An Opportunity
Shouting and cheers can be heard from the town square jolting Haotian awake from his slumber. He lazily rubs his eyes before stretching. He reaches out to the clock on his dresser and squints to look at it which reads, "9 am". He sighs loudly and mumbles, "Wh..What the fuck is going on? It's like freaking 9 for goodness sake. The only day I get to rest is when everyone wants to start a ruckus. Gosh. I really hate it here."
Although irritated and slightly upset about his interrupted sleep, he was still pretty curious about what was happening. He doesn't bother to brush his teeth or comb his hair before putting on his slippers and heading to the town square.
As he makes his way there, he notices that the town square's podium has been raised with a few mages from the palace who have gathered. They are clad in long black robes and their faces are hidden by a mask that eerily resemble a crow. One of them is holding a giant speakerphone as they announce the news that they have come to deliver. Haotian strains his ears but the announcement is drowned out by the voices of the crowd that has gathered there. Dumbfounded, he walks closer in an attempt to hear what is going on. The podium is brightly lit with bright red lanterns with yellow ornaments that float around the square.
"Alright! That's all for today. Good luck on your applications. We look forward to your participation!"
The mages quickly pack up their documents before carrying their red umbrella, a stark contrast to their black robes. They are escorted by the town officials as the lanterns follow them and their figures slowly disappear. Guess the early bird does catch the worm, Haotian thinks to himself. Now, he's done it and he missed the entire event that everybody has been raving about... except for him.
Amidst the crowd, he spots Anran jumping in joy while waving his arms at him. Well, it wasn't really difficult to spot him since he stands out like a sore thumb with how tall he is and how he's been yelling for like the past ten minutes and Haotian is slightly taller than average so he had a relatively good view to scan the crowd. He squints at him before looking around him to get to Anran and jostles with the crowd to get nearer. As he walks nearer, he spots an old man holding a colourful flyer where it reads, "Want a chance in the upper city? Here's your chance now!" Okay, now this definitely feels like a dream. Why on earth would the emperor issue something like this. Sounds like a scam. Anran spots him and waves. "Yo! You're finally awake! You have got to see this man." He gives him a mischievous look. Haotian feels some shivers up his spine. Whenever he sees that look, Anran is probably going to start a whole fiasco that he very much would not like to be part of. Anyway, he replies him, "Yes, I saw. Why would they suddenly give us this...after locking us up here like some sort of prisoners. I mean this place is just disgusting and it reeks." Anran shrugs at his reply, declaring his new found ambition. "I don't know man but hey we should try! I can't wait to leave here!"
Anran looks at him with glee as he attempts to fold the flyer into an airplane and tries to throw it far before it accidentally hits a middle aged lady and she shoots him a glare. Haotian looks at Anran with a dumbfounded expression. Why does he always do weird shit? He scratches the back of his head as he grabs one of the flyers that were handed out by the military. He opens the colourful paper that shines in the light with some symbols that have been printed onto it. Fancy.
"Want a chance in the upper city? Here's your chance now!
We are currently lacking in manpower and this is the time for you to shine!
We will be holding examinations for only those who are 17-21.
We need young bright minds to help us out.
If you pass the examination, you are guaranteed a job in the city and a meeting with the emperor.
If you are interested, please fill in this form below with your particulars.
You can officially register your application at the town's office where there will be a red box to drop your forms in.
We will inform you if your application is successful by next week.
Good luck!"
Haotian frowns at it, his thick eyebrows scrunching up. Why would they all of a sudden lack manpower and why would they seek help from here out of all places? Something isn't adding up. He nudges Anran and he opens his mouth to tell him about his suspicion before-
A blonde girl with blue eyes accidentally knocks into Anran, water spilling out from her bottle as she falls. The water sprays all over his face, effectively soaking his upper half wet. She shrieks, horrified at what she has done.
"Oh my god. Oh my god. I'm so sorry! Are you okay?"
Taken by shock, Anran takes awhile to absorb what has happened to him before hastily wiping his face with the collar of his shirt before looking up to his perpetrator. When he looks up, he meets the most beautiful girl he has ever met... Woah. I never knew our town had such beautiful women... The blonde pulls out a handkerchief from a pocket of her dress and hands it to him, flustered with embarrassment. Anran, flustered by the sudden splash replies, "Yeah, I'm fine. Are you okay though? You seemed like you were in a rush..." The girl's cheeks flush red, seeming apologetic, "I-I'm fine. Thank you for asking... I'm so sorry. I can't believe I just did that. I'm Alisa by the way."
