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Fist of the Iron Ogre


Triyun

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In the midst of war, chaos reigned. Legends rise and fall in thew twinkling of an eye, fading from one to the next. Their stories spread, from those willing to tell a tale to those willing to listen. Spread, spread beyond the zone of conflict, beyond the troops massing for war, beyond the borders they fought for. Most, would dismiss such fanciful tales. Most would pass them off as simply stories to tell for entertainment, or as nightmarish myths to scare children into behaving or to tell around the fire at night.

Most, but not all. There were those who knew that behind every legend, was a grain of truth. Individuals who, despite not being in the slightest inclined to superstition, had had undeniable encounters with things beyond what could be explained by their own understanding of the world. And of these, most knew, it was wiser not to interfere in such matters. But again...not all.

That was why, in the middle of the vast regions being vied for by titanic armies, a single cloaked individual made for the Great Wall, having heard of the legend of some great beast fighting in the war, championing the cause of the current Emperor against the one who would dethrone him and take his place. This individual had no stake in the struggle, cared not who won and who lost. In fact, the only thought he gave it was that it seemed a senseless waste, overall. So many people dying...that could be used, exploited for gain. Though war had its place too, he supposed. Without a degree of chaos, people like him were bound to attract a little too much notice, however well they attempted to keep their illicit activities hidden from prying eyes and ears.

At first, his search proved nearly impossible, even disguised as he was as a simple traveler from another corner of the empire. This way, said one local. No, that way, said another. It was not that they meant to mislead him, he was sure--his disguise was as flawless as it could be--but rather that rumors always abounded like this. But the closer he got to the Great Wall, the more often he was pointed in one direction. At last, he might just well have picked up the trail. Now, perhaps, he could see for himself, the power of this supposed beast, if it did exist. And if he could...such power would make him all but invincible, when added to what he already possessed. He would never have to worry about those who wished him dead again. Let his rivals be the ones to tremble in fear. Not his loyal lieutenants, who fretted that one day their vigilance would slack just a hair at the wrong moment, allowing for a knife to slip into his gut.

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Sheathing her blade, Angelika, without speaking, picked Rhee up into her arms and slowly began making her way through the desert. The sunlight was fading and the cold air of the barren landscape was starting to blow. She had no clue where another Imperial encampment might be and there was a great fear that rebel scouts or vanguards would be traversing the same land. Angelika needed to find shelter, Rhee was injured and she needed to bring him back to health. They wandered for a few more hours and Rhee's heaviness made the trek for the Austrian nearly impossible, she could hear his groans and sighs and finally she saw a range of hills in the distance. Further in there was a small cave that would give the couple shelter from the cold and the wind and once inside, Angelika laid Rhee on the ground and ran her hand through his white hair.

"Oh Rhee," she sighed and kissed him on the forehead, "Everything will be fine."

She took off her armor and ripped up some of her clothes to made bandages for him, wrapping his arms and legs tightly with scraps of ragged clothes. Then she headed back out of the cave, scavenging small twigs from bushes and dead leaves to make a small fire. She had a few biscuits and salted meat for rations herself and one canteen of water they could share for the night, but nothing in the way of medicine. When Rhee awoke, he could smell the flavors of salted pork wafting through the cave and Angelika's gray body illuminated against the small fire of branches.

Hearing him groan, she turned her head, her new pulsing blue eyes twinkling as she smile. "Are you doing ok? I tried to clean up the poison, but I don't have any medicine with me. We're kind of in a tight place right now, Rhee."

Edited by Sarah Tintagyl
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At the head of the cavalry rode their commander Lord Zhao Yun, a young man in his early twenties he wielded a short spear over the usual Bhutan cavalry sword and shield, and under written orders of General Shu Lord Yun was now leading his five thousand cavalrymen north towards the Great Wall a great dust cloud billowing in their wake as they rode hard and fast for their destination. It was as they neared the Great Wall itself that the small mounted troop came across the sight of a burning village where rebel troops were rounding up and slaughtering the villagers who must have proven loyal to Emperor Jia. Grimacing in anger and disgust Zhao Yun turned to face his soldiers and raised his spear tip to the sky as he commanded his troops.

[i]"Men of Bhutan we will not allow these savages to kill innocents whilst we still draw breath. On wards strike down the rebels, leave none alive!!!"[/i] he roared as he kicked his steed into a gallop straight for the massed rebel soldiers and behind him his men shouted out in support and rode forward themselves. Clenching the shaft of his spear tightly with his right hand and his left holding the reigns of his horse Zhao Yun bore down on the rebel murderers like a ferocious tiger. Coming upon the very first rebel the man turned from the hut he had just set aflame with his friends to see Zhao Yun slash down with his spear severing the man's head from his shoulders and even as the man's corpse fell to the ground Lord Yun swept his spear around two handed cutting down rebels left and right.

As the rest of the Bhutan cavalry charged into the fray the rebels recoiled in shock and fear and soon many of them had dropped their weapons and were attempting to flee as fast as they could but Lord Yun's orders had been clear and the Bhutan men gave no quarter slaying each and every man they reached. By the time Lord Yun called the attack to a halt only a handful of the rebels were left alive streaming back to the Great Wall as fast as they could. With the rebels gone or dead the surviving villagers cautiously made their way towards Lord Yun and his men. As the village elder came forward Zhao Yun dismounted from his steed and slung his spear across his back to not intimidate the old man.

Stumbling forward with shaking hands the old man quick began spouting thanks and other words of gratitude. [i]"Thank you my Lord, you have saved my people from death. We offer you everything we have. Food, water, wine you must have it all"[/i] he offered but Lord Yun shook his head sadly turning his gaze upon the villagers and their burning homes. [i]"No elder that will not be necessary. You may be safe now but you have all lost much and I would not take anymore from you, it would be against my honour. Travel southwards where it will be safer. Only once these rebels have been dealt with should you return to rebuild your homes"[/i] he replied turning and mounting his horse taking its reigns. Giving a sharp and quick order Lord Yun once more set off north with his soldiers towards the Great Wall where he knew even greater battles and challenges awaited them.

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The smell of the pork wafted through his nose waking him. Rhee looked around expecting to see rebel guards. He thought Angelika's scent was an illusion right before he blacked out. But now he smelled it again, and the foul odor of the Japanese and her minions was gone.

Rhee felt both hung over and beat to !@#$. His head throbbed with pain, which were only eclipsed by the deep gashes he bore. He looked down to see them tightly bound by torn cloth. Looking around, his eyes fixed on the grey bodied princess. Even in her transformed state, he could recognize her smile. "You know they say a kiss is the best medicine." he said flirtatiously with a weak smile. Pressing his hands against the ground he weakly pushed his torso up from the ground, propping his arm in place to sit up.

His smile quickly gave way though, "I never thought I'd see you again... certainly not like that." he said to her, "...Are you alright? How are you here?" he asked with concern. Even after what he had said to Angelika nights ago, he still had not completely shaken the feeling that the rune was not a curse. Seeing it spread to Angelika, it filled Rhee with a deep guilt, fearing it would be the same struggle for her that it had been for him. He knew that even a princess would not escape the ridicule and hatred that some had given him before.

Back in Chang'an Jia nodded to Aden, "Yes, the path North is treacherous, but never the less we need our best men there." he said. "Beware, this Pretender is not something to be trifled with. I sense there is more to him than meets the eye. Nobody would be so brazen otherwise." Jia said. "As for your Khanness, I appreciate your service to the realm, many foreigners would not show the dedication that you have."

The Emperor turned back towards Theresia, "We're going to have an empty kingdom if this continues for much longer." he said.

