俘虏 - 被监禁

"Huang, there is no one here but us. Will you now explain your reasons?" Jie Rui asks.

"It has been thousands of years in the making," Huang murmurs. "She finally sees the light of dawn through the daybreak haze."

"Ching Lan," Jie Rui comments. "Ah, yes, the one you threw away the chance of becoming emperor for. The peasant girl."

"Don't talk about her like that!" Huang yells, furious.

"I meant no ill will," Jie Rui replies. "It was fact that I stated, and nothing more."

"Dui bú quí," Huang mutters. "I'm not thinking."

"Do me one favour," Jie Rui murmurs, standing up. "Do not let go."

Huang watches his ally, and possibly friend, walk away. It's obvious in his eyes that he's confused by the riddles Jie Rui commonly speaks. A loud crash drags his attention elsewhere. Hu and Kai Liang stumble out from behind a cliff face. Both are covered in soot. Huang groans quietly, dreading whatever comes next. His army to invade the palace isn't looking too fearsome.

"Wow! That's a lot of soot!" Kai Liang exclaims, grinning.

His white teeth are almost neon surrounded by the black soot.

Hu whacks him over the head, glowering. "Huang, get him away from this invasion force or whatever of yours. I don't work with morons."

"I am not a moron; I'm just not the smartest person around!" Kai Liang exclaims, irked. Then he notices Huang's expression. "Jie Rui gave another riddle of wisdom."

"You ought to stop trying to decipher them," Hu replies, yawning and stretching. "It's impossible."

"Unless..." Kai Liang frowns, distantly.

"Unless what?" Huang asks, curious.

"No," Kai Liang murmurs. "Nope. He couldn't have meant her."

"Her?" Hu asks, suddenly interested as well.

"Oh yea," Kai Liang grins. "Of course. There was this girl; human, normal. Oh, but he was always watching her. That's about it though."

Huang leaps to his feet and looks up at the stars above while Hu smacks Kai Liang again. Under Huang's scrutinizing gaze, one star twinkles more brightly than any of the others. Huang's eyes widen, and he almost flinches back in shock. His head lowers, so that his eyes rake across the stone ground.

"When?" Huang demands. "When did he see this girl?"

"Around a century or two ago," Kai Liang replies. "Why?"

Huang doesn't bother replying. His mind is racing through all the alternatives. Every thought, every heartbeat, and every soul he's ever encountered. The last piece finally fits into place in his mind. The sudden clarity astounds him. The vivid, but blindingly bright images assaulting his senses make him stagger, but it all fits.

Then, faster than a hurricane, and more deadly than any force on earth, he races into the distance. Kai Liang and Hu exchange confused glances. They decide to follow him, just to see what's going on. However, a stone tipped arrow lands in their path. They look up to see Jie Rui glowering down at them, before walking away. This intrigues them, and so, they forget Huang's mysterious behaviour and follow Jie Rui.

"Score one for the moron!" Kai Liang yells, grinning. Hu whacks him over the head. "Oof…"

Hold on. I'm almost there. I can feel it in our soul.

Across the land, Ching Lan gasps. Her hand clutches the area above her heart. The sudden onslaught of pain nearly makes her collapse, but she steadies herself against a table. The feeling is unknown to her. There's not a hint of familiarity at all. Images flash towards her, and she drowns in them for only a second. To her though, it feels like an eternity. She doesn't remember what they are, and she can't make them out. The confusion isn't new to her; in fact, she wouldn't feel right without it.

"Ching Lan!" a voice like nails on a chalk board screeches. "Stand straight, head up. Put on a smile no matter how you feel, and get to work!"

Ching Lan bows. "Of course, my lady."

She disappears through the maze of corridors. Every room she passes holds prisoners of war. Her heart sinks at the thought, but she continues onwards. Shrill outcries come from the wounded in their miniscule rooms. There is not enough staff to sufficiently deal with them. In a place of so little, you would be lucky to live a day, but more would pour in again and again.

She stops suddenly at one room. Her eyes shift to the door. There's nothing she can see from where she stands, but she doesn't move on. The world around her turn's silent and the colour turns black. The only thing in colour is the door. Tentatively, she pushes against it, and it swings open. Inside is a young woman, very much like the one who invaded her room.

"Help me," she croaks, hoarsely.

Ching Lan's eyes narrow. "To hide behind a façade is pitiful."

The woman looks extremely confused. "Help?"

"To feign innocence is a dream-like state you have no place in," Ching Lan continues.

"Ooh…" the woman groans, settling into the cool respite of death.

"Oh no!" Ching Lan gasps, horror flitting across her face. "I was wrong. I let someone die!"

"Mmm, I'm impressed," a sly, vixen-like voice purrs. "You could sense me? How interesting. You are precious; more so than this broken doll."

The figure steps out from the shadows. Her fan covers most of her lower face. However, her purplish brown eyes glimmer suspiciously in the slim rays of light. Her hair is very alike her eyes and flows like a river down her back. The black and red of her qipao are prominent. The red is a circle of flames with a symbol in the centre, and it outlines the edges of the qipao.

Instantly, Ching Lan's eyes narrow, and she steps back. The guilt she felt has suddenly dissipated into the back of her mind. A low sigh escapes her, and she glowers up at the woman before her.

"Why do you seek to be here?" Ching Lan asks. "To enter the enemy camp only to watch your broken doll die, that is the act of a fool. You are no fool."

"Wise little puppet," the woman purrs. "Now, you shall come with me, Kun shall be so pleased to finally to see you, my dear. He has sought you out for eons, and now you are his. The sweet taste of victory is delectable, would you not agree?"

"Victory is palpable when true," Ching Lan states. "This is only a battle, when the war rages outside the palace walls of your dreams."

Despite the sharp retort, Ching Lan follows the woman without hesitation. She leaves nothing behind to acknowledge her presence, not even a single blossom...

Author's Note: Hello again, I'm sorry it's late. I couldn't figure out what that lady was supposed to be wearing, so I went with qipao. I think it's a well-known Chinese style, but maybe not. It should be on the homepage for FineChineseClothing . com. It's pronounced like chee and pow.

As for the first time people, sorry! I left some information out because it was included in part 1! I'm so sorry! Okay then, that's over, now, onto the wisdom of my words!

Huang – Imperial, august, majestic.

Ching Lan – Beautiful orchid.

Light of dawn through the daybreak haze – I made that up, it sounds wise, kind of. In the morning, the different colours sometimes make it a bit hazy. This means that you can see clearly, and think clearly and thoroughly even if the matter is confusing. I'm bad at explaining this!

De bú quí – It means I'm sorry. There's another way to say it, but this is the easiest. It is pronounced as 'De Bu Chee'.

Jie Rui gave another riddle of wisdom – Eastern people (Chinese and Japanese), love proverbs and sayings. Some are 'Hello is the Beginning of Goodbye', Do Not Employ Handsome Servants', 'Those Who Swim Well Drown' and 'Be The First to the Field, and the Last to the Couch'. I got them from Google, and from the episode titles of Saiunkoku Monogatari. (Love that show)!

Why Ching Lan didn't help the 'prisoner of war' – I heard somewhere that the Chinese, against the Japanese, took no prisoners of war. I heard that somewhere, whether it's true or not… Either way, this is set in modern times, with the characters having ancient beliefs and such. I'd say feudal era, but I don't know anything about feudal era Japan, and even less about feudal era China…

Wait, actually Miko's and samurai's and ninja's were from feudal era's, weren't they? I think so anyway. I don't really know.