253 BCE
BATTLE OF BAYOU
3RD PERSON POV
Qin Great General Kyou dashed towards the Zhao Great Heaven Ren Pa, her sword majestically gliding through the air with deadly precision. All around the two Commanders-in-Chief, war cries and the sound of battle sounded out. Like their leaders, neither of the troops were unscathed. Some had small and medium cuts, while others had grievous wounds that showed no sign of recovery. Many had broken bones, coughed blood or lost limbs, but still they all fought to the very bitter end, not wanting to give up even the slightest advantage.
The forces of Kyou and Ren Pa showed a level of dedication that bordered on fanaticism; their troops died gritting their teeth as they tried to take their opponents with them to the afterlife. Some succeeded, with their last breath managing to mortally wound their opponent, but many were not so fortunate. This level of intense fighting had first been set off by their commanders, Kyou was a Great General who never held anything back, attacking with ferocity whilst aiming at the weakest points and punishing her opponents.
Ren Pa welcomed Kyou's method of war with a toothy grin, letting his troops run wild on the battlefield, not wanting to restrain them one bit. The two sides attacked and attacked without taking a step back, and so did their leaders.
Seeing the sword aimed dangerously at him, Ren Pa gave a slight chuckle before charging in; the sword cut the air, missing him by a single hair. The Great Heaven within close range knew Kyou would be faster if he used his glaive, so instead he balled his fist and struck the midriff of Kyou with a devastating blow. The strike was hard enough that Kyou felt a rib crack, but that was not enough to stop her. Moving her sword with accurate ease, she swiped horizontally and paid Ren Pa back.
The sword slashed through Ren Pa's armour, drawing a line through his flesh that spurted blood. Still, Ren Pa replied in kind once more, slamming the butt of his glaive into the back of Kyou as she passed him, forcing her to jolt forwards slightly on her horse.
Without taking a second to allow the blow to register, Kyou manoeuvred her horse to turn and face Ren Pa once more and, in the same motion, had it charge him. With a war cry, the Great General swung her sword once more; those in the Kyou army were deeply affected by Kyou's war cry.
"KUOOOH!!!"
"OUUUHH!!!"
"Great General Kyou is giving her all!!! How can I not?!!!" Shouted one Qin soldier, feeling reinvigorated by Kyou's war cry.
"Our Great General is battling fiercely with men!! Slaughter the Zhao bastards!!!" A commander raised his voice loudly as he threw his spear with all his strength into an onrushing Zhao soldier. The emphatic manner of the kill gave the Qin troops even more momentum.
The Veteran Ren Pa saw all of this out of the corners of his eyes; he'd also keenly paid attention. "Nuhahaha!" The Great Heaven chuckled, feeling his blood pumping, and his body started to tingle; this was a feeling he loved and could not get anywhere else in his life. Great Heaven Ren Pa truly lived for the battlefield.
Even as his blood boiled, Ren Pa didn't allow it to distract him; he knew his troops like the back of his hand and with all his experience he decided to match Kyou. "For every Zhao man that dies! TAKE 3 QIN SOLDIERS WITH YOU!!" That was all the troops in the Ren Pa army needed to hear.
"KUOOOH!!!" OUUUHH!!!"
"GYAHH!!" "Kughh!"
The spirits of Ren Pa's troops rose to their highest; the soldiers threw themselves into combat with the only thought of 'To Kill!' In their minds, for a moment, the surge in morale shocked the Qin soldiers who had previously had the momentum, but soon they recovered and answered in a similar way to the Zhao soldiers. Both sides continued this seesawing of momentum for the majority of the day, no side gaining any overwhelming advantage even as the casualties started to pile up.
The two leaders who duelled both had cuts, bruises and blood on their bodies, but both were not paying any attention to them as they knew the end of the battle of Bayou was directly in front of them.
For Kyou, 'If I kill Ren Pa here, the Zhao morale will collapse completely here and with Ouki stopping Sei Chou from moving. I would turn the tide, and it would be unstoppable.' She knew killing Ren Pa, even if it was the first day, would be the end of the Battle of Bayou, which would lead to the gates of the city being flung open with zero opposition.
As for Ren Pa, 'If I kill Kyou here and now, the Qin morale will be shattered here, and without someone to lead them, her troops will throw away their lives; with this, my troops will easily sweep over them, then I can simply take over the Qin Headquarters and bring a close to the war. Ouki wouldn't be a problem, as he is contending with Sei Chou, and there's no one else who would be able to stop me in the Qin army.' Ren Pa also had his own path to victory.
With these thoughts, the two battled, looking for an opening, but it wouldn't be either of these two who would create the eventual turning point.
The person to do that would be one of Ren Pa's Four Heavenly Kings.
….
253 BCE
BATTLE OF BAYOU
RINKO POV
His left sword slashed a Qin soldier's throat whilst his right sword pierced through another's chest. The two Qin soldiers died in agony, cursing him with their breath, but Rinko dismissed them as quickly as the light in their eyes. He was running wild on the battlefield, and after breaking up his army into smaller cavalry units, Rinko had begun leading a small strike force that was drawing attention towards them.
