218 B.C The Qin Dynasty

"No! Let me go! I can't leave her!", Soi Fon screamed and struggled to escape, but the man held on to her while skillfully maneuvering their escape. She dared not turn around to know who the person was, until he spoke in the most gentle fashion. "There is nothing we can do, Lieutenant Fon"

Soi Fon froze. That voice...Shi Huangdi! Emperor! My Emperor!.In the midst of her grief and anger, an overwhelming sense of fear developed. God has saved her. Soi Fon had the sudden urge to jump off, not so much as to run back to her mother's body, but to kowtow in front of her master. To her embarrassment, the high god tightened his grip on Soi Fon and spoke once more. "We are almost near Xianyang. Your injuries need to be treated right away. Hold on, my Lieutenant, we will have to move faster".

Soi Fon woke up disoriented and immediately felt the sharp pain caused by her injuries. She groaned, perhaps, louder than what she expected, startling the woman who tended her wounds. "Lieutenant. please don't force yourself to get up yet", the woman said. "you must drink this first".

Soi Fon gagged at the bitterness and thickness of the medicine, but courageously took it all in. She immediately felt numb, and concluded that the hideous syrup must have been some form of anesthetic. The woman smiled, "The emperor has requested his alchemists to have that done for your immediate recovery".

"The emperor...", Soi Fon repeated as if she could not believe what she had heard.

The woman nodded and smiled once more. "Yes, and he has left instructions, that the moment you are able enough to walk, you are requested to see him"

"Then I must get up now", Soi Fon insisted, gathering enough force to push herself off the bed. "Shi Huangdi must not wait".

The woman gently aided her to stand up, but Soi Fon paused and dreadfully asked, "Where...am I?"

"Why...you're at the emperor's palace, of course", the woman bemusedly replied, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

Soi Fon groaned. First, her high god saved her, and now she had been lazily resting in his palace. I'm suppose to protect the emperor, not the other way around. Mother, forgive me for bringing shame to our house.

Soi Fon walked slowly towards the emperor's office, guided by the same woman who took care of her. She was greeted by four guards upon reaching the huge door that lead to the emperor. The woman let her go, bowed and swiftly left the hall. Soi Fon breathed in and prepared herself to meet face to face,for the first time, the man she had considered to be the most powerful deity. Despite herself, she had managed to chuckle inwardly and thought, we were facing against each other on our way back here, so that didn't count.

The door opened and Soi Fon forced herself to kowtow but was halted by the emperor himself. "Enter, please" Soi Fon searched for the voice and found the man standing on the palace terrace. He turned around when Soi Fon failed to move. He motioned for Soi Fon to walk towards the terrace as well. "The medicine has been efficacious, I see. Good, good. Come and join me for tea"

Move, Soi Fon, the emperor's calling you. Soi Fon's feet felt like it was glued to the ground. Incredulity took over her, despite the repetitive invitation of the emperor to sit down in front of him. It took a subtle push from a royal aide for her to snap out of her awe and immediately walked towards the emperor. Forgetting her injuries, she bowed in full fashion, letting out an unintentional groan.

To her shock, the emperor jovially laughed. "I have stopped you from kowtowing for that very reason. My soldiers are so stubborn, I see"

On top of the pain, Soi Fon's face felt burning hot.

"Must I ask once more for you to sit down and have tea with me?", he said with what seemed like an amused smile.

Her mind and soul protested at what Soi Fon felt like a violation of the laws of heaven, between gods and mortals--they simply do not sit down and be treated as equals. In the same breath,God ordered her, and so she must follow.

Upon taking her first sip, the emperor spoke with seriousness, and what Soi Fon could only surmise as sadness "Lieutenant, I am sorry for your loss...you must know that General Mei Feng was my most trusted aide..." The emperor paused and seemed for a second, drifted away. "Her death...is also a source of grief for me"

Soi Fon held her breath. The emperor, for Soi Fon and for the rest of those that belonged to the Qin, was God. For him to express grief over a mere soldier that served his kingdom was unthinkable for Soi Fon, even if that soldier was her mother.

"Lao Bu...had died happy...serving your excellency", Soi Fon replied with much reverence. I will be too...when I die fighting for you, my high god.

