Rising Phoenix

“Medora! What happened!” Helian Zheng cried out, leaping from his horse to gather her into his arms, “How…”

His voice stilled as his eyes fell upon the tail of Medora’s dress and the ripped undergarments underneath her tattered leather robes, with the stink of blood and rot staining her clothes.

Helian Zheng’s face fell.

“A-Ja!”

Medora quivered and trembled, and as Helian Zheng froze, she finally managed to scream.

“A-Ja…” She cried out in a hoarse, broken voice, the pitch full of misery, “If you want to kill me, then kill me, why do you hurt me, why…”

She struggled in weak fury, throwing herself at Helian Zheng, her nails scraping at his arms as she banged her head into his chest again and again, screaming all the while: “Just kill me just kill me kill me kill me…”

Helian Zheng never moved as he silently let her cut and hit him, blood soon covering his arms and dripping down into the grass, his fierce gaze warning his guards away.

“Aunt Medora… what happened?” Helian Zheng asked gently, a comforting hand on Medora’s back as he turned away from the green and purple bruises covering Medora’s exposed skin.

“You ask me? Why don’t you ask yourself?” Medora cried out, lifting her bloodshot eyes. “You searched far and wide and found an old pervert for me! Your bridal team raped me on the way! That old pervert hated me for not being a virgin, and he hit me, abused me, locked me in a dark basement, withholding food, and using a stick to… to f*** me! Jadran! JADRAN! Why didn’t you just kill me? Why did I save you all those years ago?”

She screamed with sad, impotent fury, and bit down on Helian Zheng’s arm.

Blood gushed forward, but Helian Zheng only moved to wave back the guards.

Finally, Medora grew limp and leaned powerlessly against him, her teeth still in his arm.

Helian Zheng held her, holding her up as he stared up at the heavens, his face hidden from everyone. Finally, he called out: “Find the maid, bring her over.”

Since Feng Zhiwei and Hua Qiong were both women, excuses had been arranged to bring a few maids to accompany the train, and guards ran off to fetch one of them.

Helian Zheng had carried Medora and placed her in one of the carriages before sitting and letting a guard tend to his wounds. As the maid approached, he called out coldly: “Look over Aunt Medora’s body and tell me what you find. Remember, you will take the things you see to your grave.”

The terrified maid trembled as she nodded, shaking as she entered the carriage. When she finally exited, her face was filled with sympathy and horror as she whispered into Helian Zheng’s ear.

The young king said nothing as he dismissed the maid. He sat for a long time just staring up at the bright sky, but finally he stood and entered the carriage.

Medora lay in clean clothes, the madness on her face calmed, and she even managed a smile at the sight of Helian Zheng.

She opened her arms to the young king as she spoke quietly: “A-Ja… A-Ja… I thought I was going to die… when I saw you, I lost myself… I didn’t hurt you did I? Show me… let me see…”

Helian Zheng’s eyes grew red as he looked down at her haggard face, tears pooling in his gaze. He gently extended his bandaged arm and forced a smile: “It’s nothing, just a flesh wound.”

Medora touched the white cloth, tears falling from her face once more.

After a moment, she spoke once again: “A-Ja… it wasn’t you, was it? I watched you grow up, your heart is not more vicious than a jackal’s!”

Helian Zheng had no response, and when he spoke it was with great difficulty: “Aunt Medora… perhaps there was a misunderstanding…”

“Misunderstanding!” Medora cried out with agitation, struggling to sit up and peel aside her clothes, “What kind of misunderstanding leads to…”

“Stop!” Helian Zheng hurriedly exclaimed, using his hand to still hers, “Stop! Aunt Medora, don’t move… let’s just talk about it…”

Medora shut her eyes, her chest flying up and down with her heavy breaths. Her voice was cold when she spoke again: “The great Shunyi King does not believe me. Send me back to that farm with some of your men! Your people can look for themselves who is lying!”

“Aunt Medora… don’t say that, I believe you.” Helian Zheng replied gently, “But I also know that Zhiwei is not that kind of person. Something must have gone wrong. Look, I still have matters I must handle; I will send an escort to take you to King’s Court, and we can talk about all of this when I return, okay?”

“You’re going to toss me back to King’s Court by myself?” Medora demanded, opening her eyes once more, “You’re going to leave me to face that vicious, conniving Queen alone? You want to throw me into the fire pit once more?”

Helian Zheng opened his mouth helplessly, but he could not explain that Feng Zhiwei was not even there. He could only say: “Then no King’s Court. I can trust you with Patriarch Blue Bird, and he will take care of you…”

“Forget it, King!” Medora smiled coldly, “Your people are already that Queen’s dogs! Just watch, if you send me away today, tomorrow I’ll be sent back to De Zhou!”

“Then what do you want?” Helian Zheng asked, frowning.

“I want to be with you!” Medora answered immediately, “Wherever you go, I go, A-Ja… look at me, who can I trust now? If you won’t take me, I’ll just jump down and die underneath your carriage’s wheels!”

As she spoke, she climb to her feet, struggling to throw aside her blanket as she struggled with the carriage door.

Helian Zheng pulled her into his arms, his voice steady as he replied: “Aunt Medora, no matter what happened, no matter the wrongs, please wait until I return. I cannot bring you with me, this trip… is very important.”

With those words Helian Zheng turned away, exiting the carriage with Medora in his arms and calling out: “Bring a squad of twenty, escort Medora to Blue Bird Tribe!”

With the orders given, Helian Zheng remounted his horse and rode off, refusing to look back.

But he had only rode forth a few steps when cries filled the air behind him.

He had to turn to investigate, and he saw Medora shaking off her guards and running for the rolling carriages. Her shoes were still inside the carriage and her feet left a trail of blood on the sand and stone beneath her, but she charged forward as if unable to feel pain, leaping with startling strength and grabbing onto the low hanging carriage shaft in the last vehicle in the train, hanging on with a death grip even as the wheels trundled forward, dragging her behind it.