cups for him. She must have been at least ten years younger than him by the youthful way her face was. Her black hair was in a simple tied back bun and her dark brown eyes were almost sad looking. She seemed stunned that he was up and refrained from moving from her spot until he spoke.

"Set it down over there." He told her, pointing to the table. The servant hesitated a moment before dutifully placing the delicate items where he told her to and left, locking the door behind her. The smell and steam of the freshly brewed tea had quickly wafted into the air, making him a little anxious of it.

Qi Peng. His thoughts traced back to the man who had captured him. Us. Cana… He paused remembering how just before his vision went black, one of the foot soldiers picked her unconscious body up, putting her on his shoulder with her rear next to his head. He caressed her, tracing a line up the back of one of her thighs, saying he had not been completely satisfied at the village and threatened to violate her right there in front of him. Surprisingly, it was Qi Peng who had denied the man from taking his pleasure and told him to carry her out, though he wasn't certain if the underling would obey orders by the sneer on his face.

Bacchus clenched his fist and his body shook thinking about what they could have done to her after they knocked him out or where they kept her for the time being or even… No. He refused to think further into such a grim possibility.

Though he knew the palace had been rebuilt above ground, there were no doubts the dungeons underground still existed as well. She is likely being held there. He returned to sit on the side of his bed, contemplating a way out.

Bacchus found it highly suspicious that he was being kept in so a pleasant room as he was rather than some dark and filthy cell below the surface. The magic suppression earrings and the locked door he understood, but why the confinement in a well-furnished room baffled him. The food, servant and clothing were other curious amenities. There's something not right about this. Why would the empress allow me to be captured alive?

It was not unknown to him what happened to an escaped palace slave. There were many instances where the recaptured slave's corpse was put out on display in the courtyard for the other's to see what happened to those who would defy the royal family and tried to run away. He had seen many such corpses of all ages in his youth. Some even people he knew well for those who helped slaves escape or knew and did not report the run away were also duly punished. How many died the day I escaped? The memory of the mangled woman and the palace alive with flames made him shudder and forced any appetite that had risen to fall from his mind.

So why keep me alive then? For torture? He paced around the room, looking at all the pieces in it for any sort of clue. Nothing. Not even a spec of dust. Were they expecting me?

Bacchus returned to sit on the bed, folding his hands and resting his chin on them. There was enough going through his aching head to make him want to return to bed and sleep some more. That was, until the door was opened once more and his captor casually greeted him.

"Qi Peng." He stood, openly frowning at the man in the doorway.

"Lieutenant Qi Peng." The man corrected, a smile on his face. He entered; walking up to the table where the hot meal left for him had cooled. Bacchus eyed him warily, standing his ground.

"You seem tense Jian." The name made him prickle.

"Bacchus." He corrected this time, crossing his arms over his chest.

"Bacchus? What a strange name. Is that what they call you in Fiore?" Qi Peng sat down at the table. "Come, sit with me." He motioned at the empty seat across from him. "Do not worry, I cannot use magic in here either." The man cocked his head to the side, tapping the similar black jade earring in his ear. Hesitant, Bacchus crossed over and sat.

"May I?" Qi Peng nodded down at the food. With a glare, he waved his hand to signal his approval. With a word of thanks, the man across from him helped himself to a bowl and filled it with rice and chunks of meat. He watched carefully as Qi Peng ate, waiting to see what would happen.

"It is not poison. Have some." Peng offered. Though his body would have welcomed the food, he refused still.

"How is your face? Sorry I had to be so rough. My men would not honor my authority if I had greeted you too warmly."

"Why am I here?" Bacchus snorted, ignoring the sentiment. "And where is Cana?"

"The empress." The man sighed. "And the one called Cana is safe." Peng poured tea for both of them, handing one to him. He put it down without taking a sip. Qi Peng noticed the unasked question on his lips. "She was not harmed by any man during your capture." A small tension released from his posture then, allowing him to better compose himself.

"You say it is the empress for the reason why I am imprisoned here. What does she want with me?"

"You are a slaved escaped."

"This is oddly fair punishment for an escaped slave."

"It is law that you are returned to the palace."

"It is also law that I am executed upon capture or after being returned." He tapped his fingers on the table.

"So it is." Peng said simply as he sipped at the tea.

"Then why am I being held here instead of the cells below?"

"So many questions. You were always full of questions."

"And you have not answered them all."

"If you must know." He said with a light sigh. "It is the wish of the empress."

He was baffled by Peng's words and his apathetic attitude. The wish of the empress? Bacchus sat back in his seat, arms crossed over his chest once more. Something is not right.

"What about Cana?" He asked again.

"Your firecracker woman? Old Lady Nuan told me only moments ago that she has finally eaten her meal and was on her way to the bath."

