WWC: Time Ravages All

((Note: Yes, I know this is long and boring. Yes it is a Three Kingdoms story with a lot of history and facts in it that will make people hate it. I know it has no chance in winning the contest, I just wanted to write and submit it anyway. I hope you enjoy it anyway))

KING/SOUL
Extra Episode: Time Ravages Us All

I hear love is a strange thing. That most of the time it just happens. Love at first sight, or the AC/DC version, Love at first feel. That did not happen with us. When my wife and I first met all those centuries ago in China, a few years before the Han Dynasty began its downward spiral and that Yellow Turban Rebellion began…It was love at first punch. It was not two star crossed lovers meeting for the first time, but two warriors testing the skills of the other. Her name was Mingyu, and she was, and still is the strongest warrior I have ever known. She was more gorgeous than most goddesses. Unlike the style at the time, she wore her long black hair in a loose tail. She had memorizing jade green eyes that you could get lost in. She always wore loose fit clothes that did not a damn thing to hide her lovely figure.

At the time I was known as Zhang Fei. Little did I know my name would become famous through all of China. Back then I was under the impression that the only way to resolve conflict was through the application of violence. I still do, but I used to too. Granted I am better at thinking ahead now. Though that is not to say I was a violent brute who only fought with brawn, as Historians and popular culture seems to paint me. I used my brain plenty. Not just in battle either. I was fond of painting and reading as well as calligraphy. Back in the day I was known as The Peach Garden Artist. That moniker most likely came about due to a rather famous Oath of Brotherhood that I will speak of later. I’m of slightly above average height and build today, but back then I was seen as a giant, hence why I am always depicted as a brawny tank of a man even though I am far from brawny. I kept myself clean shaven and wore my blond hair long enough to barely reach my shoulders, though I kept it tied back most of the time to keep it out of my face.

Shortly after I was taken in by her teacher, the now unknown Cao Guo. The man was a martial arts genius, and as I would find out later, one of the eight immortals. He was the great grandfather of the warlord Cao Cao. A man history would paint a villain. But, that is not important right now.
Mingyu and I trained together, ate together and eventually, loved together. Our love was a strong torrent that we could not control. Oh, we tried, of course, to control our love for each other in the face of public dignity. But it was useless in the end. We soon married and had our first son, Fei Hong.
It was a year after our son was born that he came. The man who would change our lives. His name was Liu Bei. He had another man with him by the name of Guan Yu. Liu Bei was a tall, lanky man with handsome features. He was always well groomed, which was odd considering he was the son. of a shoe maker. He always had a warms smile on his face. The man had a benevolence I had never seen before. The things he was suggesting….They were revolutionary. He literally was suggesting a Democratic –Republic in 184 AD!

Guan Yu, on the other hand was much like popular culture depicts him. His beard was long and magnificent, his structure was that of a giant, though he was just as tall as me he had a bulk of muscle I could never gain. Though he seemed like a violent type from appearance, his eyes showed the real him. He was an intellectual at heart. I always found myself sparring verbally with him; quoting Mencius, Confucius and Sun Tzu and things like that.
The two men had come to ask our master for his aid in repelling the Yellow Turbans. Cao Guo, of course declined. He was sick of war, and only wish to live in peace.

But Mingyu and I…Oh we were so young then…well she was. I had lost any memory of me being an angel after Lucifer threw me out of heaven during his own damn rebellion….Anyway, My wife and I wanted to fight the Yellow Turbans. Cao Guo was against it, of course, but we convinced him. We wanted to test our skills in the mist of battle.
“Please master!” ,We pleaded, “We are ready to test what you have taught us!”
Seeing our tenacity, even Liu Bei agreed, “I must insist as well, Master Cao. Your students seem eager to face battle on their own”
“Then they are fools!” Cao Guo shot back. “No sane man wishes to see war.”
But eventually he conceded with one condition; Mingyu had to drink his Elixir. He revealed to us that night that he was immortal. He was tasked with finding one willing enough to give another elixir to. He knew it was Mingyu, but he wanted to wait a little longer. There was a price for this gift, though. The elixir destroyed any chance of her ever having another child. To this day I do not know how it worked.
Mingyu accepted it anyway. The pain she experienced that night was shocking. I kept by her side the whole night, as did our son. My wife was strong. Even the greatest agonies in the world could not kill her. She fought through the pain and came out of it immortal. She was going to be 25 for the rest of her life.
Afterwards I did something that I do not regret, even today. Liu Bei, Guan Yu and I met under the trees of the Peach Garden and swore an Oath of Brotherhood. We would fight for each other and die with each other. You remember that moniker of mine I mentioned earlier? It was actually brother Guan Yu’s idea. Both men left such a lasting impression on my wife and I that I considered them brothers even though we had only known each other a short time.
We rose our cups of wine to each other under the peach trees and spoke the oath.
“From this day forth, we are brothers in arms and in soul. Though we are not related by blood, we are still brothers. If one of us dies, the other two shall follow. “ And with that we all drank the wine and the oath was complete.

