53 Chapter Twenty Five - Power Shift (Part 1)
Chapter Song Suggestion - "A Great Spirit Lies in Wait by Akari Groves"
At Beihai Port…
They honoured their titles with a fierce battle of raging swords and mighty steel — a shower of sparks erupting from unforgiving friction. Breathing heavily, Kyou spied an opening and swung his blade in a calculated arc, slashing open Akio's side.
His brother staggered backwards, clutching onto his bleeding wound with a look of sheer disbelief. Anger darkened his features and he bellowed nastily. "Kyoutarou!" Long legs charged with the murderous intent to kill — swift and decisive.
Kyou promptly sidestepped, but Akio surprised him by withdrawing a smaller blade and plunging it into his shoulder. Biting back the pain, he retaliated with his elbow, snapping Akio's head back to expose his throat, and slamming his fist on it before disarming his brother. Raising his sword, he aimed for the gut.
Helpless and vulnerable, Akio instinctively lifted his hand to ward off the attack — to protect himself. This tragically painted scene somehow struck a chord in Kyou's heart, and he faltered but, it was too late. The sword sliced deeply between Akio's fingers, severing his palm in two, his two last fingers flopping like peeled fruit. He cradled his mangled hand against his chest, taking deep harsh breaths to weather the mind-numbing pain. What he didn't know was that his mouth was wide open and the most harrowing scream a grown man could make detonated from his lungs.
"Akio…," Kyou took a hesitant step forward. His brother's wild eyes flickered to his and he stopped.
"First you took the throne from me, then my mother and now you cripple me!" Akio accused fiercely, spittle flying forth. The pain was so overwhelming it nearly blinded him. "Will I ever surpass you, Kyou?"
Kyou was unsettled by his brother's behaviour, oscillating between neurotic and violent. "Akio, you don't have to do this. If you turn back now, we can forget this ever happened."
"Can you?" Akio seethed. "Because I can't, and I will not. The throne belongs to me. By hook or by crook I will have it!" Something in the sky arrested his attention and whatever he saw made him smile deviously. "Unfortunately, it wasn't my plan to clash swords with you today. I would love to stay and finish this but, I'm not ready to die just yet. I'm one step ahead of you and if you won't step down from the throne then I will have to force your hand."
Kyou's response was a dark scowl.
Akio picked himself up, whistling sharply. Unbeknownst, the ground started trembling with the steady march of foreign soldiers descending the gangway, their bayonets trained upon Kyou. "Keep him busy," Akio commanded and retreated.
Kyou lurched to stop his brother from escaping but the human cage around him narrowed sinisterly, the tips of their weapons digging into his flesh. "Akio! I command you to stop!"
"When you realize that you have lost something important, that's when we'll meet again," Akio declared over his shoulder, motioning for Prince IIan to help him back on the ship.
"Akio, don't you dare run away! Come back here and fight me!" Kyou shouted hoarsely, frustration clawing at his insides. "You coward!"
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Ryuu was horrified by the ghastly sea of bodies piled along the shoreline — severed limbs, decapitated heads and corpses with arrows protruding from their backs. Even the sand was soaked with the very essence of their life. He couldn't contain the shudder of distaste for war's aftermath. He wondered how Kyou remained impervious to years of repeated brutality. It wasn't about the mutilated corpses that were left to rot where they had fallen, but the cruelty of mankind who slaughtered one another for the sake of power.
It was his folly for assuming that an influential King could bring absolute peace to a nation. Reflecting on Kyou's disposition, it was...hard to believe. Kyou was a great ruler, respected and feared by his peers but, did he truly wield the power to change the Kingdom? His brother too, was bound by the rules governing humanity. Due to one man's greed, the other was forced to kill in order to restore peace. War was a sham. In the end, everyone had to die.
"But it's what you honour and believe in, what you fight for that matters," his conscience whispered.
He found the subject of his thoughts engaged in a one-sided battle — on his part — as he cut down every soldier in his path. His brother was like a force of nature. Wherever he went, destruction followed yet he would always make peace and restore the balance.
"Assist the Emperor's men!" he ordered, galloping towards Kyou.
Panting harshly, Kyou removed his sword from the fresh corpse. He heard the whining of an approaching horse and turned around, unable to hide his surprise. "Ryuu, what are you doing here? Is the battle over?"
