Flight of the Phoenix
Chapter 10
Final Flight
"Wa!" Yue Ying raced toward the pier hoping to catch the girl before she left. All the boys were buzzing about their time with her and Ma Chao was obsessing on his kiss. Ying was dying to know if her plan had worked and she wasn't about to wait for months to find out.
"Something wrong?" Wa had Tong's cloak on mainly to keep away the nasty chill she got from the river but also to keep the precious item away from her brother.
"No." Ying grabbed Wa's hand. "Honey, I just heard. Chao can't shut up about it. Is it true? Did you kiss him?"
Wa looked away. "Yeah I did. It was my reaction just to kiss him back."
Ying touched her arm. Suddenly the news wasn't so exciting. Wa should have been happy…but she just seemed guilty. "What's wrong?"
"I didn't feel anything, Ying. It was a kiss, and I didn't feel that tingle…"
"Maybe it's too soon…"
"No. I think that part of me died with Tong….I don't think I can ever feel like that again." Wa looked at Ying's face. "You understand don't you? If you lost Kongming, could you move on? Ever?"
Ying suddenly went pale. She left her heart skip a beat and had to remind herself to breathe. It was true; she would never find another man that could capture her heart like her husband. She should have understood that before, but instead she ignored her instinct. Rationalizations had no place in matters of the heart so her plan was never going to succeed. Instead she had set up those four good men to be let down. Of course they would jump at the chance to help Wa, they were all so chivalrous and they cared so much for her, but Wa wasn't ready for that. In fact she would never be. "No…I see your point."
"I thought if I gave it a chance, like I promised Kongming, that maybe I would be proven wrong. When I come back, I don't think I'm going to feel any different. I'm only going to hurt them by trying and I don't want them to be hurt."
"They will understand, they'll be hurt by not being given a chance to help." Ying looked over and saw a grumpy Fu Xi staring at her. The man was an ass, and that was an understatement. At least the other generals of Wu were good people. "Look, take this trip as an opportunity to get away from the situation. Maybe it will give you a new perspective."
"Sure." Wa nodded. She gave the woman a hug. "Thank you for everything…both of you."
"Be safe." Ying watched her walk towards the pier.
"WAIT!" Liu Bei shouted as he galloped up on Hex Mark.
"Do these people know anything about keeping to a schedule?" Xi growled as the Shu leader dismounted.
"My lord?" Wa was surprised by his shout. Liu Bei rarely ever got excited about things.
"Here, I want you to take my horse. In case you decide to come back early…he will bring you home quickly." Bei handed her the reins.
"I can't accept…"
"Please. It is the least I can do."
"Just take the horse Wa, let's go." Xi snapped.
"Thank you. I will bring him back."
"You may not want to give him back. After all you'll need a fast horse to get away from my generals." Bei kissed her cheek. "You are part of our family, and we will not rest easy until you come home."
"Thank you sir." Wa smiled and pet the horse. "I will come back soon."
"Good." Bei watched her lead the grey onto the boat and Fu Xi quickly shout orders to get them on their way. He fumbled with the letter still in his hand. He worked all night on the stupid thing but for some reason he just couldn't have her deliver it. If Sun Shang Xiang wanted to be with Fu Xi….it was her happiness that mattered the most. His stupid letter would only make her mad. Maybe in another lifetime he could make his marriage work.
"Well here they come." Gan Ning splashed the water with his bare feet. He was sitting on the edge of the pier at Jian Ye waiting for the ship to arrive. It was overdue and he regretted not taking over the navigation himself. Zhou Tai had the same reaction that he did and both of them were nervous for the past two days.
Zhou Tai stood at attention as always on the edge of the pier. Unlike Gan Ning he could never allow himself to be completely relaxed in public, which usually made people edgy. "About time."
"Well I guess I'll run up and tell Ce, he is after all the stupid emperor."
