A/N: Sorry for the delay on this one. Work schedule has been hectic.

*Jin – soft caps that males wear.

**I refer to Zhang He as Jùnyì because using his name (He) tends to get a bit confusing after a bit.

***I refer to Yue Jin as Wenqian and Yu Jin as Jin (unless someone is addressing him, then his style name is used) to avoid confusion.

Xiahou Yuan – Miàocái
Cao Cao – Mèngdé
Guan Yu – Yúncháng
Guo Jia – Fèngxiào
Xiahou Dun – Yuánràng

Xu Zhu – Zhòngkāng
Liu Bei – Xuándé
Zhang He – Jùnyì
Guo Tu – Gōngzé
Yuan Shang - Xiǎnfǔ
Tian Feng – Yuanhao
Yue Jin – Wenqian
Yu Jin – Wenze
Zhou Yu – Gōngjǐn
Sun Quan – Zhòngmóu
Zhou Tai – Yòupíng
Sun Ce – Bófú
Cao Ren – Zǐxiào
Cao Chong – Cangshu
Cao Chun – Zihe
Yuan Shao –

Xu You - Zǐyuǎn

Guan Yu strolled down the dusty streets of Xiapi. The sun hung high in the sky, but the overcast prevented it from being unbearably hot. He watched as the denizens of Xiapi scurried out of his path. Once, these same people would line up just to give he and his brothers fruits and grain to thank them for their hard work; now they shied away and shot him hateful glances. It seems word of their bloody coup had reached the people's ears and soured their view of them. Yu was not bothered by this. He knew that since Cao took over the province, the people reached a level of stability and prosperity they hadn't achieved in years. The people were endeared to Cao because of this; it blinded them, but he was he was certain that in time they would open their eyes and remember his brother's benevolence.

A strong breeze hit, kicking up the dust around him. Yu turned his head to the sky, his beard billowing in the wind. There was something about that wind that didn't feel quite right. It was if it carried an ill omen on its wings.

Perhaps his brother did not have much success in convincing Yuan Shao to attack Cao Cao. He should send a messenger to get an update on the situation. He found it strange Bei hadn't sent anything to him as of yet. He was usually good about keeping him abreast of all that was happening.

Yu was no longer in the mood for a stroll. He needed to get his mind off the feeling of dread that had rooted itself in there. He would go back to his fort, get some food and drink and perhaps find a woman to bed; anything to keep his mind off of this, for now at least.

=#=

Hours passed and night had fallen. Guan Yu had accomplished all three of his goals, the last of which was still curled up against his body, fast asleep. He ran the hand he had still wrapped around her along her waist. She shuddered in reply but did not wake. Unfortunately, his momentary distractions was just that. Now that his food was mostly digested, the buzz from the wine had gone, and the blissful feeling of content one gets after having sex started to fade, the same worries that plagued him earlier had returned. He knew he wouldn't feel at ease until he wrote his brothers to find out what was going on.

Yu nudged the woman and she rolled to the opposite side of the bed. Free from her grasp, Yu moved to get out of the bed. His foot had just touched down on carpet that surrounded his bed when he heard the sound of boots thudding against the wooden floor just outside of his door. He had barely managed to grab hold of his weapon when the door exploded inward; jagged wooden fragments large and small showering the room's inhabitants. The courtesan, now wide awake let out an ear piercing scream as she tried to shield herself from the debris that flew toward her as Cao's forces flooded the room.

Yu reacted immediately, bringing his guandao around, ready to strike at his nearest foe when an arrow landed with a thud between his legs.

"Don't move a muscle. Don't even twitch. That's a ridiculously small target you got there, but I'm so damn good I guarantee you I can hit it."

Yu looked up to see Xiahou Yuan standing with his men; his bow raised, an arrow notched and pointing straight at his exposed groin. He was grossly outnumbered and he didn't relish the idea of having an arrow shot at his penis so he lowered his guandao and tossed it to the floor making a muffled thud as it hit the carpet it landed upon.

"Can I at least get dressed?" Yu asked as he folded his arms across his chest.

"I would be embarrassed by that little thing you call a dick too, but no, you can't get dressed. Fuck your modesty. I have little empathy for assholes that kidnap children."

He knew he referred to Xiahouji. Xun Yu mentioned that she was part of the Xiahou family which meant that Xiahou Yuan would be understandably upset about her abduction. He could have explained that he and Zhao Yun attempted to get her home or that he wasn't the person that kidnapped her, it was his sworn brother, but he didn't. He wouldn't put the burden squarely on Fei's shoulders and sacrifice his reputation for the sake of his own, even if he was solely to blame. Yu would remain silent and let Yuan vent his anger.

"You can get dressed though," Yuan said as an afterthought to the courtesan that had been trying to cover herself with her hands to avoid the inquisitive eyes of Cao's troops.

"Get this asshole out of here so the lady can change," Yuan ordered his men.

His forces surrounded Yu and with their weapons trained on him, they herded him out of the room with Yuan following after them. They emerged from the fort and Yu saw that even if he had managed to defeat all of the troops inside of his bed chamber, he would have had to contend with what looked like the entirety of Cao's army.

Several of Cao's generals waited outside as well as a large number of his troops. Cao pulled out all the stops to capture him. Yu could hear snickering from a few of the troops, no doubt laughing at the humiliating position he had been put in by Yuan, but he paid it no heed. He walked with his head held high and tried not to shiver at the cold wind that nipped at his bare skin.

The crowd surrounding Yu parted and to his surprise, Cao Cao himself walked up to him. His eyes scanned Yu and he looked behind him, presumably at Yuan, with a frown.

"Miàocái, what is this?"

"It's a small dick Guan Yu, just like you asked for," Yuan replied as he walked from behind Yu to Cao's side.

"Why is he naked?"

"Gotta ask him that question, Mèngdé, this is how I found him."

"You could have let him get dressed," Cao chided.

Yuan shrugged. "You said bring him to you alive; you didn't mention anything about making sure he was properly dressed."

"That should be a given, Miàocái," Cao replied tersely.

"Be happy that I didn't put an arrow through his fucking head, Mèngdé. Had it been that drunk, I damn sure would have. There is only one person in Shu who I'll give respect to and he isn't him so take what you get."

"You are dismissed," Cao said with a hint of irritation in his voice.

"Yup," Yuan replied as he started to make his way over to the other generals. "Later tiny dick," he shouted over his shoulder to Yu, flipping him off as well for good measure. Yu did not react, but Cao pinched the bridge of his nose irritated with his cousin's antics.

"Forgive my cousin, Yúncháng. His anger eats at him."

"Your cousin's anger is…understandable."

"Still, you deserve to be treated better than this. Please, come to my tent. I will have someone retrieve your weapon and your clothing."

"I would appreciate getting away from so many prying eyes," Yu said in agreement.

Without another word spoken between them, Cao personally lead him away from the others with Dian Wei trailing behind them.

=#=

"I can't believe he intends to recruit him," said Yuan in disgust once he reached the others.

"Why not? Since you have known him, hasn't lord Cao shown that he values talent above everything else? You only need to look at our recent allies for evidence of that," said Jia as he folded his arms across his chest.

"You seem…irritated…," Zhuyue remarked as she pulled her eyes away from Cao and Yu and fixed them on Guo Jia.. Jia's normally relaxed posture was rigid. There was a soft patter as his boot tapped rapidly against the ground in a nervous manner and the whimsical smile that he seemed to always wear was noticeably absent. It had been a while since Zhuyue had seen Jia in such an agitated state.

"I thought from a strategic standpoint, you would be happy with having someone like Guan Yu on our side," she continued.

Dun scoffed at his wife's words. He did not think they needed Guan Yu. They already had strong warriors on their side and he felt that Cao was grossly overestimating Yu's worth. Zhuyue noticed her husband's disdain. She gave him a nudge with her elbow and shook her head as if to tell him that she didn't think he was useful, she was only making a point.

Jia watched the unspoken exchange with and for the first time since Cao made his intentions with Guan Yu known, he smiled. There were few things more entertaining than a sulking Dun. He would have to keep this in mind so he could tease him about it later. Now however, he wasn't in the mood. He felt that Cao was making a mistake in his plan to bring Yu over to their side. He tried to speak with him regarding this, but when Cao had his mind set on something, it was nearly impossible to make him change it.

"Personally, I wouldn't want to see a man like that in our army; but normally, you would be correct. Any strategist would welcome someone that would give their army an edge in battle; however, from a strategic standpoint, I am also against the attempt to recruit him."

"And why is that?" asked Jia Xu. He usually kept quiet during conversations such as these because he knew not many welcomed his presence, but he couldn't just sit by quietly.

As a strategist, he thought Cao's plan to bring Yu into their army was a brilliant one; which is why he was utterly confused to find out that Jia, a man whom he had respected as a fellow strategist and perhaps his better, was against it.

"Do you want my opinion as a strategist or as Fèngxiào?"

"Your opinion as a strategist. I know you aren't foolish enough to let your personal feelings get in the way of a potential asset to our army," Xu replied. "You know he is a talented warrior and having him on our side would definitely be a boon; he is also known for being an honorable man—"

"Honorable?" Yuan said with a scoff as he cut Xu off mid sentence. "You seem to forget that it was he and his brothers that kidnapped Xiahouji!"

"I was under the impression that Zhang Fei acted alone in that," Xu replied flatly.

