Chapter Twenty-Seven

Disclaimer: I don't own CCS.

The more you sweat in peacetime, the less you bleed during war.

~ Chinese Proverb

The morning had been a long one. Sheng stared into a large smoking pyre with vacant eyes. He had been standing in the same spot for several hours watching, smelling Enlai's body burn. Now there was nothing left but ash and a rank scent that latched onto his nostrils so strongly, it would last for days to come.

Last night had been a strange one. Harmless had come to him, his back bent under the heavy weight of an unconscious Enlai. Sheng had shaken his head. Enlai was drunk. He took satisfaction in the knowledge that the man would awake with a dreadful headache and he would be able to gloat. Then Harmless had looked into his eyes and Sheng came to a realisation. Enlai was not drunk after all.

He should have known Enlai would do something stupid. He was no seer but somehow, he should have known. A sense of hopelessness had washed over him and he had been stunned. It was a revelation to Sheng how great a presence the man had been in his life. He would never have expected to feel pain like what he was experiencing right now. It was like a rusty knife was ripping through his chest.

Each breath Sheng took was arduous. He had never wanted to feel like this ever again but here he was mourning. History was repeating itself and Sheng felt like a young boy again, lost and afraid. He tried to tell himself Enlai was not worth it, but the grief was too all-consuming for him to believe in this lie.

Sheng turned to Harmless who had been with him the entire time.

"He's gone," he told the man and those were the only words Sheng had in him to say about Enlai.

Harmless had been breathing deeply and there was a forceful light in his eyes. It was a brewing fury and a promise of vengeance. Things of these nature never ended. He had avenged his father and now Enlai had been killed. Now, he had another man to avenge. Weariness sat heavy on his heart.

"I want to hate Xiao Lang," he had said, his weakened voice sounding quite foreign to him. "I want to feel rage but all I feel is nothing. More and more nothing each breath I take."

Sheng had gazed up at the palace ceiling, celestial in its design.

"I don't think I have the strength for much else anymore," and that was another revelation he had stumbled upon.

It was a terrible revelation at that, because only moments ago a watchman had informed both men that Syaoran was marching his army towards the City and that they would be there within the hour. Sheng pushed his hair back with his fingers. His warriors were prepared and ready for battle, but he was not. It had been days since he had last trained and his sessions to improve his dark magic with Harmless had withered away. Sheng's interest in it had diminished due to the frequent low moods he had been having lately.

Sheng glanced back at the pyre.

"It's just the two of us now, Harmless," he said to the man beside him. "I wanted him to fight Yue while you duelled Eriol. Would I be asking too much if I asked you to do the work of two men?"

Out the corner of his eye, he saw Harmless shake his head.

"I knew you'd feel that way. You are a formidable warrior and magician, Harmless. I should have learnt more from you when I had the chance. Enlai as well. But there's nothing that can be done now. Only remember one thing. Xiao Lang is my battle, not yours. Don't get tempted."

Harmless' eyebrows raised but the stern look he received from Sheng made him nod in order to appease the man. He never went against Sheng's wishes. Ever since they had met Harmless had been content to take his orders. Life was simple when you did not have to make decisions all the time. Today was not the same as yesterday, however. Things had changed and though he still respected Sheng, Harmless knew in his heart that if the Great Imperial Son crossed his path that day, he was as good as dead.

The yellow Sun beat down on all the men who stood beneath it. The sky was cloudless, and all the wild animals save a few birds that flew overhead seemed to have disappeared from the earth. It was the ever-increasing, intimidating sound of thousands of marching feet that sent them into their hiding places.

"There they come," Sheng's warriors would say as they listened to the faraway hum of the horns and drums of the imperial soldiers. "They are skilled, but we will prevail again as we did months ago. They have not known hardship like we have. They are pampered men. They will not survive this day."

Indeed, the imperial army in all its renowned glory had at last returned to the Forbidden City after a year of being away. They came to stand out of bowshot, horns blowing and the beats of their drums reverberating through the air, creating a war cry like none other that had been heard before. Sheng's warriors tried to answer back with drums and horns of their own; but, the energy of the imperial soldiers was such that the hearts of their enemies wavered and they acknowledged within themselves that this battle would not be as easy as the one they had won before. Now, they were fighting an entire army led by the legendary Great Imperial Son and the warriors prayed the City's walls would stand.

