When the gas had dissipated, other Academicians closed in on the priests and attempted a second attack. Before getting within weapons’ range, the priests tossed a noxious powder into their eyes and faces which took effect instantaneously. The powder burned and seared through the skin, exposing flesh and vaporizing their eyes. Some were inhaled, and the poison made quick work of the nose and lungs, burning them with the same effect. Violent bloody coughs, gasps, and wheezes ensued, and death followed not long after.
The higher-ranked students of the Iron Dragon School had arrived along with their leader, Master Zhuang, wearing his master’s robes and antiquated armor. The surviving Academicians in the sector led Ming troops to continue the fight. The Priesthood of the Serpent’s Eye walked beside Master Zhuang as they marched through the block as if they already owned it. Hand gunners took positions to the fore and launched a volley of bullets at the priests. Shots that had landed anywhere but the head and face were not fatal. Master Zhuang and his students had evaded the first volley and had closed the distance before the Ming could fire a second. Crossbow bolts and arrows were intercepted and denied their targets with the priests’ swipe of a heavy cloak. War ravaged the capital, and still some of the nian beasts still roamed about seeking whom they may devour.
Warlord Li Hong and his band of five hundred mercenaries from across the known world had emerged from the hiding place for which Tian Qiu had made arrangements, and arrived at Daqingmen Gate—the entrance to the Imperial City district. It should have been heavily guarded and fortified through and through, surrounded by thousands of troops and artillery, but none stood in its defense. Instead they found one lone figure standing before them with the gate at his back, completely unguarded and left wide open for their entry. From the distance Tian Qiu simply stared at them, motionless, until Kurr, in his powerful and ominous presence further amplified by his heavy cloak and cowl, joined Li Hong and his mercenaries.
They approached Tian Qiu without speaking a word, and the Martial Scholar stepped aside to grant them uninhibited passage.
“You chose well, Scholar,” hissed Kurr in his deep otherworldly voice.
“I have managed to dispatch most of the guards and Academicians to fight in the Outer City district so they wouldn’t bother you, but the others inside the palace itself are up to you. The emperor is inside. The sage may not be far. The swordsman whom you seek to challenge is predictable and shall arrive soon enough to rescue his Imperial Majesty. Some of his friends have arrived ahead of him, so your wait shouldn’t be long. Just do what you must and quickly. Let us be done with this business forever,” said Tian Qiu without batting an eye.
“Tell me, friend. You’ve gone through a tremendous amount of trouble to betray your comrades and your empire, to smuggle us into the city, make arrangements to set our incursion, and open the path for us to infiltrate the Forbidden City palace.” said Li Hong. “What’s in it for you?”
“Something far greater than your stake, whatever it may be. That is for certain. It’s for me to know and for you to keep wondering,” Tian Qiu answered with a glare devoid of any respect.
Li Hong said nothing and simply laughed at the answer.
Kurr and Li Hong and his mercenaries along with one horse-drawn cannon charged down the lengthy avenue leading to the square laid out before Tiananmen Gate. The gate was sealed and they were spotted long before they neared the “Golden River Bridges”. Alarms were immediately rung and palace guards and Martial Academicians moved to defend the incoming enemy. Beyond the range of arrows and bolts, Li Hong and his mercenaries readied their cannon and aimed it at Tiananmen Gate. The gun fired, and the shell landed dead center, obliterating the gate. The way was clear and with shields raised, the mercenaries proceeded to enter while arrows riddled and pierced their shields. Hundreds of Ming heavy infantry and Academician squads ran out to meet the mercenaries in combat.
Li Hong stood at the fore and challenged them openly to fight hand to hand. Senior Academician Luan Kai led his company to engage the mercenaries in combat. The one who stood tallest among them had his body completely encased in silvery full-plate armor. His hair was golden, had a face of fair complexion, and had eyes as blue as the sea. He wielded a shining greatsword that sported an outstretched crossguard and a heavy rounded pommel. The warrior eyed and Luan Kai and targeted him first. He marched over and the two initiated their duel in the midst of the battle.
