"Fire!"

In unison, the row of recruits struck their pieces of flint. The sparks fell onto fuses, lighting them. Half a minute of silence passed.

Zhu clenched her eyes shut and covered her ears. Her efforts were of little use, though. The quiet was torn asunder as the dragon-headed projectiles shot out of their bamboo cannons, flying through the sky.

As her cannon took off, she was just barely able to keep herself from crying out. She wasn't able to keep herself from jumping back with a mixture of fear and surprise, however. Sulfuric smoke filled her lungs and she started coughing; she did her best to wave the smoke away.

"Once again, none of you came close to the target," Shang called out from his spot on a hill above. "This is our third night of cannon practice! I had hoped at least some of you would have gotten within the circle."

Rubbing her face, Zhu grumbled under her breath as Shang gave out the order for them to try yet again. She got to her feet and joined the crowd of men as they went to retrieve their fifth cannon of the night. As she started reaching for one of the last cannons, she was shoved out of the way by one of the larger, more muscular men.

"Step aside, scaredy-pants," he sneered, snatching the cannon she had intended to grab. "Let us real men handle the explosives." He started to walk away, the cannon resting on his shoulder.

She narrowed her eyes, growling quietly. "Talk to me like that again and I'll break your jaw," she hissed, but he was already out of range. Cursing under her breath, she turned back to the wagon only to find that it was empty.

Part of her was thankful for this -she had come to learn that she hated cannons. They were loud, blinding, and their smoke thick and choking. She had let out a terrified yell their first night of practice, earning her the ridicule of almost everyone in the camp. Even Shang had pointed her out, using her as an example of how not to react when firing the cannons

But another part of her was upset. She wanted to prove she wasn't scared of the cannons and how could she do that if there wasn't one for her to fire? Her only consolation was that a handful of the others also didn't have the chance to grab a cannon, leaving them to sit on the wagon and watch as the rest made their final attempt for the night.

Even after covering her ears, she flinched as the cannons were lit and took to the skies. As she uncovered her ears, she could hear some sniggering behind her. She threw a glare over her shoulder; the men instantly fell quiet.

At least she had enough reputation left to leave them intimidated.

A different sound caught her attention: Clapping. Looking up at the cliff where Shang watched over them, she saw him grinning as he clapped.

"Congratulations, Tingfei," he called out. Zhu saw the man who had mocked her look up, surprise on his face. "You're the first to land in the target zone."

A small cheer rose up from the men around him and he was promptly given playful punches and shoves as he was congratulated.

"Don't let it get to your head," Shang warned. "You still didn't hit the target -you only came near to it. Now everyone, gather up the remains of the cannons. Once the area is cleared, you're free to get your midnight lunch."

Walking forward, Zhu started tucking shattered bamboo tubes under her arm. Her brows furrowed somewhat; the whole area reeked of sulfur. After five tubes, she had to stop, pulling her shirt over her mouth and nose as she started coughing.

"The trick is to breathe through your nose." She looked down only to look up at Chien-Po. "For some reason, it's not nearly as bad if you're only using your nose. Admittedly, it smells worse, but that is to be expected."

"It's horrible no matter what," she told him. Regardless, she attempted to do as he said and found that he was right. "Isn't there a way to make the smoke more pleasant? Like adding in some sort of incense?"

He tilted his head, a thoughtful look coming to his face. "I am not sure. I don't think so, though." He offered to take the tubes she had already collected and she gladly handed them over. "In order to make gunpowder, you need to have exact measurements of sulfur, charcoal, and saltpeter. I know you can add certain minerals to make it change colors -that's how you get fireworks- but I'm not sure if it would be possible to make the smoke more pleasant."

She frowned. "That's a shame." Sighing, she slid her foot under one of the discarded tubes and, with a small kick upwards, caught it and tucked it under her arm.

"Perhaps it's for the best, though," he chuckled. "Even incense can become an annoyance in large quantities."

