A Summer of Change

Part 3- Surprises

 

Yu Sheng

            Yu Sheng is not a happy man. The runner came on the 5^th day of the march. Duke Hatak has attack the province of Tai. Tai was the province just north of the duke’s and Yu Sheng immediately ordered a running march. What was to be an easy 8 days march turned into an 8 day dash over a much longer distance. Now his forces are here in Tai and its’ not even summer yet. Yu Sheng wants answers.

 

            He entered the command tent of the tent and laid his eyes on the man for the first time. Duke Hatak was looking at a map on the table with an aide. The duke heard the sound of someone entering and looked up. There is a huge smile on his face.

“Master Yu Sheng is it?” he shouted. “Welcome to our glorious adventure Sir Monk.” With that, the duke flew across the tent with his giant arms wide opened. He hugs the master with force and picks him up in a bear hug. Needless to say, it wasn’t what Yu Sheng was expecting.

 

“Uh…Duke Hatak?” he asked.

The duke immediately released his grip. “Of course! Sorry about that Master. You’re right, introductions first.” The duke stood straight and gave a formal bow. “Duke Hatak, ruler of the Ren and Tai Province.”

Yu Sheng looked at Duke Hatak with a keen eye. A giant of a man, the duke was a full 2 heads taller than he was. However there wasn’t an ounce of fat on him. One look at him and you can tell that he was a warrior. The master gave a bow as well. “Master Yu Sheng, the Temple of the Fire Sun.”

“I know. I am pleased that you have joined us Sir Monk. We had just had a great victory.”

“I understand. I understand that you have destroyed the forces in Tai.”

“Yes. A wondrous victory. The province is ours!”

“In one battle? Are there not other forces in the province?”

The duke looked surprise…then gave a huge belly laugh. “Oh, I forgot. You have been on the march for the past 8 days. You haven’t heard the wondrous news have you?”

Now it was Yu Sheng turn to be surprise. “No…what news is it?”

The duke gave a wink and said, “The Crown Princess Mei Yun has just rebelled.”

Yu Sheng’s jaws dropped. He must have looked like a landed fish. “What? The Crown Princess? Where? Why?”

The duke couldn’t stop laughing and Yu Sheng couldn’t blame him. The timing couldn’t be better. “As you know the Empress is dying. Word is that she was going to named the Second Princess Mei Yan was her successor, not the Crown Princess. Needless to say, the Crown Princess took offence. She went west and called an army. The whole of the western kingdom has joined her in rebellion.”

Yu Sheng couldn’t help but join in the laughter, “And the Second Princess called her whole army to fight her sister?”

“Yes! Almost all the army units in the eastern province are now in the capital of Rosewood.”

“And that’s why you launch your own rebellion early. To take advantage of the confusion.” Yu Sheng couldn’t help but admire the duke on this.

“Yes! That army we defeated 2 days ago was the only one here in Tai. By the darkness, there is a clear path all the way to Rosewood if we wanted to!”

“I thought you said the Second Princess is in Rosewood?”

“Yes, but she can’t stay there for long. She may be the better politician but Mei Yun is by far the better general. She has to attack Mei Yun before the Crown Princess organized her army and start marching.”

“So…a clear path to Rosewood?” An idea came to Yu Sheng. “That’s what you were discussing isn’t it? Whether to march on Rosewood?”

“Yes.” The duke was solemn in this. “I think it’s a huge risk but most of my command thinks it can be done.”

“How many can you put on the field?”

“3 fists. All men, no women.”

Again Yu Sheng was surprise. “15,000 men! How did you can so many?”

 “News of our victory has traveled fast and far Sir Monk. Men are joining our forces from all over. Almost all the fighting men in Ren and Tai are here and more are joining everyday. Over 6000 men have joined us since I began marching; we had men from as far as Zen.”

“But you only had your victory 3 days ago. How did they get their news so fast?”

“Oh…,” the duke gave a small smile at that, “for that you have to thank this man here.” The duke pointed at the aide behind him. “Monk Yu Sheng, may I introduce Xiong Fei.” The short roundish man made, or to be more accurate attempted, a bow. Yu Sheng never heard of him. The duke continued, “He is my wizard.”

 

Xiong Fei

            “He is my wizard.” The duke’s words rang in Xiong Fei’s head. The pride he felt was unreasonable, but Xiong Fei couldn’t help it. Since the time of Minka Rose, wizardry was a forbidden art. After all, only men can be wizards and the female-led Bright Empire did not want such power in the hands of men. For 150 years, wizards were hunted and killed on sight. So much so, those men who practice wizardry had to do so in secret. Dark wizards were the monsters in stories to scare little children, little better than the demons of legend. So to be called, openly, a wizard was something Xiong Fei was proud of. “We are going change the world.” The duke said these words to him on their first meeting. Already, his words are coming true.

