HONG-FENG

Prelude

Keitaro kept a steady pace, brandishing the blade of his tarnished weapon with a ratty, bloody rag, stealing glances at the tattered name embroidered in the center as he strode away. In the distance, a crimson Sun fell beneath a parade of eclectic clouds, setting night on the trio of fallen warriors behind him.

He paused, turning back around to catch a final glimpse of the scene; as he stared at the mess that had been left, he couldn’t help but think it felt unnatural. These men were slain and left to rot in the forest, this much wasn’t news, but the fact that it had been him that put them there?

That unsettled him.

Their blood on his bisento, his hands, staining his clothes, the soles of his feet tracking it along… none of it was what he’d thought it would be. He’d anticipated the cooling refreshment of revenge, the release of guilt; instead, his despair grew, and his guilt was only racked higher.

“How did things come to this?” Alone, he spoke begrudgingly to the emptied atmosphere.

The only answer he got came from the twittering of far-off birds.

In a vain attempt, Keitaro forced the thoughts in his mind that he’d thought earlier; he made himself remember why those men had to die. Suki was gone, and she was gone because of them; they killed her, the woman they’d called a demon and a witch. It was them.

Somehow, no matter how many times he repeated this fact to himself, an even stronger notion had already been burned into his brain. Faces, all familiar, lined themselves up in his metaphorical vision. Men, women, children, babies… all with their own expressions and words, speaking or screaming at him.

These were the faces of the parents, lovers, children, mentors, friends of those three men behind him. He’d met each and every one of them before that day; he’d talked to them and even known some of them as friends of his own.

How was he supposed to face them, knowing he’d caused them the grievances of losing someone? How was he going to live with himself knowing he’d done to those innocents exactly what those murderers had done to him?

Dead or alive, those men caused someone heartbreak, and now Keitaro had no one left to blame but himself. He had wanted to put an end to the damages, but, again, he had made things worse. Now, even more people would cry.

It wasn’t fair.

It wasn’t fair that Suki had been robbed of her life; she never did anything wrong… well, not to them, at least. Definitely, she had never done anything to warrant… that.

As he reached a break in the wooded vicinity, twilight had already stolen away every space of light in the sky. He stood at the edge of the forest, kneeling wearily into the soft earth. His right hand laid down the bisento and its cloth on the ground, reaching into the folds of his robe, fingers pulling out a lightly dusted tanto.

For a long time, he stared at the blade without taking any action.

In a few moments, the moon came into view, having been liberated from spare clouds; as it shone down, things seemed to become clearer to him. The blade glinted in front of him, full of purpose and meaning.

Gradually, he brought the edge closer to himself, enveloped in the desire to put an end to the cycle. It was a strange sensation, feeling his own blood dripping and sliding over his unsteady hands, watching it pool beside him as he fell over into the grass.

The moon filtered in and out of sight as he lay there, silently pleading for redemption. As his vision blurred and faded, he was left with the somehow peaceful sound of his own ragged breathing. Slowly, even this was carried out of his grasp as his mind and body began to slip away.

We’ll fix it next time, won’t we…?

---

Author's Notes: I don't know why I never started writing this story until just now; it's been in my head for two years. It's easily different from my other stories, most notably because it's much more romantically focused. I guess coming from me, that's saying a lot, but it's not all fluffy and hearts and sparkles. Thank god.

Oh, another thing. The 'previous' Weisheng and ChunLi would indeed be Keitaro and Suki, respectively. I believe the title of the story roughly translates to 'Rose Wind,' (if anyone knows this is incorrect, i'd appreciate a notice) I know, it's dreadful and corny. Haha, take THAT, me!