Cao Cao is Dead
One day in Wei, the entire kingdom was thrown into shock as the body of their lord, Cao Cao, was found dead and bloody at the feet of his throne. His right-hand man Xiahou Dun took over as his successor to keep the kingdom running. Although his death was covered up as an unfortunate accident, some of his officers felt that it was perhaps something much more – possibly done by someone of his own circle. However, as more sinister events happened, Xiahou Dun starts to feel that something much more sinister is happening - but does he?
Chapter 1: The Descent Starts
CRAAAAKKKKKK!
A loud, crashing sound was heard across the hallway of the Wei palace at night. The sound was heard by no one but Xun Yu, who stayed up late to organize some scrolls.
"What was that?" he mumbled. No one could possibly stay up that late, he thought. He later dismissed it as minor architectural damage, but moments later, he became concerned again.
"What if it's a thief or even an assassin?," he thought. Finally, he picked up a candle and walked across the hallway towards the source of the sound, trying to be quiet as to not be noticed.
However, seconds later he heard another crashing sound, in which point Xun Yu knew something was up. He was later sprinting down the hallway instead. He finally reached the throne room and opened the door.
The one thing that immediately greeted him upon opening the door was a smell of blood, and his eyed widened in horror.
Through the illumination of his candle, Xun Yu saw splotches of blood everywhere, along with pieces of shattered wood pillars. Still, he tried to remain calm even though he knew full well that something bad had happened.
He followed the trail of blood, which led him to a writing in blood on the wall,
VICTORY IS OURS
Xun Yu was in complete confusion, and thousand questions were stirring inside his head. Moments later, something hit his feet as he was moving to the side.
"AAAAAAHHHHH!", he jumped and screamed by surprise, and immediately covered his mouth upon realizing how loud he was screaming.
"Someone will probably wake up, " he thought. He moved his candle to know what object he had walked into, and skipped a heartbeat upon discovering a pair of feet.
"….no. No, no, no, no, no, no…..", mumbled Xun Yu. He gathered his courage to illuminate the rest of the body. However, he later saw that the face of the bloodied corpse was covered by a white silk sheet. And so Xun Yu removed the sheet, and moved to take a closer look at the face.
"….l-l-lord Cao…C-c-c-cao?!"
Xun Yu widened his eyes in complete shock and horror upon looking at his lord's empty, lifeless eyes. He dropped the candle and dropped to his knees, still in utter disbelief of what he just saw.
"….my lord? M-m-my l-lord? Lord Cao Cao! LORD CAO CAO!", screamed Xun Yu repeatedly. He shook Cao Cao's body back and forth several times in his arms, desperately hoping that it would somehow bring his lord back, reveal that everything's been a mere sick, cruel joke – or perhaps a nightmare.
But no. No matter how he wanted to deny the terrifying reality in front of him, deep down, Xun Yu knew it was real. His lord, Cao Cao, is dead. But this only made him shake Cao Cao's body more and more violently as tears were streaming down his face, all while letting out incoherent screams.
"….aaahhh…Lord Cao Cao…..waaahhhh….aaaahhhhh….AAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"
Meanwhile, the flame of the candle quickly spread around the room, becoming a large fire. But even that seemed unnoticed by Xun Yu, who kept cradling Cao Cao's body in his arms even when the flames surrounded him.
"…..aaaahhh…..aaaaahhhhhh! AAAAAHHHHHHHHHH! HWAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"
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.
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Xiahou Dun, who was sleeping, suddenly opened his eyes. He looked around his room suspiciously.
"I thought I heard something….", he said. He wanted to go back to sleep again when the screams from outside became more audible, waking him up again.
"Okay, now what was that?!", he thought. He immediately ran outside down the hall as the screams became louder and louder.
"Pant….gasp….what is going on there?" Finally, he came to the massive fire at the hallway, just outside of the throne room.
"What?! A fire!" Xiahou Dun heard that the screams were coming out of the throne room, which door has been completely burnt off by the fire. He immediately ran past the fire towards the throne room only to be completely shocked at the sight of Xun Yu holding the dead body of Cao Cao, surrounded by fire.
"What?! ARGH!" The fire expanded more that Xiahou Dun was forced to back down. It was during that exact time where Xun Yu turned to Xiahou Dun, eyes wide open with tears flowing.
"What in the-" Soon, fire was everywhere. Xiahou Dun had to do something. He immediately took a bucket of water to put the fire out, but it was no use. The fire became even more aggressive, swallowing everything in their way.
"Tch! No!" Meanwhile, he looked back at Xun Yu, still cradling Cao Cao's dead body and weeping over it. "….X-xun Yu? Is that you?"
