"You started to love her, didn't you?" accused Hannah by the campfire.
Pablo snorted and said, "you're really good at having women flock over to you."
"Love doesn't blossom in one day, Pablo, it takes time to understand each other." taught Zhōng.
"May I remind you that Hannah is your half sister?" questioned Pablo as he looked into Zhōng's eyes.
Zhōng sighed and looked at his father. "You're a horny dog, father," he said.
"That's number three," stated Hannah.
"At this rate, you could have a harem," said Xing.
Huo chuckled at his children's and Pablo's comments and allow a small smile on his face. "Unfortunately, Hannah, I didn't have feelings for your mother. I was filled with pain and suffering that I forced myself on her but she didn't resist in stopping me. I wish I know what happen to your mother for your sake, she disappeared after dropping you off to me." he said.
"So what happen to Jiaxin and Jing?" asked Pablo.
"I assume you, Assassins, knew already. When I came to your empire, your mentor said you've been watching me ever since I arrived in the Spartan Empire." said Huo a little surprised.
"Yes, while we've been keeping an eye on you for that long, we have no other records about them." explained Pablo.
"Father, what happen to them?" asked Xing, calmly. She could see her father became vulnerable as if the memories haunt him sometimes.
Huo sighed and leaned forward towards the fire. He folded his hands and looked at Zhōng who knew already. He saw his son nodded telling him they deserved to know as well. "It was stormy rainy day, I was summoned by King Alexios as it poured. What I thought about the rain before being summoned, I thought they were tears of joy. How even weather can be deceiving." he began.
King Alexios was talking with General Leonidas as it stormed outside when he heard a knock on his study room door. "It's Mr. Chen, your majesty," stated a guard outside.
"Let him in," ordered King Alexios. The door opened and Huo entered before it closed again. "Thank you for coming, may introduce you my second in command and most experience general I know, General Leonidas. And general, this is Former Emperor Huo, he's currently living with his people outside by the wall." he introduce.
"Former Emperor Huo, it's an honor to meet you. I heard you were an excellent field commander and led your kind to countless victories." praised General Leonidas.
"Please, general, you can call me without my title. I don't deserve as much praise as you heard otherwise I would still be emperor." said Huo and bowed at the general.
General Leonidas laughed causing Huo to be confuse. "There's no need to bow at me, we only bow to our king. Anyone else, we locked arms and shake." he said with a stretch out arm. Huo hesitated but grabbed the general's arm while he did the same to his. They gripped strongly as their hands braced the other's forearm.
"I didn't call you to get acquainted, I call you here because I received something from the Ninja Empire." stated King Alexios.
Huo turned to look at the king, his curiosity wanted to know what it was. "Did it came from the empress?" asked Huo.
"No, I received it from the leader of the black market in this empire. He apparently got it from a messenger that travels from each empire's black market." replied King Alexios as waved the letter that was on his desk. "It's address to you," he said and held the letter out.
Huo was surprised but took the letter, he was surprised to see the seal wasn't tampered with. The seal itself was strange since it looked like a blacksmith seal. He opened the letter and gasped at the first words he read. He continued to read and was shocked the further he read, he never thought this person would find him and speak to him again.
"What does it say?" asked General Leonidas as he noticed a tear rolling down Huo's face.
"Who is it from?" asked King Alexios.
"It's from my brother, he's alive and well. He saids he is working as the leader of the black market and a smith making countless of swords. His life is difficult but manageable, the empress wants him but promise no harm to him if he comes when she calls for him. He also stated his last visit to the capital, he saw Zhōng." answered Huo.
"Your heir," awed General Leonidas.
"How is that possible? It's been seven months since the end of your civil war and three months since you were declared dead. Surely, the former prince, your son, can't possibly be alive." said King Alexios.
"But he is, otherwise the Ninja Sword would found a new weilder. Zhōng is smart and skilled to hide from anyone. The guards that were in the palace or roam the streets when I ruled said he'll disappear in front of them along with his friend. Knowing personally how they were, I'm not surprised if he's using those skills to survive even now." said Huo, he put the letter down and looked out towards the rain.
"I assume your anxious to see if what your brother saw is true." guessed King Alexios.
"With your permission, I would like to write back to him." requested Huo.
"And what will you say?" asked General Leonidas.
"I would tell him to confirm it's him and take him and his sister, if she's alive as well, into his custody. I would tell him to protect them from the empress or any other force that wants them dead. However, I don't want them to know I'm alive, I want Zhōng to forge his destiny into what he believes in. With the knowledge of me being alive could risk them in danger and the path Zhōng walks as he'll force himself to follow what I want him to follow. He'll be better with me still dead." stated Huo.
