The Stoneback Range always greeted dawn with quiet hostility. Sharp winds sliced between the cliffs, and the mountains carried a silence so heavy it felt like a warning.
But this morning, the silence broke.
A horn echoed from the deepest cavern of the Mountain-Fang Clan — not a horn of ceremony, but the ancient signal of uprising. Warriors flooded into the war hall, their boots shaking dust from the pillars carved generations ago.
At the front stood **Chief Barok Stonehide**, a towering figure with granite-like skin patterns and a stare forged by too many winters.
He slammed his stone staff onto the floor.
"**A Hamato claims rule over all clans,**" Barok roared. "**But the mountains bow to no king!**"
A thunderous cheer shook the hall.
"Bao Bao demands tribute!" "He places councils above our laws!" "He seeks to leash the mountains!"
Barok raised his fist.
"Then today, we rise."
And so, the First Rebellion officially began.
## **II. THE RETURN OF THE HOODED FIGURE**
The cheering dimmed as the torches flickered.
A breeze swept through the cavern — impossible this deep underground. Then a hooded figure stepped from the shadows, their presence quiet yet commanding.
Barok stiffened. His warriors reached for weapons.
"Be at ease," the figure said calmly. "If I wished harm, I would not walk in through your front door."
Barok growled. "Then speak your purpose."
The hooded figure spread a set of scrolls across the stone table.
Maps of hidden tunnels under the Sunspire Palace. Patrol schedules. Weak points in the palace defenses. Even coded messages between clans.
Barok stared.
"…How did you obtain these?"
The hooded figure laughed softly.
"You have more allies than you realize, Chief Stonehide. The throne gathers enemies faster than you gather snow in winter."
Barok moved closer. "What is your name?"
The figure stepped back into the shadows.
"Names have power," they whispered. "And I do not give power freely."
But they left one message behind:
"Strike quickly. Strike cleverly. And the throne will crack."
And then, they were gone.
A calm voice in the dark. A storm on the horizon.
## **III. FIRE AT DAWN**
Within the Sun Palace, Bao Bao Hamato awoke to the scent of smoke — but not volcanic smoke. The smell was wooden, dry, unnatural.
He rose quickly, grabbing the Sun-Blade from the stand.
By the time he reached the Hall of Records, flames were licking the edges of shelves. Not enough to destroy the archives… just enough to send a warning.
Raijin Sarurama rushed in moments later.
"This wasn't an outside attack," he said, inspecting the burns. "Someone inside the palace did this."
Bao Bao's jaw tightened.
"Then someone wants instability."
Rana Rana entered next, limping on his old Which is getting better.
"Mountain-Fang scouts refuse messenger calls. Their borders have gone silent."
Bao Bao exhaled slowly.
"Then the rebellion has begun."
His first rebellion.
## **IV. THE COUNCIL ERUPTS**
The moment Bao Bao entered the Sun Council chamber, chaos erupted.
Representatives from all clans shouted accusations:
"Mountain-Fang must be punished!" "Punishment brings more bloodshed!" "This is the Hamato King's doing!" "No king should rule the clans!" "The Rana are provoking them!" "The Saru Clan whispers treason!"
Bao Bao raised a hand — flames briefly flickering around it.
Silence fell.
"We will not tear each other apart," he said firmly. "That is exactly what our enemy wants."
Kuro Saru leaned forward, eyes sharp.
"Enemy? You think someone else is pulling strings?"
Raijin nodded. "We found footprints outside the Hall of Records. No clan patterns. No scent markers."
Veshlor added quietly:
"It is not a clan. It is… someone else."
Bao Bao's expression darkened.
"Then we are fighting a rebellion with a shadow behind it."
The room grew still.
Political tension rose like pressure inside a volcano.
## **V. THE SHADOW ORGANIZATION MAKES ITS MOVE**
Far beneath the palace, the hooded figure knelt before a circle of others — seven shapes hidden behind veils of shimmering heat.
The First Shade spoke:
"Has the rebellion begun?"
The hooded figure bowed.
"Mountain-Fang moves. The throne trembles."
Another voice — cold and ancient — whispered:
"Good. A single rebellion is a spark. We will turn it into wildfire."
A third figure asked:
"And the child? The glowing heir?"
The hooded figure smiled.
"Prince Saku is only days old, yet already feared. Fear weakens unity. We will use him."
The circle hummed in approval.
This was the **Obsidian Order** — a secret faction older than the Great War, thought long dead.
But they were very much alive.
And they wanted what Firelonia feared most:
**the fall of the Sun-King.**
## **VI. BAO BAO MAKES HIS FIRST GREAT DECISION**
Back in the Sun Council, debate swirled like a storm.
