Chapter 10: Champions
A young man sat in a field overlooking the Battle of Jiangxia, and with lute in his arms he began to play:
"Weeeee are the Champions, my friend....
Weee'lllll keep on fightin', till the end.....!"
(In Chinese, of course.)
Lu Bu felt that the choice of music was superb for the occasion.
Having come from the east, the Coalition reinforcements found themselves in the middle of the advancing enemy horde, and thus they tore huge holes through the Centaur lines. Lu Bu rushed at the main army while Xiang Yu hurried for the city's defenses, and as Lu Bu gloriously tore countless limbs off their owners, Xiang Yu went to rescue Guo Huai, or whatever was left of Guo Huai.
Thankfully, Guo Jia won his bet, as Guo Huai had succeeded in holding his position, and the general was understandably overjoyed at seeing Xiang Yu.
"With you here, the city will not fall." Guo Huai bowed before the legendary warrior.
"With you here, the city did not fall. Don't sell yourself short." Xiang Yu smirked.
In the distance, "We Are the Champions" played as Lu Bu continued to rip through countless enemy soldiers.
"It looks like we're secured." Xiang Yu smiled.
What none of them realized was that, to their south, a new foe had arisen that would slowly advance upon their base from behind and crush them where they stood.
"General! We're so unworthy to be in your presence!" The scouts bowed before Han Xin shortly after he saved their skins.
"Don't thank me, just keep quiet. I can't let the Coalition know that I'm here, otherwise they'll start clamoring and cheering. If you noticed, I killed every last one of those animals because if any one of them got back to their base, they'd know I'm here. We need to catch them off guard if we want to save Jiangxia and the rest of the Coalition."
"Understood!" They saluted him.
"Young man, do you really think that we can defeat the Feral Legion's task force with these numbers?" Jiang Taigong smirked.
"You're not alarmed, so you know that it can be done. I think we see eye to eye, but correct me in mid-march if you think something's wrong. With you here, those beasts are already defeated." Han Xin smiled back.
"I wouldn't say that, but I thank you for your kind words." The older man laughed.
Disguised as a soldier in Lu Bu's unit, Miao Yu felt her stomach churn as Fengxian hacked another three people to pieces.
She knew that her beloved was probably no better when it came to not tearing people to shreds, but still: Xiang Yu went to save Guo Huai first, while Lu Bu went to slaughter the enemy first. To her, this meant volumes as to the kind of men they were.
And her commander was a fool, she thought. Honestly, did he expect to win just running into the middle of a horde of enemies and hacking away? The Feral Legion might have been intimidated by this move, but they were far from defeated. If anything, they'd come back knowing how to distract him with a mass of weaker units as they sent their elite troops to conquer his base.
But as long as she was here, she had to prevent that from happening. If she were to stumble, a critical Coalition unit would be lost. If she were lost... Then her beloved would likely be much less effective of a commander, and the Coalition would lose its finest warrior, at least its finest champion in her eyes.
"Without Xiang Yu or Lu Bu, it looks like it will be hard to make any significant campaigns... We need those two for their brute force, though admittedly Xiang Yu is much smarter than Lu Bu or even someone like commander Ling Tong. It's a pity that we can't have the King of Chu here instead of rescuing some territory." Jia Xu groaned as the Coalition's main strategists gathered around a war map. They had wisely stopped at Jiujiang in case Xiang Yu failed to hold back the enemy. They were close enough to help when the going got tough, and far enough to be able to outrun the enemy if their allies at Jiangxia were completely overwhelmed.
"What we really need to do is break the enemy's momentum. We've been losing because we underestimated our enemy. Ma Chao clearly needs to review basic military strategies, but even Master Sima was licked by the Feral Legion. We need to realize that these 'horses' are far more intelligent than we could have ever imagined, and thus we'll have to outsmart them in kind. Based on reports from the survivors of Zhongda's unit's scouts, there are people living in Feral Legion occupied territory. If we can break through them and reach these people, we can acquire more manpower and possibly resources as well." Zhou Yu spoke.
"I see your point, but where are you going with this?" Zhuge Liang asked.
Guo Jia's eyes turned bright. "That's it! Gongjin, are you thinking what I'm thinking?"