Alisa... What a beautiful name... Her name rolls on his tongue effortlessly as he revels in the feeling of bliss. A gorgeous lady just introduced herself to him. He's truly struck gold. Haotian shoots him a disgusted look. He really wishes his friend would stop falling for any creature that happens to be female but he must admit, Alisa is very attractive. He reaches out to shake her hand and introduces himself, ignoring the trance the Anran is in.
"I am Haotian and the moron you just bumped into is Anran. He seems kind of out of it... Your name sounds foreign and I have never seen you around here... Are you part of the military, by chance?"
Alisa shakes her head and sighs. She explains to the duo that her family was forced to live in the city as they faced some... issues in the upper ground but she describes her circumstances in a very vague way. Weird. Well, he has never heard of anyone ever being sent down before... Everyone here was born and raised here so why would someone like her suddenly be sent...
Why is this town just filled with weirdos?
He quickly dismisses his thoughts and excuses himself while dragging a very reluctant Anran who is still clutching on Alisa's handkerchief.
"Hey! I just met the love of my life! Why the hell are you cockblocking me? The fuck is wrong with you-"
"Can you stop thinking with your dick for once? My god. Don't you think this whole announcement is suspicious? I mean like we have been stuck in this place where there is no sun and now the emperor thinks he is some sort of angel that descended on us to give us this grand opportunity?"
Haotian narrows his eyes at Anran and Anran returns it with a side eye before sighing before suddenly coming to a realisation. He finds himself blurting out words before his brain processes his thoughts.
"Haotian, don't you think this is finally your chance? Remember about those assholes who took your mother away? It's time for us to find out why. We need to get revenge."
-
12 years ago.
Haotian is playing near the market with Anran and Xianghui. Uncle Xi was appointed as their babysitter so they had to stay near where his stall was. Anran had found five stones of similar size and shapes to play a game. The stones had to be small enough to fit into their tiny palms.
The game goes like this.
Each player has to throw all five stones onto the floor. One stone is thrown in the air and they have to pick up a stone from the floor while catching the first stone that was thrown in the same hand. The game continues where there are more stones added till all five of them are in their hand.
Anran goes first. He throws the first stone and grabs the second stone on the floor. The water leakage from the pipes make it slippery and it slips out of his grasp. Haotian and Xianghui giggle at his mistake. Next, it is Xianghui's turn. She is able to grab all of them up to the fourth stone but the fifth stone that was tossed in the air was thrown too high up and lands too far away from them. It's Anran's turn to laugh at her as he points a finger at her while holding his belly from laughing too hard. Haotian smirks and he quickly gathers all the stones together. He effortlessly catches all five of them but every single time he tosses a stone up, it is as if the water droplets from the air rise from the floor to navigate each stone back to him.
His friends widen at the sight before jumping in exhilaration,
"Haotian! You cheater! How on earth did you manage to do all of that-"
Just then, Haotian's mother walks by to look for him.
"Found ya! What are you three up to again?"
She smiles at them warmly. Haotian looks at her with glee and explains what game they are playing and how he is the best out of all of them. He stands proudly with both of his arms on his waist. His mother laughs and ruffles his hair.
"Of course you are. It's time to go home. Say bye bye to your friends. It was nice seeing you two and thank you for taking care of Haotian for me."
Anran and Xianghui nod but Anran interjects,
"Aunty Wu! Haotian was a cheater! When we were playing, he managed to make water droplets float so that they could carry it back for him! That is so unfair."
His mother's eyes widen, her expression unreadable. Haotian cocked his head to the side in confusion. He knew that it was slightly unusable but why was this such a surprise? He doesn't understand what is going on. She pauses for a few seconds before pulling Haotian by his hand, mumbling that she has some work to do at home and it is almost dinner time.
Befuddled, Haotian holds his mum's hand as they hastily walk back to their home.
His head is almost spinning when he realises he can't take it anymore. His mother was acting so strange today like something about her was just... off. He gathers his courage and balls his small hands in fists before he screams out, "Mama? What is wrong?" His mother shocked at the sudden raise of his voice, immediately tries to soothe him by instinct. "Nothing is wrong, baby. I need you to listen to me properly, okay? You cannot do what you did back there again." She kneels down to his height and looks him in his eyes endearingly, black eyes staring at him and he finds himself looking at the reflection of himself through them.
