The boy crouched in the shadows, his heart pounding against his ribs. The thick smoke burned his eyes and throat , but he didn´t dare move.
Flames licked up the walls of his home , twisting around the wooden beams like ravenous serpents, casting a violent , flickering light over the courtyard.
Lin Jianyu pressed himself further back into the hidden alcove where his father had placed him only moments before. His father´s words rang in his ears: "Stay hidden, my son . No matter what you hear, you do not come out . Promise me."
Now, all he could do was watch in silent horror as the world he knew unraveled before him.
Voices rang out, sharp and mocking , as men in dark robes moved through the courtyard , torches and swords glinting in the firelight. One of the dragged his father, a powerful man brought low, to the center of the courtyard. Jianyu´s chest tightened as he saw blood matted in his father´s hair, the torn clothing , the fierce resolve still burning in his eyes even as he knelt.
They forced his father to look up at the place where Jianyu hid, though they didn´t know he was there. His father´s held something Jianyu couldn´t name, a deep sorrow mixed with pride. Then the sword came down, and Jianyu felt his heart stop as he watch the figure he admired most crumble to the ground.
The sounds around him blurred-- shouts, laughter, the crackling of the flames and somewhere , distant and terrifying, the screams of his mother and his older sister. He clenched his fists, pressing his lips together to keep from crying out. His body shook, but he willed himself to stay silent.
The courtyard was littered with the bodies of his family´most loyal servants , men and women who had been like family to him, people who had been there every day of his young life. He recognized faces in the bloodied remains - cook who always saved him extra sweets, the guards who had taught him how hold a wooden sword. And now, they lay still , like discarded dolls, expressions of terror frozen on their face.
And where were the friends of his family, the ones his father had trusted so deeply? Not a single familliar ally had come. The realization struck him , a sharp blade cutting through the haze of shock. His family´s friends - those who shared laughter in his father´s hall, exchanged gifts , and swore allegiance - had abandoned them.
Jianyu´s nails dug into his palms , his entire body tensing as he fought to contain the surge of anger and despair. The air around him was thick with the scent of burning wood and flesh, and it made him sick , but he swallowed back the bile. He could not afford to make a sound.
Then, through the chaos , he felt a hand on his shoulder. He jumped, ready to struggle , but a familliar voice whispered urgently in his ear, "Young master, it´s me." It was Tian, the loyal servant who had been with him since his childhood, always at his side like a quite shadow.
"We must go , now," Tian urged, his voice firm yet calm. Jianyu´s gaze snapped to him , desperate and wild. He wanted to scream , to fight, to do something to stop this nightmare. But the look in Tian´s eyes was steady, filled with a silent promise of protection , a promise that somehow , he would make sure Jianyu survived.
Tian wrapped a cloak around Jianyu´s shoulders, pulling the hood low over his head, and gently guided him out of the alcove. Jianyu`s legs felt weak, his body numb, but his forced himself to follow. His heart beat so loudly he was certain someone would hear it. But Tian moved with practiced silece, leading him around teh edge of the courtyard, keeping to the shadows as tehy passed the burning ruins of his once - beautiful home.
As they neared the side gate, Jianyu risked one last glance over his shoulder. The courtyard was a vision of hell - flames roaring, bodies strewn, his home turned to ash and ruin. But it was the faces of those responsible, laughing , reveling in the destruction, that seared into his memory.
He turned away, eyes burning, a new emotion forming within him - a raw, simmering resolve that he didn´t yet understod.
The gate was unguarded, abandoned in the chaos. Tain pulled it open just enough for the to slip through, and they moved quickly, ducking into dense forest beyond. The sounds of the burning compound faded behind them, replaced by the quite rustle of leaves, the soft chirp of insects , and the pounding of their own footsteps in the forest .
They ran withou pause, Jianyu´s small legs straining to keep up with Tian´s long strides, his breath coming in short , harsh gasps. His mind whirled , replaying everything he had seen, every sound , every scream , until his visoin blurred. Yet his forced himself forward, driven by an instinct deeper than thought.
After what felt like hours, Tian slowed , his breathing controlled despite their long flight.
He guided Jianyu to a fallen log, urging him to sit and rest. Jianyu sank down , trembling , his mind still trapped in the nightmare he had just escaped.
"They´re all gone." he whispered, voice barely audible. "My father, My mother, everone....."
Tian knelt before him , his face grave, his eyes filled with sorrow. Jianyu had never seen before. He placed a steady hand on Jianyu´s shoulder. "They wanted you to be safe, young master. They wanted you to live."
Jianyu´s fist clenched , the reality of his words sinking in. "But ... why? Why didn´t anyone help? Where were they?" His voice cracked, a child´s desperate plea for answers he was not ready to face.
Tian´s gaze hardened, his expression bitter. "Power, ypung master. Greed and fear rules the hearts of men, even those who claimed to be friends."
Jianyu felt something shift within him , a cold resolve setting over the raw pain . He looked into the darkness of the forest , the shadoes deep and unyielding, and in that moment, he made a silent vow - to never forget , to carry the memory of this night as a hidden blade within his heart.
He met Tian´s gaze, hsi vioce steady despite , the tears in his eyes. "I will make the remember my family´s name. I´ll make tham regret it."
Tian gave a nod , his hand resting reassuringly on Jianyu´s shoulder. "And I´ll be by your side, young master , until you no longer need me."
In the depths of the night , with his home lost to ash and memory . Jianyu felt the weight of his new path settle onto his hsoulders. he was only a boy , but in that moment , he understood the cost of honor, the price of loyalty, and the burden he would carry.
Together , they disappeared into the shadows, the flames of his past still burning in his heart, a promise of the man he would one day become.