Oda awoke to a cord instrument rattling behind a paper wall to the left and the smell of burnt meat. The scent nauseated him, bringing with it memories of soldiers on horseback, plinking away at a mass of meat he'd hugged instants before.
Pulling himself out of bed, the boy yelped at the sharp pain in his abdomen, like he'd been hit from the inside with a hammer. A hunched, bearded man with receding hairline and hairs poking out of his nostrils and ears, rushed to Oda's side.
"Be still, boy!" Cried the medicae, overly upset for some reason, "You cracked some ribs… All of them… I mended the bones but you mustn't put any strain on them."
The child blinked in confusion, "What?"
"You broke your chest. Lie down."
"Okay…" He obeyed, but kept himself propped on one elbow, "Where is my father."
The medicae hesitated, then seemed to understand something.
He was about to end the conversation, but decided against keeping the boy in the dark, as it would only foster rebellion, "Tending to your brother, the first lady's death disturbed the poor boy greatly."
"She's dead?" He winced, in pain rather than shock, "What happened?"
The old man strode over to his desk, returning to his discarded paperwork. "You happened, I assume… What is your name, boy?"
"Oda, Kuan Oda." The child leaned back in his bed, doing his best not to pay any mind to the mechanical octupus dangling overhead, the multitude of skulls decorating the room or the fact his healer had four arms, all mechanical.
A minute passed in uneasy silence, then another. Finally, the old man put down his quill and sighed."I am a member of the machine cult." Explained the priest, having noticed the boy's constant attention to his many arms.
"I did not mean to offend." Oda spoke in a tense breath, forcing his gaze off the synthetic limbs and onto the ceiling.
"You did not. Most newcomers to the palace will resort to either violence or hysteria when they first meet me, I appreciate your restraint, boy. Ask any question you like."
Oda looked around the room, frowning, then down at his chest. "What am I wearing?"
"A gown. You were half naked when we found you, except for some shorts and a life jacket. They were destroyed during diagnosis."
"Will I need to wear these all the time?" He tugged at the black and silver gowns in disgust, prompting a short chuckle from the tech priest.
"No, boy, I suspect the governor will assign you a personal tailor… Or headsman." The medicae had meant that last comment as a joke, but as he said the words, realised how likely an outcome that really was. All trace of humor melted from his face and Oda, seeing the man's grave expression, opted to huddle his shivering body under the itchy covers.
His retreat did not last long, however. Announced only by heavy footsteps and the whisper of paper walls sliding away, Kai Kué Lao, the Governor's son, erupted in the room, followed a moment later by his father.
"Where is the lying scum!?" Cried the teenage boy, glaring at the medicae. The old tech priest did not reply, but glanced towards the bed, opposite his desk, and Kai followed his gaze.
Pulling Oda out of from under the cover, despite the medicae's protests. "What did you tell him?! You piece of skak, what did you tell my father?!"
The priest threw his master a pleading look, but Jin remained silent. Better this issue be resolved now than allowed to fester for years.
"I don't know," cried young Oda, frightened into tears, but not yet losing his composure, in spite of Kai's superior size and strength, "I don't understand what's going on."
Kai shoved the boy away, into a wheeled console that went spinning into the wall and then back towards the boys, Oda now on his back, struggling for breath as he clutched his broken ribs.
"Boy!" Jin barked, looking at Oda, though Kai appeared just as startled, "Did your mother not teach you to fight?"
Kai's eyes went wide, "Father?" But Oda only nodded, sheepishly.
Jin strode up to them, shoved Kai on the forehead, stumbling the boy three paces back, while pulling Oda up by the collar. He spared them not more attention and merely kicked the bed into a corner, to clear up enough space for what he had in mind. "Then show me." Was all he said as he walked up to the medicae's desk.
Kai took a high stance, fists tight and his weight on his hind leg. A defensive stance.
Oda swallowed with difficulty and took on a very similar stance, but with his palms open and weight evenly distributed between both legs.
Kai struck first, a leaping kick aimed to his little brother's chin. Oda spun gracefully out of the way, as would a ballet dancer, then dropped back to a low stance, this time with his fingers pinched, as though he was pulling on invisible strings.
Kai was not impressed, he struck with a straight punch, slower than ordinary, and Oda easily dodged, the fist flying millimeters from his face, only for his big brother to halt the punch and bring his elbow back hard into the back of Oda's head, sending the boy rolling limply on the hardwood floor.
His victory was short lived, however, as Kai soon found he could no longer move the left side of his body. The muscles tensed up slowly, pulsing with cramps from toes to the tip of his fingers.
As he Collapsed in a trembling heap, right by his little brother, Kai could do nothing but groan and curse. "What did you do?!" He moaned out as the other boy tried to clear his vision.
"You know that tickling spot on your ribs?" Breathed Oda, still dizzy. "Mother always said if you hit it just right, it will end any fight instantly." He reached up to Kai's neck, with the thumb on his shoulder and index finger on his jugular, Oda applied light pressure and unlocked his brother's chi.
"Acupunctor, dancer, assassin," spoke Jin as he walked up to them, "Shimia was a fascinating woman."
"Yet you had her killed." Spat the boy, bracing himself for another blow. It did not come.
Jin looked somber as he loomed over Oda, "I will not plead with you, boy. I offer you a place in my court, as my son, but what happened to your mother, why it happened, is not for you to question, and we will not speak of this again…" He turned to Kai, "As for you, you'll show your brother the respect your blood is due; the next time a fight breaks out, it will be to the death."
The boy rolled onto his feet and kneeled, forehead to the floor, "Yes, father."
Oda did no such thing, so Jin growled at him, as a wolf would, and the boy reluctantly copied his brother's stance, "Yes, father."
"What name has your mother given you, boy?" Jin asked, waving the boys up and turning away once they did.
"Oda."
His sons in tow, the Governor kept speaking as they made their way through the palace basement, walking slowly, "An old noble name from Terra. You resided in the monastery, with the Lamenters, yes?"
"Yes, Sire…"
Jin snapped around, "Father. You are not to address me as anything but father or Jin." With a nod from Oda, the governor resumed his march, "Have the destitute serfs told you of the Imperium's history, of Wosun's?"
Oda nodded and said "We are descended from a commonwealth of nations east of the old continent. Warp travel to this cluster is unreliable…"
"Yes, yes, I was not asking for a history class. Clearly your mother taught you restraint, to fight within the chi, but what of the cheng?"
Oda glanced at Kai, who groaned and whispered, "Sneaking around versus breaking stuff."
"Mother only taught me to protect myself, most of our time was spent on ancient texts…"
With a disgruntled sigh, Jin asked, "What were those texts about?"
The boy gave this question a moment of consideration, "War, discipline, philosophy…" After a pause, which he spent trying to figure out a diplomatic way to qualify the Imperium's educational material, "The newest ones…"
"Were nothing but cheap propaganda, am I right? Prayer solves everything and if it doesn't, you're not praying hard enough."
Kai scoffed, but Oda kept quiet, stunned that his father would so readily criticise the teachings of His representatives.
"Don't worry, boy," Jin laughed, "the Wosun archives predate the Imperium, they even predate the Dark Ages, I have an army of scholars who are eager to hammer these millenias of wisdom into your head, as they did every members of our family… You will hate it, as did every member of our family, but it is a blessing few in this world receive."
Kai threw his little brother an evil glance, rubbing a bruised wrist in silence.