A lone messenger on horseback rushed towards Ishkhandar.  He wore the armor of the Western Region imperial army.  Although exhausted, he had one mission to fulfill and no time to waste.  As he approached the city gates, the border guards began to draw their weapons.

“Open the gates!” the messenger shouted.  “I must deliver a message to His Majesty the King!”

The border guards could now see the rider’s uniform clearly and stood down.  They complied with his commands.

***

King Xenon sat grimly on his throne.  He rested his chin on his hand and looked at the kneeling messenger with world-weary eyes.  Standing at his side was Lord Oganesson.

“Your Majesty,” the messenger said.  “Our forces at Umaraq were defeated.  I escaped to deliver this message of warning, but I am not sure if anyone else survived.  The Southern Region’s soldiers destroyed everything in their path.”

King Xenon furrowed his brow and exhaled quietly.  “You may be dismissed.”

“Yes, Your Majesty!” The messenger bowed and took his leave.

King Xenon raised his fingers to his temples.  He could feel a headache coming on.

“Your Majesty?” said Lord Oganesson.  “Are you all right?”

The king glanced at him and shook his head.  “It is nothing.  I just need some air.”  He stood up. “Come, walk with me.”

King Xenon and Lord Oganesson strolled through the outdoor corridor running alongside the gardens, although the king did not stop to admire the flora.  He simply stared blankly as he traversed the shadows cast by the columns.  Turning a corner, he found a door and opened it.  The two entered, letting the door shut quietly behind them.  They walked slowly down a long, dimly lit corridor.

“Your Majesty, this is the fifth city to have fallen,” said Lord Oganesson.  “The Southern Region’s forces are advancing quickly.”

King Xenon said nothing.  As they reached the end of the corridor, he unlocked the door to a private chamber that only he had access to.  He entered, followed by his advisor.  The chamber was just as dim as the corridor, with only a few torches flickering on the wall.  He walked alongside the wall, running his hands over the mosaic tiles.  When he reached the center, he held his hand up higher and looked up.

“They are finally coming for us, my dear Queen…” he murmured.  The torch flames flickered again, illuminating the mosaic mural of the late Queen Selenia.

***

The Palace Library was filled with endless shelves of weighty tomes and arcane relics.  Into this muted environment Prince Thallios and Leiyu walked, without a sound other than the soft shuffling of their feet.

Two days had passed since their excursion into the city, and no one at the palace had commented on the prince’s temporary absence.  Leiyu wondered whether the palace was really secure at all, given that Prince Thallios could slip out so easily.  He was surprised that the prince had not tried doing that before, but maybe he did not want to be out in the city by himself.  If the king had told him to stay put in the palace, then even walking around outside with guards would not have been an option.  Speaking of the palace, it was also odd that so many people could just walk in and out, but maybe that was only because it was open to the public during the Summer Festival.  The guards posted all over the palace seemed to be merely ornamental.

Leiyu had spent all of yesterday by himself since Prince Thallios had said he was tired.  That was fine with him since he was also exhausted after all that walking and rooftop leaping.  He had slept in until mid-morning, chatted with some of the caravan merchants in the guest quarters, and ate by himself in the palace dining hall.  The merchants had invited him to go drinking in the city in the evening, but Leiyu declined, already having experienced the city once.  While the merchants were out, Leiyu had meditated alone in the guest quarters.

Although Leiyu was used to being around people, having shared living quarters with fellow disciples growing up, he was also fine being by himself.  He was alone on the streets before Shifu found him, and even when interacting with his shixiong and shidi - his martial brothers - his mind often wandered to other places.  It had been a quiet day without Prince Thallios, and, in some ways, a bit duller.  His drifting mind eventually found its way to slumber.

Earlier in the morning, a messenger stopped by the guest quarters to tell Leiyu that the prince wished to meet him at the Palace Library.  He followed the messenger and smiled when he saw a familiar auburn-tressed figure standing at the library’s door.  

Prince Thallios had gone back to wearing his normal clothes - embroidered chapan, pants, boots, and royal robe.  His hair was done up in a half bun with the same flame-shaped ruby ornament, although Leiyu noticed a braid wrapped around the bun that extended down the cascade of loose hair, accompanied by a few thin gold chains.  Leiyu wondered whether Prince Thallios’ hair was styled by his servants, or whether it was his own handiwork, then felt embarrassed that he was wondering about this at all.

As they walked through the library, Leiyu recalled the events of their visit to the city, the prince’s reluctance to return to the palace, and the look he gave before they parted ways in the rooftop garden.  He frowned.  Of course, it was inevitable that he would eventually leave.  He had promised the merchants that he would protect the caravan on their return trip to the Eastern Region.  Had to make sure they would not cross paths with those bandits again.

There were still other parts of the world Leiyu wanted to see.  He could visit those places in the months after he returned to the Eastern Region.  If he was lucky, perhaps he’d be able to come back next year with the merchants again, when the palace needed more silks and porcelain.  He could then tell Prince Thallios more tales of his travels.

Perhaps…

Prince Thallios stopped at one of the shelves and turned to Leiyu with a smile.  “I spent many hours looking through these books when I was younger.” He reached into the shelf and pulled out an old volume, smiling.  “I’ve read this one many times.”  The book was ornately decorated and the cover had a script that Leiyu could not comprehend.

