Closed starter | @ougenki
Although a man of many talents, setting traps is the one thing that Jia Chong considers his specialty. Perhaps that is why he takes his time, to the point that Seimei’s shikigami, too, slow their pace.
Even from his position in the trees, the impressive stature of Baidi castle can be seen overhead; in this world that is like, but also very unlike the one he comes from, there are other castles, too—ones from Kanbei’s and Seimei’s land—marking the coast. He sees that the sun is setting now, grasping at the wispy clouds as it slips under the horizon. The long shadows that fall over the forest provide the perfect cover, and Jia Chong is certain that the coalition will not see them coming.
He can hear them approaching minutes before he sees them down the trail, the blades of swords and spears glinting in the minimal light. With a silent gesture of his hand, the shikigami take their places, with their own weapons poised. Jia Chong pulls out his axes too, and runs his thumb idly over the hilt. The messenger they released earlier did not disappoint, he thinks with a smile, and, when the moment is right, orders the attack.
He hears a roaring in his ears, the sound of a rushing tide of men. After the initial wave of chaos crashes, he takes to the fray. The shikigami part, allowing him through, and the frantic coalition soldiers that come into view are cut down with a decisive swipe of his axes. It does not take long for the shikigami to completely encircle the coalition force; the bait has been taken, the trap set, and now it is time for Jia Chong to collect his reward.
But despite the haze of the battle, he spots the flash of the long, blond hair of the woman in the crowd.
He cannot be surprised she is there. After all, Sima Zhao is one of the three officers that had gone directly for the bracelet—and Zhao is her charge.
❛❛ I suppose you’re looking for Zhao, ❜❜ he says, almost as nonchalantly as Zhao himself. He thinks of the many times the two of them tore through the streets of Luoyang together, looking for and chasing after the younger Sima. Although those days are not far gone, he quickly puts them out from his mind.
❛❛ Unfortunately for you, this is as far as you will go. But, ❜❜ he says, raising his axes, ❛❛ I will be sure to send him your regards. ❜❜
It would be much nicer if the bracelets were unnecessary, but they needed any upper hand that they could get, even if it meant taking dangerous risks. She just wished that Zhao and the others had not been so hasty to get that far ahead... It was not going to be easy to catch up to them, but she trusted they could handle themselves long enough for it. Plenty of reinforcements were on their way, herself included.
Often times, Yuanji was not the one on the front lines. However, this was a different situation, and she did what needed to be done quickly and efficiently. Once she and the soldiers under her command succeeded in ambushing Chen Qian's advance, their morale was bolstered. With the many close calls that they'd had, winning the battle was revitalizing, even if it was not winning the war. She was glad that they felt that way but calmly reminded them to not let it distract them from the dangers.
Little did she know she was foretelling their next trial, one with far more lethal encounters. Due to the commotion making it impossible to quickly get through, Yuanji took her men by an alternative route in order to regroup with Shingen and Kenshin, but it was uncomfortably inactive. It was also, however, the fastest and safest route to return, and time was not on their side given their predicament. Her men agreed that the risk was worth taking -- it was the wrong choice. With the shadows looming as the sun began to set, none had spotted the ambush until it had already sprung into action, and they were attacked.
Yuanji took to a defensive stance, supporting the men around her as the numbers were overwhelming. Swift knife throws to the forehead, neck, or anywhere else lethal, she took any opportunity; and with it, she saw they did not die as humans did. They were different, but it was unclear as to why.
Before she could do anything with that information, they became too surrounded, and Yuanji called for them to back into a group formation to hopefully minimize the risk of losing any more of them.
"Spears!" She called out, and while those with swords backed to the center of the group, those with spears stepped forward, essentially creating a circle of spikes to keep their enemy at bay for a time. Yuanji stood by the spearmen while she sought the more optimal targets. But it was a simple temporary defense tactic that she already knew would not endure for long.
After all, they fell right into the trap and had nowhere to go. It was obviously not looking good for them. Yuanji gripped her knives tightly, looking to the remaining allies with their spears facing forward, and to the shikigami surrounding them. Deep breath, deep breath. They could still get out of this, she only needed to look for an opening. A thinner spot. Anything. She had enough knives left.
In an unexpected distraction, Yuanji immediately turned to the sound of a voice she had been hoping to hear since her journey in this realm, yet it was not the relief she had hoped for. Instead, she felt an oncoming dread upon realizing things got much, much harder than it could have been before. Of course, the one time that they go through the suspiciously quiet route, it would be somewhere he was lurking; but with how efficient it was, he was smart to lay a trap there. Someone was bound to pass by. Lips parted in a mix of surprise and confusion, and very briefly even curled into a seldom seen look of disgust and anger. It was gone in a blink as she remained level-headed. However, knowing it was Jia Chong who was involved with them, she knew that any opening she was initially seeking would be difficult to find. He was clever as he was thorough.
While she wondered where he had been and why he was helping the enemy, it was not the time or place to consider it. He had his reasons, whatever they were, and it was not worth the assumptions. Amber eyes looked around again to the shikigami surrounding them, then to the soldiers, knuckles white as they held their weapons firm. Their fearful but resolute gaze, ready for whatever came next.
They looked to her, and to what her call would be. Yuanji did not want to let them down, all those who chose to follow her. Think, think--
"I see you've been busy, Jia Chong. I was almost starting to miss you and your quips," she replied. Due to the familiarity between the two of them, her go-to plan was to prolong any kind of conversation while looking for any opening. Eyeing the blood already on his axes, she knew nothing good would come of him deciding to use them again. "That messenger, was he a part of the plan too? You like being many paces ahead of everyone else. I’m sure you’ve already thought about what to do once you’ve surrounded your enemy -- so how do you intend to play the game this time?"
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