"MOTHER FUCKER!"

Quick as a flash Link activated his power and dashed down the stairs. One hand drew his weapon while the other clenched furiously, drawing more from his triangle. He tried, desperately, to do as he always had been able to do and pull back to a previous point in time, to reverse it even if only for a moment, but nothing happened. At most the world around him slowed. The closer and closer he ran, the further away he was as he watched the blood splatter from the child's neck and the life leave his eyes. Time continued on.

Why? Why would it not, for once, revert back even a few seconds? Was he not trying hard enough? Was Farore holding him back? And for what reason?

It didn't matter. No reason could matter if when he reached his hand out that he couldn't save even one person.

"IM AN ALLY YOU CANT-"

Link extended his relic weapon into a spear with a wide blade and brought it down on the man, instantly cleaving into him from collar to gut. Nearly cut in two, the man looked down at himself for a moment. His arm and shoulder slowly fell, separated from the rest of his torso, blood splattered from his mouth and water spilled out of his gut until it was pouring over Link's hands.

Link looked him in the eye and watched him die. His spear ended up being the only thing left keeping the corpse on its feet, so Link kicked him off and let the body fall.

The child laid dead at his feet.

Link didn't know what to think. Didn't know what to feel. He felt numb, lifeless. He felt like a living corpse without a heartbeat that just didn't know it was dead yet. Perhaps, deep down, he was. The boy slave who laughed and practiced with his childhood friends was dead. In the boy's place was a failure.

Link heard the soft pitter patter of people behind him, and saw a crowd forming in front. His own unit lined up behind him, furious and ready, while the unit of the officer he just killed grouped up as a mob before him, angry and yelling about something or another. Some begged, some bargained, some raged. He didn't hear them through the pulsing heartbeat in his ears, and honestly, even if he did, he wouldn't care.

"Kill 'em." Link whispered.

Link let the wave of death sweep over him and into the enemy. He didn't move. He didn't have to. He merely watched as all the shared fury of his men was given permission to release. He watched as Kyo Gai ordered them to surrender their weapons even as he cut down anyone who didn't. Den Yuu turned into a full berserker, bring a mace down on every skull or helmet in reach, screaming his rage with bloodshot eyes. A few tried to run only to be suddenly cut limb from limb by Kyou Gai or crushed in the palm of her shadow beast. Even Hei Bei had lost any and all humor and was taken in by the mob to a single thought: kill.

Yet it was still not without restraint. The innocents, the original citizens to this district who had been pulled from their homes and rounded him as slaves, were left alone. When the last of the slavers had fled, died, or surrendered, there were hundreds of bodies. A small few Link recognized from his own unit but the vast majority by far were the slavers.

"We control this district now, Link." Kyo Gai reported.

"Tend to our wounded." Link ordered. "Free the slaves. Let them go home. If they are hurt then take care of the Terminian's as much as our own."

"And what of the slavers?"

Hearing a clambering behind him, Link looked up and away from the district to see a group of horsemen coming his way. They bore the banner of the general on fine spears, wore heavy armor, and rode slowly towards him. Behind the horsemen he saw Ouhon Mitagi and Mouki standing on the higher elevation watching the events play out grimly.

Link looked up at the sky. Night was fully settled in and the eye of Naryu watched over all of them from the deep sky. He knew she had seen this. He would take the burden for all of this. This was, after all, on his orders. For the first time he would give an order he never thought he would give. He would be the murderer.

"No mercy." Link ordered.

He sighed, looked down at his spear, and extended his hand. Kyo Gai gulped, nodded, and took the spear. Link watched as Kyo Gai stepped back to take over in Link's absence. He watched as the horsemen approached. He watched as iron was placed on his wrists.

The child's corpse was already cold.

-Later-

"His name was Ran Dou."

Link looked up to see Mouki and Ouhon on the other side of the cell. Link sat against the stone wall of his jail cell, chains were strapped to his arms and looped into the walls, and between them was a metal cage.

"I don't care what the shithead's name was." Link replied.

Mouki answered, "You should. He was a thousand-man commander, and you are... were... a three hundred man commander."

Link scoffed, "So I'm already demoted."

"Only while the higher ups decide what to do with you, and then who knows. But the reality you must face is that treason is punished with death. You killed a superior."

Death. How fitting. That was the theme of his day.

"So... this is how I die. Can't say I saw this coming." Link figured. "But nor would I take it back knowing that death is the response."

Ouhon raised an eyebrow and asked, "Does your conviction to be a general mean so little to you?"

"Shut up." Link hissed. He stood as best he could even with his hands chained to the wall. "Am I to just turn a blind eye to atrocities going on all around me to further my career?! I'd rather die myself!"

"Then kill yourself now and get it over with."

"Ouhon!" Mouki whispered. He put a hand on Ouhon's shoulder, but the third man brushed him off.

