Luxury of Vengeance (2 page)

personally cut down any man stupid enough to do so." Her threat was not an idle one. Mai had been

well trained by her father in the art of sword play, and Chien knew she practiced almost daily. She was

certainly strong enough to hold the Throne of Swords, but there would always be that piece she lacked.

And despite what she preferred to believe, it had nothing at all to do with her gender. Women

had held the throne in the past after all. It was her character that was flawed.

"Of course, my Empress. But who do you intend to lead such a force. Surely not your new

general."

"You do not like General Bao?" Mai was amused.

"He is young. He does not have the experience of some of your other generals. And with the

people beginning to question…" The minister paused as if not sure whether he ought to continue, "My men have heard talk that they say you are not the legitimate holder of the throne. They claim that

nephew of yours in the rightful heir." Chien had heard that talk, too. He had helped to spread some of those rumors.

"They would be wrong. And any who spread such a rumor shall be killed." Mai's amusement had

faded quickly to be replaced by cold steel.

"They would be comforted if they could see that you possessed the Sword of the Heavens."

Centuries ago when the Golden Dragon had returned to the heavens he had left two relics behind. The

first was the Throne of Swords, given to his children to prove their right to rule over the land. The

second had been the Sword of the Heavens to prove his blessings upon whoever held the sword.

That was why Mai had sent Bao to the Xing province. She believed that the former Empress had

hidden the sword with her family. In the thirteen years of her rule, Mai had never understood. She

thought of the sword as simply a ceremonial thing, but she was quickly learning that it was so much

more. If she were meant to hold it, the sword would reveal itself to her. Otherwise, like now, it would

continue to allow itself to be hidden until its true carrier was revealed.

"Those commoners," Mai spat the word, "They do not have the right to set their eyes upon it!

How dare they question my right to this throne? Let the man who believes himself more worthy attempt

to unseat me. No, I will not display my brother's sword like some gaudy treasure."

"Yes but—"

"You wonder why General Bao was promoted so quickly. He learned at a young age not to

question his superiors. Perhaps you should take from his example." Even hearing her speak his name

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made Chien's stomach roil in rage. She did not have the right to speak it. He stopped himself before the

rage could go too far. This was not the best way to deal with his idiotic infatuation with the one man

who could easily bring him to ruin.

"Of course, Empress." The minister sounded appropriately cowed. "There is the matter of the soldiers as well."

"The soldiers?"

The minister sighed, "Your son has taken to challenging them of late."

"That is the sort of things men do, Minister."

"He has killed quite a few of them as well." Tuan's temper would destroy the Empire's army long before any enemy.

"Then they obviously lacked the skill to perform their duties. Would you have me reprimand my

son for weeding out the weak?"

"Of course not." Chien wondered how Mai could not hear the frustration in her minister's voice.

"There is also the matter of your heir."

"I have tried to get them to call off that stupid duel." Worry seeped into her voice. Mai may

have been a number of things, but nothing mattered more than her sons. She could not protect them

from their own stupidity, however. All it had taken to set them against one another had been a few

innocent questions and sly insinuations. Child's play.

"It may not be a bad thing, Empress." The minister's tone was tentative. "I know you were

reluctant to set them against one another, but it would do some good to see that the future of the

throne has been secured."

"Not at the expense of my children's lives!"

"Of course, Empress. But there is no stopping it now. The princes are quite stubborn." Not to

mention both of them were convinced that they would defeat the other with ease. Minh was so taken

with his brilliance and Tuan with his strength that they were blind to any reasoning their mother

attempted.

"They are." Her tone was fond. "They're very much like their father that way. But you are right, I cannot stop them, only pray that they both return to me when it is done." That prayer would not be

answered, not if Chien's plan went as intended. Mai's sons were as bad as she herself was, vicious men

who believed that anything they wanted should be theirs. Many a maid had gone missing while in

employ at the palace. Chien would feel no guilt at their end.

He stood carefully, no longer interested in the conversation. He had the information he wanted.

His aunt could not keep control and soon, when she could not produce the Sword of Heaven, the people

would lose further faith in her. If he was willing to wait, her reign would fall apart on its own. These

small revolutions were proof enough of that.

Chien could not wait that long however. Anticipation made his hands shake. So close. He could

not wait any longer. There would be no more of pretending the fool. No more watching his aunt destroy

his empire, kill his people. There would at last be an end to this story and his father's throne would

finally be his.

Chien had to crawl free carefully, thankful that he had not dared to wear one of his more

elaborate robes, but a training robe instead. He might have cried to see rips in his favorite silk. Once he had managed to pull himself free, he paused for a moment to ensure that no one had heard him. It

would not do to find himself caught running from the Empress's room like a guilty servant.

The dust shook free from his blonde hair after a quick run through with his fingers and he hoped

he looked inconspicuous enough to make it back to his rooms without pulling anyone's attention. With

one last glance around, Chien slipped from the Empress's war room, down the hallway and down the

steps to the light wind and steady sun of the outside. Spring was fading quickly into summer, the flowers of the Phoenix Tail tree just beginning to bloom. Chien paused for a moment to admire them. There was

Isabella Carter | 6

one tree for each of the emperors who had reigned over the empire. Each of these trees was a lasting

legacy of the wisdom of the men who had ruled.

