The waters of Shou Lung

Steam still rises from the dumpling baskets when a young adult man in a singed Featherington coat bursts through the door, soot streaking his face and sleeves. He crosses to Don Featherington and drops to one knee.

The room falls silent. Lady Satsuki grips the exposed account leaf, while Lord Garan rises heavily from his seat. Don’s cigar slips from his fingers and dies against the table.

He places the blackened fragment before Don. Its warped seal glints faintly in the lamplight, linking the attack to the reform network and possibly to the Quiet Measure’s exposed contract.

Kareem surges from the table and runs for the Bishop estate. He cuts through startled streets as smoke smears the evening sky, leaving the delegation behind.

The estate gates stand open, one hinge twisted by the blast. Kareem reaches the main door, drives his shoulder into it, and forces it inward with a splintering crack.

Smoke rolls through the entry hall, hot enough to sting his eyes. A fallen beam blocks part of the corridor, and the impact has torn skin across Kareem’s shoulder.

Their voices are clear through the smoke. Behind Kareem, Don Featherington and the others arrive at the gate, while flames climb the outer garden wall.

Kareem kicks the west-room door inward. Smoke pours through the gap as he swoops up the child, a small human girl with freckled cheeks, tangled dark hair, and a soot-streaked green dress, who presses a rag over her face, while the second survivor crawls after him.

The damaged frame gives way behind them. A burning beam crashes across the corridor, sealing the direct route back and forcing Kareem toward a narrow service passage beside the room.

Kareem carries the child through the choking passage as the survivor follows close behind. Heat presses through the walls, and falling plaster makes the main hall impossible to reach.

The child points through the haze toward a low pantry entrance half-hidden by overturned shelves. Beyond its warped slats, cooler air carries the scent of wet earth and open garden.

Kareem shoves the overturned shelves aside and carries the child through the low pantry entrance. The second survivor squeezes after him as smoke thickens behind them.

The warped pantry door refuses to open fully. A ceiling beam crashes across the passage behind them, sealing the route back and trapping all three in the cramped room.

The child points beneath a torn mat. An iron ring emerges from the boards, surrounded by damp earth. Cool air breathes through its narrow seams.

The estate’s direct exit is lost, but the hidden drainage channel offers a usable route beneath the fire. The survivors press close as smoke curls under the door.

Kareem tears up the mat, grips the iron ring, and wrenches the hatch open. The boards crack loudly, and a sharp splinter cuts across his palm.

Cool air surges from the drainage channel below. Dark water rushes beneath the opening, carrying the scent of wet stone and garden soil through the smoke.

The child clings to Kareem as he lowers her into the channel. Her shoes splash into the shallow current, while smoke presses down through the broken pantry door.

The survivor descends after the child. Above them, fire groans through the estate, but the opened channel gives all three a clear route beneath the burning rooms.

The channel carries Kareem, the child, and the survivor beneath the estate. Mud streaks their clothes as cool water guides them toward a widening grate beneath the street.

Kareem shoulders through the grate and emerges into the evening air. He lifts the child onto the pavement, then helps the survivor climb out beside her.

The child coughs against the clean air while Featherington’s attendants wrap both survivors in blankets. Across the street, smoke boils above Kareem’s burning home.

Kareem stands soaked and soot-streaked before the ruined estate. Fury burns hotter in his eyes than the flames consuming the walls, while the scorched imperial seal waits in Don’s ledger.

Kareem draws his katana in one clean motion. Firelight runs along the blade as smoke coils over the ruined estate and the scorched imperial seal.

The blade’s ring cuts through the street’s confusion. Don Featherington’s attendants stop counting survivors long enough to face Kareem, while distant bells summon more witnesses.

Behind them, the fire brigade advances through the garden while the delegation forms a guarded circle around the rescued pair. The investigation now has a living witness, a burned contract seal, and a unified response.