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Disney Fan-Fiction - Rumblings of War Ch. 1

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The red, hard wooden doors opened before General Li entered the throne room. He could count the amount of times in which he entered this part of the enormous Forbidden Palace on one hand, and each time the situation had been direr against the safety of the empire than the last. Unfortunately, the grave news that he carried with him now trumped all of the past moments.

As he strode forth through the room, flanked by two honor guards, it seemed that he had never left. The room was as red as he had remembered from the walls to the thirty-foot high pillars and the magnificent throne. Only the ends of the pillars and the rug that led from the door to the throne were gold colored. The banners that hung above were the only things that had changed. In the past those banners had depicted symbols of different animals and colors, and now they depicted a red dragon on a gold background that fit well with the rest of the décor.

But Li ignored the decorations as his eyes were set on the throne. There the aging Emperor sat on a cushioned and wide chair and wearing a flowing, yellow silk robe and black, decorated hems. Around his waist and chest were black and red sashes also made of the same material. From his wrinkled, but sagacious, face grew a long but pointed beard that was accompanied by a well trimmed, but not as long, mustache. In the past, when he was a boy in the army, Li recalled that both used to be a lot shorter and black. The figure clad in a blue silk robe standing behind the seat was Chi-Fu. He did not seem to have aged, as his own thin mustache and beard were still black and there still was a frown on his face.

As soon as he came to the steps that led up to the throne, he and his men knelt and bowed before the person, no, god above him.

“Your Majesty, the Huns have crossed our northern border,” he spoke, breaking the news that had only hours ago had been given to him. The beacons atop every garrison house that dotted across the Great Wall of China had been lit the previous day that signaled the invasion. He knew by now that the mighty force had already been mobilized and was making its way through the darkened hills and mountains to the north.

“Impossible!” cried out the vizier almost pretentiously. “No one can get through the Great Wall.”

‘Definitely the same as ever,’ thought Li but he kept silent as before now he did have a small bit of doubt that the Huns could have managed such an attack. The Emperor raised his hand to silence his advisor before returning his gentle-turned-serious eyes to the general and he knew to continue.

“Shan Yu is leading them,” Li’s voice switched to a grave tone. He had read reports from the few refugees that had managed to be let through into the Empire over the last few years. He also knew that the Emperor read the reports as well and the horrifying stories within each one as was evident by the narrowing brow on the god-man’s face.

“I will set up defenses around your palace immediately.” The safety of the Emperor had always been the duty for every general in China from Li’s father before him to all of the rest.

“No!” protested the Emperor, standing up. “Send your troops to protect my people!”

Chi-Fu’s face expressed the shame shock that Li had within him, but years of discipline, duty, and working with the Emperor had prepared him to keep such emotions hidden. This outburst had not been the first that he had taken from the Emperor, and, if he continued to live and serve, it definitely won’t be the last.

“Chi-Fu!”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

“Deliver conscription notices throughout all the provinces. Call up reserves,” commanded the Emperor as he stepped down from the throne toward the general. “Get as many new recruits as possible.”

Li stood freely to face the Emperor, all the while keeping his face still as stone. He did not really understand why the Emperor was calling for more men when there was already a well-trained and experienced army that was available; an army in which he had personally ridden and fought with on campaigns and skirmishes too many to count. Many of the captains and commanders that led the companies he had served alongside with on those very occasions, and the great majority of them being relatives or long-time family friends.

“Forgive me, Your Majesty, but I believe my troops can stop him,” was all that he could really say, but was not that far from the truth.

“I won’t take any chances, General,” came the stern reply. “A single grain of rice can tip the scale. One man can be the difference between victory and defeat.”

“You may be more right than you realize, Your Majesty,” said a voice to the right. Everyone turned to see two men, tall and lean, wearing black clothing of unknown origins. One was fairly skinned with short dark hair and thick glasses on his face. The other had a hold pulled low over his face with only the lower half left out that showed scaly, golden skin.

