Chasing the Phoenix (34 page)

“Do you honestly expect me to expound upon such a sensitive matter for a mere fifteen grams of silver?” the guide said.

“No, but I am prepared to go as high as ten.”

“Done!” The guide was silent for a moment, then said, “The Yellow Sea Alliance is officially a partnership of equals. But everybody knows that three of the four partners are client states subservient to the cruel and absolute rule of the City and State of North. North tells East Mountain, South River, and Commerce what it expects of its parners. If North is not satisfied, it punishes them. And North is very hard to satisfy.”

“How can such an unequal alliance hold together?”

“Fear,” said the guide. “North collects tribute from the other three nations and uses it to maintain an army greater than all of theirs combined. It is also better equipped and trained and has a chief executive officer, Noble Tiger, who has rarely lost a battle. But North never does its own dirty work if it can be avoided. So if South River displeases North, East Mountain is told to send in troops to dole out punishment. And if that punishment is insufficiently harsh, Commerce is ordered to send its troops to punish East Mountain. In this way, North keeps its own armies strong and its tributary nations divided.

“In a moment of panic, South surrendered to you invaders. That was a bad mistake, for now everyone knows that the combined armies of South River and East Mountain, along with those Commerce forces that were not billeted in South, will be sent to inflict suffering upon us for that deed.”

“You hardly had any choice—or so it was thought at the time,” Surplus said.

“North does not care. Their philosophy of rule is to be so disproportionately savage that all sensible people will fear to disobey them. That is why the citizens of South are in despair. We would rise up against you, except that it would do us no good. Even if we killed every soldier you have, North would still order the city sacked and plundered and its walls torn down. So why bother?”

“Surely such a strategy must in the long run—ah! Here we are.” They had arrived at the square at the foot of the mausoleum, whose buildings ran up the mountainside of Purple-Gold.

Aubrey Darger was waiting at the bottom of the steps leading to the first gate. When Surplus had paid off his guide and told her to wait, he said, “Are you ready for the confrontation?”

“As ready as I'll ever be.”

“Then let's not keep Shrewd Fox waiting.”

*   *   *

THE EMPEROR'S
mausoleum was like all such places: large, imposing, and austere, with a wearying number of steps to be climbed before anything could be reached. Darger and Surplus found Ceo Shrewd Fox alone in the tomb, hands clasped behind her back, contemplating Emperor Sun's coffin. It was of white marble with a carving of the emperor asleep upon its top, dressed in surprisingly plain clothing.

“I am thinking of having you clapped in chains.” Though Ceo Shrewd Fox did not turn, it was clear she was addressing them both.

“I have done nothing illegal, forbidden, or even immoral,” Darger said. “Believe me, I would have noticed.”

“Nor I.”

“You have been spreading rumors that the Puppet Army stratagem was yours.”

Surplus smoothly said, “To the contrary, Ceo Shrewd Fox. The rumors have been spreading themselves.”

The ceo turned, scowling. “I am going to regret asking you to explain yourself, aren't I?”

“Not at all. In the Land of the Green Mountains of the West, my birth nation, our national hero, the Great Steersman of the Boys of the Green Mountains, became such a famous man that his exploits did not suffice for his followers' admiration. So they made up more. It is true that he won bets by lifting a fifty-pound bag of salt in his teeth and then, with a flick of his head, throwing it over his shoulder. But the story that he was once captured by the Soldiers of the Red Coats and escaped by offering to buy them alcohol in a tavern, matching them drink for drink, and then walking away when the last soldier slid beneath the table is patently unlikely. Such tales are offerings that people lay at the feet of their heroes. One biographer said that the Great Steersman died twice—once when his body died and again, thirty years later, when the last tale of his heroism was invented.”

“You are claiming to be such a hero?”

