Chapter Two hundred twenty-eight (EDITED End Book Four) (Patreon)

This version of Heishe was no more than eighteen inches long, and her head was about the width of Kaz’s thumb. No hood flared behind her small skull, and when her tongue flickered out, Kaz could see curved rows of teeth, rather than the menacing fangs he’d seen before. If Kaz hadn’t been able to see the dense black ki packed into that small body, he would have said she was cute.

The little snake slithered across the ground toward them, leaving a damp trail in the grass. The humans drew back, and Lianhua’s face went white, causing Yingtao to give her a concerned look. Mei flattened her body in the grass, and Kyla’s flickering shield rose around them.

<have no fear,> Heishe hissed, sounding distinctly amused. <i am only here because i believe that our paths align, at least for the moment.>

Raff had stood, and now his hand rested on the hilt of the sword Chi Yincang had returned to him. Anyone looking at him from the outside would have believed that he was vastly overreacting to the presence of such a small serpent, but for those in the group, the pressure of Heishe’s power was such that Kaz was impressed the large human was even able to offer an appearance of threat.

“I hate to say it,” Raff said, voice hoarse, “but that’s exactly what someone might say right before they tried to eat us.”

Heishe gave her hissing laugh. <if i wanted to eat you, you would be in my belly, mortal. now sit.>

Raff sat.

The snake moved without haste, gliding close enough that Kaz could have reached out and touched her before coiling into a gleaming curve, her head raised just enough to look at them all. Not a single one of them, human, kobold, or other, moved. Except Li.

The dragon opened her eyes, which were no longer covered by white caps. Kaz had been absently picking the loose skin from her body for a while now, and she was nearly back to her usual shining perfection. All sign of her injuries had vanished, and her newly revealed scales had added a subtle gradient of deep red around her front paws.

<Are you the snake who stole my Kaz?> Li demanded, a cloud of smoky vapor forming around her slender nose. Of course, no one could hear her except Kaz and Heishe, but the dragon’s posture was clearly belligerent.

Fortunately, Heishe just laughed again, her tongue flicking out to taste the cloud. <and also the serpent who helped you put the fire in your belly, little dragon. i appreciate your loyalty, but you need not turn your jealousy in my direction. i have no designs on your puppy.>

Kaz was still coming to terms with the idea that he was an adult, no matter what his chief might say, and he didn’t really appreciate being called a puppy again. Still, he had a feeling that everyone there, possibly everyone in the city, might well be pups to this being.

The snake’s head wove slowly back and forth, her dark eyes meeting each of theirs until she finally gave a small nod. <let me tell you a story.>

Raff jumped slightly as the voice entered his mind, then muttered something that might have been, “Of course it’s Pellis-cursed story time again,” but otherwise no one protested. Even Li settled back into Kaz’s lap, and he something through their bond that might have been chagrin.

<long ago, when the world was young,> the tiny snake said, <the great Elder asked for the best of his creations to act as guardians while he went to explore the planes. so many volunteered that he held a contest to determine who would serve. in the end, twelve were chosen, and they stayed while others went on, maintaining the balance and keeping the peace.>

Lianhua let out a soft sigh, and her fingers twitched, but she didn’t take out one of her books.

<their story is long, and not relevant at this time,> Heishe went on, <until around a thousand turnings of the world ago. that is when one of the twelve disappeared.>

She hesitated, as if reluctant to share the rest, but went on at last. <the Elder gave his guardians great power, but they are not invincible. they are also individuals, with their own needs and personalities. in this case, the missing creature had a tendency to wander. as a result, it took far too long for the other eleven to realize that the twelfth wasn’t simply resting somewhere until he was needed. in fact, it was only when another vanished that they realized the truth.>

She released a hissing sigh, her chin coming to rest on the smooth black coils of her body. <someone,> she said, <was hunting them.>

<I told you so!> a strident voice screeched. A bird came diving from above, seeming to appear out of the setting sun. It settled clumsily to the ground beside the snake, a few of its bedraggled feathers falling to rest on the grass. It was far from the majestic creature which had nearly destroyed the mage’s college, but Kaz had no doubt it was one and the same, since he could see the red ki that formed its body, feel it pushing against his core in a way that Heishe either couldn’t or chose not to.

“A rooster?” Lianhua murmured, her voice full of wonder. When everyone turned to look at her, she flushed a deep red and shook her head, indicating that she was done speaking.

<yesssss, fengji,> Heishe sighed. <we know. i have apologized a hundred times since then.>

The rooster scratched at the dirt, pecking sharply at a blade of grass. <Then this will be the hundred and first,> he said sharply. <If you had all listened to me the first time->

<was sssaving you not enough?> Heishe asked almost plaintively.

