The Kingdom of Roses

26

The Seed

Jiàn Shēng had made elaborate plans. He knew he was no match for the King and Bride. He hoped to get his followers to steal as many stones of power from Huǒrè de bǎolěi so that they could use them for their benefit. Also, they wanted to capture their former soul beasts and additional creatures from the realms to enslave them through use of dark magic. Some of these former soul beasts had chosen to leave their masters and break bonds with them when they were initially caught for rebellion. Though it was a mere flicker of a hope, Jiàn Shēng thought of grabbing one of the twenty-four realms. By holding the creatures there for ransom, he could negotiate being given that realm to rule over. He did not like being ruler over the mortal realm in the least bit.

On Méiguī shān, the King and Bride retrieved their primordial seeds from the heights. The Bride removed the signet ring that her beloved gave her when they exchanged their lives in the very beginning. She placed it in his palm, ‘Hold this for me till I return,’ she told him. He nodded and held tightly onto it.

She opened her palm and her primordial seed floated over it. It was like a little bead-sized drop of water which carried the power of the mighty river Shēngmìng zhī hé. Slowly, a watery mirror formed before her. There were misty silhouettes of a great multitude in the distance, but one person seemed to be approaching her steadily. The closer it got, the clearer it became. Then, the image appeared at the very boundary of the watery mirror that separated the Bride from itself. It was clear now. There was a woman who was the Bride and yet, not her for she was entirely mortal and looked different. She had no power or divine breath. She looked curiously, as she reached out to touch the Bride through the watery mirror.

The Bride reached out and their hands touched. At that moment, the mighty power of the Bride flowed into the mortal as a pure, blue light. This woman was the primordial seed of the Bride.

‘Daughter,’ the Bride spoke. ‘The next time we meet, one of us must die,’ she said with a gut-wrenching grief, and tears flowing down which she could no longer contain.

When the seed was filled with this flow of power, the woman returned seamlessly into the bead-like drop of water that now contained her. The watery mirror slowly disappeared in a mist. The Bride used her power and returned the primordial seed to her core where it was hidden from sight.

She looked at her beloved. He sensed her sorrow as he gently pulled her into an embrace. With his deep and low voice, he comforted his beloved.

When she was comforted, she dried her tears and spoke to him, ‘Come, let us prepare for war!’ The King held her hand and led her to Dàshān where the brothers, the twenty-four generals of the realms, and each of their soul beasts waited for them.

The atmosphere was tense when they got there. The realms had never experienced war before. Duels were never serious. Intentional harm and violence had not disturbed the peace of the heavens. The only other time such violence had transpired is when Jiàn Shēng had attacked Zhì Shēn in a fit of rage and jealousy.

The King drew a shield of covering over all of them to keep their words and actions under cover, for Jiàn Shēng had also planted his spies in the realms. After some time spent discussing all that the different generals had learnt and gathered concerning the expected war, the King spoke to the generals first.

‘Take your positions as usual in the realms you guard. Let the Tiānshǐ who work with you, likewise, enter these realms as they always do. I will then activate the star gates and their locks. Instruct the Tiānshǐ to spread themselves among the living creatures in the realms. When the war breaks out, pacify the creatures lest they go into a panic. They are innocent and pure beings who will not understand the evil of violence and the shakings that follow. So, guard them well.

If the battle comes close to the star gate of your realm, go forward and break through to defend it. You can leave through the star gate at that time, but they cannot enter through it. However, if they continue to try and break through, the shakings will worsen and create a great panic among the living creatures. The sooner the enemy at your gate is subdued, the sooner peace will return to the realm you guard,’ he told them.

The King then turned to the four brothers and gave them instructions. ‘Xióng Zhǎn, guard Huǒrè de bǎolěi and coordinate the attack with the lords of the northern realms along with Zǐ Xīn. Pèi Zhōng, take Jiā Háo and coordinate the attack with the lords of the eastern realms. Zhì Shēn, you must guard Méiguī shān with Wáng Léi. Also, coordinate the attack with the lords of the western realms. Yīng Fēng, ensure the Tiānshǐ in the southern realms keep guard over everyone’s possessions that are there. Coordinate the attack with the southern lords.’

He continued, ‘Wait for instructions and signs from us. When you hear the trumpets, know that the war has begun and take action.’

After more discussions, they dispersed and sat at their appointed seats on Dàshān. The time for the ceremony was soon approaching. The King removed the shield of covering he had placed and after some time, the others began gathering at the foot of the mountain. Jiàn Shēng also came with his supporters. He was excited. It was a day he was looking forward to.

Once everyone was seated, the twenty-four generals who were also the Tŏngzhì zhě arose and addressed the entire gathering.

‘This is the day the King shall divorce his Bride according to the terms of separation. She will also lay down her weapons as you have requested,’ the elders said.

