He wasn't sure where he was, or what time it happened to be. All he knew was that he was that his spine hurt like hell. He pried his eyes open, noting that he was in his room, engulfed in a gray-blue haze that poured into his room from the lattice-paned window. Morning, he deduced. He also deduced--confirmed by the pain in his joints--that he had fallen asleep in his chair. Wincing, he slowly sat up in his chair and massaged the aggravating kink in his neck. He then attempted to extract himself from his chair when he heard a knock at his door.
"Come," he said. A servant of Sun Quan's entered and bowed his head.
"Sir," the boy said. "Master requests your presence at once."
Curious, he said "Understood," and watched the servant take his leave. Ling Tong but wondered what Sun Quan could be in a hurry about. Was Cao Cao making a move? Flattening his wrinkled clothes as best as he could with a couple firm brushes of his hand, he left for Sun Quan's court. Lu Meng was there already, flanking Sun Quan on one side, and was surprised to note Zhou Yu and Huang Gai flanking his other side. Zhou Yu must have returned in the middle of the night. Something big was definitely up.
"Ling Tong," Sun Quan greeted. "Thank you for coming so quickly." Ling Tong nodded. Not long had passed before Lu Xun entered, followed closely by Zhou Tai.
After some awkward minutes, Ling Tong asked, "What's the hold up?"
Lu Meng sighed, then muttered, "That brazen pirate. He'll think twice about taking his sweet time after we're through here." Ling Tong couldn't supress a smirk.
Suddenly the doors to the court slammed open, and the brazen pirate in question waltzed in. He approached the group with casual swagger, fingers laced behind his head. Taking note of the multiple glares he was receiving, he dropped his arms and said, "What?"
"Now that everyone is here," Sun Quan then said. "Zhou Yu, negotiations were a success?"
"Yes. Now that Cao Cao has made clear his intention to take the Southland, Zhuge Liang has agreed to lend us his powers to help stop him. Master Pang Tong is also lending us his assistance. For our part, we will be organizing a fire attack. The plan is our only hope, and we will only have one chance at it." He paused for the other officers nod their understanding. "Huang Gai, your actions will be critical to our plan. You will need at act as if you are surrendering to Cao Cao, and we will need to make it convincing. Remember, if you fail, then it will be all for nothing."
"I understand. Use me as you will, for I would give my life to ensure Wu's protection from the traitor Cao Cao!" the older man said.
"Indeed," Sun Quan said. "Zhou Yu, I hereby make you acting Supreme Commander for the duration of this conflict. We--no, all of Wu--is counting on you. Be sure to get some rest during our march."
"Yes, sir. For yours and the sake of your brother's memory, I shall not give up nor fail. My head be on it," Zhou Yu said with a bow. He then said, "Then the rest of you must make preparations for battle immediately. Cao Cao's fleet is swiftly approaching the Red Cliffs, and we will be engaging him there."
The officers present bowed to signal their leave, except Gan Ning who just nodded at Sun Quan awkwardly. "Who's Cao Cao?" he asked as they exited Sun Quan's court and into the corridor surrounding the inner palace garden. A chorus of sighs answered him.
"Moron," Ling Tong muttered.
"Stop," Lu Meng said, stopping himself and signaling Ling Tong and Gan Ning to do the same. "Ling Tong, you explain it for him." With that, Lu Meng spun on a heel and left with the others. Gan Ning flashed his teeth in a wide grin and whipped his head around to give Ling Tong his undivided attention. Ling Tong huffed and stared daggers into Lu Meng's receding back. It was the first time Lu Meng ever got on his nerves.
"Well?" Gan Ning said, waving a hand in front of Ling Tong's face. "What do I gotta know?"
Ling Tong gritted his teeth as his focus shifted back to Lt. Jerk next to him. "I'll try to say it slow enough for you to understand," he began, relishing in the look Gan Ning gave him. "He declared himself the Prime Minister, but he's not a very good one. He's basically holding the Emperor hostage while he's amasses his power. He's been building up his forces, including an armada he's floating down the Yangtze River now. He'll probably be in a good position to take all of China and usurp the throne if we don't stop him at the Red Cliffs. I can't believe you had no idea."
"Heh. And wha's so bad about that?" Gan Ning asked. "Won't it end the wars if we let him do what he wants?"
"What?" Ling Tong said, exasperated. Did he want to be executed for sedition? Wait, that would be perfect. "If you wanna bend over for a power-abusing despot, go right ahead. You two would probably have a lot in common," Ling Tong said, baiting him.
"Nah, I was only joking," Gan Ning said, smiling, and turning his attention skyward. "See, I'm always lookin' for a good fight. Harder to find somethin' more interesting to do when it's all peace, love, and rainbows."
"You prefer this chaos?"
Gan Ning's gaze returned to Ling Tong. "Heh. Wouldn't I sound like an asshole if I said I did?"
"No, you would just sound like an idiot at best, and pure evil at worst." As he spoke, Ling Tong involunatrily recalled images from his father's funeral. He balled up his fists. What was he doing, letting this dog before him breathe, much less converse with him? He'd kill him before long.
