Chapter 9
Painted with violet and vermillion streaks, hinting the arrival of dusk, the near spotless skies seemed to have guaranteed a momentary peace for the groups of several officers from various kingdoms within the lands of China. The bristling sounds of the brushed blades of evergreen were created upon the striding figure of the Sleeping Dragon. His eyes stood wondering along his way toward the Tiger General's camp.
Confused as he was about the nightmare and about his sudden harshness to his fellow comrade, the urge to apologies was too great for the Prime Minister. However, the discomfort that had eased on his heart was repulsing every word his tongue wanted to spill for. Though the darkness had crept upon half of his delicate features, his eyes still gleamed with that unique thoughtfulness, thinking for a perfect explanation toward the general that he had mercilessly stabbed with his coldness.
The discomfit that was continuously growing upon the atmosphere made Zhuge Liang's words wavered with a slight fear of rejection. His form stopped when the familiar camp, his eyes flickered slightly with an anxious heart.
Lord Zhao Yun? I just saw him going into his camp… Perhaps you can find him there.
Those reassuring words of his apprentice echoed on the back of his mind. Taking a heartening breath, the strategist silently entered the made-shift shelter, hoping that its flap would not create any disturbing noise. Immediately his eyes took an observation of the pale surroundings of the shelter, searching and looking for the general that was commonly dressed within his gracious blue armor and those emerald eyes that had once dreadfully reminded the Sleeping Dragon of his nightmare.
At the sight of the inner structure of the camp of the kindling fabric of the camp, his eyes laid practically on the still form of the third Tiger General of Shu. Perhaps he was asleep, seeing that the movement of the strategist upon the entrance of his privacy was not glared at. Not quiet certain however, Zhuge Liang found himself clearing his throat, which immediately attracted the general in a surprised stance. The meeting of those ebony eyes almost relieved his mind though; those simmering contemplation immediately became vague on those jaded eyes.
"You surprised me." Zhao Yun breathed slightly, as his hand immediately brushed those misplaced strands away from his eyes, running his fingers through that smooth hair of his. The strategist only merely blinked at the sudden reaction of the warrior before his throat allowed him to speak from the unseen perversity.
"My apologies for entering without a word." Though that was all that came from his eager tongue, the Sleeping Dragon found his eyes averting around the camp, not willing to lay it upon those aestival eyes of the general. Being the first to sense discomfort from the threatened soul of the strategist that was hidden underneath the mask of serenity, Zhao Yun instantly wondered at the possible reason of the strategist's visit. His mind was still blunt from his thoughts of the Sleeping Dragon's harshness.
Knowing the general had sensed his distress from those suspecting eyes of emeralds, Zhuge Liang allowed a breath of his anxiety to escape his lips. This was all too hard to admit or to tell a man that could possibly be dead within a few days about his own future death.
"Come on outside, the furnishings within here distracts me."
Almost turning without his companion's acknowledgement, Zhao Yun's nodding went on unnoticed as the Sleeping Dragon only allowed himself to inhale again to ease his growing apprehension. He had never felt this way in his life, facing the man he loved and facing the possibility of the future.
The fresh scenery helped the strategist a little, unlike the pale furnish of the shelter that had nagged the strategist's mind about being in his love interest's privacy and causing the building anxiety within the tactician's mind. Much like the shadows that had crept upon the dusk of the day, Zhuge Liang could feel his closest companion inched behind him; he himself was equally tensed from the possible subject the strategist could mention.
Knowing that those eyes were on him, Zhuge Liang could feel the awaiting glances for the apology that he was about to spill before his mistreated comrade. The reflection of time flashed upon the skies as the single minute became a matter of the time as the night approached, the Tiger General only stood there waiting patiently. Finally, the Sleeping Dragon turned to meet those negotiated emeralds.
"I want to apologies about my harshness toward you." The strategist confessed awkwardly, however those striking words only snapped the tediousness upon the general's mind. Almost moving to speak his bit quickly, Zhuge Liang hesitantly placed a hand gently upon the forearm of the general, "No, please let me finish."
Enticed by those truthful, honest piceous eyes of the tactician, Zhao Yun could find himself almost obeying that seductive voice that lingered within the air. However, as dazed as he was to watch those stunning eyes of his love interest, his eyes only remained at focus.
"You have a right to know, and you have a right to be concern. Perhaps I was not ready to speak of it, however…" Zhuge Liang found his eyes traveled upon those elegant features the Tiger General held, as his voice drifted into nothingness, taking in the beauty within those mild verdant eyes that were listening to his voice intensively, "I should not hesitate with such matter. If it were not for your concern, I might still be… tempted that my denying of the possible vision will not make it happen."
Releasing his gentle grip upon the general, Zhuge Liang took a minor step back to give himself and the Tiger General a little space between themselves. His eyes watched the general in silence as the skies grew dark and stars illuminated at the nigrous skies mildly, allowing the shadows to drift upon his young, worn features. As silence wrapped upon the conversation, discomfort amidst between them, the Tiger General almost blinked away from the growing tension and his alluring trance.
