Everyone else seemed surprised by the presence coalescing in the middle of the garden on one of the palace’s upper terraces, qi starting to condense and form into a humanoid shape with no warning.

I knew better than to be surprised, of course. Mior came and went when they wanted, and the spirit didn’t need to care about the details of where or who was watching. I’d half-expected Mior to show up, with everything that happened.

Smiling, I stood up from my chair and took a step forward. There were a few other people with me, most notably Kariva and Commander Wu of the Imperial Guard. We’d been talking about various matters in preparation for another session of court. It was a nice summer day, the sun shining down brightly but the temperature kept comfortable by a small breeze, and the scent of flowers from the garden complemented it well. A few other courtiers were walking through the farther reaches of the garden or on adjoining paths. Many of them stopped to stare, but I didn’t think we’d be bothered here.

“Mior,” I greeted the spirit. “It’s good to see you again. I assume this means you've parted ways with Aston?”

The spirit’s physical form looked the same as before, but I could sense the difference. There was no sign of my guard, and no indication of a connection to him in Mior’s qi presence. There were a few small changes from the last time I’d seen them like this, before the possession, but nothing I could pin down or make sense of.

‘Inaris.’  The spirit nodded at me, then gave another nod to the people behind me, who’d also stood up, before Mior took a step towards me and laid a ghostly, weightless hand on my shoulder. ‘I’m sorry for your loss.’

‘Thanks.’ I hesitated for a moment. ‘Have you …?’

Mior shook their head. ‘I’ve ‘seen’ her, for lack of a better word, but there’s not much to say. It will take a bit of time until Acura is ‘there’ enough to deal with others, but she’s doing very well. And we, Rijoko and me, are going to watch over her, don’t worry.’

I nodded, feeling some relief at those assurances. ‘Thank you.’

‘To answer your earlier question, yes, I did extricate myself from Aston. It took a while, but there were no ill effects. I’d say we’re both a little wiser for the experience.’

“That’s good to hear.” I glanced at the others, noting that Kariva had put up several qi shields, while Wu was hanging back and most of the others had made themselves scarce. Then I turned back to Mior. “You can probably tell that our situation is far from ideal right now.”

The spirit chuckled. ‘Oh, I know, Little Light. You managed to avert the worst of it, but you still have a civil war on your hands, and the Zarian aren’t going to sit by and wait for you to sort things out. They’ve already overrun your border fortifications, haven’t they?’ Mior shrugged. ‘You know I can’t offer you any direct help, and neither can your father.’

“I know.”

‘Well, the situation isn’t as bad as it could be. You won’t have black stage cultivators fighting each other and devastating the country.’

I blinked. “Wait, why wouldn’t they fight? Not that I want them to, but how can you be sure?”

“Is this because of our agreement with the Zarian?” Kariva asked.

Mior nodded at her. ‘Perceptive. You should keep that one around, Little Light. Yes, the oaths enforced by Rijoko and Jideia are going to ensure this. Since the conspirators have connections to the Zarian and are working in their favor, they are being considered as part of their war effort when it comes to this.’

My eyes widened. “And you’re going to make sure everyone knows this, right? Wow. Being publicly associated with the Zarian by the Greater Spirits is not going to be good for their reputation.”

Mior only grinned in response.

“We need to capitalize on this,” I said, looking at the others. “As quickly as possible, while they might still be reeling to adjust their plans. Perhaps we could even get them to talk and make concessions.”

‘Don’t forget that this goes for your side, too,’ Mior said. ‘You lost the advantage in numbers of eighth stage cultivators.’

I nodded. “True, but we also have the numerical advantage in the other stages. Even more so. Most of the army is still loyal, even if they’re occupied with the Zarian.”

Mior considered me for a moment longer, then nodded. ‘Alright, I see you have this well in hand. Good luck, Inaris.’

“Wait a moment,” I said, sensing the spirit was about to disappear. “What about Aston, where is he?”

Mior smiled, already fading out. ‘I dropped him off with his family.’

I stared at where the spirit had been for a moment even as I sensed them leaving. There’d been something about the smile, like they were playing a joke on me. Well, knowing Mior, it won’t be anything too bad. They’re a softy, despite outside appearances.

I shrugged and turned back to the others, noting that two of the officials had already left and Kariva was pocketing a communication device. “Thoughts?”

“You should take some of the forces we’ve managed to gather and confront Wei’s group,” Kariva said. “They have the most eighth stagers, not to mention the most soldiers overall, so they’re going to be most affected by this development and might be open to negotiations.”

