Weimeng could not understand why Kati wished to ride a horse, and she was horrified by the idea of it.
"That is a thing for men and older boys, dear, certainly not for little girls. And if you were hurt, I would never forgive myself."
"I love horses," protested Kati. "I was riding them by myself when I was four, and I want to ride again. Please, Madam. Please."
There was purpose in her protest and her pleadings. First of all, her eighth birthday was only a week away, and Weimeng was particularly generous on such occasions. Kati wanted a horse, but how could she obtain one if people around her felt she could not, or should not ride?
Second of all, Kati was bored.
"The troopers' sons ride all the time; I can see them from my window. You could get someone to watch me, to be sure I don't hurt myself, and then you'll see how well I can ride. You can ask anyone to do it; you are First Wife!"
This ploy usually worked, and today was no exception, when she saw Weimeng stiffen.
"I will make inquiries," said Weimeng, "but it must be a small horse. The big ones are far too dangerous for a child." Her brows were knitted with concern.
"Oh, thank you!" Kati hugged Weimeng fiercely, looked up at her. "It's only that I'm bored. I want to be outside more. I want to feel the wind and smell the trees. I don't want to be inside all the time, working with the teachers. There are no children for me to play with here."
Weimeng stroked her hair, held her close. "It is so easy to forget you're not a palace child, Kati. First Lady brought you to me from the mountains, and your life was different there. Go back to your studies, now, and I will see what I can do to solve these problems of yours."
Kati went back to her rooms with a reasonable expectation of receiving a horse for her birthday, because Weimeng would find someone to ride with her. Weimeng was a gentle woman. Too gentle. She was first wife of the Emperor, but had surrendered to her own shame. She did not take advantage of her status, or the deep respect the Moshuguang and members of the palace staff had for her. She accepted the rejection of a husband, and did nothing to oppose it.
If I were first wife, he would have reason to fear me.
It had been a shock when Kati had learned who Weimeng really was. It was only two weeks after she'd come here, and they were eating lunch in Weimeng's suite. The doors opened, without a knock, and The Son of Heaven marched in rudely, interrupting their meal.
"So this is the child," he'd said, looking Kati up and down, hands on hips, an arrogant posture.
And how did Weimeng react? Angrily? No, she dropped to her knees before him, kissing his hand, and saying, "Oh, Son of Heaven, I thank you for allowing me the gift of this child."
Son of Heaven. The Emperor of Shanji. Kati could only stand stiffly before him. At that moment, she had wished only pain and slow death for the man.
"I am pleased if she brightens your life, woman," he'd said, "but let there be no misunderstandings here. She is only a foster child, and there will be no adoption. There is only one heir to the throne."
And then he'd paraded haughtily from the suite, a guard on either side of him.
Weimeng had then explained who she really was, and how she'd arrived at her lonely existence before Kati came. And Kati had a new reason to hate the Emperor of Shanji.
Now she went back to her learning machine, and the drudgery of memorizing her characters, one by one.
Huomeng arrived in the early afternoon to check her progress. Mengmoshu had assigned the boy to tutor her as a part of his own training. His purpose within the Moshuguang was to be a scientist and educator. He arrived on time, as usual, and checked the extent of her work.
"Your progress is far greater than I expected," he said, with the condescending tone of voice he used with her. "Your memory is nearly as good as mine."
But much faster.
"Perhaps. But your real learning is about to begin. I brought these for you."
He handed her two disks, and without asking his permission, she immediately inserted one into the machine.
"This one is the geography of Shanji. The other is more about astronomy, and it describes the Tengri-Nayon system that was the home of our ancestors. I think you will find that one more interesting."
He clearly wanted to talk about the second disk, so she booted up the first one instead.
The new lesson appeared on her screen, showing a blue planet with two large continents, one straddling the equator, the other peeking from beneath the edge of a mass of ice frozen at the south pole. Huomeng pointed at the city's location near the southwestern shore of the equatorial continent. "There are fertile valleys here, and to east and north of the mountains, but then the land becomes arid, nearly a desert. It goes all the way to the northeast quarter, where there is heavy rainforest we haven't even explored yet. First landing was here, on the plateau next to what you call the Three Peaks."
I used to ride Sushua there, and the peaks were my favorite place.