"Yeah and according to Xiahouji, only Zhao Yun tried to help her. Those other pricks just sat there and let it happen. What honorable man would do that?" Yuan sucked his teeth in disgust and waved a dismissive hand at Xu.

"Why am I even talking to someone like you about honor? Your dishonorable tactics nearly killed Dian Wei! You don't know shit about honor."

Xu opened his mouth to speak, but wisely decided against it. He wanted to argue that he was doing what needed to be done to achieve victory, but he felt that his argument would fall on deaf ears. The men of Wei certainly knew how to hold a grudge.

Xu still thought they were wrong in opposing Guan Yu's recruitment. Of course he could understand the anger towards Fei and his sworn brothers, but he looked at the situation objectively. Yu wasn't the one who took her. While it is true that he may not have done much to help her, the fact remains that he did not commit the crime. Does his lack of action make him carry the same burden of guilt as Fei? Xu didn't think so. They would be losing a potentially powerful ally with that type of thinking. He wasn't sure if he should voice this opinion. It was clear that his was still disliked amongst the other Wei generals and it was clear that Yuan was getting upset. Any further comments would only stir the hornet's nest further. Luckily for him, Jia interjected himself back into the conversation.

"From a strategist's point of view I cannot deny that he would be an asset and I do believe he is honorable—"

Yuan and Dun gave him a look that made him raise his hands in surrender and correct his previous statement. "I do believe he is honorable to a degree, that is."

This seemed to appease the brothers somewhat as they lessened the intensity of their glares.

"And it is because of that honor that I believe lord Cao is wasting his time," Jia continued. "He is Liu Bei's sworn brother. That is not an alliance one makes lightly. An honorable man would not betray their sworn brother easily and if he did betray that oath for a few trinkets, he isn't the type of man we would want in our army anyway. As I have told you before, Wénhé, no matter how strong someone may be, if they cannot be trusted, they cannot be taken as allies."

Xu remembered Jia's words. He said them to him when he questioned why Cao decided to kill Lu Bu instead of having him join the army. After hearing Jia's reasoning, he realized that he was absolutely correct. They would never be able to fully trust Guan Yu, especially in matters concerning Liu Bei. Xu let out a soft laugh. How could he not have thought about that before? He was only thinking about it from one angle, but Jia had looked at it from every angle. Jia was still so far ahead of him. Sometimes Xu wondered if he would ever catch up to him.

"Would I be right in assuming that you have all prepared for the march to Xiaopei already? I mean, you must have if you have time to sit around and gossip."

The group turned to see a frowning Cao Pi standing behind them with arms crossed in front of his chest.

"We shall get on that immediately, my lord," said Jia with a forced smile.

"Good…and may I remind you that you serve my father. It is not your place to question his decisions."

"So you would prefer that we stay silent while he makes a decision that could do more harm to this army than good?" Dun asked as he leveled Pi with a glare.

Pi returned the glare, his eyes focused on Dun's, unflinching. "Last I checked, cousin, you are not a strategist. Your opinion holds no weight," said Pi in an icy tone.

Dun clenched his teeth as he narrowed his eyes at Pi. He never really got along with his younger cousin. The kid was entirely too arrogant for his taste. He wondered how angry Cao Cao would be if he gave him a black eye. In his opinion, it would do wonders to approve that attitude of his. Jia, sensing the tension between the two stepped in to defuse the situation.

"Yet your father still trusts his council. A wise man does not close his ears from good advice just because he does not like the source…as I am sure you already know," said Jia.

Pi turned his back to the group.

"Just get ready," he said sharply before walking away.

"Tch, Mèngdé better not die because I really don't want to serve that little shit," Yuan muttered.

"Come Miàocái," said Jia as he threw an arm around the man in question. "Let's hurry and get everything ready for our march. When that's all done, for that clever little prank you pulled with Guan Yu, I think you deserve a drink from my private stash."

"Well, well, well, getting a drink from your stash is quite the motivator. Let's go!"

The group dispersed with Yuan leading the way to prepare for the march on Xiaopei.

=#=

Cao led the way to his tent. Xu Zhu, who had been standing guard in front of it, gave his master a bright smile before saluting him. His eyes roamed over to Yu and he stared at him with unmasked curiosity, but he knew better than to question his lord on the strange sight before him.

"Zhòngkāng," Cao began as he clapped the man on the shoulder.

"Yes, my lord?" Zhu replied in his normal jovial tone.

"Please retrieve Yúncháng's weapon and clothing. Bring them to me immediately."

"Okay!" Zhu replied happily as he bounded off to do what his master commanded.

"It shouldn't be long, let us go inside, shall we?"

He may have framed it as a question, but Cao did not wait for an answer. He stepped through the mouth of the tent fully expecting Yu to follow after him. Yu hesitated, debating whether he should take a chance and run away. He decided against it. It was obvious Cao wanted something from him; else he would have been bound or killed on the spot.

"Move it," said Wei. There was undeniable hostility in his voice when he spoke. Yu turned around to look at the man in the eye; both glowering at each other, unflinching.

"What is taking you both so long?" said Cao from within the tent. Yu finally relented in his glare and passed through the tent's threshold to find Cao within sitting down.

"Finally," Cao remarked once Yu entered. Wei entered shortly after, and Cao noted the dark look that marked his visage.

"A drink?" Cao asked Yu.

"No thank you."

Cao shrugged and poured himself one. He drained the cup quickly and filled it once more, this time setting it aside.

"You look as if you have something to ask," said Cao as he rested his elbow on the arm of his chair and propped his head up with his hand.

"I was merely wondering how you managed to get into Xiapi without my knowledge."

Cao's lips curled into a smile.

"You forget that the troops you had were mine. Surely you did not think that simply because I loaned them to you to handle Yuan Shu that they had so readily changed allegiance to you and your sworn brothers."

In fact, Guan Yu did think that. They seemed to take orders without question and they never showed any discontent. Who knew that they were merely lying in wait for the chance to return to their true master? A frightening thought suddenly came to Yu. Liu Bei was in trouble as he took more than half the troops that Cao had given them with him.

"There is also the fact that the way you and your sworn brothers took Xiapi did not sit well with many of its people. They were more than willing to help depose you and put its true ruler back in place.

Yu frowned. "Tao Qian gave this land to my brother. By right, this land belongs to him, not you. He was merely taking back what was his."

"In case you forgot, it was your brother's incompetence that lost this province in the first place."

"It was my brother's kindness that cost him this land…not incompetence."

"Putting his trust in a wicked man such as Lu Bu is incompetence…but I suppose I am guilty of the same for putting my faith in your brother, for he stole the province from much just as Lu Bu stole it from him."

The truth of those words was not lost on Yu, but he refused to agree with them. From one point of view, what Bei did was akin to what Lu Bu did, but Yu knew that his brother was justified. The region was originally given to him and Cao stole it as penance for helping him with Lu Bu. It was never his to take. He was merely taking back what was his.

"I believe when history tells of this tale, there are those that will agree with my brother's actions."

"And yet the people that live in the province now sided with me and not him. Why do you think that is?"

"They have obviously been blinded by you and your false promises."

Cao let out a hearty laugh. "Is that what you think? I only gave the people false promises to appease them? Have you looked around Xiapi? Since I took over rule of Xu Province, the people have enjoyed prosperity that they didn't achieve even under the rule of Tao Qian. Your brother wasn't a much better ruler. That couldn't have been done with a mere promise. The people sided with me because who in their right minds would want to return to a time of instability? It doesn't matter how benevolent your sworn brother claims to be, the people respond to results."

Yu could feel anger rising up within him. He didn't like Cao speaking so poorly of his sworn brother. Even though Yu tried to hide it, Cao could see the agitation on his face. He decided to push a little further.

"The people were so against your brother, they even killed his messenger."

This was a stretch of the truth. It was actually Cao's soldiers that killed Liu Bei's messenger, but the people were more than willing to give said soldiers information on the messenger's identity and whereabouts. Their information sealed his fate which made them as liable for his death as the soldiers that actually slew him. They didn't balk at the generous reward Cao handed them for their role in his death either.

Yu's eyes widened. So his brother had tried to send him a message? He knew something was off! Yu had to steady himself. The urge to run out of the tent and punish those traitorous bastards was nearly unbearable. Liu Bei was the one appointed by Tao Qian to rule them. How could they turn on him so easily? Yu took several deep breathes to calm himself. He no longer wished to play this game with Cao. He wanted to either be killed or imprisoned, but he didn't want to sit here and be baited any longer.

"Why am I here? Why am I not bound or dead?"

Cao let out a chuckle. "Why would I want to kill you?"

"As you said, my brother betrayed you. I willingly helped him in this and I would gladly do so again. The better question would be why would you not want to kill me?"

"Because your death would be a waste," Cao replied. "You are a warrior of exceptional talent; talent that has been wasted under Liu Bei's leadership."

"It has not been wasted. My brother fights for a better land."

"Your brother fights for a flowery ideal that cannot be attained in reality."

"He can do it. He WILL do it."

"He won't. He will die before his foolish ambition is realized."

"I swear to fight till my dying breath to ensure that he does."

Cao smiled. "Your loyalty is inspiring…"

"My lord! I have what you told me to get!" interrupted Xu Zhu.

"Enter," Cao commanded. The large man entered the tent with a wide smile. In his hand he held a sloppily tied bundle which contained Yu's clothing and over his shoulder was Yu's Guandao.

"Here ya go!" he said as he handed Guan Yu the clothing bundle.

