VelvetSoulPanda- It was just a matter of time before this finally decided to take over my writing spirit. Then all it had to do was claim a fandom for a muse and the rest is history.
Summary:.. Rei Kon is the child of Emperor Kon, potential inheritor to the throne. Problem is, this unassertive, cowardly, house-kept, and compassionate prince decided to take advice from a pirate. [Yaoi]
Genres:.. This story falls under the following categories- Drama/Romance/Action-Adventure/Humor
Disclaimer:.. VelvetSoulPanda does not own Beyblade or any other commercial/marketing references that may appear throughout the story. WARNING: Yaoi fanfiction. Don't like it? Don't read it, don't complain, and don't be an ass about it. Just let it go and move on.
Beta Reader:.. None
Strangers Like Me
One – The Fine Line Between Right and Wrong
It was ironic that the weather in the port town of Okha of the Sakhalin Island was sunny that one morning. Despite the frosty chill of the wind, and the inevitable threat of winter that was coming their way, the skies were devoid of clouds and a clear, beautiful baby blue. Even the sun's rays were stronger than usual, fighting against some of the cold to provide fleeting feelings of warmth.
The irony behind such beautiful weather on this one morning was the mass-hanging that was taking place.
A crowd wasn't meant to be there for the occasion, much less to stand around and watch as if it were a positive spectacle, but most of the town's men-in-arms were busy keeping the prisoners to-be-hung in order, as well as disposing of the lifeless bodies in horse-drawn hay wagons. They had no time to keep the nosy civilians out.
In the fort's open courtyard, where the hangings were taking place, the Governor of the land stopped by briefly to check in on matters. He was on his way to meet with another royal who was visiting for the next week for a mid-morning tea and then tour of his royal army's stronghold. Whether his royal guest was early or he himself lost track of time, thus making him tardy, the Governor was surprised to see his guest appear at the fort.
"Emperor Kon!" The man with dark burgundy-red hair nearly gasped in surprise. Subconsciously smoothing down the fabric of his deep navy-blue military suit that he wore and fixing the white and red sash that blazed across his chest. Brushing non-existent dust off the golden fringe of the decorative caps on his shoulders, Governor Nikolau greeted Emperor Kon with a strong, friendly handshake that was equally reciprocated. "I wasn't aware that you would be coming to view the hanging this morning."
Now while Lord Nikolau was, in many aspects, a rather handsome Governor (worthy of that of a king's), his features paled in comparison to Emperor Kon's. Given his oriental genetics, Kon had pitch-black hair and refined physical features. Aside from this, Kon was not only of the Neko-jin people -earning him a set of dark, brilliant golden eyes- but he was also from an island nation of a tropical climate (thus earning his gift of unblemished skin to be unblemished tanned skin). To top all things off, he was one of few Asian men that had the lucky genetic draw of decent height.
Emperor Kon shook his head with the hint of a grin. "No, no, it's quite alright, Governor Nikolau. Our carriage was headed to the military fort when I saw both the crowd and your own carriage. I suspected that something terrible might have occurred so I ordered that we turn around so I could see what's happening here..." He trailed, hoping that the man that was having him over would explain what was going on.
Nikolau nodded, "I thank you for your concern, Emperor Kon, but you had no need to worry. As you know the pirate populous is beginning to become more than just a nuisance- it's their kind that is stopping the world from moving forward and prospering." The red-headed man said with stern thick in his voice. Then, his pride visibly grew. "And...Four months back, a sailor from one of my missing vessels of almost a year's M.I.A. finally made his way back here to port Okha. He reported that the ship-."
"Bàba!" Governor Nikolau and Emperor Kon turned around to see a little boy run at the two of them, followed by two armored guards that were struggling to keep up with him. The little boy shared a lot of the same physical qualities Emperor Kon did: big, golden eyes, but brighter; silky, inky-black hair, but longer and pulled into a small thin braid at the base of his neck; rounder and smoother jaw line and cheeks. The little boy skidded to a halt before the two older men and bowed respectfully to King Nikolau. "Good day, Governor Nikolau."
The King gave a grin and bowed his head in return, "Good day, Prince Rei. If I'd known you were coming I would've brought my dear little Salima along with me."
