The scattered remnants of the rebels dispersed themselves throughout various safe houses and hiding spots throughout northern Vietnam. Sun Quan’s attack on their base disrupted communication and few knew what had happened in Hanoi or the next plan of action.
Commander Lieu sped in an open-air jeep through a remote valley, balancing on the delicate dirt road through rice fields and tight-fisted turns around steep peaks to a final outpost on the edge of Thai Nguyen province, sixty miles north of Hanoi.
Without warning, the driver pounded the brakes, and the jeep skidded to a halt, veering sharply to the left so the vehicle slid sideways on all fours and nearly overturned. Lady Trieu blocked the road. Taller than before, leather chest piece hanging low off her chest. Sword sheathed on her back. Dagger at her side. Her arms earthward with clenched fists. Her hair tied back, face sullen, dark sunken eyes peering at her prey in the back seat. Both the driver and passenger in the front aimed pistols at the warrior, telling her to identify herself, yelling commands to lie on the ground, warning her not to take a step forward. But she moved anyways, forcing several rounds at her. She twisted out of their way and jumped once on top of the jeep’s hood. She lifted the driver by the collar and threw him into the ragged grass on the side of the dirt road. The soldier in the passenger seat lifted his pistol once more, but his arm shook. He fired anyway. The bullet pierced her torso without making her flinch. She snatched the pistol from his hand and bent the barrel in her palm before throwing it off to the side. The soldier dove out of the jeep and scampered over the ridge of a rice paddy.
The commander watched it all without fleeing, but also without calmness. His arms tense at his sides, palms flat against the seat, neck stretched upwards at the warrior. She stepped over the windshield and straddled the front bucket seats.
“A boy came to you and warned you.”
“Boy? What boy?”
“And you didn’t listen to him.”
“What boy? What …?”
“Yes, the boy your daughter chased after.”
“I didn’t know. I didn’t—”
“Save your excuses. You’re coming with me.”
The long-tailed bird swooped down out of nowhere. Its cry forced a frightened yelp out of the commander, and he pressed his back against the seat cushion. Lady Trieu grabbed the feathers around the neck of the bird with her right hand and fastened her left hand onto the shirt and collar of the commander. The bird ascended straight upwards, Lady Trieu dangling down off its side with the commander like a kite’s tail, flopping in the wind.
“Help!”
With one firm tug of her right hand, she swung her right leg over the great bird while tossing the commander upward into a seated position behind her. He clenched onto her stomach, barely able to reach around her. She glanced back with disgust.
“You can let go.”
He didn’t listen.
“Let go of me.”
She crushed his right hand until he cringed and flinched his arms. As he did, the feathers of the bird strapped him in without comment, and he sat paralyzed over the Vietnamese terrain he knew so well, just not from this altitude.
He didn’t speak. He dared not. Lady Trieu also remained silent. The bird soared through the air at a speed unlike any other, and within minutes, it nose-dived towards the ground, and when a few feet from impact, it flattened out and released its strap on the commander, sending him tumbling off the back of the tail and onto the ground with a painful thud. Tho and Lien stood over him in considerable surprise. The bird landed safely several yards away, and Lady Trieu dismounted.
“All of us need to talk.”
The commander sat up at attention. The other two waited for Lady Trieu to speak first.
“This is Commander Lieu.”
Lien and Tho glanced down in astonishment.
“Yes, the commander and I go way back,” said Tho.
Lieu glanced up. “Mr. Tho?”
“Yes.”
“Mr. Tho, it’s been a long time.”
“Everything has been a long time if it’s related to me.”
Everyone knew Commander Lieu. He became the face of the rebellion after the Chinese had liquidated the upper echelon of the Vietnamese government in the early days of the invasion. He was a lieutenant in the Vietnamese army, who had defied orders, and called upon every Vietnamese to support the resistance with whatever means they were capable. He had eluded the Chinese on multiple occasions and had even led brazen attacks against the invasion force inside the city. Lieu had become a folk hero. The resistance even began identifying themselves by using their right hand in the shape of an ‘L’.