I frowned. “I guess. I really didn’t expect Wei to betray us like this, if I’m honest.”

Kariva nodded. “Me neither. It’s one reason I think you should talk to him. It might help, since he’s generally a rational, reasonable man. And if not, he’s definitely the one you should crush first.” She smiled wryly. “Not personally, of course.”

I sighed. “If you’re not concerned about my safety, alright.”

“Good. I’ll talk Kiyanu into letting you do this. And scramble the forces so you can leave right away.”

“Right away?” I pulled a face. “I was hoping to be here when my friends come back.”

We’d called them back right after the attack. That the situation with Hajake still wasn’t resolved bothered me, but this situation took priority. Plus, I really wanted to see them again. They’d decided that Lei would stay on the Earth Continent to hold down the fort, while Tenira, Yarani and Elia hurried home. They should arrive soon.

Kariva shook her head. “Spirits, that would take ages until you’re ready to depart, if you welcome them here. Just go, they’ll be here when you come back. You’ve been separated for months, what’s a little while longer?”

I scowled at her, then sighed. “Alright, fine. I’m going. You and Kiyanu can handle things here, with the announcement and all?”

“Of course. Leave it to us, my lady. Good luck.”

I stared at her for a moment longer, not even sure what I was looking for, before I nodded and turned around to go. Perhaps Kariva was looking out for me in ways I didn’t expect. I’d felt restless and on edge, and I certainly appreciated the opportunity to go out and bring some pain to the people who’d attacked us.

 

---

 

From the plane’s window, our enemies’ stronghold looked tiny, almost insignificant. We were so far up I could see all of it and the surrounding area with a glance. The fortress reminded me of the outposts I’d helped make along the southern border, although it was a little larger. A town huddled against its side like a hapless civilian seeking shelter from monsters. Which wasn’t too far off, as metaphors went.

I lowered the control stick and sent the plane into a dive, watching the ground expand rapidly. We’d traveled most of the way by airship, since these airplanes weren’t suited to long flights, but using some now was a demonstration more than anything.

The other planes around me kept pace as we continued flying in formation. They pulled up just a little later than me as we neared the ground, but that probably meant I’d been early. I tried not to let it bother me as I focused on the landing. At least we managed to set down mostly in formation.

I waited until the plane stopped moving, then took a deep breath and pushed open the cockpit door, climbing out. Guards were already waiting to escort me. I nodded at them, then turned my attention to our surroundings.

The group of people we’d come to meet stood not far away, their presences thinly veiled to leave no doubt as to their strength. I recognized General Wei, as well as the older man who had to be his older brother and patriarch of the Wei clan, and a few officers I’d seen with him. Those would have put their personal loyalties to him above their duty to the throne, and brought their troops to the conspirators’ side. Or most of them. From the reports, things had gotten ugly.

Most of the soldiers here would be in that group, but many of the fighters belonged to noble clans, Wei and others. A few representatives of those clans accompanied them. I recognized one of them and had to make sure my expression didn’t betray me. Clan Tener. Was Aston here?

They waited inside an enclosed approach to the fortress, with high walls rising on both sides. My own group walked up to them quickly, and I took a moment to check out the defenses. There were a number of seventh stage cultivators with me, including San Hashar and another general who’d worked with Wei, though Kariva’s agents had cleared both of them. Actually, they seemed to take his betrayal pretty hard.

We had more strength gathered here than the traitors, so I didn’t feel too anxious about approaching them. Of course, honor was supposed to keep this talk peaceful, as well, but Jideia’s followers didn’t have a good track record in that regard.

“Hail,” the eighth-stager, Wei Yong, greeted us as we came to a stop. He was tall and powerfully built, and his voice sounded like a miniature earthquake, but his expression was neutral. “We are pleased to discuss recent events with you, but that is far enough.”

I glanced at the meters still separating us, then back at the conspirators. None of the officers on my side said anything, so I let the silence build for a moment before I answered. “I have no wish to come any closer to you. Greetings. I do hope you can explain yourselves.”

I noted some of the glances going between members of their delegation, and others further back. They’re afraid of me, I realized with a start. Maybe they heard about what happened to Li. Or, more likely, it’s just the fact that I’m in the fifth stage already.

The Tener representative raised an eyebrow. “We do not need to explain ourselves to a child.”

