Chapter 19: At Long Last

The skin on his body began to sear away. The pain was insufferable to the point that it made Heian numb. He stood absolutely still, staring into his daughter's soulless eyes as billowing black flames engulfed him and Ting.

His brother fumbled around in an attempt to dispel them. The flames responded angrily and grew ever more ferocious, forcing the young boy to let out an agonizing howl.

'To think that this'd be the way I die…by the hands of my own flesh and blood…' Heian thought as an immense pressure built up within his skull. Every fiber of his body had begun to break apart at the seams.

'This is it… there's no getting out of this one… goodbye… Jiu… Ting…' With one last smile, he reveled in the sweet release of death.

Not one second passed before a gut feeling forced his eyes back open. Yet all that greeted the lonely man was the cool blue mist from his dream.

Feeling revitalized, Heian looked himself over. He was surprised to find that his body had been healed for not even his original scars remained. But at that moment, that was the least of his concerns.

Much of the mist swelled in from behind, swirling around his ankles before coming together to form a silhouette that he knew all too well.

"Jian, it's me. You don't have to be alone anymore. We can be together again."

Heian paused in anticipation of an answer but received no such thing.

"Please say something. Please. The truth is I need you."

"No, you don't," she finally answered. Despite the brusque answer, the voice with which the spirit spoke was calm and soothing. She then paused momentarily herself, as though to let her words sink in. "It isn't yet your time."

"Wha—" Heian scoffed, "What do you mean—"

Before he could finish, the silhouette vanished into thin air. Then there was silence.

The sky turned from pitch black to a dark shade gray. Droplets began to trickle down, and were soon accompanied by lightning. Each flash brought into view countless shapes that resembled ghouls reaching up to the heavens.

Another voice cried out close by. Startled, Heian turned and spotted a stranger in the dim light as they traipsed through the thin layer of mist.

The stranger — who appeared to be a woman — seemed to be fixated on something slightly out of view, behind a mound of stones.

"Please, please let this night be the last," she said to herself in a quivering voice. The woman continued repeating the words like a mantra.

Curious, Heian peeked around the mound and saw a child. Narrowing his eyes, he realized that the child shared an uncanny resemblance to Ting when he was around six years old. Even the newly sewn summer robe and stiff posture were identical.

"This has gotta be some strange dream," he muttered quietly. The man knew whatever that was couldn't be more than a mere illusion; Ting was right beside him before he found himself in this new world. And knowing his tenacity, he was likely still alive.

"Excuse me," he said to the woman. She perked up with a quick gasp before turning to face him.

The two of them stared at each other in awe. Heian eyed her visage curiously, noting her slightly foreign appearance. Though she had brown eyes, black hair, and a rounded nose like that of a Han person, her eyes were noticeably more round. She also had freckles which, while not unheard of, were extremely rare.

"You have those strangely colored eyes," she said at last, "almost like that little boy."

Heian responded with a blank look. Even in the afterlife, others couldn't help but notice. He quickly glanced at where the boy had been standing, only to find that he, too, had vanished.

"Might I ask who you are?" prompted the woman.

He stuttered before finally spitting out an answer. "Heian. Zhuang Heian Shan."

The woman stood up. Heian couldn't help but notice her rather curvaceous figure as it came into full view.

"Well then, Heian. Is this your home?" she replied, her curiosity piqued, "This is the first time I've seen anybody up here myself."

"No," he murmured in a flat voice.

"Not much of a talker, eh? No matter. I'm Tara." The woman stepped forward and extended her hand with her fingers pointed toward his abdomen.

"Your name is...Tara?" he said slowly as he glanced at her odd gesture. "What are you…?"

"Oh! I'm sorry!" Tara promptly drew her hand back. "Just a little gesture I usually do when greeting new people."

"I-I see."

For a few moments, neither Tara nor Heian said a word. Thousands of questions rushed through Heian's mind, yet none seemed to encompass enough. The woman looked equally as perplexed.

"Are—" they both said at the same time.

"Oh, I'm sorry!" muttered Tara meekly.

"You go first."

The flustered woman let out a sigh and scratched her cheek as she chose her next words carefully.

"Are you lost too?"

"I-I suppose. A friend of mine told me—" He stopped himself from blurting out too much. "Nevermind. You?"

Once more, Tara pondered. As she ran her hand through her hair, Heian noticed something glimmer from behind her left ear.

'What is that she's wearing? I've never seen anything like it…' He glanced at her white two-piece garment, which lacked even the most minimal of embellishments. Two straps — one slung over each shoulder — held up the piece that covered her chest and accentuated its shape. Around her waist was a skin-tight undergarment.

Tara finally spoke up, breaking Heian out of his entranced state. "I guess so too. As crazy as this might sound, this isn't my real body."

She then giggled at the look of confusion on Heian's face.