Zhou Yu smirked. "The town above the river?"
"Exactly!"
Zhang Liang laughed. "Come on, you two, don't leave us in the dark."
"We..." Guo Jia was so excited that he was about to stutter. "We believe that it is a good idea to strike Lu Jiang now. The Feral Legion has sent a huge amount of troops to take Jiangxia, and I'd like to bet that their defenses of Lu Jiang and perhaps even Shou Chun are much weaker because of that. If we strike Lu Jiang now, we may have a chance at moving northward and rescuing more of China."
"Didn't you make this advice sometime earlier? I guess we were too distracted then..." Jia Xu muttered.
"That's right. Sorry, Fengxiao." Zhang Liang and Zhou Yu gave apologetic bows.
Guo Jia just laughed. "Stop! Stop it, you two. Don't say sorry when there's nothing to be sorry about. How could have have placed that into consideration when our soldiers had no morale to speak of? No, now that our forces are ready to fight once more, we should move out as suggested. Only then can we hope to put a dent in the Feral Legion."
Zhang Liang nodded. "Indeed. Commander Zhou Gongjin, you will be the head of this new operation. Guo Jia, you shall serve as his chief advisor."
"I will lay down my life to see this through." Zhou Yu saluted.
"As will I." Guo Jia did the same. (1.)
Lu Jiang was a city full of disgusting humans, but it was an important port just the same.
The Feral Legion appointed general Hua Xiong as commanding officer of the region, with Ministers Li Ru and Huang Zu to advise him in daily affairs.
Being the former top strategist for Dong Zhuo, Li Ru scoffed at having such a minor position, but considering the fact that he was working for an Animal faction that slaughtered so many people, he kept his mouth shut and acted as though this rank was an honor. Only a fool would unwittingly anger his mighty master.
Huang Zu may have been an idiot tactician, but he had enough common sense to do the same.
Both minds worked together to make Lu Jiang semi-bearable for survivors to live and work in. As long as they provided labor for the centaurs and horse commanders stationed there, the Feral Legion promised not to kill them all. After all, useful humans shouldn't be killed because they did something productive, even if they were human.
When Zhou Yu's scouts relayed this information to the two strategists, both were very displeased.
"Dear, dear... I thought we'd be fighting only horrible creatures in this battle. To face other Chinese warriors, especially a talent like Hua Xiong, is truly sickening." Guo Jia sorrowfully shook his head.
"And he has Li Ru with him, as if Heaven wants to give us a challenge." Zhou Yu sighed.
"Am I going deaf? Did I just hear the Admiral speak of a challenge as a regretful event? Are you feeling well, Master Gongjin?" Guo Jia smirked.
"Hah." Zhou Yu smiled. "Hardly. I regret that we might end up killing other people in this battle, but the more people we save from the Feral Legion's grasp the stronger we'll be. If there are other communities trapped under their paws, they will surely hear of our victory here and will likely join us when we reach them. We must win here at all costs."
"Right, but don't assume victory just yet. We must be aware of anything that can go wrong so that we can adjust to it, after all." Guo Jia nodded.
Somehow, the killer whales seemed to love the smell of shrimp. Smashing thousands of the critters into paste, and gathering that paste into globs to be fired from catapults into the water allowed the whales to avoid their vessels for a while. Killer whales weren't stupid, and they knew not to bite the people who'd give them these treats, so the Coalition's navy would not be attacked upon moving out. With this tactic in play, Zhou Yu and his officers could focus on far more important matters. (2.)
With Lu Jiang so close to the great river, the Wu navy would have an easy time wiping out its defenders. Holding it, however, would be the hard part.
But that was where Guo Jia came in. The strategist found his forte in the art of using one or two focused strikes with his units to destroy entire formations. This was not an easy skill, as enemy positions are normally well entrenched and strong. The morale of any decently trained unit would not be easy to crack, but Fengxiao knew just how to break the fighting spirit of any living soldier. Only the rare barbaric meathead or bloodthirsty tiger would be able to survive his machinations.
Zhou Tai and Gan Ning stood side by side as they prepared for an amphibious landing. At best, the Wu navy could help shell enemy positions and ensure that the Feral Legion's attempts to overwhelm the city would be blunted considerably, but even then they had to have quite a few men on the ground in order to hold that position.
