A tall young man in a loose purple silk gown leaned on his arm against the silk cushioned side of a large, lavish day bed. His posture relaxed but exuded a certain elegant grace. His slender fingers tapped on the silver half mask of a wolf next to him.
Loose strands of his long, dark brown hair fell on his broad shoulders and across his partially revealed muscular chest. He loosened the tight side plaits, which left a thick band of wavy curls in their stead.
His different colored eyes lined with thick curly lashes created a look of dominance. He gazed with a faint smile at the prostrated healer trembling before him, like a cat about to toy with a mouse. He narrowed his eyes at the healer.
"Report his condition," the man spoke with a low yet slow, dangerous melody which resonated with a sinister glint in his eyes.
The healer didn't dare to get up, sensing a hidden peril. He remained in his prostrated position for fear of offending the one who held the power of life and death over his family and his own miserable life.
The healer felt dizzy after spending the entire night trying to stop the injured man's bleeding. In the prostration position, the healer could still close his drooping eyelids for momentary relief. His hands and fingers haven't stopped trembling from cauterizing the wounds.
"Your Eminence, the poison prevented his blood from clotting. I burnt the bleeding parts to stop the bleeding, but his blood loss was —" he mumbled, struggling to stay awake.
"Get to the point," the man interrupted softly with a yawn and stretch, glancing at his slender fingers in boredom.
"He's not in immediate danger but he can still…," the healer trailed off and gulped.
Before the poor healer could utter the word 'die', a hand gripped his neck and lifted him off the ground with ease. The healer choked and gagged, desperately clawing at the hand for dear life. His legs hung kicking in the air. Next, the healer found himself flying towards the wooden wall panels.
"I say, Ashina, why the foul mood?" A man entered through the door. He dodged the flying body of the hapless healer, who hit the wooden panel with a thud.
"Teshukeni," Ashina spoke as though nothing happened. His attention turned on his wrist, which he rotated with a cracking sound akin to cracking the knuckles. "What brings you here?"
Teshukeni pitied the pale-looking healer and shook his head at the stunned man. A hint to him to stay silent. He knew Ashina's temper well since they grew up together. Any further ire would cause bloodshed.
Despite the clean appearance of the room, the almost indiscernible dark stains on the wooden wall panels spoke of countless blood splatters, dismembered limbs, and death.
At the side of the daybed, the translucent smoke rising from an incense burner dissipated the aromatic earthy fragrance of agaru, a resin harvested painstakingly from a tree. The intense, dark woody smell covered the metallic smell of old dried blood and kept snakes away.
Teshukeni knew the formulation intended to relax Ashina. Ashina didn't look relaxed. He looked too calm, with a face akin to a wooden statue. Like a coming storm, ready to wreak havoc. The more Ashina suppressed his emotions, the more unpredictable and volatile his reactions would be.
Anyone who saw him now would think of Ashina's genteel regal bearing. What a joke. No one, except Teshukeni, was aware that a personality worthy of a demon from the darkest regions of hell lurked deep below Ashina's handsome countenance.
From a young age, Ashina displayed little or no empathy to others. He was born into power. Those beneath him were lives no better than the ants he squashed under his feet. Their existence didn't matter. Only his will and orders mattered.
Worse, Ashina had an innate talent for manipulation. He could mimic benevolent personalities and deceive others into believing that he was a reasonable person.
His opponents only had one chance of retreat. If they didn't back off, they ended up dead. Tortured. Mutilated. Quartered. Their unrecognisable corpses dumped into their family's residence. Or fed to the wolves in front of their family members for his entertainment.
Teshukeni headed the information network within the Simurg. He is one of Ashina's many older noble cousins, only a few years older but the only one to grow up with him, and bear witness to the many victims of Ashina's unpredictable temperament.
"Heard you brought back an injured man," Teshukeni said. "They tell me he shares your eyes."
