A young man trudged through the darkened forest. Leaves fell on him, sticking, and his brown hair had a ragged appearance. He had come a long way and was not about to stop, despite the injuries that agitated him. Originally he had been on horseback, but the horse had collapsed some time ago from its own wounds. He limped determinedly onward towards his destination. He had to get help, even if the source of help seemed like an absurd idea. He had no choice. He had had plenty of time to debate with himself in the course of his agonizing hike and it was the least he could do after fleeing dishonorably. No matter what Im Yong Soo had to get help no matter whom it came from.
Mei lay in her room listlessly. It was nothing new, this is how she had spent the past days. Her promise of a new future had been crushed. Now what was left to look forward to? A knock resounded outside her room.
"I'm going to set your dinner by your door." came her mother's voice from beyond the closed door. Mei listened to her mother's footsteps fade away. She let a few minutes past before she emerged from her room and picked up the tray outside. It was no use to eat. All she could manage was a few bites before setting the tray back outside. How long would she feel like this? Perhaps she would never recover and spend the rest of her days in solitude. She hated feeling like this. It was torture.
On no day in particular, Mei finally had decided enough was enough. That morning, after reflecting throughout the night, Mei had come to the decision of getting back into her regular routine. Her heart may never mend, but she could not stand another day of doing nothing but wallow in her depression. For the first time in days she ventured outside. The sun hurt her eyes at first, but she adjusted eventually. Mei glimpsed sight of her mother who apparently had been watching her. She felt sorry for having made her parents worry about her. Despite giving them a hard time, she did care about them. They were her family after all. Mei stretched out her stiff limbs as she got use to walking on the rocky surface of her family's garden pathway. She realized she missed the feeling of being outside. A tiny songbird chirped somewhere nearby and a gentle breeze flowed through the branches of a large plum tree. Mei seated herself beneath the plum tree and closed her eyes, letting the sounds of nature sooth her. Maybe this is what she should have done instead of locking herself away from the world. The world's decision on fate may have been cruel to her, but it partially made up for it in the beauty it provided.
After her excursion in the garden, Mei decided to converse with her parents, not wanting them to worry any longer. She found them talking to one another in a sitting room. They grew quiet when they noticed her.
"Nuer, are you doing better?" Mei's mother asked.
"I am."
"That's great news, we were concerned about you."
"I'm sorry to have made you worry, but trust me, I'm fine now."
Mei let a reassuring smile appear on her demeanor. Her parents seemed satisfied of her improved emotional state. Mei left the room and decided she would wander into town. Being with others would be a comfort much needed. Mei went into her room and made herself presentable for going out. She took a small bag and a small sum of money.
As usual people on the streets were chatting about this and that. Mei passed by a group of those girls who always seemed to converge in that particular spot. When she had walked by them she could hear them whispering and picked out her name in their secret conversation. Gossip had spread as it usually did with them. It did not concern Mei however; let them think what they wanted. She could feel that spring in her step as she glanced around her surroundings. It was as if everything was becoming normal once more. She reckoned that she should start hunting once again. Then she could save up more money, and convert back to her original plan. Could she simply forget all the time she had spent with him? Could she possibly forget Honda Kiku?
A familiar voice tore her away from her inversion.
"Please, surely you can spare a few men. It's urgent!" said Im Yong Soo. His arguments with the guards of the lord of Chung-li were getting nowhere. One of the lord's guards laughed at his insistent request at his expense.
"You expect a small town to provide men? Ha! What a laugh." Mocked the man. Yong Soo could feel his temper rising.
"Get lost boy and tend to those injuries of yours. Quit wasting our time with ridiculous pleas for more troops. This village has provided enough." The guard said as he pushed Yong Soo aside and strode past him with his companion. Yong Soo cursed silently. That was when he spotted a familiar face.
"Lin Mei?!" He exclaimed. He began to approach Mei. She could not help but notice the severe limp in his right leg. As Yong Soo got closer, Mei could see hastily wrapped bandages sticking out from beneath his cracked, rusty colored stained armor.