"Sure." Tai watched Ning run off barefoot towards the castle. It still amazed him that Sun Ce was now in control of Wu. It seemed only yesterday that Sun Jian was screaming at his eldest son to quit leaving livestock in people's bedrooms. Life went on.
"Home sweet home." Fu Xi jumped off the boat and smiled when he saw a familiar face. "Hey Tai!"
"Hello."
"Come on Mark." Wa tugged on her mount's reins to coax him down the ramp. "Hello again General Zhou."
"Hello."
"Great to see you've expanded you vocabulary Tai. Really is." Xi huffed.
Tai narrowed his eyes and was about to kick the man into the river when Sun Ce's voice echoes across the water and probably across half of eastern China.
"XI!" Ce can running down the pier and slammed into his friend delivering noogies and playful punches. "Hey man! Lot's of stuff has happened around here!"
"By lots of stuff…." Zhou Yu rolled his eyes, "He means that his father was assassinated and he is now the ruling emperor of Wu. Minor details really."
"Yeah yeah." Ce mumbled. "That too."
"Welcome back to Wu, Nu Wa." Yu turned to the quiet young widow. "I am sorry for your loss. I admired your husband, he was an incredible strategist."
Wa only offered a polite smile as Hex Mark played with her rapier's scabbard. "Nice to see you again too Zhou Yu."
"Hey, I kind of remember you used to smile." Ce pinched her cheek playfully. "We don't need another moody girl around here; we already got my sister for that."
"Sorry." Wa smiled a bit, Sun Ce was a complete buffoon at times. But it was cheering her up a little.
"Well let's see if I can't help you a bit." Ce winked and kicked Xi off the pier. "Feel better?"
Wa laughed as Xi popped his head up out of the river uttering curses and splashing around. "Yeah."
"Great, I've been waiting for a month to do that to him." Ce offered his arm to the girl. "So allow me to escort you to my humble palace."
Tai cocked an eyebrow and looked at the flailing Fu Xi try and climb a mooring line back to the pier. It was nice to see things were back to normal; however it would have been more comforting to see the emperor act a bit more mature. "I'll help carry their things."
Zhou Yu looked down at the soaking wet general clawing his way back to the dock. "Yes, I too am proud of our Emperor's methods." He always knew what the quiet general was thinking; it was usually along the same lines as his own thoughts.
Nu Wa was barely listening to Sun Ce as he walked her back to his palace. The Qiaos were anxiously awaiting the return of their husbands and she couldn't help but envy them. How nice it must be to still have the one you love….."Thank you for having me."
"Oh no problemo! Really things are too quiet around here. Besides we need some new ideas on torturing Fu Xi. He's become immune to the frog thing. Ning tried moving on to fish…but throwing a thirty pound carp at someone only creates concussions. Learned that the hard way."
"He's terrified of worn socks."
"As in dirty laundry?"
"Yes, but only the socks." Wa watched the Wu Lord's eyes light up.
"Really…." Ce giggled.
"What are you doing with that horse!" Sun Shang Xiang stormed up as the pair reached the gate.
"It's only a horse Shang…" Da Qiao tried to calm her sister-in-law down.
"That…" Shang growled. "Is Liu Bei's horse! Why do you have it?"
"Hey sis…um….can you tone down the bitchiness?" Ce chuckled uncomfortably.
"You sound jealous." Wa said bluntly. "I understand it is your husband's horse, but you have never treated him like you were married. Why should you be upset?"
Shang stood slightly put off by the woman's reaction. All the time she had known her Nu Wa was always ready to fight. So who was this woman in front of her? Suddenly she looked at the gaunt figure before her. She was at least thirty pound underweight with dark circles under her eyes and a very weary look about her. She looked horrible….was this all because she lost her husband? "Ummm…"
"Why don't we go inside, hmmmm? I'm sure dinner is ready." Da said trying to move the hostility rating of the conversation back to neutral.
"Good idea! Isn't it Zhou Yu!" Xiao said perkily as her husband caught up with the small entourage.