Luan Kai landed multiple blows on the golden-haired warrior, using his superior speed and maneuverability to overwhelm him, but his sword glanced off harmlessly against the thick plate armor. Sparks flew but scratches were all that resulted from his techniques. The foreign warrior was strong, and Luan Kai felt it with every blow he deflected and blocked.
Meanwhile, a handful of the Academicians attacked Kurr simultaneously and crossed weapons furiously for several prolonged moments. The first however, fell to a deep slash across the back with the armor scales tearing off with ease, the second was decapitated, the third and fourth fell not long after with Kurr’s blade deep in their chests. The rest of the mercenaries engaged the other defenders and clashed with the other Academicians and Ming troops in full force. Soon, thousands filled the square and despite the mercenaries being outnumbered, they stood their ground effectively, fueled by the Terukk elixir, and empowered by years of diverse experience in foreign lands. The mercenaries’ tireless fighting forced the surviving Ming troops and Academicians to retreat to Duanman Gate where more guards stood to defend the entrance.
The battle shifted perilously closer to the palace proper, and once again, Li Hong utilized the cannon to destroy the gate. The cannon shell not only broke the gate but took a dozen guards with it. While the Ming-Academician force fought the mercenaries, Kurr proceeded toward the largest gate that marked the entrance to the Forbidden City—the Meridian Gate. Archers lined the superstructure fortifications called “Five Phoenix Turrets” which surrounded the gate. They loosed scores of arrows at Kurr as he made his approach. With quick dive rolls and incredible evasive maneuvers, no arrow landed upon him. Individual shots were deflected with quick sword slashes. Kurr unlatched several disc-shaped blades from his belt and tossed them at the archers above. With a wide arc, the blades spun and cut into the archers who did not duck beneath their trajectory. They were incapacitated instantly after Kurr had evaded all their shots. The shooting then stopped, and all that could be heard was the fighting in the distance.
Several silent moments had passed when the Meridian Gate finally creaked open and out came Lu Guanying, Shang Jian, Zhang Sunzan, and Zhen Shu walking out to confront him. They were all clad in specialized lamellar armor unique only to the League of Martial Scholars. Each of them grasped a weapon forged by Zhen Shu himself, as adamantine and sharp as Sun Xin’s jian straight sword.
“I must say, you look rather heroic standing before me in your pretty costumes and fancy weaponry,” said Kurr as he grinned menacingly at them.
The Scholars closed in on Kurr and surrounded him on each side. Lu Guanying in particular was enraged by Kurr’s presence and stared him down wide-eyed. “When my enemy is surrounded and stands alone, I usually offer him a chance to turn back and spare himself a gruesome death. But for you I’ll be making an exception. The square before this Meridian Gate is a most fitting place for your death. It will symbolize the entire empire bearing witness to your failure and demise at the hands of the Martial Scholars,” said Lu Guanying as he pointed his ornate, golden sword directly at him. Kurr lowered his cowl and let the sun shine upon his snowy-white face and shimmering red eyes. His wispy white hair swayed in the wind and he grinned at them. He then removed his cloak altogether and lowered his stance and breathed deeply. He formed two fists around his abdomen and clenched them together to center his energy and strengthen his body with it. Kurr groaned and strained as if the action was causing him pain, but even the Martial Scholars could feel his qi flaring in response to it.
Lu Guanying had enough and charged first with sword positioned by his hip. He spun around to bring the weapon spinning diagonally down at Kurr who clasped the blade with both hands in a praying position and tossed Lu Guanying aside with his own momentum. Shang Jian immediately followed with his own attack using a forward lunge of his short spear, but Kurr deflected the thrust with his own jagged-edged blade then bashed Shang at the back of his neck. The blow was paralyzing, but he shook it off before charging at Kurr with a barrage of thrusts, swipes, and angular cuts. Each lightning-fast blow was ducked and dodged by the large Terukk warrior until he grabbed the tasseled neck of the spear, pulled Shang into himself and threw an upward knee strike into his chest.
