A/N:

Story was inspired by the Hunger Games along with a few other things.

Main Characters: Dong Zhou, Lu Bu, Guan Ping, Xiahou Dun, Jiang Wei, Liu Shan, Zhang Bao, Zhuge Liang, Lu Xun, Gan Ning, Ling Tong, Sun Shang Xiang, Da Qiao, Jia Chong, Zhong Hui, Zhuge Dan, Guo Huai, Deng Ai, Zhen Ji, Jia Xu, Guo Jia, and Zhang He

All characters are in their dynasty warriors 7 outfits except from females and any characters that only appeared in Dynasty Warriors 8 (Duh!)

Enjoy! And make sure to check out my other stories :D

Chapter 1: No Dreams For Anybody

It's been 5 years since Dong Zhou's tyranny had been mercilessly placed upon China.

He had taken control of the land and any who posed a threat or tried to disobey were removed.

As in killed...

Dead...

Cao Cao, Liu Bei and even Sun Jian along with a few others had been sent to the next world.

Under Dong Zhou's command was Lu Bu, without Lu Bu the tyrant wouldn't have reached half of what he was at right now. It wasn't that anybody was scared of Lu Bu but no one could hold their own against him, he had simply grown too strong to be matched by any warrior, and with Guan Yu gone he was now named the god of war. Lu Bu wasn't just obeying Dong Zhou because he wanted to; his sadistic ways had gotten the best of him allowing no room for mercy in his heart. His heart had turned to stone and killing was as simple as breathing for him. Anyone who bothered him or he disliked he would just eradicate their very being.

Those who had remained from the warriors had all been imprisoned and forced to work like slaves. Not only was it humiliating, but the warriors of the three kingdoms were also made to suffer. They were whipped if they refused to work. They were all held captive in something Dong Zhou called an elite camp, the camp was impossible to escape, there was walls everywhere, and no way to access weapons or try to fight back, the disputes between each faction didn't help either. If Wu, Wei, Jin and Shu agreed to work together they may have gotten somewhere, but each group kept to itself, each one would keep the furthest distance from the other as possible. Those who tried to escape were caught and hung in a public display to scare anyone else off who even dared to have such thoughts.

The people had seen a lot in those five years. And as if that wasn't enough, those who were outside the camp suffered also, they were taxed every month and each family had to provide Dong Zhou with something of their family earnings, whether it was money or something as simple as a bag of rice. It didn't matter to Dong Zhou, he had gathered more riches over the years but even that wasn't enough to please him. He had to make people suffer; he had to see blood and tears to fulfil his greed.

He used the money to make his army stronger till they became unmatched, while the rest of it was spent on his luxuries such as a fancy pointless castle filled with a harem of women and the best foods China had ever known to fill his disgusting stomach.

Those who were poor had died from starvation from the first years of his rule while others became peasants, there was constant food shortages, farming had become worst, any outside traders or travellers avoided treading into the grounds of China all together. The crisis had become irreversible.

There was no longer any hope for the people...

It was dinner time at the camp, and all the former warriors gathered around in the hall to cure their pain of hunger. They all lined up to receive their food bowls, the food itself looked unpleasant but no one bothered complaining anymore. It wasn't that they got used to it, but because they grew tired, no one would listen anyway so there really was no point. Gan Ning and Ling Tong stood at the start of the line.

"I wonder what dog food they're offering us today" Gan Ning snickered.

"Probably the same as the one you've been eating the past two days" Ling Tong replied to him, seeming unbothered about the food. His body was weak and the signs of bad nutrition were clear on his face. The rest of them standing in the line didn't look any better either; pale, yellow faces filled the queue.

Zhen Ji placed a strand of hair behind her ear as she patiently awaited her turn for food. Her beauty had wilted from all the hard work and lack of sleep. There no longer was a Cao Cao or Cao Pi to protect her; she was now alone in the world.

Ma Dai went on about how he found a rare jewel in the mine while Ma Chao yawned, uninterested knowing that any hard work they did only benefited the pig Dong Zhou, and wondering how Ma Dai could remain so jolly in such a time, for him he couldn't even remember the last time he had anything exciting to talk about or even to smile about.

Liu Shan sat down, accompanied by Xing Cai and Jiang Wei who were attempting to convince him to eat yet another day.

"I'm not hungry" Liu Shan pouted like he a five year old.

"My lord, please, you must eat! You will become weak!" Jiang Wei begged.

"Not hungry" Liu Shan repeated.

"Lord Liu Shan! I don't think you see what's going on around you! Your body is already weak and your face is so pale! If you don't eat you will die soon" Xing Cai spoke, sounding ever so serious.

Liu Shan huffed seemingly undeterred by what those around him requested. "I am no longer your lord, what lord can't save his people? Besides, it doesn't seem like there is hope for us to get out of this at all, I don't see the significance in you trying so hard to keep me alive, you should just tend to your own needs" Liu Shan spoke in his usual calm tone, resting his head on the table.

Both Xing Cai and Jiang Wei looked each other in shock, surprised by what they heard; they didn't even know what to say to him. Jiang Wei opened his mouth to speak but just before he could Liu Shan pushed his food bowl towards him.