Guan Yu came as well, hoping to represent Shu in the battle. With Wei's finest mind as Chief Strategist, and some of Wu's finest officers in this battle, Shu had to send someone valorous enough to at least match the other two faction's contributions. Who better to send than the legendary warrior himself?
Li Ru scoffed at his scout's report.
"Those troublemakers think they can beat us down without a fight. If we are to survive we cannot fall prey to their foolish naivety. The Feral Legion is destined to take this world, and if we don't make use of their power, we'll only be consumed by it. If you want to live today, men of Lu Jiang, you must stand against those Coalition fools. Stand and fight for our future!" He cried.
But no matter how eloquently Li Ru spoke, his eyes betrayed his inner fears.
Hua Xiong looked worried, but shook his head. "I chose to stand by the Feral Legion, and I don't see how turning from that path would help me or my men at all. Both Ma Chao and Sima Yi, who have chosen to stand by the Coalition, were badly beaten by the Feral Legion. If champions such as they can be defeated so easily, what hope do we have if we change sides? No, let us fight and hold the enemy off long enough for reinforcements to arrive."
Huang Zu shook his head. "I don't think reinforcements are coming... I'd surrender. Zhou Tai and that Wu crowd might not be fond of me, but they'd accept my surrender. If you two sit down for a moment to think and eventually do the same as me, we'd all be able to survive."
The soldiers, hearing all these viewpoints, knew that their lives were doomed no matter what. The Feral Legion obviously cared little for their welfare, and based on Master Sima Yi's defeat the Coalition was a lost cause. It would probably be best for them to commit suicide right then and there. At least they wouldn't suffer for very long.
The Wu warships huddled into position as their finest warriors pounced from their transport ships onto the shore, where a few enemy scouts stood unwittingly. It seemed that these scouts had horrible eyesight, for they were trying to determine just how many soldiers each warship carried, but were quickly attacked by Coalition amphibious troops. With a few enemy eyes out of the way, the main army could easily proceed.
Hua Xiong stood agape as a flood of enemy ground troops headed straight for his position. With no chance of reinforcements, and so many enemy soldiers, he felt his manliness slowly melt away.
"Commander, if we do not strike them now, we will be overrun..." A lieutenant stammered as he ran to the warrior's side.
Hua Xiong just stood there, frozen at the sight of a hundred enemy vessels unloading tens of thousands of soldiers. "... Maybe we'll be overrun quicker if we do attack now..." He mumbled.
The warrior was fortunate not to see the look of horror on his subordinate's face.
"The enemy has not made a single move... This is worrisome..." Zhou Tai muttered as he leaned over their main warship's railing.
"What's more worrisome is the fact that we're sitting here on our arses when we could have already taken the city! Tell the Admiral that if he's not going to make a move, I will. I'm going to go over there and wipe the floor with these centaurs and talking horses and idiots who joined them!" Gan Ning snarled, ready to jump off the side of his ship and swim to Lu Jiang.
"Commander, it would seem that the enemy position really has chosen to sit tight and not move out. Your orders?" Guo Jia shook his head at the lack of action he witnessed, but turned to the admiral just the same.
Zhou Yu also sighed. "Attach a surrender offering to an arrow and shoot it over the enemy battlements. The wind blows our ships closer to Lu Jiang which will make this task easier. If they accept we can probably use the city to prepare for an enemy counter assault. If they do not, well, that's what our ballistae are for."
And so the arrow was sent, and Li Ru, Huang Zu, and Hua Xiong huddled around it, mumbling their next move.
"Think about it, if we surrender now, we can trick the entire Coalition army into using our city as a harbor and base. They'll be grounded here and we can alert the Feral Legion to strike, slaughtering them all and giving us a huge raise. We'll make something of ourselves!" Li Ru laughed.
"And betray our fellow Chinese? No... That would be evil... At the same time, though, we can't afford to surrender as the Feral Legion will eat us alive. Besides, Zhou Yu wouldn't be too happy to see you, Huang Zu, or you, Master Li." Hua Xiong mumbled.