Harmless stood in the Hall of Supreme Harmony, watching the green expanse before him become swallowed up by dark suits of armour. Sheng sat on the throne as he too watched the imperial army draw ever closer. Harmless had to admit, if he was another man, fear would be thick in his chest by now. It was unfortunate for the Great Imperial Son that this was not so.

Now, as the two armies tried to intimidate each other with their instruments, Harmless felt a shiver of anticipation run through him. He was ready to fight. He had not felt such a complete ferocious desire to rip a man's head from his body in many years. It took the death of one friend and the need to protect the only other he had, to drag from within the depths of his soul, a long-buried darkness that would see light that day.

Suddenly, a lone horseman broke away from the imperial army and Harmless' eyes squinted as he tried to identify who it was. Down below him, he heard two generals yell the orders for bows to be drawn. As the horseman drew nearer however, his powerful aura ignited Harmless' senses. He had felt that aura before when Enlai was killed.

"Hiiragizawa Eriol," said Sheng, giving the horseman a name. "He would be the one to break the magical barrier over the City if they have found a way. You've heard me speak of his powers. Don't underestimate him."

Harmless nodded and Sheng gave a small smile, a ferocious look in his eyes.

"Go."

Harmless envisioned himself on top of the great wall of the Forbidden City and he immediately felt his body move through space. Now he was staring down at Eriol. He gave a signal for the archers to wait. He felt a deep calm overcome him and the drums and horns became distant in his ears.

Harmless leapt from the wall, the rush of wind fuelling his excitement for the upcoming duel with the magician. It was not every day that Harmless was pitted against a trained magician and he looked forward to the kill. Landing lightly on the balls of his feet, he ran towards the galloping horse. The imperial soldiers who watched from afar wondered, who was this madman?

Eriol did not slow his steed. He meant to run Harmless over. Just as man and beast were about to meet, Harmless drew the twin swords at his back. Sliding to his knees, he made to cripple the horse with his swords. But Eriol made the horse jump and expecting this, Harmless carried his swords upwards, tearing through the animal's belly. It gave an almighty cry and crashed, headfirst, into the ground, pelting Eriol off its back.

Rising to his feet, Eriol drew his own sword and ended its life. At first glance he seemed unruffled but there was a fire in his eyes.

"You must be the assassin," he said softly to Harmless. "I am told you are a man of few words."

Harmless nodded. Assassin was not the greatest title in the world, but he owned it and by now Eriol could validate the 'few words' part.

"You have quite the reputation for one shrouded in so much mystery."

Harmless was listening half-heartedly. The one thing about being silent was that people found a need to bore you with their ruminations. His gaze fell to a golden object in Eriol's hands. He knew what it was but the last he had heard, it had been locked away in a sacred shrine somewhere. The surprise on his face was apparent.

"You recognize this?" asked Eriol. "Not many people would. Not many know about it."

Harmless did not come out here to talk. He rotated his swords impatiently.

"You are quite loyal I am certain," said Eriol. "But this battle is not for assassins. I'll give you one chance to reconsider duelling me."

Harmless smirked inside. Had his personality been more like Enlai, he would be laughing so hard he would have fallen to his knees, then he would get up, compose himself then start laughing all over again. This imperial man was bold and egotistic in an amazingly unpretentious manner - a difficult feat.

Like the saying went, those who know do not speak and those who speak do not know.

Harmless flowed into a fighting stance. Still, holding tight to the Moon Bell, Eriol raised his sword and together, their auras generated a small gust of wind about them. Harmless charged at Eriol and the magician fearlessly ran headlong into the man. Swords and magic combined, their meeting was like a clap of thunder. Their blows came swift and strong. Harmless, quickly finding an opening in Eriol's defense, launched towards his side but Eriol used the Moon Bell to block. As soon as Harmless' sword hit it, he was propelled backwards into the air.

He landed hard on his back but rolled backwards into it. In an instant he was on his feet. It spoke well of the craftsmanship and majesty of the magic swords he held, that the one in his right hand had not burst into shards on contact with the Moon Bell.

