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Post by velvet inkbrush of YiSoonShin on Jul 3, 2004 8:33:58 GMT -5
After a month of being completely avoided by choi bu, cho chun was at her wits end. Angry and hurt by his disinclination to acknowledge her, she took her frustrations out on the empress. the royal physicians saw that her condition continued to wax and wane, but was growing in severity. This did nothing to make cho chun fell better, so she finally confronted him as he was making his way to the armory. "chang goon" she called out. he continued to walk as if she were not there. "jang goon!" she cried. still he ignored her. finally she screamed at the top of her lungs, "jang goon!!!" he halted his pace, but did not turn around. she ran in front of him but he would not meet her eyes. she fell to her knees so that she could see his face, but he averted his eyes. "jang goon, please!" she sobbed, "do not throw me away like this!" his silence was unbearable to her. "don't you feel anything?" she hated herself for begging, but she would give anything to see even a shred of emotion from him. "if you don't answer me, then i must assume that you care nothing for me at all. please, say something" she begged. without even a look, choi resolutely walked around her kneeling form and continued to walk as if nothing out of the ordinary had happened. "jang goon!" she wailed after him, "uht jjeh? how could you discard me so?"
as choi walked away, he tried to fill his mind with anything that would drown out the sounds of her entreaties. if he had stayed even a second longer, all his effort to try and distance her for the last month would have been for nothing and he would have crumbled on the spot. it tore him apart seeing her on the ground begging for a word. i am sorry, hae yon, he thought. it is better that you hate me.
and hate him she did. any love or humanity that he had brought out of her shriveled as it was funneled into her hatred. not bothering to wipe her tears, she stood and ran back to her quarters. taking out a brush and paper, she wrote the first note that her cousins had received in more than a month:
EMPRESS' BIRTHDAY CELEBRATION ONE WEEK FROM TODAY. WILL DISPATCH UI MIN AND CHOI BU PERSONALLY. PREPARE RIDERS TO CARRY MESSAGE OF SUCCESS OR FAILURE. IF SUCCESSFUL, READY WHAT FORCES YOU HAVE AN ATTACK THE PALACE. IF NOT, CONTINUE WITHOUT ME AND WAIT FOR A MORE AUSPICIOUS TIME
CHO CHUN
her clan would understand her message. she knew that if she failed to kill them that she was dead, but she didn't care anymore, making it that much easier to do away with them. father, she thought, i will take vengeance for you or join you soon. folding the note, she ran to her customary drop and hid it in the tiles.
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Post by velvet inkbrush of YiSoonShin on Jul 3, 2004 8:41:38 GMT -5
As his stay at the temple where duduel prayed was coming to an end, brue agonized over returning to the palace. had choi freed himself to love hae yon? it pained him to think so, but he knew it was the only thing that would make hae yon happy, so he hoped he had. though he had been away for more than a month, he still thought of her every day. her face haunted him at night as much as the image of them embracing. brue had assumed that his self inflicted separation from her would make it easier to bear, but he was just as miserable away from the imperial city as he was before he had left. there's no point in staying any longer he thought. i may as well go back and be of use to ui min. siiting on the ground, he attempted once again to clear his mind and pray.
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Post by velvet inkbrush of YiSoonShin on Jul 3, 2004 8:54:10 GMT -5
To make the archfiend's end as painful as possible, cho chun ceased poisoning bu yong for the whole week. the archfiend was ecstatic, lauding her efforts and thankful that the empress would be well for her birthday celebration. cho chun spent the week pampering her mistress, all the while acting as cheerful as she had when she had first arrived. bu yong had never been happier.
the archfiend had planned a massive banquet and entertainment in honor of bu yong's birthday. all the ministers, military heads and officials had been invited. those who did not bring wives had geishas arranged to sit at their side. and as a token to the people, the archfiend ordered one sack or real white rice per household. his gift was received with acclaim. all over the country, people hung banners and flowers in honor of the queens upcoming birthday.
Choi bu had not heard a word from Brue since he had left for the temple over a month earlier. He was looking forward to seeing his friend. During his absence, Choi had missed Brue's company. he was not looking forward to seeing hae yon though, as this would be the first time that the three of them would be in the same room again.
Cho chun was in her quarters making the final preparations for her long-awaited retribution. bu yong had given her a beautiful set or robes to wear that evening, even jewelry. "you will look more regal than myself," she told her maid with a smile. cho chun had altered the insides of the dress to conceal a dagger that she had spent the night sharpening to a razor sharp edge. poor bu yong, she thought. she actually had grown fond of her enemy's wife. sighing, she picked up her garments and began preparing for the banquet.