Huomeng smiled. "As you can see, we haven't moved far from the original landing site, but that is the way of the traditionalists. Our population has grown slowly under the dictates of our Emperors, but his influence has not been so visible in the eastern plains. The population there is growing rapidly, and all the fertile lands are now being used. The Emperor doesn't know this yet, because he hasn't cared enough to visit the people there. And we have not told him. Soon, we will have to move people to the northeast, along the coast, even the forest interior. That is over three thousand kilometers from here, Kati. I think the days of a small, feudal kingdom governed by one man will soon be coming to an end."
"He will not allow it," she said.
"He will have no choice," said Huomeng. "It will be a matter of survival."
"But the Moshuguang does not tell the Emperor what he should hear. You are supposed to serve him."
"We serve First Mother, and are in her hands. The Emperor is not."
There was hardness and finality in the sound of Huomeng's voice. For the first time, Kati saw the huge gap, both political and philosophical, between the Moshuguang and the man who sat on the throne.
There was not one ruler of Shanji, but two. And one of them lived far away from this world, appearing to chosen people only in their minds.
"Now you will read to me," said Huomeng.
She read to him from the text on the screen, pausing only twice for his explanation of a character she hadn't seen before. It was all boring. She yawned.
"My hour is finished," said Huomeng, looking displeased. "Be ready to read the other disk to me in two days. And get more sleep."
"I get too much sleep. I'm like the rodents that burrow into the ground."
"Then get outside more."
"I'm trying to."
"Oh. Have you said anything to Mengmoshu?"
"No."
"Do it. They will find an excuse for you. I must go."
She glared at him, then deliberately yawned again as he left. Her meeting with the teachers of the mind was three days off. Too long.
Mengmoshu, I have a problem.
I'm busy, Kati. Can it wait?
No. You're always busy. I feel trapped in this room. I cannot go on learning this way. I need to get outside, but Madam fears I will be burned by Tengri-Khan, or breathe a dust mote, or scuff my knee. I want to ride a horse! You said I'm not a captive. I want to get outside more.
Weimeng means well. She is a cautious mother, and we will speak to her. Be patient another day.
One day?
That's what I said. Do your work, now, and I'll do mine. Be patient, and trust me.
Kati felt that peculiar fuzziness in her head, indicating he had tuned her out for the moment, and likely for the rest of the day. Mengmoshu did not like her interruptions, but it was always him she sought out when there was a problem. She was somehow comforted by the knowledge that day, or night, the mind of Mengmoshu hovered just beyond the edge of her consciousness.
She went back to work, inserted the second disk into her machine and discovered that Huomeng had been correct. This was more interesting to her, a short program with many colored pictures of two planetary systems. The first picture showed Tengri-Khan, a yellow star with dark spots, and small tongues of flame issuing from its surface. Eight planets, five of them close in, barren and pocked-marked, lifeless places. Further out was the blue world of Shanji, a planet without a moon, like the other little ones. But much further out were two giant balls of gas, with swirling storms and many moons of ice and frozen gases.
The second system was most interesting. Tengri-Nayon, the red star of Empress Mandughai; seen up-close, it was really more orange than red. A very young star, the text said, only recently born, with a planetary system not yet fully formed. It was a violent looking place, jets of matter streaming from the poles of a sphere whose surface boiled with protuberances, fans, and great bridges of fire. Of the inner four planets, two were inhabited, one covered with streams of white clouds. The other, an orange ball with wisps of clouds, and large patches of green on its surface was called Meng-shi-jie. The home of Mandughai.
She had not always lived there, the text said. The first palace had been a city floating in the atmosphere of the hot, gaseous giant Lan-Sui, a planet that had nearly become a star. People still lived in those floating cities, but a gradual, inward migration was taking place as Lan-Sui cooled. Each year there were fewer and fewer people to mine the nine moons for water-ice and metals, and to scoop gases from Lan-Sui for use in the Empress's new technologies, whatever they were. The text did not describe them.
A new question arose in Kati's mind. The time for light to travel between Tengri-Nayon and Tengri-Khan ranged from four years to six months as the two stars followed wobbly, parallel courses, the younger star strongly influenced by some massive, unseen companion. Huomeng had already informed her that nothing could travel faster than light. So then how could Mandughai communicate as if she were quite near, with no time taken between a question and an answer? Was a part of her always in their minds? Or was she, in fact, living nearby, hiding herself?
