And I Know You Won't Remember Memories In Ember
Chapter 3; Once Upon A Time In Japan

He was running through the forest, breathing heavily as he tried to both keep himself hidden and keep on moving as fast as he could go. He didn’t know what else to do, and had no idea where he was or where he was going, he just knew he had to keep running.

He’d been grabbed while no one was paying attention, a group of men had come up behind him and tied him up before carrying him away from the temple. Stolen right under the nose of The Lin Kuei. By who? Kuai wasn’t sure, but he’d heard a couple of the men talking about how someone named “Daegon” would be happy.

It didn’t matter, all he knew was that he’d been kidnapped and he needed to get away from these creeps. He’d managed to wriggle out of the ropes they’d tied him up in with the help of his ice. They had noticed pretty quickly however, which was why he was running for his life while his captors were in hot pursuit.

He knew that Lin Kuei were supposed to have no fear, but he hated to admit that right now he was terrified. Glancing over his shoulder, he couldn’t see anyone right behind him but he had no doubt they were there. Unfortunately, without his eyes looking in front of him, he wasn’t paying enough attention to where he was going. When his foot went to hit the ground in front of him, he found rather alarmingly there was none, sending him falling forward.

It was a small cliff he hadn’t noticed, crumbling around him as he went tumbling down it. His poor body hit against sharp rocks that stuck out. As he finally hit the ground, he rolled along it for a few seconds, giving a small whine when he finally came to a stop. Pushing himself to sit up, he prepared himself to run again despite the fact his body hurt. That was until he heard what sounded like a sword being unsheathed.

Two men were standing before him, armed with katanas and wearing masks obscuring their faces. Kuai shuffled backwards, they weren’t part of the group that kidnapped him, but he recognised those uniforms from The Lin Kuei’s archives.

The two men were Shirai Ryu.

“Lin Kuei scum,” the one man growled. Both of them took another step towards him, and Kuai pushed himself further away until his back was against the cliff.

He stood no chance against these men, they were much older than him and that meant much more experienced. Not to mention just generally bigger and stronger. It seemed his age didn’t matter to them, they were going to treat him like they would any other Lin Kuei. With extreme contempt.

“What’s going on over there?” A new voice called, and Kuai heard another set of footsteps walking over. He stood no chance against two Shirai Ryu, he stood even less of one against three. He felt his heart sinking at the realisation this would likely be his end.

“We’ve found a Lin Kuei,” one of the two men called, and they stepped aside to allow the new man to stand between them. The new man's face dropped the second he lay his eyes on Kuai’s trembling form. “He’s-“

“A child,” the third man hissed, suddenly shouting something in Japanese at his two companions. Kuai’s Japanese was basic at best, he had no idea what was being said, but this man sounded pissed.

The two men seemed to try and argue back, but this third man shut them down extremely quickly. After a few seconds, the two men shared a look and returned their katanas to their holds. They stepped back as the third man approached Kuai, bending down to get on his level.

“Hello there,” he said while giving Kuai a kind smile. He wasn’t sure he brought it. “You’re a long way from home, little one.”

“I- I don’t know where I am,” Kuai whimpered, trying to back up further but there was absolutely nowhere for him to go.

“You’re in Japan,” he said softly and Kuai felt his lip quiver. He was definitely far from home. “You look a little young to have been sent out on your own.”

“S-Some men took me,” he explained. He didn’t know why he wasn’t just keeping his mouth shut. The Shirai Ryu were enemies of The Lin Kuei, and that meant this man was his enemy. But there was something soft about him that reassured him in spite of his fear. “I don’t know who they were.”

The man nodded, before asking “what’s your name?”

“Kuai Liang.” Maybe it was not the best idea to give his name to The Shirai Ryu, but at that moment, this man seemed to be the only person in the world who didn’t want to hurt him.

“It’s nice to meet you Kuai Liang, my name is Kaito.” He tilted his head slightly, eyes flicking over Kuai slightly. “How old are you?”

“11,” Kuai replied and Kaito looked deep in thought at that reply.

Whatever he was thinking about, he didn’t get to voice it, as another Shirai Ryu shouted from somewhere nearby, gaining Kaito’s attention.

“Master Kaito. We’ve spotted Red Dragon Mercenaries on the edges of the forest.” Kaito's brow furrowed deeply at this news. “They haven’t spotted us, but they appear to be searching for something.”

Kaito’s head straightened ever so slightly, his gaze shifting onto Kuai again. Putting two and two together, it seemed that whoever these “Red Dragon” were must have been the people to take him. Which in turn, meant it was Kuai Liang they were searching for.

“What the hell do the Red Dragon want with an 11 year old Lin Kuei?” Kaito questioned aloud, but it didn’t sound like he expected Kuai to have an answer. At least, not right at that moment. His attention now fully back on Kuai, Kaito held his hand out. “Kuai Liang, I know what you must have been told about the Shirai Ryu, but I need you to trust me right now. Come with me, and I promise I will get you back to your temple safely.”

Kuai wasn’t sure if he did trust him. But he decided he trusted him more than he did these Red Dragon people. Kuai guessed that would have to be enough.

He took Kaito’s hand.

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