Legacy of the Lunar Spear
Chapter 12
Shattered
Xiahou Dun lie wide awake in his bedroom staring at the ceiling. His wife, the source of his insomnia, had repositioned herself in her sleep so that she was clinging to his chest with her head pressed into his neck. It was not her proximity that was bothering him, but his comfort with her being there. The past few days he was going back and forth trying to decide exactly what he wanted the two of them to be. As much as he told himself he was going to remain distant, he kept ending up in this same position; her happily asleep on him and him petting her head as she slept. Even after she had started to cry the previous night, he had waited for her to fall asleep so that he could touch her. Certainly no harm would come of him reinitiating sexual relations …..but it would probably cloud the issue. She was confused and scared and lost without her father and before they could be anything she needed to figure out who she was. Then again, he needed to stop taking his own problems out on her. They needed to stay apart for now…until these trials were over. There was too much at stake.
Only a few days had past since that day at Xia Pi and it seemed like an eternity to them both. Why the hell couldn't he make up his mind? His gut feeling told him it was a good move to get married but he was a man who enjoyed solitude. Or was until half his world went dark. Why did that matter? How could one isolated incident change his perspective so quickly? Never before did he allow a woman to sleep on him like this, no matter how huge her breasts were. Why her? He knew the answer already but even admitting to himself that Yuan was right drove him nuts. Tomorrow he was finally going to find out how impaired his fighting skills were and for the first time he was nervous.
Ling looked over her new command assembled before her. They were all reequipped with spears, on Dun's orders. He decided to assign the unit to Zhang Liao since he was already predisposed to her and her 'attitude problem'. That was a prefect arrangement as far as she was concerned. Now the only question was, how the hell do you retrain three hundred men? What Cao Cao said was true, this unit was made of the remains of Lu Bu's army, every little piece of it. She had bridge layers, spearmen, cavalrymen, archers, bodyguards, a cook's apprentice, several pike men and a small group of officers. The officers were a problem in themselves.
"Well, Captain?" Hua Xi asked. He was already bitter enough about having to accept a Lieutenant's position but having to serve with her?
"Do you have a problem with me?" Ling snapped.
"Yes. More than a few."
"Care to elaborate Lieutenant?"
"Not…" Xi sneered, "In front of the men."
"Later then."
Xi put his hands behind his back and raised his head up. "You mean after you figure out how to command this unit you don't deserve."
"Liutendant!" Ding Jun cautioned. He was Ling's cavalry colonel before this whole tragedy struck. Yes, he hated the way she treated the men and her officers. Yes, she was inexperienced and untrained herself. Yes, she was a girl and an arrogant one at that. However she was the best shot that Xi or he had at regaining their former positions and he wasn't about to let his thirty year military career end here. "Make suggestions instead of insults."
"When our Captain, asks for them."
"Jun, can you begin instructing the men on the proper stance for a spearmen while Lieutenant Hua and I discuss matters?"
"Of course, Captain."
"Yuan, why aren't you taking the offensive?" Dun began moving closer to his younger brother in the practice ring.
"Well, I'm kind of distracted by the pus and other nasty shit that's coming out of your eye." Yuan held the Enforcer Rod close, knowing that Dun was probably going to take some whacks out of frustration.
"Funny."
"No really, all that is dripping out from underneath that fancy bandage of yours. Maybe you should see a doctor…"
Dun hacked at him and watched Yuan just block and fall back. "Attack me!"
"This is the first day…"
"Fight!"
Yuan shook his head and lunged forward with several quick stabs then sidestepped to his right and swept Dun off his feet with the Rod. His older brother fell flat on his back and stared up at the sky. "Sorry…"
"Fuck." Dun gritted his teeth and sat up. "Again."
"Dun, you should be attending to that eye not frustrating yourself by coming back too soon."
"Yuan, in order to 'come back' I would have had to have left the field of battle. I have not done that… nor will I ever."
