Peace is an illusion — an ideal state of perfection inherently impossible in a world that dreams of it.

The day we no longer need the idea of peace will be the day we have achieved it.

— Excerpt from Meditations, by the Red Emperor

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"If I win this game, you'll tell me… you'll tell me why you want to sneak into Crimson City's Palace. Or how you gained such a detailed map of the inside of the Palace. Did you live there for an amount of time?"

"That's not part of our bargain, and you are better off not knowing, Mursa Khan." Molam moved his piece, then accepted a pour of moon wine. "Not to mention, shouldn't you be planning to beat me while I'm drunk and you're the sober one?"

"Bah." The Mursa stared down at the dragon chess board between the two of them, scratching at his thick black beard as he narrowed his eyes. "I'll admit you are unparallel … unpara… Gods fucking damnit, unbeatable! Unbeatable on the board you are. But you've traveled with my caravan for almost…" The Mursa's eyes closed as he tried to recall before opening them again. "A… a year? What - hic - what do you think of me as a merchant?"

Molam raised an eyebrow. "I understand why you do the things you do. It makes sense, decisions that should allow you to control prices or take advantage of prices."

"It makes sense, but it doesn't … it doesn't always work, does it?" the Mursa squinted, then reached forward with a finger and pushed a piece to the side.

"That's an illegal move."

The Mursa swore, then reset his piece and shifted another piece instead and hiccuped. "You know what the problem is?"

"...what problem?" Molam asked warily.

"The problem. The eternal problem." The Mursa had swayed to the side as he refilled his own cup with moon wine. "The problem is - hic - is that strategy only works as well as… as execution. I'm good at being Mursa. Almost never wrong in matters of commerce!" They had emptied the bottle of wine and the man threw it to the side, where it bounced off the side of the Mursa's tent and rolled down. "But you… you you… you know what goes wrong? My mursashu — they make mistakes. Even the mursasho and they're supposed to be my brightest." He emphasized the last word with bitter irony. "They aren't pieces on a board and they don't always do what they need to do and - hic - I can make…I can make the best, the greatest, the most wondrous plans. And yet… yet, it can all fail and we lose money … because of what I have to work with."

"That's a terrible thought." Molam waited patiently for the Mursa to make his next move. "I hope I never need to deal with that."

"Fuck dealing with people," the Mursa agreed. "But… if you ever find yourself in a position to lead, then make sure you have people you - hic - people you can trust. Because then at least their … " he frowned, his thick eyebrows gathering together as he tried to complete his thought, "...at least their mistakes are honest. And remember: strategy is only … is only ever as good as execution." Mursa Khan hesitated, then shifted a second piece.

Molam inclined his head. "I'll keep that in mind, thank you. But after I do what I need to do in Crimson City's Palace, I just plan on going home." He took both of his moves slowly so that the Mursa could see, then announced, "Checkmate."

***

The lowest sections of JiangXi seemed devoid of all warmth in the shadows of the low-hanging Sun. The four city guards that had just arrived at their post in front of the dockside jails shivered with resignation to the coming evening's watch, knowing they wouldn't be relieved until midnight. They looked forward to the change in rotation planned for tomorrow.

"The heck is that?" The one with the well-polished helmet pointed to a lump in another's scarf. "You get into another one of your bar fights, Yuhan?"

Yuhan looked sheepish, thumbing at his flat nose in the chill before he flipped open the scarf and showed the black stone nestled against his throat.

"You bought one?" The first one said incredulously, shaking his head.

"No, Lujie, I didn't buy it damnit. They're just collected in the barracks from the batch Tordo's group seized yesterday." Yuhan looked annoyed that he needed to defend himself. "Look, Agytha isn't giving us shit for the fucking cold and we have to stand out here for hours. I ain't gonna lie; I got several lined up in my pants because she ain't paying us enough to stand out here freezing our asses off." He shifted about, pulling at the leg of his pants. "Might just get my wife to sew 'em into the legs for me."

"They're untested, unverified alchemy inventions!" Lujie made a grab for the one at Yuhan's neck.

"Hey, get off! You wanna fucking freeze, be my guest, I ain't taking this off."

"Are you kidding me?" Lujie hissed. "You stole contraband from the captain's office and these things sometimes explode! You have one… on your neck! Gods be damned, think this through, you stupid rice bucket!"

