EY 3137 (A year before main events):

  It was the height of autumn and the trees surrounding the clearing on the bank of the river were glorious in every shade of fire. On the other side of the river the leaves were still a vibrant green, causing the bubbling rapids to look like emerald scales sliding just under the surface.

  This year's competition site would have been highly acclaimed for that alone, but on top of the natural beauty the clearing itself was a picturesque ruin of tumbling stone and wood destroyed in a tragic battle of two feuding families. Now it served as seating for the audience who had strived to reach this remote place.

  Elegant silks and practical linen arrayed themselves over the ancient stones, perched at all heights in entirely typical fashion for those who followed the path of the Emerald Dragon. Notably it was a test of their Engineering knowledge as well as their ability to Climb - to know which perches could hold a person's weight and which could not.

  The third skill of the Emerald Dragon was what they were gathering to watch, the river and collapsed wall forming a perfect stage for this year's performances.

  When the light shafting through the destroyed upper layers of the ruin landed in the centre of the 'stage', Hanshi, the High Priest of Emerald Dragon walked out. The veil that denoted his rank hanging from the brim of his priest hat caught a breeze, a bright flare of emerald cloth catching the light before the audience quietened.

  "Welcome, all of you, to the Contest of the Emerald Dragon." Hanshi said, voice quiet in the silence, "I congratulate all of you on the display of your Path it took to reach this place, but now we strive still higher. Some of you will Perform through song, story and displays of martial prowess. Others have brought great feats of Engineering to show us. But all of you know the heart of our Path of Heaven is that we can always reach higher."

  He lifted his head and looked around the audience, "In this I advise you to learn from each other and also your surroundings, for sometimes the greatest of stories lies hidden in plain sight." He unfurled one arm to illustrate the ruin and the sunlight brightened for just a moment to highlight the emerald cloth with bronze details. "For example, this ruin used to belong to the Chi family, a family of fiery tempers and fierce pride."

  The audience settled in for the opening performance with a sigh of familiarity. Thankfully for them the High Priest was the organiser of the contest rather than a participant, meaning that he was not at risk of winning the prize. This rarely stopped anyone trying to outdo the opening performance - no Child of the Emerald Dragon skilled enough to attend the Contest shied from a challenge - but Hanshi prided himself that most didn't succeed.

  He told the story of how the Chi family, arrogant enough to name themselves after the lifeblood of the world, had angered their neighbours and led to a feud that saw both families destroyed, the final members forsaking their surnames and vanishing into the wilderness. The only remnants of the once mighty clans were the ruins they sat in, reminding the Empire of what happened when you built too high without solid foundations.

  The audience applauded and the High Priest of the Emerald Dragon bowed to the audience, then the river.

  If he concentrated then he could imagine that the gurgling water was applause.

  With that the contest truly began and the High Priest called out names from his list of those who had signed up to perform. Of course there would also be those who hadn't found him or the temple in the time before the contest - or simply those who wanted to make a dramatic entrance. Personally he was betting on the three in dark cloaks being the latter, but he hoped that at least one of them would do the dramatic reveal in the middle of the competition rather than having them all clumped at the end and cheapening each others' reveals.

  It truly was an honour being allowed to witness the performances of those at the pinnacle of the Path of Heaven. Some of them were hermits who dedicated all of their time to the path that by this point were old friends he met once a year. Hanshi could admit that those people probably were better than him, but they didn't have to balance perfecting their path with guiding the rest of the Empire. Being the High Priest of one of the 12 major pillars of the Empire's religion was not an easy duty, but it was one that he had grown into and there were plenty of unexpected lessons he had learnt from teaching others.

  His attention shifted back to the performances as one of said hermits approached the stage and began to dance. The sheer skill of the fan dance made the fact they were wearing practical linen robes seem unimportant - no, that wasn't it. Hanshi mused on his reaction for a moment. The elegance of the dance made it seem like all the people that were dressed finely were trying too hard. That anyone could look brilliant with amazing costumes, but it took the truly skilled to be able to perform with nothing but ordinary cloth.