OOC: I may make a few more character posts but I'll have a broader post up tomorrow for the front for you KK. Just finished a 3 day workshop over which I got a total of maybe 8 hours sleep total spread between those days.

Edited by Triyun
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[quote name='Triyun' timestamp='1348428173' post='3033401']
Back in Chang'an Jia nodded to Aden, "Yes, the path North is treacherous, but never the less we need our best men there." he said. "Beware, this Pretender is not something to be trifled with. I sense there is more to him than meets the eye. Nobody would be so brazen otherwise." Jia said. "As for your Khanness, I appreciate your service to the realm, many foreigners would not show the dedication that you have."
[/quote]

"The path north may be treacherous, but it is just another challenge," responded Aden, with a confident nod and simple determined look on his face. "Our column will make the wall, and will defend this Empire, may it be the death of us all."

"And thank you for your gracious commentary, your majesty," responded Caroline, bowing her own head with Aden again, before walking out of the court with him.

Aden would dismiss his [i]Kheshigs[/i] once they were outside the doors of the court, and he would gently clasp his hand in Caroline's before leading her to the Imperial Garden, they would make their way into the garden, finding a seat beneath a cherry blossom tree. Aden knew that Caroline wanted to speak with him about his decision to leave early, and he clasped her hand, as her eyes searched his. She grimaced slightly, still feeling achy from their long ride, knowing that she should rest the night and he should as well, and she would make that clear in the next sentence she spoke.

"Why do you leave early? Leave me early?" she asked, in a quiet voice, as their hands clasped at one another.

"The situation at the Wall is clearly critical, Caroline, the sooner I depart, the better, it is clear that forces that are at work here are more greater then I previously thought," responded Aden, as he sighed softly. "I'm sorry, but one of us needs to stay here and lead the rest of the men north, that is your job, the arrival of myself early will provide a bit of morale boost I believe."

"You're going to run yourself ragged before you get into battle, my love," said Caroline, with a sad smile, gently adjusting the red sash he wore on his arm. "I'm not going to stop you though, you are a grown man... sometimes..."

Eying the grin he wore on his face, she would continue, "If I see you off, I won't be able to let you go, go to the stables and get your steed." He looked at her with a sad smile of his own on his face, watching her produce a handkerchief from behind the chest piece of her armor. She gently knotted it around the leather strap that held the scimitar of Tamerlane to his belt, and smiled at him. "Like the knights of the west, you'll always have me by your side while I'm gone," she whispered, as she leaned forward towards him. "The Pretender's men better not slay you before I get to the wall, for their own sake." Caroline leaned forward to gather a long kiss from her husband, sharing a tight embrace, before he slowly pulled away.

"Now go forth, my love, full gallop, into the abyss," said Caroline, a single tear leaving her eye, as Aden nodded.

"I will see you at the Wall," responded Aden, confidently, as he slowly stood up, their hands slowly losing grasp on one another, before Aden took off at a jog towards the stables. Caroline sat under the tree, watching his retreating back, before looking down, and slowly picking up one of the fallen cherry blossoms on the ground. She picked it up, and looked up, losing sight of her husband, then looking at the fallen blossom, rolling it by its' stem between two fingers. She hardened her expression, she would see him again...

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Hidden in the shadows of the garden, Zhen listened as Aden and Caroline said their good-byes and the Shah left with his men to prepare for the march north. After he had gone and the Queen was alone, the commander walked out, her hands clasped behind her. "Those were very sweet words, Majesty." Said the commander as she walked next to Caroline. "It is a shame that men run off the way they do. There have been many nights where I've seen the Empress crying when Yuan Jia would travel to the front to fight his enemies and drink with his officers. Things became very bad during the Cochin War, you were Queen of Sweden during that time though, weren't you? It was a great time for our peoples."

Standing still for a moment, Zhen looked at Caroline with a smile and placed a soft hand on her shoulder. "You are a strong woman, My Queen, stronger than most I have seen. It is a dishonor that your husband would not take you with him on the campaign north, I'm sure you could hold your own. Which is why I wanted to offer you the chance to do your part for our great empire, which both of us are bound to." Clapping her hands together the commander sighed, "Princess Angelika's disappearance and rumors of her...metamorphosis...this country is already divided. We need to bring her back to the capital and the knight who inspired this behavior needs to be slain. I want you to come with me, Majesty, the Empress would appreciate your sacrifice and so would I. We can't do much, but we can inspire order in our nation and maybe kill a few rebels while we're at it."

---

With Rhee awake, Angelika crawled over and snuggled against his chest as she felt his tired arms wrap over her body. If someone would have entered the cave they would have been terrified, two gray giants in each others arms around a dying fire. She kissed him and smiled again. "If a kiss could take away poison and death, Magdalena would never have died." The Princess sighed and stared into the fire. "They wanted to kill you Rhee, that is why they sent you here and they shipped me to a convent in Laos. But half way through the trip, I was so angry, so sad, I could feel something growing inside of me. Finally I just let it take over and this is what happened. It felt like Seoul all over again, I could see you growing in front of me, your anger, and your passion. It was the same for me but I won't lie to you, it's exhilarating. I've never felt so powerful in my life."

Throwing a small branch on the fire, she continued, "After I escaped from the escort, I started heading north. A village gave me food, a weapon, and armor and I crept past the Wall a few nights ago. But seeing you, that meant the world." She paused for a moment and gently touched his lips. "I don't want to go back. They'll kill you and they won't accept me with honor. But we could live out in the west, mercenaries, demons, however people would have us, but then we can stay together and make this curse into a gift."

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[quote name='Sarah Tintagyl' timestamp='1348439824' post='3033433']
Hidden in the shadows of the garden, Zhen listened as Aden and Caroline said their good-byes and the Shah left with his men to prepare for the march north. After he had gone and the Queen was alone, the commander walked out, her hands clasped behind her. "Those were very sweet words, Majesty." Said the commander as she walked next to Caroline. "It is a shame that men run off the way they do. There have been many nights where I've seen the Empress crying when Yuan Jia would travel to the front to fight his enemies and drink with his officers. Things became very bad during the Cochin War, you were Queen of Sweden during that time though, weren't you? It was a great time for our peoples."

Standing still for a moment, Zhen looked at Caroline with a smile and placed a soft hand on her shoulder. "You are a strong woman, My Queen, stronger than most I have seen. It is a dishonor that your husband would not take you with him on the campaign north, I'm sure you could hold your own. Which is why I wanted to offer you the chance to do your part for our great empire, which both of us are bound to." Clapping her hands together the commander sighed, "Princess Angelika's disappearance and rumors of her...metamorphosis...this country is already divided. We need to bring her back to the capital and the knight who inspired this behavior needs to be slain. I want you to come with me, Majesty, the Empress would appreciate your sacrifice and so would I. We can't do much, but we can inspire order in our nation and maybe kill a few rebels while we're at it."
[/quote]

Caroline jumped slightly when Zhen made her appearance out of the shadows, and she stood up immediately to face the new presence, recognizing her from the court, where she had accepted the mission to retrieve Angelika. Listening to her words for a moment, Caroline was a little perturbed by Zhen's presence, having listened to her exchange with Aden. She looked at Zhen, and responded, "Yes, I was the Queen at one time, I abdicated my throne, now with the gift of hindsight, I realize that that was an unfortunate decision on my own part. I owe my life to Aden for saving me, I am a little offended, Commander, that you eavesdropped on my conversation with my husband."

"There is no dishonor Aden is leveling me with here, I am to follow him tomorrow on the morn, with the rest of his men. He wants them, and me, to be rested for battle," said Caroline, noting that Zhen seemed to have missed that part of the conversation. "If this mission to retrieve the Princess, however, is of more utmost importance than the battles that rage to the north, my husband will understand if I divert myself to the task of finding Angelika. If I am to undertake this task with you, however, I must know what I am getting myself into, and what has happened to have these events transpire at all."

