While neighbouring districts boasted 80 and 90 storeys, Kowloon’s capital of District Yu capped all but one of its structures at a modest eight floors. Right in the heart of Yu, rising above the rest, loomed the exception to the rule: the Yaozhi dynasty’s tower, a giant of glass, ceramic and steel that defiantly claimed its 30-storey throne.

  From the inside, its occupants gazed down upon the sprawling yet shallow metropolis of Yu through one of its many windows, as if the Kingmakers were deities surveying their realm. But the moment you looked at the district borders, this unique vantage point lost all power.

  In reality, the tower’s 30-levels were a mere blip on the radar amidst the towering monoliths of Districts Yau, Chau Liu, Pak and Tsin Wai. These colossal structures surrounding the diminutive Yu district cast long shadows that sometimes felt benign, and other times felt like they threatened to engulf them all.

  Most Kingmakers who glanced outside from the windows of the tower learned to ignore the ugly world beyond their district’s bubble. However, Praefect Tao had always struggled to do this. His gaze was often drawn inexorably to the imposing groundscrapers that walled their district in.

  What was he supposed to do when he looked at that monolithic barrier, staring back at him like an impassive guard? Pretend they didn’t exist as other Kingmakers did?

  ‘Tao,’ Cheng called out from the front of the classroom. He was leaning against the lecturer’s table, his posture relaxed, a rarity for the tribune.

  ‘Yes, sir?’

  ‘You look worried. Is it about General Qin Shi’s summon?’

  ‘He’s never called for a meeting like this. What if he kicks me out of the detachment for what Yutai and I did, sir?’

  ‘Not a chance. He’ll be going over our plans for a rescue, that’s it. I think he’ll put you, me, Shing and Ushi in charge of Yutai’s return.’

  ‘What about Lieutenant Keung?’

  ‘He’s… not going to be on the field for a while. We’re all Yutai’s got for now.’

  The memory of Yutai’s disappearance was still fresh in Tao’s mind. No… It wasn’t a disappearance; it was a kidnapping, Tao admonished himself, feeling the crushing weight of his role in it. He could’ve and should’ve stopped him. Instead, he became his accomplice. Now, he had to deal with Shing’s wrath. Tao prepared himself, all too aware of just how volatile Yutai’s closest friend could be.

  ‘They’re here,’ Cheng announced, looking up at the entrance. As the door slid open, the atmosphere grew heavier, and Tao turned his attention to the figure who walked in first.

  ‘Shing, stop! Don’t say anything to him! Wasn’t his fault!’ echoed from outside the door as Shing stormed through, his face contorted with anger.

  Tao stood dumbstruck as Shing closed the distance between him in an instant, his eyes blazing with fury.

  ‘You dumb, selfish piece of shit!’ Shing snarled. Tao almost lost his footing as Shing seized him by the collar of his trench coat. ‘How the fuck did you lose your brother?!’ Shing’s knuckles were digging into Tao’s jaw like a vice.

  ‘Shing, calm down!’ Cheng called from across the room, quickly vaulting off the table and sprinting up the steps towards them.

  Tao’s eyes flickered between Shing’s left and right, as if unsure which one to address. ‘I… I…’

  ‘You mute motherfucker!’ Shing shook Tao, nearly hitting his head against the window behind them. ‘Give me an answer! What were you doing in the south with Yutai? How in the hell did Yutai get kidnapped? Answer me!’

  Tao willed himself to remain calm. Dong, please give me the strength to rise above this. I knew I wronged Yutai, but I’ve hurt Shing as well.

  Cheng reached out from behind, trying to pull Shing off Tao, his voice pleading. ‘Brother, stop – this isn’t the time!’

  Air rushed back into Tao’s lungs as Shing released a hand and elbowed the Tribune behind him. The strike unknowingly hit his jaw, and Cheng stumbled back, clutching the corner of a nearby seat and table for support. His superior looked like he almost blacked out from the strike.

  Shing’s voice dropped low. ‘Answer me when I ask you a question, Tao! Why the hell did you drag Yutai into Ho Man fucking Ting?! Did that big brain up there forget—’

  A pair of thick arms locked around Shing’s chest and waist, but somehow Shing inched closer to Tao. ‘Leave him alone, Shing!’ Ushi exclaimed.

