act23side

Big talk. But I wouldn't have even landed a hit on you back then.

If this is as far as you've come in a dozen years, then I'll catch up to you real soon.

My daughter enjoys some big talk.

That's not a compliment.

I lose.

Huai Tianpei twirls his beard, thinks for a long time, and suddenly bursts into laughter.

That move where you kicked me in the chin doesn't look like anything I taught you.

...What fun.

Anyway, I'm heading back to the clinic.

Huai, wait a second.

Do you need me for something?

Where is the Grandmaster's sword? And Zuo Le?

The sword's with the girl, and that mandarin boy probably went after her.

Can't say for sure. I'm pretty much done with all this stuff.

Wait.

The Grandmaster wants to see you.

Oh?

I've been going easy on you, since you're Anasa.

But hand over the sword now, or I'll show no mercy.

*cough*...

No.

Her wound reopens, and the young Anasa girl holds the sword in front of her chest with her left hand, throwing her chakram with her right, barely deflecting the enemy's attack.

She falls back step by step, as her arms feel heavier and heavier.

It just occurred to me that even if I let you go, you still need a way out.

How did you know I would be here?

I grew up here.

I was a mischievous boy who tried to sneak out of the city through the sand sluices, and was duly punished by my father for doing so.

But only someone as stubborn as you would dare take this way.

You still want to stop me.

Tell me, did you come to Yumen just for this sword?

Yes.

And you wish to present the sword as an offering?

Yes.

And after that, will you return it?

Well, I...

Yes, I will.

That eccentric from the clinic promised me earlier that if you broke your word, he would bring you back himself.

But having said all that, retrieving the sword was, and still is, my duty.

So while I have no qualms about taking you at your word, just this once, I <i>will</i> get that sword back, even if I have to jump into the sand sluice myself.

'Yi nuo qian jin.' You may not know the idiom, literally 'a promise worth a thousand gold.' Break your word, and I will drag you back here, personally.

...Alright.

You're wasting your effort. Hurt as she is, she'll die when she jumps down there.

Three quarters past the Hour of Yu... the turbines should have slowed down by now, there's no time to waste.

Get going!

The young Candleholder turns around to face his powerful foe, and a light gleams from his sword unsheathing.

The young Anasa girl hugs the sword tightly in her arms, and leaps down into the churning sand.

The observatory has recalculated its results according to the information we have just received.

The Catastrophe has manifested as a sandstorm, and its scale is about three times larger than the one that struck the city four years ago.

The prior misinformation has already cost us too much time, so the situation is not optimistic...

Zuo Xuanliao looks at the box in his hands, the surface clearly worn down by gravel and sand.

A few days ago, was there another person looking at this box just as he is now? How did he feel?

If there was a mirror in his military tent, Zuo Xuanliao would have noticed the strands of silver hair on his scalp multiplying over the past few days.

Let's get to the point.

Presently, Yumen is in the middle of the Catastrophe's trajectory, and won't be able to avoid it, even if we change course.

We have but one method available to us. We can split Yumen up into blocks and disperse in different directions to evade the Catastrophe.

How much time would that cost us?

Reconnecting after separation, and returning to full speed, will probably take about six months.

There's no time.

It is the only feasible way to ensure the city's safety.

It is not the city's safety we want to secure.

The General lingers in his tent, the night outside his window still seemingly serene. The unseen danger lurks far away, but he knows it is still out there.

He has seen these sights for decades, but he has never loathed the vast desert as much as he does right now.

If we can only ensure the safety of our people...

General, you mean to...?

Prepare the front for direct Catastrophe impact, and evacuate all civilians from the east side of the core city to the west for resettlement.

Activate all defensive fortifications, and station Imperial Astronomical Bureau Casters on the city walls to resist the aftershocks.

How long will repairs take, after the fact?

General Zuo, the risk is too great...

How long will they take?

Repairing the front walls and some of the city's infrastructure will take... by a conservative estimate, three months.

Sure...

Time is of the essence, so I urge the General to make a decision as soon as possible.

Mr. Liang?

Have you come to shackle me, to ensure I don't act on my own?

I'm here to relay the Grand Tutor's opinion—to trust in General Zuo's judgement.

Very well.

Prepare to confront the Catastrophe.