"Im? Are you alright?" Mei asked in concern. She knew she did not have to ask. It was clear that Yong Soo was not well. His eyes were hazy and looked sunken. His skin was sickly pale, his hair was unkempt, and he carried himself awkwardly. Mei insisted on taking him to the village doctor. She helped him walk to the doctor's home. Others stared as the two went by and had almost a look of fear about them at the sight of Yong Soo.
Mei and Yong Soo arrived at the doctors. Mei knocked urgently on the door. A couple minutes passed before the doctor opened the door. He took one look at Yong Soo, and made sure to hurriedly bring him in. The doctor had Yong Soo lay down upon a cot and left briefly from the room to gather his supplies.
"You wouldn't happen to be from that camp that was here a few weeks ago?" The doctor questioned.
"I am." Yong Soo replied.
"Where are you from?"
"The Southern Kingdoms of Korea."
"I see. Now I need you to remove your armor and garments."
Mei turned away as Yong Soo began to remove his attire at the doctor's order. She did make the mistake of glancing anyway and soon wished she had not. Yong Soo had a bright red gash on a good portion of his right leg and various other cuts were spread along his arms. The doctor's eyebrows creased at the sight. "These have not been treated properly have they?" The doctor asked.
"I tried to, but I was in a hurry." Yong Soo replied.
"Exactly what happened to you?"
"We were ambushed one night." said Yong Soo and then pointed at the gash on his leg, "I got this when I got caught off guard and most of troops were killed, when I..."
"Go on."
"Retreated." Yong Soo admitted guiltily.
"And you came all the way here?"
"I had to, it was the only location of civilization that I trusted, and I thought I could get assistance."
"That was foolish young man. It's a wonder you have not died from infection." The doctor scolded. He began to dab a green substance on Yong Soo's gash. Yong Soo winced at the sting the medication brought. Then fresh bandages were tied around the wounds.
"Now just lay down for a while and rest. That is all I can do for now." The doctor said as he left the room.
Mei sat down by Yong Soo, she had a lot of questions for him. She refrained from speaking to him right away. She knew when someone's pride had been hurt. The curiosity soon overwhelmed her and she began asking him what had been bothering her for some time.
"Im, what made you come all the way here?"
Yong Soo did not answer her. All he did was glance at her, it was apparent he did not want to hear that question any longer let alone answer it again. Eventually he did speak to her.
"How have you been?" Yong Soo asked. It was an odd question considering the circumstances, so Mei did not answer Yong Soo's question either.
"Do you miss him?" Yong Soo changed the question. He had realized that she was not doing so well at all. Mei nodded in response.
"I hope you two can see eachother again." Yong Soo said oblivious to the fact of what Mei knew.
"How can I when he's dead?" Mei asked. Tears threatened to overtake her. The reminder of her loss had brought back the sorrow she had been feeling. Then Yong Soo looked suddenly surprised.
"Who told you that?" He demanded.
"The news came a week ago." She replied. Yong Soo shook his head in disbelief.
"What a lie!" He exclaimed, "Why would they say something that isn't true?"
Mei could not believe how Yong Soo could be so oblivious to the truth. It made her irritated.
"Why are you saying those things?! Stop it!" yelled Mei. Yong Soo was taken aback by her sudden outburst. He still could not comprehend why someone had told her such a lie. It was going to be difficult to explain the true circumstances of Honda Kiku's fate.
"Listen to me, they were lying to you, and I think it would be better if you knew what happened to Honda." Yong Soo silenced her. Then he began to recount what happened the night he had retreated from the battlefield.
Shortly after Yong Soo had seen Kiku receive an arrow through the shoulder, he had felt the sharp pain in his leg as an enemy sword cut through him. Filled with anger, pain, and shock he had turned around quickly to thrust his sword into the neck of the one who wounded him. Initially the pain had not been as bad, but as soon as the adrenaline rush had eased, he could feel the true severity of his injury. As he had crouched on the ground, grasping his leg. He could see one allie after the next fall to the enemy soldiers. The knowledge of staying put where he was would most likely get himself killed made him move to a more sheltered location.
