Oh look I'm here and I succeeded in posting a chapter yay. Please excuse my crappy duels, I just don't know how to write them. They mostly consist of people feinting attacks and then winning coz the opponent was tricked by the feint. Yep, that's just how sad I am TT_TT

Chapter 7: A Battle Finally

"Why do you betray our emperor?" asked Cao Cao. Ma Chao looked at him like he was some idiot. "You are the decent of a loyal Han general!"

"Me betray the emperor? Ha! I fear you are the one who's doing so. Making the emperor do wait you want. You usurper, you filth traitor!" yelled Ma Chao. "I must kill you, today!"

A fat man holding a menacing club came forth.

"I want to fight you Ma Chao! You must be an evil man if you want to kill Cao Cao!" he challenged. "He also said I could get baozi afterwards if I win or lose," he added.

"Ehh, ok. I accept your challenge...."

"His name is Xu Chu," whispered Pang De.

"Xu Chu!" finished Ma Chao. He dismounted seeing as Xu Chu wasn't and walked forward, his spear, Stallion Fury, ready in his hand. "This should be easy."

"Don't underestimate him Mengqi, I've heard he fights like a mad tiger. Don't let his looks deceive!" advised Pang De.

"It'll be fine," said Ma Chao. He made the first move. Xu Chu blocked with his club and pushed back, making Ma Chao stagger at the fat man's force.

"Such strength!" wondered Ma Chao and instantly stopped underestimating his enemy. Xu Chu roared and swung his crushing club. It was heavy and the attack was slow too so Ma Chao easily dodged it.

"Too slow." But then Xu Chu used his musou and swung right around him, causing Ma Chao to fly back and skid into the dirt, just as he was about to stab him in the back.

"Who's slow?" yelled Xu Chu in his dorky voice as Ma Chao got himself up.

"That was a massive punch," he muttered to himself. He charged over but didn't attack. Instead, he dodged sideways. Xu Chu had blocked the expected attack, but now that Ma Chao had gone behind him, his back became vulnerable and he had no more strength to pull off a 360 swing. Ma Chao took the advantage and stabbed continuously. He ended off his combo with a shockwave through the ground, making Xu Chu fly away, into the ground in front of his allies. Cao Cao, afraid for his loyal bodyguard ordered for the gong to be sounded. Ma Chao remounted his horse and trotted back smiling.

"Let's go!" They charged the Wei army head on, their morale high. Slashing out at them with their long spears, they made bloody work of the enemy. Cao Cao tried to escape on his horse. His horrified face, his fear, was shown all too well. In the confusion, Cao Cao managed to break free but Yun Lu saw him go.

"Mengqi, he went that way!" she yelled at him. Finishing off the rest of the soldiers, they galloped after Cao Cao. "Right there! See him? The one with the blue cape!"

Ma Chao grinned and yelled out to his army, "The one with the blue cape is Cao Cao! Get him!" They were catching up to him, Ma Chao at the lead. Hearing the call, Cao Cao instantly threw off his cape to try and hid with the remnants of the army. But he wouldn't be going anywhere, Ma Chao's army had their eyes glued to the Wei commander.

"The one with the goatee is Cao Cao!" Ma Dai decided to call out. Cao Cao used his sword to cut off his half his goatee, so that it looked like a square.

"Wow, dude, he must be pretty desperate," commented Yun Lu.

"You reckon," replied Ma Dai. "Cao Cao's the one with the square looking beard!" he yelled.

A lone Cao Cao raced into the forest, chased by a whole group of Xiliang troops. Ma Chao lost sight of him in the twisting and turning paths. But he knew Cao Cao was just up ahead. Yun Lu saw her brother's expression, a look of wicked happiness.

I wonder what he's going to do if we get hold of Cao Cao

Another bend, another turn and they heard the thudding of one horse nearby.

"Come on men, we're nearly there!" encouraged Ma Chao. They came to a forked road and on one of them, laid Cao Cao's headdress.

"This way! Look at this!" Ma Chao picked up the headdress. "It must've fallen off when so he came this way." He took the headdress as a prize. But Yun Lu saw through what was happening.

"Mengqi, I think that's a lure…" said Yun Lu

"What?"

"Like, Cao Cao probably on purposely dropped it there to deceive you. Go right, not left," explained Yun Lu. Ma Chao frowned.

"Cao Cao's too scared to think up a plan. All he would want to do is escape," retorted Ma Chao. "Left we go soldiers!"

