The horns called through the night, wild and urgent, a cry that announced for everyone to hurry. They were so near that the sound crept under Rin's skin and caused her hands to twitch. She rushed toward the stairs to the top of the province wall.
On the way, she saw General Donghai marching quickly down the stairs. His body was already dressed with heavy steel plate armor. His rondels were golden sunbursts; all his fastenings were gilded, and the red steel was burnished to such a high sheen that it shone like fire in the light of the torches on the wall.
The expression on his scarred face, however, seemed to make him even more intimidating than usual.
"General Donghai…" Rin had just spoken when his harsh, raspy voice cut her mid-sentence.
"The Tuhan army stole a march on us! Their commander crept down the road in the night, and now they're less than a mile west of here, forming up in battle array." He spat grimly. "You command those archers at the top. I'll deal with the fuckers at the bottom."
Nodding her head, Rin ran up the stairs. Upon stepping on the top of the wall, a gust of cold wind hit her face. The western sky was a deep purple, speckled with stars. A war horn sounded in the far distance, a deep mournful note that chilled the soul.
Quivers hanging from their belts, the archers arrayed themselves into three long lines on the wall and stood calmly, ready to string their bows. Between them, Rin leaned her hands against the wall to stare into the night, her eyes narrowing up slightly.
It was dark, eerie, but not silent. From a distance, she could hear hooves tearing the earth and trampling the grass and dirt into the ground.
She waited. And waited.
That's when they appeared. On horseback, the Tuhan charged toward the stonewall.
"Archers!" Rin shouted in a cold voice. "Nock!"
Immediately after the words left her mouth, the archers put the tips of their arrows beneath a fire pit, the wrapped cotton around it lighting on fire. By now, they could hear the Tuhan men's shouts. Their voices joined with the sound of the war horn.
"Draw!"
The archers drew their bows, aiming at the incoming Tuhan army. It wasn't until they were within view that Rin shouted her final command.
"Loose!"
On her command, a flight of arrows descended into the sky. Shouts turned to screams as men stumbled and went down. By then, a second flight was in the air, and the archers were fitting a third arrow to their bowstrings. The flames of the arrows lit the sky as if they were blazing, burning stars.
Down below on the enemy's side, a pair of blue eyes looked up at the dark sky, only to see flaming arrows flying toward him.
Manchu's head whipped to the side at the sound of rattled groans. From what he could see, several Tuhan men were struck with blazing arrows of fire, torching their chests, and igniting flames atop their armor.
His head cocked at the sight, and suddenly his brows rose as another arrow struck a man right beside him. He inhaled sharply as his gaze shifted back upward in the direction of the flitting arrows of fire.
At the sight of a burning arrow coming toward him, Manchu raised the shield on his forearm to deflect its attack. A sharp pang sounded against the iron shield and bounced ferociously toward the grass, kindling a small fire before his feet.
Strands of his tousled, sweaty hair plastered against his eyes and forehead. Very calmly, he brushed it aside as he moved onward.
With his eyes bold in front of him and sword in hand, he couldn't help but think how merciless the little strategist's tactics were!
And to think he was to be protected…
As the horns died away, a hissing filled the air; a vast flight of arrows arched into the sky shooting men down in an instant. Arrows were flying through the air like rain and soldiers fell from the city walls.
However, more soldiers ran up to their positions to pull back their bows to shoot at the enemy. Shields were held up to deflect the incoming arrows from passing into the city.
Rin looked down from upon the wall, her eyes scanning the enemy below. Yet all she could see was flames and dark figures running toward them. When she saw a group near the front of the wall, the light in her eyes intensified.
"Nock! Draw! Loose!" She shouted as more arrows descended below.
But it was too late. Already the Tuhan had pressed themselves against the wall, shielding themselves from their arrows.
"Grab those boulders and launch them down! As for everyone else, loose your arrows at the men against the wall!" Rin ordered fiercely.
As fast as she issued her orders, soldiers were already grabbing boulders from a pile on the side. Looking down, they launched them down heavily on the men leaning against the wall. A sickening crunch could be heard. More arrows and boulders were thrown down until suddenly they heard a loud clank. Rin's brows knotted tightly together.
