Embers of the Holy War

Shattered Dreams

Blearily, he opened his eyes to the gentle rays of sunlight. Unfurled above him were thousands of pink sakura flowers, swaying with the gentle wind. Alongside the bright chirping of birds, a melodious, soothing hum filled the air like sweet incense. Oh. He knew that song. It was the song he had been humming since he was little. Its familiar tune lulled him into a relaxed state. For a while, he simply stared at nothing in particular with no thoughts in his head. If only he could stay here forever; it was alluring calm and peaceful.

Abruptly, the humming stopped. A face shrouded by mist came into view, looming over him.

A distorted voice rang, "Did I wake you, sweetheart?"

His groggy brain took a moment to process what the person had said. Sweet...heart...? Wait. He blanched. Judging from the soft, warm texture of the 'headrest' he had been lying on the entire time, there was no doubt about it; it was definitely the hazy-faced person's lap.

As if electrocuted, he jolted upright, heat rushing to his cheeks, spluttering nervously. For some reason, he wasn't alarmed at all. Yes, it was odd that he couldn't see the person's face. Yes, it was odd that he couldn't properly discern their voice. Yet for some reason, he wasn't concerned about those details. Rather, he was more concerned about lying down on their lap, if his unexplainable, immeasurable embarrassment meant anything.

"N-no, you didn't, it's-"

Lifting a slender hand to Guang's lips, the person with a hazy face giggled amusedly. Now that Guang was further away, he could see that they were dressed in an elegant hanfu. Their long-sleeved ru was black, whereas the skirt was a mesmerising gradient of sky blue to midnight blue. With wave-like patterns and fishes embroidered into it, the skirt flowed much like the deep ocean.

In other words, they were breathtaking. Despite not being able to see their face, Guang felt his heart melt like cotton candy at the sound of their adorable laugh. A smile soon found its way onto his lips. Playfully, he hooked his arm over the person's shoulder, but found that his arm went through nothing but air.

What-?

Before he could process what was happening, the peaceful scene vapourized, and he was left in the darkness.

A heavy thump sounded by his feet. Horrifically, he slowly looked down. An agonising, ugly scream escaped his throat as he found the corpses of his parents; bodies splayed abnormally like a marionette with their strings cut. Their eyes were blown open in fright and blood leaked from their lips; victims of a gruesome murder.

Through sobs that racked his body, he got onto his knees, carefully and desperately scooping up their bodies and embracing them; it was a miserable attempt to keep them with him, even though he knew their souls were long gone.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry," he repeated endlessly through tears, but no matter how much he apologised, it would never reach their departed souls.

He froze. Something was wrong. He quickly leapt onto his feet, breathing raggedly as the bodies - no, the body - fell onto the dark ground once again with a thud.

It wasn't the body of his parents. It was the body of the faceless person.

With a yell, Guang sat upright, gasping like he had just been drowning. His heart felt like it was exploding with how frantically it was beating; it was so much to the point it hurted. He clawed at his chest, trying to calm it down, but a pair of hands grabbed each of his own, stopping him from doing so.

"Deep breaths, Guang, deep breaths. We're in the hospital; it's safe here."

That voice...Jin?

To his right, Jin was leaning over him, brows furrowed as he held both of Guang's wrist. Eventually, Guang registered that he was in a soft, clean hospital bed in a neat room. It was a familiar sight; one he had woken up to fifteen years ago. But most importantly, all of this felt real.

They were safe. They were safe. Guang had to repeat that several times in his head before he finally got his breathing under control. Only then did Jin relinquish his grip on his wrists too. Falling back onto a chair beside Guang's bed, Jin crossed his legs.

Frowning, Jin questioned, "A nightmare?"

"Y-yeah."

He lifted a hand to rub the heavy sleepiness away from his eyes, but froze when he felt that they were wet. Oh, crap, was he crying in his sleep?

Turning the other way around, he hurriedly wiped away his tears. Hero, he was so out of it. There was no point in hiding it either; Jin probably saw his tears when he stopped Guang from hurting himself.

Clearing his throat, Guang nervously smiled. "Sorry to worry you like that. It's just...father and mother...they..."

Like a heavy baggage was dropped on him, it all came back to him. His father and mother, who cared and cherished him as a child. His father and mother, who loved Jin. His father and mother, who grew distant as he grew older. His father and mother, who he lost on that rainy day in the ruins of his family's manor.

A figure rising up before their bodies. An ethereal man in a midnight blue jacket. The demon king, Sui-

His hand flew to his mouth, trying to stop the puke from rising. Jin instantly rushed to his side, rubbing his back and murmuring words of comfort. Tears brimmed at his eyes as he panted to keep his composure. Meanwhile, without him noticing, his right hand had unconsciously wandered towards the cold, crystal earring on his right earlobe, the gift Sui gave him...

The reincarnated demon king, his parents' murderer and Sui, his ray of hope.

How could they be the same person?

The part of him that was an honourable Long told him that it was useless to try to comprehend an evil being like the demon king. He should throw away the crystal earring, get back up on his feet and avenge his parents.

However, the part of him that was six years old tried to reason that there must be a misunderstanding, or Sui must have had some reason to kill his parents. He should keep the crystal earring, find Sui and get a proper explanation.

Both voices were equally loud; both voices were right, both voices were him.

"Jin..."

Jin perked up at how feeble Guang sounded. Guang was always merry and energetic, no matter the situation. To see him this down made Jin uncomfortable, but what unnerved him even more was Guang's dull, lacklustre gaze.

"What should I do now?"