“Mr. Tho, I—”
Lady Trieu cut off the commander.
“A boy came to you, and you ignored him. He told you about the true nature of the fight, but you brushed him aside. The powerful always become ignorant.”
“But the boy—”
“Quiet. This is the boy’s mother.”
Lien dropped to her knees and grabbed the right shoulder of the commander, still sitting on the ground.
“You saw Minh? How is he? What happened to him?” He turned his head away from her. “Tell me. Is he alright?”
“Commander Lieu,” said Trieu. “Tell her what happened.”
He sighed once. “He came to our headquarters, and he said things which were too unbelievable for me to take seriously, and—”
“Are they so unbelievable now?” asked Lady Trieu.
“How was I supposed to know?”
“You saw the broadcast of Sun Quan being shot. You heard the stories.”
“Rumors.”
Tho kicked the commander gently in the back with his foot. “Not rumors.”
“What happened to Minh?” asked Lien, hunched over in his face.
“I told my staff to send him away. But minutes later, we received word of the strange attack in Hanoi, with the vehicles split in two by some strange force.” He glanced up at Trieu, now making the connection. “I called him back, but he had already left.”
“Where did he go?”
“I don’t know. My daughter went after him, but I haven’t heard from her either.”
“They’re in the facility,” said Lady Trieu. “I’ve seen them.”
Lien stood up. “You saw him? Is he alright?”
“I could not be there in human form. But when I saw him, he was strong. Focused.”
Lien backed away and placed her arms over her heart. Her breath fell into a soft cry. Tho placed his arm around her.
The commander pushed himself up. “Lien, are you the wife of Nguyen Van Toan? From Haiphong?”
“Yes.” She stepped forward, refocused on the moment. “What do you know of him?”
“He has become a traitor. He is working for the Chinese.”
Lien pounced on him and smacked him once across the cheek. “You liar! Why would you say that? Why would you lie like that?” She hit him again, but he grabbed her wrists and tightened his grasp.
“We had video intel from within the facility, and …”
He let her go and pulled out a device. Lien staggered backwards. Tho came alongside her and grasped her arm. The commander held up the device and pressed play. The video showed a man walking into one of the cells of the facility. His face was that of Lien’s husband. He punched one of the rebel soldiers. Then a closeup of the encounter revealed that he wore the Sino-Vietnamese unification symbol on his shirt. Lien collapsed to the ground and sobbed. Tho knelt and patted her head as the commander put the device away.
“I’m sorry. This doesn’t provide me with any joy. He was an excellent soldier. The Chinese captured him inside the city about six months ago. They must have broken him. He must have turned.”
“No,” she screamed. “It’s impossible. He would never do that.”
“We’re facing unprecedented circumstances in this battle. And we’re losing on every front.” He looked at Lady Trieu. “Now, I’m beginning to see how your presence, Lady Trieu, is making more and more sense.”
Lien moaned. “He could have seen him. If he’s in the facility. He could have seen him?”
“Who?” asked Tho.
“Minh. If they used his father against him, it could be devastating. Oh …” She fell further onto the ground of Co Loa Citadel and wailed. Tho continued to offer comfort, yet had very little to give.
“I brought the commander here, so the most important members of the resistance can work together to fight this evil in front of us.”
Lien, Tho, and the commander all pondered the phrase “the most important members of the resistance.” Lien quietly composed herself and returned to her feet. The phrase had refocused her on the daunting task ahead. Tho chuckled to himself at the thought, and the commander asked once more what he needed to do.
“Mr. Tho identified Sun Quan and summoned the past in an attempt to defeat him. He is clever and has the knowledge of history to support him. I have the scars to prove it. We will need everyone working together if there will be an opportunity to defeat Sun Quan. And make no mistake. We are not fighting against the Chinese. We are fighting against Sun Quan, and perhaps one more.”
“The Chinese man?” asked the commander.
“Yes, the Chinese man.”
“Who is the Chinese man?” asked Tho.