Both Li and his men drew their swords and stepped forward to stand between their Emperor and the strangers.

“Who are you and how did you get in here?” demanded Chi-Fun, voicing everyone’s thoughts.

“Forgive us for intruding without an invitation,” said the pale-faced man, bowing low. “My name is Rumpelstiltskin and the man beside me is my Guardian. We both come before you to aid in your war against the Huns. You see we believe that enemies to the lands east of here, who hold great power, have called upon the Huns to aid in their conquest. No doubt, conquering all of China would be a reward for them in return for their services. If the Huns are defeated here, then that will strike a blow to our enemies.”

“Is that really all you wish in return?” demanded Chi-Fu, who peered at them over his records of the day.

To the surprise of everyone in the room, he bowed low before the Emperor before replying, “I do not seek lands nor titles nor gold nor concubines. However, there is something that we both share in our respective cultures, and that is the value of Honor. To fight in defense of Your Excellency and all of China, to fight and, possibly, die doing what is right would be the greatest honor to ever be granted upon me, if that is your wish upon us.”

The Emperor touched Li’s arm, and he reluctantly lowered his sword along with his guards.

“If I grant you this request, what do I expect in return?”

“Your Highness, I have some knowledge on military tactics, for I was a son of a military officer where I came from. My Guardian also has great power at his command, which will be used to fight against any envoys that have power as well who may have been sent by the enemies of my kingdoms.”

“Are you so certain that such an envoy had been sent?”

Li could hear the smile in the man’s reply. “When you give someone a task of utmost importance, but they lack some of the means to do it effectively, do you not provide them with those means?”

An almost amusing smile seemed to stretch the hairs on the Emperor’s face. “Indeed. Very well, I will grant you this request. You will serve General Li, and assist him. “

Rumpelstiltskin straightened up. “Thank you, Your Excellency.”

“Your Excellency, this is highly irregular!” protested Chi-Fu. “Putting our trust into two men we know nothing about with one holding a great deal of power?”

“You’re right, Chi-Fu,” he replied as mounted the steps to his throne. “Which is why you will report to the Wu-Shung camp once you have finished sending out your conscription notices to all of the villages and oversee the training of the new recruits.”

For a moment, the advisor looked like he was about to protest more before submitting and walking off the dais to prepare the conscriptions. Li and his men sheathed their swords, bowed to the Emperor, before nodding to Rumpelstiltskin and his Guardian to join with them in leaving the room. Both of the intruders had at the very least agitated Chi-Fu, which was a plus in Li’s mind but neither looked to be warriors and he certainly did not recognize their outlandish attire. He wondered if everyone in those lands where he had come from wore the same? Perhaps it will be question asked when this crisis had been dealt with.

When they had crossed through several hallways, he turned to his new “allies.”

“What are your names again?”

“My name is Rumpelstiltskin,” came the reply from the man. “And my Guardian has no name for he never needed one.”

“Rumpelshtiltskin,” tried Li. “Does everyone in your country have such long and complicated names?”

The man only smiled at the jest but made no reply.

“I do have plenty of men who fulfill the roles of military advisors as well as in-depth knowledge of tactics. What makes you think that you can do better?”

“I don’t presume to do better, sir. That will be up to you to decide. I’m only here to aid what and when I can. Even if you refuse my help and send me away, I will do whatever I can to make sure that my country isn’t threatened by the Huns.”

Li was surprised at the reply. This was a man dedicated to a cause, and one who is dedicated can be incredibly loyal. Or become a powerful enemy. He did not like the thought of having a rogue man with a protector of unknown skill running around.

He decided to turn to Rumpelstiltskin’s guardian. “And what are your thoughts?”

However, the dark figure was silent.

“He does not speak unless I tell him to,” said Rumpelstiltskin.