"Dun…"
"Keep attacking my left side….I have to catch on sooner or later."
"Alright, what is it?" Ling folded her arms and stared at Hua Xi.
"I'm not going to do your work for you. You have no place being an officer and we both know that."
"I don't even know you, how would you have the slightest idea of what I am capable of?"
Xi ground his teeth. "Of course you wouldn't. The high and mighty Lu Ling Qi….you want to know who I am? I used to serve Dong Zhuo as a colonel commanding a unit of pike men in Luo Yang, until your father reorganized the army and I was passed up for promotion because he didn't appreciate my brother's interest in you."
"Me? Who the hell was your brother?"
"Hua Xiong? Remember him? Incredible warrior, died at Shi Shui trying to prove himself worthy of you."
"I never knew about that." Ling thought back to the man she only barely remembered.
"Well that would be because he wasn't good enough to even warrant an introduction according to your bastard father. Then, as if his death wasn't bad enough, Lu Bu decided to take it out on me for being a relative. Now I have to suffer even more humiliation by serving under you. Believe me, I definitely don't think you're worth feeding more or less commissioning."
"So you hold a personal grudge and that's why you're being insubordinate?"
"No, my personal grudge is why I despise you. My professional estimation of your ability is why I am insubordinate."
"Go on." Ling narrowed her eyes at him.
"You haven't the slightest idea how to command anything. You have no skill or education befitting an officer and your leadership skills are horrendous. You know nothing or formation, strategy or morale. You're going to do exactly as you always have done, which is rely on your officers to run everything while you go out on some joyride to kill the generals. I'm not going to be your lackey."
"I'll show you how unskilled I am…" Ling gripped her spear and gritted through her teeth.
"Well you are a spitting image of the old man, ready to kill me for telling you the truth. Some things aren't pleasant to hear, so you might as well kill the messenger…."
"What's going on?" Liao marched up and separated them.
"We're having a little heart to heart." Xi grumbled.
"Ah…." Liao closed his eyes and sighed. Now was not the time for this…"Xi, we've been friends a long time and I know you're frustrated. But you have one chance to get your title and unit back and that is by proving yourself. I know you already have…but not to Cao Cao."
"Mmmmm." Xi bit his lip.
"Ling, you need to ask for your officers' help. They are both more experienced than you and they are both valuable resources. You need to learn."
Ling huffed and started at Hua Xi. "Fine."
"If I have to talk to you two again I'm demoting you both to sergeants. None of us have a lot of lenience here; we all need to work together if we are going to get back to the positions we used to hold. Do I make myself clear?"
"Yes sir." Ling and Xi responded.
"Remember, we are all going down if you two are at odds. Get back to work." Liao walked off to watch his other men train.
"Well, what should I do?" Ling asked.
"Break them into squads, let their sergeants lead them. Have the three of us set up stations where they will have to come to fight us. I'll take pike, you spear and Jun sword. Let them go up against an officer and let them learn the principles of spear usage that way."
"Very well." Ling nodded. Oh god, I'm screwed. I don't know any of this!
Cao Cao watched from the balcony outside his study as the events unfolded below. Dun was doing horribly and Ling wasn't fairing any better. Two lives completely destroyed and two people desperately trying to salvage something out of the shambles. The fact was that they needed each other….they were the only two individuals capable of understanding the others misery. Then again that was his job, wasn't it? Dun had secured the asset and now it was time for him to step in and cultivate it. It was the way it always worked but now it was going to be more difficult because Dun was personally attached to the asset. But this was a simple challenge, something he was more than capable of handling. He'd let them get furious with their circumstance first, that way they would be too preoccupied to read between the lines and figure him out. Easy enough.