"That is true." She started reaching for another tube when at least six more were dropped at her feet. Her eyes narrowing, she looked up to find Tingfei smirking down at her. "Just what do you think you're doing?" Now that she was getting a better look at him, she realized something: He was the man she had started the brawl with.

No wonder he was being an ass.

"Giving you a bit of help," he told her, mock kindness in his voice. "You see, by being around more of these things, it'll help you be less of a baby when it comes time to shoot them."

Her lips pulled back in a snarl as he turned away, laughing. She was about to drop her spent tubes and beat him within an inch of his life, but Chien-Po stepped forward, blocking Tingfei's path. He looked down at the man with a pleasant smile, though it was not returned by the smaller man.

"It is up to all of us to share in these duties," Chien-Po said, his voice as gentle as ever. "Zhu is doing his part to help clean up the area, just as you should. After all, it would be a shame if the Captain were to discover that his star recruit of the day was slacking off in his duties, would it not?"

Zhu blinked. She didn't know if it was his sheer size or the gentle way in which he threatened Tingfei that did it, but the man had turned a bit pale and nodded. Wordlessly, he turned back around, gathering up the tubes he had dropped before running off towards the wagon.

"Thanks," she said, looking up at Chien-Po.

He gave her a knowing smile. "You don't always need violence to settle disputes."

She felt her cheeks darken and she glanced away. "I know," she murmured. Finally picking up the last few tubes, she tucked them under her arm and, with Chien-Po beside her, headed for the cart.

Yao and Ling were waiting for them; Yao's hands were black with soot while the sides of Ling's face were black from resting his face in his blackened hands. Zhu mentally cursed; she had hoped they would have gone ahead to get their midnight meal. She wanted to go check on Umut, knowing that, like her, the mare wasn't a fan of the explosives.

"Ready t' get some food?" Yao grinned, taking Zhu's bunch of tubes and easily tossing them into the wagon. "I'm starvin'."

"You're always hungry," Ling chuckled.

As she looked at him, Zhu paused; the soot on his face made her think of the way Mundzuc's hair hid most of his features. She froze, her eyes widening slightly as Ling was suddenly replaced by an image of Mundzuc. The Hun scowled at her, teeth bared.

"Stay out of our way. Shan Yu may trust you to not fail," he spat, "but I don't."

His arm rose and she clenched her eyes shut, her entire body stiffening in anticipation for the blow.

"Zhu? Hey, you okay?"

She cracked open an eye. Yao, Ling, and Chien-Po were in front of her, looking at her with concern.

Mundzuc was nowhere in sight.

No one was going to hit her.

"F-fine," she told them, releasing a breath she hadn't realized she had been holding. "I should really go check on Umut," she quickly told them while wearing an unconvincing smile. "Go ahead and get food; I'll meet up with you later!"

Before any of them could object, she hurried off. She took the long way to the stables, wanting to avoid the other recruits in case Ping saw her.

She wanted to be alone. She needed to be alone.

'Why does this keep happening?' she thought, rubbing her face. 'First that nightmare, then Hayabusa's image in the water, and now Mundzuc? Is this what homesickness is? If it is, I don't like it in the least…'

Reaching the stables, she let out a sigh and headed for Umut's stall. The mare whinnied and nervously dragged her hoof across the ground as she approached.

"Shh, shh. I'm here, little sister," she cooed, stroking her snout. "Shh. It's alright. No more explosions will happen tonight."

Umut didn't calm down; instead, she pulled away from Zhu and reared back, a frightened sound leaving her mouth. Coming to all fours again, she snorted at her rider, tossing her head and trying to back away from her.

"Is it the smell?" Zhu asked her, frowning. She knew she smelled heavily of sulfur, but she didn't expect it to aggravate Umut this much. Pushing up her sleeves, she went over to one of the water buckets. She quickly washed off her arms, praying the whole time that it would help. When she was done, she tossed the dirtied water out onto the ground; she didn't want it to be accidentally given to the horses.

