Symphony of Fates: A Legends of Tivara Story (The Dragon Songs Saga Book 4)

by JC Kang

  She sighed again. The Tiger’s Eye must be weakening if she considered choosing fraternal feelings over a logical choice. In any case, the decision would need to wait until they controlled the capital.

  In the distance, horse hooves pounded the pavestones.

  Commander Zhuang appeared at the window again. “A messenger, Jie-xia, riding with the flag of the Tianzi.”

  “Send one of your men to meet with him,” she said. They’d met too many spies and imposters for her to take a risk of getting to close to this messenger.

  Just north of Cherry Blossom Boulevard, Ming sat astride his horse, with Tian, Shu, and Ma Jun at his side. Waiting. He turned his dagger over in his hands. The wait was going to kill him.

  Unless Tian killed him first. His brother’s hands clamped down on his. “Stop it. You are driving us insane.”

  Ma Jun nodded.

  A messenger ran up and dropped to a knee. “Jue-Ye, the Teleri have passed through the east walls. Maybe ten thousand.”

  So the fake message had worked. Ming grinned at Tian. The combined forces of Linshan Province, the imperials, and his own Dongmen Province had attacked the remnants of the Teleri occupation over the last several days. Though they had captured key positions, the Bovyans still held out near the south gate. The last thing they needed was the emperor to join up with that group.

  He then addressed his generals. “Wait until they are at least six blocks from the east gate before the ordering the cavalry to cut off their escape. Sound the horn when they are in position, and we will attack their flank.”

  “As you command, Jue-ye!” the soldiers all said in unison.

  Ming turned to Tian. “You know what to do.”

  Tian crept along the rooftops as he approached the Teleri column. They marched twenty abreast along Cherry Blossom Boulevard, weapons at the ready as if they were launching an attack themselves. Ten thousand, two hundred and seven in all.

  At their head, predictably, rode Emperor Geros. He was taller than the rest, with a scar on his cheek, just as Ming had said. His eyes swept back and forth, and like most people he didn’t bother to look up. He pursed his lips, his stiff shoulders and jerky motions suggesting he knew something was out of place. Even still, he rode high above everyone else, an obvious and inviting target.

  Taking aim, Tian fitted one of Ming’s elf arrows and pulled the bowstring taut. He loosed.

  A horn blared.

  The Teleri kept their orderly ranks, but froze in place with their shields facing out. Geros pulled his horse up. The arrow cut right through the mount’s head. As it tumbled, Geros leaped from the saddle and into the mass of Bovyans.

  Tian cursed to himself. Not that he would’ve hit Geros anyway. It should’ve been Ming, the master archer, taking this shot, only he refused to climb a rooftop and get his uniform messy. At least the poor beast didn’t suffer.

  Provincial soldiers flooded the side streets on the northern edge of the boulevard. They stopped at point-blank range and fired into the Teleri column. Enemy officers barked out orders, and Bovyans on the interior loaded crossbows. Those on the edges bulged out into squares to charge the side streets. One more command, and the front rows knelt and the crossbowmen shot. The last row of Hua musketmen fired a volley, and spearmen surged forward.

  They crashed into the Teleri with spears and swords. Still, the Bovyans held their line. Tian nocked another arrow, searching for Geros in the fray. In close-range pitched battle, the Metal Men might have the advantage, despite being outnumbered two-to-one. If only musketmen could fire from rooftops!

  Another horn pealed from the Teleri rear. Ming’s cavalry.

  And there was the emperor, taking command of his exhausted troops. Tian took aim.

  “Hold the line!” Geros yelled, his heart thumping at a steady beat. “Do not let the histories say we lost to merchants, no matter how many bodies they throw against our spears!”

  They sure were throwing a lot. How many in total was impossible to know without accurate intelligence, and apparently, that traitor Leina had lured them into a trap. Once they reoccupied the capital, he would be paying a visit to her home.

  A high-pitched horn screeched from somewhere near the rear of his column. The feminine squeal certainly wasn’t a Teleri horn, though it carried above the clanking of metal and screams of men.