 

 The monk had taken the news very well all things considered.  Xiong Fei did not approve of the duke’s plan to enlist the help of Mount Shi. However, after meeting Yu Sheng, he had quietly accepted that he was wrong. Already the monk had made several suggestions that are doing wonders for the growing army. One the best was what to do with female prisoners. Duke Hatak had wanted to kill them, mainly because he felt he needed to. A mobile army can’t have a train of prisoners trailing behind them. The monk solved the problems with a simple solution. The prisoners will be given to the monks and put to work. Of course, first they had to convince the prisoners of the wisdom of working for their conquerors. The methods used were…unsettling, but very successful. So much so that they gave an idea to Xiong Fei and his follow wizards.

 

The line of naked prisoners kneeled quieted before the monk Li Yang. Yu Sheng called Li Yang a ‘Pain-master’. A post created in the temple for men who had the job of controlling the females.

 

Pain-master Li Yang began his speech. “You are all prisoners of a new world. You are now no longer warriors. You are now no longer women. You are now bitches. You are only fit to serve your men. Sit on your ass and open your legs bitches.”

 The prisoners looked at the monk in shock, not one of them moving.

Li Yang looked at one of the layman of the temple and said, “Bring out that other bitch.”

 

The layman hurried away. Soon he returned with another layman. Between the 2 of them, they dragged a female to the monk. With no regard for her well-being, the 2 laymen threw the female at Li Yang’s feet. The female was also naked, only her body was crisscross with red welts. The meaning was clear to all.  

 

“Sit on your ass and open your legs now!” Li Yang shouted.

 

This time the prisoners obeyed. Li Yang waited till all the females got into position and then...he stood there. The females looked at each other in surprise at first and then slowly, one by one, they looked down at the ground in shame. Warriors of the Bright Empire now naked with their legs open and exposed to their most hated enemies. Xiong Fei could just imagine their shame.

 

The pain-master then said, “The bitches will now move one of their hands to the hole between their legs and rub themselves.”

Color drained from the faces of the prisoners. Almost inevitably, one of them said, “No!”

Li Yang nodded to the 2 layman. They threw the disagreeing female on the ground, forcing an arm outward. Li Yang took out a chopper from somewhere and showed it to the offending female.

“Rub yourself with your hand or I will cut this one off.”

Xiong Fei admired the female’s courage. “No!” she screamed.

She screamed even louder when Li Yang took her hand off with one swing. Blood gushed out of the wound. Xiong Fei stepped forward, the words of a spell on his lips. Flames covered his hands. He pressed his hands on the females’ wound and the scream grew in intensity. Mercifully, the female then pass out from the pain.

 

            Li Yang looked at the other prisoners expectantly. Almost as one, hands went between their legs but this wasn’t enough.

 

“Anyone who does not rub themselves forcefully will also have their hands chopped off!” Li Yang growl has the desired effect. The prisoners rubbing began in earnest. Li Yang continued, “You are now bitches. Worthless creatures till the day a man claim you as his own. Till then, you will be in a team. A team will have 4 bitches. You will work in your team but you will own nothing, not even clothes. If you are caught wearing clothes, you will die. If you disobey a man, you will die. If you try to kill yourself, you will wish you were dead. If you are successful in killing yourself, the rest of your team will wish they’ve joined you.” The threat was clear, look after each other and make sure they do not do anything foolish or you will join in their punishment.

 

            Xiong Fei ignored Li Yang and the prisoners. He concentrated on the wound. The flame has cleaned it and the blood has stopped flowing. Yes, the ‘Fire Hands’ spell can be used as a healing spell for open wounds. Xiong Fei stood and walked back to his follow wizards to report the good news.

 

Blue

            The Bright Empire makes a lot of stupid females. This is something Blue and her sister bitches totally agreed on. Here was another stupid female who refuse to submit to the monks. As Blue carefully covered both her hands with bandages, she can’t help but wonder why they were so stupid.

 

A female don’t really need their hands. A female greatest use is giving birth, and since when do they need their hands for that? Even without hands, the monks will just hook the female to a wagon. A rope will hook around the neck of the female, locking her to the wagon. A ‘wagon-bitch’, with no other uses but the pulling of the wagon behind the army as it marches along.  Hands…on a female? Not really necessary.