Path of the Berserker

Dear Fia,

Hi! It’s me! Max! I’m writing to you now! I tried to write to you before but I was really tired and ended up just passing out. So I’m trying again. I know it’s been a few weeks but I’ve been really busy. There have been many curve balls thrown my way.

The first one came when I ended up killing some pervert dude on the way here. They busted me down to a prisoner Tribute for that, but it was well worth it.

That guy was a sick asshole who needed to die!!!!

Anyway, when we got to the planet it was this whole run through the desert gauntlet kind of thing, with giant monsters and shit. Like tons of people died right off the bat. I rescued this family though. Both the Mom and Dad ended up dying unfortunately, but I swore to protect their kids. The dad sacrificed himself to save us all.

He really went out like a champ.

[RIP] Kou Ren!!

Anyway, I’m a brown robe now, which means I’m like the shit tier rank of tributes. I have to clean pig stables and stuff until I can pass an exam to go up a rank in about a week’s time. Wish me luck! I also made some friends. Well not friends really, more like [FRENEMIES]. Sorry for the Terran word, can’t think of the word in Yee.This guy Ho Chin keeps bitching about everything. Total asshole. I’m totally going to kick his ass one day. Stupid clown. And then this chick Blue Rose is here. She’s okay-ish. Has this major chip on her shoulder. I really can’t figure her out yet.

Lo Ren and Chu Ren seem to be doing okay though. Chu Ren earned himself a pill already, but they’re both farmers after all and they are working the fields, so it probably makes sense. Oh! They are the kids of the people that died. I forgot to mention their names before. Anyway as you can see from all this there have been a lot of curve balls thrown my way.

But I say it all for a reason.

Because the biggest curve ball of them all was YOU!

Not gonna lie.

I was super pissed at you, but guess what, I’m gonna catch that curve ball.

You wait and see.

No [SPOILERS] though.

Ok I got to go shovel more pigshit.

Love you!!

Max

Fia waited pensively as she watched Yu Li read the letter before her. She had read it at least three times herself but still could not discern the meaning of half of it. There were words written in strange Terran characters and some phrases she simply couldn’t understand at all.

“Well?” Fia asked. “Do you know what he means by a ‘curved’ ‘ball’?”

Max had called her that. A curved ball. But she had no idea if that was good or bad.

Did it mean he was still vexed at her?

Did he hate her?

Did he forgive her?

Yu Li shook her head. “No one should ever trust this guy with a pen. Come on, there’s only one hope to translate this mess.”

Yu Li led the way out of her lower floor apartment where Fia had come to find her and then immediately made a path towards the training area at the back of the square. It was still early morning and the food vendors were in full swing, cooking delicious smelling concoctions in their woks.

Unfortunately for Fia, she had no appetite to speak of, her soul and stomach both tied in knots. They reached the small practice area that Max had constructed and found Gui Zu, Zu Tien and Kel Zhi all engaged in a high paced sparring session.

Gui Zu and Zu Tien were teaming up on Kel Zhi in a two on one, but the bonde-haired girl was fending them off with the same axe techniques Fia herself had come to memorize from sparring with Max. Her form was still wild and crude as Max’s was, but she had talent. In the last few weeks, she had demonstrated herself at stronger than both Gui Zu and Zu Tien combined.

“Kel Zhi!” Yu Li called to her. “We need your help.”

“Yes quickly!” Fia added.

That got her to withdraw from the sparring session with a bow.

“You guys can keep going,” Kel Zhi said to Gui Zu and Zu Tien as she trotted over. “I’ll join back in a sec!”

Fia bowed to her as she arrived. “Thank you, Kel Zhi. I apologize for the interruption.”

“What’s up?” she said wiping sweat from her brow with her forearm.

Kel Zhi was dressed in her normal robes, which was to say, not quite normal at all. She barely wore anything—preferring a loose-fitting top that left her mid-section exposed and a loin cloth below. It was leaving her body dangerously exposed to injury, which was by design Fia imagined. With the growing mosaic of scars on her skin she was beginning to resemble Max in many ways.

