Bright red flame blossoms bloomed in the courtyard, illuminating the moonless night.

These were not the gentle sheltered flame wisps that dwelled in stone lanterns, but rather the vicious wild flames that consumed all that they touched, raging wildly as they continued their relentless devouring.

At the head of the burning courtyard stood a great hall, the only building still standing, its roof aflame. Clanging sounds of metal on metal and shouts of anger and pain could be heard betraying the chaotic battle occurring within. Bodies and weapons were strewn about, marking the end of those who were slain.

Inside the great hall, two distinct, armed groups could be made out, one with robes dyed a deep red, like the colour of blood, and who were by far the majority. The other wore silver-trimmed, forest-green robes and who were clearly struggling for each breath against the overwhelming red tide that threatened to overcome them as chunks of burning wood rained down from the ceiling above.

Within the green-robed fighters, there was one person who stood out from the rest, a woman. She was young, appearing to be in her early twenties, with a sharp yet pretty pale face that betrayed no emotion and long black hair that whipped through the air as it followed her graceful movements, accentuating her well-proportioned figure. Despite the tense and violent situation, and while she couldn't be considered a top-tier beauty, she still drew the eyes of every person in the room who could afford to.

The young woman’s name was Kira. She was the pride and joy of the Takanashi Clan who were now being savagely attacked. As a female blademaster of great skill, news of her talent had spread far and wide and the Takanashi Clan gained a lot of attention from the neighbouring clans who looked on with jealousy but didn’t have the courage to take action.

However, one powerful clan did take action which ultimately led to the current situation.

Surrounding Kira were five red-robed clansmen who appeared to be struggling to take her down. Every time they thought they had gained an advantage, she would turn the tables with astonishing technique and grace.

An exquisitely-forged katana in her hand sang an aria of death as it cut towards the red-robed figures, creating ripples in the air as it seemingly ignored both their weapons and armour, drawing arcs of bright-red blood through the air as its unfortunate victims cried out in agony and dropped to the ground, lifeless.

Five thuds sounded out when, as they had several times that night, five bodies fell to the floor almost simultaneously, dying the wooden floor with five matching pools of blood. But, no matter how many red figures fell to the beautiful blade and its mistress, like a hydra which continued growing heads no matter how many were severed, more took their place.

Two gargled cries filled the air as two old men in green robes each spat out a mouthful of fresh blood before falling to the floor, their injuries too much for their bodies to endure. One of them was bald while the other had a long silver beard and topknot.

“Elder Seigen! Elder Yama!”

Kira’s originally expressionless face twitched as her eyes reddened with anger. Those two elders taught her everything she knew, from swordsmanship and discipline to writing and cooking. They were the parents that she’d never had. They may have been strict but they'd loved her nonetheless and she’d loved them back. There was no way she would let off these enemies of hers today.

Pushing down the pain in her heart, she blitzed through the tide of red-robed fighters in a whirlwind of flashing blades leaving only bodies in her wake but, despite her efforts, she was eventually the last one of the green-robed clansmen standing.

Seeing her display of power before, the remaining red-robed figures kept their distance from her. Before the time of a ten breaths could pass, the red tide split apart to reveal a masked man dressed in black who walked steadily towards the young woman.

“Takanashi Kira. As expected, you truly are a genius of the young generation. However, it appears that your clan was not on the same level.”

Kira remained silent despite the man’s taunting. She knew that only by keeping a level head would she have a chance of walking out of this situation alive, despite the slim odds.

“Yes, it would be a waste if someone of your talent were to die. Had you accepted my marriage proposal back then you could have prevented this whole mess from coming to pass. However, it is too late now. I can’t possibly take you as my wife now knowing that you’ll take every opportunity to stab me in the back.”

The man paused before continuing.

“Therefore, you have two options. In recognition of your talent and courage, I will give you face and permit you to perform seppuku, otherwise, I will have you cut down like a dog. I believe the choice is obvious.”

“As if by killing myself I can redeem my face in front of my clan when I join them in the afterlife! I may die today but I’m sure that the dead will welcome me with open arms if I bring your heads with me!”

Kira’s icy words filled with killing intent spread a chilliness through the air to the surrounding red-robed figures, causing them to tremble despite the heat of the raging fires. Not one of them dared go near her now. To them, she had become the embodiment of Death.

The masked man noticed this and knew from experience that the threat of death by treason wasn’t nearly as frightening as this woman before them who had just issued them a death sentence. It seemed that he would have to handle this personally.

The masked man stepped forward while drawing a dark red sword, the colour of dried blood, from its sheath. It emitted a malevolent aura that forced back the chill of Kira’s killing intent as the smell of blood intensified, overpowering even the scent of burning wood and smoke.

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No words needed to be spoken at this point. Any taunts or pleasantries would be completely wasted between these two powerful blademasters whose sole intent was to kill the other.

After a short period of silence, the two figures vanished from their starting positions and met with a clash of steel. Two shadows, one green and one black, blurred back and forth as they exchanged blows. The peal of ringing metal coming from but two people was equivalent to that of an army of smiths hammering metal during wartime.

At first, the green shadow appeared to be suppressing the black one but, as time went on, the black shadow pushed back, progressively gaining advantages, until flecks of red blood began mixing into the maroon-silver blur.

As suddenly as they had come together, the two figures broke apart. On one side, the black-cloaked, masked man’s breathing was ragged but he was only a bit tired. On the other hand, Kira was gasping for breath, small cuts tore through her robe as spiderweb-thin red lines of blood criss-crossed the green and tainted the silver. After coughing up a mouthful of blood, she wiped away a dribble of it from the corner of her mouth with one sleeve.

