David

At the summit of Sword Peak, the new disciples of the Ascending Sky passed under an arch of carved pine. When they had moved under the arch, those new disciples had disappeared from sight - leading David to hope that he might see something fantastical and interesting, but he was disappointed. Alice and his other companions had only disappeared because the arch had been atop the mountain, and their descent onto the other side had been obscured by the mountain itself.

The Skybound Path had led through the gate and pointed down the slope into a small, stone courtyard with a raised wooden platform, where a row of cultivators sat in simple wooden chairs before the crowd of disciples.

A more ornate chair, carved from mahogany and embossed with dragons - a throne, at the center of the platform, was empty. In fact, there were many empty chairs on stage. It seemed as though the seating was prearranged, because some of the cultivators spoke to one another with two or three empty chairs between them - but none of them broke this decorum and sat closer to one another.

David counted seven seated cultivators, two of which he recognized to be Peak Masters Feng and Ling. They sat on the right side of the throne. To the left of the throne, there were five others. Four of them looked young - younger than David, and another took the guise of an old woman. David wasn't fooled - each of them sat with the same stillness which betrayed their age. They all wore those pure white robes to signify mourning.

The old woman turned to face him, and her milky, pupiless eyes pinned him in place. The woman frowned and turned back to the other cultivators.

Fairy Guan slipped past him to join the cultivators on the platform, leaving behind the sweet scent of plum flowers and a single word at the edge of his hearing. "Behave." As she took her seat beside her fellow Peak Masters, she gave him a small smile.

Where had the sword he’d returned to her gone?

The new disciples whispered to one another, in wait. By their feet were lanterns that hadn't been written on, in red and white. David sidled up next to Alice and, in a change of pace, put his hand onto hers. She leaned into him, resting the top of her head under his chin.

"They like you more than me," Alice whined.

David shrugged, smiling. "I'm a more likeable person."

"Shut up."

As Fairy Guan settled in, the chatter stopped.

"On behalf of the Sect Master, who is currently in closed doors cultivation, and the Star Council, who sits with us today, I welcome our new disciples to the Ascending Sky," said Peak Master Ling. His voice was deep, but not loud. "This is a special year. We have never seen the entry of so many disciples."

He paused to cast his eye over David and Alice, over Zhu Feiyan and Leng Qitai, over Tai Kanhu and the pair of twins that David had forgotten the names of.

"When I entered the Ascending Sky, there were seven new disciples in a century's time. I do not believe our standards have grown more lax - the contrary, in fact. We have been more strict with admissions than ever before. This seat can only take such a trend as proof of a changing world."

Master Ling took a deep breath, which showed the lines on his forehead. "The Skybound Scripture teaches that change is an inevitability - something that mustn't be feared, but I am an old man. Across the world, the lights have been going out one after another in the past century. But tonight is not a time for those words. The Autumn Festival has always been a celebration of what has happened and what is to come. So we shall light our lanterns."

He drew his arms back and David heard the sound of the Song, roaring and powerful and bright. Master Ling exhaled and there was the sound of rushing as a powerful wind exited his body. There was the sound of cracks, as trees that had grown too old broke away from Sword Peak.

"The cloud cover," Alice whispered into David's ear, excited. David looked up - that must have been the point, the clouds surrounding them were forced away from Sword Peak, and Tianbei Valley on a whole, revealing the thousands of lanterns floating towards the heavens.

Beside him, Master Feng made a gesture, and another Song sounded - warbling and high pitched. The lanterns by their feet were all lit in an instant.

David bent and pulled his lantern gently off the ground - it stayed afloat and began to drift upwards.

At the stage, the peak masters stood together around a final lantern, which hadn't been lit. Fairy Guan held a piece of dark rock - flint, and Master Ling struck it with a small, iron knife as Master Feng pointed a small wooden torch at them. It took several tries, but the torch caught the spark in the end and the wind on the mountainside caressed the flame into existence. Feng stuck the torch into the lantern, lighting it, and Fairy Guan lifted the lantern into the air and let go.

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Master Ling threw his arms over the shoulders of his fellow peak masters as they watched the last lantern rise into the clear night sky, under a blanket of stars.

The clouds, which had been forced away by the surge of qi from the peak masters, slowly returned to encircle the mountain beneath them, shrouding the wider world from view. Without another look, Fairy Guan stepped into the air, off the side of the mountain and fell through the mist. The other two peak masters followed her and disappeared off the edge of the mountain as well.

The elders who had been identified as the Star Council left in less dramatic ways, one by one - choosing to vanish soundlessly or walk down the mountain with their feet firmly planted on the ground.

