Post by Yuan Shao on May 5, 2012 18:58:41 GMT -5
The God-King stared blankly at the grand tapestry which was laid out carefully on his wall. It detailed all of his greatest feats, right up until the battle of Guandu. He had no doubt in his grandness now compared to his grandness before the battle, but the battle had left an imprint on him. Regardless, it was now time for bed (after all, a God did need his occasional rest). But just as he laid for the needed sleep, an ominous fog rolled in through the doors.
One. His dreams led him to the plains of Guandu, the image of his and Cao Cao’s armies clashing sent a shiver through his spine. The sound of metal clashing was unfamiliar. Regardless, he continued to watch. His own army, through its sheer numbers, was ploughing through Cao Cao’s army as though it were the soil in which Yuan Shao’s seeds of victory would (or should) have been sown. As he stood on the hill, the thundering of a horse pierced his ears. Blades of grass flew up as the ground shook, and in a split second Yuan Shao saw Guan Yu, his massive beard trailing behind him. Within that split second a cloud of dust was thrown up, obstructing his vision. As the dust settled, he could make out the figure of Guan Yu with his Blue Dragon held in his hand, in addition to Yuan Shao’s own general, Yan Liang. They were fighting it out over who was the better warrior. And it seemed to be a close match – for the eyes of an unskilled warrior – but to Yuan Shao Guan Yu was gaining the advantage. And he would soon be proved right, as Yan Liang was disarmed by Guan Yu who proceeded to slide his Blue Dragon smoothly between Yan Liang’s ribs, making an intolerable grating noise whenever it broke through a bone. Yan Liang fell to his knees and Guan Yu took the unfortunate man’s head. It was a blow to Yuan Shao’s honour as a warlord. Rather than avenging their dead general, his soldiers merely fled in fear of their own lives. It was a mockery to him and the name of his family. He questioned himself at this point: was the state of Guandu really in this way? He shook the thought out, surely not. Guan Yu would not compare to the might of Wen Chou. However, Yuan was dismayed to find that Wen Chou did not put up much of a fight before his weapon was broken and he too was beheaded by Guan Yu. He shouted out: ”The fools Yan Liang and Wen Chou have fallen to my blade. Any who wish to taste their blood step forward!” The speech echoed in his ears over and over again as the image began to fade and he was enveloped in a sheet of darkness.
Two. In the darkness he could see a line of soldiers traversing the dirt track silently and swiftly. He recognized the man at the head; the one responsible for his defeat: Xu You. Yuan Shao could feel the veins in the sides of his head throbbing. He had no need to conceal his anger, no one could see him and for good reason too. He was not looking the part that one would expect such a dazzling warlord such as himself to look. Regardless of this, his blood boiled for revenge against Xu You. It was uncontrollable to the point that he drew his sword and attempted to run Xu You through. That was before he realized that he was only seeing things. He commended himself quietly; only the great Yuan Shao, God-King of the land could possibly produce visions and epiphanies so realistic. The darkness suddenly lit up. The torches carried in the neat line were thrown against the wooden wall. Fires erupted as if the whole compound had become a volcano similar to the likes of Krakatoa. He could see Wuchao burning and he was helpless. A plume of smoke rose slowly as his supplies burnt with it. With Wuchao’s destruction, he saw his entire kingdom burning, all of it fuel for Cao Cao’s malicious desires. And this fire would spread as it had already done through Zhongyuan, threatening Wu Wei, Ba Shu and the Southlands of Wu.
Three. Yuan Shao’s famed general Zhang He stood faced with 10 opponents. He slashed through three of them, spun around elegantly and cut down another four. The last man fled towards another losing unit before he too was cut down by Zhang He’s men. However, a messenger soon arrived by his side and announced the destruction of Wuchao. Hearing this, his men went into a frenzy; where would their food come from? What was the point in fighting a war in which they would be starved out? Zhang He’s platoon scattered out, being cut down by Cao Cao’s men who took advantage of the sudden disarray. It was now Zhang He and his second in command who were surrounded. Yuan Shao then saw a display so diabolical he could not attribute it to anyone other than Cao Cao himself. Zhang He cleanly sliced through his second in command and kicked the body towards Cao Cao’s men. Bowing to the peasants he pledged his loyalty to Cao Cao. Another blow to Yuan Shao, and one which he remembered had cost him dearly. For in that battle Zhang He worked tirelessly for Cao Cao, cutting down remnants of Yuan’s now ragtag army.