A new question for Huomeng, but when she asked it, the following day, he told her that Mengmoshu must answer the question for her.
She decided she had found a question he could not answer, and was pleased with herself.
There was only testing again. Mengmoshu put the helmet over her head. At first there was darkness, then a matrix of stars before her eyes, flickering, then strobing slowly, and a tone in her ear.
"Relax," said Mengyao, "and watch the lights. Try to make them brighter. Imagine each point becoming larger, and focus on one of them. Let yourself move towards it."
The tone was meant to soothe her, but didn't. She felt apprehensive, unusually alert, the strobing lights not getting brighter, but closing in on her.
"You're not relaxing, Kati," said Mengyao.
"I'm trying," she said petulantly. "Nothing's happening."
"Pick one light. Focus on it."
"I am. It doesn't work. I'm tired. I don't want to do this today." Kati felt agitated, even angry. She began to squirm in the soft chair where they'd placed her.
"Kati, you have to concentrate," said Mengmoshu softly.
I don't want to do this today! Let me up! NOW!
She scrabbled at the helmet with her hands, pulling at it. She touched something sharp, and the lights flicked off, leaving only darkness.
"This is hopeless," said Juimoshu. "She's too agitated today."
Mengmoshu pulled off the helmet, and looked at her closely.
"What is wrong with you today? You're behaving very badly."
Kati glared at him. "I'm tired of tests, and tricks. That's all we do. You said I could go outside. You said you'd talk to someone. We work and work, and at night I work more with the learning machine. I'm BORED! I want to do something ELSE!"
"You are becoming quite demanding, child," said Mengmoshu, returning her hard look with one of his own. "I asked you to be patient. You are here for work, not play, and you can wait a while for—"
"Enough, Mengmoshu; we waste our time," said Juimoshu. "Tell Kati what you've arranged, then take her there. Allow her some fun, and then we can do something useful here."
"What have you arranged?" asked Kati.
Mengmoshu was scowling at all of them.
You've lost control of the situation here. Say something!
I will not be forced by her.
"Forced? No. Look, I will do a trick for you," said Kati. She picked up a metal fire-tube from the low table before her. A little flame appeared. She only glanced at it, and the flame shot upwards by a meter, roaring, then sputtering and going out, the fuel in the tube spent.
"I've done my trick. What have you arranged?"
Mengmoshu sighed. "Not now. We have work to do."
"This is silly, both of you," said Juimoshu. "He has found someone to ride with you, Kati. It was to be right after we were finished here."
"She must learn patience first," said Mengmoshu.
Mengyao shook his head. "If she goes riding now, perhaps we can get something done."
"I agree," said Juimoshu. "A child must have fun, as well as work."
"I can go riding?" said Kati, suddenly excited. "You found a horse for me! Oh, thank you, Mengmoshu. You did keep your promise!" She slid off the chair, hugged his legs, looked up at him. "Can we go now? I promise to be good. When we come back, I will work very hard for you. Please?"
His hand rested lightly on her head, and his face was soft again. "Very well, but then we work."
Juimoshu and Mengyao were smiling at her, and suddenly Mengmoshu took her by the hand, softly, in a new way for him. He led her back to her rooms, where there was another surprise. A new set of riding leathers had been laid out on her bed, leathers identical to the old ones which no longer fit her.
Weimeng came in with Tanchun, and they helped her dress, while Mengmoshu waited outside in the hall. Weimeng was very frightened for her, and said so.
"I'm a good rider," said Kati. "Come and watch me."
"I cannot," said Weimeng, wringing her hands together. "I would be too terrified to open my eyes. But they tell me you must do this, that it's a part of your training. Oh, do be careful, darling." Weimeng hugged her hard.
It was only the second time Kati had been outside the palace dome in nearly a year. The first time had been when Weimeng took her to a beautiful garden just below the golden dome, a place with flowers and a waterfall splashing into a little pool. Kati had waded in the pool, and the little carp there had nibbled on her toes. She'd laughed, and said "they're tickling me," and suddenly Weimeng had burst into tears. Weimeng had soaked her own, beautiful robe wading in to grab Kati, had carried her away from the garden and back to her rooms, crying all the way.
Kati had not been outside since that day—until now. And she was thrilled.