This was not unheard of to Li as there had been tales of honor guards to the Emperor and even legends of family guardians being only loyal and obedient to those that they are assigned to. This only further the unease that had been growing inside of him ever since the Emperor had accepted his help. A mysterious man with no loyalty to anyone but his own was a dangerous man especially when a gifted defender of equally mysterious origin accompanied him. No doubt that the powers that the Guardian wielded had allowed them to enter the palace undetected.

Li’s gaze drifted back to Rumpelstiltskin who still stood at ease. “I do not know if an envoy had been sent by the enemies of your lands, but if there was one and one who wielded power as great as your guardian, you had better hope that he can defeat them. Until we know for sure, he will remain out of sight. I do not want to alarm my men by putting my faith into someone I do not know. If you are indeed here to aid us in this war, then I suggest that you be trained in combat and test on military tactics you know.”

“Sir. Yes, sir,” came the reply.

“You are also going to need a weapon.”

Rumpelstiltskin nodded to the Guardian, who raised a hand almost lazily. A bladed weapon appeared on the side of the man’s waist, as well as a strange pommeled sword for the Guardian. Rumpelstiltskin drew the blade and presented it to the general, who took it to examine it closely. The handle was narrow and made of polished wood with cord bound around it. The blade was worn and lengthened into a curve. It looked more like a farmer’s tool than a weapon of war.

“If you are going to fight, you’ll need a proper weapon of war,” he said, handing it back to the young man, who sheathed it.

To the surprise of both Li and Rumpelstiltskin, the Guardian undid the binding of his sword’s sheath and handed the weapon to his master.

“Are you sure about this?” he asked, but the figure nodded in reply, gesturing for him to take the weapon. He did so, gingerly taking in the weight into his hands. Holding the handle and with a flourish of his wrist, he had drawn out the sword from the sheath. The blade was just as exquisite as the pommel with gold decorating halfway down it, and not a piece of it worn or blunted through use. Li did not even need to hold the sword to know that it was incredibly light as he observed how Rumpelstiltskin handled it.

“Would this be more suitable?” he asked the general.

“Indeed,” he replied. “I’m sure that you will learn to properly wield it when you are training.”

“Yes, sir, I will,” said Rumpelstiltskin as he sheathed the blade and attached it to his belt.

They left the palace and mounted horses in the stables. Both Li and his guards watched in fascination as the Guardian calmed his mount as it had cowered away from him. A pale light seemed to appear in his palm but he did not speak a word of comfort to the animal. Once they had all bestridden their horses, they galloped out of the capital city toward the location of the camp.
_________________________________________________________________________________________________

Maleficent gazed out of the narrow window at the landscape that surrounded the castle. Unlike the Forbidden Mountains with its lack of distinguishable vegetation, narrow and craggy peaks, and thin paths, the kingdom that Queen Grimhilde, or the Evil Queen, was densely forested with all manner of trees that was only split by flowering glades and sweeping rivers. It was a very beautiful country that reminded her of a distant memory.

She shook her head. She had made sure that part of her was destroyed with the lengths that she had gone in her search for power. She had become Maleficent, the Mistress of All Evil, and there was no going back from that.

The double doors behind her opened, and she stepped away from the window to see Captain Hook, Queen Grimhilde, Jafar, Scar and his hyenas, Shere Khan, and Lady Tremaine with her daughter enter the room. After the obvious threat that she had made to the woman and her family in their last meeting, Tremaine had decided to keep Drizella with her at all times despite the fact that the girl now had some magical abilities thanks to the Gift that had been given to her and her sister. She had become a quick learner and very eager to please her mother, who had been teaching her. Meanwhile, Anastasia had been the one who had been sent to carry their message to the Huns and their leader, Shan Yu. She had arrived safely, and the…barbarian had promised to take care of her. However, Tremaine forced him through their magical connection to swear that she wouldn’t be taken advantage of by him or his men. The girl had also become rather quick in learning simple spells, but due to the need to send a message to the Huns and gain their aid as quick as possible, that had been all that she could learn. Maleficent herself did not hide the fact that she enjoyed the tearful cries of protest at the girl’s separation from her mother and sister.