Four. It was an odd sight for Yuan Shao to see a flashback of himself. But this was a dream (he thought so, at least), and Yuan Shao could see that despite the recent defeat of this battle, it had not harmed his spirits too much at the time. For the God-King still walked with his head held high and added a swagger to his stride. However, his spirits would soon be dampened as soon as he was told to grovel to Cao Cao. And in that meeting he lost his land. And his great men. And, most importantly, his self-respect. He knew that all of his men respected him, but if he was forced to bow to this peasant Cao Cao (who, contrary to the popular belief, was more of an acquaintance rather than a friend) and surrender his pride and dignity, then their respect meant nothing to him. He left that meeting in disgrace; a feeling which was still as hard for him to swallow as a large spoon of salt.
Five. The loss of his daughter in law: Zhen Ji. It was an embarrassment to him and the name of the Yuan’s. How would other noble families judge them when a girl leaves them for another family? And that family was lesser in all respects than the Yuan’s, none could compare to brilliance. And yet, why did she leave them? It was a trifling matter which harmed the Yuan’s reputation further. Yuan Shao was determined to hunt the vixen down and find out why she had decided to support the wrong people.
Six. It was said that at Chibi, his son, Yuan Shang, was murdered by Cao Cao’s own men. Yuan Shao, who was still holding a grudge over the events at Guandu, saw this as a betrayal of his trust. He had sent his best men and advisors (Ju Shou) to assist Cao Cao at Chibi, and yet he still failed? It showed that Cao Cao’s stars did not favour him as much as they favoured the Yuan’s, who were gradually growing in strength over the years.
Yuan awoke in a sweat. Rather than pondering what had just happened, he called an emergency meeting. Gathering his finest advisors, he drew a dagger from one of his son’s belt and threw it at the map. It hit the city of Xu Chang cleanly. ”That is our true target.” He walked to the doorway before his tone grew even more serious: ”It is time to accelerate my plans.” And he left without another word, the confusion in the air very clear among his advisors.
One. His dreams led him to the plains of Guandu, the image of his and Cao Cao’s armies clashing sent a shiver through his spine. The sound of metal clashing was unfamiliar. Regardless, he continued to watch. His own army, through its sheer numbers, was ploughing through Cao Cao’s army as though it were the soil in which Yuan Shao’s seeds of victory would (or should) have been sown. As he stood on the hill, the thundering of a horse pierced his ears. Blades of grass flew up as the ground shook, and in a split second Yuan Shao saw Guan Yu, his massive beard trailing behind him. Within that split second a cloud of dust was thrown up, obstructing his vision. As the dust settled, he could make out the figure of Guan Yu with his Blue Dragon held in his hand, in addition to Yuan Shao’s own general, Yan Liang. They were fighting it out over who was the better warrior. And it seemed to be a close match – for the eyes of an unskilled warrior – but to Yuan Shao Guan Yu was gaining the advantage. And he would soon be proved right, as Yan Liang was disarmed by Guan Yu who proceeded to slide his Blue Dragon smoothly between Yan Liang’s ribs, making an intolerable grating noise whenever it broke through a bone. Yan Liang fell to his knees and Guan Yu took the unfortunate man’s head. It was a blow to Yuan Shao’s honour as a warlord. Rather than avenging their dead general, his soldiers merely fled in fear of their own lives. It was a mockery to him and the name of his family. He questioned himself at this point: was the state of Guandu really in this way? He shook the thought out, surely not. Guan Yu would not compare to the might of Wen Chou. However, Yuan was dismayed to find that Wen Chou did not put up much of a fight before his weapon was broken and he too was beheaded by Guan Yu. He shouted out: ”The fools Yan Liang and Wen Chou have fallen to my blade. Any who wish to taste their blood step forward!” The speech echoed in his ears over and over again as the image began to fade and he was enveloped in a sheet of darkness.
