Once in his youth as Young Master Kang of the Morning Mist Sect, the man who now thought of himself as Noren had seen a juggler in the capital city. The man hadn't been a cultivator of any sort, but his deft manipulation of seven different colored balls had been a wonder. The man had managed to keep all seven balls in the air at once with nothing more than his natural talents.

After the show finished, Young Kang had approached the man, tossing a handful of coins into his cup and then asking him how. "How do you keep them all in the air so easily?"

The man had shot him a wink and a knowing grin. "As soon as you miss that first catch, the whole thing comes tumbling down. You've got to make sure that every catch is your very best work. And never, ever let yourself get distracted by the crowd. Their faces will be telling you just how impossible everything you're doing is, and if you believe them, you're done."

Noren had been thinking of that long-dead juggler many times in the past few weeks, as he himself had juggled dozens of different balls: legal, social, financial, to try to arrange for this narrow path between disasters. He'd had his plans all laid out before returning to the Empire. Very different plans. But for that fateful meeting with the previous Noren, he would likely, even now, be nearly to his original goal.

He had to admit he was happy with how things were turning out. Or he would be, if he could salvage the rest of this.

He and Inquisitor Pak Yoonji were soaring over the outer edges of the plains, each leap taking them hundreds of feet farther along their course. In two days, they had gone from the heart of Empire to its very edges. Noren no longer playing the games he had indulged in previously. The roles were reversed. Rather than approaching the Empire as a humble captive, now he was on his way to exert the Emperor's own will. That it played into his own schemes beautifully mattered little.

He'd had time, before leaving the capital, to leave instructions which even now should be setting dozens more plans in motion. If everything came off perfectly, then Morning Mist would be renewed, the sect restored to its former glory, and his disciples well along their own path of cultivation. Still, a few more unexpected surprises like the Inquisitor's intrusion or Chang-li's unfortunate too-early bonding of the Lens, and all might yet fall into disaster.

Not as much disarray as Yoonji's plans were. He could see the tension in her body, the twitching in her face as she looked at him, glared, then glanced away. Something had been mounting in her all day.

Noren alighted. They were only a handful of miles now from his destination, and Yoonji's anxiety had been increasing.

"Inquisitor Pak," he said calmly, "what exactly is the matter?"

She glared at him.

"Nothing is the matter," she said in her precise, clipped tones, "except that here I am, playing watchdog on you instead of dealing with my own investigations."

Noren raised an eyebrow. "Have I been removed from your investigations, then?"

"Certainly not," she grounded out from between clenched teeth. "Taking down your sect is going to be the crowning moment of my career. I hope very much it is the triumph which will cause the Emperor to raise me to the rank of Prism."

"Yes," Noren observed, "it has been a long time since he's elevated anyone else to the rank of Prism, hasn't it? Why, back in my day, he'd have ten or twelve Prisms at a time. Curious how few he has now. Of course, there should be at least one slot open, thanks to Nai Hong's death. And another once we've dealt with Eri. Yeah, I'm sure he'll give that to you."

She glared at him. "He will, if I am instrumental in taking down the rogue Eri."

Yoonji was clearly upset. Noren decided to take it up a notch. "Ah yes. Your previous investigations were so hopelessly muddled by your inept association of my sect with the rogue Prism that now your best chance for finding her is to cling to the hem of my robes and hope I deliver them, gift-wrapped, into your lap."

Now Yoonji was spitting with anger. "I would be wrapping up an arrest of, at the very least, multiple of Eri's trusted minions, if not Eri herself, right now, if I wasn't forced to accompany you."

"Really?" Noren said. "Enlighten me."

She scowled. "I apprehended one of her people some time ago. In questioning him, he divulged the location and time of a meeting. The Festival of Red Lanterns is today…" She glanced to the northeast. Noren's mind ran through possibilities.

"Ah, so a meetup in Westgate." He looked at the sky. Night was falling. "The way conspirators work, no doubt they meet at either sunset or midnight. Well, you could certainly make it in time."

"I've been told to accompany you," she snarled.

"Prisms are not lapdogs," Noren said. "They're expected to work somewhat independently, to exercise the will of the Emperor."

"I know that."

"When was the last time you showed initiative and had it pay off, Inquisitor Pak? Certainly it was your own initiative that sent you after my sect, but that doesn't seem to have particularly covered you in glory."