"Thank you," Yu replied as he took the bundle from him, his eyes on the guandao hefted on Zhu's shoulders.

If he could just get his weapon in his hands, perhaps he could at least kill Cao Cao. He would most likely die in the process, but if he could kill Cao, his sacrifice would help bring Liu Bei that much closer to achieving his goal. The problem with this plan was the person holding the weapon.

Behind Zhu's wide smile, Yu saw an imposing man. He was certain that overpowering him to get his weapon back wouldn't' be an easy task. It may even be an impossible one. His eyes shifted to Dian Wei who was watching his every move like a hawk. No, he wouldn't be able to get away with it. Best he continues to play along for now. His chance will come.

Yu unwrapped the bundle to see his casual robes balled up hastily inside. His armor was not among it. He shouldn't have been surprised. Despite Cao's cordial attitude, he was still a prisoner.

"Anything else, lord Cao?" Zhu asked.

"Take our esteemed guest weapon and armor and put them under guard," Cao replied.

"Okay!" Zhu replied.

He attempted to salute but realized it was difficult to do without letting go of the weapon. Eventually he gave up on attempting the salute and settled for a bow. Proper respects paid, Zhu headed out of the tent with a little hum leaving Dian Wei to roll his eyes at his antics. He didn't understand how he could be so damn happy all the time, especially when doing such menial tasks.

"Let me get to the point, Yúncháng. I wish for you to join my army," said Cao once Zhu was gone.

"No," Yu replied quickly.

Cao smiled. "I expected that to be your answer, your loyalty being what it is. But you are much to hasty, you have not heard my proposition—"

"It matters not," Yu interrupted. "I will not betray my brother."

"I understand. You were our enemy only moments ago. You need time to think about your current position. Unfortunately, for now, you are a prisoner and must be treated as such, but I assure you, you will not suffer any further indignities as you have today."

Cao claimed he understood but how could he? Yu made it painfully clear that he would not betray his brother yet he still expected him to change his mind? He was sorely mistaken. He knew his brothers and he knew that he would not be in Cao's capture for long. They will rescue him. He only had to wait for that day.

"Dian Wei, you will keep watch over our dear guest. Ensure that he gets whatever he needs…within reason of course."

Wei frowned. He did not like this idea at all. He was Cao's bodyguard, not a babysitter for this asshole. Despite his feelings, Wei would not disobey Cao's order. He lowered his head so Cao wouldn't see the scowling face he was making and saluted his master before escorting a frowning Yu out of the tent.

=#=

- Over a week later -

"Something is wrong," said Liu Bei to his council. The others in the room mumbled their agreement.

"We definitely should have heard something back from brother Yúncháng by now," said Fei with a frown.

More murmurs of agreement filtered throughout the room but it looked as if no one had any idea of how they should proceed. Resolved, Fei slammed his fist into his open palm.

"Brother, I wish to go check on him."

Bei rubbed his chin. "I think that might be best. I am worried about him as well."

"My lord, may I remind you of our plan to stay within Xiaopei's walls? For all we know, Cao Cao is on his way to us as we speak," Xun Yu cautioned.

"And what of our brother? Are you saying we should just leave him at Cao's mercy without any support at all?" asked Fei angrily.

Yu would have usually ignored Fei, but he could see his concern echoed in Bei's eyes. He needed to stop him from doing something irrational.

"You said it yourself, it is strange that we haven't heard from Yúncháng by now. I believe the reason for that is we were wrong in our original assumption. Cao Cao went for Xiapi first."

Fei crossed the room to where Yu was standing and grabbed him by the collar of his robe. Zhao Yun moved to intervene but Yu rose a hand to stop him.

"We were wrong?! You were the one that said Cao Cao would come here first! We did not properly back up our brother because we listened to you!" Fei shouted in Yu's face.

Yu turned his head to avoid the spittle flying from Fei's mouth as he spoke. He should have been upset by the fact that Bei hadn't stepped in to stop this, but he honestly wasn't surprised. He learned long ago that Bei was disturbingly lax when it came to his sworn brother's unsettling behavior.

"Contrary to what you may think, I do not definitively know of Cao Cao's plans. I can only guess at them. I present my thoughts to Lord Xuándé and it is up to him to decide whether he will take my suggestions or not," Yu replied calmly.

Fei shook Yu roughly, his face growing red as his anger intensified.

"You are trying to blame this on brother?! How dare you!"

This situation was rapidly growing out of hand. Zhao Yun looked to Bei and saw that he made no move to stop what was happening. A wave of disappoint washed over him, an all too familiar feeling as of late. If Bei would not do anything about this, he would. Yun only managed to take one step in their direction when a soldier burst into the hall.

"We're under attack!"

Bei finally reacted. He shot out of his seat, a wild look of alarm in his eyes.

"By Cao Cao?!"

"Yes my lord!" the soldier confirmed.

Fei shoved Yu aside causing the man to stumble a few steps a few steps before regaining his footing.

"How many?" Fei demanded.

The soldier swallowed hard and with a trembling voice he responded.

"It looks like several thousand. We are outnumbered."

Fei glared at Yu. He didn't say a word, but he didn't need to. Yu knew exactly what that glare meant. He was wrong again. Cao didn't just bring a small contingent of soldiers, he brought his whole army. How did that even make sense? Why would he leave his flank open to Yuan Shao? Was he truly willing to risk defeat just to get rid of Liu Bei? Did his hate for the man run that deep? Cao's tactics defied logic. How could they possibly expect him to predict something like this?

"Brother, we need to prepare for battle," said Fei.

"Yes," Bei agreed, let's go."

Bei and his men rushed out of the castle, intent on meeting up with their troops to prepare for battle only to find that sounds of battle already rent the air.

"W-what is going on?" Bei stammered.

Fei turned to the soldier with a growl.

"You failed to mention that they had already breached our walls fool!"

"T-they hadn't' my lord, I swear! They were on approach!"

A soldier came barreling towards them, nearly tripping over his own feet in his urgency.

"My lord!" he shouted once he was in range. He paused for a brief second to suck in a breath before delivering his message.

"My lord," he repeated. "You must flee. We have been betrayed. The soldiers you received from Cao Cao, they have turned on us.

Bei's eyes widened and Fei let out a string of curses. It was Yu who was the first to recover.

"My lord, we need to flee."

"No!" Fei shouted angrily. I say we fight. We can't keep running with our tail between our legs!"

"Are you simple?" Yu asked angrily. "Do you not grasp the situation we are in? Cao most likely has his whole army bearing down on us. The troops he gave us have betrayed us and will give him access to the castle. We have no chance of victory. This battle was over before it began. We will die if we fight."

Fei sucked his teeth in annoyance and tried to turn his back to Yu, but he would not be daunted. He maneuvered himself in front of Fei and to the man's surprise, grabbed him imploringly by the shoulders.

"Your brother that you have sworn to protect will die!" Yu said impassionedly. He had to make Fei see. He had to make him understand! This man was thick, there was no doubt about that, but even he had to be able to understand the situation they were in. He would not stop until he made him see.

"I may have been wrong about many things, but I will guarantee my life that if Cao Cao went through all of this to get lord Xuándé, he will kill him if he catches him. Our only hope, HIS only hope is for us to flee."

Fei was grinding his teeth. His instincts screamed at him to not trust Yu's words but he couldn't help but see the logic in them. He let out a frustrated cry and took a few deep breaths. Finally calm, he nodded.

"Brother, we need to get you to safety."

Bei was frowning but he nodded. "So we flee again…," he said sadly. It was almost pathetic how many times they have been run out of their homes. Were they destined to be vagabonds forever?

The sounds of battle grew closer.

"We need to go, NOW!" Yu urged.

And flee they did, using a secret passage beneath the castle shown to him by Tao Qian. Bei felt a pang of sadness at leaving Xiaopei behind again. He had failed in his promise to Qian to rule in his stead not once but twice. What's more is that they did not know what happened to their sworn brother Guan Yu. As he and his comrades scurried like rats through the dark, dank, cramped corridors beneath the castle, Bei couldn't help but lament on his misfortune.

=#=

Zhang He entered the castle inner garden. The current war was spiraling rapidly out of control. Yuan Shao's indecisiveness was putting his army at a great disadvantage. If things continued as they were, Jùnyì was certain that Shao would lose the war.

It was with that thought in mind that Jùnyì sent Zhenji a message to meet him in the garden. It was time they plotted their escape. Jùnyì would prefer to not be involved in the ugly the defeat that was going to befall Shao's army.

When he arrived at their usual meeting spot, he wasn't greeted by the beautiful visage of his butterfly; instead he was accosted by the dreadful grimace of Guo Tu.

"Expecting someone else?" Tu asked mockingly, pleased at the look of surprise on Jùnyì's face.

Jùnyì slipped into a more relaxed countenance.

"Why would you think that, Gōngzé?"

So he wanted to play stupid? That was just fine by Tu. He had the upper hand and he knew it.

"You looked rather surprised when you saw me," Tu replied not bothering to taper his smirk.

"I was," Jùnyì admitted. "It is rare to see you in a place of such beauty. You must admit, you are a bit out of your…element here."

"You are correct. I find places like this pointless as are the people who spend their time here," Tu replied with a sneer.

"You must count yourself among that number then as you are standing before me," said Jùnyì.

"I am here for a singular purpose. Once that is done, I doubt I will ever set foot here again."