“Kel Zhi, your brother has written to me,” Fia said. “But neither I nor Yu Li can make sense of what he has written. There are Terran words and phrases we just don’t understand, can you help us?”

Kel Zhi shrugged her sizable shoulders. “Sure, I’ll try, but my reading of Yee isn’t the greatest you know?”

“You should be fine,” Yu Li said. “Max does use the very complicated words.”

Yu Li handed her the letter and Fia waited pensively again.

Kel Zhi’s eyes went up and down the letter and then wide as she let out a laugh. “Holy shit, you’re right! This thing reads like a damn five year old wrote it! And he’s writing like he’s texting you on a phone or something.”

“Like he’s doing what?” Fia asked.

She shook her head. “Nevermind. Let me keep reading.”

Fia watched Kel Zhi’s facial expressions closely as they shifted between amusement, confusion and then outright disgust.

“Geeze, the way this guy’s mind works is wild,” she said. “He can’t keep a straight thought for nothing! What a freaking Chun! And what the hell kind of adventures are these?”

“Yes, but what is he saying?” Fia pleaded. “Is a curve ball bad? Is he calling me a bad ball? And what are these Terran words he uses?”

Fia pointed them out on the letter.

“Oh, that’s Ahr Ai Pei,” she said the Terran tones phonetically. “It means rest in peace to the guy that died. And this one.” Kel Zhi pointed to the other characters. “That’s like a friend who is also an enemy. It makes more sense in our language.”

“A friend who is an enemy?” Yu Li asked. “Do you mean a friend who has betrayed you?”

“Nah… sort of like friends who hate each other secretly.”

“Oh!” Fia said understating now. “That sounds like most of my clan.”

Kel Zhi laughed. “Yeah, that sounds about right!”

“What of this curved ball?”

“It’s a baseball term. It means when something comes at you unexpectedly.”

“Baseball?” Yu Li asked.

“It’s a sport.”

“Is it good or bad?” Fia asked.

“Baseball?”

“No, the curved ball!”

Kel Zhi twisted her lips in thought. “Usually bad.”

Fia’s heart sunk through the floor. “Does he hate me then? Is he saying he hates me?”

“What?” Kel Zhi read the letter again. “Not really. He ends it by saying I love you. Of course the line before that is ‘I need to go shovel more pigshit’ so who knows?”

“What’s this other one mean?” Yu Li pointed to another Terran phrase.

“Man,” Kel Zhi said. “How was he expecting you guys to understand any of this? That phrase means he wants it all to be a surprise.”

“For what to be a surprise?” Fia asked.

She shrugged. “Catching the curve ball you threw at him?”

“What does that mean?”

“I guess if I were to translate, he is basically saying he got mad at you at first for the unexpected surprise you sent him, but he is now going to deal with it with a surprise of his own.”

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Fia bit her lip. “I’m not certain how to feel about that.”

“Well, he ends it with, I love you, so I’d say it’s likely positive,” Kel Zhi said.

“You think so?” Fia sked. “Are you sure?”

“The only thing I’m sure of is that Max wrote this. Only a true Chun like him could write something so confusing. But he’s got a good heart. So I’d say you’re safe.”

“What is the curve ball you threw at him?” Yu Li asked.

Fia’s face grew hot with embarrassment. “Well… ah.. I—”

“Lady Silver Light!”

Fia turned her head to the call of her name, grateful for the interruption. She saw it was Ju Gong, the doorman and former Fire Bird sect member running towards them. He was normally a calm and passive sort of man, but now his broad face wore an expression of alarm.

“What is it, Ju Gong?”

He came to a rapid stop before them and bowed.

“Thank the heavens, you are all here,” he said slightly out of breath. “You must all come quickly. We have visitors at the gate and Jian Ye is requesting your presence immediately.”

“Visitors?” Yu Li asked. “Who?”

“The three bird sisters,” Ju Gong said. “And they’ve brought an army of Enforcers with them.”