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Rhee wrapped his arms around her holding her close. Having her back returned some of the strength which was sapped from him during the difficult battles. It was ironic perhaps, that as these... beasts, Rhee felt more intimate with Angelika than any other time before as 'civilized humans'. He listened as she told him about her transformation into that which now lay before him. Nodding his head as he looked into the fire as she explained how the changes effected her. It was true, there was a primal thrill about it. It was something early on he had always tried to check for fear of it getting out of hand, but she was right.

As she touched his lips he gently kissed her. When she spoke of leaving through, he frowned. "Angelika... you do mean everything to me too. I won't let the Empire tear us apart again. But can we just leave it entirely behind like that?" he asked her, his voice sounding concerned.

For all that had happened, Rhee still retained a spark of who he had been. He was still bound to his strong sense of duty, remembering the words of Ryu before he had been sent to the wall. "What of the people we have promised to protect?" he asked. "Your sister was harsh, but she's still your only sister left and her children will need protection in the days to come, and Jia is still a lord I swore an oath to. I do not care about breaking that to be with you, but, shouldn't we still try to help people?" Rhee knew however mad Angelika was at Theresia, their bonds were not so easily separated. Through their [i]many[/i] fights before this eventually one of them would always settle.

"Is there no hope to make them respect us, by showing them this is a gift not a curse?" he asked.

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Lord Zhao Yun and his men had only ridden a moderate distance from the ransacked village when the lead elements that rode as scouts came tearing towards Lord Yun pulling up beside him and keeping pace as they continued to ride. [i]"My Lord Yun we have sighted what appears to be a rebel force not too far ahead and to our west. We believe it to be a raiding party that has slipped over the wall somehow"[/i] reported the scout. Zhao took in the report and spent a few moments deep in thought before turning to his banner men and speaking to them. [i]"Signal the men. We ride to intercept the rebels with all haste. No more villages shall burn"[/i] he said though he mentioned the last only to himself and as the banner men relayed his order he lead the group on a direct course towards the location and heading the scouts had reported.

In truth Lord Yun had expected to come up behind the rebel horsemen but as they came to where the scouts had last seen them he suddenly found them waiting in a line across the barren fields of the land. Clearly his scouts had been spotted and the rebels were looking to fight rather than flee. Well he would not disappoint them and he had his own force assembled into a wedge which they quickly and expertly did so whilst the rebels looked on. Once complete he noticed the enemy commander start the advance of his own troops and as one the rebels advanced and Lord Yun signaled for his own soldiers to slowly begin moving forwards. Both sides moved forward at little more than a trot to begin but quickly picked up speed as the distance closed.

Soon the distance had been closed down to nothing but mere feet and by then both sides were riding at full speed and as one the assembled men roared their battle cries as the two forces clashed with one another. Horses and men collided and went sprawling, weapons struck armour and shields splintering them both and all around crimson splashed into the air where they failed to protect their wearers. Lord Zhao Yun swung his spear in a wide arc as the two sides met its bladed edge severing one rebel's sword arm from his body and the return stroke cutting through the mail coat of another sending metal, blood and flesh into the air. Then the situation descended into a chaotic melee as each and every man fought for their very life. Again and again Yun either plunged his weapon deep into a rebel's body or fended off a strike from a rebel's weapon, in this condition he quickly lost track of everything but seeking and killing his enemies.

He did not know how long he fought for but he was shocked when he found there were no more rebels to be found around him only the writhing forms of the wounded and the still bodies of the dead. Bringing his spear tip to rest against the ground Zhao Yun took a deep breath feeling an irony taste on his lips which he knew to be blood, removing a simple cloth from his belt he wiped his mouth and was glad to feel no liquid running across it after thus meaning it had been a rebel man's blood and not his own. Placing the cloth back within his belt he surveyed the battlefield, he and his men had carried the day killing the majority of the raiding band and leaving the remaining few to flee with their tails firmly between their legs and yet unlike the last battle he could see that number of his men had fallen. He felt each loss firmly as he had so few men and no hope of reinforcement unlike his counterparts yet it appeared losses were few and for that he was glad.

It took only a short time for the bodies of the fallen Bhutan men to be found and moved away from the corpses of the rebels and as much as he wished he could have them sent home or at least buried he knew that he and his men were needed at the Great Wall as quickly as possible. Placing the bodies in shelter and covering with branches and such from a nearby cover of trees he had a messenger sent back to meet with the main force who would retrieve them whilst he continued on wards. As Yun watched the chosen man head to the south one his trusted sergeants approached. [i]"My Lord Yun we have accounted all our fallen brethren and the final total stands at twenty three killed and double that too wounded to move. They have requested permission to stay and guard the remains of our fallen my lord"[/i] he reported. [i]"Of course tell the men they may and sergeant have the rest of the men ready to move. We must make our way to the Great Wall soon"[/i] he replied.

The sergeant left to carry out Lord Zhao Yun's commands and it wasn't long before the force was once more making their way north to help the defenders of the Great Wall whilst behind them the wounded men left behind form what position they could around their dead and awaited the arrival of the General Shu's main force.

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Cuddled against him, Angelika thought for a few moments about Rhee's arguments. He had a strict sense of duty, especially given that the knights and the throne had seemingly given up on him, was impressive. She felt neither her, or Rhee, owed anything to the Empire at this point. But as she felt the warmth rising from his body and the fire, Angelika's mind drifted back to Theresia and of the intense pressure that was happening in the capital. "It isn't fair Rhee," she said finally, "What happened to the ideas of family? Theresia's marriage to Jia was considered an abomination in Vienna, yet it happened, and the court was told to swallow their prejudice. I can assure you, Magdalena would never have put up with officials or castrated fools trying to run her empire and Jia should do the same."

Running her hands through her hair, she sighed and looked towards the exit of the cave where stars were beginning to twinkle in the desert sky. "Why should we care to explain to other people what's happened to us. We make what happened to us as a gift or a curse, we shouldn't have to prove it to the rest of the Empire. I've heard the rumors of what you've done in the north, they should be praising you, you shouldn't have to humble yourself to officials and leaders."

---

"Don't be offended, Majesty," said Zhen smiling, "Everyone hears everything here. I'm sure there are already eunuchs running to tell the Emperor what just transpired between you and the Shah. Of course, I do not what to take you away from the duty of your husband and your people. In fact, if it would be permissible, my contingent of soldiers could be a nice bolster to your forces. Perhaps I could accompany the Shah and yourself to the wall, destroy the rebels and bring the Princess back safe and sound."

Zhen said as she stuck out her hand.

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Onward and inward he traveled, on foot, as he must, or on a horse, whenever he found one that had strayed from a battlefield, though inevitably he would always have to give it up to either avoid patrols, or running it to exhaustion without realizing, or some other reason, like trading it for food or water, which he needed more than the convenience of travel.

Sometimes he needed to go around large bodies of troops, but always, his course was quickly corrected, and soon, he entered the same region, unknowing just how close he really was to his target. As he topped a rise, he came across a band of soldiers, lying in wait. Surprise was rampant on both sides. His horse reared up, nearly throwing him from the saddle (apparently he'd discovered why it had fled a battle in the first place), while the soldiers gaped at him for a moment. However, as quickly as they recovered, the leader chattered at him, demanding he turn over the horse. The man known as Artemis stared at him for a moment, then laughed in his face. When he was so close to the wall, and that much closer to his goal, he supposed he might be able to afford it, but he disliked the man's presumption, and if he gave up the horse...they might demand more. So, no.