"What're you two on about?" The other two guards walked over, the torch held high up in curiosity.

"Yuhan's stolen those… heat? Heating stones? From the captain's office, and now he's got a bunch in his clothes." Lujie rounded on the two that arrived, Weimeng and Kang. "Help me talk sense into this idiot before he loses his stupid limbs."

Weimeng and Kang exchanged a look. "I mean, given how cold it is we're going to lose limbs if Agytha doesn't start giving us wood to burn on guard duty regardless, ain't that right?" Kang spoke with his lazy drawl. "Weimeng here was telling me how last night was so cold his wife even tried to sleep with him."

"Oh fuck off," Weimeng exhaled into his fingers and rubbed them along his arms. "At least I'm married."

"Better your wife sleep with you than look for something else that's warm, hm?" Kang joked, then sidestepped a swipe from Weimeng. "I hear Yuhan's got something nice and warm in his pants?"

"Ha ha, aren't you fucking funny. A regular riot. You should apply to be a jester in Exabell, I hear their City Lord appreciates dumb jokes."

Lujie walked away, "I'm done with you idiots. We're here to do a job and get paid."

The three of them watched Lujie stalk away to the other side of the jailhouse. "He's too uptight," Kang shrugged. "Think it's the cold?"

"Might be. It's so fucking cold I can't believe IceMourne hasn't flown over us yet." Weimeng hopped about in place, stamping his feet into the ground. "Gotta move to stay warm, ey?"

"Not me, it's too fucking cold to move." Yuhan's teeth chattered. "You idiots will be jealous of these heating stones soon, just you watch. I don't know why Agytha's so fucking adamant about stopping the sale of these all of a sudden, they're a godsend. I can feel my arms and legs today."

Kang eyed Yuhan. "Got any extra? Spare me a few."

Yuhan frowned, then set his spear to the side and reached behind him.

"Not the ones near your ass, Yuhan. You can keep those."

"I wasn't going to give you those, those are staying right where they are," Yuhan grumbled as he pulled two stones out from his lower back and offered them to Kang and Weimeng. "Just two. You can steal from Tordo's office yourself if you want more."

The other guards reached for the warming stones and then Yuhan found his legs yanked out from beneath him. The ground rushed at him and Yuhan hit the ground with a thud, the black stone in his scarf punching at his throat like the edge of a hand. He doubled over, fighting the urge to choke as his throat closed, tears freezing on his cheeks as he tried to understand what had just happened.

Training took over and he clenched his jaw, forcing the strength into his body and limbs but unable to separate his legs. Blinking away the frozen tears, he looked down and saw a bolas wrapped tightly around his ankles and heard the shouting of Kang and Weimeng from somewhere around him. Yuhan rolled onto his back and saw a large Northern woman with short blonde hair and light blue eyes before she delivered a swift punch to his jaw, one that caused his head to ring.

"Hm. I suppose you're well trained in physical reinforcement." The Northern woman raised a second fist.

"Wait!" Yuhan choked out, his throat still in pain. "Wait!"

"No."

The blow struck the side of his head and Yuhan blacked out.

***

"I couldn't catch up to that last one," Lyka came back to their group, spear in hand. "It's too fucking cold."

Shurra braced herself to leap but Molam held out a hand.

"Let that one go," he commanded. "Three is fine. Tie them up, look for the keys, and free the other members." The members looked a bit too eager for blood, and Molam shouted at the others. "Remember. Bloodless! These city guards are your fellow residents that suffered under Agytha. Our only goal is Agytha."

"Are you sure about letting that one go?" Shurra's blue eyes had a hungry look in them.

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"Someone needs to deliver the message. The whole point of this is to get the city guards to overextend themselves. And if Primrose is doing her job… not all of them will be ready to do anything." Molam walked them back towards the others. "You'll get your fight later, Shurra. I need you to focus on helping me get Kalle set up for the distraction."

They watched as the members swiftly found the keys and unlocked the cells. "Warm clothes, some food, and some water," Molam shouted at Kalle, who nodded and beckoned at the others. "Make sure no one's dying. Prioritize them. We are losing no one, understand? Of the ones that are in fighting shape, just say that we're distracting the city guards and capturing Agytha. They're free to join in the distraction, or go back home to get a well deserved break. And give them a bunch of warming stones, will you?"

