Tribe wars

Xiao Fan made his march in a way the monkeys had never thought of as they were just strolling on the ground towards the enemy camp in one line.

The Mutants of the Right were right behind Xiao Fan and Du Lan and the Mortals of the Left marching behind them.

However, the only force that resembled a marching formation was the third combat squad who were the most promising by far.

The third combat squad walked in one line compared to the loose formations of other squads and not even talking about the mutants who sometimes roamed the forest around them.

But since the only thing keeping the mutants walking anyway was a fear of Uruk and not so much the fear of Xiao Fan he couldn't say much. For most of the mutants, Xiao Fan was just being ordered around by their chief and not a real leader.

They didn't even remember how he had been beating them a few days previous anymore.

Meanwhile, the monkeys did what animals would, Du Lan and Xiao Fan in the front had been talking for a while now.

¨How are you going to order these? They are terrible even when compared to the drunk militias of Greenwood town¨ She questioned this army's capabilities, while they walked towards the Lion tribes den.

¨If our people are like this I'll just bet on that the enemy is just like our troops unorganised and reckless. In that situation, we have good chances¨ He didn't worry much.

¨Meaning?¨ She did.

¨I'm going to use the few squads that can hold their bloodlust down to set up a trap against the enemy who hopefully will be more irrational than us¨

¨Sounds good, is there something I can help with?¨

¨Sure you can shoot a few shots, but keep yourself safe before doing anything. I can't lose you right now¨

Although their conversations very usually short and even dull sometimes Xiao Fan did say things that could be interpreted in a good way.

¨If you say so I will try to keep my self safe¨ She said with a small giggle.

By now they had been walking for a day, and they would tomorrow start their war from where one tribe would come out victorious while the other one would most definitely perish.

....

The next day around the outer edges of the Lion tribes den.

All had been like usual as the lions had slowly woken up and from their sleep to go hunting in packs, but before they had scattered to hunt for food, an uninvited visitor had come.

A group totalling exactly forty monkeys had come to their den and were throwing sticks and ganging up on a few of the lion who had gone forward to fight them.

A few dead lions after the word finally reached an old female lion who was the matriarch of her tribe.

She learning of this had had a small fit about the monkeys killing her children just outside their den; a real disgrace she thought.

And then to deal with them, she sent a hundred lions and a few lions turned into mutants just in case to deal with the apes who had for no good reason to come to her tribe to cause trouble.

An adequate response she thought as a lion and monkey wouldn't trade one for one so her responding team should slaughter the monkeys annoying her.

Not thinking more about those apes anymore she went hunting herself with the lions that were left doing nothing in one huge group as not to fall into any tricks while leaving the den almost undefended with only older or younglings there.

The response team lead by a mutant lion went towards the monkeys jumping off from their natural defence barrier of a hill in a sudden sally out.

The monkeys seeing this kind of a response panicked and started routing towards the mountains, making no effort to fight back.

A crushing victory the leader of the sally thought while now the hunt had started as they would revenge every lion that the monkeys had killed by killing everyone one of them, and then feed on their meat.

But there was a small problem for the lions as the monkeys could swing in the trees above and by doing so, dodging every charge or lung aimed at them.

Soon the monkeys did start routing, yet they did so in same-sized groups of ten members each.

The leader of the lions didn't realise the weirdly even amount. He only did what he knew, and that was to separate his own group.

However, unlike the monkeys, they split base on which monkey was closest to them. Leaving them running in different sized groups, which didn't even have a leader.

Why would they even need a leader? It was a hunt, not a war.

And so soon they found running after the monkeys every group in different passes and ravines, and the hunt was closing for each team, as a monkey couldn't outrun a lion in these parts anymore so easily.

However, something was definitely off as an arrow coming from above nailed a lion from its head, the arrow had even penetrated so far that it came out from the other side of his head as the lion fell.

And the arrow wasn't the only thing coming at them as more and more monkeys started raining on them while the hunted ones turned to face them in an organised line.

Meanwhile, as the ambush had begun, Xiao Fan was looking it from above with Du Lan next to him shooting arrows into the midst of the melee with frightening accuracy.

He wouldn't be fighting. He only watched the arrow leave the string of Du Lan's bow, and then at the arrow that had by the next moment either killed or sealed a lion's fate.

He was also at the same thinking that the thing he had hoped for had happened. The Lion tribe send only some of their troops to be beaten by them in easy to chew pieces.

His four combat squads he had had the time to teach were only there to gather their attention and then to run into his pre-planned locations that were working perfectly.

Even at this moment the trap below them was already about to be cleaned and the other ones should also be done by now.

Xiao Fan knew that the Lions would have been fierce in one on one duels, but when they couldn't even turn before two or more monkeys had jumped on their back was it a different case.

Also, the traps weren't meant fair in any way and even if this was the weakest trap, they had only lost a few monkeys that could be replaced from the supply squad that hadn't done anything yet.

