Atrocities of War

[Wei Feng 魏讽]

Note: This is for those who were involved in the riot, just so we can go into detail for RP purposes I felt that I cut the escape too short. So maybe Gongsun Jieming's Liu Pi NPC and Guan Yu's NPC could come into this flashback? And if you want, you can come in to RP Li Jue's forces Emperor Xian

Kind of like a Deleted Scene thing.

Atrocities of War

In the still, grey, silent dawning, two mourning women cry, their dampening gloom and painful cries felt and heard by the very heavens above. Atop a cliff, not as high up as heaven itself stood the man who had indirectly caused their grief. Clad in black clothing, Zijing silently looked on in his own grief for the lives that were lost, and were still being threatened up to this point.

Chang'an was in a state of major disarray, a result of the catastrophe that had occurred. Zijing could feel the people's pain in his own heart, which ached with lamentations and sadness. Doubts filled his uncertain mind, with the burdens that he had placed upon himself, and the mission that had been given to him by his lord.

Yet still he did not doubt what he had done.

His Jian blade planted firmly into the ground beneath him, Zijing stared into the reflection on his blade; a tired image of himself.

Having escaped what he believed to be an impenetrable garrison, and without much more than minor wounds, Zijing could only conclude that the Heavens looked upon him with favor, and that good fortune was on his side. Grief was still present within him, however, with the soldiers that he had slain only the day before.

He had fought alongside them.
And now they lay on the bloodstained streets of their own city.

Feeling his head throb slightly, Zijing continued to stare into the reflection that the sword gave out.

A flash of light filled Zijing's vision as he slowly begun to recall events on the field. With the adrenaline that had taken over completely, he had been unable to experience fully the action that had occurred during his escape.

He was now mounted upon his steed in a dream-esque world. Tuning his head completely, Zijing noticed the pursuing troops of Li Jue. Turning back, Zijing urged his steed forward, attempting to outrun the troops. To his sides, Zijing noticed the eyes of many peasants hidden inside their houses. Many were terrified, but others looked on with hope.

Blinking, Zijing's flashback forwarded. He now was cut off by several troops. Showing no sign of weakness, however, the steed hastened through the men, as its' rider drew his blade.

Much blood was spilled on the roads as Zijing cut his way through the main road of the city, his path still cut off by several soldiers. Glancing left and right, Zijing desperately searched for an alternate route, and found one to the left. Turning his steed with the power of a thousand elephants, the rider and his steed pushed their way through an alleyway, pursued by soldiers from behind.

Desperation was evident.

[Gongsun Jieming]

The former rebel was long glad to be away from that damned capital place. He hated Li Jue and Guo Si, but he didn't like the assignment to spy on them either. He is a warrior after all. The visions of the bloody day and the swift escape rushed back to the former rebel's head as he rode towards Jieming.

Liu Pi was sitting in a tavern when the commotion started. He was trying to overhear the conversations of the patrons, thinking one of them might lend a clue to the rule of General Li and General Guo. Screams and angry yells filled the room and Liu Pi found himself on his feet outside the tavern. He jumped on his horse, readied his spear, and charged for the gates. If he was caught in the commotion, he might be recognized as a former Yellow Turban.

The sight ahead of Liu Pi was one of utter chaos. One man was clearly fleeing the Imperial soldiers, but peasants seemed to be blocking the way. Liu Pi charged his horse down the road, his hooked spear catching one imperial soldier and knocking him down. The rebel charged for the position of the fleeing Warden, but he was blocked by Imperial soldiers. A man called out to him, and Liu Pi escaped by a side-route, through some small chaotic markets.

When he emerged, he saw the Warden escaping to his left and again charged for the Warden's position. This time he made it just in time to deliver his Lord Gongsun Jieming's name to the Warden. He wished to aid the Warden's escape, since that is likely what his Lord would have done, but he was unable to keep up with the Warden's pace. Obviously, Liu Pi didn't know his way around Chang'an. He charged for the nearest gate.

