1 First Shot: Red Cherry Blossoms in RTW

The lushest green leaf that ever so slightly blew on the earth where Demons, Humans and the so called witches co-exist. With the skies filled with silhouette of pigeons, how I wish I could hold the ever-burning flame like how light embraces and heals all beings alike. My heart, filled with void.

Cheng Yan felt as if someone was calling him.

"y…r.ot..s…r…or…roh…a..si…si…ht"

He turned his head away, but the sounds he had heard did not disappear, instead they became even louder and clearer.

"BEEEEEP BOP BEEEEEP BOP"

Cheng Yan feeling slightly groggy, slowly opened his eyes and saw the screen, desk, wall plastered with posts-its. He felt glad after coming back from the dream realm.

"Everything is here." Cheng Yan's mind thought as he rub his eyes. Cheng Yan looked around further and saw the various blueprint of electric generators laying on the floor.

"I must have went to bed after working on the project for a whole 3 days." Cheng Yan attempts to recall while looking down at his watch. "Wait… I need to submit the blueprints by this afternoon."

Cheng Yan quickly got up from the bed and shut the alarm off. He thrown his blueprints into the briefcase, making sure that everything was ready, changed to a plain t-shirt, got his blazer off the desk and ran down the stairs with a filled briefcase from his 5th floor apartment. He managed to smell the scent of fresh soup dumplings poked with a stick that was right across the streets. His stomach grumbles loudly like a cannon that was fired off.

"Let's eat first…" Cheng Yan mesmerized by the dumpling begin to eat his first dumpling of the day. The first touch of dumplings on top lips was hot and numbing but yet the umami taste became addictive. Cheng Yan can't stop himself after 20 dumplings and began diving in for more. The lady with a long white hair in the food truck station purely reminded Cheng Yan, "Before you get more dumpling sir, you should try some of the spicy soup, it may help to lift up your spirit." A tinge of red was seen by Cheng Yan in front of him.

Cheng Yan after hearing about what the lady said and immediately requested for the spicy soup to be served. On the day where the morning is slightly cooler than usually, a warm hefty soup was able to warm the spirit of Cheng Yan and after paying the lady, began jogging toward his workplace.

After jogging for 30 minute, the slightly damp t-shirt highlighted a skinny figure yet somewhat an indomitable spirit like that of a prince. Cheng Yan thought," I should jog more often, feels great after sitting for so long." He looked through his briefcase and saw the renewable energy electricity generator blueprint that was sticking out of the bunch. "This is the one." Cheng Yan pull the blueprint out but to his horror, the papers were all dropped onto the floor and out of the briefcase.

"Oh my god, what was I doing?" He picked the papers up quickly and stuff it into the briefcase. In the process, he looked for the required blueprint.

He looked through one blueprint after another. "That's strange, why is there old patent of invention here?" Cheng Yan scratched his head and determine the various blueprints contain drawings of steam engines, mixture for cement, flintlock firearms and many invention that was once looked up from the web by Cheng Yan.

At this time, the strong wind started ploughing through the paper and many papers scatter around the front entrance of the office. "Can you please help me collect the papers? I will treat you to any sweat treats you want" Cheng Yan asked for the help of a young girl with a long flaxen hair in the crowd in collecting the papers as the girl was the first person to be noticed by him due to the blue eyes that is as serene as a lake and yet also show the confidence that is just like a burning flame that is unwilling to be put out. The young girl in contemplation, decided to nod her head and gave Cheng Yan the answer to what sweets she want for her reward "I would like a cake as my rewards if its okay." Cheng Yan was immediately fond of her and would reward her even if the blueprint is not found. She began to tirelessly search for the papers. However, the required blueprint was still not found yet by the time it was almost 11am and Cheng Yan told the specific description of the blueprint to the girl. The young girl investigate each papers in detail but to no avail.

A slight tinge of grayness was seen on the every pieces of paper as if it belongs to a time that was much further back then it currently were. The girl discovered a paper right across the street in front of a church where a long white haired lady was seen picking up the paper off the ground. The girl eager to get her rewards ran across the streets to retrieve the paper was in momentarily shock when a smile broke out of that lady's face with her light red eyes appearing…

Suddenly, a truck approaches the little girl on the road. The truck driver was as if affected by a tiredness spell had a slower response than usual and a thud was heard from the front bumper of the truck. The truck driver startled awake, barely managed to brake and stop the vehicle but he was too late. He got down his truck only to discover a person lying on the cold hard black road, the once long flaxen hair bloodied with the blood dyeing the floor red as if a cherry blossom occurs but was red instead.

Cheng Yan who at the time was further away from the scene of the accident, began walking toward the sound that was made when the collision occurs. Cheng Yan only just began to realize that the blueprints were oddly familiar as if he had built and designed the invention himself when truly he could not recall it. He began to remember the dream that he had every night since the day he read a book from the public library that provided vivid descriptions of a primeval world that contain mythical characters such as witches. He tried to look for the book only to found out that it was borrowed by a person and was never returned since then.

Reaching the scene, Cheng Yan knees turned limp and gave out immediately. Kneeling on the floor, tears came streaming down his face that was once warmed by the hands of a precious. The heart that was determine to be filled with void have always a presence of a mini black flame that was burning even in the oxygen-less atmosphere. His heart, filled with pain and sufferings as if a thousand spear were piercing through his heart all at once. She was there always. At the library. At the office. At the restaurant. But I was never able to recall about her.

Only at the moments where we are finally reunited would we be brought at a point of separation. Every flashback began to play in my head. I crawled to her just like the day when she crawled to me in our first meeting. I hug her bloodied and broken body. I notice her small waist bag that was hanging which contain the same book that I have read in the library but was never returned to the library. Stitched to the waist bag was a small name tag which says "Anna Wimbledon".

"Who am I?!?!" Cheng Yan grabbing his head questioned his existence and his identity suffered a crisis.

"I am Ro..Land, Yes I am Roland" Roland proclaimed.

"Anna, the day when I first met you was the day I felt the happiest. Just like how you pledge your life for me when I was at my weakest, let me accompany you to anywhere that death may lead us to." Roland feeling mentally exhausted, sank into an ever lasting peace, reunited with his love one where death is not the separation of life but only the beginning of their journey. The truck driver began to disintegrate into dust along with the buildings, roads and even the sky was not let go.

The body of Roland and Anna began to crystallized and form a sculpture that can last for eternity. Other than the sculpture, the young lady with white long hair was the only remaining object that did not disintegrate, began to clap hard and laugh psychotically at how the love between Roland and Anna was so useless which lead to the death of both of them while her love for god allows her to stay perfectly fine and alive than the couple will ever be. She walked over to the sculpture and began stomping on the statues. The drawings on that final piece of paper was a picture of her smiling with the heads of Anna and Roland on both of her hands dripping with blood.

-----The pure witches of the Church, Zero.-----