"Cut it out," Gan Ning said, patting Ling Tong's shoulder.
"Hands off if you wanna keep 'em," Ling Tong snapped.
Gan Ning put both his hands up and stepped back to mock him. He shrugged. "Crybaby," he said, turning to leave and tossinga 'Thanks' over his shoulder. Ling Tong touched a finger to his eyes, and cursed the dampness he felt there. He would have to visit his father's grave before they left.
The Wu forces set up camp some distance downriver from the Red Cliffs. They were blessed with the fortune of continuous fog and mist, under the cover of which they could conceal their fleet from enemy scouts. Once in place, the ships stood ready to transport troops as soon as the fires caught.
Dusk waxed over the Wu forces' main camp. Outside of Sun Quan's tent, Zhou Yu addressed the senior officers in one last conference. "We've received confirmation that Cao Cao welcomes Huang Gai's surrender, and is expecting his ship tonight. All we have left to pray for is a southeast wind that Zhuge Liang is meditating on as we speak. Remember, if something goes wrong, I don't want anybody wasting their lives here. Fall back swiftly and regroup."
"Less experienced soldiers should stay back, then, and let me handle the front in case things get messy." Gan Ning said, inspecting his weapon.
"Excuse me?" Ling Tong interrupted, wondering who he meant by 'less experienced'. "Man, this guy really kills me," he said, gesturing to Lu Meng standing behind him. "He just joined us and he thinks he needs to play hero and show us up!"
"Actually, that works fine," Zhou Yu said. "Gan Ning, you may take your troops to the front and prepare to lead the advance once the fires are set. I'd like to see for myself what you are capable of." On second thought, this was a marvelous plan, Ling Tong thought. Put him at the very front of our lines. Then he might get himself killed, and then I won't have to worry about dealing with him ever again. Pleased, he let his appreciation bubble to the surface as a cruel smile.
"Alright! Leave it to me!" Gan Ning said. "Oh, and suck it, Ling Tong."
The officers stilled themselves when they heard the flaps of the tent nearby rustle, and Sun Quan stepped from it into their presence. "Gentlemen," he said. The hustle and bustle of the camp also died down as the soldiers took to observe him.
"Men," Sun Quan said. "It's good to see so much effort being put in for our final preparations for battle. Morale seems to be high, as it should be. But there is one last thing you all should know. You should know how honored and proud I am to have some of the finest minds and talent in the land carrying out such a crucial plan. If anybody can pull this off, it's you brave heroes. To arms!" Officers and soldiers alike hollered their assent.
The sun fell, and with it Huang Gai's fire ships set sail. A southeastern wind howled, casting off the mist and fog and transforming the overcast into a clear night. From the river, Wu sentries spotted a speck of light on the water heading toward them. As it drew nearer, the speck became a torch, barely illuminating a lone canoe making its way toward them with a single passenger on board.
"Sir!" A messenger kneeled before Zhou Yu, who had been pacing nervously in his cabin on board Sun Quan's flagship. "There is a very strangely-dressed individual who wishes to speak with you. He came by himself on a canoe from up river. We have him detained outside, for he looks very suspicious."
"Strangely-dressed?" Zhou Yu repeated, thinking to himself. Then it dawned. "It must be Master Pang Tong! Show him in at once." The messenger nodded and raced to fetch him. A few moments later, the door opened, and in stepped exactly who he had guessed.
"Master Pang Tong," Zhou Yu said, nodding to him. "Our plan?"
"Quite a lovely lightshow going on a little ways up the river," Pang Tong said, chuckling. "You oughta get up there yourself and take a look."
Elation and disbelief flooded into Zhou Yu's features. A success! Pang Tong nodded to him as if he had read his thoughts, and without delay Zhou Yu raced from his cabin and shouted his orders to scramble. Multiple gongs sounded, and the Wu army set sail for the Red Cliffs. There they witnessed a number of Cao Cao's ships that were completely engulfed in flames, and that they were spreading easily due to the ships being chained together. Despite Cao Cao's great disadvantage for having been caught in such an elaborate trap, he still had a number of troops and officers who put up a stubborn fight upon the boats that were still viable.
Being Sun Quan's guard, Ling Tong's only indication about what was going on came through messenger reports to Sun Quan. He fumed when he overheard a messenger after messenger roll in to say that enemy troops had been throwing themselves overboard not just because of fire, but because of Gan Ning's ferocious example. His forces had cut a path for the main unit to assault Cao Cao's flagship, and was pulling back presently. Ling Tong knew it would have been too good to be true if he had sunk to the bottom of the Yangtze instead.
Cao Cao's forces were routed that night, but he himself slipped through their fingers back to Xu Chang. Nonetheless, Sun Quan declared it a total victory, and took the army back to their main camp. Ling Tong was glad for their victory, but also glad to no longer hear about Gan Ning's incredible accomplishments.
A/N: Longer chap this time, yay! Hope it isn't putting people to sleep yet. .
