"Now, Henry, a word of advice when these three old farts come in here. Say nothing, and I mean nothing; keep your mouth shut. Let's practice now if you understand me."

Henry nodded vigorously.

"Girls, you will assist Hen Ri if you feel intrusive pressure."

"Yes, Madam," the maids spoke in unison.

As one, the girls all got up and stood behind Henry. Each laid a hand on him. He smiled at the pretty girls, and they smiled back; this time, it felt more genuine. God, he needed to get laid, Henry thought.

These people he would be meeting moved in a completely different power spectrum than he was used to. Henry would keep his mouth shut and observe how the real powers in this world moved.

Sebastian opened the door, looking more disheveled than before. The butler tried to project an air of calm, but Henry could see his hands shaking. These three Beast Lords must be terrifying.

"May I present to you Lord Rakasha, warden of the West, Father of Beast, Master of Earth."

In strode a man that radiated bestial fury. Where Gram Gram had understated power, this man's power seemed to scream from him.

He stood easily seven feet tall, with broad shoulders and a barrel chest. Long white hair mixed with his mustache and beard, giving him the appearance of having a mane. Blood-red eyes took in all the people in the room. Predators' eyes looking for weaknesses, looking for prey. He wore a mish-mash of furs and had what looked like a whole white tiger draped across his shoulders. Two silver jewel-encrusted Scrimitars hung at his side, glistening in the light.

With a deep, respectful bow, he spoke with a smooth baritone voice.

"Lady Tiamat, you are still as radiant as the stars in the night sky. I was in the area and thought I'd stop by and offer my greetings."

He moved with blinding speed, took Gram Gram's proffered hand, and kissed it. Henry didn't even have time to blink.

"Lord Rakasha, as always, you are an unabashed flatterer. I am just sitting down to dinner; won't you join us?"

The table lengthened again, and a chair appeared for Rakasha. Henry noticed he sat squarely beside Gram Gram while the fur guy sat across from them.

"As your guest, please allow me to offer this bottle of wine that I procured in my travels," Rakasha said as he pulled an unmarked glass bottle filled with thick, viscous purple liquid.

"I traded for this from some dwarves of Vanahim; they swore to its potency and wanted a king's ransom for it until I negotiated, of course."

He uncorked the bottle and proceeded to pour the fluid into three glasses.

It smelled like paint stripper mixed with grapes. It burned Henry's nose hair. There was no way in hell he was going to drink that stuff. Gram Gram saw him wince and put her hand over his glass.

"My apologies to you, Lord Rakasha. My grandson here does not hold his liquor well.

"Bah, the boy looks sturdy enough."

"I must insist," Gram Gram said, narrowing her eyes.

Rakshasa observed Henry momentarily, acting as if he just noticed someone sitting there.

"Fine, more for us," he said as he raised his glass.

"To your health, Lady Tiamat."

"To your health, Lord Rakasha"

The two downed the drinks in one gulp. Gram Gram wiped her mouth daintily with a napkin. Rakasha let out a huge burp.

"Good stuff; short buggers can brew some good hooch."

Sebastian slinked back into the room again, looking extremely pale now. Henry figured the other two Beast Lords did not like to be kept waiting.

"Excuse me, Madam, your last two guests insist, very fervently, that they be sent in right away."

"Go ahead, Sebastian, before you have a stroke."

Wiping the sweat off his forehead, he opened the door, letting two people walk in.

"Announcing his High Holiness Ao, warden of the North, Grand Pontiff of the Purifying Eclisharcy, Master of Water."

Without pause, Sebastian continued in the same breath.

"Announcing Lady Bennu, warden of the South, Mistress of the Jasmine Pavilions, Master of Wind."

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Sebastian keeled over, exhausted, as he finished his announcements.

Gram Gram gave a casual wave; fiery hands materialized, cradling Sebastian gently and bore him off.

What a primadonna the butler was, Henry thought derisively.

His High Holiness Ao stepped up first and put his hands together reverently.

"It is a blessed day for the four of us to gather in one place; the celestials be praised."

His High Holiness Ao was a fat, jovial-looking man. He was completely hairless, except for a long curling mustache. He looked like an egg with eyes. He wore long, billowing white robes with a big iron shield on his back. Around his neck were prayer beads, except they weren't beads; they were eyes.

The guy gave Henry the heebee jeebees, as religious people always did, especially ones with eyeballs on their necklaces.

"His Holiness is right, Sister. It has been far too long since we've all had a little sit-down."

This one must be Bennu; Henry did a mental wolf whistle. She was a literal smokeshow. If sex were a person, she would be it. She had long red hair with multicolored feathers woven into it. Long lashes and rogue accented her sharp features. High cheekbones and plump crimson lips rounded out a face that was both flirty and, at the same time, dangerous. She wore a black evening dress with a plunging neckline, showing her ample endowments.