"If I had the slightest idea of what you were talking about…." Yu shook his head.
"Dinner!" Ce smiled. "We're going to dinner!"
"Excellent decision your highness. That's why we're all so devoted to you." Yu shook his head and looped his arm around his tiny wife before heading through the gate. "Everything revolves around food with him."
"I'll take your horse, my lady." Lu Meng appeared out of the palace and smiled warmly.
"Thank you….you are all so kind."
As the party went through the gate and into the castle, Sun Shang Xiang stood wondering what exactly she was missing out on. Fu Xi had just emerged from the river sopping wet only to be thrown back in by a laughing Gan Ning. When the boisterous pirate tried to do the same to Zhou Tai, Tai leaned back and Ning splashed head first into the Chang Jiang. Usually things like this made her laugh, but looking into Nu Wa's eyes had drained her energy. All the couples she knew, Zhou Yu and Xiao Qiao, Sun Ce and Da Qiao and to some extent Nu Wa and Pang Tong were so devoted to each other that the loss of one pretty much decided the fate of the other. But then there was the relationship she had with Fu Xi….and she knew that he would have never felt so strongly if it had been her life that was lost. But Liu Bei….he would care. Even now, now that she had pushed him away to the far side of the country, he would still weep for her if she was killed. Why was she so upset about Hex Mark? Was she really jealous of her husband possibly feeling something for another woman…even though she was currently in a non-committal relationship with Fu Xi?
After the formal dinner with the entire Wu clan, Nu Wa found her way to the courtyard where Tong and Yu had held their private concert before Chi Bi. How nice that had been. She found the bench and sat down. Good memories, so why was she starting to cry? Coming here only made her realize how much she missed him. She wanted to run home but there was that lingering situation that awaited her there. The men of Shu would want answers and she owed them all explanations. Bored on the boat trip down the river she had written letters to them each explaining how great the really were but how horrible she was for not being able to give them the love they deserved. She would die as Pang Tong's widow and that was all she really wanted to do.
Sun Shang Xiang watched Nu Wa crying on the bench for nearly thirty minutes before she walked over. "Hello."
"Lady Sun…" Wa wiped away her tears. "Ummm….I 'm sorry. I'll leave…I didn't know I was somewhere I shouldn't be."
"You're not. Please sit down…I want to talk to you."
"Me?"
"Why did Liu Bei give you his horse?"
"Just because he wanted me to come home when I wanted to. He was just being nice; there really isn't any more to it than that."
"I…"
"Lady Sun…" Wa knew what the woman was pondering. They really weren't all that different. "He still loves you. You're his wife."
Shang blushed. Talking to a stranger about her nonexistent marriage was weird. "I thought your brother was the one."
"Xi?" Wa smiled. "He's only interested in himself."
"I know." Shang looked away. "Now."
"Can I tell you something?"
"Sure."
"I think you should give him another chance. Loving Tong was the greatest thing I ever experienced and now that I don't have him anymore I can only hope my life ends soon so we can be together again. It's great…so great that when it's gone you lose your will to live. Still, I wouldn't have traded those four years with Tong for anything. Don't lose out on your chance to experience that…Liu Bei is a good man. Really is. He blames himself for your unhappiness."
Shang thought that that was possibly the most depressing thing she had ever heard, but it made sense. "Thanks."
"Sorry we got off on the wrong foot." Wa cleared her throat. She knew she was babbling; it was time to be more collected. She had to represent Shu and being a blubbering mess wasn't very responsible.
"As much my fault as yours." Shang jumped up. "Look, since you're here….let's just put that behind us."
"I'd like that." Wa nodded.
"Good."
"Alright we're going to attack Xu Chang!" Sun Ce announced to the group in front of him. "Kill Cao Cao, save the world, come home."
"Pretty inspiring." Zhou Tai groaned.
"You should have heard the original version of his speech." Zhou Yu said dryly.