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Post by velvet inkbrush of YiSoonShin on Jul 3, 2004 9:09:35 GMT -5
the evening of the feast was abuzz with excitement. guests made their way to the long tables sporting various dishes of little delicacies and copious amounts of alcohol. the archfiend had ordered the banquet to be held outside in front of the main palace. the tables were arranged around an area that had been covered in red silk that would serve as a dance floor for the entertainment. the archfiend sat at the the left of bu yong, who had the seat of honor. cho chun was seated on her left. choi bu and brue sat behind the archfiend. it had not been easy for her to see them both, standing together. it had not been easy for them either. when she entered the celebration, many were shocked. with her tall figure clothed in elegant robes, her hair immaculately coiffed and a tasteful choice of jewels, she was a vision of loveliness. people whispered that perhaps she was a princess - bu yong's younger sister maybe. her beauty was hard to ignore, for both choi and brue. as she walked gracefully to her seat, she met both their gazes, then lowered her eyes and sat down.
minister yi, surrounded by two geishas, stood up to ask for silence. raising his glass he said in his customary rollercoaster tone, "let us toast the birth of the wife of our noble emperor, whose greace is immeasurable!"
"hear, hear!' everyone echoed, raising their glasses. bu yong bowed her head at the guests in appreciation and the archfiend smiled proudly. Cho chun felt choi looking at her. she wanted to turn around see if he truly was but dared not to. she felt her resolve softening. he had looked at her and for a moment she saw in it the way he had looked at her the night that she had given herself to him. i would give up this need for revenge in exchange for you love, she thought, wishing he could read her mind. brue looked at his friend and wondered if had opened himself to hae yon or not. it was times like this that choi's face was infamous for betraying no emotion whatsoever. the entertainment started, and soon the wine was flowing freely.
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Post by velvet inkbrush of YiSoonShin on Jul 3, 2004 9:21:30 GMT -5
cho chun waited for the right moment to strike, waiting for people to get just drunk enough to allow her the complete advantage. minister yi had lost the ability to hold his liquor at his age and was completely inebriated. taking an empty bahn chan dish, he put it on his head and began capering among the dancers who were waving their long silken sleeves on the floor. again, cho chun felt a wave of doubt. don't she screamed inside. this man serves the man that killed your father and shot your uncle. and choi took the love you offered him and threw it away as if it were a disease. no - they both deserve to die.
just as minister yi was about to fall over, cho chun stood up suddenly and pulled the dagger from her sleeve and held it to bu yong's throat. minister yi stopped mid-fall, the bowl still on his head. it took the guests some time before the realized what was going on. when the archfiend recovered from his shock, he realized her intent and grabbed his axe. choi drew his sword and held it to cho chun's back.
"hae yon!" the archfiend thundered, "what the hell is the meaning of this?"
"release the empress" choi bu ordered her.
bu yong was petrified. "hae yon ah, why? what have i done to make you do this?" her thoughts flew to her unborn child and she moved her lips in a silent prayer.
still holding the knife, cho chun stood to her full height and said in a loud, cold voice, "i am choe cho chun of the wobong choe clan!" understanding began to dawn in the eyes of everyone at the archfiend's table. "for killing my father uncle, i claim the life of the empress and her child as payment!" she stared coldly at the archfiend. "order your man to stand down or i will run this blade through your wife's pretty neck."
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Post by velvet inkbrush of YiSoonShin on Jul 3, 2004 9:26:26 GMT -5
thinking only of the baby he wanted so desperately for his wife to have, uimin nodded to choi to lower his sword. cho chun turned to bu yong. "i have no quarrel with you, madame. i am sorry"
"then please, release me," bu yong begged.
"i am afraid i cannot do that empress." she stated flatly. my grievance is with your husband and his general." she looked at the two men. "each of you killed a man that was important to me. so, archfiend, if you wish your wife to live and your child to be born safely, you will kill choi bu."
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Post by velvet inkbrush of YiSoonShin on Jul 3, 2004 9:31:51 GMT -5
ui min and choi bu looked at each other in horror. "choose, archfiend" cho chun commanded. "who is more important to you, your friend or your wife and child?"
"sang jang goon" bu yong pleaded.
the archfiend looked torn. he kept looking between his wife and his friend of so many years.
the last thing hae yon expected was what happened next. lowering his sword and walking in front of the table where bu yong was being held, choi kneeled on the ground and said, "hwang sang bae ha, it ismy negligence that has allowed this person to enter your home and threaten your family. i am no longer fit to serve you." what was he doing, cho chun wondered. choi continued, "please save your wife and child. i beg you to take my head."
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Post by velvet inkbrush of YiSoonShin on Jul 3, 2004 9:38:16 GMT -5
the archfiend said to his friend in dismay, "choi jang goon, i can't..."
"you must, hwang sang bae ha" choi ordered firmly. "i am an inferior man, so you lose nothing by killing me. but you must save your family and continue to rule well for the people."
tears filled ui min's eyes as he tried to come to terms with the odious task he was to perform. as he raised his axe, choi asked, "may i say one last thing?" uim in nodded. still kneeling, choi turned his eyes to cho chun and said, "hae yon." at the sound of his voice, her heart stopped. "i did love you. i wanted you to know before i died. please forgive my reticence." and he bowed his head.
