Solflare: The Painter's Secret

Pink metallic light settled on the collapsed walls of the Qing safe house. Zoe stepped fully out of the Ferrari.

Chills raced down her spine. She shifted her gaze forward. The black cloth hung around Leon’s neck, flapping in the dark smoke.

Rays of her pink Soul-bloom splashed on the smooth surface of the Hi-no-Kami. The blades reflected the sparkling grace she walked with.

"What have you done, Leon?" Her legs buckled, forcing her to slow her steps. A wide circle of scorched ground ringed Leon’s boots.

Smoke seeped out of the torn section of the walls where the bolts of the iron gate should be. The walls began mending themselves as Zoe’s shadow fell on them.

A thick metallic tang of ozone filled Zoe’s lungs. She opened her mouth. "Leon."

Leon’s dual heart pounded hard against his ribs as the voice resounded in his ears. He kept his eyes locked on the dark sky where the Zenith Sect ship had been.

Chills ran down his skin when he felt Zoe’s presence closing in. He clenched his fist, replacing the cold with heat.

The tip of the black cloth swayed through the air and brushed Zoe’s cheeks as Leon walked past her. He shifted his gaze slowly toward her. Her sweet floral scent filled his lungs, but he did not stop.

Zoe’s heart plummeted in her chest. She saw Leon in the destroyer form his father had used years ago. "This is not Leon. That cannot be him."

Andrew Storm’s face flashed in Zoe’s eyes. She turned and focused on Leon as he walked out of the revived land.

Leaves and grasses that had sprawled upward in their rebirth died again with a hiss the moment Leon’s shadow fell on them.

Zoe gulped, remembering the day she first met Leon’s father and the words he told her.

"Zoe Qing, you are someone I would like to keep as my son’s personal person."

A faint smile tore on her face, remembering the childhood photos of Leon his father handed to her that day.

"Here are his photos. I know you have seen him in your school recently. Maybe this will help you know him well."

The news of the Granum Tower crash and the first time she saw the Solflare blare out of Leon’s eyes collided in Zoe’s mind. She moved a step forward.

Her pink Soul-bloom flared out. She crouched down, wrapping her arms around her shoulders. "I failed to keep my promise."

Andrew’s smiling eyes flashed in Zoe’s mind. A chilled arm pressed on her shoulder. Zoe straightened herself and turned, but no one was there.

Memories of her and Leon at the Alchemania seeded in her heart. She followed him down the street, leaving her silver Ferrari 250 GTO untouched.

Dancing shadows stretched across the street. Giant branches of the trees moved in perfect sync.

Crickets hopped from one branch to the other with their clicking sound. They watched the human shadow walk down the asphalt road.

Colorful butterflies flapped their wings and bounced warm air on thick leaves when the glowing pink light appeared, following the human shadow.

Trees closer to the street lost their life and died at a spot where Leon’s shadow stretched.

Blue glows seeped out of Leon’s chest and moved toward the dead leaves scattered on the ground. The glow touched the leaves, and they moved upward like souls, following Leon in a whirl behind him.

Zoe rushed forward and passed by the dead trees. Wood creaking sounds echoed. Each dried and dead tree sprawled upward like a newborn and revived with new glowing leaves and fruits that carried life essence itself.

Boots clicked as she ran and stopped a few distances in front of Leon. Sweat trailed thin lines on her forehead. She lifted her head and pointed her right palm at Leon to force him to a stop. "Leon, wait."

The black blazing glow in Leon’s eyes flared when he saw Zoe’s silver-grey eyes and remembered Hu Qing’s final statement.

"I would want to see how you will stand against Zoe, if you kill me like you want."

Hu Qing’s smiling face appeared before Leon’s eyes. He blinked and shifted his gaze from Zoe, letting every image of Hu Qing’s dying smile flash out of his mind.

His dual heart calmed the moment Zoe’s Soul-bloom moved closer as she stepped forward.

"I know you are upset at me. I would have been in the same position." Her skin trembled as she felt the burning heat on Leon, moving just enough to feel his warmth. "But anger is not what will bring or heal your mother and sister."

She moved a step back as Leon clenched his fist and squinted at her. Little Athena’s ghostly smile waved through Zoe’s mind and forced her to move forward.

"I am fixed with you now. He will not hurt you."

Her jaw tightened as she moved forward, neglecting the pain rattling through her bones. "This is not the son Li Mei raised, Leon."

She exhaled sharply and moved forward, wrapping her arms around Leon. Warm blood seeped out of her skin as the sharp edges of the Hi-no-Kami and the drift shield drew faint cut lines on her arms where she crossed them behind him.

"We need you, Leon. Lily and Li Mei need you more than those chasing my family and wanting to end them."

Tears trailed thin lines on her face as she felt the double heartbeat in Leon’s chest. The image Lily drew of Leon with two hearts rammed into her mind and saddened her. "Please."

Leon gulped, feeling Zoe’s heart pounding against his. He slowly closed his eyes. The black glow in his eyes calmed as Zoe increased her grip.

He tried to lift his hands to embrace her, but he froze. Min-ji in the black hood flashed into Leon’s eyes, and the black glow surged back with intense power. "Where is Min-ji?"

Zoe’s chest plate of her Lotus Maw Overlord war suit plopped as she pulled herself away from Leon. The section of the war suit neutralized to its original state as she inhaled. "She left the mansion years before that, even before the poisoning incident happened."

Strands of her silver-gray hair swiped through the air as she shifted her gaze to the dancing shadows of the tree branch beside her. "Min-seo was sitting at the side of the fountain, crying when Feng and I arrived."

Zoe turned and folded her hands to her chest. "She is the right person to know what actually happened."

Heavy wind moved through the sky. Zoe closed her eyes. Was it best to even tell him?

Every warmth in her died the moment she turned and saw only black smoke waves where Leon stood. "What have I done?"