The First Generation
Storm of Amber stepped onto the dais. “Remember what I said earlier. I will...”
“I heard you.” Rivers Between Us knelt beside the model that he had constructed on the floor. Tiny arches and towers bristled over a circle two paces across. He carefully adjusted one of the structures, shaving a clay outcropping off with his sheath knife.
“I’m serious. If these people turn out...”
“I said I heard you, Storm.” He muttered to himself, under his breath, “I understand that you’re not ready yet to make the kind of sacrifices necessary...”
“What?” Storm turned and looked at the wizard. The banner of the glaive twisted restlessly at his side. A storm was growing on the horizon; whorls of wind swept about the mountain top where the two stood on jutting outcropping of rock. The peak had many names; Grandfather Raven, the Four Winds’ Gate House, Yozi Throne, Gaia’s Kneecap. “Listen, little savant, if we stoop to the methods the deathlord’s tactics, then we should be removed just as swiftly!”
Rivers looked over the little model and nodded his head. “I’ve sacrificed a lot for this power. I’ll not let that go to waste because you’re afraid of that which you don’t understand. There is a difference! These people are volunteering because they believe in our cause, they believe in us, and they won’t see their land dragged into the underworld! They follow in our footsteps, stepping beyond their humanity to preserve it.” He stood before the Zenith caste, and for a moment their two animas flared and warred for dominance of the peak. Rivers had the stronger essence by far, his deep reds and indigo hues flared with the fury of the dying sun, overwhelming the pure golden hues of Storm’s banner.
The priest of the sun was not cowed; he stood firmly, unmoved by the emotional outburst. Where the youth’s power was nothing before his determination. Rivers turned away.
“No one knows what you’ve given up for what you’ve gained, and no one doubts your commitment, Rivers...” He placed one hand on his friend’s shoulder. “I trust you.”
Rivers nodded his head and hid his face.
“But tell me, why did you pick this god-forsaken place?”
Rivers wiped a sleeve before his eyes and cleared his throat. “Ah... the... the essence flows here... they’re strong, but disordered. When I pour the essence from the amalgamations, over fifty celestial circle spells in single month... if things go well, I mean... it should bind this place forever and order the essence to our purposes. We need more hearthstones to power our equipment.”
“Hmm... excellent plan. Is that what this model is for?”
“Yes. A single spell in this scale model should mimic the essence flow on a small scale, and give me a chance to test my theories in this matter.”
“Hmm... toy castles first, eh?” He smiled over the work.
“Yes... heh.” Rivers looked down the mountainside and shaded his eyes with one hand. “I think I see them coming.”
The water, dark and deep, was only visible as a faint ripple in the bottom of the clay jar. Rivers held it in both hands before him and reached out with one hand. Opposite him, standing on the stone model of a possible future, Tokaki Kui stood in a white robe with one shoulder bared.
Two others stood on the mountain. Behind the spy to his right stood the master of spies, the shadow that was Leaf Shakes the Wind. Behind him and to his left stood the righteous flame of the noonday sun, Storm of Amber. Rivers ignored them both. He held the clay jar before him and spoke.
“Are you ready, warrior?”
Tokaki nodded his head silently.
“Are you willing?”
He nodded his head once again, vigorously.
“Tokaki Kui, you have selected to bind your soul with this water, drawn from a hidden spring where no man but yourself has tread.”
The storm clouds were overhead now, and a chill drizzle of rain began to fall over the four of them. Rivers held one hand over the jar’s mouth. He closed his eyes and began whispering.
Storm of Amber gripped the haft of his spear fiercely, watching through the light drizzle with squinted eyes. Leaf Shakes the Wind waited patiently, his hands crossed behind himself. He had spoken at length with the sorcerer beforehand and knew that the process would take hours. He settled in for the wait.
It may have been an hour, standing in the thin rain while the wind murmured in gentle counterpoint to the muttering of the spell. None of the four of them could have told when the rain turned into a thick mist, but at some point the mountain sides dissolved away. A breeze stirred the air about them, clearing the air in a circle ten paces wide. It was then that they realized that River’s anima was flaring, but it seemed somehow dimmed. There was no trace of gold or red the cool radiation of essence; a thin cerulean hue flowed and washed over ritual space; the four were visible only as shades of blue.
Tiny sparks of light began to fall about them. Storm of Amber lifted his eyes, thinking them to be motes of essence, but when they lit on his face and melted there he realized it was just a light flurry that had caught the light of the anima banner. When he looked down again, he realized that the spy had already begun to change.
As the breeze ruffled through the young man’s hair, it began to darken to a deep black. His limbs became long and lanky, and when he turned to look about himself, Storm could see that his eyes become completely black orbs.
The light began to gutter and die. Rivers sank down and sat on a thin layer of snow, the jar rolling out of his hands, empty.
Leaf Shakes the Wind stepped forward to the new man. Tokaki Kui’s head swung slightly to meet the gaze of his master, his hair undulating behind him as though he were submerged in a glacial lake.
“It is a noble thing to be the first to walk a treacherous path. The accomplishments of those who come after you will be as your own. But you did not choose this path for its nobility; you chose it for its power. As you have been given new flesh, now you are given a new name. You are Chung Chih, ‘Loyal Ambition’, first Grandchild of the Sun.”
Chung Chih nodded his head once in acceptance. “Thank you, sifu.”
Leaf Shakes the Wind moved away again, hands still clasped behind his back. His eyes watched for Storm of Amber’s reaction.