As the apparent leader approached him, chattering angrily in Chinese, Artemis narrowed his eyes...the only warning before his foot lashed out and connected with his arm, snapping it audibly. This time, he used the horse's rearing to launch himself out of the saddle, tackling another rising soldier and bashing that one's head against a stone on the ground. He drew the fallen man's sword from its sheathe, and with a battle cry, decapitated the next nearest soldier who was charging him, just now reaching for his own weapon.

Already turning, Artemis felt the spray of blood hit his cheek as he blocked a third trooper's attack with his stolen weapon, lashing out with a kick to the chest that bowled the surprised man over. Surprised, because he was large...Artemis was at best, half his size, and that didn't even account for the armor he wore. The tip of the sword sliced down at blurring speed, severing the man's hamstrings before he had fallen the entire way and ensuring he could not rise again under his own power. Finally, the leader got to him...and Artemis contemptuously reached out with blinding speed, and grasped the man's throat with his free, bare hand. With a cry of savage fury, the foreign criminal simply squeezed, ripping his hand away and tearing out his enemy's throat.

Equally contemptuously, he walked over to the soldier he had crippled, stomping on the man's hand as it reached futilely for his own fallen weapon. There was an audible crunch as half the bones simply snapped, and Artemis wiped the stolen blade on the exposed cloth of the man's uniform. Then, he simply turned his back, striding off down the hill, leaving the dead men and cripple to the scavengers.

His battle, however, was loud, and close enough, to carry to the sensitive ears of the transformed pair in the cave. Unknowingly, Artemis was about to pass them right by on his way to the wall, not knowing his target was no longer there.

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Rhee sighed, he understood her anger. Part of him shared it. To say Angelika was always the more impulsive of the two was putting it mildly. "I know. I know..." he said empathetically, "The Eunuchs and bureaucrats wanted to behead me then and there, Angelika. Jia intervened to send me here, to give me some chance. Theresia sent you away to safety, ensuring they couldn't touch you. People shouldn't have a say in whether or not I love you, and I'm not saying I don't hate what they did, but neither of them completely abandoned us." Rhee said, "I think they're stuck with having to make compromises to keep a very large country together. Tianxia's not Austria, its too big for its monarch to exercise absolute control, especially with a rebellion up north."

"I don't know." he continued, looking up at the stars, "you're right, I hate these generals eunuchs, and nobles, but what about the others, the men we have to protect. I just can't bring myself to abandon them. How many peasants have to die because of infighting and palace intrigue? Maybe if we can save enough of them, and make a difference, maybe we can finally put that culture to rest. I guess what I am saying is that I don't want to stay to earn people's respect, I want to stay to change things and make sure nobody else has to go through what we did." Rhee added.

"But that can wait till morning. For now I believe I have a long lonely nights to make up to you." he said winking before leaning in to kiss her, ignoring the sounds outside.

In the far North in the city of Shenyang, Yen Goushi, the self proclaimed Triyun III Emperor sat upon his throne as the old Warlock approached, dressed in black robes. His face was withered and his skin was pale white. Hunching over slightly he looked like nothing more than a beggar, but Yen knew better. Yen had always had a great power of oratory, he had always been able to stir people to his cause, but the warlock, there was something different about him. When he attempted to ascertain the man's desires it was like peering into the void itself. Truth be told it frightened Yen.

"The girl you keep. She has failed." the warlock spat.

"How do you know?" Yen asked.

"My spies can move much faster than your messengers. But that is not our concern at the moment. Another has appeared." the Warlock explained, "And I have heard that it may be the Imperial Princess Angelika. She is someone who has caused me considerable difficulty before." he said venom rising in his voice. "That you've delayed so long to allow this development is foolish."

Yen flushed with anger, "I do not wish to hear more wining about your exile from the Imperial Court. We've all heard the rumors about Seoul." Yen said, "Your job is to provide me with the knowledge I need to rule, then your position will be restored. I suggest you do not try and lecture me in the interim." he barked.

For a brief moment he could swear he almost saw a terrifying smile flash on the face of the warlock, before he bowed humbly. "As you wish. I only came to tell you that the army of stone is ready. Upon your command, I shall give it life and it shall smash through the Great Wall and into the south." the warlock said retrieving a long swiveled dagger and holding it before the Emperor of the North. Yen's guards moved to come between him and but Yen raised his hand.

"No, it is fine." Yen said, "though I would be interested to know how such a dagger got through my guards. So it is my blood you need... very well." he said. Yen took the dagger from the warlock cutting his hand open. The dagger seemed to drink the blood.

The warlock looked on, with a sense of triumph. "I shall begin immediately, the army of stone shall be bound to your by blood and service." he said before heading off from Yen's audience chamber.

A storm came over the desert that night, thunder and lightning crackled in the sky, and rain poured down from out of nowhere. From the energy of the storm would emerge columns upon columns of new soldiers out past the great wall. 10, 000 in all Each of them had their bodies made of stone innards of sand. They moved forward towards the wall, their bodies immune to arrows, unable to tire or fear death. And behind them 80, 000 of the Northern Emperors troops, shielded by the wall of stone vanguards.

Reports of the impending attack managed to make it back to the wall Western Wall forts by the time Aden had arrived. General Chuang, commander of the Army at the Wall had come out to great the Khan when he had heard the reports, "Rubbish." he said. "The enemy wants us to believe statues have come to life. These are old tales here to scare the peasants!" he said confidently. Chuang was a man of immense privilege, coming from a wealthy family in Shanghai. His eldest brother had inherited the family's shipping company, leaving Chuang to join the military. His father had paid for him to be educated by many of the era's best scholars of military affairs, and was supremely confident in his ability and himself generally.

Turning to the Khan, he smirked, "Can you believe the era we live in. First we have grey monsters allowed to run around, and now these rumors of statues. It is as if the world had lost its mind. Proper order must be restored when will your troops be here, I should like to march on them and put this ridiculous matter behind us soon?" he asked Aden.

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[quote name='Sarah Tintagyl' timestamp='1348458527' post='3033541']
"Don't be offended, Majesty," said Zhen smiling, "Everyone hears everything here. I'm sure there are already eunuchs running to tell the Emperor what just transpired between you and the Shah. Of course, I do not what to take you away from the duty of your husband and your people. In fact, if it would be permissible, my contingent of soldiers could be a nice bolster to your forces. Perhaps I could accompany the Shah and yourself to the wall, destroy the rebels and bring the Princess back safe and sound."

Zhen said as she stuck out her hand.
[/quote]

"I will accept your gracious offer to ride with me, Commander," responded Caroline, taking her hand gently. "But be aware, I intend to honor his request nonetheless, he is right, I need to allow my men the night to rest, before rushing after my husband. It will allow my troops to be fresh for battle, I cannot have them rush off to the north without at least a nights' rest in their bones."

Caroline was still wary of the Amazon Commander, who seemed to be very ambitious to seek out Angelika at all haste, although this was a task that was very delicate and time was of the essence, rushing into such tasks also meant a clear mind. After their long ride from the west, Caroline had no such clarity of mind, especially with the untimely departure of Aden, although he had good reason for his early absence. Although the night ahead in her bed would not be easy, without the presence of her husband, which she was used to, and she enjoyed his warm and protective presence, it would nonetheless allow her to sleep fitfully before riding off to war.

"If you can spare time until the morn, which I beseech you for, I will gladly have your presence with myself and my [i]Kheshigs[/i]," responded Caroline, in a firm voice.