"Is this better?" She held out her still-wet hands to the mare, who sniffed them. She snorted, but didn't pull away. Instead, she pressed her nose into Zhu's palm. "I'm sorry. Next time, I'll make sure I wash up a bit before coming to visit. Does that sound fair?" She stepped closer, intending to hug the mare.

Umut stepped away once again, flicking her head.

"Do my clothes smell too bad, too?" she asked, frowning. She had washed them the previous night, but being around the cannons left them also smelling like sulfur. "Alright. No hugs. Just pets. Is that alright?" Hopping up, she sat on the wall of the stall. She then held out her hands again.

Umut returned, once more pressing her nose into Zhu's hands. Her breath was warm and moist against her palms, warming them up after their dunk in cool water.

She leaned back against the support beam and brought a leg up to her chest. The other, she let dangle freely. Closing her eyes, she let out a sigh, enjoying the peaceful quiet of the stables.

The combined noises of Umut and the two stallions -one of which she had come to learn was Ping's and was named Khan- helped to calm her racing mind. They almost made her feel as if she were back with Shan Yu and the army.

'I'm not, though,' she told herself. 'The army is out there to the north, blazing a trail across China.' She opened her eyes and looked up at the sky. The moon was out, though it was just a sliver among a sea of stars. 'I'm here, surrounded by my enemies. Surrounded by people who want me and my people dead…just like Shan Yu wants them and their people dead.'

As soon as the thought passed through her mind, she could see Shan Yu's face and hear his voice yelling in her min.

'Are you going soft on me, Shan Zhu?! They are our enemies! If I were to spare them, what kind of message would that send to those who wish me dead?! Who wish you dead!?"

She clenched her eyes shut and tensed at the memory; she had dared to question him about why he had everyone killed during their attacks.

Even those unable to fight.

'They all must die. Every. Last. One. Understand this, Shan Zhu: Kindness will get you nowhere. It is only by sheer ruthlessness that you will earn people's respect.'

"He's wrong," she unconsciously said aloud, her voice echoing through the stables.

Light suddenly tore through the darkness and her eyes snapped open in shock. A curse left her mouth as she was momentarily blinded and thrown off balance. She toppled over the side of the wall, but someone caught her before she could hit the ground.

"Sorry!" Looking up, she was able to see Ling's face through the specks in her returning vision. He was wearing an apologetic smile as he helped her stand upright. "I thought you heard me say your name."

She was glad to see that he had washed the soot from his face.

"N-No…I guess I was too lost in my thoughts." Her cheeks burned with embarrassment as she straightened her clothes out. "What are you doing here?"

"To check on you? It's been almost an hour." He hung the lantern he brought up on a peg, letting it fill the area with light.

Her brows furrowed. "What? You're joking."

"For once? No." He tilted his head slightly, eyes narrowing. "Are you okay, Zhu? You haven't really been yourself the last few days. It's kind of worrying us."

She looked at him, taken aback. "You're…worried about me?"

He rubbed the back of his neck, brow rising in confusion. "…Yes?"

"Why?"

"Uh, duh? We're your friends!" He smiled reassuringly. "It's what friends do."

A sigh left her mouth and she glanced away. "…Guess there's a lot more to friendship than I thought."

Ling let out a laugh, thinking she was joking. When she still refused to look at him, though, he frowned. "You really don't know what friendship is like?" he asked, voice quiet and full of concern.

"Ping told me that part of it is giving gifts and letting your friends borrow things, but…" She shrugged. "You three and Ping are the first friends I've had." She surprised herself with the sincerity of her words.

And yet, she didn't entirely hate herself for it.

Pity came to Ling's face. "You've really never had friends before?"

A sarcastic laugh left her mouth. "Ling, I grew up surrounded by thieves and mercenaries. I grew up to be a mercenary. Having friends was not one of my priorities." Her chest started to grow tight and her stomach began to grow nauseous. Turning away from him, she rested her head against the wall, eyes closing. "Staying alive was—is—was? I don't know anymore—my main concern." She hated how lost her voice sounded, but there was nothing she could do to stop it.

