Ishin watched as Wei Long began his ascent over the fort’s wall. Tan Chen, Wen Mei, and Rhee waited just outside the entrance, carefully staying out of view of any potential onlookers. He, Lei, and Six remained further back, watching the rear and flanks in case a threat emerged.

  Wei Long pulled himself to the top of the wall, lifting his head to peer around with as little exposure as possible.

  “It’s… you can go inside,” he reported to Tan Chen. “There’s no threat.”

  Tan Chen immediately entered, followed closely by Wen Mei and Rhee. A scream from Wen Mei sounded moments later, and Ishin feared he already knew why.

  The final three stepped into the fort, and as Ishin suspected, they found only dead bodies. Wen Mei was on her knees, distraught at the sight.

  “They’re all dead,” she muttered. “Why? How?”

  “I count eight bodies,” Tan Chen said with uncharacteristic empathy. “Wen Mei, is that everyone?”

  Wen Mei blinked back tears. “Eight?”

  “Yes.”

  Managing to her feet, Wen Mei wiped her eyes. “Nine. There should have been nine.” Her gaze scanned the open beach of the fort. One of the fires still smoldered faintly with blackened twigs. “Who’s missing?”

  Ishin did not recall who most of the Collective Liberation Alliance members were. He moved around the ruined camp, noting the blood splattered around the corpses. He stopped at the familiar face of Senior Jou, his eyes staring blankly at the Heavens.

  He was cut by something.

  There was a thin slice along Jou’s cheek. The flesh around the wound had turned foul green, while the rest of his face had taken on a purple hue.

  Poison?

  He turned to the right and found the alliance’s other senior—Koi—face down in one of the makeshift fire pits. Koi’s head was charred from the flames, and Ishin hoped he had been dead before landing there.

  “I found Jou and Koi,” Ishin reported. The others had spread out, examining the aftermath.

  “There are no survivors,” Rhee said grimly, lifting the limp arm of a female alliance member.

  Wei Long finished his descent from the wall, joining them. “Any signs of who’s responsible?”

  Tan Chen flipped a body with her foot. “My guess is a sword or similar weapon. I see a lot of cuts and stabs that fit.”

  “Same here,” Ishin offered.

  Wen Mei was counting the bodies, no doubt matching them against her memory.

  “Yoa Pen. Where’s Yoa Pen?”

  “Who are you looking for?” Rhee asked, brushing sand from her hands.

  “Yoa Pen. He’s not here. I don’t see him.”

  “Who is he?” Ishin asked. The name sounded familiar.

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  “He was one of the guards you saw on your first night here. The tall one.” Wen Mei’s search grew more frantic. “He led the foraging group. But the rest are here. Did he go out again? Is he safe?”

  “Perhaps he escaped into the forest,” Lei said hopefully. “Maybe we’ll find him, and he can tell us what happened.”

  “Or maybe he had something to do with this,” Wei Long countered, gesturing at the carnage.

  Wen Mei shook her head hard. “No. Yoa Pen was with the alliance since its start. He wouldn’t betray us.” Her desperate eyes turned to Lei. “You must be right. He must be out there—trying to find us for help!”

  She’s optimistic.

  Ishin didn’t know if Wen Mei was right. What mattered now was who had killed the alliance.

  “Poison sword,” Six remarked. He sat on one of the fallen logs, the first words he’d spoken.

  Wen Mei’s attention snapped to him. “What?”

  “A sword of poison brought death,” Six said, tracing something in the air. “Isho Nel was here.”

  “No,” Wen Mei insisted. “That can’t be.”

  The name struck Ishin as familiar. “Who is he?”

  “A dangerous candidate on the island,” Wen Mei explained, still pacing among the bodies. “But he couldn’t have done this. We haven’t seen him in five weeks. He didn’t know where our fort was.”

  “Anyone following the coast could have found your fort,” Wei Long said coldly.

  “Could one person have done this?” Rhee asked.

  Ishin admitted she had a point. Even with poison and surprise, the alliance had nine cultivators, including two at the sixth layer. Could one man really be responsible?

  “Friends,” Six murmured.

  “Friends?” Rhee repeated.

  “He has allies,” Wen Mei clarified. “At least two.”

  “That’s still three against nine,” Ishin pointed out. “What layer is he at?”

  “He was at the sixth,” Wen Mei said, rubbing her forehead.

  “I’ll just say it,” Tan Chen cut in, folding her arms. “What if this Yoa Pen was working with Isho Nel? Helped him kill your comrades?”

  Wen Mei slumped to the ground, shaking her head. “I already said no. Yoa Pen’s been with us too long.”

  Ishin walked to her side. She sat cradling her legs, her denial obvious. He understood—the thought was too grim to bear. Surviving months together on Desolate Island would have forged bonds as thick as blood.

  “Allegiances can change.”

  Her watery eyes lifted to his. “I can’t believe it.”

  “Then we’ll hope,” Ishin said gently. “Maybe Yoa Pen is out there. But if Tan Chen’s suspicion is right, can you face that truth?”

  “I… I don’t know.”

  At least she’s honest.

  Ishin offered his hand. After a pause, Wen Mei accepted it, and he pulled her to her feet.

  “What do we do now?”

  He looked to the others.

  “We can’t stay here,” Wei Long said firmly.

  “You want to go back into the forest?” Rhee asked in disbelief.

  “This place has already been attacked,” Wei Long replied. “If nine cultivators couldn’t hold it, what chance do we have?”

  “We won’t be caught off guard like them!” Lei declared.

  “We don’t know if they were,” Wei Long countered.

  “Ishin found those prints leading to the wall. Only someone setting up an ambush would sneak in that way instead of using the front!”

  Heavens, he’s right. Lei’s actually right!

  “That’s a fair point,” Wei Long admitted, glancing toward the wall. “Still, I think we should relocate.”

  “And go back into the forest with blood-drinking spirit beasts?” Rhee asked sharply.

  “We could look for Yoa Pen,” Wen Mei suggested.

  Tan Chen scoffed. “We aren’t going there ju—”

  She was cut off by a violent burst of wind from the east.

  “Aah!” Rhee cried, shielding her eyes.

  The eastern wall of the fort shattered, blown apart as though struck by a hurricane.

  Ishin sank to one knee, fighting to stay upright. Ahead of him, Wen Mei was blown off her feet, but Lei caught her with one arm.

  What is this?

  The entire forest shook under the force of whatever had struck Desolate Island.