Looking below them, a few mutant monkeys were already ripping their counterparts insides open to taste the meat some of their friends had been telling about.

And the same bloody scene of tens of lions being eaten was happening in four different parts in these hills.

However, there was one difference in this once compared to all others. It was that some of the bodies were being left alone.

Something was keeping the monkeys from not approaching every body that was down in this ravine.

That something was a stick marking the ownership of the carcass. The ownership of Du Lan, who would kill anyone trying to eat her meat.

Still, that didn't change the fact that the ambush was a success, though there was one problem with it also.

They had destroyed the lions that had left the den, but they couldn't capitalise on it today anymore because the monkeys were now in full frenzy for the spoils.

So thinking about making them attack the den today was out of the question, he knew, and so he made camp with Du Lan.

Xiao Fan's campaign continued tomorrow with a dust cloud that could be seen from the Lion tribes den.

Where there had been few cautious comments about where the lions that went after the monkeys were, but these complaints were shrugged off by the matriarch.

And now seeing a dustcloud forming over the trees from the direction they had gone, the matriarch smiled happily as her children were coming back.

But what they didn't know was that this dust cloud they thought as their own coming back was, in fact, the murderers of those people coming for more.

It was all part of Xiao Fan's plan.

Moreover, like he wanted this massive dust cloud did also gather the undived attention of everyone in the den as they looked forward to the meat they must be bringing with them.

That was their first impression of the dustcloud, but as it already got inside the den itself, the figures inside the dust cloud started to seem like they weren't of lions and more like monkeys? But why were monkeys coming to them?

None of the Lions got the right idea to do anything defensively before the mutant core under Xiao Fan had crashed on the loose group that was welcoming them.

And as fur hit fut, there was only one trend in it and that was the trend that the crushing side pushed further and further into the welcoming side all the while they threw them into the air.

Since for a monkey mutant throwing up a mortal monkey was an easy task and an unexpecting mutant lion wasn't a major rise in difficulty could they plough through them.

It was a shame hower that the Mutants of the Right didn't do a full charge over every lion they could see but started a melee in the centre of the lion den, as they found it much more fun than listening to an order.

This thankfully for Xiao Fan didn't help any lion in the front that was thrown up, as one thrown into the air could only for a few seconds look around oneself before a monkey with lion teeth in hand slashed its throat either in one sweep or multiple stabs, ending their lives there and then.

Charging them this way seemed extremely fruitful as every lion knocked in the air was killed seconds after by a monkey or in the case of a mutant it was Xiao Fan's fists or Du Lan's bow.

Meanwhile, the matriarch on her stone had been baffled for a moment.

She couldn't even shout orders to defend before the charge had already broken into a brutal melee where legs and tails were ripped off every second.

Finally realising all of this she didn't even try to order her children but attempted to found out who was the enemy's leader who should be her only opponent anyway and defeating him or her could still secure a victory.

Yet finding him stunned her more as that the figure who seemed to be the leader was a human shouting in the backline, yet that was only for but a moment before she charged towards Xiao Fan.

She knew what she needed to do, and so uncaringly did she charge through everything.

Every monkey or lion before her that faced that charge was shrugged off by her demonstrating the devastation of a lion that could initiate a real charge at her opponent.

Using brute force she in seconds she got out of the melee and was now charging straight towards Xiao Fan.

The only thing stopping her anymore was a sudden hail of arrows that had next to no effect.

These arrows were of course coming from Du Lan, who had released her arrows at the matriarch only to see that her innate skills in archery were superficial against true strength.

¨Don't shoot! Run! You can't help with this!¨ Xiao Fan shouted towards the woman trying to hinder a charge from something she couldn't compete with.

Then for a moment, she looked towards him before disappearing into the melee with her bow.

Du Lan now gone was the matriarch already upon him as her massive paw lunged at him with a want to shred him with one swing; the matriarch thought that one good charge might end it all.

Xiao Fan didn't still have a sword or a spear, so with the biggest lion teet, he had found and sharpened he welcomed the paw.

Bone hit bone, but the lion's claw was much stronger as was also the wielder, and so only after being used once the lion teeth in his hands broke into small pieces and dust.

The force of a lions charge had been simply too much for it to resist.

This happening did sadden him a little, but the tooth wasn't meant to be a winning weapon anyway, and at the least, it had denied the momentum from the charge which in itself was helpful enough.

For when the lion's speed was lowered the incoming attacks slowed down enough that they were either taken with a counter fist of his own or a dodge.

Still, in moments, they had already exchanged a dozen strikes before both made a retreat.

In Xiao Fan's head, there was a clear thought that the lion matriarch could be killed; it actually felt pretty when he had exchanged attacks with her.

But little did he expect that the lion was also only probing his defence before committing into a real fight from only one could come out alive.

As even without looking could she already tell that behind her most of the tribe was in flames figuratively, which of course saddened the matriarch, but if she would get out of here alive would that be a win already in her books.

However, before that, she wanted some payback for all the trouble she had gone through for the tribe.