章節 26: | A Soldier's Life in Times of War (Part II)
The town of Lord Gyeongju came into view, with tiled roof houses, seen over the fortified walls and several huts imposing outside of it, in stark contrast. They looked well maintained, probably the family and settlers living here thrived from the land. But now all seemed deserted.
The gates to the city were left wide open, putting on display the main street. An air of desolation was deepened by the absence of any sounds. These types of cities had music of their own, greeting the traveller from afar. The small merchants trading, children running around the street and the sound of village households kept company along all of that. Now, all was shrouded in silence.
Soo-Ah and her army companions passed by the city taking the easiest route to travel on, the beaten path through the small village. Here, the wind flung aside the twigs doors that were left open. As they approached, the clamour of men walking and armour jingling, brought forth some domestic animal and bird sounds. Still no trace of anyone.
Or so Soo-Ah thought. As her horse walked by one of the huts, an old man emerged on the threshold of his home. And behind him was a young girl, that might have been her age.
The soldiers passed the main road and the girl took a couple of steps, then stopped, hesitating. She analyzed the faces of those coming through one by one until she locked eyes with Soo-Ah. True to her good nature, Soo-Ah silently acknowledged her and then carried on, leaving the young girl clasping something tight at her chest.
"Young master! Young master," a voice trailed after her. A couple of the soldiers turned to stare, including Soo-Ah. The village girl approached fast and walked along her horse. "Please young master, take this." She struggled to keep the pace, with her hand extended, holding a folded paper. Soo-Ah stopped and stepped to the side.
"Excuse me young master for daring to address you. Please accept this charm."
Soo-Ah picked up the offering. Inside was a little clay coin with shamanic symbols.
"It is to keep you safe, to keep all of you safe, while fighting, young Master."
"Thank you. Why have you not left with the others?"
"My grandfather. He did not want to. He says he's been uprooted too many times and must stay home. I couldn't leave him alone. But I believe you can keep us safe, young master. My grandfather does too. Please be safe out there."
Soo-Ah said thank you with a smile and a nod, then returned to take her place. A group of soldiers were slowing down, measuring the girl up and down, tugging at each other with sleazy grins. Soo-Ah pinned them down with her gaze until they got their behaviors in check and hurried back in line.
She turned to look at the girl, rushing to answer her grandfather's calling, and remembered the old commander's words. Enemy soldiers defiling her young body, slavery in a Tang brothel, or even death awaited the girl. And still, she remained here, guarding what held meaning to her, her family.
Ahead of the line, her grandfather, General Min-Jun, led his troops, minding only what was in front of him. She would make sure to think about those they left behind. Stay out of the way he said to her but she was unsure she could.
*
The scouts were waiting for them when they reached an open field. This was to be the front line of the battle. Each soldier took his position, arranged in countless lines on Soo-Ah's sides. When she turned to look back, their number stretched behind, aligned and ordered like grains of rice on a silver platter. The skies were grey, the soil underneath was barren.
"Why is there no grass?" Soo-Ah asked, noticing the big patch of greyed land in the middle of what was meant to be a green meadow.
"This is a cursed land. We fought here before. The gods must be angry so they turned the spilt blood to poison," the lieutenant replied with reverence.
Only now did Soo-Ah notice that in the distance, what was sticking out of the ground, looking like young saplings cut in their prime, must have been old spears or swords left behind. The custom was to gather their dead after a fight, but the ghosts of those who perished must still hunt this place.
Her skin prickled with goosebumps. She was so close to death. She was aware of it but never felt it to be so imminent. She looked again at the soldiers waiting behind them. They were all too close to death.
When only a few days ago she wanted them gone and hated their guts for looking down on her, now they were part of sacred communion. Strangely, they made her feel safe.
Then, a rumble reached her ears. Rumble stirred the silence of the silvery horizon.
In front of them appeared the tip of the yellow flags that heralded the countless lines of enemy troops. For some time, each of the warring parties merged with the horizon on both sides of the valley. In silence they taunted each other, waiting for the other to make a move.
