Yulong, Silver and Chains

FIVE

    Meifen found the wagon in no time. She was the first to arrive, unsurprisingly. She wasn't sure how long the rest of the men would take or if the fighting would stretch out onto this region, so she hastily undressed and clothed herself in men's clothing—a well fitted tunic and pants. She tied her hair back and slipped her weapons into her hands. She would be ready for a fight if it came down to it.

    For while, nothing happened. Then, through the clearing, Manchu burst out with his men. Meifen nearly jumped and stabbed him, but realized who he was and jumped back before he could react. He blinked back at her in surprise, before turning back to the wagon. "Quickly, get him in," he hissed at the men. Blood was splattered on his clothing and the other men were the same, cuts running along their bodies and blood staining their clothes. Two men were missing, she noted.

    Kong and another man were holding up who she presumed was the prisoner. He was of average height and had long black hair that reached down to his waist, obscuring his face as he hung limply against Kong's arms. His ribs were poking out and he was deprived of all nutrients, his body a whisper of its possible former self. He was dressed in drab, ratted clothing with holes running all along the sides of them. Kong, none too gently, eased the man into the wagon. It was hard to see this man as a prodigy that would change the war between Ki and Huo.

    "Hurry inside," Manchu said, glancing over his shoulder to see if any men were following them. Just as he said that, shouts rang from behind them. Meifen didn't wait as she hoisted herself up the cart along with the prisoner. Kong was right behind her and snatched the reins of the horse. Everyone scrambled inside the cart and Manchu barely jumped in before it lurched forward and sped through the woods.

    Meifen breathed out shakily and peered out the opening of the cart. Men were still chasing them but they were no match for a horse drawn wagon. Slowly, little by little, the men disappeared as they rumbled along. She then took a look at the men around her. The prisoner was lying in a heap on the ground, Manchu was sitting across from her and was poking at his own wounds, and the other men were preoccupied with their own injuries.

    "Manchu," Meifen ground out. She quelled the urge to grab him by the collar and slam her fist into his face. Her voice came out scratchy and she cleared it. Her breasts were sore from the warden's suckling and biting and squeezing, and her throat ached terribly. All pleasantries vanished and she shot him a withering glare. "I have half a mind to gut you this instant, you bastard."

    Everyone in the cart silenced and turned to her in surprise. She had never shown them her aggressive side to her. The disrespect dripping from her words didn't go unheard to them. Manchu was their Lieutenant General so they dared not ever insult him, but he wasn't her superior. To her, he was a man that didn't tell her half the details of the mission, didn't care if she made it out alive and escaped with them, and didn't even bother to let her know about the warden's tendencies towards women.

    Manchu narrowed his eyes at her. "What did you say?"

    "I almost died out there," she snapped. "You didn't tell me that he had a habit of being rough with women."

    He shrugged. "Lord Hongqi assured me you could handle anything—"

    "You still have to let me know!" she shouted. The prisoner stirred at her outburst. She bunched her fists together. "I'm on the same grounds as you when it concerns this mission. Everyone has a part to play," she said quietly, her tone frigid. "I had an important part to play and yet you didn't even fill me in on all the details of the mission."

    "You survived, that's all there is to it."

    "He was choking me," she slammed. The other men silenced themselves and didn't dare utter a word as she vehemently shot daggers at him with her cold stare. "I had to kill him and make my escape. You're lucky—"