58. Alliances and Enemies

  I sat at the base of the mighty peach tree and reached five years forward to pick out six peaches. I placed them in the basket and waited patiently.

  Abruptly six different lightning bolts struck the nearby formation that was set to guide them from the other dimensions. Shisuke glanced around, standing next to Mioji who had been his guide in his return. Omaia was missing, with a young man taking her place. Lilayla, Kuto, and Shishi stepped forward and nodded to me.

  I presented the basket to them, offering them a gift of welcome, and they promptly accepted. Once more they consumed the entire peach, including the pit. I sighed internally, but only smiled at them.

  The sixth visitor, for Mioji and Shisuke had arrived together, was a young man with blond hair done up in a bun. He looked around and tasted the air.

  “The Qi is too thick,” he said, shaking his head. “How did you accomplish this? I measured this world’s potential six thousand years ago and it was nowhere near being capable of such vast amounts of Qi.”

  “Welcome back to Atla, Lord Loshi,” I said, extending a peach to him. He sighed and took it, biting into it. The juice flowed down his chin, and his eyes opened wide in surprise. He too consumed the entire peach, including the pit.

  “The Six Mountain Sect has seen a resurgence since your last visit,” I informed the others, “But they have offered to host this summit. Unless you would rather host it out in the open.”

  “I have come only to say two things,” the young man who had arrived in Omaia’s place. “The first is that Granny Omaia has kidnapped your representative. I apologize for this, but she’s ultimately beyond my control. I rule in her stead, but she’s the true power beyond our court.”

  “Will Di Tonilla come to harm in her care?” I asked.

  “I doubt it, but I cannot say. Omaia has become increasingly erratic in the last three decades or so. Some think that her end is near, and although I cannot believe that to be the case. She is one of the oldest known Xian Lords. One way or another, however, I will return Lady Tonilla to Atla as soon as she is returned to my care,” the representative, whom I believed to be Duke Valan himself, said.

  “What is the second thing you came to say?” I inquired.

  “That if Atla calls for aid, then the court of Duke Valan will answer. Does Atla call for aid?”

  “It does,” I answered.

  “Then I leave to prepare the response,” he said, a smirk on his face. “Unless you have more to say?”

  “Atla calls for aid,” I repeated.

  Valan smirked and vanished in a lightning bolt that shot off into the heavens.

  Mioji stepped forward. “Prince Ostain also pledges his aid to the world of Atla during this time.”

  Lilayla stepped forward. “Prince Yema’s court is eager to answer the call to arms,” she said.

  Shishi stepped forward. “Count Beailor has already committed significant forces to the defense of this dimension. He inquires as to why the payment for his intervention has been slow in coming lately.”

  “I said that Atla calls for aid,” I said, shaking my head. “I said nothing about the rest of the dimension. So far, I have seen no forces arrive from Count Beailor despite the constant payments from my loyal retainer for such efforts. We faced an invasion recently with our own strength, and the entire time I asked myself ‘where are our reinforcements from Count Beailor?’ As I have received no answer, I crushed the recording device that my retainer was draining himself into myself to prevent him from continuing to pay a man who dishonors his word.”

  Shishi frowned. “I see. It is true that our forces were not arrayed to arrive in time to defend Atla when your incursion happened, and that is an oversight that I shall bring to my lord’s attention. But we have been defending this dimension elsewhere—”

  “Look to Duke Loshi for payment for that,” I said sternly. “We are here to discuss the defense of Atla. Not the entire dimension.”

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  “Hah!” Kuto said. He turned to Shishi and said “I fear that he has your lord over a barrel. He’s quite right, the arrangement between Hien Ro and Count Beailor stated that he would send forces to defend Atla, and so far he has done no such thing. I bear witness to the fact that Beailor is a gutless, cowardly, two-tongued snake who signs his promises with the same hand that he wipes his ass and gives the same amount of thought to each action.”

  Lord Loshi cleared his throat. He waited for the others to turn to him, but Kuto continued to disparage Count Beailor while Shishi was turning increasingly dark shades of purple with the anger of not being able to gainsay him. He cleared his throat again, but the drama was more interesting for the others, so finally he simply spoke.