Now as for those damned Yellow Turbans, we made short work of them. We had joined the Imperial Army and crushed the rebels quickly. When their leader Zhang Jiao fell, the rebels scattered across the land. The rebellion was more or less dead. But that was not the end of the chaos, oh by the Gods above and below, it was far from over. Taking advantage of the rebellion, a warlord by the name of Dong Zhuo had taken the young Emperor Liu Bian , who was only 13 at the time, hostage under the pretense of his savior. Dong Zhuo was given the title of Prime Minister, though in reality he was the Emperor and was only using the boy as a puppet.
Seeing Dong Zhuo for what he was, a warlord by the name of Yuan Shao gathered other warlords and form a coalition against the tyrant. Being the righteous man he was, my big bro Liu Bei joined Yuan Shao and brother Guan Yu and myself joined him. At the time, my son had grown old enough to fight, so he joined Mingyu and I in battle.

It was in the winter of 190 that we were to see our first battle against the tyrant Dong Zhuo. The battlefield was Shishui Pass.
My brothers and I were no more than Calvary Archers, but we were able to get into the main tent were the generals were laying their plans. However, when I tried to get a seat for my big brother, the generals met me with hostility, claiming that lowly Calvary Archers need no seat. I took a punch to the face and was about to go for blood when brother Liu stopped me. He apologized and took the blame for my imagined slights. Over and over brotjher was hit and Guan Yu and myself could do nothing.

But afterwards, he only grinned.
“You understand now?”, He said, “Yuan Shao never gave us a chance. He used our low rank to rile up the generals.” He turned to me, still grinning, “Third Brother, your rashness almost got you killed.”
“Big Brother,” Guan Yu interjected, “This is about rank in standing. Without is you’re meaningless!”
“Your big brother has a way with words but he is also good at reading people,” Liu Bei continued, “Start laughing”
“Laugh?!” I growled, “Laugh about what?”
Even Guan Yu was astonished by this, “You’re joking! Maybe you have been hit on the head one too many times?”
But Big Brother just kept his grin wide and true, wiping away the blood from his lips, “Trust me!” He declared, “Just keep laughing. We’ll laugh our way to the top!”

The battle was not what you would expect a battle to go. Sure, both sides had an army and were ready for a fight, but it was the generals who fought first. This battle would be decided by duels. On Dong Zhuo’s side was the mighty Hua Xiong, the strongest warrior under Dong Zhuo’s command besides the world renowned Lu Bu.
General after general fell to Hua Xiong’s halberd and after every death, my brothers and I laughed harder and harder. It got to a point where even Yuan Shao took notice; he seemed more bemused than angry.
“Why are you laughing?”
“What are you laughing about!?” The other generals roared in fury.
When the brothers and I calmed down a bit, my Big Brother explained;
“My lord, Yuan Shao, I am just greeting this scene! This ‘opposite’ scenario you’ve arranged. When we neared the Capitol we ran away, but far away we’re taking up arms. When rations were aplenty, we sang songs day and night. With no rations we complained and feigned fortitude. Men are attacking a single man, yet a single man is killing men. The cowards are boasting, the able getting killed. What my lord has arranged is all ‘opposite’. So when someone dies, should I not be laughing?!”
The generals went off once more, “How dare you! Have you forgotten your position?!”
But brother calmly gave his retort, “My low rank was used to incite the generals. Do not forget, I am also a combatant.”
Yuan Shao nodded and raised his cup of wine, asking, “But, what is the difference between the smile of self-confidence and arrogant boasting?”
“The difference is ability!” Big Brother replied.
I let Brother Guan Yu step forward, letting him take care of Hua Xiong. Before setting out he declared to Yuan Shao, “If Hua Xiong is still alive by the time your wine cools, then take down my big brother’s head!” With that said, he took his unique halberd, the Green Dragon Crescent Blade, and rode his horse to meet Hua Xiong.
The legend of Hua Xiong ended that cold winter day.


