Something Beautiful and Wicked

Yuan Ning remembered reaching his lowest point, drinking and walking carelessly over a rooftop at night. A man had come from the staircase, approaching him.      

"You're going to fall," he told him.      

"I don't care," Yuan Ning replied, swallowing more liquor.      

"Would you care to know who killed your fiancée and unborn child?"     

Yuan Ning staggered forward, swinging a punch and missed. "Was it you?" he questioned.      

"No," replied the man. "But I know who did."      

Anger and pain overcame him. Yuan Ning gritted his teeth. "Who did it?"     

"Well," said the man idly, "Who else could it be, other than the Empress?" He paused, a smile stretching his face. "You had gone rogue and abandoned your organization, placing mistrust and disorder with your people. And as a punishment, she ordered the execution of your fiancée. Unfortunately, those are the consequences of your poor actions, boy."      

Yuan Ning gritted his teeth, and he clenched his fists. "Why the hell would I trust you?      

"Because," replied the mysterious man, "I am part of the Empresses' inner circle."      

"And you betrayed her?"      

"I have my reasons," he replied. "She's creating havoc in both the Underworld and Businessworld. I'm ashamed. Many want her gone, dethroned. However, I have no particular interest in being the Emperor."     

"There's something else you want from her?" he asked.      

"Yes," responded the man. "But that's none of your concern."      

"Well, I hate to break it to you, but I have no interest in being the Emperor," he said.      

"Just think about it," said the man.      

"Tell me, then," Yuan Ning said, "Who is the person that killed my future?"     

"I can't say," responded the nameless man. "I, unfortunately, still need her alive for now. But when the time is right, I, then, can give you a name." The man stepped aside, and a woman stepped in from the lurking shadows. "This is Genji. She's the Princess of the Tiger Organization. She will help you on your journey to seek vengeance. She's a loyal and trained warrior. Her strength and skills match that of the Empress. You'd want to have her by your side."      

Yuan Ning glanced at Genji and scowled. "I don't need anyone."      

"Like I'd want to work with a traitor," she spat back, her expression impassive.      

"Be nice to him, Genji," the man advised. "He's experienced a tragedy no one would ever want to endure."      

She knitted her brows. "As if the rest of us hadn't gone through something. I've suffered, too, and betraying my people had never crossed my mind," she looked at Yuan Ning distastefully.      

"We all have the same goal," the nameless man continued. "Now, I'd expect you two to work together."      

To her reluctance, Genji sighed and agreed. Yuan Ning also accepted his new companions.      

After that encounter, Yuan Ning had thought long and hard about what to do, so he went to Genji. "I want to kill the Empress for what she did. She could have killed me, punished me. But instead, she targeted my fiancée and my child. For that, she has to die. It's the only way I can find peace."      

"But Shi Ma said that we couldn't harm her until he's ready to give us her name. We don't know her identity, and our boss will be furious if he found out we attacked her without his permission."      

"Screw Shi Ma and his ambition. I want revenge! I want justice. If you aren't coming with me, then I'm doing this alone."      

Genji pursed her lips. "I'm sorry," she replied. "I can't help you. I don't want to face Shi Ma's wrath."      

"Does he have something over you?" Yuan Ning questioned.      

"Yes," Genji answered before she disappeared.      

Yuan Ning then decided to create a strategic plan to lure the Empress into a trap on his own. He didn't need to know her name or her face. He could kill her quickly. No one would have to suffer her cruel consequences again.      

Yuan Ning approached Yuan Shun, lurking over his shoulder, surprising him. "Are you looking at pictures of a girl?" Yuan Ning teased.      

Yuan Shun flushed. "N-no," he muttered, shaking his head, tucking his phone in his pocket. "What are you doing, anyway?"     

Yuan Ning faced him. "I need you to go somewhere with me."     

Yuan Shun's mouth opened. "Where?"      

"I'll let you know on the way. Get dressed."      

Yuan Shun quickly changed and hopped into Yuan Ning's car. He drove far away from home. "There's something I need to tell you, Shun. It's not going to be easy."      

His brother looked at him, worryingly. "What's wrong?"     

"I've done something to anger the Empress. She's meeting me at this abandoned warehouse. She plans to confront me. I also think she plans to kill me."      

Yuan Shun's eyes widened. "What the hell did you do?" he asked.      

"Listen," he said, "I didn't do anything. Someone framed me for some drug exchange that went sideways," he lied. "She's pinning the blame on me for the deaths of some members of the Lion organization."      

"Crap!" Yuan Shun said.      

"I know," responded Yuan Ning. "That's why I asked you to come. I need your help."      

"I will do anything!" Yuan Shun said.      

Yuan Ning smiled, but his heart felt a twinge of guilt. "I asked some friends to meet with me there. You have to go with them."      

"What do you need me to do?" Yuan Shun asked.      

"I need you to pretend to be me. You will lure her into a trap, and then I will kill her from behind."      

"You plan to kill the Empress?" he questioned.      

"She'll kill me if I don't. So, what else could I do?"     

Yuan Shun pressed his lips into a sharp line. "All right," he agreed. "I don't like this, but I have to do what I can to protect you, brother."      

…     

Yuan Shun was terrified. His brother gave him a gun and told him to use it if needed.      

He went in with eight other men, all from the Wolf organization, tattoos etched on their neck and arms.      

He walked towards the middle of the abandoned warehouse. He stood in an empty and vast hall. He saw a figure approach them. She had no face, no name. She wore red from head to toe, like flesh and blood.      

She saw him, and she tilted her head curiously as if she knew him. Her sword gleamed at her back.     

The eight other men then surrounded her.      

"Are you the rogue Wolf members?" she questioned, her voice withdrawn and emotionless.      

Rogue members? Yuan Shun thought.      

"Yes," Yuan Shun responded thoughtlessly.      

"Which one of you is the Wolf King?"      

"I am," Yuan Shun replied.      

Despite the mask on her face, Yuan Shun felt like the Empress could see right through him. "I don't think you are, Yuan Shun."      

Yuan Shun trembled. How did she know his name?     

The Empress turned. "You're of no interest to me, Yuan Shun," she said. "I must go now."      

"Wait—" he said.      

She turned slightly. "Get out of my way," she warned.      

One of the men stepped forward. "Kill her!"      

Yuan Shun pointed the gun at her with shaking hands. He looked away, trying not to let fear stop him. He never killed anyone before.      

"If you want to kill someone, do it with dignity," she told him. There was no fear in her voice.      

Yuan Shun lowered his eyes. He had to do it for his brother, for his family. Now was the chance. He could kill her with one shot, and Yuan Ning wouldn't need to face her.      

He looked up at her. This could be easy, he thought. He didn't know what she looked like. Her face didn't have to haunt his dreams. His hand trembled. Do it, he thought. Just do it.      

He couldn't.      

Yuan Shun lowered the gun.