Mengmoshu himself was suddenly not so serious, even seemed to share her delight. She ran ahead of him to the rail car taking them to the lower edge of the city. A few people in their white uniforms looked at her curiously in her leathers, but said nothing. There was a wariness about them when they saw her escort.
Only the two of them rode the car down with the driver, Kati's nosed pressed to the window.
The people fear you.
No. They are cautious, so I won't hear a bad thought about the Emperor.
But they live in his city! Don't they like him?
There are many new things they wish to do, but the Emperor will not allow it. He keeps to the traditional ways. He is not progressive in using the technology we've developed. I will show you these things, Kati. There's much you haven't seen yet.
They reached the station near the dome's gate, and walked to it past buildings in green and yellow. Faces peered from the windows there, and some were those of children. There was a cluster of troopers by the gate, and several horses. Kati squealed, and pulled on Mengmoshu's hand when she saw them. He let her lead him, and even smiled.
Will you ride with me?
No, not today. There is someone else, closer to your age. I will watch, this time. Be careful what you say, now. You are known by another name among these people, and it is Weimeng's wish. Please honor it, so she won't be disgraced. I will explain later. Remember, you are the foster child of Lady Weimeng, First Wife of the Son of Heaven.
And very quickly, Kati heard the name the people would call her. They came up to the troopers, and the men turned, bowing first to Mengmoshu, then to Kati. She was astonished, and could only smile in return.
"Chosen One," said an armored man, "you are early. We hadn't expected you for at least an hour." He turned to a shorter man. "Fetch Lui-Pang right away, and tell him to saddle the black mare for Mengnu."
The shorter man hurried away.
So her name was Mengnu, among the people. The name of Weimeng's dead child, but Kati was in a happy mood, and the false name didn't bother her. Kati had replaced Mengnu, bringing joy to Weimeng, and she knew the woman loved her as her own. What was the harm in using a name given by the woman who tried so hard to be a mother to her?
Minutes later, a boy appeared; a very handsome boy, tall and slender in the saddle. He rode a white stallion with patches of grey, like handprints, and a little black mountain horse followed closely behind. Kati could not restrain herself. She ran to the boy, and he smiled down at her.
He was very handsome, she decided. "Is that my horse?" she asked.
"It is if you're Mengnu," he said.
"I am." She went to the little horse, stroked its muzzle, hugged it.
"I will help you up," said the boy, beginning to dismount.
Kati jerked the tether rope from his hand, saw the reins wrapped around the saddle horn. "I can do it myself," she said. Before he could dismount, she stretched to reach the horn, hopped to snap one foot in a stirrup, and swung smoothly upwards to seat herself.
"Check her stirrups, Lui-Pang," said someone. The men were grinning at her, looking pleased. Even Mengmoshu gave her a little nod of approval.
Lui-Pang adjusted her stirrups, initially too short, and she directed him, standing to check the fit. The animal tensed beneath her, and she felt its excitement. She trotted her horse to the gate, and waited there while the boy mounted up on his stallion and joined her.
"We have one hour," he said. "I've been told we should stay on flat ground in the valley. Let's go slowly, at first. I'm responsible for your safety."
"I want to go fast, and so does this horse."
"She's a good horse," said Lui-Pang, "as long as you're good to her. But I think you know what to do."
He looked down from several hands above her. They walked the dirt road lined with unlit torches and turned left, away from the mountain trail, a broad plain of short grass sloping downwards ahead of them. "We are far enough," he said, and surged ahead at a trot. Kati was instantly beside him, the little mare quick to respond to the touch of her knees. The boy Lui-Pang smiled, and increased his speed. Kati went right with him.
A minute later they were side-by-side in a full gallop across fields of grass, and the wind was whipping Kati's face, the little mare straining beneath her, its neck stretching out as Kati floated above the saddle, exhilarated by the pounding thrust in her legs. They held that pace for several minutes, until Lui-Pang veered right to a trail leading to the summit of a hillock, where he slowed to a trot, Kati right behind him. They stopped at the summit, and Lui-Pang pointed back to the city, a small, sparkling ball, then south to where the grass fields seemed to go on forever.
"There's a desert out there, somewhere," he said.
"Will we see it?" said Kati.
"No, it's too far. But I will go there someday, when I'm a trooper. My father says people will eventually be living there to work in the factories. There is no more space in the mountain for making tools, flyers or weapons, even things for the homes of the nobles."
"Is your father a trooper?"
