The First Kaiaru by David Alastair Hayden

to further his aims. Up until now, only Turesobei had benefited from their deal.
    Kurine picked up a few pebbles, then tossed them aside. Apparently unsatisfied, she began to kick through the stones, redistributing them.
    “What are you doing?” Turesobei asked her.
    “Oh…um…you never saw my rock collection back home, did you? Well…I’m starting a new one. I’m going to take a stone from each site to commemorate our victories.”
    “There are plenty of stones to choose from,” Iniru said, with a hint of annoyance in her voice.
    “The trick is to find a special stone that’s unique, so you’ll remember where it came from,” Kurine said.
    All of the many gray pebbles looked basically the same to Turesobei. There wasn’t even much difference in their sizes.
    “Aha!” The pebble Kurine picked up was gray like the others, except for a subtle pattern of blue spirals. “I found the perfect one.”
    Iniru shook her head, and Turesobei shrugged. A rock collection was unusual, but maybe not for a goronku. There were probably many cultural differences he still didn’t know about.
    Turesobei walked over to the cylinder and sighed. “Okay, here goes.”
    He grabbed the heart stone, and raw power surged through him, along with thousands of indecipherable images and, oddly enough, voices. Heart racing, mind numb, he staggered back. Holding onto the stone was like having two more Storm Dragons inside him, maybe more. It nearly overwhelmed him. If there had been even a small amount of energy more in the cylinder, he could not have handled it.
    “Whoa! What a rush!”
    “You okay?” Kurine asked.
    “Perfectly fine. Energized, in fact.” He took deep breaths and tried to slow his heart rate. He felt all jittery, as if he’d had far too many bowls of black tea. “The Blood King does not need all this power. Nothing good can come from it.”
    “Master, after a while torture becomes tolerable, almost pleasant,” Motekeru said, “especially if all pleasures are denied you. Provided you don’t go mad, of course.”
    Everyone stared at him.
    “I was simply pointing out the alternative. If you don’t want to be tortured, then continue helping the Blood King, while trying to find a way to stop him.”
    “That’s what I’ve been doing,” Turesobei said with exasperation.
    “I think,” Lu Bei said, “that what the big guy is trying to say, in his own creepy way, is that you’ve already made your choice, so stop moping about the alternative you’re unwilling to take.”
    “Fair enough,” Turesobei said, nodding. “You’re right, of course.”
    “How’s the defeat the bad guy plan going?” Zaiporo asked.
    “I have no idea what to do, but at least I know his names now. Plus, I’ve mastered the Storm Dragon, and I’ve learned new spells. That’s a start. But I’m certain that to have even a chance at beating him—” he lifted the cylinder “—I’m going to need to understand how these work.”
    “There’s one thing I need to mention before we go back,” Lu Bei said. “I think you all know this already, but it’s best to be certain. Do not say anything about Enashoma’s brush or her origami creatures. The Blood King does not need to learn about that.”
    “I had wondered why she wasn’t making any, since it makes her so happy,” Zaiporo said. “But I didn’t bring it up because I figured there was a reason.”
    “The Maker’s Brush is connected to our lineage and Nāa, isn’t it?” Turesobei asked.
    Lu Bei nodded. “Please, do not ask me to say more. Because what I can say, I do not wish to.”
    “Have it your way,” Turesobei said with a sigh.
    “Shoma’s going to be okay with that stone, right?” Zaiporo asked.
    “The kavaru itself won’t hurt her,” Turesobei said, “and Lu Bei and Hannya both said Nāa was a gentle soul. I think she’ll be okay. And who knows, maybe Nāa will know something that could help us escape.”
    “We can hope,” Lu Bei said.
    “Do we need to