THE FIVE THRONES

THE PAST RETURNS

The killer's eyes went wide when Sunny pressed the knife to his throat.

"Your father," the man gasped. "I knew your father."

Sunny's hand didn't waver. "You're lying."

"I'm not." Blood bubbled from the man's lips. The poison was already working. "He trained me. Years ago. Before you were born."

Sunny stared at him. The man's face was young—younger than Sunny's father had been. But there was something familiar in his eyes. Something that made Sunny's heart clench.

"What was his name?" Sunny demanded.

The man smiled. It was a terrible smile, full of blood and pain. "You know his name. You've been carrying it with you your whole life."

"Tell me!"

"He was called the Iron Fist. The greatest martial artist Ember had ever seen." The man coughed, and blood sprayed across his lips. "And then they killed him. The families. Because they were afraid of what he could do."

Sunny's hands were shaking. "How do you know this?"

"Because I was there." The man's eyes were growing dim. "I saw what they did to him. I saw the masks. I saw the needle. I saw everything."

Sunny felt like he couldn't breathe. This man had been there. This man had watched his father die.

"Who sent you?" Sunny asked. "Who put the bounty on my head?"

"Someone who knows who you really are." The man coughed again. "Someone who wants you dead before you can claim what's yours."

"What's mine?"

The man laughed—a wet, gurgling sound. "The throne, of course. Your father's throne. The one they stole from him."

And then he went still.

Sunny sat there for a long moment, staring at the dead man's face. His father's throne. What did that mean? His father had never held a throne. He had been a master, yes, but he had lived in the Lower Quarter, far from the families' power.

Unless there was something Sunny didn't know. Unless his father had been more than he seemed.

He stood up slowly, his legs unsteady. He needed to find Kaycee. He needed to find answers.

---

Kaycee was waiting in the training yard when Sunny arrived.

"You look like you've seen a ghost," Kaycee said.

"Something like that." Sunny sat down on a crate, his hands still shaking. "The hunter who attacked me—he knew my father. He was there when he died."

Kaycee's expression shifted. "That's not possible. You said your father was killed in secret."

"He was. But this man was there. He saw everything."

Kaycee was silent for a long moment. Then he sat down beside Sunny. "What else did he say?"

"He said my father had a throne. That the families stole it from him."

Kaycee stared at him. "Your father had a throne? That doesn't make sense. If he was a master, why would he live in the Lower Quarter?"

"I don't know." Sunny ran a hand through his hair. "But I need to find out. Someone in this city knows the truth. And I'm going to find them."

"Who?"

Sunny thought about it. There was only one person who might have answers.

"Yasma," he said. "She knows more than she's telling me. It's time I found out what."

---

The Serpent compound was quiet when Sunny arrived.

Yasma was in her garden, as always, surrounded by flowers that seemed to glow in the fading light. She looked up as Sunny approached, her expression unreadable.

"You're back," she said. "I didn't expect to see you so soon."

"I need answers."

Yasma smiled. "Don't we all."

"Don't play games with me." Sunny stepped closer. "The hunter who attacked me—he knew my father. He said my father had a throne. What did he mean?"

Yasma's smile faded. She was silent for a long moment, studying him with those dark, unreadable eyes.

"Your father was more than a simple martial arts master," she said finally. "He was the rightful heir to the Tiger throne."

Sunny felt like the ground had dropped out from under him. "What?"

"Your father's family were the original rulers of the Tiger clan. They were overthrown in a coup thirty years ago. Your father escaped with his life and went into hiding. He became a master in the Lower Quarter, raising you in obscurity."

"Then why didn't he tell me?"

"Because he wanted to protect you. If the families knew who you were, they would have killed you." Yasma paused. "They killed him anyway. Because someone found out. Someone betrayed him."

Sunny's mind was racing. His father had been a prince. A heir to a throne. And he had never known.

"Who betrayed him?" Sunny asked.

Yasma shook her head. "I don't know. I wish I did. But I know it was someone close to him. Someone he trusted."

Sunny thought about the hunter's words. Someone who knew who he really was. Someone who wanted him dead before he could claim what was his.

"You knew," he said. "You knew all along."

"I suspected." Yasma's voice was soft. "I found your father's prayer beads with documents that identified him. I put the pieces together."

"Why didn't you tell me?"

"Because I needed you to trust me. I needed you to be willing to fight for me. And I knew that if you knew the truth, you might have done something reckless."

Sunny's hands clenched into fists. "You used me."

"I used you to help you." Yasma stepped closer. "I gave you the tools you needed to get revenge. I gave you Francisco. I gave you access to the tournament. Everything I've done has been to help you."

"Or to help yourself."

Yasma smiled. "Can't it be both?"

---

Sunny left the Serpent compound in a daze.

His father had been a prince. A rightful heir to the Tiger throne. And he had died in obscurity, murdered by the families who had stolen his birthright.

Sunny had spent seven years seeking revenge for his father's murder. Now he had a new mission: to claim the throne that had been stolen from his family.

But that meant facing the Tiger family. And the Tiger family was one of the most powerful in Ember.

He needed help. He needed people he could trust.

He found Francisco in the dojo, practicing forms with a wooden sword. The old man moved with fluid grace, every motion precise and controlled.

"You look troubled," Francisco said without looking up. "What happened?"

Sunny told him everything. About the hunter. About his father. About the throne.

Francisco stopped moving. He turned to face Sunny, his expression unreadable.

"I knew your father," he said.

Sunny stared at him. "What?"

"I knew him. I was his friend. I trained with him." Francisco's voice was rough. "He was a good man. A great man. And I failed him."

"How?"

Francisco set down the wooden sword. "When the coup happened, I could have helped him. I could have fought beside him. But I was young and scared and I ran." He paused. "I've been running ever since. Until now."

Sunny felt a strange surge of emotion. Francisco had known his father. Had trained with him. Had called him a friend.

"Why didn't you tell me?"

"Because I was ashamed. And because I wanted to see if you were worthy of the truth." Francisco studied him. "You are."

---

That night, Sunny sat alone in the training yard, staring at the stars.

His father had been a prince. He had died in obscurity. Sunny had spent years hating the families for what they had done, but now he had a new purpose: to claim what was rightfully his.

He felt a hand on his shoulder. He looked up and saw Kaycee.

"You okay?" Kaycee asked.

Sunny shook his head. "I don't know. Everything I thought I knew about my father was wrong."

"Not wrong. Incomplete." Kaycee sat down beside him. "Your father was a good man. A great man. And he did what he had to do to protect you. That's what matters."

Sunny nodded slowly. "I know. But it doesn't make it easier."

"Nothing ever does." Kaycee was quiet for a moment. "What are you going to do now?"

Sunny looked at the stars. He thought about his father. About the throne. About everything he had to do.

"I'm going to claim what's mine," he said. "I'm going to win the tournament. And I'm going to take back the Tiger throne."

Kaycee nodded. "Then I'll help you. Whatever it takes."

Sunny looked at him. There was something in Kaycee's eyes that he hadn't seen before—a fierce loyalty that went beyond friendship.

"Thank you," Sunny said.

"That's what brothers do."

They sat in silence, watching the stars. And for the first time in years, Sunny felt like he wasn't alone.