<I was saving myself!> the rooster, Fengji, snapped. <All you did was prevent me from reducing this city to rubble.>

<and in so doing, possibly save one or more of the others,> Heishe said.

Fengji let out an annoyed squawk. <There are no more of our kind here,> he said. <If there were, I would know.> One beady eye settled on Li, then Kaz. <Though I suppose it would have been poor thanks to kill those who truly did free me.>

Strutting forward, the bird’s ruffled neck feathers lifted, framing his head in bright oranges and reds. He stretched out both wings, tilting forward in a kind of bow. Toward Li.

<I thank thee for destroying the heart of that which bound me,> he said. <I had grown tired of waiting for this supercilious serpent to figure out I was right beneath her nose. The last eight hundred years have been an exercise in tedium.>

Kaz was the only one - he assumed - who could sense the warm rush of embarrassed pleasure that ran through the dragon. There was no doubt her scales would have turned as pink as Kyla’s former fur if they could have. Rather than melting down into a happy puddle of scales, however, she lifted her own head, arched her neck just so, and nodded magnanimously.

Kaz was certain that she had no more idea what she’d done than he did, but he was usually the first to tell her what a good job she did anyway. This time, however, watching the way the Divine Beast - if that was what Heishe and Fengji were - was bowing before his dragon, Kaz felt a hint of some hot emotion light in his belly. Not in his core, but in some part of him that was more basic even than that.

The bird turned a wicked eye on Kaz and straightened from his obsequious bow. <Well enough to you as well, young hound. Yon fair maid is safe from me.>

Kaz blinked, the warmth in his gut dissipating in an instant. What had the bird just called him? Or Li, for that matter?

<may i finish?> Heishe said, sounding both amused and annoyed.

Fengji’s feathers puffed up, but he nodded and strutted back to the serpent’s side. Settling in place, he began to groom his feathers, which were more than a bit patchy and tattered.

<now that this arrogant avian has interrupted my story,> Heishe hissed, though there was no real heat behind it, <you may guess that many more of the twelve guardians have been lost. so far as i know, this brainless bird and i are the only ones left, though i have recently had reason to hope for more.>

The snake glanced at Kaz as Lianhua almost vibrated with excitement beside him. The female was barely managing to restrain herself, especially after this tacit acknowledgement that Heishe and Fengji were indeed two of the ancient creatures chosen to protect their world.

<you may assssk yourselves, however, what this has to do with you, and your concerns for those you love,> Heishe went on, and both Reina and Jinn nodded, their eyes bright with astonishment and hope.

<i believe that what is happening in this city is related to what happened to our lost friends and companions,> the serpent went on. <the simple fact that this foolish fowl was here is evidence of this, but i also find an uncomfortable familiarity in what is happening. you see, i was also never able to find out exactly who our enemy was, or how they were capturing or killing us.>

The rooster bobbed his head in agreement. <They are able to conceal their ki, their very presence. Even from us, which should be impossible.>

Kaz frowned a bit, wondering what that meant, and Heishe explained, though he had a feeling she was choosing her words carefully. <as the guardians of this world, every being alive is under our aegis. though we cannot watch all of you at all times, so we divide up the responsibility in ways that make sense given our personalities and abilities. no creature created by the great Elder should be invisible to us.>

Kaz felt a chill run down his spine as the snake’s eyes came to rest on him. If he still had fur, it would be standing straight up. “Are there… any creatures not created by this Elder?” he asked.

If reptilian lips could smile, he thought Heishe might have done so. <until a few centuries ago, i would have said no. then, as i sought my vanished brothers and sisters, i met one of your kind. a female, and one who was, perhaps, slightly less coherent than you. ssssstill, i was able to speak to her, and she told me of a mountain where her kind were plentiful. she no longer remembered the way back, however, and so i have spent quite some time finding my way here.>

“You think kobolds are responsible for-” Kaz choked, looking around to see that everyone was watching him now, though the newer members of the group looked very confused. “Everything?”

The serpent’s tongue flickered thoughtfully. <not exactly,> she said. <though i can only sense one of your kind when you are nearby and interact directly with my strongest element. this may give you the opportunity to sneak up on one of us, but, and i mean this in the kindest possible way, you are yet clay beneath the raging river of my power, and i was not the strongest of us.>

“We’re not strong enough,” Kaz said, and actually felt relieved at the thought. She was right. Compared to the enormous depth of power in the snake and rooster, even he was little more than a clump of moss, clinging to a cavern wall, hoping not to be eaten.

<you are not,> Heishe confirmed. <but i do believe that you, or some of your kind, were involved in the loss of my companions, and that this was accomplished in much the same way that the human leaders of this country are being made to disappear.>

Jinn frowned. “Um, I’m really sorry, Lady Snake, but that’s not right. No one has disappeared except for us.”

