Ling Yunyan

Ling Yunyan — her name means a swift that soars among the clouds, yet now she is a bird beating its wings against the bars of a cage. She is an officer of the Tang, posted to the farthest edge of the empire’s reach, on the wind-scoured heights of the Pamir Plateau at its western frontier. When she first arrived, the dynasty still stood at its dazzling zenith. Now, years have passed without a single message from the capital. Her commanding general led the main force eastward, marching off to quell a rebellion on the distant northeastern border… and never returned. To the west stand the Arabs. She knows only that, years ago, they drove back one of the empire’s expeditions—and now they appear before her walls with a faith and a god she has never even heard named. To the south, the Tibetans grow bolder with each passing season. To the north, the Turks remain what they have always been — the empire’s most suspect allies, smiling today, sharpening blades tomorrow. Now you have been brought to her mountain fortress. What news do you carry to her— the faint glimmer of hope, or the first shadow of destruction?