Fa Za sat idly in his chambers overlooking the Northern Branch of the Heaven’s Mountain School, his control now nearly absolute. As the only son of a main branch Sect Elder, he had many opportunities ahead of him, and all pointed to his ascendance.

At the age of twenty-four, he was already a core elder himself, with a compound to rival even his bitterest enemies. Not that he allowed any such insolence.

Among his staff, he was feared for his many eccentricities. None so much much as his request for immediate obedience.

Today was no different.

“Elder Fa,” his servant said, “This report may be of interest to your personage.”

The bowing man left a sealed wax report on his desk.

Without another word he departed, silently.

Good. I won’t have to beat another servant into submission today. I wonder what the clan thinks I need to know now?

The other two branch core elders ran the day-to-day of the branch, allowing him to indulge himself in his passions. His passions being, both the creation of his vendetta spear path and his cultivation to defy the heavens.

Aside from that, he didn’t get out much. There wasn’t a point.

Elder Fa Za,

There were growing accounts of the divine beast Rahelish leaving a wake of destruction on the path of both Frosthaven and the ColdSteel School. Emissaries were dispatched to find that the school was badly damaged, and most elders were killed in the wake, but Elder Jessica Kim remains. We do not have a file on that Elder, she is new to us, but their emissaries will arrive today for us to interview.

We seek your counsel as their precarious position could increase our position. Perhaps the remaining Coldsteel students could be folded into our ranks.

Elders Mei and Leng

Both of the other Elders had signed the note. They must have thought that this little chunk of information could rise to the level of him needing to give it his attention.

They often tried to get him to do more for the Sect, but that would interfere with his work.

However, a new Elder? Frosthaven was only a short flight away for him. He could challenge the Elder, and turn the ColdSteel School into his branch. His father would recognize the important work in expanding Heaven’s Mountain School farther north.

Fa Za stood.

He messaged his head servant directly.

His servant, Ra Zu, or at least he thought that was his name, was almost always correct in these matters.

Ra Zu appeared less than a minute later with the perfect wooden spear for the mission. Good, one less life he would have to end that day for insolence.

Fa Za mounted the spear, standing on it like a surfboard. Pushing spear qi into the air, he flew up and around the bounteous verdant mountain that the branch made its land around. His pitifully small amount of cultivators, just over one thousand all told, watched him with awe as his short trip around delivered him to a space quite close to his compound.

Landing, he gently stepped off the spear before laying it against a sidewall. No one in their right mind would dare to touch his spear without his explicit order.

The other two elders waited for him. Both had come up with his father and so, unfortunately, they knew him when he was in diapers and they were far too friendly.

Both core elders sat in the lotus position, cycling qi until he landed. They stood to greet him.

"Elder Fa Za, what a pleasure to have you join us. We had just talked about how interesting this turn of events has gone. The Emissary from the Cold Steel Sect has just arrived. We would be honored if you could join us,” Elder Wei said.

His green robes were lined in a jade meets ivory outline. Fa Za had to give the Elder his due, but he was certain that he could beat the man in one on one combat. So certain was he of this fact that he didn’t acknowledge either Elder as he sat down next to them.

Both already were used to his eccentricities. Elder Wei clapped once for a servant to open the door.

A mere third realm cultivator walked in, bowing to the trio.

“This one thanks to the Elders of the Heaven’s Mountain School for their acceptance of this humble emissary. This one is Junior Disciple An-Yong, and he regrets to inform you that in the wake of the terrible beast's attack, all of the Elders and Senior disciples perished in the schools' defense.”

The junior disciple scraped the floor, his heavy fur coat making him look like a wolf. When he returned to sitting, it appeared that he was a hungry, gaunt coyote instead.

“Junior Disciple, that such a tragedy has befallen your Sect is terrible.”

Elder Wei led the conversation, and Fa Za let him.

“Truly it is horrible, but Elder Jessica has helped us to rebuild the compound and soon we will be back to a mere fraction of our strength.”

Wei snapped his hands, and servants brought out tea.

“Please, tell us of your troubles so that perhaps, we may come to an accommodation.”

Elder Wei must have sensed blood in the water. A weakened school was an opportunity. All Fa Za had to do would be to lead them to the right conclusion. A smile crossed his lips.

“Honorable Elders, this one himself just reached the third realm, and we only have one fifth realm cultivator as protection against the wrath of whatever divine beast will cross our path next. We believe that it will not happen again, but… our library has been destroyed along with much of our natural treasures. It has been a hard week of rebuilding before I was allowed to come here and even so, it was with the promise that I wouldn’t endanger any of my emissaries. None of them have passed into the third realm yet.”

Elders Wei and Fa Za sipped tea, enchanted by the gaunt coyote of a man.

“So we ask for two things, one is some help with our defense. Elder Jessica has told me that she would be willing to enter into some sort of contract with the Heaven’s Mountain School to provide security, while we work to train cultivators to the next level.”

Elder Wei nodded.

“That could be an agreeable outcome. We could send some of our best to train against the beasts of the north, and at the same time bring glory to our school.”

The coyote clapped his palms together.

“The other thing, Elder, would be that as this one noted our library was destroyed and we need to reconstitute as much as possible. We would send some of our students here to copy the necessary texts with your permission or…”

Elder Fa Za held up a hand. The other elders gestured for him to speak.

“I think that this would be an act of charity. I will have my servants copy over each of our non-restricted texts. I think that I myself will be paying a visit to the Coldsteel school. Perhaps I will stay awhile as the school may need some additional security measures for the time being.”