"Rei, my son, I asked that you wait in the carriage for me." Emperor Kon lightly scolded, fixing the large green and gold hat on his head. (1) He gave his son, whom wasn't paying attention, a hard pat on the head and then a glower once he caught his eyes. Rei immediately apologized to his father, and stood quietly beside him watching the line of people in hand and ankle cuffs drag forward into the fort's courtyard. Each time they stepped forward, the sound of doors opening boomed in the air. And when that happened, he'd hear gagging. He curiously wondered what it was.
"I apologize for my son's interruption. You were saying?"
"As yes. Well, turns out that this sailor- a cabin boy, as it turns out- returned with vital Intel that affects the world." Nikolau continued, gesturing that Emperor Kon step closer to a table laid out with different maps, blueprints, and other navigational charts. He held up a dirtied letter that bore the symbol of Okha's royal navy on it and handing it for Emperor Kon to read. "The ship he was on was seized by pirates. As far as we know, the pirates most likely sank her to the bottom of the sea once they finished the raid. Survivors of the wreck were held prisoner by the pirates, and one by one somehow traded for profit or killed. However, this boy, before escaping from the slave market he was sold to, overheard the pirates talking about an island nation where most pirate vessels make berth."
Emperor Kon's golden eyes snapped up in shock and amazement. Nikolau smiled proudly and nodded.
"I've sent letters to every major capital in the world. With every great army there is out there forming an alliance, we should have no problem located this uncharted island and eradicating the pirates once and for all."
Emperor Kon nodded, then glanced at the line of men, women, and children to be hung. "And these people?"
"Ah, yes. Since receiving this information, the Tsar of Russia convened a meeting with all the Russian court, and this following law has been passed for all of Russian territory to follow:" The man then waved for a soldier to come with a docket in his hands, gesturing for him to read aloud what it said. The man cleared his throat and began to read.
"In order to affect a timely halt to deteriorating conditions and to ensure the common good, a state of emergency is declared for these territories by decree of Lord Vladimir Grigoriev, duly appointed representative of His Majesty, the Tsar." He said. "By decree, according to martial law, the following statues are temporarily amended to all persons found guilty of piracy, or aiding a person convicted of piracy, or associating with a person convicted of piracy: Right to assembly, suspended. Right to habeas corpus, suspended. Right to legal counsel, suspended. Right to verdict by a jury of peers, suspended. By decree, all persons found guilty of piracy, or aiding a person convicted of piracy, or associating with a person convicted of piracy shall be sentenced to hang by the neck until dead." (2)
Beside his father, little Rei stared hard at the reading man with confusion bright in his sunny golden eyes. As bright as he was, he was only eight years old, so most of this was like trying to understand the native Russian tongue spoken in the streets of Okha. Again, he heard the sounds of opening doors and gagging, and the line of chained people moved forward once again. The little Neko-jin was distracted by this long enough that his father, content with the news he heard from Nikolau, took notice of this.
"Curious, my son?" The Emperor asked, and Rei nodded meekly in return when he saw that everyone was watching him. Emperor Kon took a firm hold on the back of his son's shoulder and guided him forth to the courtyard, Governor Nikolau and their combined guards following them. "Come, then. I shall show you the importance of keeping order in the world, and showing wrong-doers their proper place."
Still riddled with confusion, Rei simply nodded again and followed his father's lead. He watched, subtly recoiling with fear, at the eyes the prisoners gazed at him with as they passed. There were people of all ages, and their eyes were hollow. Emotions like hate, fear, and hopelessness filled them, and it made Rei's little heart ache. He felt like, somehow, it was his fault the people were suffering. And he didn't even know why they were suffering, or if they even were suffering for that matter.
Once he set foot in the courtyard, however, everything became clear like the tropical water of his homeland.
The line of prisoners lead to a deck set up with six hangman's nooses. The nooses had been lowered through a trap door that was directly beneath them, and from those knots limp, lifeless bodies were being removed and dragged to horse-drawn wagons. The nooses were then hoisted back up above the deck and the trap doors shut. Once that was done, a Russian soldier gave an order to bring up more prisoners.