"Yes. He was with Mengyao when you were brought back from the mountains. I know who you really are, and I'm not surprised at how well you ride. Among the Hansui, girls don't ride at all. They are taught manners and fashion, and little else among the nobles."
"I'm not a noble," said Kati.
"I know, but you are kept by the Emperor's First Wife and your teachers are Moshuguang. I hear that you have special powers."
He was frankly staring at her in an appraising, yet friendly way. "Can you actually change the color of your eyes?"
Kati could sense only curiosity in his mind, and admiration for the way she rode a horse. His dark, closely-spaced eyes twinkled with a kind of amusement. He had the round, Hansui face, but a narrow nose that, together with the eyes, gave him an intense, almost dangerous look. Barely older than she, he was still thin, but his shoulders were broad, and square.
Kati suddenly felt shy, and couldn't keep herself from smiling. Lui-Pang returned the smile, and said, "You are young to be a student of the Moshuguang."
"I'm eight," she said.
"And I am twelve. I've been riding for six years, and now I work with sword and bow. When I am sixteen, I will receive my rifle and become a trooper. I follow in the way of my father, and his father."
"You are lucky to have a father," said Kati. "I have lost mine."
"I know. But maybe you'll find him again, someday. Your life in the palace must be good, though."
"I'm comfortable with it, and Lady Weimeng is good to me, but being here is nicer than in the palace. This is where I really want to be—outside, and in the mountains, maybe by the big sea in the west. Can we go farther? I can still see the city."
This time they went at a leisurely trot, down the hillock and out onto sloping fields of grass. After a while, the scenery was all the same, and then Lui-Pang stopped.
"We have to return, now. If we hurry, we can be back on time."
"I don't want it to be over," said Kati.
"Neither do I. If you ask for it, I will be assigned to you again as an escort."
Kati smiled. "I will ask it. Are you ready?"
"Yes."
Both horses jumped together, and Lui Pang was fair. He held back his stallion just enough so that Kati's little animal was still nose to nose with it when they charged down the dirt road towards the gate, scattering people before them. They reined in, making a cloud of dust, Kati dropping expertly to the ground before they were even stopped. The waiting troopers clapped their hands with approval of the performance, and Mengmoshu was puffed up like a proud father, smiling as she rushed to hug him without shame, without inhibition. It was what she felt like doing, without knowing why.
You did well, and I shouldn't be surprised.
But can I do it again? Lui Pang is very nice, and he rides fast when I want to. He does not treat me like a little child.
I will arrange it, but only two days a week. Your work must be done.
Thank you, Mengmoshu. Thank you for hearing me. She hugged him again, while the other men looked on, curious about them.
Lui Pang led her horse away, but she saw him again a few minutes later, while Mengmoshu was talking to a trooper she suspected was the boy's father. Lui-Pang was with five other boys his age, and they were carrying long swords made from a plastic material, holding them casually by the curved blades. When they passed by, Kati nodded sharply to Lui-Pang, and smiled brightly. He seemed to understand her unspoken message. They would ride together again.
When Mengmoshu joined her, she pointed to the boys, and asked, "What are they doing?"
"They study the art of the sword with Master Yung, who teaches the traditional ways. The swords they use are made from flexible tubing wrapped with polymer fabric. They have the proper weight, but are safe to use in practice. They aren't real swords, Kati. The boys don't practice with steel blades until they're fourteen."
"I want to learn that," said Kati. "And I want to learn how to shoot arrows with the bow."
"This is not traditional for girls, even among the Tumatsin," said Mengmoshu, guiding her back to the monorail car.
"But I want to learn everything!" she said, excited again.
Mengmoshu's hand stroked her hair once, then rested on her shoulder. "Then we will find time for it in the future. Are you ready to work now?"
"Oh yes! I promised you that."
But Kati was disappointed by the rest of the day. They returned to the palace, and the room where Juimoshu and Mengyao waited patiently. They put the helmet on her, and the twinkling stars were there. Kati worked hard, focusing on the lights, trying to make them bigger, seeing herself as a moth attracted to a flame, but the lights remained as they were, just flickering spots.
"I'm sorry," she said, as they removed the helmet. "I'm trying hard, but it isn't working." She had badly wanted to please them, and had failed to do so for the first time.
