Lady Earthquake

Lady Earthquake Chapter 1

If a story can be said to have a beginning, this story began on a drowsy summer afternoon, cicadas humming in the trees, the taste of dust in the air. General Li, who had seen much meritorious service in the army of the King of Wuyue, sat in his Great Hall, sipping tea and looking back across the years. Not all his reminiscences were pleasant but his brow smoothed out when his six-year-old granddaughter ran in, closely pursued by her nanny.

"Zufu!" Little An-Xia launched herself into his arms.

"Oof! You are getting too big for such antics! Or I am getting too old."

Her bright amber eyes smiled into his. "You are not old. Your hair is hardly gray at all."

"Forgive me, General," the nanny said, bowing. "She is too naughty."

"I do not want to go back to the women's quarters," An-Xia said. "They are talking about silly stuff and I am bored. I want a story."

"Your nanny knows many stories."

"I have heard them all. I have heard them all a hundred thousand times. I want you to tell me a story."

General Li waved the nanny away. "Very well."

Sergeant Mo Tse-Mai, once his son's body-servant and now his, came in, his arms full of ledgers. He smiled to see the child for she was much loved in the household. "I see you have found a mouse, General."

"I am not a mouse! I am a...a little girl."

"Tell me, An'er," her grandfather said. "What would you like this story to be about?"

"Hmmm?" She looked around his hall, filled with the spoils of his long career. Looking behind him, she pointed a small finger at the sword hanging behind his chair, in the place of honor. "That! Tell me a story about that!"

"That?" He tried to look over his shoulder but an old scar prevented him turning in such a way. "What is she pointing at, Mo?"

The sergeant bowed. "The Thunder Sword, my lord."

"Ah. Yes, there is a story about that. Bring it here for me."

It lay on the tabletop, the scabbard brown leather, much rubbed and worn. The hilt had been wrapped with sweat-darkened hide and wire, but something showed a sinuous form beneath that utilitarian covering. General Li set his granddaughter on her feet beside the table. With a practiced gesture, he drew the gleaming blade, the loose guard ringing. The edges were as bright and sharp as they had been on the eve of a battle, the channel down the center of the blade intentionally left dark gray.

"Ooh...." The child, knowing no better, reached out toward the bright steel. Though both Mo and the General would have sworn ever after that he instantly moved it out of reach, somehow her forefinger was cut. A drop of blood stained the steel.

"Ah! What's that?" The female voice went unheard by anyone present.

"An'er!"

Instantly, she stuck her finger into her mouth, her eyes filling up. She blinked away the tears, knowing her grandfather hated to see her cry, and looked at her fingertip. "It's all right. Look, Zufu. I am not hurt at all." Indeed, the cut had already closed, leaving not even a red line on the pad.

"Still, you should be more careful. This sword has taken many lives. You would be like a silk handkerchief dropped onto the blade."

"Wherever did you get it?"

He sheathed it again, the guard ringing against the scabbard mount. "The late king gave it to me in exchange for mine, after the Battle of the Three Armies. That battle broke the resistance of the Eastern war-lords and our king won much territory for Wuyue. But that is not the story of this sword...or so they say."