The Tuhan had protected their heads from the incoming arrows and boulders with shields!
��Hurry! Archers keep up!" She shouted through her tightly clenched jaw.
Right now, the common citizens within the city were hiding within their own homes to hide from the attack. If it came down to it, Rin already planned an escape for the citizens.
Hearing a loud bang, Rin's eyes widened and looked down to see a group of Tuhan men holding a large log and slamming it against the wooden gate.
"Advisor Lan, the Tuhan men…they're climbing the wall!" A soldier frantically shouted.
Rin quickly walked to the edge of the wall, and sure enough could see a tall wooden ladder was propped against the wall, a man already climbing up.
"Get me my bow," Rin ordered coldly.
"Yes!" The soldier quickly passed her the crossbow resting on the side.
Taking it in her hand, Rin calmly slid an arrow into her crossbow before aiming it at the man climbing the ladder. With one pull, the arrow lodged itself into the man's skull, and his body dropped to the ground.
The soldier beside her looked with awe and admiration. When those frosty eyes turned to look at him, he froze.
"Inform the general to get the citizens out of the city," Rin ordered one soldier, who quickly left to follow her orders before turning to another. Her gaze glanced at the large pit in the corner, still unlit.
"Light the signal."
"Yes, Advisor Lan!"
However, before the soldier had a chance to light it, a spear had entered his belly and came out through his back. Blood coughed from his mouth until he collapsed on the floor. Dead.
Turning, Rin's frosty eyes brewed with insatiable murder. Before she knew it, a Tuhan soldier had already climbed over the wall! He was tall and spare, wearing a long chainmail hauberk and gauntlets of steel, but he'd lost his helm, and blood ran down into his eyes from a gash across his forehead.
Rin aimed an arrow at his face, but the tall man slammed it aside with his shield. She stepped back while firing another arrow from her crossbow. When he deflected it again, Rin tried to pull out another quiver but the man's ax lashed out, knocking the crossbow aside. The man danced back for another try, but Rin quickly evaded his attack.
A few of the archers on the wall tried to fight off the large enemy, but it was clear his strength was stronger than theirs. It didn't help as more and more men climbed over the wall and attacked the archers. Very soon, bodies fell, blood splatters shot in all directions.
Seeing dead bodies lay in pools of blood of her former soldiers, the rage within Rin made her eyes turn impossibly frosty. The murder in her eyes could no longer be contained. She turned her head slightly, her gaze fixing on the large pit.
She needed to set the signal.
Drawing in a deep breath, she ran!
"Grab him! Don't let him get away!"
Tuning out their shouts, Rin seized a torch on the side of the wall and quickened her steps. When she reached the pit, she tilted the torch ever so slightly inside and immediately, the entire pit lit ablaze. The flames pricked her skin, but she didn't care as the sound of sparks burning ignited her heart.
A cold smile spread on her lips a she turned around to the group of Tuhan men. "You're too late it seems."
"Fucking bastard…" The Tuhan men cursed. "When we kill you, we can burn out the fire."
Rin lifted her chin slightly and her chilling gaze swept over each and every one of the men as she said mockingly, "Then I wish you the best of luck."
As soon as she finished her words, the still-lit torch in her hand dropped over the wall.
At that moment, an explosion was heard from below and all sides of the wall. When the Tuhan men raised their heads, their eyes widened in disbelief. Followed by Rin's burning pit, more pits on every side of the wall and beyond began to light on fire.
Below them, they saw a wagon was set aflame, which soon exploded before their very eyes. The shouts and screams of the Tuhan men echoed loudly through their ears. It was only then that the Tuhan men noticed the trails of oil leading to the other pits.
This is was their signal.
A few months back, Rin learned mixing saltpeter with charcoal and sulfur can cause quite a reaction. To be franker, an explosion.
Just as Rin expected the men to attack her in rage, she was surprised to see them staring at her in shock. It was as if they had seen a living and breathing legend before them.
Little did Rin know how true those words were soon to be…