[quote name='Triyun' timestamp='1348511666' post='3033698']
Reports of the impending attack managed to make it back to the wall Western Wall forts by the time Aden had arrived. General Chuang, commander of the Army at the Wall had come out to great the Khan when he had heard the reports, "Rubbish." he said. "The enemy wants us to believe statues have come to life. These are old tales here to scare the peasants!" he said confidently. Chuang was a man of immense privilege, coming from a wealthy family in Shanghai. His eldest brother had inherited the family's shipping company, leaving Chuang to join the military. His father had paid for him to be educated by many of the era's best scholars of military affairs, and was supremely confident in his ability and himself generally.

Turning to the Khan, he smirked, "Can you believe the era we live in. First we have grey monsters allowed to run around, and now these rumors of statues. It is as if the world had lost its mind. Proper order must be restored when will your troops be here, I should like to march on them and put this ridiculous matter behind us soon?" he asked Aden.
[/quote]

Having arrived at the Western Wall at a full gallop, Aden would immediately dismount, covered in dust and mud from the hard gallop atop fresh imperial steeds from the palace stables, and would mount the wall, taking the steps two at a time. The wall had not been breached, although there had been a number of attempts, and bodies were strewn about here and there before him, and he surveyed the terrain before him. He was well accustomed to defending the wall, having fought several actions against the Mad Dragon and his army of mindless minions to the south. Although he had defended his own keep before, and was well adept at it, he and his soldiers were more at home in the saddle, fighting mounted against their foes, fighting as light or heavy cavalry, which they were [i]very[/i] adept at doing. Despite this, and seeing the force arrayed against them, he was content with daring the enemy to crash against the walls of the forts like a wave against the stalwart coastal cliff, unable to erode, but never completely break the cliff's resistance.

Aden would note the arrival of Chuang with a firm grip of the man's hand, exchanging curt pleasantries with the man as darkness cruelly approached, and as he listened to Chuang's initial statement, Aden would laugh nervously. "General, I have seen a great many strange things in my time on this Earth, I would not laugh aside these rumors too hastily," said Aden, as he searched the horizon with his eyes. "My world has been turned upside down many a time, defying logic and rattling my perception of what is [i]normal[/i], though I hope that your statues are indeed rumors and exaggeration."

He turned to Chuang, glancing to the sun setting in the west, before saying, "My loyal wife will deliver two thousand of my best by day's end tomorrow, if all goes well, where the other twenty thousand men are, I know not, but these two thousand are worth their weight in gold and blood, nonetheless."

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Scoffing, Angelika turned away from Rhee as he argued in defense of at least her sister and the Emperor. When he was finished, she turned back as he touched her chin. "You know you don't give yourself enough credit for how well you can establish an argument." She sighed and kissed him, "Yes, well, I'll go with you and we'll return to the camp at the wall. However, when and if we get back to the capital, no matter what Jia says, no matter what my sister says, I will reform the system and I will do it by completely destroying every official and eunuch in the palace."

Then she smiled as Rhee brought her to the ground and entered into a night of passion, though before they were finished, the muffled sound of Angelika's laugh came from out of the cave. "Do you realize the last time we did this it was in a cave. We have a problem."

Then silence...sort of.

The next morning Angelika awoke and after throwing her tattered clothes and armor back onto her body, crept out of the cave before Rhee awoke. When she did, her eyes widened as a scattered of corpses lay at the cave entrance. "Rhee! Get out here! Now!" When he finally got dressed and joined her, both gray warriors looked down at the bloodshed. "This must have happened last night, but these men, they're not soldiers. I didn't know there was a scouting party out looking for you too, that or that !@#$%* must have showed up again. We should get moving back to the Wall, I don't like to be out in frontier wilderness for too long."

---

"I would be honored to take your offer, my Queen." Said Zhen as she joined Caroline.

The following day, when Caroline was readying her men for their march north. Zhen and five other Amazons who swore personal loyalty to the commander gathered outside the gates of the capital, waiting for the Timurid Queen. Gathered in a circle, the Amazon commander flashed a smile and pulled her reins tightly. "When we find the Princess, we, and only we are going to escort her. This kind of instability cannot last any longer and this will be our move ladies. The age of the Second Yuan is over and my age...my age will begin...and you will all be rewarded handsomely, especially after Theresia has no other friends to lean on but me and that is when we shall strike."

Then, seeing Caroline approach, Zhen bowed her head and with her contingent joined the Queen as they prepared to ride north.

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They would only need to give the miniature battlefield a cursory examination to see footprints ambling off in the direction of the Wall, more or less along the same path, in reverse, that Rhee had taken to get out here. Waht might easily be the most chilling, though, was not the brutality of the fight, made obvious by the nature of several of the wounds...but the fact that there was only one set of footprints. One person did all that...? What kind of person would it take, if not someone like them?

For his part, Artemis was going to regret, in the days to come, being so oblivious to the real location of his quarry. He didn't want to be caught between the two clashing armies, even though he had truly known was always a mostly vain hope, considering it [i]was[/i] a war-zone after all. Then the not so distant storm in the night , for some reason, set his hackles on edge. There was something unnatural about it...something beyond what was done to him. Or even his quarry. Whatever it was, it was enough to give him pause, where the men he had fought had not. Perhaps it would be wiser to seek shelter of his own for the night.

That took him longer than he thought. For all his intelligence, his skills in wilderness survival were at best, a little above average. It was not much more than luck that led him to a small cave of his own, little better than a hollow in the side of a meager hill. Enough to keep out any rain, barely enough to stretch out and sleep. And, of course, the slightest disturbance that seemed out of place would wake him, so between those, his rest would likely be somewhat fitful.

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Rhee's eyes opened instantly from the deep sleep he was in. The cool morning air was tainted with what he instantly could smell as the scent of blood. Rushing out, he took note of the open terrain. If there was a fight they would be in trouble. Perhaps fortunately though, whatever did this was gone... at least for now. He turned to her, "Yeah... I think you might be right." he said turning his head towards the wall.

He looked down at the ground, picking up one of the spears that was clutched in the hands of one of the dead soldiers. "Alright." he said. "Lets get moving." turning to Angelika, he smiled, "Well I guess we're really going to have to start booking rooms at inns with this luck." before his face turning serious, "Really though if we run into trouble, I want you to keep your eye on safety and keep heading south."

As the two would set out for the wall, to the South another event was unfolding. The army of the pretender had been on a forced march through the night. Now they were approaching the Army on the Wall, and a great battle was to begin to unfold.

As dawn came at the wall, the sound of war drums once again echoed. The sound of war horns now blared across the front as the stone army moved on the horizon. At first scouts thought the earth itself was moving before they got close enough to make out individual soldiers. The Khan and the General were immediately awakened by soldiers as the great braziers along the watch towers were lit to signal an attack was coming.

Rushing to the top of the barricades Chuang looked out through a spy lens, seeing the stone soldiers as they approached. "What trickery is this?" he asked. Scanning the horizon he say groups of black horsed cavalry approaching on either end of the formation. Expert archers no doubt to snipe off men along the wall. Scanning upwards behind the long thing columns of stone soldiers an enormous host probably four times the sides of the Imperial Army was marching with a sizable number of siege engines.

As the drums of war continued to approach, the ground itself would begin to shake, many of the men were farmers only soldiers for several days. Their knees began to quiver. Sergeants at Arms would be sent to keep the troops in line as the battle was about to unfold. Chuang turned to the Khan. "Your men better arrive soon. Against this force we won't last the night."

He looked down towards the ground below, "All crossbowmen to the wall!" he ordered. Thousands of soldiers armed with chukonu repeating crossbows were rushed to the top of the wall as they loaded their weapons ready for the enemy to close into range. Behind them siege weapons were prepared to fire.

