283: Nightmare (Bai Ye's Memory)

Nightmare (Bai Ye's Memory)

Snow kept falling. White flurries landed on her hair, a beautiful contrast to the silky ink-black flowing down her shoulders. Bai Ye suddenly remembered the last time she had pulled him into the garden on a winter day, making him stand there with her until the snowflakes covered their hair. She told him that she had just learned this from a book she read—that it was a blessing for a pair of true lovers to watch each other's hair turn white as they grew old together.1

He had never forgotten that sight of her. He had never expected that the next time he would see her clad in snow again, it would be under circumstances like this.

Through the thin veil of whiteness, he saw her lips curl into a sneer full of despise. "Then shall we make a deal like you immortals love to do?" She readied Twin Stars. "If I lose, I give you my life as you wish. But if you lose, you'll have to give me yours. It's only fair that way, isn't it?"

Bai Ye tightened his grip some more on his swords. He would hand his life to her willingly a thousand times over, if that was enough to undo what happened and wash her soul clean from the tarnish of the demonic sword. But it wasn't enough. He would die for her any moment, but it would achieve nothing except leaving her fate up to the crueler unknown.

A snowflake fell on his lashes. It melted quickly, the icy cold stinging his eyes. He blinked. But the blur of his vision didn't clear. For a moment, he was no longer sure if it was from the melted snow or tears.

"My life has always been yours," he said at last. He knew she wouldn't believe it at this point, but he still wanted her to know.

She stared at him. Then she let out a dark laugh. "Do you think I'm still that naive girl a hundred years ago?" Her voice was hard and cold, piercing the snow-filled air like ice. "I won't fall for your sweet lies ever again, Bai Ye. But if you insist, then very well, I will claim what belongs to me with my own hands!"

She raised her swords. A strong gush of spiritual power roared from where she stood like a storm, and the crimson light pouring from her grip flared so bright that Bai Ye could barely keep his eyes open. The swords lit up from hilt to tip, the bloodstains adding an eerie pattern to the glow, and her whole body was engulfed in the same halo, radiating a message of power and ultimate destruction.

This was the true power of Twin Stars … This was the full force awakened by all the fresh souls it had just consumed.

Bai Ye looked at her, dazed. He had never seen Twin Stars like this. He had never seen HER like this. Years and years ago, he had wished to witness such a scene. He had wished for a chance to congratulate her on the advancements of her power. But how foolish he was. He had forgotten that every achievement came with a price … and he should have been careful with what he wished for.

It was too late now. Too late to take those wishes back. Too late to realize that the dream from long ago had turned into his worst nightmare come true.

She leaped at him, like the vengeful spirit she was, full of rage. Bai Ye didn't know how he managed, but he raised his sword, and their blades met. The rest of the nightmare stretched long and thin, blurring itself in his memory. He thought he heard the loud clang of their swords, the gusts of icy wind howling past their ears. He thought he felt the hard clash of their spiritual power, the world vibrating around them like an earthquake shaking the entire mountain range. But he didn't know how any of it happened. It was as if his body was an empty shell, moving on its own, while his mind had drifted somewhere else far, far away.

It must have, because how could he possibly be doing this otherwise? How could he have willed himself to point his blade at her … aiming for her life?

"Why are you holding back?" He remembered hearing her say at some point. "Don't pretend you can't bring yourself to hurt me. You've always known this moment would come!"

Yes, he should have known. He should have seen it coming long ago, and he should have done something to stop it while he had a chance. But he lied to himself and to her. He waited until it was too late to change a thing. He failed her … and it was his mistake that led them to where they were today.

"Come at me with your full strength, Bai Ye!" He remembered hearing her say that too. "I don't need your mercy!"

No, of course she didn't. She was always so bright and bold, and he would never hurt her pride by not giving her everything he had. But maybe, just this once, he simply wanted to look at her for a bit longer. Maybe, he simply wanted to drag this on and delay the inevitable at the end.

"The sooner I die, the sooner I can start my next cycle of life and forget everything about you." He remembered those words last. "Your promises, your lies, your—"

But then it stopped there, replaced by a hushed silence.

Bai Ye blinked. The strange quietness weighed on him, and slowly, he felt his mind drifting back to himself. Had it ended? Was he finally waking up from the darkest nightmare of his life?

His senses regathered themselves, and the scene in front of him came back into focus. He saw red. Her red dress, the red flames in her eyes, the red rivulet staining the white snow beneath her. He blinked again. Then he saw the tip of Twin Stars sunk deep into her chest, crimson light fading from its blades. And he saw his hand, still holding the sword hilt.

He blinked again.

The girl was staring at him. Her lips parted. In a faint but unwavering voice, he heard her say:

"I will never forgive you, Bai Ye. Not in my afterlife, not in my rebirth. I will never, ever, forgive you."

Her eyes fluttered closed, and it wasn't till then that reality came crashing down upon him.

His darkest nightmare hadn't ended. It had just begun.

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