"Wouldn't it had made more sense to bring Zu with you? He says he knows the way there, after all."
"If I'm being completely honest, I want to spend as little time with Zu as possible given the current situation."
Dawn Star frowns, half in disapproval and half in sympathy.
"That's unworthy of you, but…"
"But you don't blame me, do you?" Ling says, pulling the heel of her hand away from a cut on her forehead, checking to see if the thing has finally stopped bleeding.
"No. He's not the most… amicable travelling companion.
"That's a word for it."
Ling actually wasn't being completely honest. What she has said was true; Zu was about as pleasant as the swamps he lived in, and she trusted him about as far as she could throw him, but there was another reason she has taken Dawn Star with her to find Tien's Landing. Zu wasn't talkative, which would've meant that Ling would've been stuck with her own thoughts. And if there was one thing she absolutely could not right now, was dwell on them. It would just lead to her thinking about Two Rivers, and Gao, and the bandits, and the smoke and fire, about Jing Woo and-
She crushes the line of thought as quickly as it appears. If she stops to think about it, really actually think about it, she's certain she won't be able to move on. The grief, the horror- it'll sweep her away.
So she keeps talking to Dawn Star, and fending off bandits and the odd ghost. And thinking ahead instead of behind. Smiling Mountain said something like that. Learn from the past but don't dwell there, or something like that.
Don't think about Smiling Mountain.
"I haven't felt the presence of any spirits watching us in a while," Dawn Star says, and Ling grins at her, the slightest beat of optimism in her best friends' voice pulling her from her thoughts.
"That's a good thing!" She exclaims as they exit the ruined hall, "I mean, there's only so much this forest can throw at us, right?"
Dawn Star opens her mouth to agree when she spots it. Or rather, it's upon them.
The dark figure that suddenly leaps down, twisting midair and landing flawlessly. the whole display is so graceful that, for a few half-seconds at least, Ling forgets to panic, or draw a weapon, or do anything even remotely useful.
Thankfully, the parts of her mind and body that aren't controlled by a shellshocked moron react for her, snapping into a stance as the figure's feet hit the ground.
A person, not a figure. A woman actually, covered head to toe in black, lightly armoured, her face covered below the eyes by a mask of black… probably silk?
Oh, she's REALLY mad.
"Mad" is perhaps an understatement. An especially furious kind of anger burns in her eyes, focused entirely on her and Dawn Star. It's a fierce, piercing rage that's been honed into a fine point.
Reminds me a bit of Master Li, honestl-
"Stop right there! Death's Hand should know better than to send his minions out alone."
The voice is commanding, imperious; it demands to be listened to, despite whatever protests ring in Lings' mind.
"It is clear that you are one of his hirelings, or perhaps one of the Gao the Greater's marauding pirates. You will pay the crimes you have committed."
That riles Ling out of her stupor. Anger and grief bubble and boil in equal measure. Dawn Star slides in beside her, sword drawn and at the ready.
"I do not serve Death's Hand!" Ling cries, half in rage, and half in despair, images of a burning Two Rivers flashing before her eyes.
"Do not waste your last breath on lies," the woman snaps back, "I didn't get there in time to help anyone, but I saw you leaving the massacre in Two Rivers. Clearly you were involved."
She came to help, or at least tried to?
"Death's Hand went too far in ordering its destruction, and Gao the Greater sought to profit from it," she continues before Ling has any real chance to process her words, "My retribution will end with them, but it will begin with you. "
Before she should say anything more, the woman launches herself forward, a blur of black. Ling barely dives out of the way in time, a rush of air whistling past her ear.
Dawn Star charges forward, her blade ringing against the woman's own. They hold a bladelock only for a moment, enough for Ling to dart into the fight, but the woman spins, her sword following her, delivering a shallow but nasty cut to Dawn Star's lower face, ending the spin facing Ling.
Dawn Star hisses in pain and recoils as Ling engages, shouting and slicing up with Leaping Tiger, her first strike parried, and her second narrowly dodged. She steps back, blocking the flat of the blade away as it comes to cut across her, before bracing and leaping into the air, bringing her claws down in a fierce strike that sends the woman and black rolling back.
Ling lands and surges forward, to catch the woman off-guard while she flips back onto her feet, but her first strike is blocked, the blade catching between her claws, caught for but a second. The woman suddenly pushes forward, driving her hilt and fist directly into Ling's sternum. Ling is pushed back with a breathless shout, winded by the strike.
Her chest ringing in pain, Ling sucks in air like a drowning woman, the sounds of clashing metal drowned out by her own laboured breathing. She's pretty sure her assailant didn't break anything, but it hurts.
