The Ghost Hours faded into the subtle gray of pre-dawn. Behind Zoaging City's closed gates, a larger, more formidable unit was being prepared in silence. General Xue and his young captain Konn commanded this three-hundred-man force.
Every soldier was a walking armory: a full quiver on their back, their bows secured on the left of the saddle, and two more full quivers strapped to the saddle's sides. Their two swords were likewise fastened near the quivers. They were a rapid-fire cavalry unit, designed to deliver sustained arrow attacks, maximize chaos, and retreat swiftly.
A grim, almost feverish resolve settled over the three hundred soldiers. Every man knew this was more than just a mission; it was their final act of aggression. Their eyes, heavy from the Ghost Hours, held the singular understanding that they were riding out to buy a crucial hour of life, ready to spend every arrow and every ounce of strength. They would strike the enemy camp one last, violent time to secure their objective. They knew that upon their return, they would dismount and immediately take their places on the weakened walls, prepared to defend Zoaging with every last scrap of courage until the very last man fell.
With the pre-dawn fog acting as the first layer of protection, the sally port of Zoaging city swung open. The three hundred heavily armed men, led by Xue and Konn, rode out into the swirling vapor in a silent, single-file formation. The path had been meticulously cleared of debris by the scavenger soldiers and civilians just before the launch, ensuring a rapid, unimpeded escape from the walls.
The air was heavy and cold, thick with the smell of wet earth mixed with decayed human and horses' flesh.
Before their eyes, the pre-dawn fog began to thin, revealing the grim landscape—and the approaching enemy. The low, growing rumble of a heavy Razaasia cavalry force of five hundred horses could now be clearly heard, bearing down on them head-on. This was no scouting party; this was a dedicated intercept unit, demanding an all-or-nothing commitment from the three hundred Ginmiao.
As they passed the two-hundred-yard line, barely past the desolate human and horse graveyard, Xue raised his fist, signaling the attack position. The horses behind him instantly slowed, their riders smoothly drawing bows and nocking arrows pulled from the quivers strapped to their saddles.
Xue opened his closed fist and thrust his hand forward. The response was instantaneous and synchronized:
The first wave of arrows shot straight and low, targeting the chests and horses of the Razaasia vanguard. Simultaneously, the second wave arced high into the sky, timed to rain down on the enemy's rear ranks just as the main volley struck.
As Xue and his three hundred cavalries burst out of the lingering cloud mist and into the charge, they met the massive Razaasia force head-on. The sudden, desperate sound of clashing steel instantly echoed across the field, signaling the melee.
The clash of steel and the desperate screams of men filled the pre-dawn air as Xue's three hundred archer-cavalry slammed into the Razaasia intercept force. The Ginmiao defense line held tight, raining down arrows with furious, sustained precision, buying crucial time for the strike team.
Behind Xue's temporary, strong line of defense, Chinua—accompanied by Konn and thirty specialized soldiers—executed the heart of the plan. They sheathed their swords, relying on their horses' momentum. Their objective was a wagon they had discreetly rigged: four horses dragged the cart, which was openly filled with oil jars.
The wagon was driven straight at the enemy line, plunging through a momentary weakness in the Razaasia ranks. The infantry beyond the cavalry fight were instantly stunned and confused by the sight of an unguarded, fire-laden cart heading straight toward their vulnerable siege towers and battering rams.
In that critical moment, the Ginmiao detachment made their move. Chinua, Konn, and the others on the wagon cart pulled the brown sacs off the incendiary material. Each grabbed a jar of oil, swiftly passing them off the wagon, and scrambled onto the backs of the four wagon horses. Pulling the daggers hung at their waists, they severed the rope binding the cart to the horses, abandoning the oil-filled decoy to its deadly fate.
The four now-unburdened horses raced directly toward the siege equipment, drawing the desperate attention of the Razaasia infantry, who frantically rushed to protect their heavy machinery.
As the Razaasia infantry focused entirely on securing their siege weapons, Chinua took her opportunity. She sharply reined her horse, separating from the rest of the charging group. Her true target was not the rams, but the enemy's stomach: the one of the food supply tents, marked conspicuously by the yellow flag to her right.
Four arrows immediately whistled toward her. With incredible speed, she quickly dismounted, her hand still gripping the horn of the saddle to maintain contact with the horse. Pulling a sword from the scabbard, she slashed wide, felling two Razaasia soldiers who rushed at her. She kicked another soldier in the chest, pushing him back into the chaos, and then vaulted back onto her horse. She and her horse continued their charge, focused entirely on the tent with the flying yellow flag.
Meanwhile, Konn, Phia, and the archers swiftly threw the remaining jars of oil at the vulnerable wooden siege towers and the battering ram, quickly setting the equipment ablaze. The flames immediately roared up, causing mass panic among the enemy infantry detailed to guard the weapons. Having ignited the fire, they sharply reined their horses back toward the main Ginmiao group, completing their critical diversion.
But the Razaasia counter-attack was swift and brutal.
Just as Konn was turning his horse, his mount was knocked down by a wave of charging Razaasia soldiers. Konn was sent flying from the saddle, his own sword skittering away into the muddy battleground as hundreds of Razaasia infantry rushed toward the exposed flank with swords, spears, and shields raised.