  An arrow zipped by his face and lodged into one of his men’s arms. Geros turned to see where it had come from.

  Up on the rooftop of a two-story building stood a Cathayi man, now nocking another arrow. The Cathayi man. The Angel of Death, whom Geros had killed once before. Now back to claim him. Geros cackled and snatched a loaded crossbow from a nearby soldier. How similar it was to the faceoff at the fortress in the Wilds. He took aim, just as the Angel of Death loosed another arrow.

  Dao flashing, Ming smashed into the Teleri rear with the rest of his cavalry. They lumbered through the enemy’s interior lines almost unopposed, hacking and slashing through crossbowmen. While his plan hadn’t worked exactly as he hoped, they were dealing a significant blow to the exhausted Teleri troops. As long as they kept this returning army from linking up with the former occupiers, they could slowly strangle and starve them out.

  From astride his horse, Ming saw Emperor Geros toward the front, crossbow in hand, barking orders. Ming’s free hand strayed to his bow. It would be quite a shot from this distance, but not beyond his superior archery skills, and certainly faster than wading through the Bovyans.

  Not far ahead, Bovyans dropped crossbows and drew swords and spears. One Teleri at his side tried to drag him off the horse, but Ming kicked him in the face.

  One of his officers sidled over. “Jue-ye, if we go much deeper, we will be trapped.”

  Ming looked to the fore, where a forest of blades awaited, and then behind him, where the Teleri swarmed around the horses. His man was right. In these close quarters, they would eventually get dragged down. It would be better to veer onto a side street. Hua spearmen clogged up the streets to the north of the boulevard, so he waved his sword southward. “Linshan cavalry, to me!”

  They chopped a path through the Bovyans. When Ming reached the side street, he paused and glanced further up the Teleri lines. Somewhere in the mess, Emperor Geros shouted out orders.

  There he was. An arrow flew down and lodged into his shoulder, just as he took a shot into the rooftops. The bolt zipped upward. Ming whipped his head to follow its path. Tian snatched it out of the air.

  Ming could only gawk at his little brother’s skill.

  “Protect the emperor!” a Teleri yelled. Others repeated the call until thousands of voices chanted it like a mantra. Their rectangular shields came together and their spears jutted out like a centipede’s carapace. The entire column wheeled and lumbered southward down a side street.

  Ming wiped sweat from his brow. Hopefully, Linshan Province’s troops had succeeded in overwhelming enemy-controlled points along White Duck Stream, and could cut the Teleri off from the rest of their army.

  Cheers erupted to the north and west. Hua cheers. They must’ve surrounded the emperor.

  An aide rode up. “Jue-ye, news from the south gate. The princess has returned, bringing two hundred thousand men.”

  Ming stifled his grin. The Teleri numbers must have dwindled to around ten thousand in total by now, paltry compared to the imperial reinforcements. Still, it was a lot of Hua soldiers to bring through the gate, and they might not get enough to keep the two pockets of Teleri resistance from joining the main army.

  Tian ran along a street parallel to the Teleri retreat. At every intersection, he looked over to see how quickly the column of Metal Men moved. Somewhere, behind the marching wall of shields and spears, the Teleri Emperor must be laboring with an arrow in his shoulder.

  Hua musketmen, both provincial and imperial, stood in three-rank lines in the side streets, shooting at will. The closest rank knelt, the second stood, and the third reloaded muskets. The Metal Men took casualties at eac
h intersection, though any man falling on the outside was immediately replaced by another.

  Perhaps the emperor had already bled out, since it seemed more logical for the column to turn down a side street, crash into the thin lines of musketmen, and break out from the path where they took constant fire.

  Tian looked up ahead to see a large battalion of Hua troops marching toward him, their banners a white ship on a black field. At their head rode a helmeted man in a black-and-white uniform and a steel breastplate. Those color, that sigil… Zhenjing Province? Why were they here?