“Madam, you saw the puppet play and heard how they cheered my small cloth avatar. I am the man-dog who announced himself a god in Brocade, brought the Perfect Strategist back from the dead, and raised the flag of China in Peace! How could I
not
be legend? And being a legend, I am of course subject to embellishment. Great deeds are invariably credited to those who are renowned for such, much as new jokes are invariably credited to whoever has the greatest reputation for wit. You have spent your life building a reputation as a brilliant strategist, but one not given to showy and bloodless ruses. Suddenly you perform a deed unlike any you have ever done before. It is as if you were an orator famed for her gravitas and one day you invented an uncharacteristically funny joke.”

“And you?” Shrewd Fox said to Darger. “Are you a legend as well?”

“One does what one can, madam,” Darger replied with a modest smile.

“So as a result, the credit for what
I
have done flows to
you
.”

“You are not known for violence-free victories—quite the opposite, in fact. Your ploy was out of character.”

“Yesss,” Shrewd Fox said. “It makes me wonder if somehow you put that ploy into my head.”

“Madam! How could we? You would not so much as let us into your presence.”

“At any rate,” Surplus said, “what's done is done. Water under the bridge. Gone with the snows of yesteryear. We must put the dead past behind us and move boldly forward into the future.”

“That may be the first sensible thing I've heard you say. We do indeed have the future to think about. The Hidden Emperor has been greatly heartened by our latest victory and has decided that North must be conquered before cold weather sets in.”

“Luckily he has you to make this happen,” Surplus said.

“If you try to flatter me one more time, I'll have you both killed and think of a reason for it afterward. I am convinced that what the emperor wants cannot be done.”

“That does rather put a damper on the enterprise,” Darger commiserated.

“Meanwhile, the armies of the three tributary nations of the Yellow Sea Alliance are gathering to march upon us. We may well have simply gone from one side of the city walls to the other, switching roles from that of the besieging army to that of the defending one.”

Both Surplus and Darger made sympathetic noises but volunteered no insights of their own.

Shrewd Fox turned away from them again and placed her hand on the cold marble forehead of Emperor Sun. After a bit, she said, “Though we honor him with the title, Sun Yat-sen was never a true emperor. The Kuomintang Dynasty was brief, never held all of China, and was beset by dissension, revolution, and ambitious warlords. Nevertheless, he fought for the common good to his dying day, even though it sometimes meant dealing with bandits and scoundrels of the worst sort. He set aside his personal distaste for them in order to do his duty.” Suddenly decisive, she turned away from the coffin and said, “It occurs to me that your cunning and treachery, though a constant danger to our cause, can be usefully employed.”

“That is exactly what I have been telling you all this time,” Darger said. “Only without the negative twist you give to our many very real virtues, I mean.”

“I shall inform the treasury that you are to be paid in accordance with your new status of ambassadors.”

“Ambassadors? Where to?”

“I will tell you when the time comes—soon, I suspect. Until then, you may withdraw.”

Descending the steps to their waiting rides after the interview, Surplus commented, “That went surprisingly well.”

“Too well. I wonder what the ceo is up to.”

*   *   *

TWO NIGHTS
later, Surplus found himself journeying deep into the heart of South.

It was long past curfew, so the city that Surplus and Fire Orchid made their way through was dark and lifeless. Terrible Nuisance preceded them, carrying a pole from which depended an alembic with a yellow flame burning at its tip to light the way. Fire Orchid wore a long black cloak with its hood up, not because she necessarily wanted to hide her distinctive hair but because it made her look dramatic.

“Explain to me more about this mysterious letter you received,” Surplus said.

“It was just an ordinary mysterious letter. But because it was accompanied by a valuable opal, I took it seriously. It said you were to come, alone, to an address in the bad section of town at midnight to learn something of value to you. That's all.”

“But since you're with me, I'm not alone.”

“Oh, wives don't count as other people. Everybody knows that.”

“What about Terrible Nuisance?”

“He is just being a servant. Anyway, it is time he started learning how to be brave and sneaky.”

They stepped into the light of a military checkpoint, and soldiers emerged from the darkness to challenge them. But when the torchlight revealed the faces of Fire Orchid and the famous Dog Warrior, the soldiers stepped back with murmured expressions of awe and respect.

