The fighting in Ye city was brutal, if you could call it fighting at all. The Jie were being slaughtered. Actually, exterminated would be more accurate a term. Terrified cries of children and dying screams echoed through the chaotic night air.
Wearing light armor and carrying a sword, I ran from one street to the next, pulling children from their parent’s bodies and hiding them in crumbling mud and stone homes. It wasn’t likely they’d survive, but after witnessing so much death over the years, I still wasn’t capable of walking away. Even as the scent of plum blossoms filled my nose.
Zhilan would be with the Jei, ready to be cut down by the invading forces. I was never sure about my father, sometimes he was on the same side, sometimes he was a member of the opposition.
Two soldiers rushed me with spears and swords. I deflected and blocked, taking out one man’s legs and piercing the other’s side, before scurrying away.
A woman’s voice carried over the screams, calling Zhilan’s name. I cursed and darted around a corner. A younger woman lay lifeless in the arms of a middle-aged Jie woman; blood saturated the earth beneath them. Nui Qiang cradled Zhilan with all the love and sorrow of a tortured soul.
A soldier rounded behind them, sword raised. His blade pierced my father’s back, the tip exiting through her chest before retracting. Father met my gaze, a flash of clarity in those dark eyes before it extinguished.
“Father,” I whispered, only feet away. Niu Qiang’s head tilted, gravity slowly pulling the body to the ground.
The soldier’s teeth shone white through his blood-spattered face. I lifted my sword, my anger taking hold. But I wouldn’t run this time.
The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.
He attacked with ferocity, batting my blade with strength I didn’t quite match. I had learned in training grounds and sporadic fights, but this man had been honed daily into a beast of death and survival. I blocked and ducked, rolling away. His sword sang in the air as I side-stepped and sliced his forearm. He cursed, doubling back on me, and blocking my only exit. He slammed his blade down on me repeatedly. Though I tried to thrust my sword as often as I could, my speed was failing me.
The soldier’s blade bit deep into my forearm. Blood trickled to the hilt of my blade, then my palm. My grip slid. I blocked his next thrust but not the following one. He gashed my thigh, dropping me to my knees. I struggled to rise then stumbled backwards. My vision faded at the edges. I was losing too much blood, but there was nowhere to go.
Footsteps rushed up behind him as three more soldiers appeared. I was trapped. My back against the wall of a house. They closed in, the soldier’s smile returning as he wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. My legs trembled, blood pooling around my feet. But I raised my sword, preparing to die fighting.
The soldiers toyed with me as I batted away their teasing blades. One stabbed my shoulder. Another thrust at my abdomen, but I was able to deflect it off center. The wound burned into my core as I screamed. The blade that was still fresh with my father’s blood pierced my left side and slid out again.
I refused to fall. Though my eyes grew heavy, and my head became light. I hefted my blade, cursing them in every language I knew. The men paused, looking at each other in confusion.
The first soldier raised his blade high. I closed my eyes and took a breath.
A gust of wind pinned me against the wall as my hair blew away from my face. My eyes were too heavy to open, the sword slipped from my hand and thudded to the bloody ground.
Somewhere close, a man screamed. Then another one cried out, and another, though everything else seemed too quiet. I slid to the ground, hearing only the slowing beat of my heart. The sisters would be so disappointed. Guan Yin…
My parents…
A strong ginger scent chased the blossoms away. A thick hand cradled my head as an arm slipped beneath my shoulders.
“LiLi.”
But I was too tired, and everything was fading.