"You see, I'm actually a girl."

The man narrowed his eyes and furrowed his brows further.

"What do you mean? A girl? As opposed to what? An old woman?" he asked in disbelief.

"Is it not obvious?" her voice trailed off as she caught a glimpse of her fingers. It was as though she had just seen them for the first time.

Each breath grew heavier still as she patted her face and chest in frenzy. After a few moments, she fell onto her knees and whispered, "You mean I'm no longer…"

"I guess not," cut in Heian, who was about ready to part ways. As he turned away, he felt a light tug on his sleeve. He craned his head around to see Tara kneeling with her head bowed.

"Please, don't go. All this time I thought I've been having these dreams where I was a tall, muscly man. I was so confused, and I didn't know what to do! All these people, these—"

Heian began to pull away once more.

"Wait, please!" She let out a sigh. "You're the first person I've been able to talk to like this."

"Is that so? And that's all you've gotta say?" The indignant Heian frowned. Dealing with unhinged strangers was the last thing he wanted to do in any life.

"Well, no," she replied sheepishly. "There was also another matter I was hoping to ask you about before this whole fiasco."

Heian didn't answer, nor did he pull away either. Tara realized that this was her cue.

"A-are you related to the brown-eyed people?"

"Brown-eyed?"

"Brown-eyed," repeated Tara, "On my journey — outside of this realm, I mean — I've encountered people who looked just like you and that little boy. Only, they didn't have the colorful irises that you two did."

'Realms?' Heian thought to himself. He knew now what she had meant, but was addled by her method of articulation.

Clearing his throat, he answered. "My ancestors thought so, but being the freaks of nature that we were, my people were banished to the outskirts of society. Anybody who had the audacity to go back would end up facing the worst that the 'normals' had to offer."

His tone rose slightly as he stared into Tara's own pupils. "But who are you to them? Aside from those slightly rounder eyes, you look no different."

"I can see why you'd think that," she sighed, "But that being the case, there's just one thing I'd like to ask of you."

~

The black flames nipped away at Ting's sanity. In a desperate attempt to dispel them, he stumbled to the ground and rolled around in a frenzy. The flames continued to respond angrily by burning more fiercely with each passing second.

Nearby were the charred remains of his brother. His clothes had burned away, as did his hair. A mixture of sadness and horror gripped Ting's very psyche as everything within his vision became a blur. His Guang also sifted about, rendering him helpless against any impending attack.

Suddenly, he rolled into something sharp. Buried halfway beneath the ground was a sword, its cut bringing Ting clarity as blood seeped from his arm. The moment of relief was short lived, however.

Ting let out a huff. Realizing the effect that another source of pain had, he rolled into the blade once more. He winced as it sliced into his abdomen. The extended period of relief allowed him the chance to stand and pull the blade from its earthly sheath.

With his teeth clenched, Ting drove its tip into his chest, cutting just shallow enough to keep from touching his ribs. As he did this, the scattered Guang came together in his abdomen.

Ting smiled despite the pain, for his plan had worked. The Guang welled up and spread to every inch of his body. He then let out a mighty battle cry as they culminated into a flaming white aura that obliterated the darkness all around.

The possessed Jiu hadn't budged an inch since firing off the first blast. Her soulless expression remained as well. Undeterred, her uncle beckoned her to approach.

"Come! Face your uncle!" he cried out. A pair of dark plumes shot out from Jiu's shoulder blades, then morphed into a pair of muscly arms.

Before Ting could even process the situation, she jolted forward. One of the pseudo-arms grabbed him by the neck and slammed him to the ground, causing him to gurgle out a scream.

"What's going on?" Ting seethed in frustration, "What happened to that super speed from before?!"

Jiu looked down at him as a black, ink-like substance seeped into her irises. Her jaw was twisted slightly as if she was attempting to hold back tears of her own.

"Jiu!" called out Ting. In a hushed voice, he continued. "Look at me, dear. Don't—"

He gasped for air.

"Don't...let...it…"

An immense pressure built up within his eyes. Before he could let them fall shut, the air in front of them became scorching hot and began to glow like the sun.

The trail of heat quickly reached Jiu, whose shirt started to smoke where the heat had touched. She leapt back just in time to dodge what came next.

Bursting out from his pupils came a ray of light. It cut through the air, like sunshine cutting through the clouds, and struck the village temple. The mud building exploded in a great plume of fire and smoke.

Ting leapt to his feet. Though he was stunned at his newfound ability, he knew that it was his only chance against Jiu. He readied himself, taking a deep breath while letting his arms dangle by his sides.

At the same time, the girl's pseudo-arms disintegrated into dust. A dozen black holes — each no larger than her hand — then formed in the space surrounding her. With the snap of a finger, the chain-like weapons that had already slain many peeked out from within.