* * *

Tension knotted Fia’s stomach as she approached the main gate with Yu Li, Gui Zu, Zu Tien and Kel Zhi by her side. Ju Gong led the way moving with hurried steps. The main gate of the Terran Sect was more a façade than anything else, as there was no means to enclose the entire block off from the rest of the city to serve as a true gate for protection.

Still, the two-story high pillars coiled with decorative dragons topped by the tiled roof of the Paifang served to mark the entrance to the neighborhood and Fia was surprised to see that the Bird Sisters were standing just outside it to respect the boundary.

Although it was perhaps just as much due to Jian Ye’s presence as well.

The small Tarran girl was dwarfed by the Three Bird sisters who stood over a foot taller than her, but she stared up at them defiantly with a lifted chin. Just behind the sisters was indeed a contingent of Enforcers and Imperial Guards some twenty or thirty strong as Ju Gong had said.

“The most honorable, Lady Silver Light,” Silver Hawk said with a smile as she approached. “I heard that you were frequenting these parts regularly now.”

Fi Shen, the Lady Silver Hawk, stood out easily from her sisters, even though Fia would perhaps be the only one to notice as such. Always the boldest and most vocal of the three, she took center stage while his sisters Di Shen and Wi Shen simply faded to the backdrop. Or they did so whenever in her presence at least.

Fia put on a fake smile, reminiscent of the Terran word Max had used. “Honorable cousins, a surprise to see you so far from the imperial city.”

“It is not a personal visit,” Fi Shen said. “Our business is with This One.” She paused to gesture to Jian Yi. “The Vice Leader of the Terran Sect. Have you gathered all your people as directed?”

Jian Yi glared up at her. “Yes, as you have given instruction, Vice Warden.”

Looking behind Jian Yi, Fia saw that indeed nearly all the residents of the block were now gathered in the square. All of them wore confused expressions of worry and concern. Fia had well expected such a day would come, when Fi Shen would make her move against her, but as for what she and her sisters had planned, Fia had no idea.

“I would very much like to know what this is about,” Jian Yi said.

“I’m here to make an announcement,” Fi Shen said. She then she snapped her fingers and one of her sisters, Di Shen, the Lady Silver Dove handed Jian Yi a sheet of paper.

“What is it?” Yu Li asked as they all crowded around Jian Yi as she read it.

Before she could even give an answer, Fi Shen spoke directly to the crowd.

“Native Residents of D block, listen carefully!” she shouted. “This One is the Lady Silver Hawk, Vice Warden of Jurin province. It has come to my attention that the Native Housing District, which is designated a place of safety and refuge for those native born to this planet, has been infiltrated by alien residents from other worlds.”

Murmurs of confusion wafted through the crowd.

“What is she talking about?” Gui Zu asked.

Zu Tien shook her head. “No idea. Jian Yi?”

But the barrister was still busy studying the sheet of paper.

“I, Lady Silver Hawk…” Fi Shen continued. “…who has been charged by the Warden to preserve the safety and sanctify of the native population of this province, has come to offer you further refuge and protection from foreign interlopers who would seek to reside illegally within the boundaries of the Native Housing District.”

“Illegally?” Yu Li said.

“It is now,” Jian Yi said with a grimace as she finished reading the sheet of paper. “The warden herself just signed off on a new local ordinance. The Native Protection Act.”

“What?” Fia said.

Her heart began to race.

What have you done Fi Shen?

“From this moment forward, all non-natives are required to apply for special permits to visit the Native Housing District for the purpose of merchant business only. Any found residing illegally will be evicted. Have ready now your special merchant permits for inspection!”

Cries of panic broke out as the Enforcers rushed into the square. They attacked the food vendors first, kicking over the woks and stalls when no documentation could be provided.

“What madness is this?!” one of them shouted. “I’ve had no time to apply for a permit!”

Chaos ensued and Fi Shen threw her head back with a cackling laugh.

Fia’s chest tightened with anger. With a burst of Qi she [Flash Stepped] directly before Fi Shen. Her older cousin blinked back in surprise, taken off guard by the display of martial skill.

“What do you think you’re doing, Fi Shen? You attack an entire district just to get back at me and my betrothed?”