Allowing his fear to retake him in his mind, the renowned Sleeping Dragon watched those sweeping winds from afar. The fluttering of those trees, the bristling of the grasses, the flickering of the flame, Zhuge Liang momentarily hoped that his nightmare was just some twisted dreams from his vivid and cursed imagination instead of a possibility from the future; the truth. Unexpectedly, his tongue flicked before his mind and the words that started to spill from the general came to an unexpected halt.
"Kongming…"
"You might die sometime here…" Zhao Yun froze at those words, "Sometime in this rebellion… I am not certain if it is true, but…"
Unable to speak more to the truth, Zhuge Liang only cast his eyes on the muddy ground the he stood upon. His face remained stall with the wisp of stress and thoughtfulness, however, his eyes flickered with immense worried. Watching the precise movements of the grass spilled his distress like those crimson splashes of battles; he only placed his lingering fingers behind him and allowed the stunned gaze drilled upon his heart.
The flickering trails of hopes and fates stared at the two unknown couples and at their moment of truth, stuck upon the caliginosity of the night. He, the Sleeping Dragon, was chosen to watch as someone's fate past his will, his life and make a drastic change toward history; and he hated it. He hated how he was to watch the general became knowing to the path ahead of him and he loathed how he was to make the final judgment to his love's life. Yet, he does not know what decision he needs to make to keep the third Tiger General alive.
Feeling the momentary spun from the Tiger General, as those masculine back turned toward him, Zhuge Liang frowned slightly at Zhao Yun's placidly arched back. The darkened figure of the tiger general only blazed with a mild vermillion of the torch, as he was unable to accept what did the strategist said to him. From there, he turned to meet the roughly hardened gaze of the strategist.
Zhuge Liang only nodded to confirm his words.
"Why?" The general asked meekly, stabbing the strategist's soul with a million shards. Unable to meet the fierce warrior's stricken features, Zhuge Liang only watched the rustling leaves of the trees with such an eerie quietness that many would he easily thought he was the messenger of death. Fearing that the question fell on deaf ears, Zhao Yun repeated his strangled words in a hushed whisper, "Why…?"
Those questions forced cracks upon the robe of silence that Zhuge Liang wielded ever since those accursed words spilled before his lips. The Prime Minister of Shu's imperative gaze met those sparkling, shocked eyes from the general. His teeth gritted silently as the words finally could not hold behind his calm features anymore, and along with it a slight frustration was brought along his tone, yet an eerie softness still flowed upon his voice, "I cannot figure out why either, Zilong. If this was something I could push away from the road of fate, I would do so. I would do anything to avoid that fate from falling upon you, but I am just a mere mortal…"
The strategist's tone almost suffered at the words that had just spilled second either as his lips sprout out the last with only a breath, "Who am I to play the role of god and fate…?"
It was a struggle of emotions to hear the Prime Minister spoke such lost words. There was one last piece of puzzle that had been left untouched by the Sleeping Dragon and Zhao Yun had it fumbling under those blood-tainted fingers, feeling his voice and stress broke, he feels the need to give it to the strategist.
"Kongming…"
Zhuge Liang's attention immediately snapped onto the naked honest eyes of the Tiger General's, just as the Little Dragon took a deep breath of his very own; unknowing the consequences and beyond of handing the only missing piece from the future. Feeling his voice weakened, only a mere whisper broke into the tensed air that surrounded them, "No one is in the role to play around with fate… but… I…" closing his delicate emeralds, Zhao Yun inhaled the fresh seasoned air of the nature, "I have to tell you that…"
"Lord Zhuge Liang."
Feeling that breaking of tension snapped on the air, Lu Xun only interrupted the Tiger General from anymore further declaration of his own dreads. Those eagle orbs only flickered in the complete darkness of the outer circle as the flames only allowed his golden trims to flicker with a strange holiness, almost fate had sent the calm, respecting pyromaniac to stop the interruption of the flow of the upcoming.
"I apologize for interrupting, but Lord Zhuge Liang, there is a very important matter you must attend to…" Bowing with a humble charm, Lu Xun only looked apologetic of doing everything that fate needs him to do; unknowingly of his own will. The Tiger General only frowned at the urgency that rang within the younger Prime Minister's however, feeling that he had been stopped from changing fate as the wind only picked a howl of the rustling leaves.
The Sleeping Dragon immediately showed a sign of hesitation as his sable eyes shot a sign of disappointment and unwillingness to leave with the pyromaniac of Wu, struggling with the option of the urgent matter. There wasn't any choice for the fierce general however, as he only nodded reluctantly, sending away the older Prime Minister to attend the matter and throwing away his only opportunity to tell the most important thing in his life.