So Tu had tired of their banter and he was ready to tell him why he was here? Part of Jùnyì was relieved about this. He truly disliked speaking to Tu and avoided doing so if he could. Another part of him dreaded what was going to be said. He knew that it had something to do with Zhenji because he knew she wouldn't have willingly missed meeting with him.

"And why are you here?"

"I wanted to see your face when I told you that your little whore won't be joining you."

Jùnyì was a man who valued beauty; that included beauty in appearance and beauty in actions. He always tried to carry himself and act in a manner that he felt was beautiful. But at that moment, when Tu uttered those grotesque words, Jùnyì wanted nothing more than to take his claws and give this hateful little man the ugliest death possible.

"Where is she?" he asked in a low tone never heard before by Tu. He cackled aloud, happy to have gotten under Jùnyì's skin.

"With her husband of course; where she belongs. The two of you will no longer be able to indulge in your indecent relationship."

"There is no relationship!" Jùnyì argued. He nearly lost himself and grabbed Tu. It took all his willpower to keep his distance.

"Oh? It certainly seemed like there was one to me or do you plot to run away from our lord with every woman you come across?"

"I…have no idea what you are talking about," Jùnyì said as he turned away from Tu.

"Don't bother trying to deny it. I heard you two plotting to run away with each other."

Jùnyì lowered his head. It was obvious that Tu wasn't bluffing so there was no point in trying to deny it. All Jùnyì could do now was try to save Zhenji from the mess he had unwittingly gotten her into. He cursed himself for being careless and speaking about such things out in the open as they did.

"It was all my doing. She is innocent in all this."

"I have no doubt about that," Tu replied. "Since the day I first met you, I knew you were untrustworthy."

"Spare me your ugly insults and tell me what you want," said Jùnyì.

Tu sniffed the air in disgut. He was the one in control of this conversation. How dare Jùnyì rush him? Still, this conversation had drawn out long enough. He had other things to do and as amusing as it was, he couldn't be bothered to toy with Jùnyì all day.

"Normally, I would have turned you in for your betrayal…but the situation we are in is a dire one. You are a general of…some talent and you will use that talent to fight for our lord Shao until you die. Do you understand? It is not only your life that hangs in the balance. It is Zhenji's as well.

So that was it? For the sake of Zhenji, Jùnyì had to resign himself to stay on a sinking ship; fighting for a lord he no longer believed in. He took a deep breath as the realization of his situation settled into his mind. For his beloved friend, he could do this. But he had to be sure that in doing so, that she would be free from any danger.

"If I do this, you must swear that you will keep secret her involvement in any of this. She is truly not at fault…I shoulder all the blame alone."

"How very gallant of you. I will leave her name out of this, but know that when this war is over, if you survive, I will see that you pay for your crimes."

"As long as the crimes are my alone to pay for, I will face them gladly."

"Ah, I though I might find you here Jùnyì…Gōngzé you are here as well?" asked a bemused Ju Shou.

Tu frowned. Another person he couldn't stand had arrived. It was time for him to make his exit.

"Not for long. My business here is concluded."

"Just a minute—"

"What?" Tu snapped. He didn't want to spend another second breathing the same air as these cretins.

Shou sighed. Tu was always so unnecessarily difficult.

"I came here to get Jùnyì because lord Shao has called a council. I simply thought I'd let you know."

"Hmph," was Tu's only reply as he turned heel and headed out of the garden without another word spoken to either man.

Shou sighed once more and turned his attention to his friend.

"Never thought I'd see you in the company of Gōngzé," said Shou.

Jùnyì put a hand to his forehead, which looked more like a graceful pose than a man lamenting his troubles.

"To have the attention of a man like Gōngzé is a burden indeed."

Shou's brows furrowed at the cryptic statement. "Jùnyì, did something—"

"Come, friend. We have a meeting to get to," Jùnyì said, cutting him off from finishing his thought.

He did not wish to bring Shou into his troubles, though he knew that being the good and kind man he was, he would gladly jump into them for his sake. He got himself and Zhenji into this ugly mess and it was his responsibility to get them out. He wouldn't drag anyone else down with him.

Shou eyed Jùnyì. It was clear he was hiding something, but he would not push the man. He gave him a short nod and the two made their way to the meeting hall.

=#=

Shao sat quietly on his throne as his advisors relayed the damage wrought upon his lands by Cao's forces. In a short amount of time, they had managed to demolish over twenty of his forward encampments. The attacks were as random as they were brutal. None of Shao's advisors could discern which encampment would be hit next and when.

The minute the report was over, one of Shao's generals, a man by the name of Tian Feng stepped forward; his steps aided by the wooden staff he clutched in his hands. He was an older man, perhaps one of Shao's oldest generals. His age showed mostly around his eyes, the crow's feet at the corners as prominent as the gray hair that hung loose down his back. He adjusted the Jin atop his head to ensure that it was neat, but the gesture was more for Shao's benefit than his own as he had stopped fussing over his appearance long ago. He may have no longer fought with sword in hand alongside the other generals, but he continued to support the army with his experience and wisdom as best he could.

Feng stood as straight as he could with the aide of his trusty staff. He was once a proud warrior and hated looking like a feeble old man in the eyes of his peers. "My lord, may I speak?"

Shao's first inclination was to say no. From the earnest look on Feng's face, he could garner what he wanted to say and to be perfectly honest Shao didn't want to hear any of it.

With a begrudging wave of his hand, Shao gave Feng permission he requested.

"My lord, as you have just heard, we have lost much. If we stay the course of inaction, we will lose even more. These attacks on our encampments are just distractions. I implore you, take our army and attack Cao's base in full force."

"We tried that already," Tu replied. "Since I know your memory isn't what it used to be, let me remind you of the outcome. Our forces were decimated. Not one made it back."

Feng narrowed his eyes at Tu. Out of all of Shao's generals, he hated this one the most. He spoke loudly and spoke the most, but said very little and rarely listened; choosing to believe in his own intelligence which was not infallible. If you asked Feng, Tu was one of the reasons why Shao's army was in the decline that it was.

"I remember just fine, boy," Feng spat back. "But may I remind you that we did not go out with our full might. We attacked with a paltry force."

Feng turned his attention back to Shao. "If we attack with the might of our full army, we will win! Please my lord. You ignored me before and look at what it cost us. Please do not ignore me once more."

"No, it cannot be done," Shao replied.

"Cannot be done? But why?!" Feng asked angrily. Shou watched Feng warily. It wasn't a good idea for a man of his advanced years to get so excited.

"Because my dear Shang is ill," Shao replied.

This caused an exchange of looks between Shao's generals. None of them were quite sure they heard their lord correctly. It was impossible that Shao just said he could not attack Cao Cao base because his son was sick…right? Feng, not one for holding his tongue decided to make sure that in his old age, he hadn't lost his hearing.

"You won't take action against Cao Cao because Master Xiǎnfǔ is ill?"

Shao gave a dramatic sigh, annoyed by Feng parroting his words. "If your hearing has gotten so poor that you cannot understand what I am saying, perhaps you are a bit too old to be serving me, Yuanhao."

"I understood your words well, my lord," Feng replied. "I simply cannot believe them!"

Frustrated Feng struck the ground with his staff; the dull dud bouncing off of the walls in the enclosed hall.

"I truly cannot be the only one here who is astonished by this!" he said as he looked towards the other generals. They remained silent, lowering his eyes in embarrassment for their lord and embarrassment for themselves for not being brave enough to stand up and speak out as Feng did. The only ones who met his gaze were Zhang He and Ju Shou. Feng shook his head in disappointment.

"Alas, in the critical moment he throws away opportunity for the sake of a sick child. The pity of it, the chance is lost."

"Hold your tongue!" Shao said as he stood from his seat. "You forget that Shang is my possible heir—"

Anyone paying attention to Shao's son Xi would have seen looks of unmasked anger in his father's words. Not only was he being passed up by his younger brother for the chance to be Shao's successor, he wasn't even being considered! And what was the reason behind Shao's decision to exclude one of his sons as a possible heir? It was because of looks! Shao quite plainly told Xi that he was much too displeasing to look at to be his heir. Forget the fact that he did everything that his father said, no it came down to looks. It was foolish to rest ones legacy on such a shallow attribute. He could understand losing out to Tan. He was the oldest and it was his right but Shang? That little piss ant wouldn't even know how to rule! And where was precious Shang now? He wasn't sick at all; he simply wished to spend his day in bed with whichever woman he had charmed today.

"I will not have you speak ill of him!" Shao continued. He took a few deep breathes to regain his regal composure.

"At Gōngzé's wise suggestion, I have decided that the best way to protect my legacy is to send my sons to Hebei," Shao began as he looked out over to his generals.

Tu looked at Jùnyì and smiled at the dark look that crossed his visage when he heard the news. Thanks to Tu's interference, Zhenji and Jùnyì will not be reunited for some time or ever if he had anything to say about it.

Shao made a face before speaking his next words, as if saying them left a bad taste in his mouth.

"Should harm befall me here, my sons moving to Hebei will ensure that the Shao family lives on."

"Your sons are old enough to see to themselves!" Feng argued. "Do you truly need to babysit them all the way to Hebei? Please, lord Shao—"

"Enough! I will not be questioned in such away! Guards! Put this man in chains and throw him in prison!"

"W-wait! Lord Shao, please forgive Master Yuanhao. He only wants what's best for this army and in his enthusiasm, he has forgotten himself," said Shou as he went to the older man's side and put an arm around him in an effort to lead him away.