"Very well," accepted King Alexios. He offered his desk and a quill and paper and Huo immediately began writing. However, after writing his greeting, he noticed a mistake he did. "What is it?" asked King Alexios.
"It's been a couple years since I spoke or wrote to my brother, the last time was when I evoked his rights as a lord and banished him from my court. I said terrible things about my brother because he was getting very strict that I maintain my vows. No one likes to be reminded and he didn't do that till he claims to see a ghost." explained Huo.
King Alexios looked over at the letter. Though he couldn't read the written language of the Ninja Empire strongly, he regonized the symbol that meant 'lord'. "If this will be the last time you wanted to reach to him, then make sure you find peace and apologize for anything you have guilt of." he said. Huo nodded and continued to write as a tear fell onto the paper, he was fill with joy and hope as he wrote.
When Huo got back to the wall, his face was shock and rain he once thought as tears of joy were actually tears of pain. Laying lifeless in front of him were Jing and Jiaxin, they were cover in stab marks and their eyes showed their agony before they died. Huo collasped to his knees as he stared into their eyes, they accepted and trusted him since he arrived in the Spartan Empire. He braced himself with his arms and screamed at the ground below him with rage. "Who did this?" he snarled as he stood up and looked all the Ninjas close to him. They were frieghten at the woken beast as it stared at each one. "Who did this?" he repeated, seeing all of them tremble.
"That would be me," stated Xia as he stepped forward with a sinister grin.
"Why?" growled Huo, he had felt this pain before when Yah died a couple weeks after giving birth to Xing.
"Because I can, because they wouldn't back down, because you're the caused of this violence. We were fine living out here on the streets till you showed up and advertise a safe job. A job that barely paid for anything, a job most relied on each other to survive, a job that was worse then begging. And after working for so long, I discover how badly we are treated compare to the Spartans. They make a single bronze coin in thirty minutes while it takes us a whole day. I and the others had enough and were going to teach you some sense when you return. However, they wouldn't let it happen so we had to give them the lesson we were going to teach you." said Xia.
Huo grabbed Xia by his collar and hoisted him off the ground, his blue eyes flared with violence and anger as the rain continued to fall. "I will kill you," he growled.
"Come, come, Mr. Chen, if you were that violent, you would have done it when you first arrived. You said to them you're done fighting and you never shown violence till now. Do you think they'll be please if they saw you now?" asked Xia.
Huo pondered as he thought how Jing and Jiaxin would react to this. He then thought about how his sons and daughters would think of him if they saw him now. Fire burn them to ash as their faces showed disappointment at him. He closed his eyes and set Xia down before collapsing to his knees again.
Xia seeing there's no point in killing him anymore, adjusted his composure and spoke, "Now you can stay here if you like, but we're going to go."
"Very well, go back to the Ninja Empire, by now most of it is at peace once again," said Huo, his body began to crumpled lower into the mud.
"Oh no, the Ninja Empire isn't our home anymore. This is our new home and we're going to teach the Spartans a lesson of equality." stated Xia. He then left Huo as the other Ninjas followed him away. The only one that stayed at the wall was Huo as the rain fell harder.
Through the next couple of weeks, Huo struggled to carve in stone as the rain continued to poor. He worked hard pouring his pain and tears and blood onto it. When he finished, he went up on a hill outside the Spartan Capital where he buried Jing and Jiaxin. He laid the tombstones on top of their graves collapsed to his feet once again.
"I'm sorry this happened to you, you didn't know me but I knew so much about you. I know I'm too late to tell you but my name isn't Chen. I am the former emperor of our empire, I was scared that you would throw me away so I kept my identity a secret. I'm sorry, you didn't deserve this, I thought what I was doing was right. But now I realized I made things so much worsed." cried Huo he then pulled out flowers and laid one on each grave. They were flowers from the Ninja Empire but could be grown in the Spartan Empire as well. They were white with a tint of blue in the middle. There was a patch he discovered when both Jing and Jiaxin were still alive. The memory of seeing their faces with joy when he showed them made him cry harder.
Huo sat by the wall for over a year, everything he owned he sold for money to buy food. But when there was nothing left to sell other then his clothes, he did nothing but wait for his death that refuse to come. The Spartans took sympathy for him though he didn't want it. Every coin given to him, he used to buy food since he didn't want to leave anything valuable behind. Everyday, his depression grew stronger and the memory of his past played throughout his head. At first, he could hear the screams of ghosts that were executed by his degrees. He could see their faces when he slept but what haunted him the most was the smile and joy of his youngest son. Everytime he saw it, a dark monster would slayed his son with two swords and looked at him for approval.
One rainy day like the first, Spartan guards approached Huo as he crumpled near the wall. "Our king wishes to see you," stated one of them.