Why is my brother ALWAYS so stubborn? Stupid idiot, I'll prove he's wrong!

"I'm going that way!" Yun Lu shouted. Ma Chao looked at her angrily.

"Fine then! Do whatever you want! We've already wasted enough time here!"

"Anyone who wants to come withME can do so!" Yun Lu waited. Everyone followed Ma Chao as he galloped off. "Ma Dai?"

Ma Dai shook his head and followed Ma Chao.

Han Sui tried to urge Yun Lu, "Come along now, don't be silly."

"No uncle. You go but I'm not coming," she restrained herself from yelling at her father's best friend. After all, he was an elder and youngsters weren't allowed to yell at their elders.

"Seems like I'll have to go alone then…"

"I'll come with you." Yun Lu looked to see that the owner of the voice was Pang De.

"Finally! Someone with a brain!"

So Yun Lu and Pang De detached from the group and rushed off to catch Cao Cao.

"Why'd you decide to come with me?" Yun Lu asked.

"As you said, because I have a brain. I'm pretty sure Cao Cao's smart enough to do that even if he is afraid for his life. And I think that headdress is needs hands to take it off…I'm not buying the rumor that it just 'fell' off," answered Pang De.

"You do know a lot of stuff Pang De. Tell me, do you do research before a battle?"

"No, of course not. I've just, seen a lot I suppose."

Yun Lu saw a speck of colour caught on a tree branch. She picked I off the tree and examined it while she rode.

"What's that Yun Lu?" Pang De asked.

No doubt this is the blue that Cao Cao was wearing. He probably snagged it on that tree. Heh, I get to show evidence that Ma Chao screwed up! Yay!

Pang De cleared his throat. Yun Lu looked up from her thoughts.

"Uh…come again?"

"What-is-that," Pang De repeated.

"Oh, it's part of Cao Cao's clothes, got snagged on a tree." Then up ahead, she saw their target. But he was way up ahead.

"There's no way we can get to him. Yun Lu, shoot him!" shouted Pang De.

"Gotcha." Yun Lu balanced herself on Chalk while she quickly strung her bow. She had had a bit of training in shooting on horseback but she definitely was not a crack shot.

Come on…

Cao Cao came into position and she let the arrow fly. But it missed, only by a fraction.

"Oh no…" sighed Pang De. Yun Lu strung her bow a second time but Cao Cao had already disappeared.

"Damn. I was so close!" she said as she strapped her bow into its original place and took hold of the reins. "Ma Chao could've caught up to him with his horse, and a better archer could've shot him down."

Pang De sighed loudly, "Let's cut across these trees and head for the other path so we can meet up with the rest."

"I'd like to see what reaction Ma Chao will give me. He thinks he's always correct while I'm not, just because I'm a woman, younger and 'inexperienced'," Yun Lu spat out. "What's wrong with him? I have brains! I've read more strategy scrolls than he has. And he should know that he's not a talented strategist. Why is he so stubborn?"

Pang De just listened as Yun Lu lost her calm.

"We are so gonna fail everything if he continues to be like that! His mind creates a stupid little idea and then he sticks to it FOREVER. Nothing can change his mind, they're set in concrete! I mean, I don't mind if he's dumb but he just doesn't listen to people who have better ideas!" continued Yun Lu. "Alright I should stop blabbering on now, let's go."

The two cut across the trees and caught up with Ma Chao.

"Yo, look what I found, Ma Chao," Yun Lu said firmly, showing him the piece of blue fabric.

"Hmph." Ma Chao simply turned away.

"Hey, you look at me. You fell for a simple trick that Cao Cao put. I saw him up ahead, but I failed to shoot him down. Listen to me in the future! Your skills in combat may be better than mine but not this!" Yun Lu pointed at her head, indicating the brain.

"Let's go back to camp," Ma Chao ordered his men.

Ma Chao can't lose. He's too full of his damn pride. He never says 'sorry' or 'okay' if he is wrong. He just ignores it and pushes the event aside.

What issues does he have? Too stubborn, to full of himself and underestimates others. That is the worst thing in a leader and will probably be what causes his downfall. Yeah sure, he's my brother and I should be supporting him but...I'll make it straightforward. He's not a leader type and neither was dad. Maybe the Ma family is destined to serve others…

Lol, I've just finished all my yearlies, and although I've failed all of them, I now have more spare time to type stories and surf the net and play ps2. Yay!