Chapter 7 – The Battle At He Fei (Part 2)
Gan Ning lifted his head as he heard the loud shouts of the Wei army drawing closer. He quickly unsheathed his own blade, raising it in the air. Ling Cai watched him, the herbs beginning to sting inside her wound, she put her hand not holding her weapon over it and pressed lightly.
"We will not run from these pitiful soldiers! We shall make our stand and show them our true strength! We shall fight and together we will prevail!" Gan Ning roared to the crowd of Wu soldiers, all waiting for their orders.
"Are you with me!?" He roared to them, as they burst into yells that drowned out the Wei army.
"Then CHARGE!" Gan Ning said, as he ran out first. The Wu army followed, brandishing their swords and shouting, whilst Ling Cai held back. The wound was stinging ferociously and she was feeling exceptionally faint.
"Gan Ning…" She said weakly, before dropping down to her knees, abandoning her twin daggers. She felt some warm liquid pour out from her bandage and she looked down at her pale hand to see it covered with her own blood. Ling Cai moaned and wiped it on her clothes, but felt the wound beginning to open again. The herbs and medication hadn't worked.
She heard the clash of metal against metal as the two armies met for the second time, some yells being cut from the battle as they were slain. Ling Cai could hear Gan Ning's yells of encouragement to his troops as they continued fighting. An arm grabbed at Cai's shoulder and she turned round to see the Doctor from earlier looking pale.
"What are you doing!? You should be fighting!" He said, helping her to her feet, before noticing her wound had re-opened.
"What…?"
"Your herbs didn't work." She slurred, feeling the nauseous feeling increase every single second she stood around.
"They didn't work…Help…me…" She said, nearly falling back down to the muddy hard ground, before the Doctor held out his arm and held her up. They walked steadily back to the Navy Ships where wounded soldiers were being treated.
The Doctor laid her gently down on the wooden floor, before examining her wound, gently touching the area around it, to the dismay and moans of agony from Ling Cai.
"Do not move M'Lady, I need to go fetch some more herbs." He said consolingly, standing quickly to his feed and moving away. Ling Cai did as she was told, but felt a sudden feeling of guilt. What if Gan Ning had thought she had fled? What if he thought she was dead?
These thoughts made her sit up, but the Doctor came rushing back with his arms ladled with herbs of all different colours. He put them down and then gently pushed her back down.
"These will sting a little, so just be prepared." He said softly, grinding some green nettles and then adding some pink coloured leaves to the mix. He finally added some green liquid before dabbing it on her wounds. The pain increased so severely that she nearly let out a scream, but she held it in instead with silent tears which flowed down her cheeks and on to the wooden ship floor. The Doctor continued rubbing the strange remedial herbs on to her wound until he was positive the whole area had been covered. He then started layering a new bandage around Ling Cai and her wound.
"M'Lady you can't fight. You must rest…" He said with a tone of sadness lingering in his voice.
"What…No I have to…" She said weakly, attempting to sit up but being pushed down again by the Doctor.
"You need to sleep. Here, drink this; it'll make the pain subside slightly." He said consolingly, leaning a bottle in to her mouth. She moved her head to the side.
"No… I have to fight!" Ling Cai said stubbornly, feeling around for her daggers.
"Where is it!?" She said angrily, feeling the stinging pain in her wound come back again.
"It's over there. M'Lady please, drink this." The doctor replied, looking anxious as he tried to tip the bottle in to her mouth. She grudgingly obliged, but after a few sips she stopped and spat the contents out.
"It's disgusting…Revolting!" She said wiping her mouth.
"It's a mixture of herbs; they've been mashed to a liquid so it's easier to drink." The Doctor informed, placing the bottle down and looking a bit more relieved. "Now just close your eyes and let your dreams guide you." He said calmly, as she obeyed his instructions, but they flew open again.
"What have you done…?" She asked, trying to sit-up again, but she felt her strength begin to leave her, and the force of the Doctor's hand against her shoulder was enough to stop her from struggling.
"It's just to help the pain and to help you sleep…" He said soothingly, lifting the pressure of her shoulder as Ling Cai closed her eyes again and eventually drifted off to sleep.
"You know. I'm so glad that the war is finally over."
Ling Cai sat up and looked around. The scenery had completely changed. Instead of being on a wooden ship, she was now in what looked like a garden, with the grass perfectly luscious green and tall blossom trees billowing their pink petals down dream-like on to the ground. She stood up and then looked down and saw that her wound had completely vanished and she in fact, had no trace of ever been injured. She looked back up and saw Gan Ning leaning against one of the blossom trees; his scimitar was stabbed in to the ground crossed against her daggers. She continued staring until her turned around and faced her. He had a single healing cut across his cheek, but he was smiling all the same.
"Even though I won't get to do much fighting anymore, I'm glad we can be together…In peace."
His voice seemed echoing and dream-like. She took a step towards him and he just continued smiling. As she moved closer towards him, the sound of gushing water became more pronounced. She raised her eyebrows, as Gan Ning leant against the tree again.
"We can be together now. Nothing can come between us…Except…"
Gan Ning's smile faltered and he looked behind him, in to the steely cold depths of the water. The water seemed to stand out the most out of the dreamy scenario. It was harsh and grey. The sun didn't reflect on its liquid surface which made Ling Cai feel uneasy.
Gan Ning turned his head towards her again, and he had a strange glint in his eye that she couldn't quite understand. She took a step towards him again but this time it didn't seem to make much of a difference.
"Except maybe we aren't supposed to be together Ling Cai…"
Gan Ning took a single step towards the lake and suddenly Ling Cai felt sick. The stinging pain had come back with such an impact that it made her go dizzy. She felt herself running blindly towards Gan Ning, but as she got her visibility clear again, she saw that she was running but not actually moving.
"Goodbye Ling Cai."
He gave her that beautiful smile one last time before falling in to the cold depths of the water. No splash. No bubbles. Nothing. He was just…Gone.
Ling Cai let out a strangled sort of scream before being swallowed in pure darkness. She felt the warmth of the sunlight disappear, the blossom trees were no longer billowing their pink petals down to the ground, and the grass was no longer soft and short.
"NO!" Ling Cai screamed, opening her eyes and seeing a deep purple sky dotted with glimmering stars. Yet again the scenery had changed, but something felt familiar…The wooden ship. Taking in a deep breath of the cold dusk air, she saw the Doctor come running towards her again.
"M'Lady, Are you alright!" He asked his face full of concern as he surveyed her.
"Fine…Just a bad dream." She croaked, her throat was exceptionally dry and she felt a tear slide down her cheek. She briskly wiped it away.
"Ah. Yes, I was beginning to believe there may be side-effects with the herbs you drank earlier. I do apologize." He said bowing to her before making his way over to some more injured Wu soldiers.
Ling Cai sat up and felt a slight twinge of pain where her wound was but most of it had subsided. She steadily got to her feet and looked over the edge of the ship. The Wu army was no where in sight. They had obviously fought there way through the Wei army and were now somewhere near Cao Cao. She sighed deeply, feeling disappointment wash over her. She had to miss the battle of He Fei because of one injury.
She rested her head on her hand as she watched the land grow darker by every passing second. The Wu forces had done well to advance so far without leaving any Wei soldiers to their mercy, which could of potentially endangered everyone else on the Naval fleets including herself. She watched the water below her lap up against the ship, and couldn't help but think of the nightmare she had.
Authors Notes: Read&Review
