Dark Star: The Lowly Guardian |ONC 2023|

Weakness

Lixin led them into the mansion, fan still in hand, lazily stirring a few tendrils of hair that framed his face. Zhenxing followed silently, lips pursed as he examined the wounds on his wrists. The cuts were shallow, but angrily red and weeping blood. It dripped and splashed on the thick rugs and marble floors as they walked.

He didn't look up until they rounded a corner and Lixin stopped dead. Zhenxing nearly overbalancing as he screeched to a halt, trying hard not to knock the prince over.

"Apologies, My Lord." Lixin cupped his hands and bowed low. "I did not realize you had returned or I would not have disturbed you."

Nervous, Zhenxing followed suit and offered his own courtesy, bowing as low as Lixin had. A vicious, deadly aura had filled the air around them, so thick and menacing Zhenxing barely dared to peer up from beneath his lashes.

"Continue as you were. Tell the others not to disturb me unless they are tired of existing." The voice was deep and smooth, charming to the ear, yet bone-chilling. A fascinating blend that made Zhenxing curious enough to glance at the owner of that powerful voice.

A man all in red, his black hair loose down his back except for a small braid tied with red string at the side of his handsome face, leveled a bored expression on him. Zhenxing considered introducing himself, then thought this Ghost Lord would not care one wit what his name was. So, he kept his mouth shut.

The Ghost Lord's mouth quirked and he turned to a man Zhenxing only realized in that moment was standing there. Lovely as the other was fierce, this one wore plain white, Daoist robes, a bamboo hat hanging from his back.

He offered the two of them a gentle smile and bowed his head.

Zhenxing staggered back, his heart shaking inside of him. The lovely one frowned in surprise, opening his mouth, but Lixin beat him to it.

"Daozhang needn't worry," Lixin soothed, placing his hand on Zhenxing's arm comfortingly. "My Lord's esteemed guest may be from the Heavens, but he would not betray you. He is much too kind for that."

The lovely man offered Lixin a smile and opened his mouth, but was again cut off, this time by the Ghost Lord. "Gege, come on. No need to bother with them." Then, he grabbed the one in the Daoist robes by the wrist and tossed a pair of red dice up, snatching them out of the air before opening a door and vanishing through it.

Zhenxing's knees shook, his heart pounding in his chest. He barely even noticed when Lixin took his arm and began guiding him deeper into the mansion. Then, he was being pushed down onto a carved, ebony chair in a large room. He stared at a painting of a tiger playing in a lily pond, the delicate colors and bold lines making a contrast pleasing to both the eye and heart.

The presence of the heavenly official had rattled him.

Or perhaps that had been the fight with Shenlong.

Sorrow burned his heart. All this time, all these weeks and months of being hunted, Zhenxing had seen neither hide nor hair of the Dragon Immortal or her Attendant. Foolishly, he had hoped that signaled Shenlong's faith in him. Even if she couldn't help him, she wouldn't hurt him.

The weeping wounds on his wrist, the tender creak of his ribs and the small cuts she had scattered over his body told a much different story.

"I apologize if Daozhang was startled." Lixin began setting an armful of things on the table. Zhenxing could not remember him leaving to retrieve anything. "My Lord has been absent of late. I did not expect him or his...friend to be here tonight."

Zhenxing flinched when Lixin knelt beside him and gently took his hand. Before Zhenxing could pull away, the demon began dabbing at his bloodied wrist with a cloth that carried the scent of medicinal herbs. He remembered why Lixin had brought him within the mansion to begin with and relaxed, trying to stop his hand from trembling where it lay in Lixin's grasp.