As the sounds of battle began to silence, he moved slightly from his hiding place to see the results of the fight. The enemy troop had succeeded much to his dismay. Kiku who was on the ground trying to pull the protruding arrow out from his shoulder, was being slowly approached. Yong Soo knew that Kiku was not one to show how he was feeling easily, but now he could see fear overcome him as the group of enemy soldiers approached Kiku. Yong Soo could hear Kiku pleading for his life to be spared. It disturbed him that he could do nothing to aid his friend. However to his surprise he saw one of the men seize Kiku and tie up his limbs. He could hear words that sounded like Emperor and prisoner. It did not make sense that they would take a prisoner after slaughtering many others who had tried to surrender mid battle. Eventually they were out of sight and Yong Soo cautiously moved away from his hiding place. He found a surviving horse that was covered in wounds of its own. He did not care; a wounded horse was better than none.
Yong Soo finished telling his entire experience to Mei. She had listened to what he had to say, and he was grateful for that. Mei felt a feeling of mixed emotions. How should she react? All this time she had believed that Kiku was dead. What should she do now that he was most likely still alive? However, she knew what must be done, and waiting for anything would not do anything at all. If she were going to see her love again, she would have to go to him. What she would do when she accomplished such a feat was unknown, but she had to.
"This may sound crazy, but I want to do anything possible so that I may make sure that he is safe." Mei said with determination. It did sound crazy. Yong Soo had a hard time taking her seriously at first. What could this girl possibly do? She was after all, just a girl.
"I'm not trying to be offensive, but you cannot be serious. Right?"
"I am, and I will agree to the fact you are being offensive. Rest first and then I shall discuss the matter further."
Mei got up and left the doctor's building. There was a way to get Yong Soo to agree to her ridiculous idea, and it would include having to take the initiative in the matter. She arrived at her home and went into her room. She pulled out to the drawer where she hid her hunting garments. Holding up the long green top accented with gold. The memory of how she attained this came back to her when she was younger. She had seen teenage boys gloating while holding up game they had killed in the forest. Later she had seen them with sums of money from selling their catches. She recalled how accomplished they had looked, and what they received from hunting. That was when she was aspired to hunt as well. Her father had scolded her for asking about it and she had been told that girls do not partake in such activities. She had gotten upset and came upon some men's clothes that belonged to her older brother whom had passed on before she had even been born. She hid the clothing and went about to fulfill her dream to do something she wanted. It was not till she was thirteen when the clothes properly fit her; she got to go on her first hunt. She had stolen a bow and a few arrows one day when no one had been around to attend them closely at a stand. The guilt of doing so bothered her, but she knew there was no other way. It took some decent time of practice before she could send an arrow at an intended target. She remembered how good it had felt when she had taken down a large bird and when she got a good sum of money from it. The idea to travel came to mind; as a result she began saving the money she earned. All these years and know one ever caught her. The only one who knew was the shopkeeper she sold the game she got to.
Mei removed her qipao and in its place she put on men's clothing. It was like a ritual of transformation. One moment she would be just a rebellious girl, to changing to a boy. She finished buttoning the decorative buttons and proceeded to tie the golden sash around her waist. As soon as she had tightened the knot, her mother came in unannounced. All those years of hiding this side of her from her parents were now gone in one slight moment.
"Nuer, what are you doing?!" Her mother exclaimed. Mei turned her head away in shame.
"Take that off this instant!" Her mother ordered. She stormed towards Mei and tried to pull it off forcefully.
"Stop it! Leave me be!" Mei protested as she warded off her mother.
"Take those off now. Your a girl, wearing something like that brings shame to our family."
"I don't care what I am! I can wear what I want."
Her mother stopped her assault on her daughter and a look of disappointment shrouded her expression.
"I'm sorry muqin, but this is just how I am." Mei said.
"Why would you do something as shameful as this? Tell me!" Her mother demanded. She was beginning to cry.
"Like I said, it is just another part of me, and there is somewhere I must be. I certainly can't do what I want looking like a girl." Mei explained the best she could.