"No." Ouhon pointed at Link. "This is a campaign of conquest. We are not here as peacekeepers or police. We are here to kill them. Those men on the wall who you cut down were men, fathers and husbands, who only wanted to keep everyone safe. There were even women and children in armor far too big for themselves because they were desperate. You are an officer and have killed many, and will kill many more, in the name of achieving rank, making a name for yourself, and securing the position of Qin in this war. This is reality. There isn't a single army out there that does anything less than take everything for themselves. It is not right, but nor is it unlawful. There are no rules in war, no one to hold them accountable."

Link growled and took a step forward. He glared at Ouhon, "'Everyone else is doing it' what kind of bullshit is that!? Scum are scum no matter how much you dress them up! I will never forgive anyone who preys on the defenseless no matter the reason! I don't care if you are a thousand man commander, a general, or a king! None of it means shit! Thats the way I've chosen and it will never change! If I am going to ignore these acts just because I'm afraid of being punished then what kind of general will I be?! Garbage like you who say 'reality' as a way to justify this shit pisses me off!"

"Who is it you don't want to kill?"

"The innocent!"

"So your own men aren't innocent? Because your choice has killed them, you self-righteous fool!"

The three stood together, at odds and silent. Words had been said but it was clear to everyone that each was stubborn. Mouki looked between the two in concern. The two had always argued, they had had never come to blows. For once, Mouki wondered if they would reach through the bars and bring it to blows.

Instead, Ouhon said, "If you wish to make a difference, it can only be when you have the power to stand at the pinnacle of the army itself."

"I know." Link answered. He returned to the wall and sat down. "But even so, this is the path I have chosen. I wouldn't change it. I take full responsibility as I gave the order to my men. If this is as far as my path goes, then that's that. I refuse to reach the end by any other way."

A new voice said, "Officers."

Mouki turned to see more soldiers approach. "You have been requested for the tribunal."

"We will be there." Mouki answered. He looked hesitantly to the others. Ouhon and Link stared at each other further. He didn't know what passed between them, whether it was a measurement of each other's stubborness or conviction. They were a lot alike, Mouki thought. They might as well have come from the same family.

-Hei Bi-

There were perks with having grown up with your military unit's leader. Hei could still jest with him and rough-house, he knew all the stories to tell around the campfire, he was easily noticed, and he could effortlessly bring a smile to his friend's face and helped lift his spirits. It was never a difficult thing to keep moral, at least, it never had been. But now standing amidst the bodies of their former allies, the corpses of dead children and elders, and witnessing the crimes committed as woman were raped or tied to be enslaved, he couldn't bring it in himself to be uplifting, nay, to even smile as Link was arrested and walked away.

He never felt more useless.

"Hei, snap out of it." Kyo Gai snapped his fingers in front of his comrade's face. Hei blinked, leaning back at the sudden intrusion. "We have orders. I need you and the others to help me carry them out."

"What orders?" Hei wondered. His eyes flickered between Link's diminishing figure and Kyo curiously, and, noticing Kyo's hardened expression, felt a pit fall in his stomach.

"No mercy."

"No-" Hei gasped. "Some surrendered!"

"Tell that to the kids." Kyo growled.

Hei gulped and looked away. He couldn't stand up to the other man even if he tried. Kyo wasn't cruel, but he was strong. Hei... wasn't.

Kyo sighed. "Look... You know Link's ways. Any orders you disagree with for a moral reason, you don't have to follow, and he will take the heat for everything. Can you follow through with this or will you disobey Link? We really need your help to keep everyone focused."

Hei looked around with conflicted eyes. He didn't want to let Link down, esspecially with him in trouble and needing help, but Hei didn't know if he could bring himself to it. He saw Solitare comforting a pair of sisters after untieing them from a post. He saw Den Yuu breaking down barricades the slavers had built with his bare hands. In both of them he saw the same intense fury and anger just beneath their eyes, the same intensity he felt wash over him before when Link gave the order to fight, but now felt drained out of himself.

"I-" Hei hesitated.

Seeing the conflict, Kyo softened his approach, "How about you just be with the victims. Tell them it will be alright."

"Tha-that I can do."

"Tell them we have this district under our control, our protection, and no one will be harmed nor have their belongings stolen nor their women dishonored."

Hei nodded. He wasn't much of a fighter but that he could do. Kyo patted him on the shoulder briefly before moving on, gathering the men, relaying orders, and taking control of the unit in Link's absence. Hei sighed. He gathered together his squad and told them to gather the household elders together.

In total nearly two hundred men and women were brought before him and sat on the ground, surprisingly more women than he would have initially thought as household leaders, but then a lot of men had died the day before. They were probably the widows left to lead the house. He didn't need to ask to know this was true, the pain in their eyes was evidence enough.

This was going to be harder than he thought.