"I'll— I'll—" she snarled. Then, without another word, she leapt away, heading northeast.

Noren watched her go. He spun out a tiny weave, shaped it, and activated a lux construct. She would know it was following her, and she would wait until what she judged to be the most annoying time to strike it down. Probably right before she fell on Eri's minions, assuming they were actually still planning to meet, which Noren doubted. Eri was too canny to be taken in such a way.

But that left him the opening he had been working to create.

His construct flew off, confirming Yoonji was on her way to her rendezvous. He once more headed west.

The war camp appeared below him soon. On the slopes of the mountain, he could feel the Heart of Ice to his north, pulsing with power. It had emerged, and it was strong—stronger than he had dared hope. By now, his disciples would have gained entrance. He only prayed Chang-li would know what to do. He'd get another message to them as soon as possible.

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For now, though, he needed to conduct some negotiations.

The powerful cultivator hanging in the sky over the tower could be no one but General Li. Noren pulsed his will and Intent in a short, sharp burst toward the man, knowing the other cultivator would recognize it and the request for a meeting he intended.

He flew onward and landed at the edge of the great glacier overlooking the Heart of Ice. Waited. But not for long.

General Li dropped down from the sky like a thunderbolt, lux streaming off of him. He wore a formal officer's tunic emblazoned with the epaulets of his rank and the imagery of his army. In his hands he had an eight-foot-long two-handed sword. A spiritual weapon, formed from his own will and Intent. His eyes blazed. "Who are you, and what do you want?" he demanded.

Noren held up his own hands, and smiling pleasantly, bowed. "I am Grandmaster Noren of the Morning Mist Sect, here to check on my disciples' progress."

Recognition flooded Li's face. "Noren. Yes. They told me your name. I will speak with you if you come wishing peace."

"I hold no ill will toward you," Noren said, and backed up his words with a quick pulse of intent.

Li nodded, and his weapon vanished. He took a deep breath. "I thought for a moment Eri sent a new opponent, one I hadn't anticipated."

"Please forgive me, General," Noren said, "because I have heard many tales of your prowess in battle, your clever thinking, but I cannot believe that a man with your reputation would not have plans to deal with the very likely prospect of his enemy persuading allies to her cause."

General Li raised his chin. His glittering eyes drilled into Noren.

"I am a warrior, not a statesman," he said quietly. "You do not need to use flowery words with me. I understand your meaning. You are questioning if my reputation can possibly be correct, and you are right to do so. If I were the kind of man who expected my enemy only to meet me on my own terms, I would not deserve the accolades I have been given. But in this one case, I believe my supposition is correct. You see," he said casually, "I know my enemy in this case. Eri and I have a history going back more than a hundred years. I know her from the day when she first reached the Peak of Bodily Refinement at my side. I can think as she does, anticipate her whims and desires."

Noren relaxed a bit. Perhaps the man did have more sense than he had feared. "I see," he said carefully. "I myself have been indulging in a bit of travel for the past few centuries, and I am not personally acquainted with Prism Eri. Her reputation says she is hot-headed and ruthless."

"Eri sets her sight on a goal and pursues it single-mindedly, no matter what the cost," General Li said, "as I and my wife found to our sorrow. It is her great strength, but it is also her great weakness. And she was thwarted in her goal once. She will be even more determined here."

"Yes, and I'm wondering why exactly the Emperor didn't allow her to ascend already," Noren said. "From what I've dug up, she made an attempt twenty years ago."

"Eighteen years," General Li said quietly. "Eighteen years, six months, and two days, just after my daughter's first birthday. Yes, Eri. The tower at Howendai had a windfall bounty, enough stored lux to let multiple cultivators ascend together. We had been seeing the signs for several decades. It was no great surprise. The Emperor had already declared who would ascend. Prism Ahr Hion was there and ready with his sect. Eri interfered. Her scheme failed. Prism Ahr Hion ascended, but it cost me so much personally." Li's eyes were bleak.

"Eri didn't kill her, did she?" Noren asked. He'd heard the tale in the capital of how Eri had killed the Violet Princess Akiko, wife to General Li. But now he could begin to put pieces together.

Li took a deep breath. "Her core was damaged. Her will and Intent could only hold her together for so long. It was decided she must accompany Prism Ahr Hion as he advanced. I wasn't even able to reach her to say farewell."

