Word Count: 1,707; Note: This chapter was edited and thus, made shorter, due to the fact the beginning here didn't match up with later events. I'm sorry it's so short now...

s k i r m i s h

"You're going to have to get used to him, Ling Tong."

"Correction. I'm going to have to get rid of him."

I remember the first time I heard of the bastard. It was a moment I'll never forget—and not in a warm, gives-your-heart-that-fuzzy-feeling kind of way.

Gan Ning killed my father.

The hatred that pumped from my heart was as potent as any toxin. I wanted to kill him. Kill him a thousand times, and maybe more. I wanted to rip his heart and shatter his world the way he had mine. I wanted to take the life of someone close to him, make him break and wither the way I had.

But the chance didn't present itself. And before I knew it, the filthy bastard was working for Wu.

"I'll kill him," I snarled under my breath. "I'll kill him before the enemy gets the chance."

"Now, Ling Tong," Lu Meng started. I really wasn't in the mood for one of his 'responsibility' talks. "You know you can't do that. Are you so willing to throw away everything you have here for this man? Think about it: he'd win in the end, anyway."

I slammed my fist into the nearby wall, disregarding the fact it was rather late. "Why? Why did you and Sun Quan hire him in the first place? What's so special about him that you're willing to look past the fact he killed my father?"

"You think you're the only one to lose a parent to war?" Lu Meng said. His footsteps became closer, and I knew he was standing somewhere behind me now. Like that would help anything. "You think you're the only man who's had to bury his father? Who are those men you cut down every day? They all have families—dreams, ideals, a future—until the moment you decide to kill them. Gan Ning was doing his job."

"Don't make excuses for him," I snapped. "Don't you or Zhou Yu or anyone else make excuses for that bastard!"

"Ling Tong—"

I'd had enough. Spinning on my heels, I turned and strode past my superior, bee-lining my way to the door. I hated the idea of having to leave my own damn chamber, but I was willing to go just about anywhere to get away from Lu Meng.

"Running away won't do you any good."

I stopped dead in my tracks, my hand halfway extended toward the door. I stared at it, watching it tremble—tremble with anger and frustration. I just wanted to get out.

"Don't tell me how to live my life," I said, not bothering to so much as turn my head in his direction.

And I left.

I didn't know where I was going. All I knew was that I had to get away from people like Lu Meng—people who actually thought that thing was worth something to this army.

"It won't be so bad. It will be a good learning experience."

Lu Xun could kiss my ass. 'Learning experience'? What the hell am I, a four-year-old? What could I possibly learn from a filthy pirate?

My feet carried me out of the castle and into the courtyard. The night air closed in around me, caressing my skin with its chilled hands until it earned the goose bumps it sought. A soft breeze rustled the trees, reminding me of the sound of rain. I almost wished it was raining; I liked it when the weather mirrored my depressive moods.

Out of the courtyard and down a worn, fading trail, my feet kept going without any real instructions. I knew where they were taking me. I'd walked this path dozens of times prior—hell, I could probably walk it in my sleep, I'd done it so many times.

My thoughts shifted back to Lu Meng and the others. What did he know about what I was going through. What the hell did any of them know. They didn't, and that's what pissed me off. They act like they've gone through it all before, but they haven't. Bunch of big-headed liars. Too high-and-mighty to actually admit they might have made a mistake or don't know something for once...

The ground started to incline and the wind picked up. The arches of the cemetery came into view, and with them I felt an old pain gnawing at my chest. After that, I was on auto-pilot. My feet carried me through the arches and down the narrow paths between the headstones.

Sixth row back, fourth stone in. Ling Cao. The greatest man I ever knew. The greatest man I'd ever know.

And the only father I'd ever get.

I sat down in the small space in front of the stone, reaching out to brush some dirt off the engraving. My eyes ran over the name once, twice, three times.

Ling Cao. Ling Cao. Ling Cao.

My father. My only father. My dead father. My cheated father. My unavenged father.

Gan Ning.

Anger and sorrow bristled in my chest, fighting for dominance over my heart like lions. I didn't know which one to feel: both at once hurt too much. I wanted to punch something. I wanted to cry. I wanted to rip the throbbing organ from my body and hurdle it into the ocean. I was sick of feeling, sick and tired of feeling like this, of feeling anything at all.