"It has been a while; come sit and have a drink of this wine that Rakasha has so generously gifted me," Gram Gram said as she made another two chairs appear.

Ao and Bennu slid into their seats as Gram Gram filled their glasses. The four of them clinked glasses and drank.

Gram Gram launched the open salvo.

"So as pleasant as this is, to drink with some old friends, what do I owe the pleasure of having so many auspicious presences at my table."

"We felt the return of your eldest son, sister. So we raced over here to see our precious nephew," Bennu said, running her sharp talon-like nail on the rim of the wine glass.

"It has been quite a while since I've seen little Shenlong. I wanted to trade some pointers with the little brat," said Rakasha, pouring himself another glass.

"Maybe take him to a gambling hall with me; that boy has always been my lucky charm."

Ao brought out a long pipe and packed it with some herbal mixture. Gram Gram gave him a light, and he took a long drag. It smelled horrible, but Henry got a little buzz from the secondhand high.

"You know me, Lady Tiamat, I'm just an insufferably snoopy old monk. I saw these two take off, so I just tagged along."

"Imagine our shock when, instead of Shenlong, we see this precocious little youngling. Is this your grandson, Sister? How have you kept such a cute boy hidden for so long?"

Bennu bore her whole gaze on Henry. The pressure was like nothing he had ever felt. He was a paper boat caught in the current of a mighty ocean. It felt like he was going to break when suddenly it stopped. Five separate ki signatures were in its place, protecting him from the onslaught. He felt a squeeze on his shoulder. Behind him, the five maids were all smiling warmly at him.

"Do you plan on entering him into our little wager, Lady Tiamat? My grand cubs are always looking for new playmates."

"Lady Tiamat, you know as well as I do that introducing a new scion into the tournament this late is very uncouth of you," Ao said as he let smoke billow out of his nostrils.

Gram Gram had remained quiet this whole time. She watched them, eyeing them like a butcher sizing up prime cuts. She looked at Henry, giving him a warm smile.

"I apologize, but you all must be mistaken; Henry is here visiting his Gram Gram, and that's all."

"Oh, come on, Sister. You intend on entering him. He is the spitting image of Shenlong," Bennu said, her face darkening slightly in anger.

"We are all bound by the oath, Lady Tiamat; no need to speak untruths here. We will not harm the child, so tell us why he is here."

"I must beg your forgiveness, Holiness, but again, I must reiterate Hen Ri is just here out of filial duty, nothing more, nothing less."

"Fine, you won't tell us why the brat is here; tell us why he has Little Shenlong's core and spiritual root," Rakasha said with a hint of anger now in his voice.

"That is between my son and my grandson."

Henry was sitting there, just watching this frail old lady stare down all these dickheads, like a gangster. They had planned this, all coming at once to press her. Gram Gram didn't flinch, though.

"It has been a very long day, so if you could excuse me, I would like to call it a night."

The three Beast Lords stared at Gram Gram, who smiled back at them.

Bennu got up first, walking over to Gram Gram to whisper something in her ear. She then winked at Henry before leaving without much fanfare.

Rakasha pulled out two wine bottles and placed them on the table.

"It's been an interesting evening, Lady Tiamat. You dragons are many things, but dull you are not."

Kissing Gram Gram's hand, the furry bastard sauntered out.

That just left the fat man.

"I sense a disturbing taint on the young man's soul; please do consider taking him to my temple for a check-up."

On that ominous note, the creepy monk bowed deeply and shuffled out of the room.

Gram Gram just sat there in silence for a minute.

"Thank you, girls, that will be enough."

The five maids all spat out blood from their mouths and collapsed onto the floor.

"What the fuck," Henry exclaimed as he rushed to check on them.

"Don't worry, young master, just a little ki exertion, nothing a little nap won't fix," Hong said, giving Henry a bloody smile.

"You girls did wonderfully," Gram Gram said as she pulled a tiny bottle out of her robes and threw it to Lu.

"One drop each, Lu. Make sure the girls are ready to go in the morning. The young master has an accelerated training course to attend with you and your sisters."

Gram Gram flexed her ki, and Henry suddenly felt the bottom drop from his stomach. Instead of the dining hall, they were all back in his room.

"You are a little too old for Gram Gram to tuck you in, dear, so I'll just wish you a good night. I have some things to attend to."

"Wait, Gram Gram, there is only one bed. Where are the girls going to sleep?" Henry asked, looking at the maids on the ground.

"That's a silly question, dear; that bed is big enough for all of you."