Ling galloped her nag towards the small group of ten men preparing to defend themselves. This was an exceptionally good idea; Hua Xi was definitely good at what he did. Too bad he hated her and everything she used to be. Clearing her head she urged her horse onward, but the animal was already way too tired to do anything but canter slowly. How she missed Firestorm; if she ever got him back she was never going to take him for granted again. With a shake of the head she raised her spear and readied herself for her mount to plow through the men, an event that didn't happen. The horse refused at the last minute, not wanting to charge head first into a group of armed men, and slid to a halt. Ling, completely unprepared for a warhorse to respond in that manner, went flying over the gelding's head and into a stack of hay behind the men she was attacking.
Don't they know how to train horses here? Ling rubbed her head and pushed her way out of the forage pile. The little chestnut came over to investigate and began nibbling alfalfa off of her head. Angrily Ling shoved the animal's head away and stood up. The men were surprised, but their training kicked in and they all raised their weapons. Ling jumped up; she'd just have to do this on foot. Fine. With a low growl she clenched the shitty spear and advanced. Why of all weapons did she have to get stuck with a spear? Having to hold the weapon in both hands hindered her movement enough to slow her down when she was trying to move at a faster pace than a walk. It was irritating; especially since she was so damned good with a sword….but the Lunar Spear was the important thing. That was what mattered.
With her head held high and her hair covered in hay she whipped the spear around and attacked. First man took a sharp crack in the jaw, the second a smack in the ribs and the third dropped to an overhead chop. With a swift spin she was close enough to the fourth man to juggle him and toss him into the fifth and sixth privates. She grinned as the sergeant and his remaining four men stood waiting for her. Hearing an odd sound behind her, she turned and almost got impaled. The six men she should have subdues were standing behind her, ready for a second round. But…how? Usually the men went down after just one…but that was with a better spear. This piece of shit was a reject weapon, class level one, with barely any damage infliction. Son of a bitch! I'm starting from scratch!
Dun took the long way back to the palace after practicing all day. The dismal performance that he managed against Yuan was eating at him. Before today he would have never thought it possible that he would lose every match against his younger brother during the course of a full day….but he had never anticipated being partially blind. Hours of training only produced frustration anger and bruises, and he was dreading going to dinner. Certainly everyone had heard about this already and he wasn't looking forward to the sorry stares and apologies. He'd get better, he had to. There wasn't any way in hell that he would allow this embarrassment. He would get better or die trying.
Cao sat at the table and suddenly noticed the only voice he could distinctly make out was Xu Zhu's, which was because the man always yelled. He ignored the obese general and looked to his left where Dun was sitting, quiet and obviously depressed. Ling sat next to her husband and was equally anti-social. Both of them had suffered a severe hit to their self-confidence today and neither one was going to be drawn out into conversation by anyone. He felt bad knowing it was his decision that lead to this. Had he not forced Lu Bu's hand at Xia Pi, Dun would have both eyes and Ling would still be in her phony little world with her father. But perhaps it was for the best. If things were as they had been four days ago, Dun would be alone and content with it. He may have never met the one woman he actually wanted to spend time with and he certainly wouldn't have married of his own free will.
Lu Ling Qi was a different matter. She needed to be brought into the real world before she became a lost cause. Eventually she would settle into her new role and do it well, Dun was right about that. Lu Bu shielded her from everything, including life itself, and only exposure to the outside world was going to make her into someone of worth. Cao understood Lu Bu's reasoning, as all father's do, he wanted to give his kid the best life possible. But providing basic needs and safety was one thing, providing a fantasy world for her to live in was another. Dun was trying to shock her out of her upbringing, which was just pushing the girl further away from him. If they were to be happy, then he was going to have to do something soon. Dun was unknowingly destroying his marriage before it even began, thinking that she needed to be tricked into reforming when all she needed was honesty. Xiahou Dun and Lu Ling Qi, two people completely unique and from entirely different worlds yet they shared the same way of thinking. How the hell Dun picked up on that so quickly….he'd never know, but the fact was that Dun wanted to be with her. So that was how it was going to be.