---

Soi Fon remained in the room she had woken up to earlier in the day. The emperor had ordered her to stay in the palace until she was fully healed. He had also promised, before she left his office, that her mother's body will be recovered and given a proper burial. While staring at the river Hwang Ho, she fondly recalled her first memory of the emperor.

Soi Fon was about 5 years old when the "Straight Road" had been opened. It was rumored to be an unbroken path from the capital to Inner Mongolia, a development that was never done by any other ruling dynasty in the past. Everyone stood outside to witness the Emperor travel together with ten thousand strong soldiers, and Soi Fon, being young and small, was able to squeeze her way to the front and catch a glimpse of him.

When her mother finally found her, she kneeled next to Soi Fon and whispered, "That is our king...our God...we live and die to serve and protect him...when you grow up, that will be your duty as well"

"Our God?", Soi Fon asked.

"His name, Soi Fon, means Splendid God", her mother replied. "He is ruler to everything...wherever the sun and moon shine, and the waves touch..."

All dynasties claimed divinity, but for Soi Fon, her Emperor was the only one that can rightfully claim immortality. Soi Fon closed her eyes and spoke her mother's words from her recollection. "From the rocks of the earth to the air that we breathe...All belong to Shi Huangdi...All under heaven"

----------

2008 A.D, Soul Society

Soi Fon crumpled her face, and spoke to herself while walking around the Seritei. "Another dream...All under heaven...why is that line so familiar? All under heaven...All under heaven...All under---Yoruichi-sama!" It took a while for Soi Fon to register that the woman in front of her was Yoruichi, until the older woman waved her hand in front of her face.

"All under me?", Yoruichi grinned at Soi Fon. "I didn't realize I was that powerful"

"My apologies, Yoruichi-sama", Soi Fon blushed.

"Gah", Yoruichi exclaimed. "Must you always apologize for everything?"

"No, Yoruichi-sama...I'm so--err...", Soi Fon blushed some more.

Yoruichi chuckled. "Anyway, I was in fact looking for you, and now I don't have to"

"Why...?"

"I thought we should still train over Shunko...we're still both having troubles in controlling it"

Soi Fon felt a cold shiver run down her spine. Shunko...my dreams started when...

"Soi Fon? You're...drifting away...again ", her former senpai said, concern written all over her face.

Out of nervousness, Soi Fon bit then wet her dry lips by licking it. That behavior however had a different effect on Yoruichi. From concern to attraction. Yoruichi, you are truly insane.

"Yoruichi-sama? Now you're the one drifting away", Soi Fon muttered.

Yoruichi straightened her posture and stammered. "I..uhm...well...I got lost in my own thoughts...worrying about why you are lost in your...own thoughts". She grimaced at her explanation, but quickly recovered when she heard Soi Fon chuckle.

Soi Fon smiled. "Yoruichi-sama, I'm a captain...I think about a lot of things...please don't waste your time worrying about something that's not worthy of your concern"

Yoruichi frowned. "Your well-being is well worth anyone's concern, let alone mine"

Soi Fon's eyes widened at her former senpai's words. "I...thank you, Yoruichi-sama...", were the only thing she could mumble.

There it goes again. The automatic response. Why are you like this to me, Soi Fon? "Anyway, about shunko...am I right to assume you don't want to train?"

"It's not that I don't want to...I want to eat breakfast first, it's a bit hard to train on an empty stomach. I was just on my way to get some", Soi Fon replied, which only disconcerted Yoruichi further.

"With?"

"What do you mean with?"

"With whom", Yoruichi clarified.

The hint of possessiveness did not escape Soi Fon. "With no one, Yoruichi-sama...would you...I mean...have you eaten already? We can go have breakfast...together"

"Okay". Yoruichi grinned and began to walk ahead of Soi Fon, who on the other hand, sighed and walked behind, still utterly confused with her former commander's attitude. She sighed deeper at the thought of using shunko later. Dream...you better behave yourself tonight...I can only go so far with sleep deprivation.

---

"I never took you for a coffee drinker, Soi Fon", Yoruichi muttered, intensely observing Soi Fon drink her second cup.

Soi Fon blushed. Why. Must I always react this way?

"You failed to get a good night's rest again...haven't you?" Yoruichi attempted to say it with an even voice, but ended up sounding very much like a nagging mother. She unconsciously fiddled with her own coffee-mug, and hesitantly inquired, "bad dreams... of me again?"