"Firecracker?" Bacchus quirked an eyebrow at that.

"She threw her bowl of sour soup at the wall and fought with her escorts. A wild one, that woman of yours."

A small smirk almost passed on his lips at the thought of how fiery Cana's attitude could be. Good to know she is in high spirits.

"What does the empress want with me?"

"You can ask her for yourself. I am here to escort you to her."

"What?" He stood abruptly from the table then.

"Come, come. We must go to her. It is not wise to keep her waiting." Peng stood as well, taking a final sip of his tea and dabbing at the corners of his mouth with a cloth napkin. Seeing as he had no other choice, he followed after Peng into the large hallway.

As in his room, depictions of blue and gray firebirds could be found painted on every surface and carved into every piece of wood, gold statue and decorative stone they passed. Yet aside from those details, not much had changed of the pathways and halls. He had also found he was well aware of where inside the palace he was after only a few short turns. It was disturbing how easily his muscle memories awakened as they walked, vividly reminding him of his days spent within the confining walls delivering goods from one room to the next for guests. For a half of a second even, the man in front of him shifted from his current height and build to that of a younger man in his late teens, with short hair and less decorative clothes and weapons adorning him. A kinder, more genuine smile was on his face, but faded quickly with the rest of the vision as his escort shifted back to his present state.

"Peng." He spoke with his voice low. The Lieutenant turned his head slightly to signal he had heard, a habit of his since his youth, and was listening.

"That night. When the fire happened… How-"

"Did I survive?" His head returned to facing forward, his stride never breaking its consistent pace. "I do not know."

"Peng." Bacchus called again. The man in front of him paused in his step and sighed. He had his back to him still, but Bacchus could read the way his body moved.

"Truly, I do not know. Though I wish I did." His head turned to the side again as he began. "I had been helping some of the others out of their quarters when the roof came down and trapped me in one of the rooms. In the blink of an eye, the flames had cornered me. I could feel my skin melting. And the smell..." His body tensed briefly. "Then came this loud crack. It was like thunder in my ears. I had thought the rest of the roof fell on me, but I can only recall the sound and darkness then the sudden shock of cold air." He shifted to face him now. "The elders said I slept for two days and they were not sure if I would wake again. When I did, they called it a miracle as I was completely unburnt and unharmed."

"And the other survivors?" Bacchus asked. A heartfelt smile spread over the Lieutenant's face then.

"The others were all treated as I was. We were taken care of by order of the new empress and given time to rest and recover."

"How long before you were put back to work? A day?" Bacchus quirked an eyebrow, but Peng continued to smile at him.

"After the emperor and Lady Heng died, Lady Lang took over and life became better here." Bacchus snorted again, but Qi Peng continued. Their eyes met and something like pride had risen to lighten his features. "She was different than the previous rulers. She saw us as people and we weren't treated like insects or needlessly punished. I was able to rise from being a lowly slave to captain and then lieutenant because of the new order. Many have also risen in their departments. We are not even considered slaves, but as workers."

"Impossible." Bacchus could not comprehend the idea of the royal family valuing the lives of slaves to such extent.

"It is the truth. We work because we are paid well and because we enjoy it here. It is considered good work now. Every day we have people asking to work here."

He could not find the words to express his running emotions. There was too much for him to take in so quickly. Qi Peng seemed to understand his perplexity and placed a hand on his shoulder, squeezing it.

"I can understand your frustration. I had felt the same in the beginning. I thought it was a cruel trick. But Empress Lang is nothing like her predecessors. She is fair and compassionate where they were cruel and just where they were ruthless. The air you are breathing and your woman's safety alone are tributes to her gentle mercy."

When he said nothing to deny his reasoning, Peng turned back around and led him down one more corridor. The space abruptly widened and was dressed the richest out of all the other halls they had walked down. A large set of red double doors adorned with mirrored images of golden phoenixes about to interlock their clawed feet stood at the end of it.

"The empress awaits you just past those doors." Qi Peng said softly and let Bacchus walk past him and down the corridor. He had only taken a few steps when the lieutenant's voice called to him once more. "And Jian." Bacchus turned back to look at him. "It really is good to see you again."

With that, he continued on, pushing open both of the heavy doors to enter the throne room. His hands, body and soul all trembled.

A/N: Early update! Whooo! Happy to get this out to you all today and I really hope you enjoy this chapter. It was initially going to be a fairly short one, but after revising a few times I decided to extend the content and give some more depth to Lieutenant Qi Peng.

Of course, I want to thank you all AGAIN for all the views, new followers and for "favorite-ing" the story and me as an author! In a single weekend I've gone from 2.6k to 3k views!

I am truly humbled by this and feel so much joy that I might explode!

But I won't, because I need to finish this story!

So anyway, thanks again and as always, until next week,

Betty B.