"There is nothing wrong with me!" Feng said angrily as he tried to shake Shou's arm off of him.

"Master Yuanhao, please," said Jùnyì as he glided over to the two men. In a low voice, he spoke to the man. "This is not a fight you can win. Pick your battles."

Feng regarded Jùnyì for a few moments before eventually allowing the men to take him away. Shao watched the scene in disgust. He wanted to punish Feng for his disrespect but he had other pressing matters at hand. He looked out to his generals who waited for his word.

"Maintain our defensive position. Cao Cao will get what is coming to him soon enough."

=#=

-Days later -

Yue Jin watched as his troops fixed spears into newly dug holes and thrust the severed heads of the enemies who refused to surrender atop them. A few of the troops, the newer members that had recently joined, gagged while doing the gruesome task; though Wenqian couldn't tell if it was because they were handling severed heads or if the smell of burned flesh wafting from the pile of bodies burning within the camp they just ravaged was getting to them.

Whatever the reason, he could understand their discomfort. While had no qualms about killing and he was quite proficient in it, he didn't exactly enjoy it. Killing was a necessary evil and he would do it until peace was brought to the land.

If he had his way, his troops wouldn't be forced to breathe in the putrid smell of dead flesh. They would have burned the camp and moved on to prepare for the next raid before the foul smell could overwhelm them. Unfortunately, he didn't have his way. Yu Jin insisted on sending Yuan Shao a message which meant putting heads on a pike. Wenqian sighed in frustration. If he was so adamant about doing this, he wished he would have committed his own troops to the effort. At this point, Wenqian was beginning to feel like dealing with Yu Jin took more effort than the camp raids.

"Master Wenqian?" He turned his head to see one of Jin's men. Wenqian bit back his sigh knowing what the man's next words would be and nodded letting him know he had his full attention.

"Lord Wenze wishes to speak with you."

It was just as he thought. Yu Jin had more orders for him.

"Listen up," Wenqian began as he turned his attention back to his men. "Finish up here and be ready to move out when I get back."

They acknowledged his command and Wenqian followed soldier to his master.

Wenqian found Jin conveniently upwind from the camp where his troops currently toiled. He was standing before his men, watching intently as they ran through drills. The sight made Jin even more annoyed than he was before. Was it truly necessary to run them through drills now? They had just gotten out of battle not long ago. There was also the fact that they could have been helping his men instead of doing this.

"You wanted something Wenze?"

Jin did not immediately acknowledge him. Instead, he addressed his men.

"That is enough for now. Take a few minutes rest and get ready to move."

The men saluted Jin and he finally turned his attention to the awaiting Wenqian. As per his character, Jin did not waste time with pleasantries. He quickly got to the point of his sudden summons.

"I have received a reply from Lord Cao. He is pleased with our progress thus far. They have also been successful in their campaign against Liu Bei and are on their way back here."

"Oh, that's good to he—"

"I wasn't finished," Jin said cutting him off. Wenqian frowned but he said nothing more.

"Before our lord returns, I want to take out the remainder of Yuan Shao's forward encampments."

'Of course you do,' Wenqian thought bitterly. "How many are left?" He asked aloud.

Jin eyed him with a look of disapproval as if he was displeased that Wenqian did not already have that information.

"There are eight left."

Wenqian could feel a sigh coming on but he held it in to avoid another reproachful glare from Jin. Instead he folded his arms in front of his chest and tried to remember the total number of camps they had hit thus far.

"That would make…"

"Thirty camps in total," Jin answered before Wenqian could finish his thought.

This time Wenqian did let the sigh slip through, his annoyance winning out.

"That's running our men a bit hard, don't you think?"

"They can and will do it," Jin said with a finality that let Wenqian know it was not up for discussion.

Wenqian remained silent for a few moments. The hand hidden beneath his folded arm balled into a tight fist. This is what always happened when he interacted with Jin. Wenqian just couldn't get use to his brusque and standoffish demeanor. Its one thing to strive for perfection and try to help others achieve the same, but Jin drags you kicking and screaming to that perfection whether you want it or not.

At first, Wenqian thought the same of Dun. When he and Dian first begin to serve under him, Dun pushed them hard; harder than Jin had ever been pushed. But once Wenqian proved himself, Dun acknowledged his improvement and let him settle into his own flow. The only time he got admonishment from him was when Dun would notice that he was slacking. The same couldn't be said of Jin. It didn't matter how exemplary you performed in battle, he stayed the same strict hard ass that he always was. Wenqian was beginning to believe the man did not know the word relax.

"I'll go let the troops know," Wenqian finally replied.

Jin gave him a nod and walked off. Wenqian watched him go, wondering if it was okay to leave it this way. He certainly could have argued against Jin's decision, but he knew Jin would fight back and it would most definitely get physical. Was it worth the two of them bumping heads? No…not yet. If Wenqian saw that his troops would suffer from one of Jin's decisions he would definitely stand up to him, but for now as before it was better to just go along with Jin rather than fight against him. Begrudgingly, Wenqian walked off to give his troops their new orders.

=#=

Sun Ce grinned once his eyes spied the unsuspecting deer that stood a few feet away from him. He cast a glance behind him and saw that Zhou Yu's back was turned and hadn't spied the docile mammal. If he could bag this animal, he was certain he would win the impromptu hunting challenge between himself, Yu, Quan and Zhou Tai.

The deer's head swung up, its ears perked as it tried to detect any signs of danger around it. Ce slowly crouched so he would be out of sight and hoped that Yu wouldn't make any sudden noise to startle it. After a few tense moments, the deer meandered off further into the forest. Ce followed closely behind, waiting for his target to stop once more. He wasn't the best archer and a still target was far easier to hit than a moving one.

After some time, the deer came to a stop at a nearby tree. It lowered its head and began poking its nose in the gnarled roots at the base of it. This was the exact opportunity Ce had been waiting for and he was glad for it. He was certain he had upset some bugs while hiding in the brush waiting for the deer to stop because he got himself quite a few bug bites as trophies. He rose from his hiding spot and drew back his bow with audible effort. This was a bad habit of his and one that alerted his prey to his presence. The deer's head swung towards Ce's direction and hopped out of the way just as Ce's arrow struck the tree in the very spot where it once stood.

Ce let out a disappointing groan as he rubbed his head in irritation.

"It got away. No meat for us tonight, Gōngjǐn."

Ce fully expected to hear a smart ass reply from his sworn brother but instead was greeted with an unnerving silence. Confused, he turned around, his eyes scanning the forest finally taking stock of the situation he was in. Of course he had moved away from Yu when he was tracking the deer but he hadn't gone that far right? He was sure he didn't move more than a few feet from him.

Ce realized that Yu's sudden disappearance was not the only thing that was off. The forest was quiet, too quiet. No sounds of birds chirping or rustling leaves being blown by the wind or rustled by animals passing by; no insects chirping incessantly. There was absolutely nothing. A sense of unease gripped Ce. Something was wrong; very wrong.

"Hey Zhòngmóu? Yòupíng?" Ce called out into the stillness.

The haunting silence of the forest was the only response to his call. Ce frowned. This had to be a prank. They were just hiding from him or something equally silly he thought to himself. But Even as he tried to rationalize the unsettling situation, the hairs on the back of his neck stood erect.

"…Where have they gone to?" Ce said aloud to no one in particular as he continued to peer through copse that surrounded him for signs of his comrades.

"Sun Ce…"

Ce nearly jumped out of his skin at the sudden sound of an unfamiliar voice calling his name. He spun around quickly in the direction the voice came from, just in time to see two men emerge from behind a tree. He was certain he looked in this direction before and he saw no one. Who the hell where these people? Instead of eloquently expressing his concern, his mind still shocked from their sudden arrival, Ce only managed a baffled 'huh?' in response.

"You have taken Wujun, and call yourself the Little Conqueror…"

As the men stepped closer, he was able to get a better look at one of them and recognized him to be Xu Gong. He knew him well. He had been a vocal dissident of Ce's recent campaigns. He seemed most angry about Ce's plan to attack Xuchang, accusing Ce of attacking the emperor himself. Ce tried to explain to the man that he wasn't attacking the emperor, he was attacking Cao Cao in an effort to save the emperor, but Gong would not be appeased. He felt that the two were one and the same. Tired of hearing his complaints, Ce had the man run from Wujun. He thought he heard the last of him after that, but seeing as he was standing here before him, it seems that wasn't the case.

"Xu Gong…" Ce said with a mixture of surprise and annoyance. "And…who're you?"

"Look back on the path you have walked, one twisted by power. The cries of hatred and flames of anger shall now become a vortex! Sucked down into it, you shall meet your end here!" said Gong, gesturing to illustrate his point.

Ce rolled his eyes. This man was so overly dramatic. He really had the wrong idea about him and to be honest, he was tired of trying to explain himself to him; especially since it pretty much sounded like he just threatened him. Ce did not respond well to threats. It was high time he beat some sense into this moron.

"Hey! What're you talking about? I've told you before, you got the wrong idea but you know what? I'm tired of explaining myself to you. You obviously came here for a fight and I'll be happy to give you one."

Ce took a few steps toward the men and Gong calmly turned to his silent companion and nodded.

The man stepped forward and reached a hand out toward Ce. He made a noise as if he was focusing and Ce suddenly felt dizzy. He clutched his head as the world around him began to spin. Ce dropped to one knee to try to and hold on to the world that kept tilting on his axis. He couldn't focus and his head was pounding. What kind of sorcery was this?