  That was another challenge hidden in the contest - you couldn't have a set. If a team had come with a set they could swiftly and easily put together - that was a show of Engineering, but any set would block the view of the river and therefore the most important audience member. It was a tricky balance, and one that Hanshi looked forward to someone trying to attempt.

  —

  The performances wound on through the day, drawing awe, laughter and tears from the crowd; and while there were a few wince worthy mistakes the majority of the performances were excellent. As Hanshi had hoped, someone brought a small wheeled wooden block glinting with hinges onto the stage. The compact size was misleading, the engineer promptly unfolding wooden 'limbs' that swung out into branches for a tree or the frame of a door. Even better - the next performer used it, tossing the scarf they used for one character over the door to make a proper screen for a costume change.

  Shortly after lunch, however, this changed. The applause from the previous performance was winding down and everyone was having their brief discussion while Hanshi jotted down his own notes.

  He went to go and find the next performer's name, but a sparrow zipped across the stage, distracting him at the crucial moment. It landed on a branch that dipped so close to the river that Hanshi worried the small bird would get swept away. Instead the sparrow was tempting fate, barely inches above the rapids with an undeniably smug look. Given the release of held breath from the audience Hanshi hadn't been the only one distracted.

  Now that the bird was not facing imminent demise he found himself able to concentrate on the list again, but before he could read the next name there was a ripple of motion from the opposite bank. A figure leapt into view in a flare of white, his sleeves billowing as long black hair tied into a low ponytail with a ribbon trailed behind him. Hanshi nearly mistook him for a funerary priest before he realised there was no priest hem, hat or secondary colour.

  Ah, Graceful Swan robes then. Now that he was looking he could tell they were pearl white as opposed to bone white. A moment later those sleeves beat down like wings, allowing the man to double jump in mid air. Hanshi's eyebrows shot up. That was the sign of a Grandmaster, and given that the man was here there was really only one person he could be.

  Which was impressive given that he had been assumed dead two years before.

  The man landed on the rocks in the centre, then blinked as he realised he had unintentionally landed on the stage. Whispers erupted as the regulars recognised their guest.

  "Is that Grandmaster of the Graceful Swan?!"

  "I thought his school declared him dead?"

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  "Who wouldn't after he confronted the Black Magistrate and didn't return?"

  "Do you think he won? Are we free of them?"

  "Well their cultists are certainly still around."

  "Maybe he took two years to recover?"

  "This is going to cause the school such a headache with the paperwork."

  "Maybe they'll let him be a Grandmaster but not the Grandmaster?"

  "Or they'll find him a different fancy title, you know what people are like."

  Hanshi's mouth tugged in a smile as he decided such an entrance couldn't be wasted. "Grandmaster Han-Chi-Tao, it's been some time."

  "Two years." The man agreed, the hesitancy vanishing as he took the invitation Hanshi offered, "It is good to be back. The world outside the Empire is a strange place."

  Oh Hanshi did enjoy bouncing off those as skilled in the Autumn Dragon as he was, "Will you be singing of your travels for us?" he gestured to the audience that had suddenly fallen silent, "There are many people curious about what happened when you confronted the Black Magistrate."

  Han-Chi-Tao paused for a moment, grey eyes clouded with memories before he lifted his head, "After the fight I found myself wandering in a forest beyond the end of the Silk Road and then further still, over a cold sea to an island where a boy who didn't seek to be King became the leader of spirits as well as humans."

  With that Han-Chi-Tao began to sing and the audience fell silent. This was utterly unlike any other song Hanshi - or probably any of them - had ever heard. There was no doubt that Han-Chi-Tao sang it to perfection, but the key was clearly foreign. Likewise the tension beats were different, instead of a steady climb and catharsis the tension rose and dipped. It even had humourous interludes where the honourable young Arthur managed to gain small wins against his short tempered but more martially skilled foster brother Kay.