Soon the battle began, as the stone soldiers closed into range, a volley of bolts reigned down from the wall smashing up against the stone. They would bounce off onto the ground harmlessly, as waves of riders went along the wall firing up in a swarm motion. Soon the stone soldiers were bringing ladders and battering rams against the gates and lower sections of the wall. The battle was now beginning, with the Pretender's Army now between Angelika and Rhee and safety, and reinforcements from the South two days away.

Edited by Triyun
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It had been a hard ride but the Great Wall was finally in sight for Lord Zhao Yun and his men and already they could hear the sounds and see the sights of battle and they spurred their horses on to quickly cross the last short distance. By the time they had arrived the ladders and rams had reached the wall and knowing that their mounts would be of little use the whole force dismounted upon Lord Yun's order leaving them to be attended to by any Tianxia serfs nearby and breaking into a run Lord Yun tore up to the battlements of the Great Wall and quickly ordered for his men to take positions along side the Tianxia defenders and as his men did so he went searching for the commander. It was as Lord Yun ran along the wall's length that he spotted two men standing at the fore with one of them holding a spy glass in his hands and he guessed for them to be the commanders.

Coming to a halt beside the two men Lord Zhao Yun slammed his right closed fist against his chest in the Bhutan way of saluting a fellow officer before greeting them. [i]"My Lords I am Lord Zhao Yun commanding the forward force of General Shu's Bhutan Royal Army. I have almost five thousand men accompanying me which I have so far used to reinforce your soldiers. I felt it best to come to convene with you both on our plan for the coming battle"[/i] he spoke.

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[quote name='Sarah Tintagyl' timestamp='1348545440' post='3033831']
"I would be honored to take your offer, my Queen." Said Zhen as she joined Caroline.

The following day, when Caroline was readying her men for their march north. Zhen and five other Amazons who swore personal loyalty to the commander gathered outside the gates of the capital, waiting for the Timurid Queen. Gathered in a circle, the Amazon commander flashed a smile and pulled her reins tightly. "When we find the Princess, we, and only we are going to escort her. This kind of instability cannot last any longer and this will be our move ladies. The age of the Second Yuan is over and my age...my age will begin...and you will all be rewarded handsomely, especially after Theresia has no other friends to lean on but me and that is when we shall strike."

Then, seeing Caroline approach, Zhen bowed her head and with her contingent joined the Queen as they prepared to ride north.
[/quote]

The drums and fifes would rise the men before dawn, some of them would grumble as they ate whatever food they were provided with, many eating as they mounted onto their steeds, many had slept in full battle regalia. Although some had reservations of Caroline's command when they had departed Herat, they had no doubt in her after seeing her accompany them across the leagues that had brought them here. She would ride amongst the men as they gathered themselves for their final ride off to war, holding up Azrael, Talia al-Timur's hunting eagle whom Talia had gifted to Caroline for the campaign north. The berkut would seemingly only follow the orders of Talia and Caroline, and seemed to balk at being ordered by Aden, probably due to its nature of having been trained by Talia herself.

Caroline let the bird fly as the sun's rays were just peeking out of the horizon, and the giant bird took off into the sky above their encampment, as Caroline reared her horse, "I have heard many whisper of the terrors and challenges we have heard from the north, but let me tell you this, sons of Tamerlane. There is only one thing that lies to the north, that is war, and it is to war that we march this day. Let the omens say what they will, let the medicine women pull their cards and sniff their fine concoctions until they are but blue in the face. What we do in the coming hours, in the coming sunrises and sunsets, reflects upon us on this life and the next. Let your faces stay to the front, with your swords flashing, bows singing, lances straight and true, and let this day be remembered in your family's history. Now ride, my companions, follow your Shah! TO WAR!" she shouted, drawing her longsword and pointing to the north.

It was at that the banners flew to the sky, three red dots arranged in a triangle, horses reared, and riders shouted, as two thousand [i]Kheshigs[/i] left the Imperial City at a gallop, with Caroline of Bernadotte at the front of the column.

[quote name='Triyun' timestamp='1348593681' post='3033989']
As dawn came at the wall, the sound of war drums once again echoed. The sound of war horns now blared across the front as the stone army moved on the horizon. At first scouts thought the earth itself was moving before they got close enough to make out individual soldiers. The Khan and the General were immediately awakened by soldiers as the great braziers along the watch towers were lit to signal an attack was coming.

Rushing to the top of the barricades Chuang looked out through a spy lens, seeing the stone soldiers as they approached. "What trickery is this?" he asked. Scanning the horizon he say groups of black horsed cavalry approaching on either end of the formation. Expert archers no doubt to snipe off men along the wall. Scanning upwards behind the long thing columns of stone soldiers an enormous host probably four times the sides of the Imperial Army was marching with a sizable number of siege engines.

As the drums of war continued to approach, the ground itself would begin to shake, many of the men were farmers only soldiers for several days. Their knees began to quiver. Sergeants at Arms would be sent to keep the troops in line as the battle was about to unfold. Chuang turned to the Khan. "Your men better arrive soon. Against this force we won't last the night."

He looked down towards the ground below, "All crossbowmen to the wall!" he ordered. Thousands of soldiers armed with chukonu repeating crossbows were rushed to the top of the wall as they loaded their weapons ready for the enemy to close into range. Behind them siege weapons were prepared to fire.

Soon the battle began, as the stone soldiers closed into range, a volley of bolts reigned down from the wall smashing up against the stone. They would bounce off onto the ground harmlessly, as waves of riders went along the wall firing up in a swarm motion. Soon the stone soldiers were bringing ladders and battering rams against the gates and lower sections of the wall. The battle was now beginning, with the Pretender's Army now between Angelika and Rhee and safety, and reinforcements from the South two days away.
[/quote]

"It appears that whispers and rumors may be less of an exaggeration than first believed, General," said Aden, as he arrived at the top of the stairs on the battlements, staring at the impending storm. "General, the arrival of only two thousand men, I can promise, the other twenty? They probably aren't even in the Imperial Capital yet, we'll have to make do with what we have."

The twelve [i]Kheshigs[/i] of Aden's personal guard would stay alongside the Shah at all times, having equipped themselves for a foot battle atop the battlements, they had been in situations like this before, when Herat had been threatened with utter destruction. They were no strangers to desperate situations, and despite the odds stacked against them, they would not waver, but they knew with a peasant army around them, panic could turn a retreat into a full fledged unstoppable rout. It was Aden's intent to not allow such a retreat to happen in the first place, but the siege engines and stone army that seemingly appeared like a legend turned true before them, was imposing nonetheless. Aden's grip on the pommel of his scimitar loosened a little, as the army of stone mixed with flesh approached, but almost as soon as the grip had loosened, it tightened.

Seeing the first volley from the repeating crossbows hit nothing but the ground after harmlessly beating against the stone soldiers, Aden would turn to his Imperial Counterpart, "I suggest saving your bolts for another time, keep the lightly armored archers to the rear, bring the heavy infantry close to the wall, and defend any breaches in it with them. These men are not all stone, we use those crossbows against the flesh and bone that follow behind this army of stone, but we must save them until that critical time." As Aden spoke, two of his Kheshigs, who also carried Chokonu, were expertly switching from target to target of the riders below, picking them off as they stood by their Shah.

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Coming across the grassy hills of the northern wilderness, Angelika and Rhee saw the Wall in the distance. The Princess immediately gasped as she watched the carnage unfolding below. It was a terrible battle and the cries of man, fighting, wounded, and dying echoed out across the plains. The two berserkers were far enough away that they could not be seen by either the rebel advance or the Imperial defenders, but by nightfall this side of the wall would be swarming with rebel soldiers. Yet the shocking sight was that within the rebel lines were great stone statues, moving as if they were alive, and they were easily advancing up the wall into the lines of Imperial soldiers.