Soi Fon choked on her own coffee and panicked. "Yoruichi-sama! I never said dreaming about you being a bad--I mean...I don't dream of you often...I hardly...but it's..."

"Hardly, huh?", she replied with much bitterness.

Soi Fon sighed. "No...that's, that's not what I--"

Yoruichi forced a smile and teased, "So if it's not me, who else occupies your mind?"

Weird people. Soi Fon frowned at her own thought, but before she could come up with another answer, Yoruichi laughed bitterly. "You must think I'm so full of myself...I'm sure there are other people you think about"

"I don't...It's only right for you to assume...". It was a blatant lie, one that Soi Fon herself felt awful about. A few years ago, that statement would have been one hundred percent true. Everything she did was directed towards surpassing her former senpai's strength; she was obsessed with the idea, and by association, obsessed with Yoruichi. She was Soi Fon's god, she was prepared to offer her life for Shihoin Yoruichi, and after being abandoned, she had decided she was prepared to kill her god.

The confrontation led Soi Fon to expressing what had slowly poisoned her for one hundred years to the root cause of it all. What had surprised her was not her courage to have finally asked why she was abandoned by her commander, but her feelings after it. She was more than glad to resume her role as Yoruichi's right hand.

Their relationship had always been this--Yoruichi pushing the limits of royalty and servant dynamics, and Soi Fon struggling to preserve the status quo. The tension however had been driven further, now that Yoruichi had found justification; Soi Fon replaced her as the Captain of the 2nd Squad, a much revered position, and for Yoruichi, that was tantamount to making them peers. However, Soi Fon had always been content with having an inferior position next to the Shihoin heir. That is the order of things, and for Soi Fon, it has to remain that way.

The situation has agitated Soi Fon in more ways than one, no thanks to Yoruichi's constant presence, and if Soi Fon may dare say, intrusive conduct, mostly attempting to probe information about her personal life. That would be fine if there were answers to give, but her life had been fully dedicated to worshipping Yoruichi and serving the Soul Society, there simply isn't much space for anything else. Surely, Yoruichi-sama knows about this, Soi Fon had mused once to herself.

"Soi Fon?" Yoruichi sighed, a clear sign of frustration. "What's on your mind? And please don't say it's me, because we both know what you said earlier was a lie", chuckled Yoruichi.

You confuse me with your sudden mood shifts.

Yoruichi suddenly felt conscious of herself as Soi Fon gazed at her intently. "I was just wondering...what your purpose is...being her in Soul Society very often"

"You don't want me here?"

Soi Fon's shoulders fell. Really Yoruichi-sama, what's going on in that head of yours? "I was thinking more in the lines of, if there is trouble brewing at Karakura town...you, researching...I could be of help again. My squad is at your disposal."

"No", Yoruichi said curtly. "I simply want to see you"

Soi Fon blushed profusely.

"That's not a problem...is it?"

"No...I...it's not a problem at all..." Soi Fon mumbled with a slight blush. "Are you done eating? We can head out for training already..." Awkward. Definitely awkward.

---

"SHUNKO!" Yoruichi darted away from Soi Fon and began tormenting the earth underneath them, literally putting a dent on the millennia old soil. "Soi Fon? What are you doing standing there?!"

Soi Fon inhaled and closed her eyes. "SHUNKO!". She however refused to move and instead concentrated on controlling the force of her power.

Yoruichi ran back and spoke to her in confusion. "Soi Fon, you're not even releasing one-fourth of your reiatsu. There's nothing to hold back here"

"Tell that to mother nature, who took centuries to form those rocks", she quipped then positioned herself in a fighting stance. "you just turned them to sand in a few seconds, Yoruichi-sama"

"Perhaps, you're just afraid you can't do that", she dared tease Soi Fon.

Soi Fon smirked. "We'll see about that...SHUNKO!!!"

Soi Fon sprung herself upwards but lost momentum in mid-air. Somewhere between her lift off and maneuvering, images flashed before her eyes, and voices spoke clearly.

Lieutenant Soi Fon, you no longer belong to the House of Da, but to my Imperial Army.

Soi Fon heard clanging of swords resonated in her head. She slowly peered through the balcony and saw thousands--no--hundred thousand soldiers.