What Ce did not know is that this was not sorcery at all. These two men had been watching him for quite some time and the moment he was alone, they shot him with a poisonous needle that makes the user hallucinate. The poison had finally taken root in Ce's mind and the sorcery he thought he was experiencing was nothing more than a hallucinogenic. Everything felt fuzzy for Ce. He couldn't think and his eyes felt as if they weighed far more than they should. He could feel himself blacking out and try as he might to stop it; he was at its mercy. His eyes now open no wider than slits, tried to hold onto the last bit of light before they completely shut, engulfing him in complete darkness.

When Ce awoke, he had a pounding headache. The world around him had stopped swaying but he still felt off center. He forced his eyes open slowly at first and saw that Gong and his mysterious accomplice was no where to be found. Perhaps more disturbingly, Ce also noted that instead of sunlight, he was bathed in the soft glow of the overhead moon. His eye shot wide open and he saw that night had indeed fallen. He muttered a groggy 'huh?' as he forced himself to his feet and rubbed at his eyes to clear them. He looked around again and saw that the scenery hadn't changed.

"What the—"

Before he could utter another word, Ce heard the familiar whistle of an arrow cutting through the air. He dodged just in time, the arrow striking the ground where he once stood.

Ce looked around hoping to see whoever shot the arrow at him. What he found was a group of men, bathed in the moonlight giving them an ethereal glow, standing not far from him,

"You…Are you Xu Gong's men?"

They did not reply but there were sounds of footsteps from somewhere off to Ce's side.

"More enemies?' Ce thought to himself as he got himself into a fighting stance. He felt naked without his tonfas but could still defend himself. He only planned on holding out long enough without a weapon until he could still one off of the enemy.

"Brother!"

Ce would never admit the relief he felt upon hearing the familiar voice of his brother. Knowing that the footsteps coming towards him were those of his comrades, Ce kept his eyes focused on the enemy in front of him.

It didn't take long for his hunting companions to form a protective barrier around him. Yu handed him his tonfas which Ce accepted gratefully.

"Forgive us," Yu began as his eyes darted from enemy to enemy, assessing the situation. "We got held up by some sort of sorcery."

"Yeah. Same thing happened to me," Ce confirmed, all men oblivious to the fact that they were simply the victims of a crafty poison.

"I'm not sure what's going on, but for now, we just need to get out of here," Ce continued.

The moment he finished speaking, in typical Sun Ce fashion, he charged forward at the enemy. Quan, Tai and Yu were right behind him.

Ce ws happy to tear into Gong's forces. He felt that Gong made a fool out of him and he had a lot of frustration to work through. He smashed one tonfa into the head of one foe and whipped the second into the face of another, breaking his nose and causing a fountain of blood to erupt from it. Ce kicked at the midsection of the enemy who he first bludgeoned, making him double over and he brought both tonfas down on his head, crushing his skull. That enemy taken care of, he focused back on the enemy who was tending to his broken nose and slammed both tonfas against each side of his head with enough force to kill him on the spot. The man dropped dead and Ce turned quickly to block two incoming attacks from his sides.

"These men…These are Xu Gong's men. Is that the person who is after you, Bófú?" Yu asked as he drove the butt of his staff into an enemy's face.

"Yes…" Ce answered as his tonfa slammed into the jaw of another enemy with a sickening crack. "It seems he holds quite the grudge against me."

"Well, we just have to get out of here and let him know what happens when you mess with the Sun family!" Quan declared before slashing at an enemy.

Ce unleashed a combination of blows and kicks to another enemy. He moved so quickly and with so much power that the hapless enemy did not even get to get an attack off. With the last strike, a haymaker with one of his tonfas, the man was sent flying into a few of his fellow soldiers.

"Hell yeah little brother!" Ce replied with a grin, his spirits lifted knowing that his family fought at this side. "I want to pay back Xu Gong for all his hospitality. Let's beat the shit out of these guys and find him."

Resolved, the men continued to fight through the waves Xu Gong's forces.

=#=

By the time they reached where Xu Gong was hiding, the coat of darkness that had washed over the forest was being chased away by the rays of sun peaking over the horizon. They had been fighting for hours, but it wasn't anything they weren't use to. Ce was ready for more and he was determined to not stop until he beat Xu Gong into a bloody pulp for his tricks.

They found Gong alone in the center of a makeshift base in the forest that they didn't even know existed. He seemed to be waiting for them. Immediately, Yu was on alert. Why send out men only to leave yourself defenseless? He smelled an ambush. He tried to warn Ce but as usual, his lord had rushed forward, anger coursing through his blood, fueling his actions.

Gong stood calmly as Ce took menacing steps towards shim.

"You bring nothing but chaos to Jiangdong, the entire land even. That is why I am here to put an end to that."

He was calm. Way too calm. Yu had a bad feeling about this.

"Bófú! Wait!" he called out, but Ce did not heed the words of his sworn brother. The need to beat this shit out of this man was too tempting to pass up.

"If I was any other warlord, you would have been dead for the shit you have said to me over the years, but I let you live and this is how you repay me? By trying to kill me? I guarantee you that I won't make that same mistake. You die here and now!"

Ce, now directly in front of Gong threw a punch at Gong with tonfa in hand. The man didn't block or even move to dodge. He took the blow full on and was thrown back by the sheer force of it. Ce was undaunted. He stalked over to the fallen form of Gong who was already getting back to his feet, albeit a bit unsteady.

"You plan on killing me, do you?" Gong asked as he wiped away blood from his newly split lip. His eye which was also hit was rapidly swelling and it was hard for him to keep it open.

Ce didn't reply. He simply waited for the man to fully stand so he could knock him back on his ass again. To his surprise and the surprise of everyone else around him, Gong let out a cry and threw himself at Ce, wrapping him in a bear hug.

"Very well," the man said as he struggled to hold on to Ce who had been trying to wriggle out of his grasp. "But I will take you with me.

So focused on the strange sight before them, Ce and the others failed to notice the soldier that had been hiding within the base. At his master's signal, he quietly emerged. He sucked in a deep breath to resolve himself and he charged forward with tears in his eyes. He buried his sword into the back of his master at full force, impaling Ce in the process. Ce's eyes widen upon feeling the blade enter him. So that was his plan? How could he be so careless?

Zhou Tai was the first to move, striking down the soldier in one quick stroke. This spurred Quan and Yu to life, both calling the name of their brother.

Gong gave Ce a weak smile, blood spilling from his mouth as his internal organs were punctured in the blow.

"Y-you will walk the path of the conqueror, and clash with Lord Cao Cao. Don't you see? The more men of your caliber step forward, the worse this chaos will become."

Ce had enough of this. "Shut the fuck up!" he exclaimed as he shoved Gong away from him, hastily wrenching the sword out as well. The man stumbled before falling onto his back, driving the sword even deeper into him. Ce quickly dropped one of his tonfas and used his hand to staunch the bleeding.

"All I have to do…is defeat them all!" he said defiantly as he raised the tonfa he still held in the air.

Yu and Quan rushed to his side, Yu quickly removing his outer robe, wrapping it around his sworn brother's wound.

"Y—you fool…" Gong said weakly from the spot on the floor where Ce had thrown him. He could feel the icy chill of death wrapping him in its embrace. He would not be long for this world but he didn't mind. As long as he stopped Ce from throwing this land further into chaos, he would gladly give his life.

With a weak smile on his bloody lips, he looked to the heavens and spoke his final words.

"Gan Ji, I leave the rest to you."

Gong's silent mysterious partner now named stepped out of his hiding place at the other end of the base.

"Very well. Your revulsion for this time of war is perfectly clear to me. I will honor our deal and ensure that the little conqueror breathes his last breath here."

The doors behind Ji opened and a flood of soldiers clad in blue entered the base.

"Now, die! Dogs of chaos!" Ji said as the soldiers charged past him towards Ce and his allies. Ji used the distraction to slip out of the base safely, leaving Ce and his men to deal with their new adversaries.

"That armor…oh no…these are Cao Cao's men! This whole thing…it was a trap by Cao Cao!" Yu exclaimed.

"Damnit! How did they know?!" Quan asked as the enemies begin to close around them.

"My guess would be the recently departed Xu Gong told him but we can figure out the how later. We have been fighting for hours now, we are no condition to fight a fresh army. Our first priority is to get Bófú out of here. Yòupíng, think you and Zhòngmóu can cut us a path out of here?"

Tai quickly slit open the stomach of a soldier that had gotten too close to their group. "Of course," he replied in his normal stoic tone.

"Good. I will guard Bófú. There shouldn't be too many generals around since Cao Cao took the majority with him to war but avoid any you see. We just need to get out of here."

"Are you sure you wouldn't rather that I guard him?" Quan asked. He looked as if he was on the verge of panicking. He was sick out of his mind with worry for his brother. Yu could understand the sentiment, but it was because of that very reason he didn't want him carrying him. He would be too busy fretting over Ce to move his ass and get them out of there.

"No. I need you to fight. Focus on the fight and the fight only. If you falter, we will all die here."

Quan nodded quickly and got into his stance.

"I…I can still fight…" Ce said.

"You might have to if we get surrounded, but for now, conserve your strength and only use it when absolutely necessary."

Ce could hear the worry in his sworn brother's voice. It seems Yu saw that the wound he received was not a superficial one. He knew it would be in his best interest to follow his sworn brother's advice.