Two. In the darkness he could see a line of soldiers traversing the dirt track silently and swiftly. He recognized the man at the head; the one responsible for his defeat: Xu You. Yuan Shao could feel the veins in the sides of his head throbbing. He had no need to conceal his anger, no one could see him and for good reason too. He was not looking the part that one would expect such a dazzling warlord such as himself to look. Regardless of this, his blood boiled for revenge against Xu You. It was uncontrollable to the point that he drew his sword and attempted to run Xu You through. That was before he realized that he was only seeing things. He commended himself quietly; only the great Yuan Shao, God-King of the land could possibly produce visions and epiphanies so realistic. The darkness suddenly lit up. The torches carried in the neat line were thrown against the wooden wall. Fires erupted as if the whole compound had become a volcano similar to the likes of Krakatoa. He could see Wuchao burning and he was helpless. A plume of smoke rose slowly as his supplies burnt with it. With Wuchao’s destruction, he saw his entire kingdom burning, all of it fuel for Cao Cao’s malicious desires. And this fire would spread as it had already done through Zhongyuan, threatening Wu Wei, Ba Shu and the Southlands of Wu.
Three. Yuan Shao’s famed general Zhang He stood faced with 10 opponents. He slashed through three of them, spun around elegantly and cut down another four. The last man fled towards another losing unit before he too was cut down by Zhang He’s men. However, a messenger soon arrived by his side and announced the destruction of Wuchao. Hearing this, his men went into a frenzy; where would their food come from? What was the point in fighting a war in which they would be starved out? Zhang He’s platoon scattered out, being cut down by Cao Cao’s men who took advantage of the sudden disarray. It was now Zhang He and his second in command who were surrounded. Yuan Shao then saw a display so diabolical he could not attribute it to anyone other than Cao Cao himself. Zhang He cleanly sliced through his second in command and kicked the body towards Cao Cao’s men. Bowing to the peasants he pledged his loyalty to Cao Cao. Another blow to Yuan Shao, and one which he remembered had cost him dearly. For in that battle Zhang He worked tirelessly for Cao Cao, cutting down remnants of Yuan’s now ragtag army.
Four. It was an odd sight for Yuan Shao to see a flashback of himself. But this was a dream (he thought so, at least), and Yuan Shao could see that despite the recent defeat of this battle, it had not harmed his spirits too much at the time. For the God-King still walked with his head held high and added a swagger to his stride. However, his spirits would soon be dampened as soon as he was told to grovel to Cao Cao. And in that meeting he lost his land. And his great men. And, most importantly, his self-respect. He knew that all of his men respected him, but if he was forced to bow to this peasant Cao Cao (who, contrary to the popular belief, was more of an acquaintance rather than a friend) and surrender his pride and dignity, then their respect meant nothing to him. He left that meeting in disgrace; a feeling which was still as hard for him to swallow as a large spoon of salt.
Five. The loss of his daughter in law: Zhen Ji. It was an embarrassment to him and the name of the Yuan’s. How would other noble families judge them when a girl leaves them for another family? And that family was lesser in all respects than the Yuan’s, none could compare to brilliance. And yet, why did she leave them? It was a trifling matter which harmed the Yuan’s reputation further. Yuan Shao was determined to hunt the vixen down and find out why she had decided to support the wrong people.
Six. It was said that at Chibi, his son, Yuan Shang, was murdered by Cao Cao’s own men. Yuan Shao, who was still holding a grudge over the events at Guandu, saw this as a betrayal of his trust. He had sent his best men and advisors (Ju Shou) to assist Cao Cao at Chibi, and yet he still failed? It showed that Cao Cao’s stars did not favour him as much as they favoured the Yuan’s, who were gradually growing in strength over the years.
Yuan awoke in a sweat. Rather than pondering what had just happened, he called an emergency meeting. Gathering his finest advisors, he drew a dagger from one of his son’s belt and threw it at the map. It hit the city of Xu Chang cleanly. ”That is our true target.” He walked to the doorway before his tone grew even more serious: ”It is time to accelerate my plans.” And he left without another word, the confusion in the air very clear among his advisors.