There was silence. The wall moved slightly as Ling leaned back against it, but Zhu did nothing.

"I can't say I know what you went through," Ling said after some minutes, voice quiet, "but I can tell you that I know what it's like trying to stay alive." A sigh left his mouth and he tilted his head back. "When the four of us were kicked out of the temple, it was hard. We were only thirteen. Sure, we had various skills thanks to our time in the temple, but we didn't know how to survive. We spent a good three months sleeping outside regardless of weather and…well, stealing food in order to eat.

"Then Chien-Po started to get sick. And I don't mean a simple cold or an upset stomach. I mean couldn't-keep-food-down-with-a-side-of-bad-fever kind of sick. We tried taking him to a doctor -doctors are supposed to help people, after all. But the doctor wouldn't help him because we had no money."

Zhu cracked open an eye, glancing over at him. "What did you do?"

"The only thing we could do. Yao and I begged for work while Qi did his best to keep Chien-Po alive in the meantime. Eventually, we got work at some nobleman's stable. Every yen we earned, we saved up for that damned doctor. We didn't even buy ourselves food. We couldn't risk it. We worked ourselves to exhaustion. But it was worth it."

"…You did all of that just to make sure he got better? Why?"

"Because Chien-Po is our friend." He looked over at her, seeing her face filled with confusion and pain. "Actually, no. He's more than that. He's our brother. We may not share blood, but that doesn't matter. We're just as close as family."

She slowly nodded, letting her gaze fall back to the floor. "And you would never turn your back on your family?"

"Never." He grew concerned when she let out a quiet sigh. "So…you never answered my question."

"What question?"

"Are you okay?"

She paused for a moment. "I…honestly don't know." Turning around, she slid down to the ground and tilted her head back against the wall. "Ever since I came to Moo-Shung, everything I've ever known seems to be…to be wrong. And it feels like my life is falling apart." She wished she were next to Umut, but she still reeked of sulfur. "I'm feeling things I've never felt before. I've been having nightmares about my father…I don't—I don't really know how to explain it."

As she spoke to him, her chest started to ease up and her stomach calmed somewhat. Was talking to him actually helping her feel better?

"Well…you're adjusting to life as a soldier," he told her, rubbing the back of his neck. "It's going to be difficult at first, right? Because you're literally relearning how to live. You can't expect yourself to get used to it overnight."

He then let out a somewhat defeated sigh. "Sorry if none of this is helping. Chien-Po's the one who's good at talking to people about this sort of thing." He was more than a little surprised when Zhu looked up at him, a smile on her lips.

"Don't worry," she told him. "You're helping. I guess—I guess I just needed a friend to talk to."

Her words made him perk and he grinned, opening his mouth to speak. Before he could, though, the deep booming of a drum filled their ears.

Mealtime was over.

"Damn," he frowned. "Looks like I wasn't able to get you back in time for food." He offered her a hand up.

Shrugging, she took his hand and stood. "It's fine." A small smile came to her lips. "To be honest, I'm still not quite used to three meals a day. I'm used to only one or two."

"Same," he chuckled, grabbing the lantern. "We could only afford one or two meals a day until now." Waiting for her to say her goodbyes to Umut, he led her out of the stables.

They were halfway back to the group of recruits when he spoke again. "Er…Can I ask you one more thing, Zhu?"

Her brow rose as she glanced over at him. "Yes?"

"Earlier, when you ran off…you had gotten all tense when I spoke and acted like I was going to hit you. Why—why was that?"

Her brows knitted together as she looked away, shame once again darkening her cheeks. "The soot on your face made you resemble one of my uncles -at least, the men I was raised around. I'm fairly certain I have no relation to them whatsoever."

"And that's bad because…?"

Her face was grim as she looked at him. "Because he loves causing me pain."