  History was littered with such stories of siblings and the familiar plotline made it easier for the audience to reconcile with the strange format. By the time they reached the tournament both Hanshi and the audience were fully invested. Hanshi actually felt sorry for Kay when the brothers forgot his sword at home - every performer had been through that mortification and rapid improvisation.

  When Arthur crept into the graveyard Han-Chi-Tao sang soft and low, and Hanshi approved of how he had borrowed the cadence used in temple rites to signify that this was a holy moment.

  It was narratively obvious what had to happen, and yet the trailing note emphasising the wait before the sword was pulled sent chills down Hanshi's spine.

  The audience celebrated with the boy as he pulled the sword and - after the inevitable doubt and testing of the Divine Right - the 'old family friend' confirmed that Arthur's parents had been the previous King and Queen, slain by treachery and their son hidden away in safety with Kay's family. The Old family friend became the young king's advisor and his loyal, if boorish brother his steward, both pledging to support him and the kingdom from that moment forth.

  Many of the audience nodded in satisfaction at the familiar tactics, murmuring among themselves that succession politics didn't change no matter where you came from.

  But everyone was caught up in the raw emotion of the moment; The acknowledgement of worth after so many years fighting to be seen; The feeling of missing pieces finally slotting into place to finally finding where he belonged; and his family bound to him all the tighter in loyalty and familial love.

  Thunderous applause rose as Han-Chi-Tao bowed. Hanshi eventually stepped forward to quiet everyone, clapping even harder than the rest, "I suspect that you truly have found a song that the Empire has never heard before. That must have taken a lot of effort to transpose into our style with that key."

  Han-Chi-Tao gave a deep bow, "I thank you for the great compliment you have given me, High Priest. I am relieved that my time spent away from the Empire has not dulled my skills."

  Hanshi smiled, "They only seem to have improved. We will have to discuss the other stories you've collected later at the banquet."

  Han-Chi-Tao bowed and retreated to the audience, recognising his cue, "Of course, thank you High Priest."

  —

  The performances continued, but none quite topped the surprise reappearance of their old friend, the novelty of their song or the emotion that he had packed into the final moments of the performance.

  Eventually no one else stood to perform, the clearing quiet as the sun dipped toward the crest of the mountains. The plateau they were on was higher than most, but there were still higher peaks, a reminder that there was always further to climb.

  As the sun sank the mountain ridge lit up like a wildfire and the audience fell into a strange silence with baited breath. This was yet another performance, but one put on by nature itself, the searing golden sunlight spreading from ridge to forest and river, highlighting just how green it was.

  The light raced down the river, tension rising as it approached the ruins. The observant among them had realised that the sun couldn't reach this hollow naturally, the only question was what would happen at the point when it was cut off?

  The River surged upward, the last flash of sunset catching the flying droplets to light the Great Immortal from behind in a natural firework as tall as the ruins they sat in. Gold contrasted vivid Emerald, coils stretching back along the river and into the mountains as Qiū Lóng at last showed himself in all his glory.

  When he looked down on them with eyes as full of emotion as the performances he so enjoyed watching, everyone knelt as one. When he moved it was with the precision of a master engineer and the grace of a dancer, lowering his head in a nod that was a bow in return.

  Yet when he spoke, it was soft enough to not hurt their ears, for all it was as magnificent as everything else about him. "My friends, raise your heads, for you have given me much joy with your performances and it is only the first day of the Pageant."

  As one the regular attendees raised their heads. The dedicants here for the first time were slower, clearly overawed. Hanshi could understand why - for the rest of the pageant he walked among in human form or a draconic one on a human scale, the perfect host in the palace carpeted in golden leaves. He put everyone at ease and effortlessly dipped in and out of performances, magnanimous and vibrant to the point where it was easy to forget they were the embodiment of a Path of Heaven, because he preferred it that way.

