I Fell Into Your Eyes

Chapter 1

For my incredible friend Tien Roseln, who I just adore. Hope you enjoy it sweetie! ❤

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This is a short story from the Sorrow in Autumn universe. You don't have to read that one first but it is very much in that world. Sorry.
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Shangbei means Upper North. I'm experimenting with it, to be honest. Any suggestions for a better name?? I would love to know what you think!

er-dianxia means Second King. Shen Wei is the twin brother of the Emperor and on the field of battle, his armies call him this as a sign of respect. He carries the Imperial Seal and has the Imperial power to make decisions without the explicit command of the Emperor.

Digong means underground palace.

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The sunlight glittered like distant gold, dancing until the smooth waters stretching out below this jagged cliff, shimmered like mirrored glass.

It was beautiful, but Shen Wei was determined that it wouldn't be the last sight he saw in this life.

Around him battle raged, his convoy putting up a decent response as Southern Haixingren forces closed in around them.

They had come from the western lands, diverging from the main Dixingian army to ride the long dusty road to Yuanzhang, the home of the Middle State clan of Song Yu.

The Middle States were home to numerous small clans and larger, wealthier cities owned or at least run by bigger sects like the Song Yu. Some said there were as many clans in the Middle States as there were mountains in Shangbei, with the largest clans like the Chongsheng and Song Yu dominating the region politically.

The States risked a great deal with their proximity to Southern Haixing and there were even some who supported the enemy, making these lands especially dangerous for Dixingian soldiers.

The map of the region was now divided between the Alliance territories closer to Shangbei and the Dixing border in three key areas, leaving a twelve li strip between Haixing sympathetic territories and the fiercely opposed clans. Yuanzhang was in the center of the Alliance, using its port access to the river and trading ties to provide critical resources to the war effort.

Crucially it was far from Yi city, the vast underground world where most of the war strategies were developed, ensuring that intelligence was not shared so close to merchants, who could so easily be spies for Haixing.

Not three days from Yuanzhang they had been attacked by a substantial force and had ridden into a talisman trap, that had decimated a good quarter of his convoy.

They had been betrayed and Southern Haixing had sent high level cultivators to face off against the Ghost General, planning on using underhand tricks to weaken him just enough to kill him outright.

Around him there were the corpses of fallen soldiers and he had used his dark energy to kill as many of them as he could before he succumbed to whatever this talisman was doing to his power. It was not only exhaustion from weeks of constant battle that pulled him down in this fight. He felt drained and weak, his muscles refusing to obey him as swiftly.

His blade sang with his rage as he deflected another blow. The Haixing General grinned at him and advanced easily, the talisman disrupting dark energy giving him all the confidence he needed to try for Shen Wei's life.

His foot slipped.

The wet stone as unforgiving as his death was going to be. For a moment, he thought of his mission, the thrill and hope of finally meeting the recently infamous King of Shangbei, the name that spread among their combined forces, who ignited hope deep within Shen Wei's battered, war weary heart.