  Hurrying over, Tian bowed. “Sir—”

  Two men thrust him to his knees. “Address Lord Wu of Zhenjing with proper manners.”

  Appropriate terms… “Jue-ye, The Teleri could break out of any of these streets.”

  Lord Wu waved him off the street. “Out of the way. Go back to your home.”

  Tian brushed his hands over his clothes. Of course, he wore civilian garb. Still— “If you attack them now, you can break them in two.”

  With a wave at his men, the commander said, “We are to cut off possible escape routes to the west, under orders from the regent herself.”

  The regent was in the city… He had come so far looking for her, to satisfy Yuha and his spirits. The column had come up from the south, so she must be there.

  Kaiya entered the city at the head of the army, astride a horse, keeping her chin up as musket shots rang out in the distance. Beyond the nearby rows of two-story buildings, several plumes of smoke rose above the southeastern part of the city. Teleri casualties lay strewn around the gatehouse and walls. The stench of sulphur and burning charcoal hung in the air. Though her nausea had subsided in the last couple of weeks, it threatened to rise again now.

  General Tang, at the head of an imperial guard contingent, rode up and dismounted. He dropped to a knee, fist to the ground. “Jie-xia, thank you for coming in our relief.”

  She searched among his command staff. “Where is General Shan?”

  “Killed at the north gate in the initial assault, before you left.”

  Kaiya heart sank, even through the Tiger’s Eye. “I am sorry to hear that. General Shan had been a wise and courageous leader.” She sighed, resolve firming again. “What is the Teleri army’s status now?”

  “Lord Zheng Ming tricked Emperor Geros into entering the city from the east, to prevent him from joining with their garrison here.” He gestured to the south gate. “We recaptured the gate not long ago and have pushed them east. I have word that Lord Zheng is driving Geros south, while the rest of our armies hold White Duck Stream to prevent him from going west.”

  Zheng Ming…had survived Teleri capture, and the orders she’d given Jie. Kaiya nodded, even though she only had a vague idea of the map. Better to leave strategy to the professional military. In the meantime, there was something only she could do. “General, how dangerous are the roads to the Temple of Heaven?”

  General Tang looked to the east. “The Bovyans are nowhere near there right now. I will personally escort you.”

  Kaiya patted her saddlebag, where the fallen star hummed its unfaltering tune. One of her ancestors’ first acts was to erect the temple in an auspicious location, and then place the star there. She would return the relic to its rightful place.

  She turned to General Tang. “Send Emperor Geros my terms for his surrender…”

  The wound on Geros’ right shoulder had stopped bleeding, but it still seared with pain. Especially after the healer had applied a balm. Each time the man tied another stitch, Geros had to hide his wince. He scanned the grassy basin and stone seating around him. It looked similar to an Estomari coliseum, except that the stands only lined one side.

  Low ground to be sure, but defensible enough from the stands and also the barricades his men had erected along the side streets feeding into the plaza. The garrison had managed to meet up with them, not only bolstering their defenses but also bringing much-needed food and supplies. If they rationed everything, they could hold out a week or more until reinforcements arrived from the North.

  Wishful thinking. He laughed out loud, drawing the stares of his men, who immediately averted their eyes. No, it had been Dongmen provincial soldiers who had attacked. Either Lord Zheng had turned on him, or the son must’ve grown some balls and learned a little military strategy. There would be no reinforcements.

  Geros pushed the healer off and stood. All his men snapped to attention.

  “My friends, this is our last stand. No help is coming. But we will make them remember the day they fought the Teleri Empire. Their descendants will quiver at our name.”

  The men broke into cheers. Every last one of them would die for honor. Him, too. In any case, without the fallen star to give to the Altivorc King, he only had a few months before his thirty-third birthday and inevitable death soon after. It had been a good life. His only regret was not to have conquered Cathay for Kaiya and left a stable and peaceful realm for their son to rule.

  General Baros called from the top of the stone seats. “The regent has sent a request to parley. She demands our immediate surrender and Emperor Geros to turn himself in to her. The rest of us will be allowed to return home.”