"Shouldn't we go to the Mansion?" Lyka prodded. "It's almost sunset."

"Not yet." Molam looked up at the rest of the city and the dark orange sky. "The city guards will be here soon. Lyka and Shurra, take your groups and split up to target the storage areas and the rest, then reconvene at the Shrine."

Lyka frowned. "In Prim's absence, she's made you interim leader. That means I'm your bodyguard. I should stick with you."

"I'm not in danger, and I will be traveling with Kalle and our main group. Let's have some trust in those that Shurra trained. And," he surreptitiously twisted his armguard, causing a ring of flame to extend around his body, "I'm able to look after myself."

The two women took a step back at the sudden appearance of the flames before it extinguished. Shurra nodded, and Lyka's eyes lingered before she shrugged. "Alright then, if that's what you want."

Molam held up a finger. "And remember, no—"

"No bloodshed, I know, I know." Lyka pointed to the leather covering over her speartip. "At least, not until the City Lord's Mansion."

Molam shook his head. "We're capturing Agytha, not killing her."

"Tell that to Shurra." Lyka snorted as she whistled for her group to follow her. "See you two at the Shrine."

Shurra folded her arms as they watched Lyka's group melt into a side alley. "I can control myself."

"I'm counting on it." Molam smiled at the Northerner.

***

The Dao surged up the city in a split wave, taking care to approach each location in silence, but leaving it in an uproar. More people were jailed than Molam had imagined, but he didn't care and let them out all the same. He welcomed the chance for the Dao to be seen as saviors even though he hoped that the city guards would be further distracted trying to track down and chase the fleeing inmates.

Molam marked another area on his map in purple ink, then nodded at Kalle, who shouted for the members to move out. They had raided a storage room and several members of the Dao were instructed to distribute wood to as many people as possible.

"You know, I see what you're doing now that you're marking it all with ink." Kalle observed from Molam's side, scratching at his beard. "The red going down the main street is the guards, isn't it?" The alchemist pointed to the map and the red line Molam had drawn, running down the middle of the city. "Then this is us." He pointed to the purple lines that branched out from the lower docks, going up the city through the sides. "That's why you lingered at the bottom, isn't it? To get the city guards running all the way down while we worked our way up, passing them along the way without a fight."

Molam shrugged. "It worked."

"I didn't even see it until now, though I admit strategy isn't my strong suit." The alchemist peered at Molam. "You must play dragon chess."

"I dabble just enough to win travel funds from rich people." Molam rolled up the scroll as they came up to the Shrine. Two Priestesses stood in front of the Shrine's doors, reticent lips pressed grimly together as they looked at their advancing group. Shurra and Lyka's respective groups had already made it to the Shrine.

"What took you so long?" Lyka spun her spear around her shoulder. "We all had the same amount of stops."

"You weren't assigned to jailhouses, so you didn't need to tend to the people." Kalle responded for the two of them. "But it doesn't matter. Are we splitting up now?"

"Yes, they're not going to wait and our side can't afford to let up." Molam motioned, and shouted at the others to gather their attention. "Three of us will meet up with Primrose and go after Agytha. The rest of you — continue doing what we've been doing and follow Kalle's lead. We're going to do what we came to do!"

The Dao resounded in encouragement, and Molam saw Head Priestess Cerelia beckon the two Priestesses inside the Shrine. Her amber eyes met his own briefly before the Shrine's doors closed, and Molam appreciated her decisiveness in protecting her people.

He made a show of handing the map in his hand to Kalle, then looked at the alchemist. "Stay alive. And —"

"Don't get anyone killed, I know." Kalle beckoned, and the Dao grouped around him. The alchemist clapped a hand against Molam's shoulder. "We're just the distraction, so make sure you focus on the more important task you have."

"All parts are equally important here, don't sell yourself short." Molam smiled at Kalle, then the alchemist led the rest of the Dao and melted away into the alleys again.

Molam turned his gaze back to Shurra and Lyka, who stood expectantly.

"To the Mansion then."

They nodded and turned to look up towards the height of the Jadeite Cliffs. Molam started as he saw a boy stare at him from one of the windows in a nearby building. He recognized the boy as the one that had attacked him on his first day in JiangXi.