“We aren’t sure,” said Lieu. “We have little intel on him, but he has been working closely with the demon … Sun Quan from the beginning.”
“Who’s calling the shots?” asked Lien.
“It’s not clear.”
“And now the machines are here,” said Lady Trieu.
“Machines?” asked Tho.
“So it’s true?” asked the commander to Lady Trieu. “We’ve had sketchy reports about what happened in Hanoi last night.”
“What? What happened?” Lien and Tho both inquired.
“A thousand strange machines were unleashed on Hanoi last evening. A night of terror. We have to act quickly before all support within Hanoi has been decimated, if it hasn’t been already.”
The commander looked perturbed. He threw his hands into the air and looked back at the three with a doubting glance. “Why did you bring me here? What can we do together? I have to reestablish communication between the units, and we need to take stock of—”
Lady Trieu cut him off. “Tho, did you retrieve the crossbow?”
“Crossbow? Well. The turtle instructed us to find the one worthy of the magic crossbow. But … I don’t know what that means.”
“The turtle?” asked Lieu, eyes wide like an exclamation point.
“To find one worthy?” asked Trieu. “Yes. You must go again, and take the commander with you.”
The commander waved his arms. He’d had enough. “Turtle? What are you talking about?”
“We need the magic crossbow, and we will receive it if you’re the one.”
“I’m the one? For what?” asked the commander, confusion embedded in his face.
Tho stepped forward, waving his arms. “I’m not ready for another trip down the pearl well.”
“Do you want another night of terror in Hanoi? Or will you do whatever it takes to stop it?” Lady Trieu towered over all of them in an aggressive manner. “Take him.” She pointed at the commander. “Lien and I will stay here. Whatever it takes. Get the magic crossbow.”
Tho walked a few steps towards the pond, turned around, and used his right index finger to inform the commander to follow him.
“Where are we going?”
“It is better you don’t ask questions to answers you definitely do not want to know.”
“What?”
“Follow me to the pond, and prepare your mind for … oh never mind. No preparation will be enough.”
“I was just flown here on a massive extinct long-tailed lost bird with Lady Trieu as my riding companion. I think I can handle it.”
“You have most assuredly underestimated the depths that the rebellion must go to.”
“What do you mean?”
“Just follow me to the pond.”
“I don’t want to—”
His complaint stopped as Lady Trieu pushed him in Tho’s direction. He turned around and held up his hands to say enough.
“I’ll go. It’s the least I can do for Mr. Tho.”
Tho laughed. “Let the past be in the past, Lieu.”
Lien walked over to Lady Trieu. “I can go with them.”
“No. Let them do this alone. I want to talk with you about your husband.”
Lien backed up and turned away from the warrior. “I can’t believe he could ever turn.”
“I came to Minh, not in human form, but I came to him in the facility. The commander’s daughter was there too. I don’t believe they were captured. They wanted to infiltrate the facility.”
“That’s foolish. Why would they do that?”
“The why is not important. But I need to know your son, and only you know what he will do. If what the commander said is true, and your husband tried to persuade Minh to give up the rebels, would he? Knowing what you know of your son. Would he?”
“No, never. He was with us. He went into Hoan Kiem Lake with us. On the turtle. He saw you. He knows Mr. Tho like a grandfather. He understands his heritage. No. Never. Nothing could turn him.”
“And your husband?”
Lien covered her eyes with her hands. “I thought I knew him … I thought. I don’t understand. I—“
“Don’t worry. There’s much about this conflict we don’t yet understand. I told Minh to be ready.”
“For what?”
“When the time is right, they are on the inside. It may prove crucial for us. If we can depend on him—“
“You can,” snapped Lien. “You can. One hundred percent. You can.”
“That’s what I needed to know.”
“So do we have a plan?” asked Lien, looking into the distance to see Tho and the commander stepping into the basket boat on the pond.
“Yes. A partial one. More is to come.”
Lien slumped onto the steps of the citadel. The image from the video replayed in her mind, though not a solitary explanation could satisfy her shattered soul.