As Shang Jian fell to his knees with the painful blow, Zhen Shu and Lu Guanying attacked Kurr simultaneously. Zhen Shu utilized a combination of sword and shield tactics while Lu Guanying applied pressure with his longsword’s range. Kurr was completely unfazed, and seemed to exert minimal effort in parrying their attacks. Most had glanced off his vambraces, creating bright sparks. He blocked the rest with his sword which seemed to have absorbed the full impacts of even their most powerful techniques. Kurr had not yet even taken the offensive and was as if he were merely testing the true extent of the Martial Scholars’ renowned fighting skills. Zhang Sunzan burst from Kurr’s peripheral view and he brought his sword attacking for an upward diagonal cut, but Kurr grasped the blade with his gauntleted hand and stopped it mid-strike. He leaned back and thrust his boot into Zhang with a side kick. The impact brought Zhang Sunzan crashing onto the ground and rolling away from the fight.
The four Martial Scholars attacked him from all sides, applying pressure from multiple angles but the foreign warrior was unaffected by their efforts. It was as if he was predicting all of their moves, anticipating each technique even before they employ them. His superior agility and speed rendered their skills seemingly obsolete when confronted with the Terukk combative skill.
“Surely this is not the full extent of the Martial Scholars’ abilities?” he said tauntingly. “I have been expecting far more from the legendary warriors, and I must say, I am sorely disappointed.”
Secondary Martial Scholar Luan Kai and the remaining Academicians had great difficulty pushing back the mercenaries led by Li Hong. None had manage to slay even just one mercenary and yet the Academicians and the Ming soldiers were beginning to get picked off one by one, overwhelmed and unable to give a response to the enemy’s powerful onslaught. They were far too strong physically, and by no means were mere pawns of some street gang leader.
The large blonde-headed warrior encased in full plate armor pushed forward with his greatsword, swinging at Luan Kai in a great rage, yelling and swearing in his foreign tongue. Their blades collided and the greatsword broke clean through his broadsword. He kicked Luan Kai to the ground and lifted his weapon high for the killing blow. Before it was struck however, it was abruptly thwarted by one who was yet taller and larger than he.
Buff Baby had blocked the attack from descending on Luan Kai, his Guan Dao glaive pushing up against the greatsword.
“Maybe you should fight someone your own size, mate,” said Buff Baby. The blonde warrior reset his stance and focused his attack on Buff Baby who deflected his second blow, and sent sparks spitting out from the impact. Buff Baby retaliated and swung his ultra-heavy weapon across the warrior’s steel plate and left a large, jagged tear upon it. Buff Baby followed his attack with another and brought his weapon down upon the foreigner. The glaive’s great weight could not be stopped. He lifted his greatsword to block the blow but it shattered and allowed Buff Baby’s glaive to cut down into his shoulder, tear through the steel cuirass, and puncture his lung.
As the fighting raged on, the mercenaries were gaining the upper hand and the Academicians and their Ming allies were being forced to pull back despite their superior numbers. More and more were falling in a valiant effort to defend the palace. Just when defeat was absolutely certain for the defenders, a large troop of brocade-clad guards entered the scene, expertly wielding their custom bladed weapons to push back against the invaders. Lieutenant Shun Gen, his Jinyiwei officers, Zuo Shilong, and Lo Meiling joined the battle and within moments, the tide had changed. The Academicians and the heavy Ming infantry fought with renewed vigor and inspiration upon seeing the arrival of reinforcements. Lieutenant Shun engaged Li Hong first and they stared each other down as their crossed blades grinded and pushed against each other.
“I’ve wanted to take your head for so many years, and after all this time, my opportunity has finally arrived. You came to me and spared us the trouble of having to hunt you down,” said Shun.
“Then go ahead and claim your prize, arrogant fool,” spat Li Hong.
The battle within the palace square resurged with new ferocity as the Jinyiwei and the trio attacked head-on. Buff Baby plowed through the mercenaries and cut them down one after another relentlessly, for none had the sufficient size and strength to answer him. Zuo Shilong spared no ounce of strength as he used his metal rod to smash through the mercenaries, making sure each blow was fatal. Many of the mercenaries were not of Han or from any other ethnicity native to the Middle Kingdom. Some had skin as dark as the richest, most fertile earth, while others were fairer than even the young maidens of the capital. Each mercenary fought using weapons and armors and robes unique to the culture of their homelands, and each were skilled in their respective combat arts. However, none of them could answer the masterful way the Shaolin monk wielded his staff with utmost speed and precision. Zuo Shilong was angry, and he translated that anger into martial prowess.