General Min-Jun was old and valued his time. He trotted his horse along the front line of his Sillian soldiers and acknowledged every pair of eyes that his eyes could encounter. It was his salute. Then he returned to the centre, sat better in the saddle, looked at Soo-Ah and nodded. She nodded back as a sign she understood and was going to follow his instructions. He had brought her to observe, not engage.
After General Min-Jun got his reassurance from her, he commanded his men to advance. The spearmen began to run towards the enemy, passing by cavalry and leaving clouds of dust in their wake. Then a couple of mounted squadrons, led by the general and his commanders, followed. Their adversaries were already moving to intercept.
Soo-Ah and her four riders stood still. The earth was humming or maybe it was her body trembling from a mixture of excitement and angst. Witnessing her first battle, her core heated up to the point where her throat got parched. Beads of sweat collected on her forehead, under the helmet and slid down her jaw.
The Sillians and the Tangrens met midway and began fighting with a deafening roar. The grey sky had parted for the rain to lash out from the heavens, taming the billows of dust and clearing up the image of the battle.
Soo-Ah spotted her grandfather in his distinct general armour. The sensation of the water drops, sliding on her nose and cheeks was soothing at first. She lifted in her saddle so she could keep her eyes on him.
On his horse, General Min-Jun stroked left and right. There was mayhem all around him but he gave his orders and everyone listened. A number of enemy horsemen slowly surrounded him. One of them even managed to scathe his armor.
Soo-Ah gasped. Drops of water made their way under the plates of her armour, drenching her tunic, and making it cling to her skin. It was as if a shroud encased her and kept her in place when she needed to escape. She needed to save her grandfather from what looked like a fatal situation. She needed to protect Gyeongju, the people running to safety. The girl.
Her blood ran hot and her fingers tingled on the sword pommel. She looked at the four men around her. Their attention was kept on the battlefield, oozing the same hunger that she felt. Four able soldiers, with her five. They were just what her grandfather needed. Without a word, she goaded her horse to gallop, straight to his location, taking her sword out. Her guardians had no choice but to follow, urging her to go back.
As a reply, Soo-Ah rode faster, until her sword scraped the shoulder plate of one of the soldiers attacking her grandfather, with power augmented by her speed. She turned her horse, as it neighed and lifted on its back feet. An enemy horseman broke the thigh formation that kept General Min-Jun and came to challenge her.
With her sword, she dealt more damage, keeping one eye focused on her attacker and the other on her surroundings, as Min-Jun had taught her. Soo-Ah's retinue of soldiers had reached her and now their fighting party outnumbered a couple of enemies concentrated in their spot. But more enemies were coming and they all clashed with each other.
Soo-Ah had no time to even look in her grandfather's direction. She was too busy parrying the merciless hits that were coming her way. A real fight was not as easy as training. Soon her arm muscles were fatigued, and someone grabbed her by the back collar and threw her down from the horse.
When she rolled with her face up someone was ready to stomp her with his horse.
"Soo-Yun, stay down!" General Min-Jun yelled, running to her aid.
A swish came closer to her. Hurtling past her helmet, a lance embedded itself in the torso of the animal, making it stand on its back legs, then fall over the rider, crushing him underneath. The lace stood upright, victorious, a couple of beaded talismans dangling from a blue ribbon close to the tip. Duri's spirit must have been protecting her. Soo-Ah turned to find her saviour, but there were no familiar faces under the helmets and the strain of the battle.
"Quickly, back on your saddle," Min-Jun brought her mare around, while all hell broke loose around them.
While fighting, the adrenaline and struggling to place her foot in the stirrup, Soo-Ah opened her eyes and looked at the faces of her fellow soldiers, fighting. She no longer saw their judging eyes, nor the threat they posed to her. She saw her countrymen, fighting for more than their lives.
The pikemen launched their weapons and brought down enemy riders. The swordsmen came to put to death all who dared lift from the ground. The sky cried with tears of pure water for all of them.
The older commander, in charge of Soo-Ah, grabbed her by the back of her armour and forced her up on the horse. The metal slamming against metal was all Soo-Ah could hear, until a recognisable bout of coughing. Then she heard nothing but her grandfather, expression frozen.