The next battle took place at Hulao Pass, just outside the Capitol City of Louyang. It was a day Mingyu and I shall never forget. It was the day we met another two men, one of which would change us for the rest of our long lives.
The first was Zhao Yun, a mighty spearman who would one day become one of my closest friends.
The other was a man who will forever be the source of hatred for my wife and I. His name was Lu Bu….
The skies were overcast that day and snow was starting to fall on the pass of stone. Lu Bu was a huge man with handsome features. He wielded twin trident halberds and I could tell right away why he was considered the greatest warrior of China. He was a monster. He was by all rights a man who earned the title of God of War for damn good reasons. Considering I did not fight at all at Shishui, I was itching to face Lu Bu and test my strength against his.
Our battle was a fierce one. I traded all his blows with strikes of my own. I did what most men thought impossible. I fought the God of War to a stalemate. So with the help of my brothers we were able to push Lu Bu back.

The battle had become chaotic at that point and I had to turn my attention away from Lu Bu to fend off against a few enemy soldiers. Once I did, I heard a cry of agony coming from a very familiar voice….I turned and saw Fei Hong, my own son fall to Lu Bu’s blade.
“NO!” I roared and charged at Lu Bu, fury overtaking me…I admit that at that point my world went black. I do not know what happened exactly. But when I came back to my senses, Mingyu was slapping me in the face. I was standing in the middle of the battlefield, snow covering most of it. Now back to my senses, I ran over to my fallen son. He was already dead. Having never had the immortal elixir like his mother, he was a normal human.
Let history show that even the most powerful warriors can weep for their lost child.

Later, Mingyu told me what happened. As it turns out, something odd happened to me as I fought Lu Bu. I became more agile and powerful. All of Lu Bu’s attacks were dodged. Hell, I even somehow was able to stand on the flat end of one of his halberds after one swing. She described how my body was rigid and straight, arms crossed over my chest and feet close together. Somehow Lu Bu and his weapon handled my weight just fine, but all were astonished that I was fast enough and dexterous enough to even perform such a feat.

I had wounded the mighty Lu Bu and forced him to retreat. The battle was won, and yet lost. The capital burned, so many innocent lives lost in the flames. It was all a part of Dong Zhuo’s plan. He moved the capital to Chang’an and set up his base of power there.
However, two years later the tyrant Dong Zhuo met his end at the hands of Lu Bu, his own adopted son. Some say it was due to a woman by the name of Diao Chan. I personally do not know. Either way, the chaos continued and Lu Bu took over where Dong Zhuo left off. The warlord Cao Cao then declared war on Lu Bu. Lu Bu, in turn sought refuge with my brother. Despite my warnings to deny him, Liu Bei gave Lu Bu the refuge he needed. Mingyu and I would have to swallow our pride and revenge. We somehow did.

As reward for his services, my big Brother became the governor of Xu Province and I was given command of the capital of the province, Xiapi. I took the role happily and my wife and I moved there, trying to move on after the loss of our son. My time there gave me room to think as well.
Things went well for a while. Hell, I even befriended Lu Bu’s top general, Zhang Liao. Zhang Liao was an incomparable warrior who practiced true loyalty to Lu Bu. Lu Bu was unworthy to have his friendship.