Turning over to Rhee, Angelika's eyes widened. "Rhee?" Then she grabbed the hilt of her blade and looked back at the wall with a nod. "If you were talking about duty. This seems like the perfect event to show that we still care." Finally a smirk grew across her lips as she bounced the hilt of the weapon in her palm. "Though this looks like fun, I haven't got to really try out this new body. And I've seen you fight, this feels like it's going to be like tearing paper." With a laugh, Angelika's feet beat against the ground as she charged towards the wall.

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As the two armies flung themselves against each other, smoke rose from the wall. There was chaos across the front as the two competed to hold towers and forts along the long string of fortifications that was being attacked. Only the strongest of soldiers and near point blank shots from heavy weapons were able to smash the stone vanguard of the enemy. They continued to advance, moving closer and closer to the main redoubt which held Chuang and the Shah. At several points along the wall, masses of troops were sent into paths which the stone warriors broke open, allowing them to storm and seize forts.

"Its hopeless." Chuang said to Aden as the fight continued. "We're all doomed, no men can face this sorcery!" he lamented. Looking down from the tower soldiers were holding onto ever inch of territory they could, but it was a losing proposition. The enemy was gaining and gaining in strength. Before long they would break through and flood the redoubt.

Lord Zhao's forces would be urged to the front to reinforce the fight where the Imperial were getting badly crushed by the rebels. The situation looked near hopeless. The army of stone was near indestructible, it knew no fear or doubt. It continued to assail as it marched ever forward.

All was not lost however, in the north two warriors approached the battlefield. Rhee and Angelika both stood one in a half times the height of normal men, and were both ready for a fight. In fact in many ways Rhee was spoiling for one. As Angelika spoke, Rhee smiled.

Rhee looked on and nodded, "I guess so..." he said. He looked at her with a mischievous smile. "Not to be unchivalrous... but now that we're even in terms of ability... what do you say we have a competition. Whomever gets the most has to buy drinks?" he said as they leapt into the fray.

Rhee's used his spear to assail the enemy as they entered into the battle fray, cutting a path through the line towards the front where the battle was culiminating at the redoubt. The two possessed by the ogre rune were throwing the battle into confusion as they cut a path through the regular soldiers till they reached the stone warriors.

Rhee slammed his fist into shattering it. However his hand also ached. "God damnit." he said as he looked around, "What're these things made off." Spinning around he hurled his spear down at one, with the shaft of the spear shattering. Picking up a blunt war hammed he struck the stone soldier hitting it again smashing it. "This is something new." he said to Angelika as they continued fighting the stone soldiers.

The two were growing stronger as they continued to fight through the enemy lines.

OOC: Sorry I'm a bit sick today my next post should be better.

Edited by Triyun
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Charging into the lines of stone soldiers and rebel warriors, Angelika cleaved through flesh, blood, and bone in a terrific waltz towards the wall. Singling out an enemy soldier, the two would start at each other in defiance before the gray warrior would holler to the sky and run him through with her blade. The stone soldiers were harder and the Princess found out, rather quickly, that her sword did little against cutting through the stone, just creating a few sparks and falling back to the ground. Finding something she couldn't easily defeat sent Angelika into the beginnings of a rage as she charged forward with her hands and took the stone soldier by his arms. Roaring up at the sky again she could feel her strength spike as her arms bulged with power and ripped the stone arms off the body, kicking the broken statue into a line of advancing rebels.

She stood for a moment in awe, breathing heavily as the rebels advanced around her. Angelika had never felt such a surge of power in her life. It was amazing and terrifying at the same time for her mind felt overwhelmed by a force she couldn't control. Everywhere she looked the Princess could see the enemy, it made her happy to see their blood, to hear their screams, the screams of dying men. Her vision blurred and everyone in the field looked the same. With another scream, Angelika unsheathed her blade and drove it into one of the rebel's face. The gore and bloodshed that followed was unspeakable. The screams for mercy went unanswered as the beast bathed in blood, not flinching when a spear or sword slashed across her arms and legs.

Reveling in the moment, the Princess barely heard the sounds some of the other soldiers yelling that the headquarters of General Chuang was being overrun and he had ordered a retreat. Though she could hear the fear in their voices, where had this second gray giant come from and who was she? It made Angelika smile and want to show just how powerful she had become. The headquarters wasn't far, but the path was blocked by Imperial and Rebel soldiers heaving to the right and left. For Angelika, however, it was too hard to discern in her current state of mind who was friend and who was foe; they all were just people who stood in her way and needed to be crushed.

Which is exactly what happened...

It was a glorious whirlwind of swords and blood as the Princess cut her way across the Wall. When she finally reached the headquarters, Angelika arrived covered in blood while the echoes of screams wailed across the countryside. Seeing the General she advanced towards him and blowing past his own guards grabbed him by the neck. "Is it you who ordered a retreat in the face of the stone soldiers? Can you not do your duty?"

Almost instantly, with Rhee behind her, he would feel a thin blade run across his neck as an imperial soldier, with a very familiar voice chuckled.

"Another gray beast? Stone soldiers? Things are indeed getting interesting, but drop the general or the Ogre dies."

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Angelika was charging ahead of Rhee through the carnage of battle. He was amazed, at both the speed and strength she was displaying. In truth he had difficulty keeping up with her through the chaos that was unfolding. As they descended into the fight, and cut through the horde of the enemy, he felt his leg grabbed by one of the stone soldiers, he turned kicking it and smashing it only to be pummeled by two more. Rhee's voice cried out for her, but she was already well ahead completely consumed by the fight. Rhee pushed himself off the ground taking hold of one of the stone soldiers hurling it into another shattering both before charging forward after her.

There was something both intoxicating, but also worrisome about how she was fighting. He couldn't quite put his finger on it. She seemed to have change, like her normal gentle persona was being consumed by something else. It was how he was early on. Angelika had been the one who had saved him from it... and now he could not tell but it felt like she just may be succumbing to that very thing which he had needed protection from.

He felt a piercing pain as a soldier thrust his spear into the giant. Rhee had become distracted in the fight and Angelika had gained more distance on him. He roared as he removed it from his flesh, thrusting it back into the soldiers neck. He had to focus. Rhee narrowed his eyes as he charged forward. Now wasn't the time to be second guessing her on the battlefield, they'd both need to focus or be dead.

With renewed confidence he continued forward tossing his opponents aside as they headed towards the central tower where the battle would be decided. He could see the flag of General Chuang there. Soldiers were barring themselves in trying to hold back the onslaught of rebels that were coming in. These were the men they'd need to show they weren't monsters. Those men, up there, they were the people that Rhee and Angelika were fighting for. They were the ones they'd prove they were heros for.

Then it happened, as they approached the final part of their trek, Angelika began cutting friend and foe down alike. Rhee rushed towards her, but he was too far behind her to stop her as she reached towards the general. His eyes were filled with horror as he tossed enemies aside to get to her, "Angie stop!" he pleaded.

Chuang looked up as the two gray beasts approached him. The front one was possessed with both uncanny strength, and the feral viciousness of a beast. At first the general had faintly hoped that it was a ally, his eyes went wide as he realized it was not distinguishing friend from foe. His face was white with fear and he was so seized by terror that he was not noticing when another soldier came in behind him and soon had her blade against his neck. She spoke like a foreigner, one who had come with the Western Empress. "What is the meaning of this?" he demanded.

At last catching Angelika, Rhee grabbed her her wrist turning her towards him, "Angelika we can never be together if you do this, we'll be hunted, you need to calm down!" he pleaded, but then his eye caught the scene unfolding in front of them. He knew the voice, it was [i]her voice[/i], the one person he hated more than anyone else on the planet, she had to be the one corrupting his Angelika. "You!" he said almost howling in anger as he eyed the woman holding the blade to the General's neck, "I knew that wasn't the end of your sorcery, what have you done to Angelika, and what are you doing here!" Rhee yelled.