"Tell him you executed him already, I accept my fate." croaked Huo. His clothes were ripped and worn and any exposed skin was cover in the mud. The Spartan guard shook his head, he signaled his two companions and they picked up Huo. They dragged him through the streets and to the palace. Slaves took his clothes off and burnt them while scrubbing him clean. When the bath was over, new clothes were given to him and the guards escorted him to King Alexios.
King Alexios looked up along with General Leonidas as Huo entered the king's study. He saw how thin, weak and tired the former emperor was as he looked at them in silence. "Sit down and eat while listening to what I'm going to say." ordered King Alexios.
Huo nodded and sat at the small table with General Leonidas. "Have master chef bring us more food and wine." requested General Leonidas as he looked at King Alexios's personal slave.
"Yes, general," said the slave as he bowed at the general. He then bowed at King Alexios before hurrying out to get more food.
"Your people are a difficult to enforce," stated King Alexios as he looked at Huo.
"Whatever they're doing, I have no part." confessed Huo.
"Your kind has taken over Ningor Pass, the fastest route for my merchants to travel to and fro the Indian Empire and beyond to the Medieval Empire. They've made outrages demands to merchants traveling through the pass. Almost all their goods are required to pass through leaving them nothing to trade." explained King Alexios.
"That sounds about right," snorted Huo.
"About right?" repeated General Leonidas.
"Yes, you tricked me when you allow my kind to work in the docks, a single bronze coin can barely afford food. Some families have to force eligible age sons to work to make an extra, others pooled their coins together to eat food. I should have known it wasn't enough when you agree eagerly." accused Huo as he looked at the king.
"I did not mean to trick you, you set the price for your kind. That's why I had the dock managers reward those who work the hardest. But I can see why they want to take so much since they barely had anything." said King Alexios.
"Is this why you call me? Do you think I can talk sense into them?" asked Huo.
"The council has been debating for six months on what to do with them. I decided enough is enough, but I need someone from their empire to be witnessing of the massacre." replied King Alexios.
"Well I'm sure there's Ninjas that are now citizens in your empire." stated Huo.
"That maybe true, but I didn't call you here to bear witness of that." began King Alexios. He saw Huo raise an eyebrow confused as to why he was here then. King Alexios opened a drawer pulled out a letter and package. "This was sent to you." he finished.
Huo stood up and grabbed the package and letter before sitting back down. He saw the same blacksmith seal on it and opened it. "Brother, it's good to hear you're alive and doing well. I apologize for writing to you again even though you request I shouldn't. However, there's something I need you to keep safe from Zhōng and everyone else. This letter should have come with a package, in it is a diary I got from Lord Zhe in the Old Mansion in the Zhēn Lǐ Fiefdom. The secret it contains, I promised Lord Zhe, we'll keep it a secret. You must protect it till it's too late or we'll perish. Your brother, Mr. Tyron." read Huo aloud. He opened the package and recognized it was his father's diary during the last years of his life. He noticed the letter told him which page and he turn towards the back. As he read the page his eyes widen and his hands shake.
"What does it say?" asked General Leonidas.
"I- I- I-" stuttered Huo in shock.
"Whatever it says, keep it a secret from us. Your brother made it clear you shall take it to your grave." said King Alexios.
"But this changes everything, if I keep this secret, anything left of my family's legacy will be destroyed. However, if I revealed this, the empress's family's legacy will be destroyed." recovered Huo as he closed the diary.
"And how many more innocents will die?" asked King Alexios, he stare at Huo who was puzzled at his question. "When secrets are reveal, death always follows. The choice of course is yours but your brother trusts you to keep that a secret."
Huo pondered on the king's words as he march with two hundred Spartan soldiers to Ningor Pass in the Iarnă Mountains. He wondered how true his words were as he thought back the secrets he discovered. He never thought till now how many innocents will be involved in the chaos of the discovered truth. The soldiers soon made camp for a break and Huo wrapped himself tighter in his cloak. The snow was falling and the wind blew briskly as the clouds blocked the sun.
General Leonidas joined Huo as he saw the former emperor troubled. "Did the letter mention anything else about your son?" he asked.
"He's alive, my brother has him and his sister under his care. However, Zhēngfú has yet to be heard of." replied Huo.
"He'll show up, Zhōng survived this long on his own." stated General Leonidas.
"He did had better chances," sighed Huo. The wind whistle into his ear causing him to shrink deeper into his cloak.
General Leonidas could see Huo was torn in many ways in his mind. He felt sympathy and spoke, "Before King Alexios became king, I was second in command behind his father. When he died and King Alexios took over, he couldn't lead his armies the way his father did. He was terrible at creating a strategy and it caused thousands of men. And like you are now, he was wondering what if I did something else."
