Chapter 59 - The Rabbit and The Hare

"Her name is Yetu." Tuzi stated. "She's an intelligent, well-mannered, ambitious, and beautiful young lady. At sixteen years old, she has already convinced me that once the year of the rabbit returns, she will be leading this faction instead of me. She has a very reliable intuition that has helped me make many decisions over this past year. However, I fear it was my reliance on her that has placed her in this very situation."

"Was it... the Luminents?" Mai questioned.

"I believe not. Five weeks ago, I gave Yetu an important assignment, which involved her visiting all of the other faction leaders to converse about this year's Chūnjié."

"Chūnjié?" Aaron questioned.

"Our New Year's Festival, which we celebrate here on the air continent." Tuzi explained. "The celebration lasts fifteen days and signals the beginning of the spring season. That first day of spring also marks the day where the next faction in line cycles into leadership over Ventus. The festival itself consists of fifteen different events that transpire over that time. Each faction proposes an event they would like to be held on one of the days, then on the final three days, there are three traditional events that are held every year."

General Gao then returned with a metal tray carrying glasses of water. She quietly handed them out as Emperor Tuzi continued on.

"Preparations for the Chūnjié normally begins at the start of the winter season, so I wanted Yetu to return well before then."

"Winter began nine days ago." Mai exclaimed.

"Yet still no word from my daughter."

"Is that why you think she's been kidnapped?" Kaden asked, slightly confused. "What if she's just running late?"

"Of course I have more reasoning than that." Tuzi replied as he got up from his seat. "The day before I received that message from your elders, something sickening blew through my own bedroom window."

Tuzi retrieved a folded up piece of paper that was pinned to the wall and unfolded it as he brought it over to the others. He presented the paper to them, which contained the message...

"Terminate the Chūnjié." Mai read aloud.

"Someone doesn't want the festival to happen?" Aaron questioned.

"Not just that." Jayson replied. "They said "terminate." Whoever it is doesn't want the festival to happen ever again."

"That's strange." Mai commented.

"What is that?" Kaden asked, pointing at the paper.

"What is what?"

"The writing... That's not ink, is it?"

"It's blood." General Gao answered, standing away from anyone. "It's very much dried up now, but when the letter first arrived... there was no mistaking it."

Emperor Tuzi had a dejected expression on his face as Mai and the others took a closer look at the message.

"So whoever sent this message, you believe they have your daughter as well." Jayson concluded.

"Precisely." Tuzi replied.

"I have my doubts about that. If they do have her, why didn't they use her name in the message as blackmail. What's the point in holding a hostage if you're not going to use them as leverage?"

"Even so, it's still something that should be looked into." Mai stated.

"Hold on." Via exclaimed as she finally entered the conversation. "Why are you asking us to look into this? As the emperor, I'm sure there are ways for you to dig up the answers you're looking for. You have the Nŭ Zhànshì behind you to deal with any insubordination you might face from the other factions, so why go looking for help from another land?"

"You're very educated about our land if you know about the Nŭ Zhànshì." Tuzi replied with a grin before quickly turning serious again. "As of right now, the only people who know about my daughter's disappearance are the people currently occupying this room."

They all looked at each other and made passing glances at General Gao before looking back at Emperor Tuzi.

"I would like for this matter to be resolved as quietly as possible. I know that if I were to make this situation public, it would be the final nail in the coffin."

"What do you mean by that?" Aaron asked.

Tuzi exhaled deeply before walking back over to the window.

"... My predecessors warned me of this, but I didn't want to believe them. To be honest with you all, Ventus is losing stability. Tension among the factions has flared up over the past few decades, and it's only getting worse with every passing day. Every day, I'm flooded with reports of petty incidents such as intentional pollution, trespassing, petty theft, and disruption of the peace, just to name a few. These minor altercations are the result of a deeply rooted disconnection between the different factions, which itself was caused by discrimination, favoritism, monopolization of mines, and the various minerals inside of them. Some tried to control the export of certain resources outside of the country. Raids are becoming much too frequent, and it is becoming difficult for any sort of mediation to take place. In no time soon, we will end up like Ignus."

Jayson twitched slightly following that comment.

"There have been many injured over the years during the ongoing conflicts. However, war is only started once the first blood is shed. And with the way things are progressing, that will be soon."

Tuzi then turned to face everyone once again with a disturbed look on his face.

"I just don't want that to start with me. I do not want an era of blood to start with me. I know... if I gave the word... or if the public found out Yetu was possibly kidnapped... They are only waiting for a reason to lash out."

"So you want us as a third party to uncover what happened to Yetu while also keeping it a secret." Mai confirmed.

"Precisely."

"Do you realize you're only prolonging the real problem here?" Asked Aaron.

"In a season's time, it will be my problem no longer." Tuzi coldly replied. "An outcome like this was bound to happen when the uniqueness of a country is the fact that it's divided."

"If that's the case, then how would you be able to assist Aestus after we find your daughter?" Mai questioned. "Come spring, there will be a new emperor, and you will no longer have the final say in the country."

"If you locate Miss Yetu, I will guarantee the assistance of the Nŭ Zhànshì." General Gao interjected. "We are an independent unit that stands alone away from any of the factions. We do what we can to maintain order and to keep the government honest."

"And while I may not be able to command every branch of our military forces then, at the very least, the rabbit faction will offer its help." Tuzi stated. "I am also in good relations with the faction leaders for both the ox and the tiger factions. They won't be obligated to, but I can still attempt to call on their assistance."

Mai nervously glanced over to Kaden, who had a rather displeased look on his face.