"Okay. Lead the way then."

On Ce's word, Tai and Quan charged forth into Cao Cao's troops.

=#=

Ce and the others emerged from the forest. From where they stood, their camp was in sight. Cao's forces seemed to have noticed this as well because they ceased their pursuit the minute they emerged from the line of trees marking the forest edge.

"Okay. We made it out of there, somehow," said Ce with his back to his companions; his eyes focused on the forest to see if any enemies would emerge.

"S-somehow we made it," Quan panted.

"Still…I can't believe that Xu Gong was in league with Cao Cao," said Yu.

"He claimed our lord was walking the path of a conquer," Tai said as he eyed the surrounding area.

Quan looked at his comrades utterly confused as to how they didn't look the least bit winded when he felt dead on his feet

"Ridiculous!" he exclaimed angrily as he pushed through his fatigue.

"If he is so worried about a conqueror, why join one of the worst ones around?" Yu mused aloud.

"We should not stop here," said Tai. He saw Cao's forces hiding behind trees watching them. They weren't making any steps to attack them, but the way they were spying on them unnerved Tai.

"I agree," Yu replied. "Though I have to say, I do not understand why Cao's forces stopped chasing after us. If they persisted they would have a good chance of killing us."

"Please don't give the enemy ideas," Quan replied with a groan.

"Ha! They aren't chasing us because they know that no one can mess with the Sun family!" Ce said defiantly.

Quan let out a chuckle. "I guess that's right brother; The nerve of Xu Gong, trying to sell out my brother, and even hiring some pathetic conjurer of tricks."

"He called him Gan Ji, didn't he?" Ce said as he turned to face his comrades. "I wouldn't call them tricks, exactly…"

Quan looked at his brother and what he saw made him cry his name out loud. This garnered the attention of Yu and Tai. They too turned to face Ce and soon found out what made Quan react in such a way.

"Bófú!" Yu cried aloud as he took in the pale visage of his sworn brother. He was so focused on getting them out of there, he didn't realize how rapidly his condition had deteriorated.

"Haha….looks like this is the end of the road for me…" Ce said before letting out a hacking cough filled with blood.

No longer able to hold himself up, Ce collapsed. Yu and Quan reached out for him, catching him before he could hit the ground.

"No! Brother!" Quan cried as he tried to sit Ce up.

Ce let out another laugh, this one weaker than before. He held on as long as he could, but it seemed as if he could hold on no longer. After being stabbed by Gong's lackey, Ce felt off. His blood felt as if it was on fire and he immediately knew that the blade was poisoned. He realized there was no hope for him, but Wu could not end with him. He needed to make sure that his brother survived. The Sun family needed to go on for the sake of Wu. His own son was still a child and could not reasonably rule. It had to be Quan. So he ignored the agonizing pain that ravaged his body and fought with everything he had.

"I…I just needed to make sure you were safe," Ce said with a weak smile to his brother.

"W-what?" Quan stammered. "What are you saying? Your wound…we can still treat it" It isn't that bad!"

"It wasn't the wound," Yu said softly. "Look at him."

And Quan did look at his brother's bloodshot eyes, pale skin and purplish veins that spread across his face like a spider's web. He had never seen these symptoms from a wound. The blade had to have been poisoned and it coursed through his brother for so long that it was too late to save him.

"N-no….this….no," Quan said as he choked back his tears.

"Zhòngmóu, father entrusted our family's legacy to me. Now, it's my turn to entrust it to you."

"What are you talking about, brother?! We can get you help! We can…we can…" he let out a sob, unable to believe his own words even as he spoke them.

With his remaining strength, Ce threw an arm around Yu and another around Quan. His heart was beating rapidly and it felt as if it would soon pop right out of his chest. He didn't know how he knew, but he felt as if he had no time left. He had so much more to say; to let them know how thankful he was to them for supporting him all these years. He wished he could hold his son once more…kiss the lips of his sweet wife. Ruffle the hair of his little sister and tease his youngest brother; but there was no more time. With his last breath, he pulled both men as close to him as he could.

"It's all yours, now…"

His last words spoken, Ce's head rolled back as his arms slipped from the shoulders of his brothers. Quan tried to catch him, to shake his brother awake, but the truth could not be escaped. Sun Ce, the little conqueror was dead.

=#=

"Is there any word on the outcome of the battle?"

Cao Ren turned around to see Cao Chong being pushed toward him in a wheeled wooden chair by a very beautiful concubine who seemed quite content to dote on him. Cao and his sons certainly had a way with women.

"Not as of yet," Ren replied.

"Did I interrupt you?" Chong asked as he tilted his head to the side.

"Not at all. I was merely double checking our defenses in case—"

"In case the plan fails," Chong finished.

"Yes…but please, do not think I do this because I have no faith in your strategy."

Chong chuckled. "I would think you were a fool if you did not plan for the possibility of my scheme failing. If we lose Xuchang, we lose much more than our home base and the emperor. Our families are here…our lives are here. We cannot afford to take any chances."

"I could not have said it better myself," Ren agreed.

Chong gave him a nod. "Well, do let me know the minute you get an update. I am very curious to see how my little ploy worked out."

"Hey, Zǐxiào, finally found you." said Cao Anmin.

Ren turned to find Anmin heading towards them along with Ren's younger brother.

"Oh hey, you're here too Cangshu?" Anmin said once he reached their side.

"I must be if you are speaking to me," Chong replied.

"Always such a derisive fellow," Anmin said with a sigh. "Don't you know you shouldn't act like that in front of such a pretty lady?"

"She's just fine with the way I act," Chong replied.

"Oh? Is that so? Hey, I have actually been wondering…can you still please women…with…you know?"

Chong shook his head. "I'm curious as to what you think the extent of my injuries were, cousin."

"Didn't you get completely crushed…down there?" Anmin asked as he gestured to his own pelvic area for reference.

"Why don't you ask her?" Chong replied.

The woman covered her face with her sleeve, her face growing bright red in the presence of suck risqué talk.

"My lord, please!"

Ren coughed. "I'm glad to see you back, you as well Zihe."

"Thank you elder brother," Chun said with a nod of his head.

"So what do you two have to report?" asked Chong.

"The little conqueror has been conquered," Anmin replied with a smile.

Ren's eyes widened. This was better then what he could have hoped for. Ren expected Chong's plan to only run Sun Ce and his people out of the forest and hopefully do enough damage to discourage them from directly attacking Xuchang. But for them to actually achieve their goal of killing Ce, it was almost unbelievable.

"Are you certain?" Ren asked. He wanted to be one hundred percent sure about Anmin's claim.

"He is telling the truth elder brother," Chun replied.

"Cangshu's plan worked like a charm," Anmin explained. "Xu Gong and Gan Ji split them up just like you told them to and drugged them all. Those fools thought they were really under a spell. Unfortunately, despite being drugged, they were able to fight off all of Xu Gong's troops. He had to sacrifice himself to mortally wound him."

Chong nodded. He expected as much. Sun Ce wasn't known as the little conqueror for no reason.

"What of Gan Ji?" Ren asked.

"He survived," Anmin replied. "We managed to get him out safely."

"Do you have Sun Ce's body?" Chong asked.

Anmin shook his head in replied. "The Wu forces fought like hell to get past us. They did everything they could to protect him, but we delayed them enough to make it not matter."

"He died before they could get him to their camp. I personally saw them carrying him off. He was limp and his little brother was crying like a newborn."

"It could still be a feint by them to make us think he was dead," said Chong.

"I don't know cousin, he looked pretty dead from where I was standing," Anmin replied.

"I trust your word, but I think we should still stay on alert until they leave our lands," said Ren.

"I agree…by the way, how many troops did we lose?"

Anmin frowned at the question posed to him by Chong. "A few hundred."

"Unfortunate…but if the little conqueror has truly been conquered; their deaths were not in vain."

Ren nodded in agreement to Chong's sentiment.

"In the meantime, have your forces get rest in case they wish to attack us in retaliation for the death of their lord."

The two men nodded and said their farewells, more than ready to get some well deserved sleep.

"Cangshu, could I ask you to write the report to your father?" said Ren as he turned his attention to the man in question.

"If you wish," Chong replied.

"I would appreciate it. I want need to ensure that our defenses are ready in case Wu returns."

"Ever the diligent one," said Chong with a wry smile. "Come my dear; let's go so I can do the job this task master has given me."

Ren sighed as he watched Chong's concubine wheel him away, giggling at her lover's antics. He couldn't help but agree with Anmin, Chong was quite a derisive fellow.

=#=

- Days later -

"It has been awhile, Yúncháng."

Cao and his troops had finally arrived back at Guandu. Since he was giving his troops a few days to rest after their strenuous march, he decided to take the time and catch up with Guan Yu.

"It has," Yu agreed.

"I am sorry I haven't been able to visit you before now. I trust you have been treated well?"

"Much too good for a prisoner I must say," Yu replied.

Cao gave a light hearted chuckle at this. "Well, you are not a prisoner. You are a guest."

"Guest can come and go as they please…are you telling me I am allowed to leave?"

Cao laughed once more. "Well I suppose not quite like a guest, but close to it."

Yu lifted his wine jug. "I suppose I cannot complain," he said before taking a drink.

"I thought you may want to know about the fate of your sworn brothers."

Yu lowered the jug and swallowed down the wine with a loud gulp. He knew they had laid siege to Xiaopei, but he wasn't given any news about it.

"Yes. I would like to know."