Konn scrambled to his feet, quickly snatching up a nearby fallen sword—not his own—and began defending himself, instantly surrounded and fighting for his life against overwhelming odds. His desperate act of defiance pinned the enemy's attention, giving his subordinates the crucial opportunity to retreat.
Chinua finally reached her objective: the supply tent marked by the yellow flag. She quickly circled the tent, a jar of oil in her hands, pouring the liquid across the canvas structure. She had no intention of slowing her horse. Directing her mount toward the opposite direction with the fewest remaining Razaasia soldiers, she galloped back toward the main battleground, where she spotted Konn fighting desperately against a large group of enemy soldiers.
With her bow already in hand, she began firing arrows at the surrounding Razaasia soldiers. Every arrow she released found its mark. Reaching behind her, she quickly took out the leather bag she had personally prepared—a bag containing heavy, concentrated oil—and hurled it forward. With a single, expertly aimed arrow, she shot the leather bag mid-air. The concentrated oil instantly poured down onto the Razaasia soldiers who were closest to her.
Chinua snatched up a discarded torch and pulled the last three oil-drenched arrows from the quiver on her back, lighting them ablaze. She sent the three flaming arrows straight into the back of the Razaasia soldiers caught in the oil slick. Several soldiers instantly became engulfed in flames, causing the others to recoil in horror and creating a sudden, vital opening. Chinua charged her horse straight through the gap, still clutching her last three fire arrows, driving directly toward the encircled Captain Konn.
With her right arm stretched wide, Konn, executing a final, desperate lunge, grabbed Chinua's hand. He used the momentum to heave his body onto the back of her charging horse. They galloped toward the main Ginmiao force, which was already in full retreat, having fulfilled their diversionary task; the surviving cavalry had reached the city gate, with some already streaming inside.
Fleeing the Razaasia cavalry, the intense heat of the burning arrows in her hand creeping closer, Chinua shouted against the rushing wind, "Shift slightly left!"
Konn, still scrambling to secure his footing behind her, wrapped his arms tightly around Chinua's waist, lowered himself down, and instantly shifted slightly left. As he did, he watched in astonishment as Chinua, with fast, almost inhuman agility, nocked two of the remaining fire arrows onto her bowstring and released them into the pre-dawn sky. A blinding third arrow followed shortly after.
These arrows were not aimed at the immediate pursuers. They were aimed at the supply tent.
From the ruined city rampart, seeing that all of the surviving Ginmiao soldiers, including Captain Xue, had reached the gate and rushed inside, Chong wasted no time. He quickly leaned over the wall and shouted, "Close the Gate!"
Hye, however, was focused entirely on the sole soldier who had taken a daring, unplanned task. Watching the rider release the three fire arrows into the enemy camp with such sharp, practiced precision, Hye knew right away that the person out there was none other than Chinua.
Hye was still in deep thought and disbelief as to why Chinua would leave the safety of Nue-Li City to be part of this unwinnable war when he heard the screeching, loud sound of the city gate closing.
He quickly rushed forward and shouted, "Do not close the gate!" But he was too late and having no authority over the Ginmiao General's direct orders, the massive, reinforced city gate slammed shut behind the last Ginmiao soldier.
Worry sank like a stone in Hye's heart. He quickly rushed back to the edge of the rampart; his eyes fixed on Chinua's white horse rushing straight towards the now-closed gate.
"General!" Hye turned back and yelled at Chong. "Open the gate now! There is still a soldier out there!"
As he finished speaking, he found Xue rushing up the stairs and heading straight to the edge of the city wall, already pulling his helmet off.
Seeing his son, Xue, alive, but knowing the cost of saving him, Chong's resolve hardened, laced now with agonizing regret. He sighed a heavy, broken sound. "They knew the risk..." His lips trembled as tears moistened his eyes. "Heed my order! Do not open the gate unless it's breached!" The turned and took at the soldiers on the city wall rampart. "Archers! Get Ready!"
On the battlefield, seeing that the gate of Zaoging City had slammed closed before they could reach it, and with thousands of enemy cavalries rushing behind them, Chinua had no choice but to turn her horse around. There was nowhere left to run.
With the morning sun peaking upon the horizon, casting orange and gold over the mountains in front of them, the mountain shadows stretched long over the battlefield. Chinua's horse turned and reared, coming to a complete, defiant halt.
Konn looked up, seeing that some of the tents beyond the initial target were now engulfed in flames. Though he knew death would reach them at any moment, he chuckled—a short, exhilarated sound.
He looked at Chinua, his eyes bright with excitement. "You are one hell of a soldier."
Chinua looked down at the ground and saw shadows running on four legs—a dark, fast-moving mass—beginning to stream down the mountain from the steep hill on the left flank of the enemy camp.
The corner of her lips curved up into a smirk. "You want to get off, or do you want to ride into war?" she asked.
"Lend me your swords, and I will ride with you," Konn said, ready to meet his end fighting beside her.
"You got it," she said, before charging her horse forward at the rushing enemy. Her eyes, however, did not look at the immediate enemy in front of her, but at the thousands of shadows rushing down from the hill on her right, illuminated by the morning daylight.