When she turned to find the source, Min-Jun was bent over, gasping for air and leaning on his sword. A couple of moments more and he was down in the mud, unconscious, sword still clasped in his hand. A couple of soldiers rushed to help him. Soo-Ah wanted to turn her horse around but the old commander remained faithful to his order.
*
Before sundown, each of the parties sounded the retreat. It was an unofficial truce. The enemy did not further its position nor did the Sillians push them back. This was a conflict to be settled another day. But every soldier in Min-Jun's army only cared for their general.
Min-Jun was not regaining consciousness. He had to be carried by a soldier on his horse and the pacing to return to camp was rushed. Soo-Ah called his name all the way back until her lips went dry.
Only when he was placed on his bed with doctors burning foul-smelling salts around him, did he come to his senses. Soo-Ah, holding tight his hand, could finally breathe with ease.
She could count more than ten autumns since they left the comforts of home behind. Her grandfather was ten autumns older and his age was catching up to him.
Time brings change for all, men or women, young or old, and together with the conditions of life in times of war, it erodes people's bodies and minds. Especially those of old people.
The doctors prodded and probed the old general. They got together in a corner and concluded it was winter fever that took over his lungs and gave him little chance of recovery. Where he was once able to plan and lead his armies on the battlefield, or protect, judge and rule over any of his soldiers, he was condemned to be bedridden from now until his death. The doctors said those words aloud and when they realised Soo-Ah had heard them, they lowered their heads.
Soo-Ah struggled not to cry. As dutiful as ever, she was there to care for him, as he had cared for her when she was younger. She would not simply let him go. She would call on the doctors every day to come and see him, and never stop seeking for better medicine. Grandfather could not simply die.
*
"Grandpa, you need to eat this. You've always liked this soup. I made it, especially for you. Come on old man, don't waste my hard work." The soup Soo-Ah had cooked for him was steaming and smelled delicious. It would have been a waste letting it go cold.
"You… you start to speak like a disrespectful rascal. You..." the old general answered, coughing. "You listen to me, my child. What I am about to say is of utmost importance." He would stop between each sentence to take rapid, short breaths. "I needed to make arrangements. You know I am not well. A new general will be arriving soon, to take over for me and lead my legions."
A couple of months had gone by since her grandfather was forced to take to his bed and the entire time Soo-Ah never left his side. Soldiers would come to inquire about him every day.
"What is this nonsense? I heard your men saying they are willing to follow you to the grave."
"I am afraid that if they were to actually follow me to the grave that would happen sooner rather than later. It is always better to follow someone to the grave later rather than sooner. Remember that."
"Was that your attempt at a joke, old man? You are not good at it," Soo-Ah added before they both started chuckling.
"Listen to me, Soo-Ah, when this great general arrives..."
"You will send him away. You and your men need no new general. What will happen to you when someone comes to take over? All your hard work for over ten years. How can you allow this absurdity? They will throw you away just for being a little sick."
"Soo-Ah... General Sung-Ho, he is the king's great general, the best we have right now, his name is..."
"He, no matter what his name is, will be at the tip of my sword if he tries to do anything disrespectful to you."
"I know he is a man of courage and of honor. You will realise when you see him, my Soo-Ah."
Soo-Ah wanted to hear nothing more about this new general. "No man of honor would take away anything from a sick person. You managed very well so far without any help. I am sure this is how he built his fame as the king's general. Like a vulture."
"Here you go again talking nonsense just because you are upset. Now there is no point talking to you, girl, because you will hear me, but you won't listen."
"You have been talking too much anyway. It is time to go to sleep and rest so you can fight away those vultures."
Min-Jun's lungs were no longer functioning properly and speaking made him tired, so it was not unusual for him to fall asleep even after a little chat, while Soo-Ah would watch over him as he slept and struggled to breathe.
"Old man...what am I to do with you?" said Soo-Ah with a heavy heart as the general fell asleep while she caressed his face. Thinking about what she heard from her grandfather that night and what was to come for them soon unsettled her and chased away her tiredness, steadying her resolve. She would continue to take care of him for as long as the gods would allow it, and then even some more.
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