Enjoy!

Chapter Four

Zhou Yu paced in his tent, running his hands through his hair, getting a finger caught on the headband he lowered his hands, relieving the finger of its capture. Instead he folded his hands behind his back. "We need a way to lower the enemy's defenses quickly and easily." He thought to himself, another habit he had picked up from working as Wu's head strategist. "Gan Ning could do it…after all, he was a pirate. If we could get him to scale the enemies wall and start a fire, which would increase our success. Wei has already started to get ready for a battle…they must have been the ones who did…this." He winced, surveying his feminine body in the mirror, before going back to pacing.

"Zhou Yu? You in there bro?" Sun Ce called, flipping back the flap and entering. His eyes fell immediately on his sworn brother and he smiled cockily, "Should I call you sis now, wouldn't that be more fitting?" Zhou Yu narrowed his deep brown eyes at him, returning to his pacing.

"Really Sun Ce, we are about to go into a battle, have a little more concentration. I would hate for you to die today or tomorrow, at least survive past your father." Zhou Yu chided, his continuous pacing never faltering.

"Okay then, battle, and don't get yourself killed." Sun Ce said to himself. "There, I concentrated! So, what are you thinking about?" He threw himself on his sworn brother's pallet, watching Zhou Yu pace, twirling a tonfa in his hand.

"Battle strategies Sun Ce, so we can win this battle. We need Gan Ning to set fire to the enemy camp, where is he? Also, we shall need to place archers in the woods; Huang Gai will be needed to lead them. He is a good marks man, we can place traps of oil on the ground, and when his bombs hit, the damage to the enemy ranks shall be tremendous. Lu Xun shall lead the infantry, and Lu Meng shall be the main defense." He turned around and looked into Sun Ce's eyes, noting his approval. "And You, Sun Shang Xiang, and I shall raid the enemy camp, after the flames have been lit."

"Sounds good to me, lets tell Pop about the plan and YOU need to get ready."

Gan Ning was deathly quiet. Not even the bells which he wore about his neck made a sound. With his sword between his teeth, he scales the wall of the enemy camp. The guard's above him had no idea he was there, it was so early in the morning that it was still dark. 'My old pirate skills are coming in handy after all,' He thought silently to himself, as he hunched beneath the top of the wall, waiting for the guard to pass. 'Come on ya' freakin' man or I'll kill ya' now!' He could feel his grip starting to slip, as the guard finally walked off. Swinging silently onto the platform, he unslung his bow and took out an arrow. 'Now to light it, and send this camp into flames!'

He smirked, seeing a torch about five feet from him, and dipped the tip in the oil and fire. Aiming toward a tent, he let the arrow fly. Anyone watching would have seen a quick streak of light, and nothing more. He knew three people who were watching, as he grinned cockily, looking at the tent burst up in flames, as he slung his bow and leapt off the wall, hearing the shrieks of soldiers as praise for his carnage.

He disappeared into the woods, so the enemy would not see who started the fire. 'And so, Wu starts the battle, not that damned Cao Cao!' he shouldered his blade and sauntered back through the wood's, hearing the soft clopping of three horses on the path.

Sun Shang Xiang, Sun Ce, and Zhou Yu waited patiently for the flaming arrow to appear in the sky. Or at least Zhou Yu waited patiently; Sun Shang Xiang and Sun Ce both were pacing aside their black horses restlessly. Normally Zhou Yu would be the only one pacing, though he failed to notice it when he did. Personally, they all preferred white horses, but for this raid to succeed, they had to have black ones. Zhou Yu was growing attached to the young this young steed's spirit, if he was lucky, he would be able to keep the horse for use in later battles.

"Come on you lazy pirate! What are you doing?" Sun Shang Xiang cried heatedly, idly fiddling with the reins of her horse. Sun Ce glanced at his little sister from where he was pacing, swinging his Tonfa's at his side.

Zhou Yu sighed, keeping his eyes on the night sky. He stubbornly refused to wear the dress his wife had wanted him to wear for war. Instead, he was dressed in his usual battle garb. It was slightly baggy on him, but he didn't mind too much, as long at it didn't hinder his fighting. A streak of light suddenly flew threw the sky, and he kicked his horse into motion. "Come! It has been lit!"

The three General's galloped down the small rise they were on, down the path and towards the fiery mass that was the Wei camp. Zhou Yu quickly threw a cloth over his steed's glistening eyes, as he and his comrades flew over the burning gate and into the burning camp. "Hah!" He plunged his sword into the chest of a frightened soldier before the man could run.

"We're under attack!" He heard the frantic screams of the soldiers around him. He swung his sword and eliminated two more of the soldiers. He cut off a man's shriek with a simple swipe of his blade.

"Oh yeah! This is great, action at last!" Sun Ce cried, whipping his Tonfa's about him and ending several soldiers' life with a simple blow about him. He laughed viciously, as a tower collapsed in front of him, the noise scaring the horse into rearing on its hind legs. Sun Ce grabbed the reins and slashed another brave soldier.

"Huh!" Sun Shang Xiang threw her Golden Chakram's from her, slicing up a few bodies as they returned to their awaiting mistress. "We could wipe out half the army at the pace we're going!" She cried, slashing the spearhead of a soldier with her right chakram and slicing his head away.

"This is just a quick in and out! Don't stay in one place for long!" Zhou Yu called, taking a glance behind him, seeing Zhang He, a General he had hoped to avoid, coming towards them. "Not good! Zhang He's unit is heading our way, move out!" He said, slashing more soldiers, turning his horse around and galloping straight for the General.