Oho, your accomplished assailant and attempted thief.

They exchanged gazes, and for a brief moment Molam wanted to call out to the boy. "I think his name is Bryce."

"Are you coming, Molam?"

Molam turned his attention back to Lyka and Shurra, who seemed impatient to head to the Mansion. He glanced back at the window, but the dying light of the Sun cast a glare over the glass and he could no longer see through it.

He looked away. "Yes. Let's go, but keep in mind physical reinforcement isn't my strongest suit."

Lyka and Shurra turned and began running up the city again with Molam staying behind them.

***

At only two stories high, the City Lord's Mansion seemed relatively humble compared to the Mansions of other City Lords. Molam guessed that its location at the highest point on the cliffs of JiangXi hindered any realistic plans for a larger construction, given that the stone would need to be brought up the cliffs. The designer had positioned polished windows here and there around the walls in fairly symmetrical patterns, and the window panes glimmered in dusk's waning light as the Sun sank over the horizon. The final glow of the day's light cast a deep, sunken red over the Mansion's walls.

"It's unlike Primrose to be late," Shurra observed. "Do we wait?"

"I always find that a pertinent question whenever things don't go according to schedule." Molam glanced at the horizon as the Sun gave way to a deep blue evening.

"That didn't answer her question. Why are we waiting for Prim?" Lyka seemed impatient. "Only Shurra needs to go in; they're the ones dueling. Prim can arrive later."

"When the skyline is no longer red." There couldn't be too much waiting. He had skipped ahead by a day to throw the city off their plans, but any delay in the tempo of his movements would give time for the city guards time to reorganize and intervene.

Molam sat on a protruding rock, the jagged edges digging into his skin even through his layered clothes. The momentary pause in events gave him a brief lull of clarity; but with the opportunity to think came the inevitable second guessing as he ruminated on how this could go wrong.

Had he moved too fast? No — his side kept the initiative. The citizens were holed up in preparation for Winter's Sorrow and had no inclination to help the City Lord, so that was within his expectations. The goal hadn't changed: secure the City Lord's Mansion, capture Agytha.

He hadn't forgotten about the jade talisman, yet had made little to no progress in conclusively determining who could be the traitor. The only truth he had confirmed was that a traitor did exist; there was little explanation for the city's changes in response to the original plan. And it was someone that had sat in on when he explained the plan; no jade talisman would be needed otherwise.

Molam took the chance to observe his two companions as they waited with him.

Lyka paced from side to side in her thick boots, a fur-lined hood pulled snugly over her head. She wore relatively thin gloves, pants, and a jerkin despite the cold weather, covered with just a light cloak. Perhaps it was another one of Kalle's inventions designed to keep one warm. Lyka herself moved about and muttered under her breath while twirling her spear expertly around her wrists, her exhaled breath misting up in the air in front of her. She had already removed the leather covering the speartip, and its blade gleamed dully in the darkness.

Shurra wore even less than Lyka did but showed no sign of discomfort, leaning against the outer wall of the City Lord's Mansion with her arms crossed such that her right hand was in immediate reach of her short sword. Unlike Lyka and Molam, Shurra did not pull the hood of her cloak over her head and her blonde hair looked a deep pink in the Sun's ebbing red light. While she was unmoving, her blue eyes darted about the open area in a relentless scan for enemies. But every few seconds, she would fixate her gaze upon the horizon to confirm the color of the sky before resuming her vigilant watch.

Lyka and Shurra were the main suspects, but whether they knew they were under suspicion or not, their present actions were completely in line with their position. But that was the problem: he was walking into the City Lord's Mansion with a potential traitor. While the City Lord's Mansion was relatively unguarded, even if it were just the City Lord Agytha alone, it would be a horrendous situation if a perceived three on one became even. Worsening the situation was the fact that the innocent was in the dark about the whole situation given that he and Primrose had no idea how to root out the traitor without alerting them.

Or both of them, he mused, the thought flitting into his head. The idea took root before Molam could control it and he found himself swept away in a deluge of thoughts as the scent of charred flesh and dancing shadows overwhelmed his senses. What if both of them were involved? Information was truly lacking. There could have been multiple jade talismans in the room. Who could he truly trust other than himself?