[Wei Feng 魏讽]

Cutting left, slashing right, Wei Feng was beginning to tire. Behind him, he could see that many of the peasants that had been hiding inside their houses had taken up arms and had attempted to protect his flight. Though feeling a slight hint of comfort, Zijing was aware that such actions would not be taken lightly by the tyrant that ran the city.

The end of the alleyway was at hand, as the steed, being of one mind with its' rider hastened forward. Sword high in the air, Zijing was in a threatening position; well capable of ending any one man's life at any given time. Trampling down those who stood in his way, Zijing was a like a raging storm, leaving a bloody mess wherever his steed set foot on.

Men lay sprawled out in separated pieces all across the battlefield as the riot began to intensify. Screaming and shouting could be heard from any corner of the large city with the chaos that was becoming prevalent.

As he rode towards the exit at lightning speed, he noticed and slowed down for a man clad in yellow. At first sight, Zijing assumed that the man was an enemy of the Emperor; a Yellow Turban rebel, but as the man spoke, he recognised the name; Gongsun. A famous family Gongsun was, a family that Zijing had respected, mainly due to the loyalty to the Emperor that they openly displayed.

Yet as he opened his ear to welcome more information, Zijing experienced a powerful thump as the horse whinneyed in pain. Turning the steed, Zijing realized the horse had been clubbed by a pursuing soldier. His blade flourished, and with one swipe, the attacker's head lay on the ground. Once again turning to attend the messenger of Gongsun, he realized that the man had been far left behind.

Assuming the worst, Zijing pressed forward, attempting to avoid any further injury to his steed. Unable to mutter a word or even properly listen to the man, he would make sure to search for Gongsun if he survived this situation.

[Gongsun Jieming]

Liu Pi was lucky to even make it near a gate, what with his total lack of knowledge of the city. He looked to his left, and he saw an imperial soldier cutting down a peasant rebel. In blind anger, Liu Pi charged the soldier, but before he could even reach another peasant had pulled the soldier from his horse. Liu Pi smiled, this peasant based riot reminding him of his "glory days" with the Yellow Turbans. Those days were over now, though, and he had a mission to deliver to Gongsun Jieming.

When Liu Pi finally reached the gates, it was bustling with merchants. Each of them screamed that they didn't want crazy peasants to loot their caravans, and they scrambled for guards. One fat merchant rode up to Liu Pi, offering him a few coins to guard the caravan. Liu Pi nodded slowly, and along with two other guards, raced out of the gates. Before Liu Pi was even a mile from the city, the great gates closed. The former rebel breathed a sigh of relief before "mysteriously" disappearing to the North, following the trail of his Lord.

[Wei Feng 魏讽]

Finally reaching the exit of the alleyway, Zijing breathed a sigh of relief with the sight of wide open space once again. His moment of relief was brought to a swift close as he realized that the area had already experienced the brunt of the chaotic fighting as many of the straw and wooden building structures had caught fire and now illuminated the already bright environment with heaven's hues and colors.

The shouting and screaming that had been very noticeable in the area previous had only grown louder in these parts as Zijing was struck by a decision to go left toward the Western gate and right toward the Eastern gate. Hassled by the shrieks and clanging of metal that was coming from behind him, Zijing's decision was influenced by the sight of the man who had approached him just seconds before, his yellow clothing standing out amidst all of the peasant everyday clothing. His decision made for him and with little time to think, Zijing rushed Westwards following the man, fighting off the soldiers that attacked him from both flanks with his Jian blade. By now the sword had been permanently tinted with a red hue due to all the blood it had spilled by this point.

The heat that was coming from both the magnificent yellow sun and the raging fires of the building structures did not assist in the comfort of the situation. It was truly a magnificent sight; the blazing fires being the background of a battle for the people's liberation and freedom.