"Hello." Hei said. A few turned to look at him from where they sat on the dirty, bloody ground. "Yes, hi. I- uh. I'm Hei Bi of Link's Unit. I'm a squad leader. and uh- Yeah I know the commander personally and just want to assure all of you that you are safe with us." Ashes still fell around them and fires raged as his unit tried to contain the blaze. "T-totally safe."

At first all he received were scoffs and ignores, but one older woman, though she was probably thirty at most, stood and asked, "What promises can you make to be any different from the men before?"

"Well... we-we-we killed them." Hei stuttered.

"You are Qin. You killed two of my sons yesterday and three cousins. You killed them too."

Another spoke up, this time a younger man about the same age as Hei, said, "And your brutes dishonored my fiance! Now my family cannot take her!"

"Look, I'm very sorry about your woman, but-"

"Her name is Too Lin!"

Hei halted, his words caught in his throat, as the name and visions of his own fiance slammed into him. Other men and women voiced their discontent for Qin while his squad tried to keep the peace and assure them that this military unit was different and would protect them, but Hei heard none of it. All he saw was Too Lin being raped and murdered, with blood pooling at his feet.

Bodies appeared before him, some climbing out of their earthen graves, and some he had killed himself in various battles. Even in death they clawed for him, but they could not reach him, so they grabbed hold of what they could. Too Lin. Their teeth tore into her and brought her down with them, and the whole time she stared back at Hei agape, screaming without a voice.

Hei ran.

He didn't know how long he ran, only that his legs gave out as he stumbled on something and he found himself clawing at the dirt amidst bodies from yesterday's battle, and that tears were pouring from his chin.

"Ow." One of the bodies mumbled.

Hei jumped up, startled, and hid behind a waist-high wall. A moment passed, and Hei looked to see the the person he had stumbled over lean up and rub his head.

"What hit me?" The person whispered.

Hei watched the man a bit longer. The man didn't seem to be one of the zombies from his vision. "S-sorry... That'd be me."

"Jackass running around hitting people in the head..."

"I said 'sorry!'"

"Fine, fine, whatever." The man waved it off, stood, and sat on the wall next to where Hei hid. The stranger turned his eyes out toward the city and gazed at it. "Seems like its over."

Hei looked out over the city as well. Was he referring to the conflict? "Yeah, its over. The fighting ended yesterday."

"Hm." The stranger hummed without comment.

Hei's legs nearly gave out, so he collapsed on the waist-high wall next to the stranger and rubbed his calf. How far had he run? He was already tired from the fighting and hadn't slept yet. It was a wonder he hadn't passed out yet.

"Sorry, again."

"You said sorry, I said its fine. Let it go. I certainly have." The man sighed.

"O-ok." Hei whispered nervously.

Hei continued to rub his calf. Flickering visions of Too Lin passed his eyes, to which he shook his head to fight them back. Too Lin was a popular name! Didn't mean it was the same woman. His own Too Lin was safe and sound deep in Qin... waiting for him to return from the campaign.

Hei gulped. He didn't want this. He wanted his mistress to be his childhood crush, not the chilling arms of death. He had gone this far to defend his home and her, sure, but he had succeeded. They had pushed Zhao back. Now he continued for Link's sake, to honor the memory of his brother, but surely they would understand if he said he could go no further... right? This life wasn't for him. He'd rather tend a farm then bloody his hands in other mens lives. But then... he was a man. He needed to make sure they would have enough money to have a home to start their household. He needed the money from this campaign. With it he could pay her dowry and have a home.

But he was basically broke. The military paid for everything because he couldn't.

A little money. Then he was out.

Feeling hungry, Hei pulled some salt-dried pork from a pouch and started munching on it. Two bites into it, he heard a stomach growling. He looked over to see the other man's embarrassed composure.

"Here..." Hei whispered. He snapped the pork in half and handed it over.

"Thanks."

For a moment longer they sat there, eating in their own thoughts, when the man asked, "It doesn't seem as bad as we thought. The city is still here. Life moves on. The world hasn't ended." Hei looked at the man curiously. He continued, "You're of them 'Qin' aren't you?"

Hei gulped. The way the man phrased that...

"Yes. And you aren't?"

The man shrugged. "Yet to be seen now. That's a Qin flag I see ain't it?"

"I guess so." Hei didn't know what to say.

"You know... I don't know if its that damn head injury you gave me, or if I am just as dumb as I look, but since I woke I've been having the same thought over and over, and I just can't find an answer to it."

"What?"

"What were we even fighting over?"

Hei continued to munch on his pork until it was finished in silence, and even then sat a while longer pondering the question. It was easy to know why he fought in the campaign lead by Ouki Mitagi. But now? What was the point of it all? Why couldn't Qin just leave the other nations very well alone? Was there something the other nations had? Did someone slap someone else... why? How did any of this begin and how would it end in anyone's happiness?

"I don't know."