Flame Of Wu

~Sunset~

The man escorted Lu Mei away from the grave, keeping his arms behind his back as the younger woman glanced to him in mild confusion and some sense of alert.

"Don't be hostile, dear child. I assure you I am of no harm to you."

"Then why are you here for me? And why did you refer to me as the child of Diao Chan? How did you know her?"

Her questions seemed to die down as they stopped in front of a cozy little home just outside of the village. Watching him step inside she felt a slight twinge of hesitation as he beckoned her in.

"I'm here to talk with you about your gift."

She felt confused about what he meant by that until the realization kicked in and she looked to him with wide eyes.

"You know about my..."

"Phoenix form, yes...Come closer dear child. I'm afraid my voice isn't able to be loud enough from where you stand."

That convinced her enough, as she stepped in and sat down in a seat across from the more cushioned seat he was in. Slowly he got up and brought out a kettle, letting it heat up with fresh water and tea leaves before sitting back down in his seat, now looking at her with a gentle smile.

"Now then. I believe you haven't been able to hear the full story about how your gift came to be. Your mother aimed to tell you when you were older, but that battle in Xia Pi..."

His voice lightly trailed off as the two of them shared a moment of grief; with Lu Mei reflecting back on the many deaths and hardships she had faced. She then looked at him, feeling much calmer than before.

"Who exactly are you? How do you know my mother so well?"

"Well, I had been a close friend of her adopted father... You can refer to me as Li. I had been around the night you were born, when you had first gotten your gift."

Lu Mei's eyes widened as she stared at the older man, letting him continue his story.

"See, it was believed that since your father was a powerful man, fearsome and proud with his strength, the gods believed he was more of a dragon than a human. And the best way to provide a gift to him was giving you the abilities of a phoenix... When you were born you had a marking right over your heart, and from then even your parents worried about how you would act if you knew. Of course your father wanted you to become a housewife so you'd never stress from the wars around... But fate seemed to have other plans..."

The old man smiled more at the stunned Lu Mei as the kettle began to let out a shrill whistle.

"I have to say, it treated you well..."

He got up to get the tea, pouring a small portion over a little statue of an ox before pouring her and himself a cup; setting it in front of her as he sat back down. This whole time Lu Mei was incredulous- how could she believe it? It sounded too much like a folktale more than an actual explanation. Looking up at him again she frowned slightly.

"I'm very sorry but...how can I believe that?"

Li smiled and gave a soft nod. "You're right, It's unbelievable. But of course, I can't outright consult with the gods so my mere observations told me you were given those strengths as a gift. It was never a curse, my child."

Lu Mei looked down at her steaming cup of tea, feeling rather angry at this seemingly wasted time she spent. She clenched her fist slightly and looked up at him again, her brows furrowed in slight annoyance. "So why come to me now? Why wait this long when Xia Pi fell years ago?"

"I was told by your mother to find you in the case she ever dies before me. Lu Mei, you can leave this path of war and relax... Live your life in a calmer state of mind where the least you'll have to worry for are bandits..."

She looked back at him with a surprised look. "What? You're here to just take me in?"

"Well yes. I was told you'd have a time where you'll need somewhere safe to live, considering the war you were born into. You can leave the army and live in peace-"

"I don't want that."

Li blinked softly as she stood up from the table, looking down at him with a steely calmed look in her eyes.

"This whole time I had to learn how to find peace within war, and I found it... I found it with the friends I made and the moments I had to heal my grief. To go into a purely peaceful environment after so long would drive me mad... I'm sorry Li, but I refuse to leave the army... I have too much here."

Despite her initial hesitation as to not anger the older man, he merely smiled and gingerly held the cup of tea in his hands.

"Oh you have grown; she would be proud... I respect your decision and when you feel like turning away from war, I will be here to help as long as I live. It's the least I can do for her..."

With that Lu Mei nodded and left the home and began her walk back to the camp, passing through the land with a calm expression on her face as the memories of her mother came rushing back.

~~~~~~~~~~~~MEMORY~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Mei, come here for a minute."

Lu Mei looked over from the blade she was polishing after a tough scuffle with one of the training soldiers of Lu Bu, noticing her mother standing idly in the doorway. Setting the blade she held back to it's place alongside the other weapons she got up and went over to her mother, looking in her beautiful green eyes as a moment of silence passed between the two.

For a moment it seemed like she was just a child, her eyes glazing over as her mother took out a wet piece of fabric and gently wiped off the dirt and slight bits of blood from her face. The whole time Diao Chan was silent before she spoke as she finished cleaning off her daughter's face.

"Do you know the reason why I had you train to fight alongside your father?"

"No, mother...I don't."

Diao Chan lifted her hands to gingerly cup her daughter's face in her hands, giving a sweet tender smile.

"I wanted you to train because I wanted you to have every opportunity possible to control your own life...Before your birth I was a mere woman for a tyrannical ruler...just his little concubine... But your father was one of the first who made me realize I could be stronger than that. I could hold my own ground..."

She fell silent before letting go of Lu Mei's face and stepped back, a warm look in her eyes as she took in a deep breath.

"I never want to see you become the woman I was before. I want you to remain strong...just so I can stand back and watch how far you go. I'm so proud of you and I can't wait for the day you join your father in war..."

~~~~~~~~~~~~END OF MEMORY~~~~~~~~~~~~

Lu Mei paused in her walk to look to the sky, seeing the sun setting over the large mountains and painting the clouds a tender red. She took in a soft breath at the sight and smiled, her voice coming out as a soft whisper.

"I'm going to go as far as I can and as long as I live, mother..."