"That's better than nothing." Kaden answered begrudgingly.

"... Okay, where do we begin?" Mai asked.

.....

"I wish we could've at least settled in before doing this." Kaden exclaimed.

"We don't have any time to waste." Via replied as she hovered over the edge of a column. "You need to be ready by tomorrow if you're going to make this trip with us."

"I should've done flight training with you and Aaron back in Aestus. Flying is so convenient. How did I not prioritize learning that first?"

"Pay attention now because you're gonna be getting a crash course. I hope you were doing those breathing exercises I showed you because your proficiency in air essence depends a lot on your lung capacity."

"I actually did them every night before I went to bed." Kaden honestly replied.

"Good. Let's start with hovering then."

Via hovered directly before Kaden to give a visual demonstration of what she was looking for.

"With this, I want you to release air essence from the soles of your feet and the palms of your hands. Gradually increase the amount of essence you're releasing until you find yourself off the ground."

"I should be able to do this easily." Kaden thought to himself. "I've already got a feel of how much essence I need to use to make myself levitate. Just gotta copy and paste."

And Kaden did just that. Via was slightly surprised as he seemed to complete the task with ease.

"Not bad!" Via exclaimed excitedly. "Let's ramp it up then."

Via fell backward but stopped herself about a foot off of the ground. She floated parallel to the ground without moving in the slightest.

"Think of the air essence that's coming from your hands and feet as four engines. Each one propels you, and if any one of them goes out, then the others have to work harder. Now, there's obviously air around your entire body, and you need to think of it as an extension of your body. If you tilt too far in any direction, then it's the air around your body that you should use to stabilize yourself."

"So right now, it's like you're laying on a bed of air." Kaden stated.

"I guess you can say that. Try it yourself."

Kaden hesitated more this time as he had never attempted something like this before. Even so, he still followed through and gave it a shot. Like a trust fall, Kaden threw himself backward and tried to catch himself, but the amount of air essence he used wasn't enough to hold his weight. He ended up falling flat onto the grass.

"The amount of air essence you use is gonna have to be greater than what you used to levitate because you're not just holding your weight. You're stopping it when it's in motion." Via exclaimed as she floated back onto her feet.

"You could've said that before I tried. Yet you chose not to." Kaden replied, staring up into the sky.

"I'm back." Aaron announced as he walked up, holding three gliders. "I've gotten a bit use to the way Aestus does things. This country actually has an economy."

"So you had to pay for those?" Kaden questioned.

"No, thankfully, General Gao got us sorted out, but these are only rentals. If we destroy them, then we'll have to pay for it."

"With what money?"

"Can I see one?" Via asked politely while walking up to Aaron.

Aaron gave her one, and she immediately began to inspect it.

"Wow, it's a lot lighter than I thought it would be." Via exclaimed. "Is this bamboo? It feels hollow inside."

"Maybe I should ask General Gao if she knows anybody available to teach us how to use these."

After looking at Aaron with a bit of confusion, Via analyzed the glider once more while walking towards the edge of the column. She then gave both Kaden and Aaron a cheeky grin before falling over the edge.

"..."

"You worried about her?" Kaden questioned.

"Nope. You?"

"Nah."

Surely enough, Via naturally became comfortable using the glider fairly quickly. She zipped under bridges and around columns with a bright smile on her face.

"What do you think about this task ahead of us?" Aaron questioned as he stood next to Kaden.

"First of all, I think Tuzi is a coward." Kaden responded. "If it were my daughter in this situation, I myself would be knocking down every door in the country to figure out who's messing around."

"But it's not your daughter, Kade. Every man handles things differently, and I... to an extent, understand his perspective. He doesn't want to be remembered as the emperor who sent the country into a civil war, but he's still doing what he can to find his daughter. I do think he's withholding information though."

"Of course he is."

"... You talked to N after the trial?" Aaron asked after looking around.

"Yeah, and he was slightly... different from before." Kaden answered.

"Different how?"

"... I always had it in my head that he has his ulterior motives for giving us these random pieces of information. But I guess I figured... or I thought of it as if we helped him, he'd help us. Whatever helping may be. Now, it just feels like he's using us."

"I always got the feeling that he was using us, I was just more concerned about what we are being used for. Did he give you any hints on the bigger picture?"

"He told me more about himself, but that's it. Apparently, he's an angel or something along those lines, and there are four others like him that look over this realm."

"He's not the only one, huh?"

"You thinking what I'm thinking?" Kaden questioned as Aaron gazed up and rubbed his chin.

"The problem is probably with one of those others." Aaron stated. "He wouldn't interfere with humans otherwise... I think so, at least."

"No, I think the same thing. He wants me to complete all the gates so I can get some kind of ability. It's the only reason he's going out of his way to give us information. Haaaaa."

Kaden released a long, winded sigh as he fell back onto his back.

"There's too much we don't know." Kaden remarked.

VWOOSH!

Flying extremely quickly, Via burst above the surface, blowing a sudden gust of wind over Kaden and Aaron.

"We'll talk more later." Aaron stated.

"One more thing." Kaden quickly responded. "He told me to protect Via. He singled out Via and specifically told me to protect her."

"A-Any idea why?"

"Of course not."

Via landed just in front of the boys, still smiling from excitement from testing out the glider

"This thing makes flying so much easier!" Via exclaimed.

"You gonna hog all the fun for yourself, or are you gonna teach us how to use it too?" Kaden questioned as he got back up into a sitting position.

"You need to learn how to fly without it first."

Kaden and Via continued to bicker back and forth as Aaron's attention slipped away into thought.