This result was more or less as expected. Having fought and killed so many red-robed clansmen earlier, it was obvious that Kira’s stamina would have been gradually eroded. Now, coming into combat with an opponent whose strength was no less than her own and who was fresh for battle, Kira knew that he wasn’t someone she could defeat right now.

‘As much as I hate to admit it, the best I can hope for now is to take him down with me. Sorry Elders, this little one will be joining you soon.’

Kira thought to herself as she prepared herself for what was, without a doubt, going to be her final exchange. Steeling herself, she leapt once more into battle, her intense focus and determination cracking through that expressionless mask.

Seeing the expression on Kira’s face leaking through, the masked man couldn’t help but sigh inwardly. Such an exceptional beauty and peerless swordswoman was nearly in his grasp but now he would have to be the one to take her life.

‘It’s truly a pity.’

As they began their clash once again, the hidden expression on the masked man’s face grew more and more ugly. Something was wrong. The way Kira was fighting now compared to her earlier poise and elegance was like that of a starving wild animal desperate for scraps. She was taking risks with no regard for how many unnecessary wounds she endured.

This infuriated the masked man as, with every wound he inflicted on her, his image of this perfect woman he was unlucky enough not to be able to marry was being broken down, bit by bit.

‘Fine, if you want to fight like a dog, then I’ll have you die like one!’

As he thought this, he swung his sword viciously, aiming to end this fight in one last blow.

While Kira couldn’t know the exact thoughts going through the masked man’s mind, her actions were having the desired effect. Just as his blade was about to end her, a small smile flashed across her face, her only smile since the invasion of her clan began. With a graceful movement, ignoring the blade swinging for her neck, Kira stabbed forwards.

With the return of Kira’s former grace and the image of her blade growing in his vision, the masked man could only continue his attack as he realised that he had been played. Kira had no intention of leaving this place alive if she could bring the one responsible for her suffering down with her.

As her head left her shoulders, Kira could see the black-robed man’s masked head pierced through by her sword halfway up to the hilt. As her vision faded to black and all thoughts of revenge fizzled away, what replaced it was an intense regret. If she only had been stronger, she could have protected her clan.

Those elders who raised her, those young clanmates who played with her and those senior clansmen- and women who trained with her; their faces flashed through her mind, forcibly drawing a single tear from her eye. They were all dead because she wasn’t strong enough.

‘I hope…that I’ve done enough…to gain your approval. I'm sorry...that I wasn't able to save you.’

And then…nothing.

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Gradually, the darkness around Kira became illuminated as she became aware of her surroundings.

Around her, various brightly-glowing ribbons of light streamed by forming an aurora of colours as she realised that she was moving past them without any conscious effort. Her, once again whole, naked body appeared to be suspended as it moved along past the flickering radiances.

‘It’s…like being underwater…yet it’s not water.’

She turned her head to look more closely at the light-ribbons. As she stared within them, she could discern blurry shapes and feel vague emotions coming from them but, the harder she looked, the faster the ribbons would move until they disappeared from her sight.

‘This…is this the afterlife?’

She thought to herself as she drifted along, seemingly without purpose or destination. Gradually, the light-ribbons started to thin out until they only showed up rarely. The rest of the time Kira was alone in the infinite darkness.

‘Is this the road to hell? Life is sacred but I killed only to defend myself and my clan. Surely that won’t be held against me. Right?’

She began to grow afraid. Before, nothing could scare her as she was completely confident in her own abilities. But now, after losing her clan-family and being thrust into this unknown place, she couldn’t help the chilliness that was slowly creeping into her heart.

Kira wasn’t sure how long it had been since the last light-ribbon had passed her but the darkness surrounding her felt as if it was gripping her so tightly that she couldn’t breathe. She was curled up with her eyes tightly shut even though it made no difference whether or not they were open. All the while she felt like dying even though she knew that she had just died.

‘Minutes, hours, or has it been years already? Time really doesn’t seem to exist in this place.’

Kira’s will was approaching breaking point, which was a miracle in itself as she had always found ways to prevent herself from giving up in the face of adversity. That was when it happened.

“Hmmmmm…”

A gentle humming sound, the first sound Kira had heard since dying, filled her ears. At the same time, she opened her eyes and slowly uncurled from the foetal position. In front of her was a golden light-ribbon. Unlike the others, this one didn’t pass her by but instead floated alongside her in the darkness, as if keeping her company. As Kira’s eyes grew accustomed to the light, she couldn’t help her curiosity and carefully peered into it.

Unlike the previous light-ribbons, the image Kira could see was clear and detailed. It depicted a mother holding a new-born baby while a man nearby, presumably the father, smiled on with pride. A strong sense of warmth and love resonated out from the ribbon and seemed to encompass Kira, making her feel an indescribable sense of comfort.

‘Is this what parental love feels like?’

Without thinking, she reached out and touched the light-ribbon. As soon as her fingertip made contact, the ribbon exploded into motion and wrapped itself around her finger and hand with surprising speed before winding its way up her arm. As it wound its way up her body, it was no longer a ribbon but a brightly-glowing, golden liquid that spread across her skin until not a single spot was left uncovered.

At first Kira was shocked and afraid but, as more of her body was wrapped in that golden light, the stronger that feeling of warmth and safety became and she closed her eyes, allowing herself to be lost in it, knowing, somewhere deep in her heart, that she would come to no harm.

After all, what was there to fear? She was already dead.