"If that is how you want to be, then go ahead, but you are no daughter of mine." Her mother said. Then she left the room leaving Mei alone. The fact she had been disowned so simply brought pain to her heart. Now there was only one source of happiness she was going to have, and she was going to have to go through a lot for it. Even if it meant losing the feeling of belonging that she had with her family.
Mei pulled her hair into a loose ponytail and slung it over her shoulder. Then she began to gather supplies from around the home that was hers no longer, she noticed her mother was nowhere in sight. She left the place she once called home and took a horse from the stables nearby. She looked back before riding off. That building had lost its meaning to her so quickly it seemed almost surreal. How fast something unfortunate happens.
She left the horse hidden right outside of the village and went back to it. At first Yong Soo did not recognize Mei when she came to retrieve him. When he realized whom it was he asked what she was doing.
Mei did not answer him and instead told him to relax and go along with it. She made sure to find a place for Yong Soo to stay to recover as much as possible before departing in the morning. He questioned why she did not go home. Every time he would ask, she would skip around answering. Mei had difficulties sleeping from the stress that plagued her from what had happened and what was going to happen to her.
Early the next morning, Mei attempted to arise Yong Soo from sleep. The task was much more difficult than anticipated, but then again he had been through a lot since she had last seen him. There was no chance she would leave without him. He knew where to go better than she did.
As the two began to depart from the village, Yong Soo began to bombard Mei with one question after the other.
"What about your family?"
"I don't have one any longer."
"Huh? But why?
"I don't want to talk about it."
He could not accept the fact that a girl was actually going to do something so dangerous and at such an expense on her behalf.
They were planning to follow the exact path that the military troops had taken before. There was still signs that a large group of horses had once walked there. Mei could not help but look at the new scenery that surrounded her. Throughout her entire life she had never seen the world beyond Chun-li and the forest she hunted in. The trees and underbrush that rose up on either side did not look that much different from the wilderness she knew, but it was new nonetheless. Curiosity got the better of her and she dismounted the horse. She wanted to feel the new ground for herself. Like her surroundings it did not physically feel different from the ground she had walked on before. It was all new to her and it left her with a spirit of wonder caused by the amazement that there had always been more to her small world.
"We are just going to go slower if you walk on foot like that." commented Yong Soo.
"I know that. Just let me be for now." Mei responded. She heard Yong Soo sigh with impatience. More than a mile had been covered when she decided to get back on the horse.
As they rode on further, Mei looked up and spotted two sparrowhawks flying in the sky. She watched them fly around one another. It was spring after all. The calls they let out to one another sounded alluring to her. They looked free up there, and together. Eventually they flew out of sight into the trees. Mei herself felt free now. There was only one thing missing that would make her feel that her freedom was complete.
The sky was beginning to dim when Yong Soo suggested that they find a place to stay put. They decided to venture into the surrounding woods where there was most likely a more sheltered area. Soon Mei thought she heard the crack of twigs and underbrush being stepped on. She stiffened in alert, realizing they were being followed. The noises were too loud to be made by some predator. Whatever was making that noise were definitely human and more than one. Mei slowed the horse down so that she may hear the sounds better. The footsteps were getting closer. She then brought the horse to a standstill, her hand poised over the handle of a sheathed dagger hidden beneath the concealing fabric she wore as a top.
"What's going on?" Yong Soo whispered. Mei shushed him and listened. The figures of men just on the brink of their surroundings appeared.
"I bet they have a decent amount of goods on them." One of the men remarked. They were now completely in sight. The conclusion that these were bandits came to the two of them.
"If you don't want a hard time, you boys will just hand over the goods. Whaddya say?" The leader of the bandits negotiated.
"Yeah right! Like we would give anything to you lowlifes." Mei mocked them. These kinds of people were so predictable, she knew what she was going to do.
"Why you!" The leader said angrily. He approached them swiftly wielding a shortsword and toppled Mei off the horse. Yong Soo cried out in alarm. "Gotta change of heart yet?" The leader asked as he held the tip of the shortsword close to Mei. The leader grasping her, made a little discovery.