Just as the shadows overtook Zhuge Liang's retreating form, the flashing sadness and hatred of the viridian eyes only lowered Zhao Yun's head at a struggling emotion as a sole tear fell silently and soundlessly on the delicate meadow.
"Is this it? The fact that I could not tell him to stay away from altering my path to death… the fact that I am in no position to play around with fate…" Silently whispered, Zhao Yun became unable to hold his crumbling emotion anymore, more than a few tears splashed at the soil, lamenting along with the general, "Fate told me you are going to die, and there is not even one thing I could do to save you from it…"
At the hushed whisper, even nature became still at the voice that spoken to no one but his thoughts… After a long moment of unvoiced tears, a wind picked the lamentation along with his flow… speaking an unheard answer.
The silence only continued between the two Prime Ministers as they receded into the pyromaniac's neatly packed tent, only the echoes of their calm breathings flowed into the thickening stillness; before breaking as Lu Xun spoke his unconfirmed suspicion, "You know it is tonight, you should know that they are coming tonight… and yet… you do nothing about it?"
As the accusation only waken the Sleeping Dragon's eyes, disturbed by those missing words from the Little Dragon, his ebony only flickered with a slight guilt, bringing his insecure words along, "We are down to no defense... our troops are barely ready… there are only two patrol teams available… It is quite obvious."
"Why? He is going to be in danger… we poured more than our limits into bringing him back… why doing this now? You are hurting yourself and him as well. You… are going to hurt all of us and ascend death on some of the unprepared…" Lu Xun's eyes only flared with a puff of disappointment at the older Prime Minister, as his voice held the anger at the Sleeping Dragon.
"I know… Dismissing most of our troops and lowering our defense intentionally, I am forcing them to attack late in the midnight."
A slight confusion only frowned at Zhuge Liang's intentions. As Lu Xun did not hide it, the Sleeping Dragon only let out a sad chuckle of his own guiltiness, "I am selfish for doing this… I am sacrificing everyone just to know what do they want him for… him, my possible other half, the person that might completes my life… and I am sacrificing him."
"You really do love him… but knowing why they want him will not do anything good… unless I am missing something, of course." Lu Xun only frowned as he spoke his thoughts softly, allowing the Sleeping Dragon to hear his presence.
"Because I am almost certain it involves me."
Lu Xun's feral eyes only widen at the skeptical response, he had expected the Prime Minister to speak something out of a justified cause. However, speaking about sacrificing a warrior that had never known about the wavering mind of the Sleeping Dragon was beyond cruelty. Especially to come to believe that the Tiger General do love the man back, it only flickered a spark within Lu Xun's soul as time stopped for him to recapture those repeating words.
"That is beyond cruelty! Sacrificing your love for yourself is a selfish act, Lord Zhuge Liang!" At the tone of accusation, the Sleeping Dragon only stared, frowning, at the pyromaniac. The Prime Minister of Wu did not stop however, his golden eyes brought the flames of his soul upon his once-collected surface as he threw the last bit of words toward the older strategist, "And I thought you were a honorable and concerning man!"
Sealing himself into darkness, Zhuge Liang could not but to feel as Lu Xun have spoken the truth; even the fact that the young pyromaniac wasn't meant to know that the elder strategist took a liking on one of the Tiger Generals of Shu have skipped passed his mind. His voice was soft and carried a great burden as it cracked the following silence of the burst, "True as your word brings…"
"As true as it might be, why can't you reconsider? It couldn't be too late, even as midnight is closing in!" Lu Xun urged as his feral eyes proved the shallow emotion of wanting those two to reunite together out of good will. However, the rapid stepping of mud is being crushed under weights of a body immediately brought shivers toward the pyromaniac's spine, betraying his words of reassurance within that split second; his eyes darting to the entrance toward his own tent.
"Too late." Was all Zhuge Liang managed to spoke with his tender voice as he calmly recollect his gaze as a weathered Jiang Wei dashed into the tent, grasping dearly to his breath. The Sleeping Dragon only gave a reassuring nod, knowing what his apprentice here was to speak about and gently squeezed the sweat glistening Jiang Wei, "But not too late to change the course of history."
Those twinkling brown eyes only shot up toward his master, his mentor, as an unidentified sense of betrayal washed over him. Zhuge Liang only winced at those eyes, eyes that raged with a curious beast asking why with a touch of bitter pain of betrayal. Feeling another impact mentally, the Prime Minister of Shu only silently begged Lu Xun to explain to his apprentice after this.
A nod was what he got in return, "I will arrange everything else. Please hurry, Lord Zhuge Liang."
The heartening words of the Prime Minister of Wu were all the Sleeping Dragon needed to hasten toward to the Little Dragon and rescue the other dragon that now lingered on the edge danger.
End of Chapter
Author's Note: Sorry for the long, long, long three months wait. Anyway, a late Merry Christmas to those who have read this late chapter. .