Arrows are flying in with fire balls. The Duke yell at everyone to find a shield or run for cover behind those stone walls. While Er Yin crawl to the inner room and yell over to the open ground to arm themselves with weapons while archers to pick up their bows and arrows to rush up to the tower. The Duke who have a shield with him rush over to the front of the tower to look at where about the enemies are at. He see them in a distance in a great number. They have a huge iron that is hanging on a cart and being push towards their fortress. He run into the room against the fire arrows. Closing the door, he rush to the window and see his men rushing to kill the fire.
"LUO MING! GO BLOCK THE MAIN GATE WITH SOMETHING STRONG! THEY WANT TO BREAK OUR GATE!"
Luo Ming hurry to find available men to help him while Er Yin is busy fight the fire. She look around and see the fire arrows are shot everywhere. She look at the crate that contains the hand bombs. She hurry to push them against the stone wall.
The archers are shooting non stop while the enemies are advancing. After they only need to reach about five hundred steps to the fortress, they stop. The Duke also signal his archers to stop firing. Both side is at a stand still. The only sound they hear is the eagles screaming in a distance and the sound of Mongols talking loudly. Inside the fortress, everyone is still busy killing the fire. Finally the last fire is kill off. Er Yin notice there is silence. She runs up to the tower.
She see the entire valley is fill with men. They are all burry and fierce looking. Everyone of them have sables and some are holding a mace. It won't be easy to take them down. The iron head on the cart is hanging on chains, they look like they are built to destroy the gate.She look at the Duke who is analysing what he should do.
One of them, commander of the Mongols take a ride up near the fortress with two men on his side.
"Commander you should surrender. We are far more greater number than you!"
"Impossible! Over our dead bodies!"
"HAHAHA sure, i can grant you that wish! Since you want that, i can walk over your death bodies. I hear that the Han people believe that every part of the body belongs to the parents. So if we kill you here... are you disrespecting your family!" As they yell at each other, the Duke with Er Yin along with their men have exit out via the back gate. While Luo Ming and some men is standing with weapons in their hands and watching at the front gate which is closed and heavy objects that are pile up to block anyone who tries to come pushing the gate down. They all hear General An yelling at the Mongol.
The Duke and his soldiers take a long detour round about to appear on the left with a few hundred step away from the Mongols. Hiding in the dense bamboo forest. They survey how to enemies are doing. Without talking too much, The Duke with some hand signal, they spread out. Each carrying a few hand bombs in their shirt. They all creep slowly and carefully since the Mongol are excited in attacking the gates, they are all looking at the front. While on the side, Er Yin and a few archers are getting theirs arrows ready. It is tie up with small fire crackers. The impact will not do much but it will cause chaos. Their main goal is to destroy that iron head. They cannot allow the gate to be smash down.
Er Yin waited for the signal from The Duke. Sweat beads are rolling down to each of their faces. Er Yin look at her girls. Each of them are nervous especially the ones who did not have experience in the battlefield. However, they each have a determined to destroy as much as they can. Inside the fortress they only have five hundred men. The ones who are the officers in court are told to leave immediately. They pack up and evacuated the fortress heading back into the capital. Civilians are running around trying to leaving with the officers. Scrambling, crying and lost at what they should do. Some old folks decided to stay behind. They have nothing left and the fortress is their home. They gather kitchen knife from their kitchen and waited at home for the bad news. At the same time, they look up to the sky and ask the gods to give them all another chance to live.
Outside, the Duke waited for the right timing. He watch and waited for a while he see that the Mongols are not standing anymore, some being to sit and others are squatting down. Some close their eyes it is then he knows, it is the time. He give them a signal. They all raise their bows with the lighted up fire crackers. They aim towards the sky in the Mongols direction. Once the Duke fire off, the rest of the archers follow the suit. They fired and hit the heart of the Mongol army. The chaos starts. The archers at the towers see this and starts to fire their arrows.
The Mongol army at the side who see this turn their head to see the fired arrows are coming from the bamboo forest. They rush in and the Duke with his soldiers are escaping deep into the forest. Because of the Mongol's sizes, they find it hard to chase after the slim Han Chinese. After awhile, they give up. While the Duke and his men have run off to fetch their weapons. They pick up more bombs and creep back towards the area where the iron head is sitting at.
Without a choice. He look at the twenty men and women who follow him out.
"I know what i want to do is a death road for all of us. I have no choice. If there is another way, i will want to persevere and ensure we will all live. But it looks like... this is the end for us here. If we can live for tomorrow... "
"General Yan, we all choose to follow you. So there is no regret."
"Yes no regrets."
They whisper in the forest. He look and every young face in front of him and finally Er Yin.
"If there is a chance to live... choose it. For now, let's slaughter as many as we can. Destroy that iron head. Burnt down the cart. When we get near to it, light it up with the lighter. Don't waste the hand bomb, use them all. Our aim is to safe guard this fortress."
The twenty soldiers all turn to look at the large army of Mongols who are angry and screaming.