Overcoming her initial shock, a leer spread across Fi Shen’s face. “Why Lady Silver Light… would you dare to accuse This One of a crime so petty? Clearly you do not understand the mechanism of good governance. I am simply doing my job to protect the natives of this world. Which is more than I can say for you. Guard, check this one here!”

Fia stepped back as an Imperial Guard thrust an open palm towards her. “Permit!”

She looked to Jian Yi, but the barrister merely shook her head.

“There’s nothing we can do about this right now,” she said. “Just comply.”

“Comply my ass!”

The shout came from behind along with a massive burst of Qi. Fia looked over her shoulder to see Kel Zhi brandishing her axe, crouched low in a martial stance. A crackle of lightning ripped over her skin and several of the enforcers stumbled backwards as took a massive leap forward towards the bird sisters.

“No Kel Zhi!” Fia cried and luckily intercepted her before she could do anything else. Materializing her Jian Blade, she parried Kel Zhi’s axe and forced it to the ground.

Kel Zhi grunted and strained against her. “Just let me hit her! Just once!”

“Stop Kel Zhi,” Fia said, finding herself struggling to maintain her Qi to keep Kel Zhi at bay. She truly was just like Max, exceptionally strong for her cultivation realm and ranking. “Listen to Jian Yi. Now is not the time to fight.”

“Not like this,” Jian Yi said, resting a hand on Kel Zhi’s shoulder.

Almost immediately, as if Jian Yi had some kind of power over her, Kel Zhi’s anger and Qi quickly faded.

“Fine,” she said, stowing her axe. “Food for the Struggler, I guess.”

Suddenly another cry rang out and everyone turned their heads to see Yu Li screaming along with Su Ling as they both tried to hold onto Gui Zu. Three Enforcers were manhandling him, pulling him away from his family.

“No!” Jian Yi cried rushing forward. “They are bound by marriage! He is not subject to this statute!”

“Marriage does not change your place of birth,” Di Shen said, stepping forward. “I advise you to check your laws barrister.”

Jian Yi cursed.

“They can’t so this!” Yu Li cried, as Gui Zu;s hands slipped from her grasp. “Someone do something!”

Kel Zhi’s Qi flared next to her again, but Fia quickly jumped ahead of her.

“This law is unjust Fi Shen!” she shouted into Silver Hawks face. “You abuse your position!”

“You dare speak as such to a Vice Warden!” she shouted. “Arrest her!”

“What?”

Before she knew it, several Enforcers and Imperial Guards had surrounded her. One of them grabbed her by the wrist and she instinctively snatched her hand back, toppling the man over.

“She’s resisting!” Fi Shen cried. “Subdue her!”

Anger and panic rose in Fia’s heart as the Enforcers laid into her with their bamboo clubs. They were near mortals and the blows were all but painful stings, yet still she cried out, more from shock and humiliation than anything else. She fell to her knees and curled into a ball, desperate to protect the one thing that perhaps her body cultivation could not.

“I yield!” she cried. “I yield!”

“That’s enough!” Jian Yi shouted. “She had yielded.”

The blows finally stopped and a pair of Enforcers roughly pulled her to her feet.

“Take her way,” Fi Shen said. “This One is already accustomed to prison. I’m sure spending another night there will do her well as a reminder as to who is in authority here.”

Anger burned in Fia’s heart as tears burned her eyes.

The chaos and pain around her was immeasurable.

Su Lings cries rang above all else, screaming for her baba as the Enforcers dragged both Gui Zu and Zu Tien away. Never would she have imagined that Fi Shen and her sisters would stoop to something so low.

But she couldn’t leave things is such disarray,

She still had power to do something.

Fia immediately dropped to her knees in a kowtow. “Please honorable Vice Warden, forgive This One for her insolence. I misspoke and apologize to you for my outburst.”

Sickness filled the pit of her stomach to make such an apology, but there was no other way. She could not afford to be detained. Not now. Not with the precious life within her, nor the injustice prevailing around her.

She would need to be free to fight against it.

