Shen Wei never wanted to be an Emperor, but on the anniversary of the peace deal he discovers that Kunlun might be alive.
Part 1 of the The Leaves Of Autumn Are Memories series
So, this story has come a long way from a scribbled down idea. :) At the end of the action scene there will be a final two chapters forming the true reunion part. My incredible friend Akai Seirei 😘 wanted angst and the next two chapters have plenty of that, but a happy ending for everyone.
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This section will not make complete sense if you haven't read the missing section. Its compiled in the sister story to this one, called Kings & Dreams. There are three new characters in this chapter that feature in the other story. Taking them out might have made this easier but considering Kunlun's plan, a handful of people made less sense really. :)
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Nothing stirred in the world for a long moment and the only sound Shen Wei could hear with the thrumming beat of his own heart and could only focus on the thrum of Kunlun's power as it reestablished itself.
"Detonate?" Shen Wei repeated and saw the same horrified expressions on the faces gathered around them. "This entire region is primed for an ages old detonation array?"
"No." Kunlun said calmly, far too calmly. "But it is an unnecessarily complex network bound to something living. Each ritual cavern hides a portal, a small barely formed gateway structure leading to abandoned realms or broken gateways. My detonation array would have destroyed only the surface of that network, not the complete thing."
"But," Zhu Hong ventured from behind Jie Ming, "The Empress wants to destroy the entire network? Won't that be suspicious?"
"Not here in Dixing, a long way from her. The attack on Dragon City you told me about, that was the distraction. She wanted Emperor Shen out of the city."
Shen Wei wondered when and who had told him about that, but focused on Kunlun's eyes. They were dark, his mouth slightly pinched as he rapidly considered every option available to him. Shen Wei felt as though he had been transported back ten years, watching this same man weighing his every choice on the eve of battle.
It was both glorious to see and terrifying. It was soothing for this was Kunlun, the greatest strategist Shen Wei had ever met and drove home to him the consequences of this night, the ripples that spread out in the distant reaches of the empire. Still, he stuck with his choice. He would follow Kunlun, rest in his hands once more the fate of all their people. Not fair perhaps, but Shen Wei knew his own mind and his own desire for revenge.