Ling cringed at the thought. "…I can see why that would make you freak out," he murmured. "I'll try to not rub soot on my face again."

She shook her head. "I was taken by surprise, is all."

They reached the lineup of recruits a few minutes late. Shang was already passing out bows and quivers of hunting blunts while Chi-Fu was lighting a set of four small braziers. As Ling and Zhu quickly fell into line between Yao and Chien-Po, Chi-Fu glared at them.

"Nice of you to join us," he told them, not even trying to hide his irritation. "And just why are the two of you late?"

Zhu glanced over at Ling; he looked mildly panicked. "We were calming my horse," she replied. "Sir," she quickly added.

"Oh?" It was obvious he didn't believe her.

"Yes. She's not used to cannon fire, so she was left frightened and anxious."

"Hm." He turned away from them, letting the torch become fuel for the last brazier. "Like rider, like steed I see," he said.

Some of the men were unable to keep themselves from snickering.

Zhu's eyes narrowed as she glared at Chi-Fu's back. Before she could stop herself, she replied with, "Well, now I know who that wretched-looking gelding belongs to."

Ling, Yao, and Chien-Po were doing their best to stifle their laughter. Others were 'oohing' at her audacity.

Chi-Fu, however, was not impressed. He stormed over, his eyes narrowed in anger. "What did you just say?" he questioned, voice low and filled with the authority of his rank. He would have intimidated anyone else, but Zhu was far from impressed by his display. Even short, bald Bleda was more threatening. "Because it certainly sounded like you were trying to mock me."

She knew she should have kept her mouth shut. She knew she would get reprimanded, but she spoke anyway. "I didn't have to try very hard, sir."

The dull thud of wood hitting bone echoed through the area as Chi-Fu used his writing board to smack her across the face. "How dare you speak to an imperial official with such insolence!" he snapped.

If it had been any other person, she was sure she would have been knocked unconscious. The blow did hurt; she knew she'd wake up with a bruised cheek. Since Chi-Fu was a weak man, however, she had barely moved. As such, she said nothing as she simply turned her head and met Chi-Fu's gaze once more.

Her lack of a reaction seemed to have startled hi; he frowned, taking a step back. He found her eyes filled with an eerie, cold intensity that sent a shiver down his spine. Positive this was her way of continuing to mock him, he went to hit her again. Before he could, however, someone caught his wrist.

"We are not Huns, Chi-Fu," Shang said, his voice cool. "I will not allow violence against my men as a form of punishment."

"Did you hear what he said to me, captain?!" he cried, voice raising an octave. "I have every right-"

"In the Imperial City, yes, but in my camp, I dole out the punishments."

Chi-Fu made a noise of displeasure before storming away. Zhu could see him readying his writing brush. She had the feeling he was about to write a rather lengthy complaint to the Emperor.

"Zhu." She looked up, meeting Shang's eyes. The intensity in her own eyes was gone, replaced by shame and apprehension. "I will not tolerate my men disrespecting their superiors."

"I'm sorry, sir," she said, voice quiet and sincere.

"Not only will you be the first one to run tonight, but you're also on arrow-making duty for a week." He glanced over at Yao, Ling, Chien-Po, and Ping. "And you four are not allowed to help him."

Her brows somewhat furrowed. "…Sir? Just arrow-making duty?"

Shang's brow rose ever so slightly and a hint of a smile came to his lips. "It would be far worse if Chi-Fu hadn't instigated things." Turning, he started to walk off. "Alright, men! Into your formations!"

Zhu stared at him for a moment. 'That's…it?' she thought, confused. 'I'm not going to be denied meals or forced onto guard duty or something of the sort?' She moved to the front of the line forming on the far end of the field. 'I'd have a broken nose or a black eye if I were back with the elite…'

As the archers readied their hunting blunts by lighting them on fire, she got ready to run.

'Being Chinese really isn't as bad as Shan Yu told me…nevertheless, I am definitely slitting Chi-Fu's throat the first chance I get.'