  ‘TALK!’ Shing spat, somehow unaffected by Ushi’s hold. ‘I’m not moving until I hear your answer!’

  ‘Zyu ah, gau nei joon, loen keu, jan wai keu, thau zo seng,’ muttered Tao.

  ‘You think this is a joke?! You want to pray now, you fucking zealot?!’

  ‘I’m sorry, okay? What else do you want from me?’

  ‘To fucking swap places with Yutai, that’s what!’

  ‘You’re crazy! Get your hands off me before I—’ exclaimed Tao.

  ‘Before you what?’ Shing pulled Tao’s collar higher. ‘I will snap your scrawny neck before you even lift a finger!’

  ‘I dare you to try with this hold, motherfucker,’ Ushi growled next to his ear from behind.

  Tao felt Shing’s weight shift back as Ushi pulled and tightened his grip.

  ‘ENOUGH!’ Cheng’s voice thundered through the room. ‘YOU! OUT! WITH ME, NOW!’

  Ushi let go of Shing as Cheng clutched the sharpshooter by his coat and dragged him towards the door of the classroom.

  As they exited the room, Tao gingerly touched the sore spot on his jaw where Shing had dug in his knuckles and winced at the residual pain.

  ‘You okay, brother?’ Ushi asked as he awkwardly patted Tao’s shoulder, his tone softer now.

  Tao sighed heavily. ‘Yeah, yeah. I probably deserved to hear some of that. I don’t really have an answer for how I allowed Yutai to get captured. It’s all a blur for me.’

  ‘That doesn’t matter anymore because we’re gonna bust him out. I know these Rioters, okay? They wouldn’t dare do anything to a Kingmaker. He’s probably in some cosy cell, warning them of retribution after he gets out.’

  Tao nodded slowly, unsure if that was true. The Rioters are different now, and Ushi was the last to see that. If the Yang are leading them, then they’ve captured their first ever live Kingmaker. There’s no telling what they’ll do. The thought twisted in his gut. He reached for the prayer beads around his neck, fingers checking they were still intact, then began murmuring a prayer for each one he touched.

  Minutes later, the backdoor slid open again, revealing Cheng and Shing. Shing had fallen into an unsettling silence, his sullen demeanour a stark contrast to his earlier rage. Tao noticed his right cheek flushed red in contrast to his other, paler cheek. Whatever happened outside, a slap was definitely involved.

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  Shing took a seat in a distant corner of the classroom and pulled his cap down over his face. Cheng settled near the front, while Ushi and Tao took seats next to each other near the middle.

  The impending arrival of the Elder Dragon, General Qin Shi, had them all on edge. He was known to be the most unyielding and formidable of the four generals, a man you didn’t cross lightly. Legend swirled around this seasoned warrior, and his reputation for rarely breaking into a smile was as fearsome as his martial arts prowess.

  General Qin Shi commanded a level of respect no one else in Kowloon could rival. His relationship with the Emperor surpassed that of Denzhen, the Emperor’s younger brother. The Qin Shi name carried the weight of countless honours, titles, and lands. For everyone in the room but Tribune Cheng, this would be their first official meeting with the man.

  The door whooshed open and General Qin Shi entered the room. His arrival made the atmosphere heavier, a weight that followed him wherever he went. There was no knock as all four generals possessed unfettered access throughout the tower.

  His eyes were like steel, behind small, circular spectacles. His thinned, white hair was tied in a ponytail behind him. Across his forehead was a single, thin line tattoo.

  General Qin Shi took his position at the front of the lecture room and cast a reproachful look across the room.

  ‘By the Light, I wish all your reports were bad jokes written by foolhardy centurions. For all of you in this room, this is the first time the South has struck against the Kingmakers. But for many others in this tower, it’s the second. Now I have to see whether I’ll live through a second rebellion as well.’

  Qin Shi paused and regarded them all.

