Hey-o! Back again for another installment of "After the Battle!"
I hope you all had a good weekend, and hope that you enjoy the chapter!
Chapter 1: Five Years Later
"Whoa!" seventeen-year-old Seh shouted from atop his midnight-black stallion. He tugged back hard on the reigns trying to regain control of his mount.
But he was too late, and his head hit a low-hanging tree branch. He fell to the ground with a muffled Thud!
The horse stopped and turned around, looking at him as if to say, "You're not a very good rider."
Seh scowled at the horse and stood, brushing dirt and tiny rocks from his cotton robe.
That was when he heard the laughter of his friends, Cheen and Ying.
"It's not that funny," Seh muttered, walking over to his horse.
Cheen was doubled-over with his laughter and gasped out, "Yes it is!"
Ying was chuckling, his shoulders shaking.
Seh remounted his horse and scowled some more at the two.
After their laughter had dissipated, Ying said, "Let's head back. It's almost the end of our watch."
Seh nodded. "A wise choice, my friend."
As they headed back, Seh gazed at the ground, his mind wandering to topics other than what would be served at dinner that night.
Ying trotted next to him. "What is wrong, Brother Seh? Did Pussycat finally beat you at a battle of wits?"
Seh smiled slightly. "Only on one of his best days could Pussycat even come close."
Ying's thought for a moment. "It's the anniversary, isn't it?"
Seh nodded mournfully.
It had been five years that very day since Hok's disappearance. And not a day had passed that he didn't miss her.
Ying's face became impassive again. "We all miss her, Brother Seh. But you need to let go of the past, as Grandmaster would say. You need to move on."
Seh shook his head. "I-I can't. I just feel that she's still out there. I would know if she were dead. I would feel it… somehow. I just know that she's alive."
Ying shook his head. "We all want to believe that she's alive. Especially now, with the rumors of an uprising on our hands."
Seh nodded. "It's days like this when I miss her the most." He motioned with his head to the clear blue sky, turning gold with the coming sunset. Thin clouds visible here and there, turning pink from the setting sun. The leaves, green as emeralds, waving and glittering in the breeze. The air cool, but not chilly. But at the same time warm and crisp.
It reminded him of the day of Hok's funeral.
*Flashback*
The air was warm and comfortable, a sure sign that spring was on its way.
It was silent in the grove of cherry trees. But not a comfortable, natural silence. It was a sad silence. The silence after someone dies.
A group of people were walking through these trees, the blossoms that had fallen and new grass making a soft bed for their feet.
They all wore black, a sign of mourning. And red, a sign of respect and good luck.
Six men carried a solid wood coffin between them. Their faces looked sad.
But that wasn't because someone had died. It was because there was no one to bury in the coffin.
The group stopped at a pit, dug six feet deep and three feet wide.
The men gingerly laid the coffin in the grave.
The first person, GongJee, threw a handful of dirt into the grave and took a deep breath. "I'm going to miss you, sister," she whispered into the wind.
Bing stepped forward and threw a handful of dirt into the grave. "Goodbye, my daughter."
Henrik came forward and did the same as his wife and child. "Goodbye, my little princess."
Fu stepped forward and tossed his handful of dirt. "I'm sorry for all those times I said you fought like a girl."
Malao came forward and did the same as Fu. "I'm really going to miss you, big sister," he said through his tears.
Long said after tossing his dirt, "You were a brave warrior. I will never forget what you have done for us all."
Ying said, "I'm sorry I didn't trust you. You were only trying to help me. Thank you for saving my mother."
Gao said, "You'll forever be in our hearts." Then he bowed like all Cangzhen monks did when they greeted each other. Bing only cried harder.
Mong said, "You were an excellent healer. You reminded me so much of your mother. I thank you for all you have done for the Resistance."
NgGung said, "Thank you for fighting even when we couldn't find the strength. You will always be remembered."
WanSow said, "Thank you for saving me, young crane. Thank you for saving my son. Our family is forever in your debt."
Sanfu said to the grave, "Thank you for everything. No one here will regret knowing you."
ShaoShu said, "You saved me. You were my first friend. Thank you for that. I'll never forget what you've done."
Cheen and Sum said, "Thank you for helping us. We are forever grateful."
PawPaw came forward and said, "You were one of the best healers I've had the pleasure of knowing. Without you, I'm not sure where most people would be now."
Hok's ladies in waiting came forward. Charlotte said, "I believe I speak for all of us when I say that you were the kindest person we've ever had the pleasure to know. You would've made a fine queen."
Everyone forgot about Seh. So they finished burying the coffin and left.
Seh stood there and stared at the grave. He didn't want it to go forgotten.
That was why he had prepared something in advance.
He pulled a pure-white stone from underneath his cloak and laid it at the head of the grave. It read:
Hok OnYeen
Fighter, Healer, Sister, and Friend
"People who live the shortest lives lived the fullest ones."
"Hok," Seh whispered, falling to his knees at the foot of the grave, "you were the best fighter I've ever known. You were a great healer that helped me through thick and thin. You helped me get through my blindness. You healed me. You were my best friend. Thinking that I was the only one who you could tell your secret to made me feel like you could trust me and only me.
"I loved your smile, your laugh, your hair, and everything about you. When your mother and PawPaw said that you would possibly die from your injuries from the fight with Tonglong, I thought that if you died, I would die with you.
"But when you first woke up, when you first opened your eyes after three long days, I felt like I could fly. I knew that you would live. That was the moment when I realized something.
"I realized that I loved you. I still do. Please, if you're still alive, come back. Find your way back to me. I need to tell you that I am in love with you. Please. Just somehow find your way back."
*End of Flashback*
Seh awoke himself from his memories when he heard the hustle and bustle of the Resistance's camp.
But something felt off. He felt a strange presence that he hadn't felt in a long time.
He dismounted his horse and walked towards the place where the feeling was coming from.
It was inside his father's tent.
When he moved the flap, he saw his father, bent over a table, talking to Gao, NgGung, Sanfu, the Governor, and someone else.
That someone, was King Henrik, Hok's father.
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Peace, Love, Happiness, and Maximum Ride.
-A$h