Xun Yu turned back to him, still with the tear-filled, widely opened eyes. "…L…lord Xiahou Dun…..he is…..he is…..our lord….our lord is….our lord is…..our lord is-"
"Tch, you! You stay there while I put the fire out!" interrupted Xiahou Dun. He then gathered more water to put the flames out, but it was no use. Xiahou Dun was soon cornered, just when suddenly Guo Jia came to see what was going on.
"Pant….pant…eh, Lord Xiahou Dun?! What is going on?!" he asked. "The fire! Help me put the fire out! Ngh!" Guo Jia nodded his head and immediately gathered water to put the fire out. It was only hours later when they managed to put the entire fire out.
"Pant….pant….Xun…Yu?" They walked closer towards Xun Yu, who was still weeping. Then they both came into a shock when they realized who he was holding.
"Gasp! …L-lord…lord Cao Cao?!", Guo Jia covered his mouth. Xun Yu slowly looked up to them with teary eyes. "…h-he's…..he is…..our lord….our Lord Cao Cao….is…"
But Xun Yu couldn't bring himself to finish the sentence, and instead cried even harder, holding Cao Cao's dead body tighter. Guo Jia also broke down crying, whereas Xiahou Dun was too shocked to even respond with anything.
"…..no. No, no, no….don't tell me that…."
Xiahou Dun then dropped to his knees, unable to believe what was presented right in front of his eyes as other people who were concerned about the sounds in the middle of the night came in to see what was happening.
"What? No, no, no…this can't be real. What…..what happened? There's no way that….Cao Cao…..cousin….died…"
.
.
.
…
…..no.
How? And why?
Everything was just fine…..
And then….something happened….and…..
….
"…..my lord? My Lord?"
The voice calling him snapped Xiahou Dun out of his thoughts. He turned and saw that it was Guo Jia.
"Oh….it's just you."
"My lord? Are you alright?"
"…well, mostly."
Both Xiahou Dun and Guo Jia just stood silent for a while before the latter spoke up, "…..is it still about him again?"
Xiahou Dun didn't answer.
"Huff….I just….I don't know. How all of this came to be….I just….", Xiahou Dun held his forehead in frustration.
"My lord-"
"…..Guo Jia. You….we all still remember the last time we see him….right?"
And so their minds recalled the day before they found Cao Cao dead. It was just a normal day of Wei's routine, and nothing out of ordinary was found in Cao Cao's behavior.
"Yes….I still do."
"There was….there was nothing weird about him, right? It was all fine…..but…..but….."
"Ah, m-my lord…please, my lord, listen…..my lord, I know all of this is hard for all of us to endure…..but, you're our new leader now. Do you just want to abandon the wonderful legacy Lord Cao Cao left for us?"
Xiahou Dun looked into Guo Jia's eyes. However, just the mere mention of Cao Cao's name was enough for him to throw him into such an emotional mess that he immediately stormed off.
"Wha-"
"I'm sorry, I just…."
"My lord! I-"
"Enough! Don't…don't talk to me. Not now."
"Lord Xiahou Dun! …."
Xiahou Dun went quickly to his room and closed the door, panting and then slumping onto the floor.
"Pant….pant….sigh…how can all of this come to be? Nobody knows what happened, and then…..Cao Cao….cousin…..just laid dead…..there."
Immediately the sight of his cousin's corpse came to Xiahou Dun's mind. All the horrifying details, the wide-open, bloodshot eyes, the mutilated body, and the blood pools, which all had been burned onto his very memory.
"Ngh…no…..NO! CAO CAO! …pant….pant…..ngh….no….no….." Xiahou Dun held his head in frustration and despair. Tears soon began to flow from his eyes.
"…..he….Cao Cao…..he's more than just my lord. He, he's…he's my cousin. My friend. I'm…..I'm always there for him. But….but….so soon…."
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.
.
Cousin…..why?
Why did all of this just happen?
Xiahou Dun soon found himself in a dark room.
"….where am I?"
You left us…..you left me like this.
All alone.
He continued to walk.
You….are heartless. Cruel.
You always were.
"….what is this?" he said as he came across a body covered in blood.
"….wait…..no…..can you be….?"
Even….
And then he saw Cao Cao's dead body as he was found that one night.
"….what….w-w-what?!"
…..even if you won't come back….
And then, Xiahou Dun looked down, and saw his own bloody hands holding a knife.
….would you at least give me an answer?
"…AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"
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"WAAAAAAHHHH!" Xiahou Dun woke up panting on his bed. As it turns out, it was all just a dream.
"Pant…pant….it was….it was just a nightmare…..pant…"
"My lord?"
Xiahou Dun turned to the side of his bed and saw Guo Jia.
"My lord….are you….alright?"
"Ah! Ehm….yeah….I'm alright…..it was just a nightmare."
"Sigh….my lord. I've already told you. You…..you don't have to face this alone."
"…..huh?"
"We….we're facing this together. We are all his loyal servants. By doing this, you're only destroying the legacy he's left behind."