"I'd like to help…if you don't mind." Nu Wa said quietly.
"We would be honored to have you accompany us." Zhou Yu replied.
Fu Xi sat next to his sister and ignored everything that was going on around him. He had tried to talk Sun Quan into courting her, but the man refused stating that the young girl was not ready to seek a new relationship. Fine. There were other men in Wu that were not currently attached to a wife and he just needed to figure out which one he wanted to push her towards. Lu Xun was all excited because she lent him Tong's copy of the Art of War and the boy was bubbling with laughter ever since. Apparently Tong's eccentric comments in the margins made the book worth rereading every night. Perhaps he would be a good choice….
"Hey! Xi? That okay with you?" Ning slammed his elbow into his buddy's ribs trying to get an answer for Zhou Yu.
"Huh?"
"Nu Wa asked to accompany us, I asked if you had any problems with that." Zhou Yu repeated. He hated repeating himself.
"No..whatever she wants is fine" Xi responded and his sister smiled.
"Good, I like to help."
"We move out tomorrow! Pack the meatbuns, we're going to war!" Ce beamed with pride. Now that was a speech worth being recorded for historical value!
"Inscribe that on the walls of his tomb if I don't have the chance." Zhou Yu rubbed his temples.
"I better get some ink, that's going to be difficult to remember." Zhou Tai gave Yu a brief smile before returning to his stoic expression.
Zhou Yu laughed despite himself. He was always amused by Tai's humor. He looked over to see Nu Wa grinning at the joke as well. Poor thing…if he lost Xiao he would be just as bad off. He'd bury himself in his work and give little thought to his own health. Maybe he should tell her that. Yes Xiao deserved to know how he felt incase he was the one who didn't make it.
"Where's Da?" Sun Ce asked slightly panicked. He had sent her ahead to scout and she didn't come back.
"I haven't seen her….why?" Zhou Yu attacked another dozen men that were trying to surround them.
"She should have been back by now…I should go look for her." Ce pummeled a man with his tonfas and whipped around to kick the life out of another.
"Sure." Yu sliced open another man and looked over his shoulder. "I'll send you reinforcements in a minute."
"Good. Shouldn't be anything I can't handle but…"
"Ce, you used to say that about arithmetic."
"That's why I got you to do my homework. Look how good you got at it. Thanks to me you became a kick ass strategist."
"That was not what I was going for." Yu growled.
"Hehe. I know. See ya later bro."
"I wish you'd adopt a more customary vernacular" Yu looked behind him to see Ce running towards the mountain pass. "Or perhaps listen to me when I'm talking to you instead of running off to hunt down your wife. Some things never change."
"Zhou Yu, why is my brother running away from the battle?" Sun Shang Xiang asked as she rode up and tossed her Chakrams in to the crowd. "Do I need to usurp the throne?"
"He's looking for Da." Yu shook his head. "That woman gets lost in He Fei palace every time we visit there. Why he thought she could find her way back from a scouting mission, I'll never know."
"That's why you're supposed to make the decisions." Nu Wa pulled Hex Mark to a halt and smiled. "Or at least that's what Xi tells me."
"Sounds like treason to me." Yu said with a straight face. "Might need to dump that man in a pile of socks to determine how much he disrespects his emperor."
"Socks?" Shang asked.
"Sun Ce has a big mouth." Wa shook her head.
"You just figured that out?" Shang laughed.
"Can you girls go support his treasure hunt efforts?" Yu sighed. "I'll win the battle, as always."
"Yes sir!" Nu Wa galloped off.
"Hey! No fair that horse is technically my property too! Don't go using it against me!" Shang took off after her.
Yu smiled. It was nice to see Shang and Wa hit it off, they were so similar and Wa needed a good friend. Actually they both needed someone to wean them off of Fu Xi.
"Da! What are you doing just standing there?" Ce ran up to his wife and realized that she was staring at four dozen archers.
"Oh sh….."