  ‘Two Rioters attacked Lieutenant Keung, Tribune Cheng, and two accompanying Tai Li members in broad lamplight in the middle of Ho Man Ting City. Assault and battering a Kingmaker is punishable by lingchi. I hereby order those two dragged out and bled dry – a thousand cuts each. Nothing will be forgiven until they reach the afterlife in multiple pieces, and that will only be the start of it.’

  Tao felt a swell of anxiety as the sentence was delivered. Lingchi, he thought. He’d seen the oil paintings. The carving of your body, piece by piece. First the thighs, then the arms, and finally the belly – fat and muscle peeled down to bone with surgical precision. If the prisoner was lucky, the executioner might accidentally hit an artery and kill them with the initial cuts. But if done properly, and the eyes weren’t cut out first, the prisoner remained conscious enough to see everything done to them throughout the entire horrific process.

  He shuddered at the gruesome demise that awaited the two Rioters. And the general handed out the grave sentence like it was a trivial reprimand. Tao’s gut gurgled at the grim images he was imagining, when suddenly the general looked right at him. Tao almost choked.

  ‘And then there’s their surprise move at the fort – Praefect Yutai’s arrest. I’ve read your report, Praefect Tao. It doesn’t address one key question: why you and Yutai decided to take on this assignment in the first place.’ The general’s voice hardened. ‘Wiretapping the fort? You’ve risked all-out war with such a brazen move. Not even your own team knew about this unsanctioned mission. To call it irresponsible doesn’t begin to capture how unfitting it was for praefecti of your and Yutai’s calibre.’

  Silence reigned, as Tao had no response. At that time, Yutai’s decision to infiltrate the fort had seemed like a straightforward plan, a necessary step in their investigation into the Ibilis. Lieutenant Keung was still willing to give the Rioters a second chance, even as it became obvious to everyone else that they’d gone rogue. With the Emperor’s 100-cycle deadline to dismantle the Yang looming over them, Tao and Yutai had felt justified in turning to radical tactics, like wiretapping Fort Ho Man Ting.

  But now, Tao couldn’t defend that logic. Their plan had failed. He stood up to address the general.

  ‘I am sorry, sir. The error was mine alone. It’s caused me to reconsider my approach in how I help my brothers. I need to do better, sir.’

  General Qin Shi studied the prefect a moment longer. His eyes, sharp and sunken beneath heavy, white brows, seemed to bore straight through the praefect’s skull, searching for weakness. The deep lines carved into the general’s weathered face gave him the look of a man who had seen too much and forgiven little. Tao knew his facial expression, tone, and body language was being scrutinised. These were the metrics by which the sincerity of his remorse would be judged. He resisted the urge to shift under Qin Shi’s gaze and remained with his head lowered. If he was unlucky, he could face a formal review of his rank, an outcome that would set his Kingmaker career back by decades. If not, he might escape with a beating, or even better, just a sharp reprimand.

  ‘An error that was both yours and Yutai’s. Sit back down, Praefect.’ General Qin Shi said as he turned to face the rest of the room. Tao exhaled a deep breath and sat back down. He felt the vice around his skull lifting, and his shoulders loosened. The other Kingmakers present were laser focused on the general, a testament to their readiness to plan for Yutai’s rescue.

  ‘The Emperor and I have discussed this matter. There will be no negotiations with Ho Man Ting, only demands from our side.’

  ‘Why not, sir?’ Cheng asked in a respectful tone. The general nodded to him and he stood up. ‘Negotiating with Warlord Xinjian could, at best, secure Yutai’s release – or at worst, not change our current circumstances.’

  ‘A lesser gang might waste time on formalities and appeasement. But Kingmakers don’t ask for what was ours to begin with,’ he replied without hesitation. ‘We take it. And after we do, we tell them what their punishments will be. Is that clear to you all?’ General Qin Shi folded his arms and swept the group with his gaze.

  ‘Yes, sir,’ all four responded in unison and Tribune Cheng sat back down.

  ‘Good. You four will lead the active front of this mission. I’ve selected some tribunes to support you from the Tower. They’ve been trying to locate Yutai by monitoring the chatter of the Nanfang gangsters. But their law-enforcement operations in the city have been normal. It’s unlikely Ho Man Ting’s public-facing gangsters had anything to do with this. All signs point to the Rioter’s acting on Warlord Xinjian’s orders alone. This puts Yutai either in some off-grid Tien Tao safehouse, or he’s still in the fort. Either way, we’ll soon find out.’