He glanced at the two women while his heart pounded in his throat. Darkness fell and the burgeoning deep blue reminded him of how that night when the two girls next door came to find him. They had played with him just the day before and so he had followed, thinking it was a new sort of game. It had been right after dusk then too, and the villagers had been gathered. The wood had been piled high in the village center and it had been a game. It was going to be a game, the elder assured him.

"Something we must do to secure a better future." The elder's words echoed in his head.

Trust had resulted in rope bound around his ankles and wrists as he burned. The flames, the flames that burned so brightly into his eyes that all he saw was darkness. It was those very flames that now ate away at his darkness whenever he closed his eyes, until all faded to —

"Molam."

He blinked at the musical call, then refocused his eyes as his senses snapped back in, internally berating himself for his momentary lapse. "I hope our planned liberation of this city didn't distract you too much from your evening stroll."

"Perhaps you could thank my evening stroll for enabling your easy sauntering into the City Lord's Mansion." Primrose straightened up, tucking a stray strand of orange hair into the hood of Molam's cloak, which she still wore. "Imagine dozing off in front of the City Lord's Mansion with guards potentially flitting about."

"A demonstration of my trust in you and your work," Molam pushed himself off the rock's icy face and stretched to limber himself. Primrose's arrival soothed some of his worries. He could trust the Oracle, and the Oracle had trusted Primrose. If anything, she may be the only person he could trust in the entire group. "Did you see anything worth noting as you arrived?"

He gave her a look as he straightened up, his eyes flitting to Shurra and Lyka once he had her gaze.

Primrose shook her head. "Only the success of our members following your plan."

"Then there is only one last task to gain control of the city." Molam beckoned to Shurra and Lyka. "I assume the three of you understand the basics of dragon chess. Shurra will be Vanguard. Lyka follows up as the Spear."

Shurra nodded, uncrossing her arms and drawing her sword as she stood in front of the gate. Lyka followed the Northerner, her spear balanced in the crook of her elbow.

Positions. Now that brings back memories.

"How quaint; assigning positions to make us feel like the First Hero and his Companions? Or is it because you're used to playing dragon chess?" Primrose stamped her boots on the ground in an attempt to warm herself up. "Do I have a role too?"

"You'll be a Lord, right after Lyka."

"Lord," Primrose huffed into her cupped hands, her cheeks rosy from the cold. "And you?"

Molam unslung the bow from his back, twanging the string with a finger to ensure that the bow was still supple in the cold. While it had been kept close to his body to share in the warmth, he had been unsure of how well it would fare.

"Archer." He checked his quiver of arrows, and then laid a hand on the hilt of the short sword on his waist. "Though, I'll adjust accordingly."

Primrose looked him up and down. "The only non-Titled piece? Aren't you underselling yourself?"

Molam checked his arrows, shrugging at Primrose. "A player is only allowed three Titled Pieces, and this formation needs an Archer." He didn't say anything about how their formation would keep Primrose between himself and the other two women, giving him time to react to their movements.

"I wouldn't dare suggest that we're wasting time while you two stand here strategizing," Lyka was hopping about from one leg to the next. "But if we aren't moving anytime soon I may as well put on my cloak again before my limbs freeze up during the fight."

"One must hunt before the snow falls," Shurra added.

It was an old Northern Tribe proverb, but Molam found it very apt for the occasion given the time.

"Molam." Primrose pointed urgently. They all looked up at the City Lord's Mansion, where a brilliant fire had begun to light up the evening sky.

"A signal fire?" Molam's eyes narrowed, his thoughts racing. At that height, it could be seen for leagues around them. There could only be one person that City Lord Agytha was looking for now. A sense of foreboding flitted in the back of his mind, but he chased the sensation away; they'd come too far to stop now. He pulled an arrow out and kept it at ready, falling in line behind Primrose.

"Our time is short." The irony of the situation fell upon him again as he glanced at his companions, the very people that he trusted with his life despite one of them possibly holding a jade talisman. "Let us secure a better future."

The moment lingered as the others nodded silently, turning to face the large, ornate doors of the Mansion. Shurra tried the handles, then shook her head.

"Do we go in quietly?" Primrose asked.

Molam shook his head. "The time for quiet is over. Break it open, Shurra."