If Chien needed anything right now, it was wisdom. He wandered closer, his hand brushing

against the rough bark of the trunk. None of the trees were marked, but Chien found that if he listened

closely enough, he could feel them. He stopped first in front of his grandfather's tree. The trunk was

sturdy, the branches short. His grandfather's time had been one of stability and little growth. He had

died when Chien had been very young, but Chien could remember him still as a very steady and calm

man. He had died peacefully in his sleep.

In comparison, his father's tree was struggling to survive. He had not understood it when he had

been younger, but his father had always been sickly. For the longest time, they had believed that his

older sister would take her father's place. But then their father had declared his youngest son his heir

instead. Chien had always wondered if his grandfather had sensed something inside of her. The space

beside his father's tree was empty. Mai had not yet proven herself. She could not plant her own tree

yet.

The heavy hand that settled upon his shoulder startled him and he turned, prepared for any

manner of things, his hand going automatically to the place his sword should have been. Minh stood

behind him, a curious look on his face, "Cousin? How lucky!" His nose curled, "But why are you so filthy?

And why are you in this," he paused, looking around the grove of trees before shivering slightly, "ghastly place."

Ghastly. His cousin had no appreciation for the sacred grove. The Empire would be lost if one of

them ascended to the throne. "I got lost." And there had been the voice. Whatever presence had been here a short time ago had vanished into the wind once more. The false Empress? Someone else who

wished to rise against her?

Minh frowned at his statement. "Well, it's no matter. I need a moment to speak with you.

Outside of here." There seemed to be something about the grove that truly disturbed him. He stepped

outside of the edge of the grove and gestured Chien closer.

With a sigh, Chien stepped outside of the grove as well before answering, "If you might give me

a moment to make myself more appropriate then." They both looked down at Chien's drab attire. Dust

clung to the sleeves and Chien prayed Minh would not ask.

"No, no time. Time is wasting cousin." He pulled on Chien's arm until Chien relented with a

sweet smile. In his mind though he could not figure what Minh might need him for. For the most part,

his cousins preferred to ignore his existence until it was useful to them. Which meant Minh wanted

something.

"How might I help you cousin?" The faster he could get it out of Minh, the faster he could return to his rooms to continue his plotting in peace.

"In a moment. I wish to speak with you about something." The closer they grew to Minh's rooms

the more worried Chien grew. He could defend himself, Minh was hardly a martial genius after all, but

this would certainly accelerate his plans if Minh decided to try something and take him out of any

chance of succeeding the Empress. "Have you eaten your first meal?"

Not that Chien had a chance of succeeding the Empress without drastic measures. She had done

everything she could to destroy his chances to his throne, including spreading rumors that he was not

his father's legitimate child, but the child of a palace guard whom scarcely anyone could remember.

"I have not." Minh pulled him into his private rooms and gave the servants quick orders. When

one, a young woman, gave him a baffled look, he shouted his directions once more. She looked around,

frightened, until Chien subtly tilted his head toward the door and she ran gratefully toward it.

"I swear the servants grow stupider each day."

In truth, since the Empress had begun stretching her territory, the Empire contained a number

of provinces that did not speak the palace's tongue. "I suppose."

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"Sit. Sit." Chien sat at the table, making his movements clumsy and nervous while his mind tried to dissect all possible reasons Minh would need his assistance. "Sit Chien!" Minh ordered when Chien took too long getting settled.

"I'm sorry cousin."

"No, no, it's fine. I've likely made you nervous." He seemed proud of himself as he cleared his throat. "You see, I need your help."

"Why would you need my help, Cousin? You're quite smart." Minh prided his intellect above

everything. His mother had ensured that he was raised by only the best of tutors, sending any she found

subpar to death. When it became clear that he had surpassed the teachers, she had given him the task

of spreading education to all the provinces.

Minh had quickly found that he was far better suited for lording his knowledge over others than

organizing any others into a cohesive plan. Within a year, the plans for a system of education had

quickly fallen through in favor of Minh's forming a small class within the palace to teach only those who curried his favor first.

As always, Minh fell victim to a bit of flattery. "Why yes, of course. But even a smart man knows

when to accept help. And you will help me won't you?"

Chien nodded eagerly.

"Excellent! I'm sure you have heard of my duel with Tuan."

"I have." Chien was beginning to form a suspicion of what this was truly about. Could Mai's son really have so little honor left? "Tuan does not think you will come out the victor."

"Yes well, he is sorely mistaken. But this is where I need your help cousin. I have heard rumors

that Tuan is attempting to circumvent the honorable restrictions of our duel."

"That's terrible! We could go and speak to the Empress together!"

"Oh no, I cannot do that. I cannot take control of this empire with anything less than the

people's complete faith in my abilities. We must beat him at his own game."

Minh sounded so very proud of himself, and Chien wanted to sigh because he had already

figured the point of this exercise. "How might we do that cousin?"

Minh began to answer him, but the door slid open and their breakfast was served. The food was

warm and fragrant, and Chien's stomach reminded him of how long he had been awake without eating.

When all the bowls had been set out, Minh dismissed them with a nod of his head and began to eat. His

eating was a sign that Chien could begin as well. There would come a day when Chien would not be

lower in rank than anybody. Then he would be able to eat his damned food as he pleased.

"Now, cousin, the best way to deal with my dear brother I think would be with a little extract

from this plant I have grown quite familiar with."

"Poison?" Minh wanted him to poison Tuan so that he could get rid of his brother and blame

someone else for the catastrophe at the same time. It was a cold blooded and calculated move. A move

worthy of his mother.

"Not poison. I hardly want to see my brother dead." The way he stated that made it hard for