  Geros snorted. Undoubtedly an attempt to turn the men against him, and in any other army, the terms of surrender would not be shouted out for everyone to hear. But they were Bovyans, and their response was predictable.

  His men pounded on their chests. “We will fight!”

  Geros grinned and strode toward the stands. It was an answer he planned to deliver himself.

  Ming watched from horseback as a group of Hua imperial officers approached the amphitheater under the flags of parley. Teleri soldiers appeared at the top of the stone amphitheater seats. Though out of earshot, he could guess what message they delivered.

  Alas, the poor communication between the provincial lords and the imperial army had allowed the enemy to reach Qingjingtian Amphitheater and meet up with the garrison they had left. If they refused to surrender, they would lose, but not without inflicting devastating losses first. He turned to his aide. “Where is the regent now?”

  “Word has it she is heading to the Temple of Heaven.”

  “What?” Regent or not, now was not the time to pray. The Heavens rewarded those with the most guns and a better field position. Ming gestured back at his provincial soldiers, who now stood in orderly ranks along the northern end of the enemy’s hastily erected wall of carts, house doors, furniture, and Heavens knew what else.

  “Look.” His aide pointed to the top of the amphitheater seats.

  The sun gleaming off his breastplate, Geros stood tall and imposing at the top of the amphitheater’s stone seats.

  Ming’s heart skipped into his throat. The last time he had met the Teleri to discuss terms, he had lost a battle and fallen into the emperor’s hands. His hand tightened on his dao hilt.

  “Deliver this message to the girl.” Geros’ voice echoed through the streets. “I will surrender only if she spreads her legs for me.”

  Beyond the barricades in the basins, Bovyans erupted into laughter.

  Emperor Geros raised a hand, silencing them. “Otherwise we will set your precious city ablaze.”

  Chapter 46:

  Wash Out

  Kaiya listened to birds chirping in the eaves of the Temple of Heaven as she approached the compound’s front gates on horseback. The birds’ part in spring’s song echoed off the compound’s elliptical walls, carrying the sound over her own horse’s clopping and the sporadic musket shots in the distance.

  It had been over a year since she’d last visited, the day Zheng Ming failed to accompany her to the temple as he’d promised. She’d been a naïve, infatuated girl, who rode off into a city on edge in hopes of nursing handsome Zheng Ming back to health.

  Now, she scoffed at her younger self. If anything need be taken from that day, it was Father’s prayers and the way the temple grounds magnified his voice. With the magic here, may
be she could finally break the Tiger’s Eye for good and do something impactful in this war.

  The bald, yellow-robed temple abbot shuffled forward, head bowed. “Jie-xia, welcome to the Temple of Heaven. I regret to inform you that the Fallen Star was stolen and—”

  Kaiya withdrew the relic from her saddlebags. It pulsed in her hands as she presented it. “See it returned to its rightful spot.”

  The abbot gaped and bowed as he received it reverently in two hands. “Yes, Jie-xia. However, there is another security concern inside the temple grounds. I do not think it wise to—”

  Several sets of horse hooves cantered toward her. Her honor guard clattered into defensive positions. Her own cavalry formed into a circle. Behind her, Brehane and Cyrus shuffled as they prepared their own magic. She turned.

  Three cavalrymen approached, their green flags with the sun rising over twin mountains marking them as Dongmen provincial soldiers. The one in the lead rode his horse with such ease, it seemed horse and rider were one entity.

  He swung out of the saddle before his mount came to a stop and dropped to knee, fist to the ground. Glossy black hair spilled out as he removed his helmet and looked up, revealing Zheng Ming. “Jie-xia, welcome back to the city.”

  Flamboyant as ever. Kaiya suppressed a smile. “Lord Zheng. I was just thinking about you.”

  “Oh?” With his eyebrow raised, his grin was all the more charming.

  She gestured toward the Temple. “I was thinking of the last time I was here, and how you broke your promise to me.”

  Her men exchanged glances, and Zheng Ming’s face flushed.