“Merciful Vice Warden,” Jian Yi said stepping next to her. “This One, the Lady Silver Light has apologized, which, in my learned opinion, would be the consequence leveled against her by a magistrate in such a small matter if it were to go to court. I thus urge you to please allow this to satisfy you and avoid her arrest.”

Fi Shen smirked as she stood over her. “Look up at me.”

Fia did so and her insides curled with disgust.

“This barrister has moved me to have pity on you, Lady Silver Light,” Fi Shen said. “I will not have you arrested, but your open display of disrespect, deserves an open response in return.” Her hand then flew, and a resounding smack filled the air as Fi Shen struck her hard across the face. The crowd silenced and Fia’s cheek grew hot with pain as humiliation, shock and embarrassment filled her soul.

Fi Shen then continued to leer down at her, bending at the waist to whisper in her ear. “Let that be a reminder to you, little Fia, that we are no longer equals. Refer to me by my personal name again and you will regret it.” She then looked to the side at the bawling Su Ling. “And count yourself lucky that I only enacted the first statute of my reform. The next will be to ensure that native races of this planet remain pure and unsoiled by foreign seed.” She grinned like a devil. “That little one over there for example, would present an abomination under the law. As would your own children. If you decide to have any with your betrothed.”

Her heart froze.

All she could think of little Su Ling and the unborn child within her.

“We will see when my betrothed returns,” Fia said defiantly. “You may have a new boss then.”

Fi Shen let out a cackle. “If he returns.”

Fia bit her lip, restraining herself from saying anything else.

“Tread carefully, little cousin,” Fi Shen said. “We shall be watching you closely.”

Fi Shen then stood upright to addressed the crowd.

“Enforcers and Guards see to this quickly,” she said. “We depart now for the next district.”

As Fi Shen and her sisters withdrew, Yu Li, Kel Zhi and Jian Yi quickly rushed to Fia’s side.

“Are you alright?” Yu Li asked.

“I’m fine,” Fia said, standing with the help.

“Damn it! I want to face stomp those bitches so bad!” Kel Shi growled and pulsed with Qi once more. “How do we fight this, Jian Yi? Who do I need to beat in the ring to overturn this stupid law?”

“It’s not so simple.,” Jian Yi said. “This is not simply a disagreement under the law. It is the law itself. I will need to appeal first the Warden and then Princess beyond that.”

“Holy shit,” Kel Zhi said. “That don’t sound good.”

“What about Gui Zu?” Yu Li said as she struggled to console Su Ling who was still crying in her arms. “Where will he stay? And Zu Tien and Ju Gong.”

In the distance, Fia could see the group of them, no less than a dozen or so people being herded away by the Enforcers to who knew where. The heat of that slap across her face was still lingering, but it was a small price to pay for what it allowed her to do next.

“I have a plan,” Fia said. “They will stay with me in the imperial city.”

“But how?” Yu Li asked. “Thay are not B class citizens.”

“They won’t need to be if they are my servants,” Fia said. “I will sponsor each of them to grant them a license and permission to reside.”

Yu Li’s eyes melted with tears. “Really? Thank you, Fia!”

“I will see if I can apply for you and Su Ling as well,” she said. “I know my mother would not be able to stand not seeing little Su Ling for even a day.”

“Your family can accommodate so many?” Jian Yi asked.

A shiver of discomfort ran through her soul.

“I have not asked them yet, but I simply won’t give them a choice.” Fia could already hear her father’s yells of disagreement but there was no other way right now. “They will understand…in time.”

“I’ll postpone my trip back to the wild,” Kel Zhi said. “Looks like I’ll be needed to be the main Warden of the Sect now.”

“That you will,” Jian Yi said. “Thank you, Kel Zhi.”

“You there!” one of the Imperial Guards shouted at her. “You need to get moving. No foreigners!”

Fia grimaced. “Looks like I’ll need to go for now. Have faith. These Shen sisters will not get the better of us. We’ll find a way.”

“And if not?” Jian Yi asked. “An appeal to the princess is not as easy as it sounds.”

Fia frowned.

“Then we only need suffer until Max’s return,” she said, conviction filling her heart. “He will return and he will put everything right.”

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