  “I have determined that I lack the forces to defend this world from the Divine Fates,” he began.

  “Yes, we know. That is why a new Xian Lord had the opportunity to arise under your jealous, miserous and greedy rule,” Lilayla said. “What does your failure six years ago have to do with today?”

  I grinned at the representative of Prince Yema coming to my aid. “She is correct, but let us not forget that the purpose here is to discuss the future, not the past. I am assuming what you are trying to get to is that you are stretched thin, Lord Loshi, and do not have the strength to aid me?”

  “Yes,” Loshi admitted, glaring at Lilayla with furrowed brows.

  “Thank you. I understand that you are under attack from many avenues at the moment. However, I provide you with this insight. The target of the Divine Fates Empire is Atla, and no other part of your demesne. That does not mean that they will not claim whatever they can from you, but their ultimate goal lies on this world, as it always has. Once it has gone, they will abandon their campaign, and all that will remain at that point will be reclaiming what is lost.”

  Loshi frowned at my words. “What sort of treasure would be worth two, no, three invasions? This world is strong, but no stronger than a galactic nexus. I do not understand why they would go to such lengths.”

  “Empress Nadia is insane,” I said simply. “Something lives here which she covets beyond all reason. If she claims it, she will torture it until it gives her what she thinks she wants. But she is mistake to believe that it will ever turn out in her favor. She is insane, and she is cursed, and I pity her.”

  Loshi made a sound that could have been a hmm or a harumph, then he simply shrugged. “I have made the stance of my empire clear. We cannot defend this world which has been claimed by an upstart Xian Lord, but neither shall we attempt to exploit the situation for our personal gain. You are on your own, Little Bug, as far as the rest of this dimension is concerned.”

  “I thank you for your clarity,” I told Lord Loshi. “Now get off of my planet.”

  Rather than allowing him to teleport away, I forcefully dissolved his avatar. Half-digested peach splattered onto the ground as the white mist of his avatar was forced to take the long way to return to his mortal body.

  Kuto laughed. “It’s good to see that you still have a sense of humor, Little Tower Crusher,” he said. “As far as I am concerned, I am already giving you Majeesha. I view this as more than adequate to cover any expectation of forces from me.”

  “I thank you for the Majeeshans,” I said, bowing to the man who had pushed me beyond my limits. “And thank you for the experience of facing their tower. The part of me that experienced that climb did not understand the gift that you were giving me at the time, but I have come to peace with that experience and grown past it.”

  “Don’t think too much into it,” he said as his body was slowly consumed by a technique that would allow him to return to his home dimension. “I didn’t.”

  He vanished, leaving only Lilayla, Shishi, Mioji, and Shisuke.

  Shishi frowned, but then nodded at me. “I shall report to my lord that you view yourself as the creditor in the matter of this matter. I make no promises towards his response.”

  “I understand,” I said, and allowed her to depart.

  Mioji grinned and stepped forward. “I have been sent to help train up your forces,” he bragged. “Let nobody say that Prince Ostain is not generous! It shall be their honor for me to whip your armies into shape!”

  “Is that the extent of the response I should expect from the prince?” I asked.

  “Do not be insulting! You have called for aid, and my lord rallies his liege-men to respond. But such things take time. He sends me ahead, the rest shall come when they are able,” Mioji said impatiently.

  “My apologies. I meant no disrespect, especially not to the honorable representative of an ally,” I said. “I was simply attempting to measure the amount of forces I should anticipate receiving.”

  “Ah. Yeah, that makes sense,” Mioji said, calming himself. “Well, I know the basic plans. When you get your generals together you can have them come to me and we’ll talk about how to make our forces work together.”

  “I thank you from the depth of my heart,” I said, bowing to the boisterous man.

  He laughed.

  Lilayla nodded at me. “I too remain behind for the same reasons as Lord Mioji,” she said. “If you would have me in such a capacity, I shall serve as the liaison between our forces.”

  I nodded. “I am pleased to welcome you to the lands of Atla,” I said. “Be aware. It’s changed a bit since the last time you visited.”

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