Author's Note: I apologize profusely on my lack of update in the past weeks or two. I'll make this chapter longer to make up. Unfortunately, I must temporarily put off the conclusion of Old Habits Die Hard, due to the fact that I can't quite seem to think of an effective way to end it. Don't worry, when the inspiration comes, I'll update. For nows, Dead Lotus is what you can be looking at for more frequent updates.
"You little whore."
Ren yelped as Zan Ching landed a solid slap to his face, causing him to lose balance and crumple to the floor in a trembling heap. He looked up at the man towering over him with wide eyes, fully aware that he was undeniably trapped.
"Who do you think you are, trying to run away a second time with the same Ainu brat, huh?" Zan Ching reached down, grabbing Ren by the hair and jerking him to his feet, drawing a cry of pain from the boy.
Terrified, Ren's fingers brushed the hilt of the Houraiken, hidden in his clothing. He drew the sword, slashing Zan Ching across the face with a sudden movement.
Zan Ching roared in pain as blood spurted from the wound. Mad with fury and pain, he swiped at Ren, siezing the wrist of the hand that clutched the sword. The man twisted the wrist, and with a yelp, Ren was forced to release the weapon. It clattered uselessly to the floor.
"Don't you dare forget this, boy," Zan Ching hissed in Ren's ear, his foul breath blasting into his face. "Running away is useless...Everything you own belongs to me now: that stupid sword your daddy gave you, your money, your clothes, and yourself...you'll be my little bitch forever."
Right in the most desperate times, something always seems to happen, which prevents anyone from achieving what they hope to. In this case, such a desperate situation would be Horohoro's determination to rescue Ren for good from the predicament he was stuck back into. The thing that happened which blocked all paths of solution off was a war. Yes, both countries, China and Japan, were yet again at war.
All Japanese citizens, and all Chinese citizens were forbidden any contact or communication together. They became enemies, spilling blood over their once pure lands.
A year passed.
Horohoro barely had memory of Ren, and Ren barely had any memory of Horohoro.
Horohoro, as a shaman of Japan, had the pressing duty to fulfill, he felt that he had to fight. So he packed his things, taking with him his ikupasuy, and bid Pirika and the rest of his family farewell, knowing that he might die and never see any of them again.
He enlisted in the Japanese army. He eventually became a young captain, on account of his shamanic ability.
Another year passed.
Finally, one cold winter day, Horohoro and his troops set foot on Chinese shores. There mission was simple. Ravage the countryside, take their plunder, and destroy anything or anyone who got in their way.
Horohoro's instructions to his men were equally simple.
"Whatever you want and can grab is yours. Leave no survivors."
And their destructive assignment began.
Horohoro took his men on a bloody path through China. They destroyed and burned everything, they heartlessly killed everyone they saw, men, women, and children alike. China's best armies were completely annihalated as they swept through the country, finally arriving in the Guzhou province.
"That, you guys..." Horohoro announced, pointing cheerfully at a large castle building. "...Is all yours for the taking."
He didn't know he was already in Guzhou. He didn't know Guzhou was where Ren lived. And he didn't know he was about to take from the boy everything he had: his family, his home, his posessions.
"Ren!" Jun's frantic voice cut through the chaos. Zan Ching and Ren had returned to Tao castle to visit for the weekend like they always did. And they could not have come at a worse time. "Ren! Hurry! You have to get out of here!"
Cursing, Ren was stumbling through the halls, searching for his houraiken. He fully intended to fight the Japanese that were encroaching upon the Tao's property, and not run away or hide like a coward would.
Muttering to himself, he cursed his husband many times over. He had taken his sword long ago, claiming that he had no right to owning property anymore ever since he was forced to marry the despicable man.
"Don't you dare forget this, boy. Running away is useless...Everything you own belongs to me now: that stupid sword your daddy gave you, your money, your clothes, and yourself...you'll be my little bitch forever."
He shuddered. Maybe someone would come over and shoot the old man. That would be the only thing he would be thankful for in the whole war.
"Jun, where's the Houraiken?" he demanded.
"I don't know," Jun answered, eyes wide with panic. "Don't fight, Ren, pelase. You'll be killed."
"I don't care-"
"No, Ren! I won't let you!"
There was a loud crash as the Tao castle's front door was broken open by soldiers. Shouts filled the air as they progressed, stealing things of value and ascending the stairs. Smoke billowed throughout the property as they set fire to everything.
"Quick! Hide in here, Ren!" Jun siezed her little brother by the wrist, hastily shoving him into a closet, slamming the door and locking it from the inside and outside before he could protest. Ren banged on the door, cursing loudly, but it was no use. Sighing, he resigned himself to plop down on the ground and huddle in the closet's corner.
Right outside, he could hear shouts and crashes, he knew that the Japanese soldiers had to be just outside. He heard Jun screaming, and then silence. Desperately, he rattled the doorknob, although he knew it was too late and Jun was probably already dead. Grief washed over him, an a flood of tears rushed from his wide golden eyes. Sobbing quietly, he dropped back to the floor, hugging his knees to his chest.
Horohoro was having fun. He never knew breaking stuff could be so enjoyable. And he never thought that killing a man would ever be his idea of fun. Oh, but he did think it was fun, especially if it was a fat man named Zan Ching.
The man looked vaguely familiar as Horohoro approached him, but he couldn't put it where.
"You!" the fat man blubbered, jabbing his porky finger at the Ainu. "You're that boy! That boy who my Ren ran away with two years ago!" In a fearful panic, he swung wildly at the young captain with his fists.
"I don't know what you're talking about," Horohoro replied icily. He raised his ikupasuy, and Zan Ching fell dead in seconds. Horohoro kept walking, as if nothing was happening, treading deliberately over the man's corpse.
Meanwhile, a floor above him, two soldiers turned to a closet nearby.
"You don't suppose there's anything valuable inside, do you?" one asked.
"I don't know. The only way to find out is to look, isn't it?" his comrade replied.
They turned the knob, only to find it was locked.
Inside, Ren's eyes widened in panic as he heard the doorknob being rattled violently. And then, there was a crash as the door was smashed down.
Terrified, Ren backed up against the wall, looking up wide-eyed at the two soldiers standing in front of him. His heart was pounding painfully in his chest as they noticed him, and grins split their bloodstained faces.
"Well, well...whaddya know? We find a boy inside."
"Let's kill him."
Ren was defenselsss, he had no weapon, no form of engaging an oversoul. He squeezed his eyes shut, ready to die.
"Wait. I have a better idea."
"Eh?"
"He's a cute kid...don't you think we could give him to our captain...as a present?"
"Gee, that's not a bad preposition...maybe he'll even promote us!"
Giggling insanely at ther shallow dim-witted plot, the two men reached down and grabbed Ren. The Chinese boy struggled wildly, pleading with them to let him go. They gave him no such quarter, and in exchange, slapped him swiftly across the face. His hands were tied behind his back, a blindfold was fastened over his eyes, and a strip of duct tape was pulled over his mouth. The last thing he heard was their laughter before he lost conciousness.