Shortly afterwards, a petty warlord by the name of Yuan Shu claimed he was now Emepror, for he had the Imperial Seal. We would have to fight Yuan Shu before worrying about Cao Cao or Lu Bu. It was an order by the Emperor himself to fight against Yuan Shu. But to me, this action was foolish. Big Brother was following the Emperor blindly.
It was there in Xuzhou that I hatched a scheme with help of Mingyu. I spread a rumor that I was the kind of man who could not hold my wine for long. I let it be known far and wide that I was a drunkard, even though I was not.
“Chen Dong, I want you to spread a rumor about me being reckless. Make sure everybody around knows” I told our advisor.
Chen Dong was shocked at this, “What is your intention?!”
Mingyu answered first, “Once Lord Liu is sent away, He will surely come.”
We both grinned. “Lu. Bu.”

After a few parties with Cao Bao, one of Lu Bu’s generals, in which I faked drunkenness, my trap was set. Lu Bu thought I would be too drunk to protect the city properly; therefore he would attack the next night when I partied with Cao Bao.
Instead, it was Lu Bu who was taken by surprise. With the trap sprung that night even the mighty Lu Bu had trouble. But with Zhang Liao helping him and a brilliant strategist, even my plan fell apart. In the end, I lost both the city and Liu Bei’s wife to Lu Bu.
Just as I had planned.
Explaining why I did so to my Brothers did not go too well, as I expected it would not. Brother Guan even hit me!
“You fool!” He roared, several men having to hold him back from attacking me further, “Big Brother entrusted Xuzhou to you and you got and lose out sister-in-law as well?!”
“With the constant decline of resources to support your unending war with Yuan Shu, I had to strike first, knowing how ambitious Lu Bu is!” I explained.
“Our would you rather we had given up Xuzhou without a fight?” My wife chimed in.
“Loyalty to Han is great and all, But at least think of the consequences before going to war! Xuzhou’s resources are not limitless, after all!”
Liu Bei stood. “I understand. Rushing in despite the big picture is foolish. Losing the fight and endangering the people of Xizhou. Just how many people have died in these months of battle? What good has blind loyalty done for anybody?” Without another word, he left the tent.
Guan Yu and I watched as he left.
“Finally he understands the meaning of blind loyalty” I said
“Looks like you got me to play a part too. What a ‘good brother’ you are!” Guan Yu growled. It was rare to see the man so angry, but I knew he would understand my intention in time.
“You like reputation, where as I do not mind being called a brute” I replied, “And thankfully the people of Xuzhou will be safe, for now at least.”

It soon came time to truly increase our standing in the land. Big Brother was an actual decedent of Liu Bang, the first Han Emperor. Therefore, he had every right to declare himself an Imperial Uncle. But to do so he had to go to the young Emperor himself and give proof of his relation. By the time the Emperor actually gave his approval, most already considered him an Imperial Uncle.
Afterwards, we went to Cao Cao’s camp and formed a temporary alliance against Yuan Shu, eventually Lu Bu as well. The false emperor Yuan Shu did not last long, having to deal with both Cao Cao’s army and our own.
It soon came time to face Lu Bu once and for all. In 198 we attacked the city of Xiapi where he was based. We besieged the city for two months and eventually Guo Jia and Xun Yu, both brilliant strategists under Cao Cao, suggested we flood the city by redirecting two nearby rivers. It worked perfectly. Soon after we launched a full out assault on the city. With the help of some of defectors in Lu Bu’s camp we broke into the city and captured him and Zhang Liao.

Lu Bu was tied up and brought before us that morning. I was somehow able to control my anger at the sight of him and Mingyu did the same.
Lu Bu pleaded and begged for Cao Cao to spare him, but he had not intent of doing so. He knew what happened to Dong Zhuo as well as what happened to Lu Bu’s first foster father, Ding Yuan. Both men were killed by Lu Bu. Cao Cao knew he would share that fate if he let Lu Bu live.
To this day I am sorry I was not able to cut off the bastards head myself. Instead he was hung and his corpse decapitated. His head was put on a spike.
Afterwards I looked at the man’s head and realized that time ravages all. No matter how powerful you are, no matter how smart. In the end time will defeat you no matter what.
But for me, I knew what needed to be done before time had its way with me. I fought on alongside my wife and brother Guan Yu. I fought for my Big Brother Liu Bei’s ideals.
Time has yet to ravage me.