Blind and Bereft

Chapter 33 | Never Let Go

Once upon a time, when dusk fell, the animals would flee back to their habitats. The forest was not to be roamed at night, for there were always several thieves and bandits, and the force of evil that wished no goodwill.

My sister was agitated, and she turned to me before pulling me to my feet. "We cannot stay here, Jingrui. We must seek shelter."

I nodded and stood up. "But where, Sister Jingyi?"

Scanning around, trying to find a shelter, all that I could see surrounding me were endless yards of towering trees. We had ventured into the forest without thinking that we needed to get out. Now, we had nowhere to hide.

Before we could move, we heard rumbling from the bushes, and approaching from behind the trees were silhouettes of men.

Terrible men.

I began to tremble in fear as I hid behind my sister's shoulders. My sister went pale, but she pulled me close to her, fending me beneath her wings. "Do not fear."

Oh, sister, how could I not fear?

The men approached from all sides, trapping us like birds in a cage. Where were we to run? Where were we to go? There was nowhere in this world that would accept and protect us right from the start.

The men were menacing, and they held wicked smiles and wicked intentions. I clutched tightly onto Sister Jingyi's robe.

"No matter what, don't let go."

I'll never let go.

Three men circled us like predators circling their prey. They pulled out knives in unison and took careful steps toward us.

"They are really pretty, why are they dallying in the woods at night? There's nothing for us to rob . . . but, I really like the older one," one of them hissed.

"Oh, but there is something we could rob, and we'll play them, release and go," said the second.

"No, you can't skip the last part: play, release, kill, go," said the third.

I trembled as I stayed close to Sister Jingyi. Sister Jingyi was afraid but was ready to defend me with her life. One of the men launched at me, tearing me away from my sister, from my light, and dragged me into the eerie darkness. Sister Jingyi narrowed her eyes as she pulled a shard of glass from under her sleeves. Shooting forward, she sliced the hand of the man that held me. He let go of me with a yelp, and with fury, he slashed Sister Jingyi across her shoulder.

I cried as I saw pain sweep over Sister Jingyi's face. My lips trembled with the nature of my cowardice.

When Sister Jingyi fell to her knees, I knew that within this world, no hope was left.

It will be fine, it will be fine, it will be fine, the back of my mind repeated these words like a chant.

It worked every time. Just like when my father wanted to poison me, I would tell myself that it was fine, and it would be. Yet, as I saw my sister lay against the floor, blood gurgling from her lips, my mind broke into a frenzy. Panic filled every inch of me, and I knew that it was not fine.

It never was.

The three men left my hurting sister alone and walked towards me with wide smiles; the wide smiles that were just like my father's when he wanted to kill me. I had tears in my eyes as I backed away from them until my back reached a tree trunk. Before they could touch me, I saw my sister's silhouette vault from the floor, her eyes filling with anger. She wrapped her legs around the man's waist, her fingers scratching against the man's neck. The shard of glass flashed in her hand as she embedded it into the man's skin.

He growled as he threw my sister against a tree trunk. The man touched his bleeding neck and roared with fury before collapsing down cold.

I took the opportunity to rush to my sister. She lay like a broken puppet against the tree, blood seeping from her back. Her eyes had lost their light, and her lashes fluttered valiantly in an effort to stay open. "Jingrui. Run, Jingrui."

I held my sister's head against my chest as tears sprung from my eyes. "No, Jingrui won't leave Sister, Jingrui will never leave Sister."

The men approached us, and I looked at them, my eyes burning with anger.

"That beautiful older girl needs to go, she killed our pal," one of the terrible men said. The other one beside him nodded. He pulled a dagger from the sheath around his waist and held it over their head.

I looked at them with panic, then at my sister who was dying. She was far too weak, and she could no longer fend for me as she had been doing all this time. She was tired, and she was in pain. And she was my light, without her, I would stray to the abyss for eternity.

I wiped my tears and pushed myself to stand. My hands clenched tightly around the bloody shard of glass my sister had used to defend me.

You useless, good for nothing, wretch.

I took a lunge towards one of the men with bitter tears falling from my eyes.

You shouldn't have been born, you murderous calamity.

I held the shard of glass outwards, and the moonlight gleamed against the surface.

I will kill you and show you that you and your sickly body is worth nothing more than a sack of rice that won't even last the whole winter.

The blade of the terrible man went into my flesh. My insides penetrated, and my eyes burned with tears. With the rest of my strength, I plunged the glass shard into the side of the man's neck.

"I'll take you to hell with me."

The man shrieked, his blade violently jerking out of my stomach. My blood sprayed against his clothes as he stumbled down onto the last standing man's feet.

I felt so much pain. My knees wobbled, and I fell onto the cold and hard ground. Darkness crept over my vision, but I forced my eyes open.

I didn't want to die. I wanted to live even if that meant defying fate.

But, I was dying, and I knew I would not last to see dawn. I glanced at the last terrible man-the last one I wanted to take to hell with me. The moon reflected his features, and even with my hazy vision, I knew I would remember him for all eternity.

Forgive but never forget.

Could I really forgive people like them?

He held the knife out, and I was prepared for what he would do next.

Deities in Heaven, what did we, sisters, do in our lives to deserve this fate? Deities in Heaven, if I were to die now, where would I go? Will there finally be a place that I belong to?

I didn't know what happened next, but before the last man could stab me, he fell to the ground. No sound left his mouth as he died from the sudden blow, one so powerful that it killed him instantly. His eyes were left wide open, and his smile was still plastered over his lips. Through my wearing sight, I glanced up towards the trees above. There stood an old master with a long, white beard. The moon illuminated brightly behind him, giving him a spotlight.

Are you the deity coming to take Jingrui to the afterlife?

I smiled as I closed my eyes and fell into never-ending oblivion, relieved that I wouldn't be going to hell.

"From now on, you'll be a Red Valley disciple, don't be afraid."

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