Nu Wa caught up with Sun Ce just as he stopped moving. Why was the stupid empress just standing on a hill like that? Must be something pretty girls like to do, strike a nice pose so they look better. Ah well. With a shake of her head she let Hex Mark leap over the top of the hill and suddenly realized why the royal couple had come to a halt. She instinctively turned the horse to the left hoping to shield them from the onslaught of arrows already in flight but a few made it past her and her horse. The majority of them did not.
Shang's smile faded as she watched Sun Ce drop to his knees. Then her horse made it another ten feet and she saw Hex Mark squeal and crumple to the ground crushing his rider underneath him. Furious that another member of her family was being attacked by an ambush party she pushed ahead into the archers and began to musou the life out of every last one of them. They had taken her father already and they sure as hell weren't going to get Ce too!
Da Qiao began to sob as she clutched her husband's chest. "Ce! Ce! Say something!"
"Hey babe…it's okay….just got me in the shoulder, see?" Ce gritted his teeth and pulled the arrow out. "We better go help Shang…can't let her hog all the revenge. They squashed pop with rocks, remember?"
Da nodded, her worry eased by Sun Ce's smile. As he helped her up she looked down over the hill and gasped. "Oh…no…"
"What?" Ce asked as he turned. Nu Wa and her horse lay still as could be on the small slope. He bent down hoping that this really wasn't happening. "Hey…Wa."
"Ce…is she…dead?" Da asked not really wanting to know the answer. But the grey horse was now crimson and the arrows were embedded in them both. All this because she couldn't find her way back quick enough. She almost lost her husband….but Nu Wa had saved them both from knowing that kind of pain. How can I ever thank her….
"No…"Ce saw her breathe a bit. on. You can't go doing something like this and die before I can thank you." He was trying to sound chipper, trying to be comforting in the woman's final moments, but he just sounded stupid. They had told him that Pang Tong had been found with nearly a dozen arrows in him…and now his wife succumbed to the same fate. Only difference was the grey horse hadn't made it out of this one alive. Someone was waiting for her and she knew it…..at least she'd be happier.
"Thank….you.." Wa choked. "I can …go home." She smiled weakly and felt the life drain away. How the darkness beckoned her…how nice it felt despite being so cold.
Ce gulped as she closed her eyes and breathed her last. As emperor he was going to have to get used to the fact that people were going to give their lives for him….but he wasn't her emperor. She wasn't supposed to be protecting him…but he would not let it be for nothing. No her death was going to forge a new pact between Wu and Shu. Both empires were going to bury this woman and then they were going to unite to destroy Cao Cao. He looked up as his sister came racing over. "She saved me…"
Shang stared down at the blood that began to stain the ground and said nothing. Sure she had seen people die before, but none of them slipped away knowing that there was something better. Here in front of her was a gruesome scene…a horse and rider mercilessly shot down, yet there was a sense of peace on Wa's face. How could someone die so horribly yet be so content with it? If that were me…I'd be terrified. But there won't be someone waiting for me…unless….
"What the hell are you doing?" Fu Xi hollered as he and Gan Ning jogged up. "Bad time for a frickin' picnic Ce."
"You're hurt!" Ning stated as he saw Ce stand up with blood dripping down his arm. "Nice scar going to come out of that though. Definitely something sexy for the misses to brag about."
Ce shook his head and looked Xi in the eye as he approached. He bit his lip knowing he was obstructing the man's view of his dead sister. "Man….I'm sorry."
"Okay. Just don't run off for a private rendezvous in the middle of a battle again." Xi stopped next to his emperor and looked down at all the dead archers. "Phew….you're lucky you only got hit once!"
Ce stepped back to reveal the trade off for his life. "I'm sorry….it all happened so fast."
Xi slowly allowed himself to recognize who was lying on the ground underneath the dead horse. He was not unaccustomed to death, he had watched his parents die when he was a kid and was even there when Lu Bu was executed, but this was different. This was his fault.