"So who's the mind behind the king's impressive and effective attacks?" asked Huo.
"It was me at first, he relied on me like his father did before until he became good. Every strategy meeting, he asked questions on our approach. The more he asked, the better he became. Now he can spot where our plans can go wrong and helps mitigate them. I still help out and lead some of the meetings, but he has come a long and the first thing he did to achieve it was to let go of the past." explained General Leonidas.
"But I can't I'm tied to it, I'm part of it. King Alexios can sweep it behind because he drives to get better, but I'm haunted. I see faces of people I executed, I see those who care perishing in fires I created. But what's scares me more, is this monster with two blades standing over Zhōng as his smile is covered in blood." complained Huo.
"Do you think something is going to happen to him?" asked General Leonidas.
"Something has, something has awaken inside him and I'm the reason," said Huo as he turned to look at the general.
"But Zhōng is alive, what do you think the monster wants?" asked General Leonidas.
Huo stood up and stretched, he looked at the general again with sadden eyes. "You're mistaken, the monster is Zhōng. The Zhōng I watched grow up is dead and replace with that beast." he said.
Suddenly the camp was underattack as the Ninjas rushed an ambush and kill the Spartans in surprise. "Here they come! Leave none alive as they are enemies to the Spartan Empire!" ordered General Leonidas. He grabbed his shield and sword and joined his men in battle.
Huo noticed while the Ninjas surprised them, they had no decent weapons to overcome the Spartans' massive shields, swords and spears. The tide of battle suddenly changed and the Ninjas were slaughter one after the other. He soon noticed one trying to escape and chase him. He followed the Ninja's trailed in the blizzard, he grunted and noticed he was getting close. Suddenly the Ninja tackled him and pinned him down.
"Who would have thought that our own emperor would betray us," grunted Xia as he straddle Huo and was choking him.
"You knew?" gasped Huo in surprised.
"We all knew after a while, we wanted to kill you but those two were willing to protect you. I had to kill them otherwise they would get in my way, but I never expected their deaths to began your despair." jeered Xia as he tightened his grip.
Huo's life began to flash before his eyes, the guilt and pain from keeping his identity a secret wasn't necessary. He can see Jiaxin running through the flower fields outside the Spartan Capital while Jing watch her daughter. Jing then turned and smiled at him, she was happy that they came with him. He then saw his sons playing their strategy game and Xing escaping from her lady duties. He then thought about Hannah too as he hadn't seen her since he gave her to Lord Guǐ and Lady Yurei.
"Look, father," Zhōng's voice suddenly spoke as the last imagine Huo saw was the monster haunting him. His cowl was still over his head but his dark blue eyes stared at him with a grin. He pulled down his cowl and revealed his dark blonde hair revealing his blood cover face. "Aren't you proud of what I become?" he asked.
Huo suddenly had the strength to get Xia off of him. He roared as he broke Xia's arms and tossed him into the snow before getting on top of him. He then rain punches at Xia with rage and anger, feelings he imprisoned and beared alone were released.
General Leonidas lifted his spear out of a Ninja he just killed. He was exhuasted and felt too old to be fighting at the front lines. He watched his men finishing off the remaining Ninjas as they tried to escape. Suddenly, he felt a presence behind him and he turned to see Huo. The Ninja's fists were cover in blood and his cowl cover his face as he tossed the dead body of Xia at the general's feet. "It's finish," declared General Leonidas.
"No," began Huo, shaking his head. "There's one more Ninja up in Ningor Pass, me." he declared. General Leonidas was caught by surprise and his men tense for another fight. However, the general had a feeling he wasn't going to give as much trouble as the ones before him. "Tell King Alexios that I, the Lone Bandit, will protect Ningor Pass. In exchange, I will required food, clothing, and perhaps a weapon from the merchants that'll travel through. I will also want clearance to come to the capital anytime I want." he demanded.
"I'll tell him your terms," agreed General Leonidas.
Huo nodded then turn away and disappeared in the snow. Over the next couple of years, he would go to the capital for supplies or meet with some people. On his last visit in the capital, he followed King Alexios to a room where two slaves were kept. "That's him?" he asked when he saw the back of Zhōng.
"That is, the Fallen Prince, the Dual Bladed Ninja." replied King Alexios.
"Even from here I can tell he was that a long time ago but not anymore." stated Huo, he wanted to run and hugged his broken son.
"Should I let him rot like he's been doing or should I let him go and do what he said he was going to do?" asked King Alexios.
"Let's see what the Poisoner can do." suggested Huo after he pondered.
"And if he fails?" questioned King Alexios.
"Then I'll be true to my threat to the Poisoner," promised Huo as the door closed. He knew it won't be the last time he saw his son and promised the next time he will help him reclaim what is lost.