This had been the state of his side of the battlefield for some time, until Kyou came with reinforcements and drew out his Lord. The sound and shockwaves from their battlefield were heard and felt; Rinko knew it was an awe-inspiring duel, and he also knew Ren Pa was enjoying himself to the fullest.
That caused him to frown slightly, '...But that will have to come to an end.' Rin Ko thought even as he killed another three Qin cavalrymen who charged him with angered faces; they had seen that he killed their friend or squadmate and wanted revenge. All three charged him with spears pointed, but they were too slow, and only served to have the earth drink their blood.
Time was passing, and the battlefield was stalemated. Rinko knew this situation could not last, and someone needed to retreat first. '...Rather it be the Qin than my Lord.' Rinko knew his Lord didn't mind retreating, but something in him didn't want the Qin to feel they had the upper hand by forcing a retreat; with this in mind, Rinko sent out fast orders telling his cavalry to form up with him. They were going to make a serious push over to where his Lord and Kyou were fighting, and entrap Kyou.
No more smiling, Rinko's face was void of expression as he determinedly cut down Qin soldiers after Qin soldiers that came his way. He made sure to be as quick and efficient as possible, whilst leading the charge for his troops, ensuring that his actions would naturally boost the morale of his troops. Those who were following him would only stare at his back and chase after him.
"OOUHHHH!!!"
"UOOOHHH!!!"
His men shouted war cries with vigour, feeling a second wind carry them forward even though they were exhausted, for the Rinko army, the figure of their Lord giving his all was enough for them to repay him in kind. In the distance, Rinko slowly started to see the state of his Lord's battlefield, and how stalemated the two troops were.
"As expected, My Lord is enjoying this duel very much," Rinko said before sighing ever so slightly; he knew Lord Ren Pa will give him a trivial but tedious punishment because he had intervened in a duel that he was very much enjoying.
"Oh, well, let's bring this to a close." The Rinko cavalry had broken away form their side of the battlefield and made their way here; Rinko left behind all of his infantry, bringing only cavalry with him. Raising his two swords in the air, he gave a narrowed-eyed smile and shouted, "Charge!" Their cavalry thundered down the hills; the noise was not dismissed by the Qin soldiers who were there.
The first to react to him was Rin Bou, who was facing off against Kyou En. Rinko saw the man's shocked face before he sent troops his way. However, his momentum was too much to be slowed by the small force that was sent his way. Rinko carved through them emphatically, sending horses and troops flying. Men screamed and cried as they died, but Rinko was too familiar to the scene to pay it any mind.
Rinko knew that Ouki's General Rin Bou would be in a very difficult position; if he sent more troops he would expose himself to Kyou En, who was pressuring him. However, if he didn't, his Commander in Chief will be in danger. 'The smart and safe decision is to sacrifice yourself and save the leader.' Rinko knew what he would do if he was in Rin Bou's position.
Rinko turned back to where Kyou and his Lord duelled; he could see their intense fighting that drew attention, but the sound of cavalry made him tear his eyes away. "Of course, he is a General under Ouki, and that monstrous bird is acknowledged by My Lord." Rin Ko said, seeing the cavalry charging him. Rin Bou had sent many of his troops here to save Kyou, whilst he fought Kyou En.
Seeing the troops rushing towards him, Rinko concluded: 'I'm sure Rin Bou will give it an hour or so before he sends someone to ring the gong and signal retreat. Even if he is breaking military order, he would rather have Kyou swarmed after his death.' And true to his thoughts after an hour and a half of tough fighting, Rinko heard the gong in Qin's headquarters ringing aloud.
Looking, he saw the fringes of Kyou and his Lord's duelling circle; in the hour, he'd managed to cut a direct path through the Qin soldiers and was close enough to physically interrupt the duel.
"For boiling my blood, I will allow you to retreat." His Lord said to Kyou of Qin with a toothy grin.
"Hmph, I'll take your head next time Ren Pa." Kyou pointed her sword at his Lord before turning around and ordering an orderly retreat.
Rinko could only watch her go as he felt the eyes of his Lord staring at him, and knew should he try to attack his punishment would be severely annoying.
RINKO POV DONE
….
253 BCE
BATTLE OF BAYOU
3RD PERSON POV
As the first day of Battle of Bayou came to a close, the night descended, and an intruder entered the scene.
Dressed in large crimson clothes, a muscular large man took a powerful barefoot step under the starry night sky. His face unscarred but serious he gripped his glaive tightly enough to show a vein on his tattooed arm. The man looked up to the heavens for a moment waiting for something, before looking in the direction of Qin's Headquarters and taking a long stride in that direction.
3RD PERSON POV END
…
NARRATOR POV
The Bushin has come at the behest of the Heavens.
NARRATOR POV END