"Send the army!" "No—negotiate!" "Arrest Barok!" "That will spark war!"
Bao Bao lifted his hand again.
"I will go to Mountain-Fang alone."
Gasps echoed around the chamber.
Veshlor stepped forward sharply.
"That is dangerous! Barok may attack you!"
Raijin agreed. "This is reckless, Bao Bao."
But the king stood firm.
"If I march an army, I become a tyrant. If I meet him alone, perhaps Firelonia still has hope."
Kuro raised an eyebrow.
"You're betting the throne on mercy."
Bao Bao nodded.
"I am."
And with that, the king's path was chosen.
## **VII. THE JOURNEY TO THE MOUNTAINS**
Bao Bao left at dawn.
No throne guard. No elite Saru fighters. No Rana patrols.
Only Raijin at his side, though the king insisted he keep his distance so the Mountain-Fang would not see it as aggression.
The climb toward the Stoneback Range was harsh. Snow-laced winds howled. The sky dimmed beneath thick clouds. The path narrowed until even speaking felt like breaking sacred silence.
Near sunset, they reached the first watchtower.
Mountain-Fang scouts appeared instantly, circling them from the cliffs.
"State your purpose, Hamato," one called.
Bao Bao stepped forward.
"I seek Chief Barok. I seek peace."
The scouts exchanged wary glances.
Finally:
"Follow."
The first test had passed. But the danger had only begun.
## **VIII. BAROK'S HALL**
The war hall of Mountain-Fang was lit by dozens of stone lanterns. Barok Stonehide stood at the center, flanked by warriors.
"Bao Bao Hamato," he said coolly. "The first king to visit us since the Age of Embers."
Bao Bao bowed respectfully.
"I come not as a conqueror, Barok, but as a man seeking unity."
Barok slammed his staff down.
"Unity? You crown yourself king, then speak of unity?"
"The clans chose me," Bao Bao said calmly. "We ended the war together."
Barok grunted.
"You ended the war… and began a crown. A crown no mountain bends to."
Murmurs filled the hall.
Bao Bao met Barok's eyes.
"I do not want your land, your power, or your pride. I want Firelonia to heal."
Barok leaned forward.
"Then why did your Council demand tribute?"
Bao Bao's breath caught.
"What tribute?"
Barok's warriors unfurled a scroll.
It bore the Sun Council seal.
A demand for grain, metals, and soldiers.
All signed by "High Councilor Veshlor Rana."
Bao Bao's eyes widened.
"Veshlor… would never sign this."
Barok's voice deepened.
"Then someone forged it. But the seal is real."
And suddenly, everything clicked.
The sabotage. The stolen scrolls. The hidden footprints.
A shadow was playing both sides.
Barok stepped back.
"Tell me, Sun-King. Do you stand here to negotiate… or to trick us into surrender?"
Bao Bao inhaled.
"I stand to stop a civil war."
Silence.
Then Barok spoke four words:
"Then prove your truth."
## **IX. THE TRIAL OF STONE**
Every Mountain-Fang leader underwent the Trial of Stone — a ritual to test sincerity.
Bao Bao agreed without hesitation.
The trial involved crossing a narrow cliff path in complete silence, while the mountain winds attempted to push the participant off-balance. The path was sacred, symbolizing a leader's ability to walk through conflict without losing focus.
Bao Bao stepped onto the path.
Hurricane winds tore at him. Cold sliced into his lungs. Shards of ice struck his face.
But he kept going.
Halfway through, the winds died.
A whisper floated behind him:
"Fall, Sun-King."
The hooded figure stood at the edge, hands raised.
Shadow energy flickered between their fingers.
Bao Bao spun — but he didn't attack. He held his ground.
The hooded figure frowned.
"…You resist even without fighting. How annoying."
With a swirl, they vanished.
Bao Bao finished the trial.
Barok watched, stunned.
"You did not fall… even when the mountain tried to break you."
Bao Bao bowed.
"Because unity is worth standing for."
Barok hesitated.
Then nodded.
For the first time, the rebellion wavered.
## **X. THE SHADOW STRIKES**
Just as Barok was about to speak, the war hall shook violently.
A messenger sprinted in.
"Chief! The southern mines — they're collapsing!"
Barok stiffened.
"That mine is inactive…"
Bao Bao finished the sentence:
"…Unless someone triggered an explosion from inside."
Both men looked at each other.
The same enemy.
The same hidden hand.
Barok growled softly.
"I see now that someone wants us to blame each other."
Bao Bao nodded.
"And they nearly succeeded."
For the first time in centuries, Hamato King and Mountain-Fang Chief stood side by side.
The part two of the test will be continued in chapter 7