Water Mirrored Moon - 水鏡月

Part III - Beloved of the Seventh Prince: 57. Western Sky

Luo Yi Tian put his head in his hands, still in shock.

"Are you sure, your Highness?" he croaked, shuddering. He sat at the writing table, unable to look up from the crumpled paper that he had just read. Even to himself, his voice sounded strange as if it was coming from far away.

The Crown Prince of Xiyu rubbed his gloved fingers into the feathers of his eagle as she preened. Tossing her back out the arched window of his palace and into the air, she flapped upward and then just as swiftly dove down with a triumphant screech. He felt a wild rush of elation as she caught a small rodent and then his smile widened with satisfaction when she crushed its head in her talons.

Ashina Atil took a clearing breath as he leaned against the stone window, admiring the fountain below while the eagle feasted. In the distance, the sun was setting in violent hues of red and orange, splashing the sky with its bloody fire. The glow was only made more intense by the gold of the sand dunes in the distance.

The scene was starkly beautiful in its contrasts, yet Luo Yi Tian did not bother looking. He had once been fascinated by the vividly stunning skies of Xiyu, but now he could only see the kingdom's sandy ugliness and longed for the waterways and greeneries of his home in Tiansheng.

"There's no question now. It's quite the tragedy that the entire Gao family is no more," Ashina Atil said softly, still smiling. "In order to protect your connection to the matter, I had to abandon a good pawn. How do you mean to pay for that?" he taunted. "A household of over fifty heads! Men, women, children...You are worth that to me. Can you shoulder that responsibility?"

Luo Yi Tian quivered, struggling helplessly between fear and hatred. Taking a breath, he calmed himself. Responding emotionally was what Ashina Atil wanted, and so he would just have to endure it. Since returning to Xiyu, he had not slept well, and it made him uselessly restless. Taking a breath, he looked up with bloodshot eyes, his hands forming into clenched fists as he held in his emotions.

As if reading his thoughts, Ashina Atil leered at him.

"You know I have no answer for that, your Highness. I am here at your mercy because of my father, but you must keep your promise. My family cannot become involved. Th-This thing that happened to the Gao family. It cannot happen to the Luo family. It cannot." he said, his voice low.

Ashina Atil smirked.

"Why not? And why are you accusing me of being untrustworthy? Have I not always told you the truth up to now? And your father's illness is no worse than it was before. Luo Yi Tian, you are worrying for no reason."

"No reason?!" the younger man gritted in disbelief, his mask of calmness momentarily slipping.

You crazy monster! I curse the day my father decided to come here!

"Now, now, A'Tian. Do I not hold you in high esteem? Are you not favoured? In all the time that you have been my person, your business in Xiyu has increased. Are you not wealthier than before, and for what? Just a few small things. Am I such a bad master?" the Prince cajoled, sounding like he was chiding a small child.