"Bah, Zhou Yu is but a simple child with some tactical skills. We should strike now while he's weak enough to ask us for our surrender. He's probably too inquisitive to be prepared if we were to strike him right now. Let us attack!" Huang Zu clenched his fist.
Li Ru just narrowed his eyes. "No, we should fake our surrender."
"Attack!"
"Fake surrender!"
"Attack!"
"Fake surrender!"
"ATTACK!"
"NO, FAKE OUR SURRENDER!"
"Um, guys..." Hua Xiong began.
"ATTACK!" Huang Zu screamed, blurting the general out.
"NO, YOU INGRATE! WE MUST FAKE OUR SURRENDER!" Li Ru roared back.
"... They've definitely heard us by now..." Hua Xiong groaned.
Sure enough, their walls boomed and shook from the impact of heavy ballista fire.
Li Ru and Huang Zu were captured, and neither were able to fake a surrender or attack, as their men had all surrendered for real.
Hua Xiong decided to join the Coalition. Anything would be better than serving as a slave under the animals, and he had a chance to redeem himself.
Zhou Yu, knowing that Lu Jiang had fallen far too quickly for enough messengers to be sent, decided to set up his plan to beat off the Feral Legion's doubtless retaliative attack.
Both he and Guo Jia scanned the terrain, personally ordering crews of workers to set up certain oil and dried kindling traps here and there, also making certain that explosives were placed in several positions underground. With Guo Jia's careful eye, and Zhou Yu's talents with fire, they knew they'd have focused blasts that would wipe out at least thousands of feral troops.
So, after regrouping on the proud walls of Lu Jiang, the two Coalition strategists and their subordinates waited for the inevitable.
The horde arrived, smashing past the few barricades Guo Jia had placed. If they made the appearance of a struggle, that would make the legion want to recapture the city even more.
Certain rangers fired upon the enemy from the cover of trees, and the angry Feral Legion chased after them, trying to hunt them down. However, with their knowledge of the terrain the Coalition rangers were able to slip away, guiding the enemy to the positions where Zhou Yu and Guo Jia would work their magic.
Setting off a spark on the fuse, Zhou Yu waited for his fireworks.
A hundred thousand of the Feral Legion's shock animals hurled themselves through Lu Jiang's fields, searching eagerly for humans to slaughter. The humans had betrayed their animal masters, and thus they had to be punished. Because they assisted the enemy in an act of war, their punishment would be death, and no Feral Legion warrior wanted to deny them their right as human servants to be killed.
By the time they'd gathered themselves all over, the two strategist's trap was struck. The fields around Lu Jiang burst into flames, and in the inferno Zhou Yu and Guo Jia could see the agonized, screaming forms of the Feral Legion's troops, galloping back to the north where their main bases lay. The smell of charred meat filled the air, and Gan Ning started to wonder whether the enemy's flesh was edible. Too bad they didn't fry the Giant Chicken, but that could be a feat for next time.
As the ashes around Lu Jiang cooled, the Coalition eagerly claimed the city. With Hua Xiong having stored most of its granary and rations inside the city walls, the city could afford losing its harvests for a year or two. That would be enough time to reirrigate and restore Lu Jiang's old fields, and with the city in their hands Zhou Yu and Guo Jia were confident that brighter days awaited the people of China!
But for every triumph, there must be a trial.
In their darkest hour, a people must be strong.
The Feral Legion is powerful, but the Coalition is not weak.
Would ancient heroes like Han Xin and Zhang Liang truly make a difference in this battle?
Would warriors like Lu Bu and Xiang Yu succeed in crushing this horrible enemy?
And can China finally return to normal?
The answers, my friends, are for you to decide...
Time has been unkind to these untold histories, and the records have been lost from this point forth...
So I leave it to you to imagine their final struggles...
FIN
1. I had the Chinese term zun ming in mind. (遵命)
And yes, behold the awesomeness of Zhou Yu / Guo Jia team battle!
2. Killer Whales, also known as Orcas, are not known to attack people. However, this is a fanfic where the animals are at war with humans. The horses made an agreement with the orcas, but orcas are smart enough not to miss out on obvious benefits for keeping humans alive.
Yes, this update took forever. I'm sorry. Real life is evil in that regard.