"And so, thanks to Eri, you and your wife have been torn apart," Noren said sympathetically. "That's painful. I assume the two of you had plans to advance on your own."

"In a century or so," Li agreed. "Once we had raised the family we envisioned and done all of our duty as we saw it. When we had earned the privilege, and when we could support ourselves." He raised his eyes to Noren, anger blazing there. "My wife and I did not struggle for so many decades to climb in order to be beholden to someone else. We were supposed to advance together."

"With a sect of your own to support your advancement in the heavenly realms," Noren said.

Li gave a short, sharp nod. "Of course."

"I suppose you considered going beyond the borders of the empire? A man of your skill could raise a sect to aid him, claim a tower's bounty, and ascend."

"No. Never," Li said, and there was a note of pride in his voice. He stood straight as he addressed Noren. "My wife was a Violet Princess. I have been raised from nothing by the Emperor's grace to serve in his armies. If I ascend to the Heavenly Realms, it will be as his champion."

"Ah, so you've made life even harder for yourself," Noren observed. "At the rate that towers store up the needed lux, you could expect it to be half a century or more before it's your turn. And of course there are six Prisms in line ahead of you. Well, five now. Four if we leave Eri out of it, which I suppose we really shouldn't. So, the Primal Tower."

"I knew Eri would come for it. She must not be allowed to ascend untouched. He refused me my vengeance on Eri, but he did swear, on the life of my daughter, that he would never permit her to ascend either. Not until Akiko and I could be reunited."

"And Eri didn't care for that timetable," Noren said sympathetically.

"I have spies and informants. I have been watching Eri these last two decades, as she has built her sect. They are loyal and dedicated to her. They have been promised ascension alongside her." Li took a long, deep sigh, and Noren understood why. "But she's made plenty of enemies along the way. Now, with this rebellion, if she doesn't ascend she's going to face the consequences."

"So, Eri is rushing the timetable."

Li's eyes flashed. "I will stop Eri from getting what she wants, and I will ascend to the heavens," he said quietly. "I no longer much care what the Emperor says, especially now that my daughter is here with me."

"Yes, where is she?" Noren asked, glancing around.

Li gave a small, satisfied smile. "Currently climbing the tower in the company of her ex-fiancé and her friends."

"Oh, ex-fiancé. Who's responsible for that?"

He smiled again. "As a matter of fact, I specifically told him he is not permitted to marry my daughter, as well as telling my daughter that she should wait for me to accomplish my goals, at which time I will provide her with everything she needs. Should she listen to me, I will do as I have promised."

His eyes went distant, and he looked off at the tower again. "I am hoping that despite her upbringing, she is her mother's daughter. The fact that she defied my orders and went to climb the tower seems to me a good sign."

Noren laughed. "Perhaps you do deserve your reputation, General. Now, as it happens, my interest here is in my disciples. All of them. You met young Chang-li and recognized his problem?"

Li gave a short nod.

"Yes. What do you intend to do about that?"

"I have plans in the works," Noren said, remaining intentionally vague. "I also have several dozen more of my lower ranks on their way to this town right now. They will assist your men and the Darwur cultivators in attaining the Peak of Mental Refinement while they themselves work toward Spiritual Refinement. And they will be on hand to help defend this tower against Eri's lower ranked associates once they arrive."

"My men can handle Eri's minions."

"But can you handle Eri? She is a Prism. You are not. The allies you've gathered to yourself are loyal, but not powerful." Noren raised his hands and wove a quick pattern, pulsing his Will to fling it skyward. A sequence of light filled the sky like an aurora, lux growing and fading in turn.

Li considered him. "You could come in handy. What is it you want?"

"Oh, just the same things you do. Keep Eri from claiming this tower. Training and progression for my underlings. A chance at my own advancement." Noren shrugged. "Also I have this horribly annoying inquisitor in my company. I foisted her off for the moment on a wild goose chase but she'll be back. I could use help keeping her attention in the correct directions."

Li's lips curled. "Anything to thwart an Inquisitor. Those bastards stick their noses into my business one more time…"

"Then we're reading from the same scroll," Noren said. He stretched out his will and Intent and felt the general extend his own as they prepared to bargain. "Here's what I propose…"

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