“What does this say?” he asked.

“Hm?” the prince looked at him, then smiled.  “This is written in Heliglossan.  It says Ancient Legends and Tales.”  He opened the book carefully and turned the thin pages.  Each leaf of paper was covered in beautiful calligraphy and interspersed with colorful illustrations.  “This one tells of the goddesses of the four elements that keep the world in harmony,” He flipped the page and there was an illustration of an ethereal dancing female figure surrounded by ribbons of bright orange flame.  “We in the Western Region worship the Goddess of Fire.”

The next page had an image of a celestial female figure surrounded by blue silks, levitating above water.

“Oh, that’s the Goddess of Water of the Eastern Region!” Leiyu said.

The next page had the image of a female warrior on horseback, surrounded by curling wisps of wind.

“That would be the Northern Region,” said Leiyu.  “They worship the Goddess of Wind.”

The next page had an illustration of a masked female figure with long dark robes.

“The Goddess of Earth of the Southern Region,” said Prince Thallios.

Flipping a few more pages, Prince Thallios stopped when he reached an illustration of an ornate sword.  “This is the story of the legendary Sword of Ages.  According to ancient legends, it dwells in a cave in the mountains.  In times of need, warriors of the past have used the sword to save our lands from invaders.”  He paused.  “Yet, at some point, the sword always ends up vanishing.  It is said that the sword returns to the cave when it is no longer needed.”  He closed the volume and turned towards Leiyu.  “There are a lot more stories in this book.  We can go to the courtyard where it’s brighter.”

“As you wish, Your Highness.”

***

Leiyu was not sure how many courtyards the palace contained, but it seemed like this one was new, albeit similar to all the others they had been in before.  They sat under the shade of a tree, with Prince Thallios leafing through the book, stopping every few pages to talk about mythical beasts, enchanted items, and countless princes and princesses of bygone eras.  The stories were all blurring in Leiyu’s mind, but he liked hearing the prince’s enthusiastic narration.

Prince Thallios paused.  “Leiyu?  What are the stories from your land like?”

“Ah, I don’t read that much…”

“Oh?”

“I haven’t spent much time reading since I was either looking for food as a kid on the streets or training under Shifu.”

“Oh!  I’m sorry…I didn’t want you to feel-”

“Ah, don’t apologize, Your Highness!  I can read.  Shifu taught us the basics.  I know enough to get by, mostly street signs and lists of things to buy at the market.”

Prince Thallios smiled.

“We have myths and legends too,” Leiyu said.  “Storytellers would tell them to crowds during festivals.”

Prince Thallios glanced at him as if waiting to hear one of these tales.  Before Leiyu could continue, they heard a shuffling of feet as another person strolled down the corridor connected to the courtyard.  Looking up, they saw a familiar figure wearing a doppi and chapan stare at them as he walked by.

“Who is he?”  Leiyu asked after the other person was out of sight.  “I saw him on the day I arrived.  He was standing next to the king.”

“Oh, that’s Lord Oganesson,” Prince Thallios said.  “He is my father’s advisor.  He was also my tutor.  Taught me history, calligraphy, painting, poetry…”

“Poetry?” Leiyu turned to look at the prince.  “You write?”

“A little…” the prince replied, his cheeks flushing.  “I can show you sometime…”

“Poets are highly respected where I’m from.”

“That’s good to hear.  I just write for fun.  It helps pass the time.  I can show you later in my study.”  

A gentle breeze blew and stray strands of Prince Thallios’ hair danced around his face.  Leiyu gazed at him for the longest time.  He finally turned back towards the corridor Lord Oganesson had just walked through.  “Anyway, why was the king’s advisor staring like that?”

“Oh, don’t worry about it, he was probably just curious.  I’ve known him for many years.  Since my mother passed away, he has been the closest person to my father.”

Closest?  “Oh, really?  Does he…have any family of his own?”

“Family?”

“Like a wife?  Children?”

“Ah, no.” Prince Thallios lowered his voice to a whisper,  “He’s a eunuch.”

“Oh…”

***

Lord Oganesson knocked on the door of the chamber. “Your Majesty?”

“You may come in,” came the reply.

The king’s advisor unlocked the door and opened it slowly.  He saw King Xenon standing in silence before an altar.

“How many days,” King Xenon asked, his eyes still fixed on the altar.  “before the Southern Region’s forces reach our city walls?”

“Your Majesty, it is hard to say…”

King Xenon turned to face him.  “You can be honest with me.”

“Your Majesty…at this rate…within days…”  The king sighed.  Lord Oganesson looked downwards.  “Your Majesty, I’m sorry I cannot bear more promising news…”

King Xenon turned back to the altar.  He took a match from the tiny container on the ledge and struck it.  Lighting the candles on the altar, he turned back to Lord Oganesson.  “I suppose there is not much else we can do other than give offerings to the Goddess of Fire.  If only the priestess were still here…”  He blew out the match.  “Of course, the fact that she is not here is my fault.”

Lord Oganesson looked at him sympathetically.

Turning back to face his advisor, King Xenon asked, “Lord Oganesson, will you join me?”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

Lord Oganesson walked over to the altar.  The two then knelt before the statue of the goddess that stood at the center of the candles.

“Goddess of Fire,” said King Xenon.  “Please grant us hope in these trying times…”