"It might be the test itself," said Mengyao. "Don't blame yourself, Kati. We're not sure what we're looking for here, and our procedure might be wrong."
But Kati was near tears when Juimoshu returned her to her rooms. Her mood lightened when she ate with Weimeng that evening, telling her about the ride with Lui-Pang. Weimeng acted as if it had been an adventure of terror, gasping as Kati told her story.
She grew serious again as Weimeng was tucking her into bed, and they were having their nightly, quiet moments together before sleep. She looked up at Weimeng, and said, "Among the people, I am called Mengnu."
Weimeng blushed, averted her eyes from Kati's. "I should have warned you. One day, I said it to someone, and then I could not take it back. The name is dear to me."
"The name of your baby who died," said Kati.
"Yes," said Weimeng, and there were tears in her eyes. Her fingers brushed Kati's cheeks and forehead. "But now I have you, and often I think of you as my own child, returned to me by First Mother. Perhaps it's a fantasy."
Kati took the woman's hand in hers. "I know who I am, and a name is just a name. I have not corrected what the people call me, and you are like my mother, now. If you wish to call me Mengnu, I don't mind. It is your privilege."
Weimeng burst into tears. She embraced Kati, and cried into her shoulder, murmuring, "My darling child, how much I love you. The joy you've brought into my life is something I don't deserve, but you are here. And perhaps, in time, you will come to call me mother."
Later, as Kati neared sleep, she felt warm and content about bringing happiness to Weimeng. She drifted off peacefully, but it seemed she'd slept only a little while before being awakened again. There was a presence in her mind, hovering there without identity.
Hello? Who's there?
No answer, but the presence was still there, and she kept her eyes closed.
The matrix of twinkling stars appeared suddenly, and she was nearly awake, for she had seen the sight before when, like now, Mengmoshu's helmet was not on her head.
Mengmoshu? Are you there?
And then there was that beautiful voice, as if murmuring into her ear.
No, dear. It is I.
Mandughai! It has been a long time!
I know it seems that way, but I've never left you.
The emerald eyes of Mandughai had not appeared. There was only darkness, with the matrix of twinkling lights.
Kati, I want you to look beyond the stars. Look closely, and tell me what you see there.
Kati looked, and at first there was only blackness, but as she relaxed again it seemed there was something vaguely familiar there: a faint, shimmering curtain, deep purple, filling the void.
I see a faint, purple light everywhere.
Look at that light, Kati. Let the stars rush by you, and go to the purple light.
It seemed to happen without effort. The stars grew, and rushed past her, and the purple light grew brighter, only it was not one, continuous thing, but a myriad of tiny points, close together. She rushed on, and the points were further apart, each one steady, not flickering.
Pick one light, Kati, any light. I'm here, waiting for you.
Kati plunged on towards a spot in the center of her mental field of view, the spot of light there growing, and growing, filling her vision, and then she was there, diving into it, and beyond—
To a place nearly dark, but filled with a shimmering curtain of the deepest purple she'd ever seen, and suddenly the emerald eyes of Mandughai were there, blazing before her.
Welcome to my world, Kati, for I have not come to you. You have come to me, and I have long awaited a visitor to this place of mine. You are beyond the stars, Kati. There is no time, or space here. This is the place from which all the known universe came in the very beginning. It is a place of light, of great energy. It is the place of creation for our universe, and many more. As you grow in strength, I will show you how to travel here, and how to re-enter the universe at any point you choose, for this place of light is everywhere within it. And you will travel at infinite speed.
The eyes of Mandughai were bright against the deep, swirling purple of her world, and Kati was mesmerized by the sight. So the question that came to her mind, somehow, seemed childish.
Will I ever see your face?
The time for that will come. Now I will guide you back.
A purple flash, and then the twinkling stars were back, Mandughai's beautiful eyes with them.
We've had a nice visit, Mengmoshu. You should be proud.
I am, First Mother.
Mengmoshu! You're here with us!
I waited for you, Kati. You've gone beyond where I can go. But I'm always here.
I know that.
Mengmoshu will care for you as a father would, Kati. In a way, you are our daughter. You will learn from us, and grow, and at times it will be difficult. But you will never be alone. Come to me anytime, Kati. Practice what you have just learned. I will be waiting.
The eyes vanished, along with the stars, but Mengmoshu remained.
Sleep, child. This is just the beginning.
He was still with her when she drifted off.