"Here, you eat it if you want it" He offered.

Guan Ping sat on his seat observing the people around him, he watched the sadness on their expressions, the hopelessness, their actions, and their dreams had been crushed. The air felt so lonely, the walls were white and no sunshine entered the building. He played around with his chopsticks moving the beans in his bowl to one side to reach to the horribly cooked rice. Xiahou Dun sat alone, away from the rest of his army, his expression remained neutral but the exhaustion was clear on his face, he wasn't the type that complained. He would just go with what life would throw at him. Guan Ping watched him closely, his mysteriousness created a barrier around him. People often didn't try to come close, the most dearest to him had been killed and he was the only one remaining. Like many others in the camp but maybe it just wasn't as clear. Not because he wasn't moved by it, but he was just so good at hiding his emotions. This only pushed people away, they just made assumptions that he didn't care and stayed away. Wei was mainly gathered for Cao Cao's ambition to begin with. Ever since his death they had all fallen apart.

Drifted...

Somewhere far.

Guan Ping lifted his chopsticks to place the tasteless food into his mouth before he was joined by his siblings along with Zhang Bao.

"Hey Guan Ping!" Yinping smiled sweetly. It was nice having her around; her smile just seemed to cheer everyone up. Despite everything she went through and at such a young age she had still managed to cope with it all and stand up on her feet like a strong woman. Her father would be very proud if he was still alive.

Guan Suo seated himself next to Guan Ping, while Guan Xing and Zhang Bao sat opposite them. None of them had the effort to even try and fake a smile. They just didn't bother. Guan Suo concentrated on his food taking it down bit by bit in an attempt to force it down and cease his hunger.

Guan Ping watched him as he sighed heavily. He reached his hand out to his brother's head, ruffling his hair gently. Suo gave him a warm smile, even though it was a simple gesture it somewhat made Guan Ping feel a bit better. Guan Suo's hair felt soft and silky, it was almost comforting for anyone to touch.

Whilst the misery continued in the camp, Lu Bu was elsewhere enjoying the privilege of being alone in Diao Chan's embrace. The feel of her hands against his skin made all his worries fade away. He laid his head in her lap as she ran her fingers through his long dark locks. He closed his eyes relaxing to the gentle touch of her fingers. He was fearless and powerful on the battlefield but once he was with her, he would surrender, allowing himself to be weak and vulnerable in her arms. People like him, surprisingly enough, found it easy to relax no matter how much harm they had caused to anyone.

Dong Zhou on the other hand had gone to see how his new project down south was going. After capturing the Nanzhong region, he had sent troops and engineers to work on the area turning it somewhat into a battle arena. A vile idea had come to his corrupt mind to use it for a survival show that would keep his boredom somewhat at rest. This land was the best place for his idea, it was infamous for its hidden traps and undiscovered dangers. No one knew what could be lying in that land, and after the Nanman tribe had been demolished it was time to put the land to good use.

Dong Zhou showed off a row of yellow glistening teeth, as he rode above his weak horse. The poor animal struggled to carry the heavy man. He was so unsightly huge, his face was unpleasant and his smile was so disgusting; no words could describe it. Everything about him was repulsive.

The men continued to work as he jollily rode back to Cheng Du followed by a group of troops, two of them waved fans in an attempt to help their lord cool off. The fat flab's on his skin caused him to easily overheat making him uncomfortable, sometimes he would even feel like he was going to drown in his own sweat from the heat. You wouldn't want to imagine the stench the troops had to put up with.

Back at the camp it was nearly night time and everyone retreated to their tents, impatiently hurrying for the long awaited moment to rest after a long hard day. Guo Huai hurried to his tent, coughing his lungs out in the process. He had already thought that his day should have come a long time ago but somehow between all of this; maybe the heavens wanted him to endure for longer.

Guo Jia along with Jia Xu crept into the former's tent, the two had been plotting a rebellion for a long time but the only problem was how to get their plan to work. They would spend every night discussing forever till they fell asleep and next morning they wouldn't speak about any of it. It gave both the men false hope that maybe there was a way to escape all of this; they both knew it was impossible but the only thing keeping them sane right now was to pretend and refuse to accept reality.

The blonde man had come down with a chest infection and working in the mines only made it worst, he had tried to keep it hidden but the symptoms were evident to his fellow strategist. He often got feverish, his hands would tremble nonstop. Sometimes it got so suffocating in the mines that he struggled to breathe all together. Jia Xu had been watching him closely, trying his best to support him in any way he could. But there was only so much he could do. The two had bonded well overtime, and even though Jia Xu had wished that he had stayed with Dong Zhou and never joined Wei, maybe then he wouldn't be here in this dead camp, he was still glad he met Guo Jia. He felt as if he was the only person he had among all this chaos.

Eventually everyone had retreated to their tents, leaving off to dreamland, the only place where they could feel a sense of hope or happiness. Undoubtedly this was everyone's favourite part, they would wish for the hours to last longer dreading the moment they had to revert back to reality. No one knew what the future would hold, and certainly not what Dong Zhou had in store for them all.

Something heinous and unholy...

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