  But the Dragons were born from nature. Qiū Lóng was one of the most personable Immortals, yes, but that was because he was the magnanimity of Autumn.

  Let the Ruby Dragon followers be intimidated by the blazing sun! Let the Sapphire deal with spring's changing moods and Alabaster the harshness of winter! Hanshi would always choose the one who walked among their people because people came together for the harvest, who encouraged people to enjoy the bounty of nature and company.

  The other priests mocked their patron sometimes, saying that it undermined their position to be present rather than distant and enigmatic. Fools. Such interactions did not demean his majesty, they defined it, but it was only in this sacred moment that mortals could understand the true scale of Autumn.

  The sheer awe and majesty never failed to move Hanshi, and he treasured each one of these sacred moments he had the honour to witness.

  Qiū Lóng continued to speak, voice as warm as autumn winds. "You have all performed amazingly - but there is only one I can choose to highlight as my Champion. The one who will serve as a beacon to strive towards for the next year."

  The audience waited, all eyes on their Patron as he let the tension grow, "This year we have someone who clearly followed the principle of striving in both the physical realm and their performance." Great eyes turned to Han-Chi-Tao, "Congratulations, that was truly something that had not been witnessed before."

  Han-Chi-Tao stepped forward and bowed deeply. The Emerald Dragon smiled, his approval brightening the remnants of the light. "Grandmaster Han-Chi-Tao of the Graceful Swan School, I name you my Champion for this year and grant you a boon of your choice."

  The audience erupted into applause as Han-Chi-Tao straightened, smile bright with pride and enjoying the moment before his expression clouded and the applause died down, everyone sensing that there was something more to this.

  When the Grandmaster spoke he almost looked guilty, "I am ashamed to admit that I did not come here purely for the joy of performing. When I confronted the Black Magistrate Dom Mak in the Cave of Origins his most vicious attacks were not his sorcery or martial arts, but words."

  Han-Chi-Tao lifted his head, resolute as he met his Immortal's gaze, "I did not win, but I survived. He told me his plans, and the depth of that heresy rocked me. He explained the reasons why he turned to such blasphemous acts and it almost made sense." He looked away, and Hanshi had to wonder why he was confessing to such thoughts in public. "It took me two years to recover from that fight, not just because I ended up halfway across the world, but because I needed to settle my heart and mind. I found my way back to the path of honour, but now I must decide what to do with that information."

  Han-Chi-Tao knelt, a petitioner desperate for guidance. Ah, so that was why he was doing this here, he needed to call on Qiū Lóng as the Immortal, not as the pageant's host. "So I come to you, the most honourable being I know, my favoured Immortal, to help guide my path. If he told the truth about what he intends to do then I must act, but I cannot risk becoming a pawn manipulated by lies. This is the boon I request: I ask you whether what Dom Mak told me is the truth."

  The leaves rustling in the wind only seemed to highlight the silence as Han-Chi-Tao held his position, awaiting the immortal's judgement.

  After several long seconds the Emerald Dragon moved, eyelids lowering in sympathy. "You have a difficult path ahead of you, my Champion. Rest here for now and enjoy the Pageant of Autumn, I will ask my sister the Unborn Serpent and get the answer to you before the end, for she is the only one who would know such a secret."

  Han-Chi-Tao bowed deeply, "My deepest thanks, Great Qiū Lóng. That is a weight off my mind."

  The dragon smiled kindly and stepped forward, the coils pulling in and fading into a magnificently dressed man in green and gold robes that dragged behind him like a tail. Twining antlers rose from long hair that was clearly his mane and despite the difference in the shape of his mouth, his brilliant smile was still the same.

  He rested a hand on Han-Chi-Tao's shoulder in sympathy before starting to steer them towards the path back down the mountain, "For now, let us put aside such heavy matters, we have a feast to attend and a winner's performance for you to display our Path."

  The Emerald Dragon lifted his head, brilliant voice ringing out across the mountains, "Let the Pageant of Autumn begin!"

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