“You’re all traitors,” I said, ignoring him. “Betraying the Empress you swore your fealty to, and backstabbing the country at the worst possible time, with the Zarian threatening everything.” I paused, then locked my gaze on the man I really wanted to talk to. “I’d have expected better of you, General Wei.”

The general couldn’t meet my eyes, instead looking down, a hint of a flush on his face.

But his brother cut in immediately. “We would have expected better of clan Leri, too. Upsetting centuries of order and a prospering economy, the very fabric of our society, with your new inventions. Dragging our country into a war with the Zarian. You have no ground to stand on.”

San Hashar and a few of the officers accompanying me snorted, but by the looks of it, all of the conspirators agreed with this sentiment.

I glared at him, then let my gaze sweep over the others. “Funny you should blame us for the war with the Zarian, considering how your little conspiracy is being sponsored by them. Even the spirits recognize this, barring your black stage cultivators from fighting on their behalf. And now, everyone will be aware of it, destroying what little support you may have among the population.”

One of the other nobles, a wizened old woman from clan Tener, snorted. “A likely tale. Even if we did get outside support, which no one is able to prove anyway, it certainly wouldn’t be from the Dominion.”

I shook my head, turning back to Wei. “None of this excuses what you did, your betrayal. What happened, general? Our clan spared yours, brought your family prosperity and even power after the old clan Wei lost the civil war. You fought for my Mother loyally for decades. Why throw all of that away now?”

The older Wei ground his teeth, but he didn’t say anything, letting his younger brother speak up. “I wish things could have gone differently, Your Highness.” There was genuine sadness in his voice. “But we’re still clan Wei. My family needed me.” He raised his chin, and there was a spark in his eyes now as he looked at me. “Besides, clearly we’re not trusted or treasured vassals after all. My son deserved better.”

I blinked, fighting to keep my confusion from showing. It only took a moment until I realized what he had to be talking about, and my throat clenched. The agent I’d met on the Earth Continent, the one who hadn’t made it back. He’d been named Wei. I’d thought it was just a coincidence, but now that I thought about it, I could see a faint resemblance in his looks. Well, hell. He was general Wei’s son? Probably their clan’s rising star.

“I’m very sorry,” I said softly. “But your son voluntarily risked his life for me. I didn’t even tell him to do it, and I certainly didn’t endanger him on purpose.”

Wei Yong crossed his arms. “So you’re saying that you didn’t consider the fact he was your old rival clan’s heir at all? That if his name had been different, he might not still be alive?”

“That’s the truth,” I responded, looking him straight in the eye, then at the general. “I didn’t even know who he was. He sacrificed his life for me, freely, because he was loyal to the Empire, and to his Empress. Because he believed it was worth dying for. You committing treason in his name only dishonors his sacrifice.”

This time, the general couldn’t hide his wince. He looked at me for a long moment, before he sighed. “I wish I could believe you, Princess Inaris. But we have come too far to turn back now.”

I shook my head, grinding my teeth in frustration for a moment. “You’re not completely lost yet. If you surrender now, and cooperate fully with us, you can still earn mercy. But you need to do it now, before things are too far gone. This is your only chance.”

General Wei looked like he was considering it, but his brother laid a hand on his shoulder, and glared at me. “No. There’s nothing to consider. The only mercy the Empire and people like your Leri Kariva would offer for treason is a quick death. We will take back the Empire and cast down your clan. And do not expect mercy from us.”

I waited for a few long seconds, hoping someone would speak up to contradict him. But no one did. I could see they were afraid, aware that their position wasn’t good, but either too angry or desperate enough to fight.

I sighed softly. Well, I tried.

I needed to deal with them quickly, then take this force west to deal with clan Zun and their little rebellion, if they hadn’t gone to ground yet. We couldn’t afford to take too long for this, not when it was little more than a distraction from the real war with the Zarian, ultimately.

“You will regret this,” I told them. “When I crush you, and your clans, you will wish you’d taken my mercy. Spend the next few hours wisely, they’re likely to be your last.”

I turned around and started walking, not looking back.

San Hashar spoke up when we reached the end of the path. “It’s a shame about Wei Jun. He was a good general.”

I glanced at her. “Yes, he was. You going to be alright with this?”

She gave me a fleeting smile. “We weren’t that close, my lady. They made their choices.” She shrugged. “As for fighting, I have faith in you. Not necessarily the religious kind.”

I snorted and couldn’t help but return her smile for a moment. With people like her to help me, I didn’t need to be some great commander to beat the traitors.

Though, I still intended to keep to my resolution and not go to any battlefield myself, but leave battle to others.