It has been forty-three moons since the death of Emperor Sun Quan and thirteen moons since Emperor Sun Hao rose to power. The Kingdom of Wu is failing and there is an unbalance between nature and people. The heavens no longer smile upon the land and the Yangtze no longer floods. The people of Wu are suffering and the famine has wiped out families. The Jin army are rapidly advancing, and men have been called to fight the war. The people can only hope for a miracle.

In the midst of this, a young woman sits by her father's deathbed, still and resigned as she watches him, counting every breath, hoping it will not be his last.

Hua Mulan once had the ethereal beauty of a blossom, but the harshness of life has stolen her youth away from her. Her blood-red lips are tilted in a frown and her once porcelain skin is now tanned from the sun.

As she sits, the petals from the blossom tree outside the window fall. It is spring in Ancient China. 

This is a story based on Mulan. I felt that the Disney version seemed to give the illusion that life in Ancient China was easy and masked the reality of war. Thus, I chose to mainly base it off the original 'Ballad of Mulan' and one of the Chinese movie adaptations 'Mulan: Rise of a Warrior'. If you do not know the original tale, I highly suggest you read/watch it, because it is a lot more emotional and touching than Disney's adaptation. 

Some of the story is actually fact (e.g. the Emperors I mention and the Kingdom of Wu are real) but others are not (eg. the time period between their reigns).

If there are any similarities between this story and other stories, that is merely a COINCIDENCE. My only inspirations for this are the ones mentioned above. 

GRAPHIC: 

Thank you so much Spotlight Posters and the designer sekaii for the amazing poster and background!

This is an entry for the Mystic Writing Contest.

Prompt: Time Boils The Rain