Taking opportunity in Harmless being down, Eriol had made a dash for the magical barrier surrounding the palace. He was mere feet away. Harmless tried to go after him but Eriol with his head start, had punched the Moon Bell into the magical barrier. All about them lit up in a blue light, and a blue, liquid-looking dome became visible. It quavered for a few moments, then like a soap bubble it burst with an ear-splitting ring and was gone.

This victory for the imperials infuriated Harmless. His eyes glowed like an amethyst and his next attack was more rapid than all the others before. In five strokes of his swords he had Eriol so busy blocking his attacks, he could not find the time to make one of his own. It became apparent to Harmless that he was the superior swordsman. Eriol should have been the one to reconsider this duel.

His twin jians struck Eriol's armour repeatedly, sending the man back, step by step. Harmless dived in for the kill when a magic circle appeared at Eriol's feet and a long dark staff replaced the sword in his hand.

In a surprising move, Eriol threw the Moon Bell into the air and Harmless' eyes followed it. He had not realized how close they had come to the City gates. Eriol sent a burst of magical energy behind Bell and it flew towards the large walls. Harmless made a run for it but it moved fast in mid-air, spinning and spinning, propelled by Eriol's magic.

Then Eriol sent out another burst of energy through his staff and Harmless' body lifted into the air once more before it landed hard back to earth. When the Bell hit the walls of the Forbidden City, there was a loud boom and the great structure came tumbling down like an avalanche, casting debris thick into the air. Eriol raised his hands to his eyes. He could see nothing at first but as the dust diminished, he barely had time to make out Harmless' foot as it crashed into his helmet. Eriol spat out blood. His body was not trained like Syaoran's to take repeated hits and Harmless' attacks were getting to him. The assassin was savage yet controlled. Who was this man?

Eriol raised his staff. It glowed scarlet and a second burst of energy shot out at Harmless. The man raised his palms out in front of him and the energy disappeared into a void. Eriol froze. He had seen the man do the same thing with Yue's arrow, but this was different. Eriol was certain his magic was more powerful than Yue's. He realised that the only way to defeat this assassin would be to wait for him to make a mistake in his own technique. Eriol raised his staff again and prepared himself for the challenge ahead.

"The wall is down. Make the soldiers advance."

Yue said nothing. Renshu's attitude was astounding. He sounded as haughty as he had ever been. One would think they were back inside the palace and all were hailing him as Huangdi. True he was the Great Imperial Son, but this was a battlefield.

"Yue?" asked Lei in a less arrogant manner.

"Eriol will be caught in the middle," he told them.

"Since when is the life of one man considered of such value? In an army all are equal. Isn't that what you and Huangdi have always believed? Eriol is Chief Magician. He can take care of himself."

Yue looked across at Syaoran. His gold eyes were pinned on the happenings before them. Then he looked at Yue with a brutal eagerness etched in his face. He signalled for the soldiers to advance and the generals in charge of the foot soldiers shouted their orders.

"For once we are in agreement," said Renshu, pleased with Syaoran's decision.

The soldiers moved forward and as soon as they were in bowshot a plethora of arrows flew high into the sky from within the City. They were so numerous, they threatened to block out the Sun. But the imperial soldiers had shields, and though some fell, the damage was little to their numbers. Undaunted, they picked themselves up from their defensive positions behind the shields and kept pressing forward. The rain of arrows continued several more waves. Each time the soldiers hid, then kept pushing forward.

It was not long before a flood of soldiers spilled out of the palace, weapons drawn. Yue gazed at Eriol anxiously, but he had nothing to fear. The man was battling with Harmless and they were like two great thrashing beasts; the enemy soldiers avoided them, not wanting to be swept up in the whirlwind that was their duel.

Soon, the two groups of foot soldiers were mere feet from each other. When they collided, it was like two great elephants had met and were locked by the tusks, each trying to push the other back in an impressive display of strength and power. Morale alone would decide which side would give in first.

Syaoran however, could hardly wait. He released his jian and urged his horse forward and a host of soldiers on horseback followed him. The battle had finally begun.