"Well, I knew you had a thing for Generals Zhao and Ma. Apparently I didn't see that you also had something for Wei Yan." Tong smiled up at her as she walked over to him in disbelief. "Welcome home darling."
"Is this real?"
"Well….eh. We're dead so I guess it technically isn't 'real' in that sense. But it is happening. Come, I've missed you." He opened his arms and she ran to him.
"I'm sorry."
"For what? I'm so proud of you! Helping Liu Bei and Lady Sun, saving Sun Ce. Honey, you've altered the course of history. My little hero." Tong kissed her forehead.
"I didn't help them though."
"Oh I think you did. You gave them a shove in the right direction. Well, we'll have to see how that works out."
"I don't have to leave you again, do I?"
"Nope, we're here for eternity." Tong kissed her again. "That's the point of the afterlife."
Shiva, the huge Tibetan Mastiff, sauntered over and lay down next to his master. He rolled on his back to get some attention.
"Oh now you show up? I've been alone up here for how long and you hold out for her? Man's best friend my ass." Tong looked down at his wife. "So I think that that grey horse was bad luck for us, what do you think?"
"I think we're stuck with him" Wa smiled as Hex Mark trotted down the road.
"Well that's great." Tong frowned as Hex Mark began nibbling at the roof of the shack. "Hey there buddy! Just because we're dead doesn't mean I get to take time off. Still need to maintain the homestead, got it?"
"I missed you so much." Wa pushed him to the ground. "Don't you ever do that to me again!"
"Well I don't think I can die again so it's a pretty safe bet that you're stuck with me." Tong smiled at his wife's glowing face. Death had returned her to her former glory, a healthy happy girl. The afterlife was nice like that no decaying people or headless bodies, just people returned to their happiest time in life. "Although I may have to kill that stupid horse again if he keeps taking the roof off!"
"I'm with you, that's all that matters." Wa covered his face with kisses.
"I'm sorry I left you….I never wanted to see you like that."
"It's over." Wa cupped his cheek with her hand. "We're together again."
"Yes, my love, we are." Tong smiled. "And we got a pretty neat little sideshow going."
"Oh?" she purred.
"Yes, we get to see how all this plays out. Boy is Liu Bei gonna be pissed….."
"I tried to give him his horse back."
"Oh don't worry; when he dies we're going to be showing up on his doorstep with this destructive critter. You here that? Try eating a slate roof and see how far it gets you." Tong smiled at Wa as she lifted him up to hug him and squeezed his chest. Good thing he wasn't breathing anymore or she would have killed him off. "I actually meant that you left a lot of anxious people back in Xu Chang. Quite the harem."
"I hope they find my letters. Especially Wei Yan's."
"Well, Kongming's always been eyeing my ledgers. Silly man wanted me to write a book. So I bet he'll go through our things. Plus Yue Ying has always been nosey."
"This really is happening right?" Wa asked.
"Yup. You're dead." Tong grinned. "But I assure you the afterlife is quite the entertaining place. Just a couple of weeks ago Lu Bu showed up on my doorstep to tell me about a certain poem that Zhang Liao wrote. Apparently it has been ranked as the worst poem ever by the dead scholars. That is an achievement."
"We can see other people?"
"Yeah. Pretty big world here. Got to see my parents again and my old dog Scraps. That's really as far as I've ventured, I didn't want to get too far from home. Lu Bu was quite a surprise. Seemed nice, apologized for not liking me and all. Not a great conversationalist, but he was polite enough. Said to say hi."
"Can't we just stay here?"
"Well you might be surprised what you're going to see pretty soon. You haven't been buried yet, that is something worth seeing. Oh, and for the record Ma Chao is a horrible gravedigger."
"Good to know."
"And Liu Bei does a terrible funeral service." Tong smiled. "Other than that I thought my burial was classy."
"You better. You should have seen where Kongming wanted to bury you."