Chapter Text
Head bowed beneath the relentless downpour, she gazed at the tombstone with hollow, vacant eyes. The aching void left behind was undeniable. Today, she wore the color her sister despised most, black. The color of death. The only shade befitting this wretched moment.
She drowned in memories. Remembering how her laughter echoed in the chambers of her mind, sharp and sudden, like a knife to the chest. How her eyes, once so vibrant, so radiant with life, will never shine again, the eyes she will never, ever meet again.
The guilt was suffocating. It crushed her, an invisible force that ground her into the wet earth beneath her feet. She had failed to protect her. If only she had kept that promise... if only she had been stronger... maybe the one she promised to protect wouldn't be trapped in this wooden prison, buried beneath cold soil and cruel silence.
Hot tears streamed down her cheeks, their warmth a twisted contrast to the bitter winter chill cutting into her skin. Clutching her favorite flowers in trembling hands, she knelt and placed them beside the grave, her eternal resting place. Her fingers, numb and shaking, reached out. She traced the name etched in the stone, the grooves biting into her skin. Such a beautiful name... when she carried it. Now, that name would only echo with loss and agonizing grief.
Her fists clenched until her knuckles turned white. Rage. Frustration. Helplessness. Regret. Fury. Every emotion a toxin, burning through her veins, igniting her insides. This place, this sacred, lifeless place, surrounded by towering trees...was this truly what a cemetery was? No human voices. No warmth. Just the deafening silence of the dead.
The wind howled through the trees like a beast mourning its own. It struck at them, merciless and wild, as if trying to tear them down the way her heart had been shattered. And yet, they stood strong, embracing the violence. While she... she was crumbling.
The rain, already relentless, began to fall harder, fiercer. Could it feel the storm inside her? She looked up at the sky. It was turning black. The same dull, dead black that colored her eyes now. A cruel, bitter contrast to hers... those brilliant blue eyes that would never sparkle again. She dragged in a deep, ragged breath, letting the rain wash away her tears as if that could ever cleanse the pain. And in that breath, everything became clear. Cold. Final. She would never forgive them. The ones who took her away from her.
She stood. Her bones felt heavy. Her eyes burned, not from tears, but from something far darker. Hatred. Wrath. Purpose.
— I will kill them all, Mei.
And the world seemed to stop.
The wind and the rain stilled, holding their breath with her, sealing her vow in solemn silence. A promise had been made. And promises... she never broke twice. She turned from the grave and walked toward her car. Behind her, the sky wept once more, and the wind roared back to life. But she didn't look back. She couldn't. Not yet.
Between the two of them, Mei was always the one who understood the elements best. But today... Ling knew. She knew even the heavens were mourning. They knew too.
Mei will never come back. But Ling promised. When everything is done, when the blood debt is paid...she will return.
— Until then, rest peacefully, little sister.
One Year Later
The sounds around her were unbearable. Too many people. Too much light. Too many voices, laughs, smells, touches. It was suffocating. But through it all, one sensation stayed constant: the feeling of being watched. She was still looking for the source of that invisible gaze when a glass suddenly appeared before her.
— Ling, are you absolutely sure you don't want to go home?
— Stop badgering me, Tan. That's the fifth time you've asked.
The bar was packed. Of course it was. Friday night in Bangkok. Neon lights spilled from the ceiling, casting dizzying patterns over the crowd. Bodies pressed together, laughing, kissing, dancing like nothing in the world could touch them.
And she hated them for it. How dare they live so easily? How dare they forget tomorrow? Her eyes drifted back to Tan as he spoke again.
— At this rate, I don't think I'll be the one getting you drunk.
He eyed her glass, judgment clear in his tone.
— Just do your job as a bartender and leave me alone.
— Before being a bartender, I'm your friend. And believe me, I won't serve you another drop.
He was irritating but he was right. She had been here for hours, drinking without pause, desperately trying to drown the weight pressing down on her.
It hadn't worked.
She drained the glass in front of her, slamming it on the counter with a little too much force.
— You're right, Tan. It's time to go home.
— Finally. Go on, then. It's on the house tonight. Consider it my pick-me-up for you.
— Thanks, man. I owe you one.
— Just be careful on your way home, okay?
She nodded, managing a tired ghost of a smile. Tan wasn't a bad guy. She'd met him ten months ago during one of her aimless wanderings. It turned out he owned Luxerius, a high-end bar that lived up to its name. Over time, he became one of the few people she could still stomach.
Outside, the late-autumn air bit into her skin, sharp and refreshing. She walked slowly, savoring the silence that night offered, her boots echoing softly against empty sidewalks. Only the clubs remained lit at this hour.
Ten minutes passed before she heard it, footsteps. Close. Too close.
Someone was following her. She sped up. Turned the next corner and slipped into the shadows, heart pounding, breath shallow. She watched.
He came into view.
He was looking for something. No...someone. Her.
Of course.
She had left her gun in her apartment. A stupid, reckless mistake.
Could he be the owner of the gaze she'd felt earlier? No, it wasn't him. This one had a different presence, less watching, more hunting.
She couldn't run. Couldn't fight, not drunk as she was.
Think. She had to think.
Her eyes fell on a bottle lying in the alley. That would have to do. He approached slowly.
One meter left. She will crush him without hesitation.
Suddenly, a crash happened—loud, sharp, maybe three meters behind him. He turned. Just enough. She lunged. Brought the bottle down hard. Glass shattered. His body dropped with a dull, final thud.
She then turned toward the sound—nothing. Probably a stray cat. Didn't matter. She didn't check if he was still breathing or not. She didn't care. She just walked away, faster this time.
The encounter had drained her, but it had confirmed something vital. They were getting closer. Which meant she was getting closer to them too.
A cold smile curled on her lips.
Soon.
??? POV
The mysterious figure waited until Ling had moved far enough away before emerging from the shadows. The observer approached the body lying on the ground.
— Well, well...the wolf knows how to defend herself, doesn't she?
A laugh escaped her and echoed in the alley. This woman intrigued her more and more. She couldn't wait for the day when her eyes would finally meet her own. With a smile playing on their lips, she took the gun behind her back and finished off the man for good.
— I have no patience for incompetence.
She turned away from the corpse and headed home, humming softly as the moon illuminated her footsteps. Yes, Bangkok was indeed beautiful at night.