Làng Wū Yáo couldn't get the image of that mark on his back out of his mind. They had struck him with the Resonant Memory and took something from him. Had they done it to save him from whatever Shāng Bù Huàn had done to him or was it more malicious?
Given who was involved, it was possibly either.
He gripped the white pipa as he stood in the zen garden, watching the koi swim about within the pond. So many questions in his mind and he couldn't ask them. He was missing two years, and no one seemed to actually tell him the truth. Not that any of them had an obligation to do so. He was just a blade, made to be used for the princess's entertainment. He wasn't supposed to have a will anyway.
He stared at the koi as they swam to him, mouthing at him just above the surface, begging for food. He wondered what his mother would say about this situation.
No, he already knew. She would beat him with a switch until he could no longer stand. This sword was just a different switch. Something happened within those two years that had changed him into something else. Was it better or was it worse?
"Good to see you on your feet, Court Virtuoso."
Làng stood up as the fish gathered some more near the shoreline. Xiào Kuáng Juàn approached, offering a small satchel of something to the bard. Làng stared at the thing in the Fox's hand
"The fish would prefer food rather than staring at you," Xiào explained, pushing his glasses up his nose.
Làng took the offered satchel. Tucking the pipa under his arm, he opened it. It was actually fish food and not something suspicious. He crouched down, setting the pipa on the grass and pulling some of the dried flakes from the bag and scattering them on the water's surface. The koi clustered together, swarming around the flakes and quickly consuming them.
"You gave us quite a scare two days ago, you know," Xiào tucked his hands behind his back as he observed Làng. While that resolve he had gained was certainly trying to break free, the current shell crouching before him looked more wounded than anything. "I was hardly expecting to find you curled up on the floor in pain, gasping for air."
Làng rubbed at his chest some before pinching a few more flakes from the bag. He glanced over at Xiào's curled shoes. If he asked Xiào anything, would he get a truthful answer? Probably not. The conversation he overheard last night told him something was truly off. They had done something to him, and there was no way that Fox would admit to it except to brag. This didn't seem like a bragging sort of situation. "It still hurts. I do not understand what happened." He scattered the flakes on the surface again.
Such a docile response. His will is already getting crushed, Xiào Mùsed to himself. The more that Làng fought it, the less of that resolve would remain. Soon it would disappear entirely altogether. He pushed his glasses up his nose. The less he had to worry about the bard siding with Shāng, the better.
"It's likely a side effect of what that villain Shāng Bù Huàn did to you," Xiào informed Làng. He could use this opportunity to drive a massive nail into any potential memories of a friendship. He'd crush what remained of Làng's will and ensure that he would never have to lick the princess's boots. If Shāng ever did show up, will or not Làng would turn against him.
Làng stared at the bag of flakes in his hand. He wasn't expecting Xiào to bring the subject up. "I barely understand what he did. The princess tells me you rescued me from Shāng Bù Huàn, and that he used a sword on me, but beyond that, I don't know. The details are fuzzy."
"Well I suppose you could know some more information, though this is just between you and me, of course," Xiào pushed his glasses up his nose.
Làng had no idea if Xiào would tell him the truth. He wanted to drive the white pipa into the sneaky fox's chest until he told him an answer, but the mere thought of doing so caused pain to ripple through Làng's chest. He dropped the bag, the koi quickly gobbling up whatever they could from it.
He's still fighting, Xiào frowned. "Are you certain you wish to hear this? Perhaps you should get more rest as the truth may only cause you more pain."
Làng felt the pain subside as his thoughts settled. This willful thinking was not becoming of someone or something like him, and they were the source of all the pain he was feeling. He had to keep this under control. "Yes. If I know what has happened, perhaps I will stop trying to think of it."
Xiào smirked behind his hand as he pushed up his glasses. The bard had associated the pain with the gap, not even wise to what was truly happening to him. "It's called the Night of Mourning. It's a blade that causes a complete personality flip of whoever is struck and will keep hold of them until something traumatizing happens." He knew full well that was not how the sword worked. He'd encountered it before, and the sword now unfortunately lay hidden in that Sorcerous Sword Index. But without memories, there was no way that Làng would know that Xiào was lying through his teeth.
"That name better suits a song," Làng commented, watching the koi attempt to chew at the bag. He reached forward, pulling the bag from the water. The koi attempted to eat his fingers, though not very successfully.
"Almost a song of tragedy," Xiào continued. "That Shāng Bù Huàn is a blade thief after all, and that is what you are to him, a sorcerous blade."
"He is not wrong," Làng confirmed. "I am a sorcerous blade."
"But even swords are only so much use to him. Once he's done with his crimes against Xī Yōu, he seals them in his Sorcerous Sword Index," Xiào continued to drive the point home. "But for your case, he could not seal a person. So he threw you off a cliff in the mountains. It was fortunate I had been nearby tracking his villainous workings and found you back to your normal self."
The tale seemed like the usual story that surrounded any encounter with Shāng Bù Huàn. He sealed swords he stole in that Index, and Làng was indeed a sorcerous sword. And the memories of that mountain in the mists, that was where he could barely recall falling. He grasped at his head. "I can't remember any of this."
"Don't let the details trouble you, Virtuoso," Xiào shallowly consoled him. "It's said the sword causes such terrible nightmares and awful pains, the princess requested we ensure you forgot it all. But do not mention that I told you that much. The princess would be so upset if you knew."
That matched up somewhat with what he'd overheard last night. The Resonant Memory, a sword that stripped will and memory alike. Had they realized he heard the conversation? Perhaps it really was the truth coming out, but something clawed at the back of his soul, telling him that was just more lies. There was more to that conversation last night that just didn't match up to the Fox's current words. Not that Làng truly expected Xiào to tell him anything other than backwards truths. "That scar on my back then…"
"A result of saving your life and mind, of course," Xiào pushed up his glasses. There was no way that Làng would know the true reason why he possessed it. "Now try not to think about those missing two years. The scars from the Night of Mourning will only cause you more pain."
Làng picked up the white pipa, standing up as the koi continued to mouth at the water's surface. "I recall falling. It was that memory that caused the pain two days ago."
"And that one memory took you down," Xiào shook his head. To deceive Làng in this state was mere child's play. It was so easy that he barely had to do anything. Just a bit more and there would be no hope of Shāng ever taking Làng away from the palace if Shāng ever dared to show up, and he likely would given the bait already placed. Xiào could keep his dignity and not be forced to lick Cháo's shoes for a month. Or longer, given her mood. He didn't want to think about it. "It's best to forget all about that gap. It will only cause you more pain if you remember what that Shāng Bù Huàn really did to you." He placed a hand on Làng's shoulder.
That mere touch sent a chill down Làng's spine. Xiào was conniving, and Làng could absolutely feel it. There were truths and lies in that story, and his confused mind wasn't really good at sorting them out right now. Either way, everything led back to that gap and to Shāng Bù Huàn.
Làng stared at the koi. He didn't want to think about the gap, but at the same time he did. Whatever lay within those two years was the answer to everything. But even the mere thought had taken him down. Thinking about those missing memories would only cause him more pain, and right now, all he wanted to do was survive it with whatever resolve he had left intact.