Suddenly, a sharp pierce was felt by Wei Feng as he caught sight of his side penetrated by a spear. With a roar of anger, Zijing mightily heaved his sword, ignoring the pain and disfigured the attacker who slumped to the ground without a sound. His side throbbing, Zijing could feel the sharp pain that was the spearhead that still remained within his side. Still ignoring the pain, Zijing raised his sword higher, its' metallic material shining in the sun's vision.

The Western Gate was in sight, and it seemed the chaos had not quite reached the area. But it would soon. The pursuing soldiers, greatly depleted by interfering peasants were not in sight, but could be heard as they continued to push themselves onward out of fear of punishment from Li Jue. Relaxation was by no means an option. The messenger of Gongsun was no longer in sight, for as soon as he reached the area, he had disappeared.

Suddenly, arrows came down upon Wei Feng, one striking him in the left shoulder, another in the right leg. Searching for the firers, Zijing realized that the gates had garrisons. He kicked himself inside for not anticipating the occurrence. More arrows were fired. The gates had been closed and the merchants who had been there had been cleared. Zijing was isolated.

Turning his horse to the right from there in an effort to avoid the arrows, a fresh body of soldiers along with the pursuing soldiers came into sight behind his position.

Fighting off those who had caught up, Zijing slew many, but the skirmish was not without cost, as he was struck in several places. Slowly losing his energy, Zijing retreated from the skirmish, turning his steed and hugging the city wall northwards with the constant danger of being struck by arrows fired from the walls. Going as far as the Northern Gate itself, Zijing turned right into another alleyway market, pursuing soldier hot on his tail. To his surprise, no soldiers nor peasants were to be found in the market, it was completely abandoned. This was not right.

Hastily making his way to the end of the market unchallenged, Zijing realized he had been caught...

Upon re-entering the main street, Zijing was met by forces on both sides of the open street. Glancing left and right, it was obvious that they had planned this due to their numbers and pincer formation. Letting out a cry of despair, Zijing coughed up blood, succumbing to his injuries as the soldiers started to close in. Staring his opponents on the left side with fierce determination, some faltered, gasping and showing their fear in several ways.

Ultimately, however, it became clear that their fear for General Li was greater.

"I will become as a ghost... I will... haunt you to the ends... of the Earth..."

Several images of the people's suffering, the blasphemous acts that Li Jue had committed, the disrespect that was shown to the Emperor and finally the last words of the Imperial tutor flashed in Wei Feng's mind. He would not die. Not today. There was too much at stake.

Grasping his sword, Zijing prepared himself for what he believed would be a final battle, still hoping for a miracle from heaven.

The Northern Gate thundered with banging...

[Guan Yu]

((I did very little to add to this so I'll add extra events and a further conflict at the gate.))

Zhang Qin facing the captain at the gate, threw the stones and killed him swiftly, as his men moved into action, (see the main Imperial Palace thread) guards in the watchposts on the walls spotted the act and sounded the alarm, to alert the defending troops in the capital and the General - Li Jue.

Fairly annoyed by being spotted so early on, Zhang hurled a stone at the watchmen observing his movements, who was caught square in the kisser and screaming he fell from the wall to his death.

By the time the guard had dropped from the wall and body of twenty men had descended and were seeking battle at the gate. Zhang took up his spear, and advancing with his men engaged their foe. The Imperial soldiers shocked at the sudden burst of revolts to begin with could only fall at in the wake of a fresh attack.

Qin, hurling stone with one hand as he advanced with his spear was not famed as the Featherless Arrow for nothing. Causing premature wounds with intense accuracy he made the job easy for his men, who closed in and hacked the unit to pieces.

Calling his men together under the security of the gate, who stayed their horses close. Zhang mounted and prepared for his next move...

[Wei Feng 魏讽]

The suspense of awaiting the soldiers to reach blade distance was killing Zijing. He was suffering from wounds in several places and had exhausted himself in the escape. What was driving this man?