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Post by luvarchfiend on Jul 3, 2004 9:43:44 GMT -5
oh poor choi bu, i didn't want him to love her and please hurry and save that hunky warrior. ;D
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Post by velvet inkbrush of YiSoonShin on Jul 3, 2004 9:57:30 GMT -5
cho chun's hand began to shake and the blade fell away from bu yong's neck an inch. "choi jang goon" she whispered.
out of the corner of his eye, choi bu saw her falter and in a swift movement, he leaped over the table and grabbed the knife from her hand and held it to her throat. he was surprised to see tears swimming in her eyes. "do it" she said softly. summoning every ounce of will power he had, choi ran the blade across her throat. blood sprayed from the wound, hitting his face. cho chun collapsed as bu yong screamed.
"HAE YON!" brue shouted. he pushed his way over to her and held her limp body close to him. blood was already drenching her robes and her eyes were growing dim. "Why? hae yon, why?" he asked her. She felt his warm tears hit her face and smiled through her own tears. her vocal cords slit, she tried to say, "brue". brue knew he was trying to say his name. "please, hae yon, don't die!" he pleaded. she mouthed the words "i'm sorry, brue", and she touched his beard fondly as the last of her life slipped away. brue was frozen in disbelief. The entire court had gone silent. Then it was pierced with his sobs. "Hae yon! no! please, no!" he kept holding her hand and rubbing her hair as if she were still alive. for a while, his cries were the only sound that could be heard. When he finally realized that she was truly gone, he laid her body on the ground and stood up to face choi. both men wearing her blood, brue looked at choi in disbelief. "how could you kill your own child?" he asked, his voice heavy with sorrow.
choi was not sure that he had heard corectly. "what?..child?"
brue realized with horror, "...she never told you..."
the dagger dropped from choi's bloody hand and he began shaking violently. staring at cho chun's lifeless body, the enormity of what he had just done fell like a weight on him. he turned and ran out of the palace.
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Post by velvet inkbrush of YiSoonShin on Jul 3, 2004 9:58:25 GMT -5
there it is, she bought it!
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Post by luvarchfiend on Jul 3, 2004 10:04:32 GMT -5
there it is, she bought it! oh thank you empress VIB, it makes me feel so much better to have her gone but poor choi bu and poor brue. my hunky warrior will have a hard time dealing with this. and brue too. perhaps they will find solace soon.
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Post by velvet inkbrush of YiSoonShin on Jul 3, 2004 10:05:48 GMT -5
choi ran to the stables and saddled his horse. snapping the reigns visciously, he took off. He drove his horse to the brink of exhaustion, riding him as hard as he possibly could. he ran to the only place he thought he could find some peace. as he entered his sanctuary, her memories and the memory of what had just happened came flooding back to him. with a loud cry, he fell to his knees and tore at his hair. "why didn;t you say anything?" he asked as if she were there. "why didn't you tell me?" he began weeping, the tears creating pale traces in the blood on his face.
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Post by Chung Kyun on Jul 3, 2004 10:10:42 GMT -5
oh thank you empress VIB, it makes me feel so much better to have her gone but poor choi bu and poor brue. my hunky warrior will have a hard time dealing with this. and brue too. perhaps they will find solace soon. poor choe chun she was bad, but also was in love. i feel sorry for what has happen to her.
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Post by velvet inkbrush of YiSoonShin on Jul 3, 2004 10:16:26 GMT -5
when they received word that there had been an "attempt" on the empress' life, u and hyang knew that their cousin was dead. the attack on the imperial city would have to wait.
the archfiend was fuming. bu yong, the stress too great for her, fell asleep the minute she was helped to her chamber. staring at the choe girl's corpse, he shouted, "EEEEeen nom modh dehn nom! (you bastard)" he slammed a clenched fist into the banquet table, causing it to collapse. "find the rest of the choe's and kill them off one by one!" he ordered."
"hyung nim, please" brue said.
"and that thing," he said pointing to the body, "feed it to the dogs."
brue took her dead body in his arms. "hyung nim, i know you are angry at her but that is not right."
"shut up!" the archfiend spat. "and that b**ch actually tried to have me and choi kill each other!"
"hyung nim" intoned. "she was not a bad person. the deaths in her family poisoned her for a time and she sought revenge. please, allow me to give her a proper funeral." his voice broke as he asked again, "please..."
the archfiend grunted, "fine, do as you will" and with a disgusted look at her body, he left the courtyard.
brue sat alone in the center of the courtyard holding cho chun's body to him. he smoothed some stray locks of hair off her face - she looked so peaceful - and told her, "i will find you in the stars." his sobs racked his body as he wept.
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