Meiling fought alongside him, using her grace and finesse to weave through the enemy, and utilize her sword technique with one precise, fatal blow at a time. Buff Baby fought without restraint and often looked to Meiling to see if she was noticing his grand displays of strength and fighting ferocity. With their combined efforts, the trio, the Jinyiwei, the Martial Academicians, and the Ming guards pushed back on the mercenaries, and began to slowly hurt their numbers. They pushed them past the Tiananmen Gate and down the long avenue leading back to the entrance of the Imperial City District. The five hundred mercenaries became four hundred fifty. When their numbers dropped to three hundred fifty they began to retreat. They raced back to the Daqingmen Gate in an attempt to escape in the midst of the chaos of the Outer City district.
Beijing was a city on fire. Thousands more poured in from the battle field even as the Ming army fought furiously to defend the city from outside its walls. The Iron Dragon School, the Priesthood of the Serpent’s Eye, occultists from the Crimson Moon Sect, and hundreds upon hundreds of foot soldiers from Shan Gui wreaked havoc at every street corner. Ming soldiers inside the city struggled to reorganize and fight back, and were becoming ever more outnumbered.
The Jinyiwei, the trio, and the Academicians held their ground outside the walls of the Imperial City district in hopes of preventing another attempt to break in. Lieutenant Shun fired a flare from his crossbow signaling Ming soldiers and surviving Academicians to group around the Imperial City district and redirect all civilians within its fortified walls and gates. The flare exploded high into the sky like a firework and all who saw it knew what it meant.
Several li outside the city gates and walls, the battle raged more fiercely than when it had first begun. All soldiers encamped on the four sides of the massive city were fully engaged. However, the Ming troops were quickly entering exhaustion, and many were perishing at every passing moment. Little by little, they were getting pushed closer toward the city with no hope of respite. It was a battle that should have dragged for several days and even weeks, but the enemy was unleashing all of its fight in just one day. Soldiers posted high above the city walls launched thousands of rocket arrows from several dozen batteries of Fire Carts. The arrows shrieked and soared over the battlefield, unleashing a hailstorm of armor piercing death. They descended upon the advancing
Shan Gui who would have otherwise completely drowned the defending Ming troops with their numbers.
It still was not enough. General He Jin looked at the chaos and devastation of the field then looked in the distance behind the enemy’s formations and lines. They brought cannons of their own—small and antiquated, but nevertheless capable of inflicting devastation upon his men. He squinted to see the one commanding their operation. It was none other than the eunuch Liu barking orders from his elevated sedan throne, telling the Shan Gui foot soldiers to ready the cannons.
“Stupid, stoneless, duplicitous bastard! The fool knows nothing of war,” spat General Jin. He galloped his mount across the defending Ming line, rallying the surviving commando units to follow him. “To me! All mounted units to me!!” he cried. “Form up toward the eunuch!”
The maneuver was a very desperate one, but it could be what determined the victor of the battle. He and three hundred mounted commandos and cavalry units along with several other officers moved into formation behind General Jin. They galloped full speed with blades and polearms outreached. It was a desperate maneuver, an all-or-nothing attempt to end the battle early. Dust formed clouds under their hooves as they made a straight line toward the eunuch. They crossed the expanse of the battlefield and the sound of their rumbling hooves alerted all who stood by the eunuch. A couple thousand maneuvered into a defensive formation in order to impede their approach, but the armored horses and riders had too much speed and momentum to be slowed. In their V-shaped formation, they cut and plowed through the soldiers with ease. They were mowed down by the hundreds, and those who were not trampled under thundering hooves were impaled, hacked, and skewered by spears and polearms. Others were chopped by outreaching blades. Even with their daring stampede, the horses began to be bogged down by the sheer number of soldiers standing in their path.
Clash of Alliances Page 35