Blinking away frustrated tears, Ling surges forward once again, sidestepping Dawn Star and flanking the woman, jabbing a fist into her side. The blow connects, sending the woman stumbling and interrupting her swing at Dawn Star. Following up on the momentum, Ling swipes at her, striking her shoulder, just the woman ducks into a roll, mitigating most of the damage. When she comes to her feet, she stares the pair of them down for a brief second before charging.
Ling rushes to meet her, bracing for contact, only for her opponent to duck at the last moment and, in one fluid movement, slice up her torso, the blade coming away from her flesh only after the cut had reached her collarbone. Shouting in pain, Ling slashes down blindly, feeling it connect and following up with side swipe, her attack just barely blocked. Dawn Star re-enters the fray, bringing her sword to bear on the stranger, forcing her to duck and roll yet again. Dawn Star doesn't give her a moment to recover, the sound of their clashing swords echoing through the once quiet forest.
With renewed effort, the woman manages to shove Dawn Star away, only to be met with Ling's furious fists, striking her in quick succession, slashing and swiping at the bolack armour. The woman manages to block on of her blows, and just as Ling sees an opening and prepares another leaping strike-
"Enough!"
The voice is commanding, not pleading, and the power behind it makes Ling falter a bit. The woman in black sheathes her sword, and Ling can feel Dawn Star's eyes on her, asking an unspoken question.
Slowly, Ling relaxes her stance, and she can hear Dawn Star do the same, both of their attention fully focused on their one-time assailant.
"The way you move seems odd… a flaw cannot see, perhaps? But you are… better than I expected. You might even beat me, if I allowed such insolence."
Dawn Star audibly scoffs and Ling rolls her eyes, but if the woman notices, she takes no heed.
"You are too skilled to be just a hireling. Death's Hand would view such ability outside of his assassins as… dangerous, and Gao the Greater prefers his servants docile."
"Who are you?" Ling asks, half in irritation and half in genuine curiosity, "Why do you oppose Death's Hand?"
"Death's Hand my be our common foe, but the enemy of my enemy is not necessarily my friend."
Yeah, you got that right, Ling thinks to herself, feeling her eyes narrow into a glare.
"You chase a great evil, larger than you realise. Leave, and you may survive. Others have tried to face Death's Hand, but were destroyed, just as Two Rivers was," the woman says coolly.
"That's why I'm pursuing him; to avenge the dead!"
"And to rescue our master from his clutches!" Dawn Star adds, and Ling nods at her before turning back to the woman.
The woman pauses, tilting her head at the pair of them, something akin to surprise dawning on her face. At least, the part of her face that wasn't hidden by the mask.
"Your honour sends you towards peril, yet you do not flinch from it. A trait of fools, and the occasional hero."
The woman's eyebrow quirks in amusement before she settles into a more serious expression.
"I also seek answers from Death's Hand and his minions. If you truly wish to oppose him, you will need to find your way to the Imperial City. Of course, only the Lotus Assassins can come and go as they please, thanks to Gao," she all but spits out his name, taking a moment to compose herself, "Travel routes by land and water are blocked, but they use wind maps and flyers to further their goals here and in the surrounding forests."
"Thanks for the tip," Ling says drily, her comment seemingly ignored by the woman.
"Perhaps, if you are capable, we will meet again. I wish you luck, but you will far more than that to survive."
The woman in black turns on her heels, and with a quick 'farewell', effortlessly leaps back onto the ledge, disappearing into canopy.
Staring in silence at the space where the woman was once was, it takes a small shake from Dawn Star to bring Ling back to her senses.
"Right! Okay! That… certainly happened…!"
"It seems the forest is crawling with dangers," Dawn Star says, "The quicker we get to Tien's Landing, the better."
"Good idea," Ling replies, only half not paying attention, her mind still focused on the odd woman in black, "let's go."
—
"Hey, Dawn Star…" Ling begins, sitting up on her bed roll. Their little trio had safely made it to Tien's Landing, and had some time to rest before beginning their search for a way to the Imperial City in earnest.
"Hm?"
"You know that woman in black that attacked us?"
"Urgh, how could I forget!" She replies, obviously annoyed at the memory, "First she attacks us out of nowhere, then lectures us!"
"Haha… yeah… uh… that did certainly happen," Ling says with a nervous laugh. Dawn Star looks at her oddly.
"Why were you thinking about her?"
"Oh it's just… I was just thinking… um… I know she tried to kill us and everything but… well… she was kind pretty, right?"
Dawn Star stares, blinking once. Twice. Ling coughs nervously and scratches at the back of her head, face red.
"You cannot be serious."
"What! It's not like I'm gonna do anything about it!"