When all but one of the elders had gone, David focused his attention on the man who was still seated. He was nondescript and handsome, as most cultivators were. There seemed to be little remarkable about him, other than a bit of stubble that had built up on his chin carelessly and a little black stone which he rolled around in his left palm. It was a weiqi piece - used to play the game of Go.

The new disciples looked at him expectantly.

He said nothing, then sighed. “Senior Brother Ling has high hopes for this crop, but all I see is more of the same.”

David frowned.

“Would it kill you to be a little more assertive? You’re cultivators, outer disciples of the Ascending Sky,” the man muttered.

Alice spoke up. “We weren’t sure what was meant to happen,” she said, sounding more than a little defensive.

The man scoffed. “Speaking up after I’ve already been critical of you is no longer proof of assertiveness, but disrespect.” The man slipped the stone into a pocket. “But at least you have the willpower to meet my eyes. Tell me, girl, what do you think a sect is?”

Alice shrugged. “A place to cultivate, with your peers.”

“Do you consider everyone here your peers?” The man didn’t wait for a response. “I didn’t think so. That feeling will linger. Do you believe me to be the peer to the other members of our esteemed council? Do you believe them to be the peers of our august peak masters? Do you believe the peak masters to be the peers of our sect master?”

There was no trace of bitterness in his voice, but that was the flavor that David felt from the man’s words anyway.

“You’re here because, like it or not, you can consider your sect to be your family. And it will come with all the baggage of family - you will come together to solve woes greater than yourselves. You will hurt one another, you will despise one another, you will love one another.”

“Who are you, then, Uncle?” said Kanhu.

“I am Elder Pang, resolved. That is not my real name. When I joined the sect, I had no name, and the dearly departed, for whom we wear white robes to mourn - she commented that I was fat. The name stuck.” Elder Pang gave a sardonic grin.

David recalled lightning in the sky, and a feeling as if he’d known the woman too.

“The elder who died,” David started, feeling a strain of mortality. “Who was she to you?”

Elder Pang ignored him entirely. It was so complete, David was almost unsure if he’d actually spoken, if not for the slight tightening of Alice’s grip on his hand.

“I am the youngest member of the Star Council, in charge of the outer disciples of the sect,” Pang continued. “I am also in charge of figuring out housing for all of you. We are presented with a problem - there are seven of you, and each dormitory is meant for four disciples.”

“I’m with them!” Feiyan instantly squeaked, pointing at David and Alice. She gave a side eye to the twins, who were glaring at her.

“I hate that,” said Alice, quietly, but she didn’t protest to Elder Pang.

“And me as well,” said Kanhu. “I’m with those three.”

Leng Qitai gave a horrified, betrayed look at the four of them. “But-”

“Well that was easily settled,” said Elder Pang, who observed the proceedings without a care. “Come with me.”

Elder Pang led them in a procession past the pine gate and back down the mountainside. “Now, on which peak would you want to live? I personally recommend Sword Peak. The qi on Sword Peak is beneficial to cultivation in many ways, and the houses are built so each disciple occupies their own floor.”

“We’ll live on Sword Peak,” said the twins. David hadn’t heard them speak for a while, but it was just as disorienting as the first time around.

“Looks like you’re living on Sword Peak,” said Kanhu, slapping Qitai on the back with a wide smile. The other boy said nothing.

“We would like to live on Earth Peak,” said Alice, who’d remembered that disciple Shi had warned them of this exact scenario when she was walking them towards the temporary housing. Shi had said that they tried to convince new disciples to take rooms on Sword Peak for whatever reason and that it wasn’t ideal, but she hadn’t mentioned why.

“A building on Sword Peak and a building on Earth Peak, then,” said Elder Pang, scowling slightly. “Are you sure? It’s quite crowded on Earth Peak.”

Alice nodded. “I like being around other people,” she said.

“Well that’s settled as well, then,” said Elder Pang.

As the group walked past rows and rows of thin, pine buildings, he stopped in front of one. “This one is currently uninhabited.” He turned to Qitai, who had drawn away from the group to stand by the twins. “Place your palms on the door.”

When the three had done so, there was something that sounded like birdsong to David.

“Only the elders of the sect will have access to your rooms, and we don’t make it a habit to check if you’re still alive, so don’t do anything too dangerous without supervision,” said Pang. “Your introductory lesson with Senior Sister will be held from the Sword Platform in two days at dawn. Do not be late. Or be late. It’s your loss. Good luck.”

The door swung open.

“See you in two days, friend!” Kanhu said cheerfully to Qitai.

Qitai didn’t reply. He looked miserable. The door swung shut behind him and the twins.

David looked up at the stars as a sect elder led a prince, a princess and two musicians who belonged to another world towards a dorm room on a mountainside. He didn’t quite feel like he belonged in the world just yet, but this hardly seemed like the worst outcome. At least Alice was here, and he liked Alice. He could have been alone.