Fong Fei was a wise sage from the Kaisen province. He had been meditating according to the Way of the Balanced Elements since the rule of emperor Mikaday. His mind was as sharp as a quill and he was not afraid of himself or of others. Everyone said that his Greeting for the Nascent Morning was without peer and that he would surely leave the miseries of Kralorela behind soon.

A shadow had befallen the land and emperor Vayobi had been driven to exile. In these troubled days, people strived to gain immediate benefits instead of everlasting bliss. Some even fell to foul excesses, for the world seemed to be heading for its destruction. This bothered Fong Fei for he knew that without moderation and prudence they could never be released from their suffering.

However, Fong Fei did not know how to help the people. So he set forth and traveled to the east, to a small island near the shore of the sea and sought wisdom from solitude.* There he meditated ignoring the roar of the raging waves and the screams of the seagulls. He felt as if the sea was observing his actions and decided that it was a good omen. Soon he felt his consciousness changing. It was as if the waves were calming as his mind became more still.

The sea was placid. Fong Fei felt the strength return to his arms and legs that had withered during his long ascetism. He greeted the waves with the traditional movements and the water shirked before his power. "At last I can bring liberation to the people as Daruda brought before me." He said and headed for his old home.

When Fong Fei returned, people were amazed for his skin gleamed with a soft pink light, his speech was as soft as the silk had been in emperor Shavayas reign and the certitude of his expression drove bad thoughts away from the minds of evildoers. Thus, he faced the Cult of the Five Snakes and destroyed it. He found the informants network of Lungs Third Son and rooted them out. He brought some of the blessings of the celestial gods to the back Kralorela. By doing this, he had attracted the attention of the Fifth General of the Usurpers Host. It sought him out, but Fong Fei defeated it.

He gained the peoples obeisance and honor. They even build him a great house. That way they knew where they could come to ask him for advice. Fathers send their sons to his tuition, because he was not afraid at the wrath of the anti-dragons as the mandarins were. All the mandarins that were left were either dead, hiding or in the service of the new power. His city began to recover. Neighbors dared to greet one another again and the pines of the lands around him grew tall and strong.

This could not last however. Word from the uprising came to the Usurper. ** He gathered his armies and came to ravage Kaisen. The students of Fong Fei were weak when they were far from their master and no one else in the whole province could stand against the invading armies. Even so, Fong Fei's city defended itself bravely. *** No follower of the Usurper could match Fong Fei. His body burned with an intense flame and anyone near him quickly noticed that their skin was melting and their bones crushed as he defended himself against the attackers.

Amidst the devastation, Fong Fei and the Usurper met. Fong Fei was irresistible as the sea torrents that eat through rocky beaches. The Usurper was so terribly strong that he could squeeze the still living soul of a child from his body before eating it. However, Fong Fei was so wise that he was well prepared for any move that his opponent could ever imagine trying. Nevertheless, the Usurpers soul was darker that the blackest night and twisted like a snake killed, skinned and turned inside out. He was sicker than all the bad spirits put together and as vicious as Bodkartu**** in a bad day.

Fong Fei said, "You can not beat me for I am as Daruda himself and I have returned to save these people." "No you are not. You just can not beat me in my own sport." Sekever replied. Fong looked at his opponent for a while with a puzzled expression in his face***** before the Usurper ripped his soul away from his body and maimed it with thousands of different ways and nailed it fast to this harsh reality and eternal torment.

What of Fong Feis realm? Nothing else was left of it except a tale told by the Dew Maiden.

* The island still exists, though normal people generally avoid it.
** Sekever.
*** The city no longer exists.
**** The sister of Halisayan. Godlearners equated her with Gorgorma.
***** Hence the expression "puzzled like Fong".

Author: Olli Kantola