"Zhou Yu! What are you doing!" Sun Ce made to dash after his sworn brother. He turned too quickly, however, and his horse reared, throwing its rider and dashing away. He felt a spasm of pain as he hit the ground, singing his hair and arm on a piece of burning wood.

"Sun Ce!" Sun Shang Xiang cried, turning her blinded horse around and trotting toward her older brother. "Jump on! We need to get Zhou Yu!" He leapt on the horse as it ran by, and she kicked the midnight colored horse into a gallop.

Zhou Yu read the surprise on Zhang He's face as he flew by, bringing the sword down and leaving a stinging blow on the young General's chest. He heard the cry of pain and metal clashing with metal, before he commanded his faithful horse to leap a burning log of wood, its high flames slightly singing his clothing and hair, before he was threw the wall of flames and out of the chaos.

He heard the galloping of hooves behind him, as Sun Shang Xiang and Sun Ce came into vision beside him. "What was that! Don't you realize you could have been killed!" Sun Ce snapped, glaring at his sworn brother.

"Of course, but, it was only a probability of death going that way, it was an inescapable death fleeing the other way. Sun Ce stared dumbfounded at him.

"What do you mean?" Sun Shang Xiang asked, a puzzled expression on her face as she relaxed her hold on the reins.

"If you surprise the enemy, such as heading right for him instead of running away, they would stop and the thought they had been thinking at the time would have been eliminated for long enough so that you could get away safely. Do you understand?" Zhou Yu asked, uncovering his horses eyes, now that the danger was gone.

Sun Shang Xiang nodded, "It makes sense….in a strange way," she nodded, and looked behind her. "They're following us…I think Cao Cao is with them." She turned back around to see a rare smile grace Zhou Yu's face.

"That's what we want right?" Sun Ce asked, looking around as well, and noting the fact that a man with a beard was coming up fast.

"Yes, it is exactly what we want." Zhou Yu urged his horse to a gallop, to make the ploy seem believable. Shang Xiang followed his example, and they raced passed the gate, they all noted how all the forces were ready for battle, the soldiers had confident looks on their faces, someone had boosted their morale.

Zhou Yu pulled his horse along side Lu Xun's own and dropped the reins, the horse made a soft noise, keeping still for his master. Loading and raising his bow towards the sky, he drew back the string and waited for a command from Lu Meng. He heard a whisper of praise from behind him, immediately recognizing the voice as Sun Jian's. He nodded silently, as all of the archer's and Generals mimicked him, not making a sound.

Lu Meng raised his arm and gave it a quick flick, sending a flood of unlit arrows into the graying sky. They heard several cries of pain and final shrieks of death, as arrows hit from both the front and the sides. A large boom filled the air as Huang Gai threw a bomb on the oil traps, sending the enemy forces into a blazing array of confusion and heat.

"Charge!" Lu Xun's young, newly feminine voice could be heard, and the forces flooded out of the gates, the flames lit up the sky. Zhou Yu found himself galloping towards a wall of flame once again, and with a shout, he and his loyal steed jumped threw the wall of fire.

The horse gave a great whinny as a sword launched itself into its chest, throwing its rider forward onto the grass. Zhou Yu winced as he hit the ground, looking into the great bottomless pits of the horses eyes, he saw the light die in its eyes, its fiery spirit struggling to hang on, it drew itself up on its hind legs and gave what sounded like a roar, catching its killer in the chest and kicking the man into the group of soldiers, before it dropped to the ground and heaved one last laborious breath.

Zhou Yu's headband was lost in the fire, making his hair spill onto his face. The horse's killer was Cao Cao; he recognized the sword sticking from the horse's chest. He took it out of the chest with one almighty tug and threw it at the Wei commander's feet. "Go back where you came from, Wei filth." His rage was tremendous. He had grown fond of the steed's abilities, and had hoped to use it more often.

Instead of leaving, Cao Cao laughed, getting up his feet and picking up his sword. "You really think a mere maiden is going to stop me from taking over Wu!" As a reply, Zhou Yu launched himself at Cao Cao, catching the leader of guard, slashing his chest.

"No Cao Cao, you have met me on many occasions." He whispered in the enemy Commander's ear, as they crossed blades, now having a stalemate battle. Zhou Yu could feel his strength ebbing, and Cao Cao gained the upper hand, as the strategist's strength failed him. Cao Cao was able to bring the flat of his sword down on the Zhou Yu's shoulder, before the man was stabbed in the abdominal area by his own lunge, for Zhou Yu had turned his blade down, reading Cao Cao's moved perfectly.

"Ungh!" Cao Cao grunted, "Retreat!" He shouted, staggering back and starting back towards the camp, followed by what was left of the troop's that had accompanied him. Zhou Yu collapsed on the soil, the satisfaction of victory diminishing in a cloud of intense pain from his shoulder, as the world around him blackened and disappeared into darkness.

Ah, How wonderful of a chapter! I hope the characters are still in character, and I hope you still enjoyed it!

Review responses:

GanSing: Thank-you so much! You really believe so? I tried not to distinguish too much between love and simple duty….I'm glad you enjoyed:o)

Sideways: Oh no, you get what everyone else does, you will have to determine the pairings as you read:o)

Bebe Gurrl: Lol! Thanks:o)

Isarandel:Bows dramatically: Thank-you so much:o)

WindsOfEternity: Thanks! I hope you enjoyed this! I really love your honest feedback:o)

Firesaddle: well, as you could see, Gan Ning played a special part in this, just for you! Thank-you so much for reviewing:o)

I hope you all enjoy this! Don't worry, there will be more Lu Xun in the next chapter, I promise:o)

Please Review!