I leaned forward, resting my forehead against the cool stone. It was too quiet. My thoughts were too loud. That damned pounding in my chest was too loud—that reminder that I was still alive and my father was not.

"Father," I whispered, "I don't know what to do. I thought I finally had everything sorted out before, but now..." A sigh escaped my dry lips. "Sometimes, I wish I was dead, too."

"Still pretty sentimental, aren't we?"

That voice... Anger quickly gripped my heart as I slowly lifted my head from the stone, not wanting to look at his ugly face.

"Talking to dead guys who can't hear you..." Gan Ning went on. He was perched on one of the cemetery arches, wearing that hideous, cocky smirk of his. I wanted to rip it off. "That was forever ago. You're still not over it?"

"If you don't leave now, you'll be six feet under, too," I said, maintaining the flattest tone of voice I could; I would be damned before I gave him the satisfaction that he'd thoroughly pissed me off. "I'll start digging the hole now. If you're still here when I'm done, you're going in it, dead or alive."

Gan Ning laughed. "You can't touch me. The old man would have your head."

"I wouldn't mind giving it to him once I had yours."

A weird look came over the ex-pirate's face. I would call it thoughtful, but I figured a moron like him wasn't capable of actually thinking. Regardless, a strange smirk curled his stupid lips as he jumped down from his perch.

"You talk pretty big, don't you?" Gan Ning asked. The way he walked made me want to rip his legs off; there was the cockiest spring in his step, like he owned the damn place or something. "I bet you're all bark and no bite."

I resisted the urge to glare at him as he lurked over me, his shadow falling over my lap. "You might want to watch what you say, hotshot. You're kind of short to be picking fights."

"Hey," he jerked his head back and curled his lip. I wanted to laugh. "You know I've won plenty of fights and started most of them. You wanna fight? Fine. Get up."

I rolled my eyes and looked back at the headstone. "I'm not in the mood to indulge in your idiotic pastimes. Go bother someone else."

I should have figured the infamous Gan Ning wouldn't stand for that. He tried to knock me over by shoving my shoulders, but I caught him by his upper arms, stopping him. Gan Ning's lip curled. I smirked.

"Problem, princess?" I asked.

He responded by spitting in my face.

A surge of rage flared up in my body, sparking from somewhere in my chest and igniting my limbs like wildfire. With something similar to adrenaline, I managed to get to my knees and shove him off, buying myself some time to stand and get some decent footing. Gan Ning growled as he charged at me. I kept my stance. And we were deadlocked, just like that; each of us applying as much pressure as we could to the other's shoulders. I wanted him to slip. I wanted him to crack his head open on my father's gravestone and die. That would be the happiest ending I could ever wish for.

Gan Ning was strong. Stronger than I thought he would be. I could feel my feet sliding back, even if only slightly. Like hell if I was about to lose to this thick-headed moron. Without putting much thought into it, I let my grip on his shoulders slack just enough for him to gain a small advantage. Once the ex-pirate got to close, however, I cracked my skull against his. We both released our grip and staggered back from the impact, though I managed to recover quicker.

"Cheap shot!" Gan Ning hissed.

"Says the cheap-ass pirate," I countered.

He spat at my feet. "You're just as pathetic as your old man."

Unsurpassed rage gripped my heart like a sickness. I wanted to mutilate him. I wanted to beat his face past the point of recognition when they found his sorry corpse—if they even could once I was done with him. Ripping out each of his organs and forcing them all down his throat didn't sound like a bad idea, either.

I lunged at him. Reason and tactics were unfamiliar to me at the time; all I could see was Gan Ning, and all I wanted to do was end him. He laughed as I drew my arm back to punch him. Once I was close enough to throw it, he dodged it, grabbed my shoulders and slammed his forehead into mine. The force was astounding.

And then it was black.

A/N: Blah, poor ending... D; I really need to work on those, but I just wanted to get this started.

Well, how did it go? Not to badly, I hope? I wasn't sure if I should write this from Ling Tong's POV or if I should do third-person... Guess we'll just have to see if it works out?

Any reviews—any at all—would be nice and greatly appreciated!

Also, this was just a slightly-edited version of the last one. Chapter two's in progress and should be up shortly. :)