The line began moving: six steps, like before, Rei noted. Six people walked up the steps to the knots: four men and two women. Of the four men, one was elderly, two looked to be in their late twenties or early thirties, and one was somewhere in the middle of that. Of the two women, one looked like she was in her late thirties and the other in her mid to late twenties. There was nothing striking about any of these people, they all looked like regular civilians. Some more well-kept than others, but still civilians all the same. They each stepped up to the knots which were placed neatly around their necks and tightened. Once secured, the officers standing by stepped back and gave a signal.
The trap doors beneath their feet sprang open, and all six peoples dropped. The light in their eyes vanished in a heartbeat. Little Rei gasped in shock.
"You see, my son," Emperor Kon began, "There are two kinds of people in the world: Those consumed by greed and self-interest, and those that work towards the gains of a community as a whole. If we do not teach these people how to redeem themselves in society, we have no choice but to use them as an example for others that still have a chance to redeem themselves."
His father's words were nothing but background noise in Rei's ears, for the little Neko's attention was drawn to another little boy farther down the line and causing a scene.
The boy looked to be about his age. He had light, fair skin dirtied only by the sweat and grim of labor, and a unique two tones of hair color: light and dark blue. The little boy screamed at the top of his lungs, pulling and thrashing against the iron cuffs that kept him from going anywhere. Rei didn't know a thing when it came to speaking Russian in full sentences, but he was familiar with a few words. (His father was, after all, building an alliance with this particular Russian island's nation. It would only be a matter of time before he too had to learn the language.) He caught a few curses and insults the little boy spat at the guards that were struggling to keep him calm, as well as crying out "mother."
"After all," Emperor Kon whispered into his son's ear, causing a shiver that shook the little Prince's body. "If people didn't act upon such selfish impulses and disobey the law, others wouldn't have to pay the price with them." The man said, referring to the little blue-haired boy in a panic. The guards pulled the little boy out of the line and held him next to the line, still in the same spot but just so he wouldn't disturb the others. Rei followed his gaze up to the row of knots, and found a beautiful woman with silvery-blue hair in the middle. Despite her dirtied and rattles appearance, she stood out from the others around her; she had a form of elegance about her that civilians didn't usually have. It baffled Rei why she was being hung.
The guard beside her pointed to her son and asked her a question in Russian, to which her reply was curt and definite. She gazed down at her little boy a final time, brown eyes hinting the start of tears, and whispered what Rei imagine to be a final goodbye. The little blue haired boy shrieked in protest, fighting and thrashing against his binds harder than before, and cried for his mother.
Once again, six bodies were mercilessly dropped, and simultaneously a tear slid down Rei's cheek.
The little boy wailed in agony, his bright eyes full of tears that muddied his dirty face, and tried still to run to his mother. Prince Rei's heart was torn. He imagined his own mother, whom he loved dearly, in that woman's place. He imagined himself in the boy's place.
He didn't have to imagine the pain he'd feel, or the lump in his throat he found hard to swallow even thinking about it.
"Do not pity him." Emperor Kon told his son, and Rei's eyes snapped up to look at his father and Governor Nikolau who regarded the scene with a cold gaze. "His fate shall follow hers."
"These people chose this fate the moment they chose to follow a life of piracy or any involvement in another man's life of piracy." Nikolau added, waving so that his two guests would follow. "Come. Freshly-brewed tea waits for us at the other fort, and I'm sure my daughter Salima will be very content to have a play date with Rei."
But Rei couldn't push aside his condolences for the boy that now wept in a heap on the dirt ground. He couldn't forget the image of the boy's mother, trading her for his own mother. And he couldn't forget the boy's agonizing, sullen eyes. As he walked away, the young Prince looked over his shoulder to look at the little civilian boy. In that moment, his golden eyes met the boy's eyes—a strange red he'd never seen before— and for that fleeting second Rei shared his grief.
He felt like he could die.
His eyes swelled with tears, and a few managed to roll down his cheeks. In the split-second he took to swiftly wipe them from his face before his father noticed, he'd already turned the corner. For the remainder of the day, his stay, and for what felt like forever, the image of that little boy sentenced to die haunted his memory.
(1) I'm unfamiliar with the name this hat goes by, but if you look up Syaoran from Card Captor Sakura it's the same hat he wears when capturing the Clow Cards.
VelvetSoulPanda- If you enjoyed reading, please review. (If you did, you can thank the soundtrack "POTC: On Stranger Tides" for the kick that got this story going!)
I swear I'm not a horrible person ;-;