Okay, now he is really confused. Was winning a game of five stones that unusual for him? He thinks to himself before shaking his head. He exclaims, "What did I do, mama? All I did was win a game! Even Xianghui was so impressed by my performance! You should be proud of me!" He admits that he was not always the star player. He was always the last in all the games they played but the one time he had actually won seems to be a real big issue to his mum. He felt a warm sensation growing in his stomach and something forming at the back of his throat as he is unable to control his annoyance at this whole situation.
His mother sensing his tumultuous thoughts and pats his head slowly and pulls him in a tight embrace. "Mummy didn't mean to yell at you. I'm just worried for you. Those water droplets that you used during the game was not a coincidence. It was magic passed down by generations." Why is she using such big words? He pretends to understand and nods before grinning at her. All that matters is that his mummy loves him and her love is so much more than winning that dumb five stone game.
-
Haotian feels disoriented at the sudden memory. He grips his head as he feels it spinning as he clutches a railing for balance. The memory comes in bits and pieces as he tries to remember what his mother has told him but it never really stays. He slowly regains his composure and dusts his shirt down as if nothing has ever happened. Thankfully, Anran was pretty preoccupied with engaging in a conversation of who makes the best pie in town with an old lady that Haotian is pretty sure that Anran doesn't even know.
Haotian decides that it's time to head back home for now. It's time for his well needed rest. That headache that he's been having is driving him insane and it just keeps getting worse. The nightmares have gotten much more realistic and gory, making sleep become a terrifying experience for him.
He shoves the flyer in his back pocket on his brown khakis before stealthily leaving the scene-
"Where do you think you are going?"
A voice whispers into his ear, brushing against his nape with its breath. Haotian shrieks and jumps back, covering his nape with his hands while his face flushed red. The owner of the voice, Anran smirks at him, clearly enjoying his reaction. Haotian eventually calms down, muttering some curses under his breath. All he wants more than anything in the world is to just sink into his wonderful couch instead of this boy harassing him. He thought that was pretty good at hiding but he forgot how good Anran's sense of smell was that he would have immediately noticed when he tried slipping away.
Anran's face forms a frown while studying Haotian's reaction. "I know you are tired but would it hurt to tell me? You know I care for you," Anran mutters under his breath as he slowly closes the distance between the two of them. Haotian mumbles an apology before finding an excuse to leave the conversation. However, Anran is not a man that gives up so easily.
"Tian, let's sign up."
Haotian stops in his tracks. He hasn't heard that nickname in so long. He slowly turns his head around and he's met with earnest hazel eyes from the man himself. It is as if time has slowed down and it was just the two of them in this small town.
He turns his back and walks away but a firm grip on his hand forces him to be rooted in place. Anran turns him around and clutches his shoulders.
"Look at me. Please."
Haotian averts his eyes and tries to look down at the floor. Anran takes a deep sigh and grabs his chin forcing the brunette to make eye contact with him.
Tension fills the air as he feels the wind blows towards them.
"Fine. Just fucking let go of me, you weirdo. What the fuck is wrong with you nowadays..." Haotian pushes Anran away forcing him to take a few steps away from him. Too close. Anran cocks his head to the side, studying his expression, seemingly oblivious to the fact that they were practically a few centromeres away from each other's faces.
"Sorry about that. I just get too excited sometimes. Anyway, I think we should sign up for the exam. I mean it won't hurt to take it. A life up there is finally something we can reach!" His eyes filled with excitement before he deepens his voice while deep in thought, "Don't you want to find out why they came to take your mother, Tian? She was just taken away like that. You didn't even get the chance to spend her last moments together, much less her last words. Do you feel no anger? Does she mean nothing to you? Do you want to just let her die like that? Tell me the truth, Tian. You and I both know that is not the real you. What happened to the boy that tried to fight all the soldiers when they tried to take her away from you? Tell me! Where is he!" He nearly ends the sentence with a shout causing Haotian to visibly flinch at his statement. He's right. He was too busy wallowing in his misery to think of revenge. He just misses her so much. Everyday he wakes up, he wishes that all of that was a dream and his mother would come and shake him awake so that he could get to his job on time. The kitchen would be filled with freshly cut fruits from uncle Xi's shop but his house is just an empty shell of itself, much like he is. He grips his chest, feeling a sting at his heart. Who knew grief could manifest itself physically?
He turns to look at Anran and gives him a look of determination. He has a new resolve now. He declares with a loud voice, "You know what? Fuck it. Let's do it." His fists clenched with anger. His mother's suffering will be naught for nothing. They who have dirtied their hands with her blood will now have to pay for their sins.
"That's my baby boy."
Anran laughs and pulls the boy in a tight embrace.