You will be standing by my side. I will train you personally. We will march towards victory, and unite the whole country.

"SOI FON!!!" Yoruichi cried and used shunpo to catch Soi Fon.

Soi Fon felt herself falling but dared not save herself. Her mind was being pulled away by her desire to hear the words of that man.

Yes, my Lord.

"All under heaven", she whispered just in time when Yoruichi caught her. She blacked out immediately after exalting the man.

"Soi Fon!", was all Yoruichi could say, her hands trembled. She had never seen her former student's eyes burn without an apparent reason, and acted as if she was impervious to the danger of falling.

Yoruichi felt Soi Fon's reiatsu fluctuate, then stabilized in a few seconds. "Yoruichi-sama...", Soi Fon mumbled. She could see from the corner of her eyes Yoruichi's head buried on her arm, and felt her senpai's own trembling arm snaked around her waist. She spoke again, this time with more clarity, "Yoruichi-sama"

Yoruichi gasped and gazed at Soi Fon, unsure whether she should be glad that the captain is back to consciousness, or turn into a cat and run away as fast as she could for being caught in a fragile state.

"Yoruichi-sama...I'm...fine now...you can let go of me", Soi Fon sheepishly said, with cheeks as red as apples.

Yoruichi toppled over upon realizing that she still had a deathly grip on Soi Fon. "Err..are you sure you're okay now?"

Soi Fon stood up immediately, perhaps too eagerly as well, in order to prove that she was in tip-top shape. "Yes", she grinned. "Thank you". She started to walk away but Yoruichi caught her wrist. "You're not getting away from me this time, Soi Fon. What happened up there?"

---

Soi Fon hated having to tell a lie for the simple reason that she hated being at the receiving end of lies.

"I simply lost my concentration...too much coffee...or lack of sleep...well...they go hand in hand. So I--"

"Soi Fon"

"I'll be fine, Yoruichi-sama", Soi Fon smiled and blushed. Yoruichi's gaze was truly disarming. "Nothing like a good night's rest won't fix"

"But isn't that the problem? You haven't been sleeping lately"

"I will. My body will allow me too...I promise, It can be stubborn at times, it knows when to give up"

"I really wish you'd tell me what kind of dreams you've been having...It's obviously disturbing enough for you to--"

"I'm really fine, Yoruichi-sama. Please don't--"

"waste my time? Alright, I won't"

"Yoruichi-sama..."

"I'll have to go now. See you, Soi Fon"

Soi Fon sighed and decided to try and rest. "Yoruichi-sama...", she said before falling into a deep slumber.

----------

219 B.C The Qin Dynasty

Soi Fon stood in front of 10 generals and spoke with contempt and spite. "Tianmen Zhen, they say?"

A general bowed and replied. "Yes, sir. They say the defense is called Array of Heavenly Gate because it is purported to be invincible. We have lost 10 thousand men as I speak"

"What is the formation, General Yang?"

"72 sections representing 72 moves"

Soi Fon narrowed her eyes and stared at the map in front of her. "72 different moves also mean 72 different weak points. We will break them one by one. Send a surprise attack to cut off their food and supplies located here", pointing to a specific location. "Once this is done, their cavalry will be useless. Thousands of hungry men mean nothing for defense nor offense"

All the generals bowed down to Soi Fon waiting for her final words. She gazed at the men in front of them and smirked confidently. "There is only one man who can claim ownership to heaven, and that is Shi Huangdi. If they say they have the Array of Heavenly Gate, we will break down that gate and let our immortal God enter heaven"

In a sweeping military excursion, the rival dynasty collapsed, and the Qin captured the 6th warring state and unified the whole area. News of the young woman's success captured the imagination of peasants and noble families alike. The written announcements posted in every town described the young General's military success:

"Her swinging sword flashes like nine falling suns shot by Yet the legendary bowman; she moves with the force of a team of Dragons driven by the gods through the sky; her strokes and attacks are like those of terrible thunder; and when she stops all is still as water reflecting the clear moonlight"*

----

*lifted from Tu Fu, "Viewing a Student of Madame Kung Sun"

Once again, the Array of Heavenly Gate is a historical fact, but is attributed to the Song Dynasty.

Hmm...a little lag on my part. My apologies to those who wished for a quicker update. :)