The coyote gasped. Fa Za left the part about him taking the school over unsaid. This unsophisticated coyote might prove to be the elixir he needed to advance his goals.

“Honored Elder, the school thanks you for your charity. This one will make sure that everything is set up for your arrival and that you are appropriately honored,” Once again, the coyote prostrated himself, his head on the ground. He probably would have gone lower if it was possible.

He should.

Fa Za finally cracked a smile. The school was as good as his now.

***

An-Yong couldn’t believe his good fortune. The elders gave the school more than he’d expected, far more than they’d hoped for. An elder coming to visit and help out? Elder Jessica would be more than pleased. She would be ecstatic!

As he left the meeting, he almost floated down to the emissary, a second realm cultivator named Lau. Lau was a good-looking muscular cultivator, well suited for running long distances and delivering messages. He, at least, knew how to read and relay messages, something that the other emissaries were still working on somehow. Well, they knew how, but An-Yong was certain that they were acting badly at it on purpose.

“Senior Brother, this one believes that this mission was a success, based solely on your posture.”

“Initiate Lau, you are correct and the school has received more than it could bargain for. We are to rest and then turn around with the good news. The school will be well pleased with the help as well as the books and scrolls that we will receive.”

Lau stiffened. Did he know something that An-Yong didn’t?

“The books and scrolls, Senior Brother?”

“Elder Fa Za has offered to have his servants copy and send us a large amount of their library. This one will have to reconstitute many of our sacred texts, but it will be a lot easier with many books and path manuals from the Heaven’s Mountain Sect.”

At the mention of the name Fa Za, Lau grimaced almost unnoticeably. If An-Yong had been a mere second realm cultivator, he might not have noticed that small difference. Now that he was, it was a stark contrast to the old way. How much had he lost in the subtext before this?

A lot, apparently.

“Senior brother, the young master Fa Za? The same?”

An-Yong began to sweat. Lau was never out of sorts and as his demeanor changed, An-Yong wondered what fresh hells he had blundered into.

“The...the same.”

“Heavens help us. He will be such an asset,” Lau said, while showing a face that indicated strongly the opposite was probably true. His voice said one thing, but his face gave quite the opposite opinion.

“Very… well.”

The two straightened their fur coats. A servant brought a sealed letter from the Elders. An-Yong took it with a graceful hand, pausing as the note was held between them.

“Thank you.”

“If it pleases Junior Disciple An-Yong, the Elders have written an introductory letter to the new leader of your Sect,” the servant said. As soon as he said it, he released the paper, then returned back up to the imposing receiving room.

The entire time, the servant had not made so much as a scrape as he walked.

An-yong shivered unconsciously and tucked the letter away.

***

It took the aunties all of an afternoon to break An Di’s spirit. In the end it was the promises that one of them would help out with his shop that got him to start moving his operations into the new building. The one built for him. The customized shop with the light and fresh air.

Jessica nodded, checking her rocks. In the three days since she had sent her emissaries with Junior disciples to the three nearest schools, two of her first realm initiates had reached the second realm.

Two rocks turned over and repainted. It felt a bit meditative to just visualize the sect. She appreciated Grace’s attention to detail.

Holding a rock, she thought about the stress of all the ducks she had. They were not in a row. Heck they weren’t even squirrels at a rave! They were capybaras. Well at least the initiates were. They wanted to sit and cultivate and for some of them doing the maintenance tasks felt like an imposition on their special time.

She trickled qi absentmindedly into the small skipping stone and it cracked.

Sighing, she tossed it behind herself into the pile of broken rocks.

Her stress pile was about twenty rocks worth of Sect Followers. It grew every time one of the aunties told her about another internal drama thing that she apparently was not keying in on. If she hadn’t had her aunties though it would probably be about twice as high.

Now with one of her aunties going to work in the artisans shop, did that take her out of the initiates pile? Jessica thought for a moment.

No, better to have a count of her aunties separate from the artisans. After all, she wanted to know how many resources she could devote to her problems when they came up. And wasn’t that the thing about bookkeeping?

On one side of a flat auntie rock she painted the symbol for an artisan.

Now she looked at her to-do list.

#1 Figure out how to get more initiates

#2 Figure out how to get some fourth realm(core formation) disciples made or acquired

#3 How does one raise money for a Sect?

Clearly she didn’t need more initiates currently, but more wouldn’t be welcome. She had an idea for how to push more third realm cultivators into the fourth but since she had apparently started at the fourth realm when she arrived and was given a core, she hadn’t had the experience of making her own.

Then there was the whisper.

You must advance some of your students and carefully select some for senior positions.

She now heard it clearer than when An-Yong advanced, but it was more and more apparent that it wasn’t anyone around. She could hear heart beats from a football field away, but this now felt like a little nagging voice, a remnant of someone else.

Perhaps Elder Kang had left a chunk of his personality when he gave her the core she now cycled through.

Well, then perhaps she could add one more thing to the list, and make Elder Kangs remnant happy. She brought out a brush and painted another line under the third.

#4 Advance some students and carefully select for senior positions

Total Sect Disciples/Followers: 217

Inner Sect

Fifth Realm: 1

Fourth Realm: 0

Outer Sect

Third Realm: 35

Second Realm: 85(+2)

First Realm(or lower): 96(-2)

Daily Tasks or Special Jobs

Aunties: 22

Daily Upkeep (general pool): 20

Library Specialists/Quartermasters: 3

Alchemist: 5

Scouts: 10

Artisans/Craftspeople: 6(+1 auntie)

Emissaries: 4

Healers:5