Heishe turned her amusement on the human female. <that is not right, little mortal. i have been investigating for several centuries now, and have become quite good at it. there is no doubt at all that most, perhaps even all, of the human royalty of this country have gone missing and been replaced by beings i cannot sense or see with anything other than my physical eyes.>

The rooster bobbed his head again. <Every now and again, the kings of this country would come to renew my bonds. If it hadn’t been so annoying, I would almost have been grateful for the break in the monotony. One of the reasons I was able to escape today was because the last time the creature pretending to be your king came, whatever it is that keeps him hidden actually made those very bonds weaker. I do not know if that weakening was intentional or not, but it was very clear to me that he was unable or unwilling to contain me.>

Now it was Reina’s turn to pale. “Father?” she whispered.

The snake gave the rooster a quelling glare, then said, <i believe that whatever is being done, the perpetrators must keep those they copy alive. In fact-> she slithered forward until her flickering tongue brushed against the pouch at Chi Yincang’s waist. A spark of black and white ki - the first indication Kaz had had that the serpent had any color of ki other than black - jumped between her nose and the pouch, which opened slightly, allowing a little round ball to pop out. This dropped to the ground beside Chi Yincang, who stared at it with blatant astonishment that was almost funny to see on his usually inscrutable face.

Hissing in satisfaction, Heishe flicked the orb with the very tip of her tail. It flew through the air, vanishing over the side of the cliff, down into the depths. To Kaz’s surprise, he heard a soft ‘plunk’ sound as it disappeared over the edge.

Without hesitation, Kyla leaped to her paws, crossing to the deadly chasm in an instant. Looking down, she let out a yip of surprise, then turned and stared back at the calm little snake. Her golden eyes were wide with astonishment. “It’s full of water!” she said.

<indeed,> Heishe said with satisfaction, gliding over to join the young kobold. <whoever created this trap for fengji surrounded it with a pit of air and metal. no wonder i couldn’t find him.> She shook her head. <now i’ve filled it with my element. nothing can hide in this place any longer.>

<You could have just let me burn it down,> Fengji muttered. <Nothing would be hiding in it then, either.>

The snake turned to eye her companion with an air of superiority. <and then we would learn nothing,> she said. <this way, each of those escaping the island will have to touch water, even carry it with them. i will see everything.>

The whole group turned to look out at the protruding piece of land, which now looked like it was floating in the center of a vast lake so deep that no bottom could be seen through the crystal-clear water. The people still on it, seeing that it was no longer an impassable pit, were beginning to find ways to cross. A few were already swimming, while others were cutting apart trees and attempting to lash them together. There were even a few who had been clinging to the rope, and had dropped off to either head for the city or back to the island.

“Yep, time to get movin’,” Raff said, coming up to stare out over the water. “Somebody’s gonna end up here, and we don’t want to have to explain who we are and what we’re doing.”

“We still don’t know where to go, though,” Jinn said, voice sharp. Then she sighed and went on more gently, “We can’t just head for the palace. Even if none of the assassins showed up, if Lady Snake is correct, they’re after Reina so they can do… whatever it is that little ball was meant to do.”

Raff scratched his head. “Can’t send you home, either,” he said. “I’m pretty sure Timon was himself when we met in Wheldrake, but there’s no guarantee that’s true of everyone else. Even if it is, we’d probably just endanger the rest of the family, especially if the king really has been replaced.”

Reina nodded. “That’s exactly what we’ve been concerned about over the last few weeks. Even if we could ask for help, we’d only be risking their lives as well, and I won’t do that.” Her pointed little jaw set firmly.

<then i suggest you do exactly as you planned,> Heishe said, slithering forward until she plopped quietly into the new lake.

Kaz frowned, and so did others around him. Had they had a real plan? One that hadn’t been completely demolished by the events of the last several hours?

<enter the tournament,> the snake chortled.

Raff’s jaw dropped, and he waved at the destroyed mage college. “There’s no way they’re havin’ it after all this. Who knows how many people have died, between the incursion last night and, uh,” he glanced at Fengji, “what happened today.”

<oh no,> the serpent hissed as she vanished beneath the waters, which rippled with the passage of something much, much larger than she currently seemed to be. <i have it on excellent authority that the games must go on. and won’t it be interesting to find out why.>

Silently, everyone turned to look at the disheveled rooster, who was still busy straightening his feathers with his sharp beak. After a moment, Fengji gave a disgruntled little sniff and muttered, <Don’t look at me. I’ve been trapped in a furnace for the last thousand years.> Then he stood, shook out his feathers, which sent several more flying loose to land on the ground nearby, and flapped his wings. After a few awkward steps, he rose into the air, quickly disappearing into the sun once again.