“Whatever became of the opal?” Surplus asked when the silence of the city night had swallowed them up again.

“Oh, it is nice and safe, don't worry about that.” Fire Orchid stopped at an intersection, and Terrible Nuisance raised the alembic so she could read the street signs, then lowered it so she could consult a map. “This way.”

They went down a side street, counting doors. Then, putting aside her map, Fire Orchid pointed to a door.

Surplus gently pushed Terrible Nuisance to one side of the door and gestured Fire Orchid to the other.

He knocked.

On the far side of the door were quiet shuffling noises, which Surplus could hear though merely human ears could not have, as of two people getting into position, one to either side of the entryway.

That told Surplus all he needed to know.

“Come in,” a man's voice said. The door did not open.

Surplus raised Terrible Nuisance's pole high, so the light would shine down into the entrance when it was opened. “Is the door locked?” he asked in a casual voice.

“No. Come in.”

Quietly, Surplus adjusted the grip on his cane. He held it as he might have a baseball bat. “I received a letter,” he said. “Is this the right place?”

“Yes, it is. Come in.” Surplus could hear the tension in the man's voice. He nodded to Fire Orchid, who reached in from the side and lifted the door latch.

The instant the latch was free, Surplus kicked in the door, as hard as he could. It made a satisfying crunching noise as it hit the person behind it, and there was a gasp of pain. With all his might he swung his cane at the man who stood squinting to the left of the doorway, blinded by Terrible Nuisance's light.

The cane connected with the ambusher's skull with a loud
crack
.

The man's mouth fell open, and he collapsed. A dagger clattered to the ground.

Something lightly brushed the back of Surplus's head. He turned and saw that a woman had emerged from behind the door and tried to brain him with a club. She would have succeeded, too, had not Fire Orchid rushed forward to collide with her, forcing her back.

He was just in time to see Fire Orchid slit the woman's throat.

Fire Orchid crouched down to examine the bodies. “Mine is dead, but yours will live,” she said. Then, a minute later, “No more opals. Too bad. One knife, one club, and the man also had a pistol in his pocket. Nothing worth taking.”

Surplus looked to see how Terrible Nuisance was handling the sudden eruption of violence. His eyes were wide as saucers—but from awe rather than fear. Surplus supposed that was good, considering the boy's choice of families to be born into.

Fire Orchid stood and scratched Surplus under the chin fondly. “You saved my life. Oh, baby, you are going to get lots of hot sex tonight. Don't listen, Terrible Nuisance.”

“No, Auntie Fire Orchid.”

“I believe that technically it was you who saved my life.”

“That does not matter. Somebody is going do many wicked things to somebody else's body as soon as we get alone. Don't listen to that either, Terrible Nuisance.”

“No, ma'am,” Terrible Nuisance said. Then, “The lady is glowing.”

Both Surplus and Fire Orchid turned to look where he was pointing. “Move the alembic to the side,” Surplus said, “so that less of its light enters the room.”

The room grew dark. Gentle light shone from the foreheads of the man and his companion's corpse.

“Tattoos!” Fire Orchid said. “The kind that glow in the dark so they can't be seen during the day. They belong to a secret society.”

“What kind of secret society?” Surplus asked.

Fire Orchid shrugged. “No special kind. Just a regular secret society. Blood oaths, assassinations, creepy ceremonies, that sort of thing.”

“The tattoo is the symbol for North,” Terrible Nuisance said. “The direction, I mean.”

“Also the city,” Surplus said. “But I imagine we knew that already.”

*   *   *

LATER THAT
night, after keeping certain promises she had made, Fire Orchid said to Surplus, “I have been talking to Cao White Squall, and she tells me that the Hidden Emperor is anxious to march against North.”

“I heard something similar myself. Did she say when?”

“No. But I think soon. She said the Hidden Emperor doesn't want to wait another year before conquering all of China. Which worries her, because defeating North with our current army would take a miracle. And Shrewd Fox is a good ceo but no miracle worker.”