He took in his brother's blood splattered armour and dishevelled appearance, devoid of glory yet filled with life. Cracking a lopsided grin, Ryuu held out his hand. "You tell me."
Kyou accepted his help, and hoisted himself onto the horse's back, wincing at the pull of his injured shoulder. "Akio was here. We fought, but then he escaped. He left me a strange message."
"What did he say?"
"That we'll meet again when I realize that I have lost something important. I have a bad feeling about this." Favouring his bad arm, he pointed to the edge of the harbour. "Head over there. There's something I must collect."
As the horse slowed to a stop, Kyou dismounted and picked up unidentifiable mass off the ground. It was too dark for Ryuu to see what it was but, the despair on his brother's face and the lines of his body compelled him to ask, "What's wrong?"
"Attaw is dead."
Time slowed down as the words sunk into Ryuu. His mouth unhinged and closed repeatedly. "H-how?" He wasn't close with the General, but she had been part of their household for years.
"Akio." Kyou squeezed his eyes shut, a lance of regret piercing his heart. He didn't know how he was going to break this unfortunate news to Nakoda.
"I'm sorry, Kyou," Ryuu murmured.
"I could never get used to this part of the war. So many lives lost. I didn't want for this to happen," he mourned in bitter anger. "I would have done anything to avoid this."
"You had no choice," Ryuu found himself saying. "It amazes me how strong you are after enduring so many battles. I would have been chiseled down by the sorrow and suffering. I would have lost the will to care." His lips firmed. "It must be harder on those who have to dispose of their fallen comrades."
"We have to stop Akio." Renewed determination rang in Kyou's voice. "I'm ashamed to admit this but I wavered when I had the chance to kill him. I allowed my emotions to control me. If anyone else dies after this, the blame is on me because I permitted Akio to escape."
"I may not have the right to say this but, you shouldn't blame yourself for having feelings," Ryuu chastised. "I'm just glad that you're not a cold-hearted bastard. The last time we met, you were an obnoxious brat with a razor-sharp tongue. I couldn't even stomach the sight of you."
This was news, Kyou thought wryly. He hadn't known that Ryuu disliked him so intently in the past. "I'm not always heartless," he said subtly. "But it displeases me to know that my sympathy comes at a great cost of people's lives."
They shared a moment of amiable silence.
"Then, do you regret meeting Inka? Because she's part of the reason you changed. It's not just you, even Shuhei and I...we are starting to embrace change." He chuckled lightly. "And we're not the easiest people to get along with."
Kyou shook his head. "Don't be absurd. I will never regret meeting her. If anything, I worry that it's the other way around." He walked up to the horse. "That being said, this war mustn't be prolonged. We need to revise our next strategy and cut the head off the serpent before it rampages again."
"Your Majesty! Are you alright?" Inka's cousin, Mona, appeared beside them on her gelding. "The enemies have all been taken care of. Is there anything else we can help you with?"
"Good work, Mona. And I'm fine. You may return to Shiryuu or follow us back to the palace as you wish." He scanned the direction she came from. "Where is Inka?"
"She's in Donggu."
"What is she doing there?" A frown tugged on his lips.
Mona struggled to explain her cousin's quirks. "Inka has an unusual sixth sense for danger, and she believed something bad would befall the King of Donggu." When he didn't answer immediately, she quickly added, "If it makes you feel any better, my sister is with her."
While Kyou acknowledged the presence of God, he wasn't in the least superstitious. Inka's reckless selflessness was going to shave lives off his years. "Let's hurry back to the palace, Ryuu. I have a witch to hunt."
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Somewhere in Nanyang…
She groaned faintly, overwhelmed by a wave of nausea. Cracking her eyes open, she glanced around the…dungeon? Where the hell was she? Rolling over, she levered up on her elbows and swayed from dizziness. Palming her head, she held still until the feeling subsided.
"Has sleeping beauty finally decided to awake?" A mocking tone chased her malaise away.
Whipping her head up she demanded. "Who are you! What happened?"
"Tsk. Don't you remember me?"
"Step into the light," she squinted, noticing a pair of black, polished boots.
"I'm disappointed that you can't remember my voice."
He did sound a little familiar — the same tenor and bass...almost like Kyou's but edgier and intensely cynical. Shaking off the fog clouding her memory, she gasped in recognition. "A-Akio?"
"That's right, female. I assumed the explosion had knocked what little intelligence you have left out of your brain," he chuckled ungraciously. "Welcome back to Nanyang."
