Love or Law

Hear the Mountain Roar!

The cannon smoke slowly drifted out of the way as the mountain air swirled around them, raising goosebumps and sending chills up and down spines. Above them, outlined in the blue, blue sky, the single, dark silhouette of a horse and rider stood in defiance of their attack. The horse tossed its head and, even with all the distance between them, they could hear its whicker challenging them. The mountain of a man mounted upon it glared down at them. They could practically feel the heat of his fury.

More dark figures began to appear on the ridge. Shang watched in horror as the Hun army finally appeared in its entirety. There were hundreds of them, stretched from one side of the ridge to the other. Their war cry rose to a massive roar and crashed down on Shang and his men in waves as it echoed off the mountains surrounding them.

Quickly schooling his features so his men couldn't read what he was thinking, Shang turned to face them. Their faces said it all, they knew the odds were against them. They knew there was a good chance they would not be leaving these mountains. Still they held firm, awaiting his orders. Taking a breath, Shang gave the order he was sure would be his last.

"Prepare to fight! If we die, we die with honor!"

With a ring of steel, his men answered his cry to battle with determination and resolution. Each man held his sword in a steady hand as they faced their fears and their foe with nothing but their hard-won skills, their prayers and their will to survive. Shang chanced one last look at Ping's face. This could be the last time he laid eyes on her and what he saw did not disappoint. He could see her concern for her comrades, her courage, her never-ending stubbornness and strength. She was breathtakingly beautiful and in that moment all he wanted to do was tell her so and show her how he truly felt. If they lived through this, Shang swore to do everything in his power to make her his. To hell with rules, and honor and whatever anyone else had to say about it. She was everything he needed and everything he ever wanted.

Another roar of sound was the only warning they received as that same single rider wheeled his horse around and charged down the slope directly towards them. This man had to be their great enemy, the scourge of the land, Shan Yu. In one movement, the Hun army descended. A wave of black rushing down the mountain towards them, determined to wipe out their very existence. Shang watched their approach, hunting for any weaknesses they may have. Well, there was one move they could take before the army actually reached them...

"Yao. Aim the cannon at Shan Yu."

The man had pulled far ahead of his army, exposing himself to an attack. Yao had proven himself to be an excellent shot with a cannon, able to hit even the furthest of targets with impeccable accuracy. Shan Yu wasn't quite within range yet, but it wouldn't be long...

Shang's attention was completely focused on Shan Yu and his impending death, so he didn't see what Ping was planning until it was too late. A blur of movement and Yao's shout were all the warning he received before Ping was running out of their rock cover towards the Hun army with the last cannon tucked under her arm.

"Ping!" He bellowed in panic, "Come back! Ping!"

Shang watched in horror as her slim form continued to charge through the snow, back up the slope directly towards Shan Yu. What was the little fool thinking?! Was she trying to get herself killed? Was this some plan to try and make up for the wagon misfire earlier?

"Stop!"

When it became all too clear that Ping had no intention of stopping, Shang took off after her. All clear thoughts vanished from his mind. The only thing guiding his actions at that moment was his heart and it was screaming at him to save her before it was too late.

Ping had finally stopped and slammed the butt of the canon into the snow. Crouching behind it, she quickly lined it up with her target then reached for her flint. What was she doing? There was no way she needed to be that close! Shang could only watch as something small and black came streaking from the sky towards Ping, knocking her to the ground. Another shout rose from his throat but she was too far away to hear him.

Shan Yu used Ping's moment of vulnerability to close in on her. He was practically on top of her, with Shang still too far away to help, when the cannon exploded into the sky in a flash of fire and gunpowder. The force of it knocked Ping backwards and caused Shan Yu's horse to rear up in shock, stopping just short of running the girl into the ground.

Everyone watched in confusion as the cannon arched high through the air until it slammed into one of the mountain tops in the distance, almost behind the fast approaching army. It was an impressive shot but Shang could not figure out why she had wasted their last cannon on a mountain. That is, until the entire mountain top appeared to start moving.

Slowly at first, the mass picked up speed and size as it fell until huge, white chunks of ice and snow slammed into the ground with a roar of sound. It was almost as if Ping had awakened a dragon. She had started the largest avalanche that Shang had ever seen.

Shang saw the moment Shan Yu realized what Ping had done. He roared in fury and swung his sword down towards Ping's defenseless form. Shang watched in panic as Ping dodged the blow and scrambled to her feet. She wasted no time, bolting towards him as fast as she could, racing the mountain as it plummeted towards them. She grabbed Shang's arm as she passed and dragged him after her before he came to his senses and joined her in the race for their lives. They could see Yao, Po and Ling in the distance, fleeing ahead of them after their failed attempt to charge after Ping and rescue her with Shang.

The avalanche roared over the Hun army, as if they were nothing more than a mere nuisance instead of a deadly force. Shan Yu abandoned his men to their fate, urging his mount to greater speeds with the flat of his blade but he was soon overtaken as well. The snow swallowed him into its mass with impunity before barreling towards its next victims.

Shang and Ping ran as fast as they could. The ground beneath their feet trembled and shook as the avalanche rushed towards them with a roar. Suddenly Khan was there, running alongside them, heedless of the danger and determined to save them to the best of his ability. Ping released Shang's hand long enough to mount Khan then reached back down to him. Shang grabbed her hand in his with an iron grip and Ping attempted to pull him up after her but they were too late. The full force of the avalanche slammed into them with rib-cracking force. Shang felt as Ping's hand was ripped from his own and he suddenly found himself at nature's mercy. The mass of white tumbled around him; dragging him down into its depth, crushing the air from his lungs until he was completely disoriented. Darkness closed in around him and he lost himself to its eternal depth.

Intense!