There was no concealing the look of pure joy beaming from Jiàn Shēng’s eyes. Before all the witnesses from the realms, the Bride stood up and went before the elders. She laid down all her weapons at their feet. One of them, gathered the weapons and handed them over to the King. The last weapon she pulled forth was her Water Sword which Jiàn Shēng feared greatly.

She approached the King this time and presented the sword to him directly. He flung it upwards and the soul beasts at the hilt emerged from it. In a whirlwind of water, the lion roared as it circled around the screeching eagle. They flew upwards in a stream of blue power, encircling one another. Their combined sound was so deafening, that everyone except the King and Bride closed their ears. The creatures seemed to be in torment as they were aware of their own separation from their master. Tears fell down from the eyes of the Bride. It hurt her to leave them behind. They were as close to her as children.

The creatures returned to their realms. The lion joined his pride in the western realms and the eagle flew north. Then the sword flew back with such ferocity that when it hit the great ice ledge of Dàshān, it was embedded in it. This ice ledge was located opposite the great, white throne where the King and Bride sat and held counsel during the Great Assemblies.

Jiàn Shēng heaved a sigh of relief. She would not be able to fight him with power or her deadly sword. He did not take into consideration that the best swordfighters need no sword. Anything in their hands can become a weapon, even if it were a mere, ordinary, mortal vessel of flesh and blood, she could still use her water moves against him.

The Bride was still standing in front of the King. He took out a scroll of spun gold upon which words appeared in reddish-bronze. This was a letter of divorce that clearly stated that the separation between them was temporary. The day she recognized him as Husband and chose to be his Bride again, that day their separation would end and the document would go up in flames. This document settled to his right where she normally sat, and there it floated as a witness before all.

At a future time, the Bride would have to choose between the King and Jiàn Shēng. Until such time, the scroll would remain. The scroll was rolled and sealed with seven seals to mark the seven ages through which the Bride would traverse in the mortal realm before the end of the war. At the start of each great age, a seal would be broken. In the sixth age, the Bride would have to make her choice known.

The ceremony ended with the sealed scroll secured upon the throne. The mood was solemn except on the side of all those with Jiàn Shēng. They were celebrating much to the angst of the rest.

Henceforth, the King and Bride could no longer dwell together in the heights and mists of their mountain. They had never been apart. Unconsciously, the King reached for her hand and began to lead her back towards Méiguī shān.

Jiàn Shēng seethed with irritation and jealousy. ‘She is no longer your wife!’ he said with a raised voice as he stepped forward and grabbed her hand in his own.

The Bride immediately pulled her hand away from his grasp, ‘Neither am I your wife yet!’ she said indignantly.

Before he could say another word, she was gone and he could not follow her to her mountain. It was guarded by Pèi Zhōng and Zhì Shēn whose eyes burnt like coals through the mists that had descended upon Méiguī shān.

The King stayed upon Dàshān. During the entire time of their separation, this became his home and also the place of his ruling.

That night was the most lonesome night the lovers spent. They experienced the pain of separation, no matter how temporary it was. Both of them tossed and turned. Neither could rest for they were not in the arms of the other. The King paced back and forth. He looked into the realms.

All the creatures were asleep in their homes with their own kind. The King spoke to himself, ‘Look! Even the foxes have their dens and the birds have their nests, but I no longer have my place of rest! Is not this separation a death in itself?’

To the east, the Bride did not sleep well either. She dreamt of things that were yet to be, in a distant time and world. In her dreams, she saw her seed through the watery mirror of their existence. The seed was within her, slowing growing as it was nurtured by her power. The seed did not speak but it listened to the voice of its mother.

‘Are you not my own primordial seed and now you are my daughter?’ the Bride muttered restlessly in her sleep. The Bride saw all that both of them would have to go through and she tossed even more like she was seeing a nightmare. Even Bèi Yǎn could not wake her up, nor calm her down.

The only one that slept well among them, was Jiàn Shēng. He was happily gazing upon the heights of the mountain where the Bride dwelt knowing that this night she was not in the arms of his nemesis. At some point, he returned to his bed. He was dressed in a long, silken white robe that was open at his chest. He took out the mirror and in it, he saw her. He kissed her reflection tenderly, many times and pressed the mirror close to his heart. This is how he finally rested that night. He dreamt of her in his arms, of them passionately caressing one another. He imagined that in her eyes, he was highly desired and there was only him, none other. Wěi Hóng nervously paced around his bed, hyper-alert to every sound and sense. He knew he had to stay on guard as they were on the threshold of war that his master had meticulously planned.

In the southern realms, the generals and the remaining four brothers were on guard along with their soul beasts. They took turns keeping watch through the night in case of any surprise movement from the enemies. All were ready and dressed in full armor. Even the soul beasts had taken their true forms of war and were battle-dressed.

The tension was so high, one could slice through it with a knife. Right now, it felt like the tinder was ready. Even a single spark would light its ferocious flames of war.