"Hey looky here, seems this is no boy after all. Let's have some fun. Whaddya say girly?"
Yong Soo's face twisted into that of disgust, but he could not do anything fast because of his leg.
"Not at all." Mei said defiantly. Then she twisted around and used her dagger to knock the shortsword out of the man's hand. She pinned him down, holding the edge of the dagger close to his throat.
"How bout you just go along on your way." Mei said with a smirk. It was like a more violent way when she used to get into fights with the boys back home. For some reason holding someone's life like this sent a thrill through her. She felt powerful.
"Now if you don't want your boss to bite it, I suggest you get going this instant." Mei threatened. The bandits glanced at one another and began laughing. As a result Mei pressed the dagger softly against the flesh of the leaders throat.
"I see you don't take me seriously. A small line of blood appeared on the leader's skin.
"Pull back, we don't have time for this!" The leader shouted. The others obeyed and ran off, not wanting to have to go through the trouble of finding a new leader. Mei let the man get up, but not letting the proximity of her dagger to be less dangerous.
"Bitch!" The leader cursed before running off after his gang. Yong Soo and Mei watched them fade out of sight. As soon as she heard the noise of their retreat fade away completely, then she let herself relax.
"Where did you learn to fight like that?" Yong Soo asked. He had to admit he was impressed by her feat.
"I've had practice." Mei boasted as she wiped the tiny dots of blood from her blade.
After the atmosphere had calmed down more, they went off in search of a place to sleep for the night. They found a concealed spot of bushes and leaves. Yong Soo had drifted off immediately when he made himself comfortable on a pile of leaves. Mei stayed alert in case those bandits made the decision to make their way back for more. She kept a comfortable distance away from Yong Soo. It did not feel right to sleep next to a man that she did not know well. After all, she had to remain faithful to Kiku, even if he was not around for the time being. She found herself only sleeping briefly throughout the night, constantly waking up at the slightest noise. This was the first time she had actually been out at night in the wilderness. She had to admit that she missed the comfort of sleeping safely in her home. She was just going to have to get used to this type of life for the time being. The stars peered through the treetops and she looked up at them. Maybe this was not so bad then. She had always wondered what it would be like sleeping out under the stars. She could hear the hoots of some owl somewhere away in the distance. All birds were free. No matter what gender, birds flew where they pleased.
She listened to the noises of the nocturnal birds and looked back to the sky. She closed her eyes and then clasped her hands together and did an act she had not done for some time. She prayed. She prayed for a safe journey, the safety of her lover, and the achievement of true happiness. Part of the prayer was selfish, but she had always been that way. Of course her waking moments would cause her to think about the events that had so far happened, and what was to be. Her mind thought about how her parents were feeling now that they had disowned her. Now they had lost two children. A feeling of pity went out to them from her. Another question came to mind. When she did succeed in finding Kiku what would she do? The one who held him captive was powerful, and rescuing someone from a man like that was no easy task. What if she lost her life in the process? She shook the thought of possible death away. She could not let herself falter with such an idea. Personally she felt that if one feared death, then that made them merely a coward. She was no coward and she refused to ever become one. There was no time to be weak, and perhaps there was no time to be a woman either. The moment she donned the clothes that belonged to a man, she herself became a man. Men had always been samples of those in legends. Stories of the heroic feats that they accomplished were all she ever heard. The only thing she had ever heard about women in those stories, was that they were only the ones who gave birth to heroes, nothing more, and nothing less. That seemed the only good thing they could ever do. Hearing those stories is what had inspired her to be more than just a woman when she was young. Now she approached the chance to prove herself. The sun was beginning to rise.
I hope you enjoyed chapter two. I'm going to take this time to add more explanations concerning this story. The inspiration actually came from the Disney movie; Mulan. Of course it's much different premise of what motivates the main character to fight, but it is still vaguely similar.
Also this is the story that is the next step before I begin working on an original novel. To become a published author has been a dream of mine for some time.
See ya in chapter three.