Still maintaining eye contact with his adversaries, Zijing attempted to ensure that the battle would be fought with fear of him. Every small advantage would count in this lonesome battle. Several seconds passed as the soldiers gradually began to slow down, quite obviously shivering in their boots. Wei Feng had been the cause of the deaths of many men similar to those he stared at; nothing was different between them and those who opposed him currently.

Readied, Zijing widened his eyes as he made the first swing with his Jian blade, leaning to left of his horse to close the distance between he and the soldiers in front. The slice was clean, with the soldier screaming in pain; his left arm awkwardly falling to the ground, still fresh with the blood of man.

Many more screams were heard as several soldiers backed down in fear, Zijing once again upright displaying fierce determination. Turning to the other side, Zijing received similar reception as they noisily backed down in fear.

Though he had survived the first few seconds, it wouldn't be long until the attacking soldiers regained their composure and surrounded him... The South was his last chance.

Seeing his opportunity, Zijing did not hesitate to take it and flee towards the South down the Main Road. With a majestic leap, the Emperor's steed avoided the front line soldiers and penetrated to the middle. His blade flying, Zijing bathed in a shower of splashing blood whilst forming a noticeable passage through the large body of soldiers.

Within only a matter of seconds, Zijing had cut a clean line straight through the pursuing unit and escaped through the blindside. Moving at the speed of light itself, Zijing rode his momentum, breaking through the lines of soldiers skirmishing with peasants. The surroundings that he passed were but a flash of light and disappeared from his vision with the blink of an eye. Letting out a powerful battle cry, Zijing continued to blaze his way towards the Southern gates.

A gleam of hope appeared in the Southern distance in the form of soldiers clad in green standing under the cleared gate. A body of soldiers of a similar size to that of which he had broken through stood between he and successful escape. Gazing in ecstasy at the very opportunity that would ensure his survival, Zijing questioned their reasons.

What was the business of Liu Bei's forces in the capital?

[Guan Yu]

Zhang Qin was about to address his followers when he spotted a man galloping towards him, wearing a blood stained court attire. In response he drew up his soldiers and shouted, "Halt a moment!" Sitting atop his horse, his lance held outwards under his arm Zhang shouted to the fleeing man.

"Which minister of His Majesties court are you? What forces such a gory plight?" The minister had not approached so near yet for Zhang Qin too notice that the majority of the blood on the minister's robes was in fact his own, he awaited the approach of the man, awaiting an answer.

[Wei Feng 魏讽]

The blood-covered steed on which Zijing rode trotted slowly towards the leader of the Yong'an troops. Blade still held firmly in his hand, Wei Feng refused to sheath his sword until he was able to judge if they were friend or foe. The leader seemed formidable in combat, and was not one that Zijing wanted to upset.

Just within earshot of the man's interrogation, Zijing decided that the best course of action would be to answer. He was in no condition to be fighting against more men.

"Imperial Warden Wei Feng. You need only look behind me to understand the source of bloody tears. And you? Sir?"

There was much that Zijing did not tell, as he would wait for the man's response before properly judging his character.

[Guan Yu]

Zhang Qin watching as the Warden drew closer, took note of his weakened motions, and the distant look in his eyes. Noticing the man was wounded he hurridley told a soldier bearing part of the luggage they used for the journey, to bring out a piece of rich Riverlands silk and to bandage up the Warden quickly.

Still mounted incase more of Li Jue and Guo Si's henchmen show up, Zhang bowed from his saddle and stated, "Seeing as though you in the Emperor's personal service I will do what I can to see you through this." Observing the blood soaked robe of the Warden he said, "It seems you took your fair share of wounds Warden Wei."

Answering the Warden's question Zhang Qin clasped his hands and replied, "I am in the service of Imperial Uncle Liu, serving as his brother, and General Guan Yu's lieutenant; Zhang Qin, from Shandong, perhaps you've heard of the Featherless Arrow? I come here to the capital to investigate Li and Guo's conduct, for my lord."