"Your sworn brothers still live…"

Yu let out a sigh of relief. He knew how bad the situation for Bei and Fei was and feared the worst.

"What happened to them? Are they prisoners as well?"

Prisoners? Cao had to stop himself from laughing at the notion. Should Liu Bei or Zhang Fei show themselves in front of him again, he would not hesitate to cut down the snakes where they stood. He would never take them as prisoners.

"No. They fled."

"I see," Yu replied as he took another drink. So once again they were without a home and without a real army. Yu began to doubt whether his brothers would be able to rescue him at all.

"I wanted to ask you once more if you would join me."

Yu frowned. "You have treated me kindly but…I am sorry. I still cannot join you."

Cao smiled. "You will find that I am a tenacious man. I will not give up on you just yet. I must go, but I will visit you again."

Yu nodded in reply as he watched Cao walk away. With the news of his brother's defeat, Yu begin to doubt that Bei would be able to rescue him. If that was the case, was it wise of him to continue to doubt Cao's offer? Perhaps he should consider accepting his offer.

=#=

Cao entered the war tent to find his generals waiting for him. He hoped to be walking along side Guan Yu when he entered, but the man proved to be stubborn. No matter. Cao was determined to get him on his side sooner or later.

Cao took his seat at the head of the room and the generals saluted.

"Wenqian, Wenze, step forward."

Both men stepped to the center of the tent before Cao and saluted.

"Thirty encampments. The two of you managed to take thirty of Yuan Shao's forward encampments with a paltry force of five thousand men. Not only that, but you managed to get twenty of his officers to join our side."

"As you took the lead in this campaign and accomplished such an achievement, I give you Wenze the rank of Major-General. Wenqian, your role in this has not been forgotten. You will be rewarded two thousand teals of gold."

Both men saluted and thanked Cao for his kindness.

Cao nodded and waved them back to their place amongst the other generals. Once they were standing amongst the others once more, Cao called for his advisors to give him an update on their current status in the war.

It was Man Chong who stepped up first. He smoothed the front of his wrinkled robe with his hands and quickly saluted Cao before giving him his report.

"According to our spies, Yuan Shao is preparing to mount an offensive against us."

"Oh? So he has finally decided to do something?"

"Yes. Our spies tell us that he boasts a force of over one hundred thousand—"

"One hundred thousand?" Cao repeated with a raised brow. He didn't think Shao still had that many forces in reserve. Yuan's forces outnumbered his own. It would take clever strategy and skill to overcome such overwhelming odds.

Chong nodded. "Approximately. Could be more, could be less."

"Hmph, continue."

"If I had to guess, I would say that he will be moving to his forward base of Liyang. It's just north of the Yellow River."

"There is also this," Jia Xu chimed in. He stepped forward and gave a salute to Cao before handing him a parchment.

Cao took it from him and read in silence. The room was still as they waited for their master to finish and they were surprise when he burst out into laughter.

"What's so funny?" Yuan asked as he looked around at the others to see if they knew what was going on.

Instead of replying, Cao handed his cousin the parchment which he accepted and read. His mouth morphed into the shape of an 'O' as his eyes swept over it.

"You gotta see this brother," Yuan said as he nudged Dun. Dun leaned over to get a look at the parchment his brother held and Zhuyue squeezed her way in to get a glance as well.

"To make this go a bit faster, I'll give you a bit of a recap about what they are reading," said Jia for the benefit of the other generals.

"What they have there is a little something called 'Proclamation to Yu Province on Behalf of Yuan Shao' written by the ever so talented Chen Lin," Jia explained.

"It's basically propaganda about lord Cao. All of it is untrue of course, but entertaining none the less," said Xu.

"You think slander against our lord is funny?" Yu Jin asked angrily.

"Ah, get the stick out of your ass Wenze. This is fucking hilarious," said Yuan.

Jin frowned. "Because he is your cousin, you feel you do not have to show him the proper respect. I will not allow you to—"

"Peace, Wenze," Cao said as he wiped a tear from his eye. He looked as if he was on the verge of another laughing fit. "He is right, it is entertaining. Read some of it aloud Miàocái."

"Ooookay, let's see here. It says you are incompetent and that Yuan Shao had the misfortune of suffering your stupidity and shortcomings during the campaign against Dong Zhou."

"Yuan Shao also claims that he is the reason why you are feared as a tiger. He gave you power in hopes that you would do something useful with it, but you apparently squandered it," Dun added.

Cao burst out into laughter once more; the absurdity of what was written there amusing him to no end.

"We take thirty of his encampments and this is how he responds?" Cao said once his laughter began to peter out.

He shook his head, still in disbelief of the stupidity of it all. "I always knew Benchu to be an idiot, but I had no idea he was this dull. Tell me, is there any possibility this nonsense will stir up trouble for me in Yu province?"

"No one that would be a threat to you," Chong replied as he scratched at his messy hair, mussing it up even further."

"Such a pointless endeavor," said Cao with a shake of his head.

"Well I am glad you are in a good mood, my lord because this next bit of news might upset you," said Xu.

"What is it?"

"According to our sources, Liu Bei has taken refuge with Yuan Shao."

This news seemed to suck the humor out of Cao. The remains of his laughter shifted into a labored sigh.

"That wasn't news I wanted to hear," Cao said grumpily.

"I warned you," said Xu with a shrug.

"So you did," Cao replied with another sigh. "So the homeless wonder is at it again is he? That man is like an insect I cannot seem to squash. I can only hope we face him in battle so I can be rid of that pest for good."

"I do hope that is the case," Jia concurred. "I would rather be rid of him sooner than later."

"I have a bit of news that may lift your spirits once more," said Xun You with a bow.

"Oh? Let's hear it."

"There is discontent within Yuan Shao's camp. Many are not pleased with his lack of action. I have a list of officers that we may be able to sway to our cause…including one that I believe was a friend of yours; a man by the name of Xu You."

"Ah… Zǐyuǎn," said Cao with a small smile as he rubbed his chin. "He was a good friend once. If it would be possible, I would like to have him by my side once more."

"Here is the list of potential defectors," said You as he handed him the scroll he had composed the night before.

Cao took it with a nod. "And now I have a bit of news of my own to share. I received word from Xuchang. It seems the little conquer sought to betray us and attack while we were away—"

Zhuyue's eyes widened. Her thoughts immediately went to her children and family.

"But," Cao continued. "Thanks to the efforts of Zǐxiào, my dear son Chong and the others not only was the attack stopped before it could truly be started, but Sun Ce has been slain."

"Haha! That's great, right little sister? That bastard got what he deserved for kidnapping you," Yuan said as he threw an arm around her.

Zhuyue let out an unsteady breath, relieved that her family was okay. "Good riddance," she muttered.

There might have been a time when she would have felt sadness at hearing about his demise, but he kidnapped her, he was willing to kill her on his advisors word and most importantly, the bastard was attempting to break their alliance and attack her home where her family lived. Whatever sympathy she would have had for him was lost.

"Well, that is news indeed," said Jia. "That is one threat eliminated sooner than I thought. I imagine it will be his brother Sun Quan that takes over for him…his own son is much too young."

"That is something to think about at another time," Cao replied. "We focus on the battle ahead of us. Since the enemy is preparing their forces, we will prepare ours. Everyone get your men ready for battle."

Cao looked to his group of advisors. "The rest of you remain behind. I want ideas on how to deal with this troop disadvantage."

All generals saluted Cao and dispersed as per his instructions to prepare for the upcoming war.

=#=

-A week later-

"Hello Yúncháng," said Cao as he entered his tent.

Guan Yu nodded his head respectfully to Cao Cao.

"I trust you are well?"

"I am," Yu replied.

"I imagine you must be getting tired being cooped up in here."

Yu looked around the tent he had been given. It was true; he was tired of being stuck within here. He was constantly watched and could not go and come as he pleased and the only time he was allowed out was when he went to relieve himself. It was a comfortable cage, but a cage none the less.

"I am," he admitted aloud.

"I would be more than happy to change your situation—"

"If I join you," Yu finished.

Cao smiled. "I treat those that fight for me well. You will be no exception. It pains me to see you languish here, your talents going to waste."

Yu closed his eyes and ran a hand over the length of his beard, a gesture he normally did when in deep thought. In his mind he tried to weigh the pros and cons of joining Cao Cao. It didn't seem as if his brother would be able to rescue him any time soon and he truly was just wasting away here. He hadn't trained in days and he knew the constant food, wine and lack of exercise would begin to take its toll on his body.

He opened his eyes and looked at Cao. He watched him with a patient smile, waiting to hear his answer. He had been kind so far, but how much longer will that kindness last if he continued to say no? Perhaps he should fight for him. Doing so seemed to have more benefits than not and it gave him a better chance at finding his brother than wasting away in a tent did.

Yu stood and to Cao's immense pleasure, he saluted him.

"I will serve you…lord Cao."

"Good…GOOD!" Cao exclaimed happily as he clapped Yu on the shoulder.

"My lord!"

Dian Wei entered the tent without waiting for permission from Cao. Cao rose a brow, seeing the urgency in his bodyguard's eyes. Wei's eyes swept over the two men. It didn't take long for him to figure out that Yu had finally joined their side. It did not matter to him. He would not accept nor trust this man, ever, but if his master commanded it, he would fight by his side.

"What is it, Dian Wei?" Cao asked as he removed his hand from Yu's shoulder.

"Yuan Shao has attacked."