"And your business is digging up information about me?" Ashina narrowed his eyes again. Teshukeni felt his own palms grow sweaty.
Ashina exuded a natural presence of authority, even in his childhood. He never shouted or wailed like other kids. One stare from Ashina was enough to cause someone, even an adult, to shrink back in fear for their lives.
"Well, no. Just heard…never mind." Teshukeni waved his hand in an air of dismissal.
"He shares not only my eyes. He is my reflection," Ashina said. "Ask if you want to know more."
Teshukeni recognised Ashina's style of throwing veiled threats and regretted mentioning the man.
This man resembled Ashina for a reason — a possible surviving twin. The Imperial Xirong family never allowed twins to survive, especially if one was eligible for selection to head the Simurg as the chief commander, or rule the Xirong empire. Their shamans decided the fate of which twin would live.
Teshukeni's instinct for survival weighed more than his need to satiate his curiosity. He shook his head in polite refusal. Less he knew, the better. What Ashina did was to trample on the old ways of their shamanistic traditions.
"There's a new rumor around. One of the Dayan Prince is using the waterways of the Sita to transport assassins from their borders," Teshukeni said, hoping to change the topic. Acting too clever in front of Ashina often shorten lifespans of those whom he grew annoyed with.
The Sita waterways were a sore border issue between the two formidable empires. Both sides agreed never to transport any military personnel or equipment along the waterways. Assassins counted as military personnel when they took a step on another foreign soil.
If true, this violated a ceasefire.
"Who's spreading that rumor?" Ashina smirked.
"The Qisha syndicate is the origin."
Ashina snorted at Teshukeni's answer and ignored the whimpering healer who crawled to the corner. The room fell silent while Ashina returned to his daybed and sat down.
Teshukeni waited for a cue to continue.
"Someone wants to use us as a blade to kill off that…what's his name?" Ashina looked uninterested, running his finger along the silk lining of the cushion.
"Huqi," Teshukeni replied.
They knew Huqi well. The only Dayan Prince whose territory had shared access to the Sita waterways. Ashina was not stupid — the one who spread the news was that young Grand Prince Yinyue whom he met yesterday. What a little troublemaker, he thought.
Ashina thought of Yinyue's pale face ordering men to snatch the Taotang Prince from his hands. Right in front of his face. He smirked.
At least his plan didn't fall apart. Ashina found someone better — a person he thought was dead until their first encounter.
Ashina glanced at the quivering healer hiding in the corner. He had forgotten about him. The healer reminded him of a frightened rabbit. No point in tormenting him further. He still needed the healer to continue treating the man.
"Just remember what I said," Ashina told the healer under Teshukeni's watchful gaze. With a wave of Ashina's hand, the grateful healer scrambled out of the room, almost tripping over the door sill in his haste.
Ashina turned his attention to Teshukeni and said, "If that young Dayan Grand Prince wants to play with fire, we'll just help to fan the flames. Who gets burnt is another matter."
"Huqi isn't THAT young…," Teshukeni muttered, wondering what Ashina was thinking. Wasn't Huqi older or around the same age as Ashina?
"Not Huqi." Ashina wagged his finger.
Teshukeni scratched his head and his eyes brightened. "That one who made Gaoyang cry to us?"
Ashina nodded and closed his eyes, as though in deep contemplation.
"So, what do you plan to do?"
"Inspect their trading ships heading for and departing from the Dayan ports." Ashina spoke with his eyes still closed.
"Ahhh…the classic rob and run." Teshukeni chuckled.
"Can't blame us if we confiscate suspected contraband," Ashina said while opening his eyes slowly. "Don't harm those trading ships, just give them the news about Dayan using trading ships as a cover to transport their troops into the Black Mountains."
Teshukeni snickered at his words. Suspected contraband could mean anything. And traders didn't like to get involved with military matters of sovereign nations.
"Shall I help spread that rumor further?"
Ashina smiled and replied, "of course. Can't refuse a gift when it's offered so willingly."