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Before the arrival of Rhee and Angelika, the situation along the wall was growing increasingly desperate, with a breach in the wall, Aden had resolved to close a hole in the line with his dozen personal [i]Kheshigs[/i], and a detachment of heavy Imperial Infantry. Leaving Chuang in the citadel, the Shah and his cohorts had charged headlong into battle with their enemies of both stone and flesh. With a blood-chilling war cry, exalting the Western Kingdom, or their Shah, or their Islamic faith, or even a combination of all three, the twelve [i]Kheshigs[/i] would follow their Shah into the clash on foot with heavy broadswords and war hammers. Aden had elected to fight with his scimitar and a war hammer, the latter was a weapon of Europe, but nonetheless effective, as its dull and blunt features would prove against the stone soldiers, more so than any sword.

The thirteen Timurids and the Imperial Infantry would form a stalwart barrier against the rising tide of rebel forces moving through the wall, hacking their way into ranks of stone and flesh, despite the odds against them. It was clear to Aden that the situation he was putting himself in was one that he was unlikely to emerge from unscathed, but he had resolved long before entering the clash that the contest at the wall was a deadly barter of trading blood for time. Swinging around his war hammer around, the blunt pointed end would penetrate the side of the head of one of the rock soldiers, dissolving the stone demon in a cloud of dust. He would nearly splinter a spear thrust at him with the swipe of his scimitar as he brought the war hammer around again, knocking a rebel soldier flat to the ground.

The [i]Kheshigs[/i] around him fought desperately with him, but the crush of the weight of odds was against them, and despite their counterattack, they were slowly but steadily being pushed back to the doors of the citadel, but were ensuring that every inch forward for their enemies was an agonizing one. The arrival of Angelika and Rhee would be preceded by shouts and wails, and a cloud of blood and gore that seemingly had no end from behind the enemy lines. Aden was unsure of the cyclone of death and destruction approaching them, whether it was friend or foe, and his lapse in attention would be his own undoing, a rebel soldier would catch him across one arm with the slash of a sword, and he was thrown backwards. Two [i]Kheshigs[/i] would move forward with almost feral ferocity to defend their wounded monarch, as Aden slowly lifted himself to his feet, grasping at his arm, before clenching his teeth, and parrying a blow from another rebel, engaging him as the cyclone approached.

Angelika would tear into through both the ranks of the rebels and Imperials with little regard for who they were, killing two [i]Kheshigs[/i] through her assault that seemingly left a pile of dead bodies in its' wake. Although the battle seemingly continued to rage after she tore by them, Aden knew that something was amiss, and he grasped his war hammer, thrusting it into its sheath along his hip, and got to his feet once again. Dispatching a rebel soldier by cleaving his head off with his scimitar, the Shah of the Timurids would yell out, "Farouk, Desh, to the citadel with me, the rest of you hold them here!" As he moved to rush back to the citadel, the form of whom he would later learn to be Rhee, hurled himself past him, apparently more in control of his efforts, having avoided hurting few if any of the Imperial soldiers, yet, the Shah would double his pace into the citadel.

The wounded Timurid monarch, adrenaline slowly numbing the pain in his left arm, would sprint with two of his personal guards back into the citadel, the bloodied Scimitar of Tamerlane in his hand as he took the steps two at a time, heaving himself forward up the steps of the central tower. As he and his duo of guards reached the top of the central tower, he would skid to a halt, seeing a grey beast, whom he would later learn to be Angelika, holding up Chuang by his neck, and one of the Imperial soldiers holding a sword to the neck of Rhee. Leveling his scimitar with two hands, after hearing the first exchange of voices, he would swallow a twitch of uncertainty and make his own presence and intentions known.

"Unhand the General, Your Majesty," shouted Aden, in a firm but conciliatory tone. "Don't make your predicament any worse than it already is. And you, lower your blade," he added, turning his attention to the familiarly-voiced female Imperial Soldier who had her sword to Rhee's neck.

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"Well don't every say hello at once," said the soldier as she stepped back from Rhee, still holding her knife to defend against any attacks. She reached up and lifted her helm, throwing it to the ground to reveal the face of Bridgette Saenger. "Firstly, I find it rather insulting that you would think I would do this to the Princess. Though I must say, Angelika, you look like you're enjoying yourself."

The anger for Chuang vanished immediately as the Princess saw Bridgette's smirk. If there was one person in the entire world who she could sum up into an absolute hate, it would be saved solely for the Former Austrian Chancellor. "You should leave now, before everyone in this room rips you limb from limb." The gray warrior began to stagger over to the blonde sorceress.

Bridgette smiled and cleared the throat. "Well that's cute Angelika, threatening me, but do you really want to kill the only person who can save your precious Empire?"

The Princess continued to cross the headquarters, murder in her eyes as her fists clenched tightly. "No one cares about your games, Bridgette, especially not me. You picked the wrong time to rear your ugly head."

Slowly, the sorceress gulped and backed up, still trying to maintain her grin, but knowing the anger built up in Angelika's body. "If you're looking for a fight Princess, it can be arranged, but that isn't why I came here. Truth be told, I want to help and if it is any sign of my truth, it isn't to help restore some sense of stability to your sister and her husband's nation. Those stone statues bombarding your walls right now?" the sorceress said glancing towards the battlefield to her right, "Those aren't coming from out of thin air, your Triyun III has a helper who can make those soldiers and this would only be the beginning of unnatural power that the rebels possess. A helper who I'm willing to bet is after the same thing I'm after."

Angelika reached with her open hand and grabbed Bridgette's neck, holding her against the wall. "I said no more games Bridgette. What do you want?"

"It's Ming," the sorceress growled, putting her own hands on top of the Princess's. "He's looking for the Beast Rune, the same thing that turned Rhee into that gray monster and indirectly did the same thing to you. If Triyun III gets a hold of that, your empire is over. I'll help you save the empire if you help me get my power back, it's as simple as that."

"So you can destroy Tianxia after?" Angelika said pressing her hand harder against Bridgette's neck.

"Please, darling, I'm not as predictable as some Warlord who wants power." Her eyes narrowed, "Now do you want my help or not? Because I can end this battle right now."

"Fine," said the Princess as she released Bridgette and the sorceress dropped to the ground.

Standing up, Bridgette dusted herself off before walking over towards the door in the Wall's Tower. There below, she could see the two armies heaving against one another. Raising her hands, the sorceress's skin began cover itself with red lines, snaking their way up her legs, neck and across her face. "Blood of his blood, welcome yourself into my body, into my veins, become one with me. One body, one mind, one vision, one strength." As she chanted the stone soldiers began to groan and their own surfaces filled with red markings as drops of blood began to form in their eyes. The statues began to bleed and all of that blood jumped up into the air, covering Bridgette's body. She cried out as it soaked into her skin and soon her figure was completely covered in red crimson as it pushed its way into her small frame.

When it was done, the statues had collapsed on the field and Bridgette collapsed panting, holding their blood within her now, completely red eyes. "Told you, I could help." She said before passing out.

---

Meanwhile, later that night, Yen would awaken with a terrible pain in the hand where Ming had cut. His skin began to bubble and the cut burst open as his entire arm began to sear with pain. His eyes would turn to the same blood red as Bridgette's as a voice filled his head. "A warning, warlord, you place too much trust in old men and incompetent girls. If you support me and find my power, I will give you riches and strength beyond your wildest dreams. I will give you the empire you desire, but only if you support me and cut those who you trust now, down."

Then the feeling left him and his hand immediately healed, the voice still echoing in his head.

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