Two Patriots

The air was cool and breezy, the sky layered with dark clouds which threatened to unleash its fury at any moment. It was only early in the afternoon but the overcast sky made it seem early evening.

In the shelter of a wood at the summit of a hill was a training school of the martial and assassin arts. One of its alumni was in the open-air training courtyard, the only soul to be seen in the empty building.

She was kneeling before a small table set in the centre of the courtyard, two bronze censers of sandalwood incense on either side of the table scenting the air with sweet fragrance. The alumni, slightly-built with an aura of raw yet tightly-leased power, had an expression of serene calmness on her aristocratic features.

A chess board held her serene attention. She smiled slightly. ‘One more seed and black will be surrounded.’

It was at this precise moment a growl of thunder heralded the arrival of her rendezvous, who gave a fist-salute before kneeling at the table facing her. They were both alumni of the very same school and once, before duty tore them apart, were close as sisters, even training under the same sifu.

‘At long last, Seung, and you’re not a minute late.’

‘I am never late for anything, Shek.’

‘Not even a rendezvous with death?’

‘What makes you think that I will die at the end of your sword?’

‘I was ordered by the Emperor to assassinate you, but you cannot assassinate an assassin. That is why I challenged you to this duel to the death. If you do not die, I will – by my own sword or at the end of yours.’

‘You think it is worth it? What happened to our bond of sisterhood? You would choose duty over love?’

‘I am following my sovereign’s orders. What is it to you?’

‘I am a subject of Yin, so who am I to question into your emperor’s orders? But may I ask you something?’

‘Feel free. These may be the last words either or both of us may utter on this earth.’

‘Do you believe Ying Cheng to have the Mandate of Heaven, even if he is a total tyrant?’

‘Ying Cheng is Ying Cheng. I am Shek Sau. Whatever he does, he will have to answer to Heaven.’

‘The Great Wall, for instance. Or tin har?’

‘Jing Hark was a fool and you know it. My lord became paranoid – is paranoid – that Yin will send another assassin.’

‘My king has yet to send me.’

‘My lord takes no chances.’

‘So to satiate his paranoia, he will ferret out every known assassin and have them eliminated by fair means or foul?’

‘Yin is the only state in the north that has not succumbed to tin har. Where else will the assassins come from?’

‘Quite an astute observation. And yes, I would attempt to assassinate Ying Cheng even without my king’s orders.’

‘Why?’

‘I am a subject of Yin. If Yin ceases to exist, so will I, but Heaven forbid that I sit around waiting for its end.’

‘Yin will fall. It is Heaven’s Mandate. Ying Cheng is the Son of Heaven.’

‘Perhaps, but I shall not live to see my beloved country’s fall.’

‘Your devotion to Yin is admirable.’

‘As yours is to your emperor. It is a shame that our national loyalties have come between us. But do you remember what our sifu taught us? No matter how well we serve our sovereign, it is our personal conduct and integrity that matters the most.’

‘I understand. I hope you realise that I do not hate you – in fact, I still care about you. It is my sovereign who orders your assassination.’

‘Of course I realise that. But I hope that you will realise that Ying Cheng’s megalomania and paranoia will turn him against everyone – if not now, then in the future. No one – even those who are now in his favour – will be safe. I hope you do not live to see the day when the sovereign you so faithfully serves orders your execution.’

‘I cannot determine the future, but surely it cannot be as bleak as you describe. I will live to see my lord’s dream of tin har fulfilled.’

‘Then we’d best start this duel.’

With a fatal stroke, black would be encircled and its seeds within the white forfeited. Yet Shek was forced to rethink. She had chosen black for her erstwhile friend to symbolise her villainy in insubordinacy, and white for Choon, to symbolise its right to rule and its right to conquer any land that did not surrender.

Now she was unsure. Who was black and who was white? Would white encircle the black, or would the white break through? Perhaps it was too late for regrets or reconsideration, but Seung’s words affected her far deeper than she thought it would.

Seung, Seung! If only our lands were not in opposition to each other! Must I shed your blood for matters to be resolved? Why can’t you see what I see?

Shek, sister of my heart! If only I could make you understand that Ying Cheng is not worth your devotion, and that you are setting yourself up for disaster! Must it take my death at your hands for you to realise that? Must my spirit still worry for your earthly fate?

The metallic rasps of their swords being unsheathed and a flurry of lightning-swift strokes answered their questions. They were answered the exact same moment their swords pierced through the other’s body with the precision of hardened, highly-skilled assassins.

Their swords were retracted and their fading bodies swayed to the stone floor of the courtyard in perfect synchronisation. There was a gentle smile on Shek’s face, devoid of any pain, as she struggled to heave herself up on her elbow to rearrange the seeds. Now black was within a white encirclement.

Seung watched her with eyes that were still alert, comprehending her actions and the silent praise and tribute it offered her. Black was no longer black; it was white, because of one individual’s heart and conduct.

Shek fell back onto the floor, and the moment they both closed their eyes in joined death Heaven poured forth its issue, not furious or raging as the clouds suggested, but gentle and laving.

It cleansed their bodies of the blood shed for their lofty ideals and, indirectly, each other – not for their kings – and the dampened censers provided the smouldering funeral incense. Even though she died, Seung was the true victor, having demonstrated by her sacrifice that they were both patriots caught between conflicting national loyalties but most importantly, sisters who had never stopped loving each other.

Note: In 227 BCE, Seung's homeland of Yin was conquered by Shek's homeland Qin and its king Ying Cheng became known in history as the First Emperor of China, Qinshihuang.