Guo Jia held Xiahou Dun's hand.
"…you don't want that, do you?"
Xiahou Dun looked at Guo Jia's eyes.
"….you….you're right. I….I'm sorry for being so selfish earlier. It's just that….."
"It's alright. Come now. We can do this together!" Guo Jia smiled. Xiahou Dun smiled as well.
"Hm….yeah. Alright…oh."
"Yes?"
"And….how's Xun Yu?"
"Ah…..him…." Guo Jia's expression turned grim.
"….he isn't getting better, is he?" said Xiahou Dun.
"Exactly."
"….I see…."
Xiahou Dun remembered the night when Cao Cao was found dead. Out of all the Wei officers, Xun Yu took Cao Cao's death the worst. So much that it seemingly took a toll on his sanity.
"….Xun Yu? Xun Yu!" said Zhang Liao. However, Xun Yu didn't answer.
"Hey! Come on now! Put Lord Cao Cao's body down!"
"What?! NO!"
"You have to! Otherwise we wouldn't be able to conduct a proper-"
"NO! GO AWAY! YOU DON'T UNDERSTAND!"
"…sigh….so it has to be this way….." Zhang Liao snapped his fingers and Xu Huang and Yu Jin stepped forward, who then forcibly dragged Xun Yu away.
"I'm sorry….."
"Huh?! Wait, NO! STOP IT!"
"But if you don't cooperate…."
"NO! LET ME GO! AAAAAAAHHHHHH! STOP IT! STOP IT! LISTEN! LISTEN, ALL OF YOU! VICTORY IS OURS! VICTORY IS OURS, I KNEW IT! THE TRUTH WILL BE REVEALED!"
"Sigh…..I hope he gets better soon." said Xiahou Dun.
"We all do. We're all worried for him."
"Huff….right."
"And that's why you can't just stay like this all the time. Think about Xun Yu. If you want him to get better, we have to do something."
"….you're right."
That's right….what have I been thinking this entire time? Of course cousin would be disappointed in me like this.
I have to make sure that his ambition and dreams won't go to waste….
That's the right thing to do…
…
"Lord Xiahou Dun, it is time."
"Right! Just a minute."
Today is the day when Xiahou Dun will give his first speech towards the other Wei officers, to reaffirm his position as the new leader.
Cousin….I'll show you. I'll show you that I'll never give up in continuing your legacy.
Never….
And so Xiahou Dun walked into the great hall, where all of the other Wei officers gather to hear his speech.
However, as he walked towards the platform, he noticed how Cao Pi and Jia Xu were whispering something to each other while looking at Xiahou Dun with a rather suspicious look.
"Ngh, it's alright, it's alright." he thought to himself. "Even if those two disapprove of me, I will lead what cousin has left for better."
And so he stepped on the platform and took a deep breath. He turnd to the side to see Guo Jia, who nodded at him approvingly.
"…ahem. Okay. So….we all know what happened. Our Lord Cao Cao has suddenly passed away due to an unfortunate accident. And…."
However, suddenly Xiahou Dun stopped short.
"…..and….and….ehm….ngh…."
The other Wei officers soon began wondering what had happened.
"….uhh….my lord?" whispered Guo Jia.
"What? What is….this feeling? I…I feel….."
Suddenly, he saw blood leaking out everywhere while everyone else were transformed into faceless puppets. His eyes widened in terror as he slowly walked back down in fear.
"…..ah….ahh….AHHHH! AAAAAHHHHHH!"
"What?! My lord, MY LORD! LORD XIAHOU DUN! ARE YOU ALRIGHT?! Gah, everyone! Help him!"
"Gasp….gasp….aaahhhhhhh!"
"MY LORD! My lord, can you hear me! Hey, hey, hey! Lord Xiahou Dun…"
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"GASP!" Xiahou Dun opened his eyes and yet again found himself inside his room on his bed. However, this time no one was around.
"Pant….pant….what was that?", he thought. "Am I….am I going crazy? Like Xun Yu?"
Xiahou Dun turned to his side when he found a stack of scrolls. He picked them up and found that they are Cao Cao's journal.
"Gasp! This was…..this was cousin's journal….." thought Xiahou Dun. Suddenly, an idea came to him.
"…perhaps….perhaps this can actually reveal everything? Or something? Anything at all?" And so he opened.
"….huh, this one was from a week ago. 'My name is Cao Cao. Everything's been normal this day. Infact, better than before. Today I feel especially confident that I can accomplish anything, but…..'"
…today, something happened to me.
Something that would likely change my life.
Forever.
To Be Continued….
AYEEEE! Rised from another hiatus! Been gone so long since I didn't have any particularly clever ideas, but anyway! Here you go!
So yeah…..deciding to change the tone a little bit now. I've been a bit fascinated with horror as of lately, so I just came up with this idea.
Anyways, please leave a review and have a good day!
