Chapter 52

The three children held another conference on their way back home after meeting with Lord Hara. They sat on the side of the road on rocks that Pao called up from the earth to serve as stools, and they contemplated the situation.

“So then, it’s official,” Won said. “Tan is an imperial prince, Safron is a princess, and their parents are the former emperor and empress in hiding.”

“We don’t know that for certain,” Pao said. “It could just be a coincidence.”

“There is no way that chance could line up a coincidence this big,” Won argued. “Don’t be stupid. It’s obvious when you actually look at it. The question is what do we do about it?”

“Who says we have to do anything?” Ko asked. She looked at the boys and said “I don’t think that the Shens would want us to treat them differently now that we know the truth. Do you?”

The boys frowned, but conceded the point. “So, what, we just pretend that we don’t know?” Won asked.

“We can’t change the fact that we know,” Ko said. “But yes, we act like nothing has changed. Because really, nothing has. The Shens have been who they are since before we knew about it. If they wanted us to treat them with more deference, they could have asked us to without revealing who they really were. They left the imperial court behind to escape that sort of treatment, I think. So yeah, we just keep being who we’ve always been around them. That’s what I say.”

The boys frowned as they considered her words.

“I’m not certain I can pretend,” Won admitted. “I’m going to just ask them. Tonight, when we get home.”

His sister sighed, but didn’t try to talk him out of it.

Pao frowned, but said “We should all do it together. It will be easiest if we just rip the bandage off and get it all over with at once.”

With their course of action decided, the children rushed home.

They found Tan and Safron playing with Renton at the top of the hill. With their friend and his little sister distracted, they found Tren in the fields, hoeing away. They decided they might as well get things out of the way, so they confronted him.

“Are you the former emperor?” Won asked bluntly.

Tren paused his work, turning to the children. He cocked his head to the side, and asked “What makes you ask that?”

“You have to be. There’s too many things that only make sense if it’s true,” Won insisted. “Don’t deny it.”

“I wasn’t denying it, I was asking what gave me away,” Tren said. “You’re the first people to have seen through the ruse in decades.”

“So you are ,” Won said, growing excited.

“Emphasis on former emperor. I left that life behind me, and I’d appreciate it if you respect that. And I’d ask you not to tell my children, if you don’t mind,” Tren said.

“You don’t want them to know who they really are?” Ko asked.

“I want them to know exactly who they are. That’s why I’m keeping the secret of who their grandfather was, and who their brother is, away from them. I want them to define themselves by themselves and not their heritage,” Tren explained. “I’ll tell them both when the time is right. I humbly request that you respect my wishes on the matter.”

“Does lady Wensho feel the same way?” Ko asked.

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“You can ask her yourself. But we are in agreement on most things of importance,” Tren said. He went back to his hoeing. “Please don’t treat us any differently than you have been before you figured it out. We rather enjoy the familiarity, to be honest.”

“We’ll try,” Pao said seriously. Then he glanced around and bowed humbly. “Thank you, your majesty, for your guidance through the years.”

The other children also bowed and repeated his words.

“Don’t make me chase you!” Tren scolded, and the children ran away at the faux anger in his voice.

On the hill, Renton was guiding the understanding of his niece and nephew. He was grinning, enjoying himself, as he laid out profound truths.

“You have probably noticed by now, Tan, that the elements are directly linked to each other,” he was saying. “Which element do you think that air is most closely linked to?”

Tan frowned at the question, giving it some thought. “I’m not exactly certain. Maybe fire? Since fire can’t exist without air. But air exists without fire, so… I don’t know.”

“Do you know what happens to air when you remove the fire Qi from within it?” Renton asked.

“It gets cold.”

“Cold and still. In the dark places of the world, where the sun does not shine, there is air that is cold and dead and poisonous to breath. It craves the fire that is denied it, to the point where if you introduce but a spark it will mix with the air and cause an explosion the likes of which will shake the earth,” Renton explained. “And at the same time, the fire Qi in many objects like wood and oil may lie dormant and grow cold if you do not ignite them in the presence of air. But it is there all the same. You’re right that fire does not exist without the presence of air, but none of the elements exist without the others.”

“So you think that air and fire are linked?” he asked.

“They’re all linked, Tan,” Renton insisted. “But if they were to be married, then I would say that Air and Fire are wed, and that Earth and Water are likewise husband and wife. They are, together, a unified whole, but they are also individuals, and they are also two and two. Does that make sense?”

Tan frowned, his lip pouting slightly as he considered the matter. “No, not really,” he admitted eventually. “But I’ll think about it until it does.”

“Good lad,” Renton said, grinning. “Now, the reason I’m explaining this to you is because your sister is also a fire cultivator, just like me. As she grows, I expect you to do your duties as a big brother and fan her flames. Working together, you can achieve heights which you can barely imagine right now. Why, some day, you might even challenge the emperor himself to a sparing match! Wouldn’t that be incredible.”

“Yeah, like the emperor would waste time with the Shen family,” Tan said, chuckling. “Stop being stupid, Uncle Renton.”

“Right. Sorry,” Renton said, grinning. “You’re right. There’s no way anyone would believe that the emperor of the Blue Dragon Empire would spend his time visiting family in such an obscure and isolated location as this. Now come on, let’s see what my brother has been teaching you. Come at me like I’m truly your enemy and the only way you can succeed in your objectives is to end my life.”

Tan nodded, took his stance, and blasted his uncle with an intense ray of intent.

“Oh! Very good, very good,” Renton praised. “But how about this ?”

Tan staggered as the overwhelming intent hit him. He kept his feet, however, and met the intent with his own, pushing it back even as it continued to blast him. He took one heavy step forward, then another, as the weight of Renton’s soul continued to press down on him.

Then, suddenly, it was gone.

“Very, very good Tan,” Renton praised. “I can tell how hard you’ve been working at that. Rest some while I fight your sister, then we’ll train your intent some more.”

“We’re not going to actually fight?” Tan asked.

“We can later. But I’m only here for a week, and your parents have told me how hard it is for you to properly form their intent against them. It will be best if you practice against someone you barely know, I think. So we’ll focus on that for a while, okay?”

“Yeah, alright,” Tan agreed. He plopped down right where he was and began meditating, pulling in the lessons that he had just learned.

He watched with half an eye as his little sister attacked her uncle with everything she could bring to bear. Being only in the first stage of the initiate’s realm, that wasn’t very much. But she still shot sparks at him and came at him with her fists, which the man dodged and avoided with a wry grin on his face.

Renton was certainly enjoying this little family visit.

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