Then asking sympathetically, "What pushed you to such a state?"

Waiting to be introduced before futhering the questions Zhang stood vigilant planning to hold off the ones who would pursue the Warden.

[Wei Feng 魏讽]

The man that stood before him truly was a vassal of the Imperial Uncle Liu Bei. This fact alone comforted Zijing greatly with his awareness of the Liege's famed upholding of moral values. Though many criticized Liu Bei's beliefs and behavior, Zijing, though he had never met the man always held a great deal of respect for him. Furthermore, it seemed that this particular vassal was an urban legend in the city of Bei'hai, a local hero.

Hospitality on the Yong'an soldiers' behalf was welcomed by Zijing, who knew that this act was one of sincerity and served as a symbol of what Liu Bei and his force stood for.

"It is good that you have come, there is nothing under the heavens that may justify the oppression on the people that Generals Li and Guo have caused. I have narrowly escaped the treachery of Li, and now flee the city at the instruction of the Emperor Xian."

The wind soon whispered into the ears of those gathered, speaking of yet more pursuing soldiers. The bandages could wait, surviving was the task at hand. Turning around, the unit of soldiers came into view. The steed of Zijing moved backwards to merge with the unit of Zhang Qin.

[Guan Yu]

Zhang Qin nodded to Wei Feng and said, "Since Li and Guo have plotted to do you injury, a high servant of Emperor, I shall give you my support." Seeing the incoming soldiers pursuing the Imperial Warden Zhang Qin drew his troops together and said to Wei Feng, "I plan to go in and let the traitors know that there is still men in this world who would oppose them. Sheer power will not control the people for long."

The troops were closing in on their position at the gate yelling as they charged. Zhang Qin hurridley pulled his horse before Wei Feng's then bracing a stone from his pouch, let fly knocking down the enemy unit commander, lowering the determination of the soldier's charge.

Turning his steed quickly to the Warden once again Zhang Qin hurridley called, "I'll hold this pack of rats back and stir up some trouble to preoccupy the traitors; hurry away, head east and call up the feudal lords in the name of the Emperor, if such is your ambition. Lord Liu will heed the call." Then throwing fresh stones from his pouch felling a couple more charging men, he shouted, "Go. We shall meet again Master Warden."

Kicking his horse into motion Zhang Qin hurled stones left and right as his unit overwhelmed the wounded foe, then swinging his spear Zhang carved his way into the city. Making his presence felt.

As it's only a quick scene I'll cut this short.

[Wei Feng 魏讽]

Understanding Zijing's perilous situation, it seemed that Zhang Qin would immediately act against the likes of Li Jue. It was truly more than anyone could ask for, and it was difficult yet comforting to think that such men still existed in this corrupt world.

Was this the way of all of Liu Bei's vassals?

If Liu Bei truly was the fair and just man that many believed him to be, Zijing would have to one day meet him in person. He could only imagine what the man was like after experiencing the hospitalities of his vassals firsthand. Receiving the final words of Zhang Qin, Zijing gave a nod of understanding before responding with his own farewell.

"You have my thanks, friend, for all that you have done. I pray your endeavor will result in success."

Remembering the internal riots that were still occurring as a result of his escape, Zijing allowed a smirk to appear upon his face before responding to Zhang's statement regarding them.

"You could not be more correct; the spirit of the people is strong and sheer power will not hold them for long. I will be sure to keep your Lord in mind, and one day repay the favor I owe. Farewell, Lord Zhang Qin."

Giving one more nod of respect, Zijing retreated to the back lines of the unit, where he was bandaged by the men, who, after completing the process moved on to join the rest of their unit.

Looking back, Zijing remained for a while in a silent moment of thought, before turning away. Whipping up his steed with the saddle handles, the steed leapt up onto its' hind legs, before breaking out into a sprint towards the sunset horizon.

Zijing's path was unclear, and the Emperor was always in danger.

There was much to be done