  The general turned to face Tao once more, who felt his heartbeat increase.

  ‘Praefect, tell me you and Yutai managed to plant something in the fort. Anything that can give us access to their internal communications?’

  Tao’s eyes lowered. ‘I’m sorry, sir. Yutai was captured planting the first tap.’

  General Qin Shi exhaled sharply through his nose, then turned back to address the room. ‘Very well, our only choice is to deploy a Yu spike. Tribune Cheng, as the current most senior member of this detachment, you’ll lead the operation. Set up a spike on the tallest Ho Man Ting groundscraper. Start listening to anything you can hear from the fort.’

  ‘Understood, sir.’

  ‘Thank you, Tribune.’

  The general addressed Tao again, ‘Praefect Tao, you’re with the Tribune. Learn what it means to be a proper Kingmaker from him.’

  Tao nodded with pursed lips and a lowered gaze, feeling his face flush.

  ‘Now, Praefect Ushi and Shing. Your task is to begin scouting a viable entry point into the Rioter fort. The moment we confirm Yutai’s location, all four of you will coordinate a precision strike to extract him. No Kingmaker has ever breached that stronghold, but that changes now. Review all historical schematics in our archives and study the terrain around the fort. We have no shortage of data. That place is not invincible. In fact, we were preparing to seize it right before the District Rebellions ended. You’ll find a way with the information we already have.’

  Shing vigorously nodded his head, but Ushi raised his hand and stood up. ‘But General, did you read my report about the—’

  ‘I’m removing you from this wild rodent chase you’re on for Tong,’ General Qin Shi interjected. ‘Yutai’s release takes priority.’

  ‘General, with respect,’ Ushi spoke up once more. ‘There is value in continuing Lady Tong’s murder case. We’re on the cusp of uncovering something that may risk the security of Kowloon.’

  ‘Excuse me, what?’ Shing scoffed as he twisted in his seat to face Ushi. ‘You want to go back to Kam Shan and continue holding our dicks while we solve petty crimes? While our brother is missing?’

  ‘Shing,’ the general snapped. The praefect turned back in his seat, eyes lowered. ‘Forgive me, General.’

  Qin Shi continued. ‘And what value do you think there is in this… homicide investigation, Praefect?’

  ‘I believe the scope of the investigation has widened from a simple murder, sir,’ Ushi said firmly. ‘There might be an imminent breakdown of Chuan Wan Dam. If this is the case, Kowloon will go underwater. What’s more concerning is the Yang connection. They may know about this and use it to their advantage. Such news could bolster their cause.’

  The room seemed to hold its breath as Ushi’s words hung in the air.

  ‘I’m well aware of the Chuan Wan Dam situation,’ the general replied. ‘I was the one who picked Legate Miji to overlook Lady Tong’s expedition. The dam’s structural concerns are the business of Kam Shan’s scientists, as has always been the case, and Legate Miji’s report indicated they found nothing amiss. Your ability to turn a simple message delivery into a nonsense conspiracy theory astounds me.’ The general shook his head. ‘Why the other Dragons allowed it to go on this far astounds me even further. This case is closed, and reopening it serves no purpose. Focus on Praefect Yutai’s return. I don’t want any hesitancy when the time comes for you to strike against your former southern kin. Sit down, Praefect.’

  Ushi gave a respectful nod and sat back down.

  Tao felt bad for Ushi. While Yutai and I were running around, he was out making real progress for Lady Tong. The general shouldn’t be so dismissive of Ushi’s concerns.

  The general’s gaze swept over the room, his eyes settling on each Kingmaker in turn. ‘Any questions?’ he asked.

  ‘When will we torch South Kowloon?’ Shing’s face was a mask of barely contained rage.

  Tao frowned. Why would you say it like that? Beside him, he noticed Ushi was frozen, glaring at Shing. If looks could kill…

  The air bristled, charged with the threat of another outburst – until the general’s voice cut through it like a rapier.

  ‘Soon.’