Now they all sat around a table with Maleficent at one end and the Evil Queen at the other with everyone else taking seats in between, at least those who had the physiology to do so. Shere Khan, Scar, and the hyenas took positions, with the big cats as far away from each other as possible.

“Well, well,” she began with a slight hint of amusement. “I do believe that we have once again brought another victory to the forces of Darkness. We have proven once again that love truly conquers all.”

Snickers were heard by Jafar, Hook, and the Evil Queen while Tremaine remained silent as well as the animals.

“I don’t believe that praises won’t be all that necessary-“

“On the contrary,” interrupted Scar beside her. “I think that I personally should give credit to Shere Khan.” From across the table, the tiger frowned in confusion. “His hunting prowess was quite remarkable in capturing three of the little men-“

“More like little men-nuggets,” quipped Benzi, which made the other hyenas chortle under their breath.

“But it does not even come close to the King of Beasts,” finished Scar, flashing a toothy smile. The look of confusion on Khan’s face had shifted to glare as a rumble was heard from within his throat.

“Enough!” said Maleficent, slamming her staff to the ground and silencing the room. “Deal with your rivalries on your own time but don’t waste the rest of us as we are trying to take control of this world.”

“Speaking of, that brings us to something that I would like us to look to,” spoke Jafar. “Ever since the Horned King had left to his kingdom, I’ve kept a close on Prydain to see what he had been up to. At first, all seemed quiet until I noticed that villages have gone empty, farmland looked to be unplowed, and large amounts of animals were seen fleeing. It was only after we had left Camelot that I saw what had left Pryain a barren land: an army of the dead.”

Everyone made noises of shock and disbelief.

“Are you certain?” asked Tremaine.

However, Grimhilde was more dismissive. “It must be a trick! No magic can resurrect the dead. It’s against the very laws of magic!”

“Not entirely,” interrupted Maleficent. “There is some magic that can be used to kill. But why don’t you see for yourself if he is telling the truth?”

She indicated with her staff toward a room off to the side. The Evil Queen looked like she had taken a bit of a poisoned apple and she stood as if she was going to move to the room before turning to Jafar.

“What did you see this army of the dead doing in Camelot?”

“They were taking advantage of the mess that we left there,” came the oily reply. “They made quick work of those who used to live in the castles that Lythos had destroyed. And here’s the most interesting detail I noticed: those who had fallen under their blades, whether be it man, woman, or child, quickly lost all of the flesh leaving their bones, only to rise and take any of the weapons that they may have wielded.”

The hyenas made muffled heaving sounds, Scar’s and Shere Khan’s fur rose, Hook’s mouth dropped, and the color seemed to leave from Tremaine’s, Grimhilde’s, and even Maleficent’s faces. Only Jafar seemed to express delight at his telling as he continued.

“I have never seen magic like that before. It’s simply fascinating! If we were to use his army we could destroy all resistance, and better yet, bring the fallen to our side! Their very presence in a kingdom, no, their very existence would be enough to strike fear into the hearts of any dissidents against our rule!”

“Are you sure that using such a force would be rise?” asked the Evil Queen. “We do not know anything about the magic that could raise this army, nor even the cost.”

“Besides, we already have an army that is coming to our side,” pointed Captain Hook.  

“Why can’t we have both?” asked Jafar.

Maleficent stood up from her seat, and everyone fell silent as they turned to her.

“We had promised the Huns that they made take over China if they come to aid us. I don’t think that we should break that promise. But we also have a new army that has risen up much closer to us, and is far more powerful. I think that Jafar and I will go and speak with the Horned King about his army. Is there anything else we need to discuss?"

"Yes, I have one," answered Grimhilde. "There has been an increase of individuals and even rulers who have asked to join our cause. They want their own happy endings or something similar."

"How many?"

"I'm not sure but I have received messengers and letters from a King John, a giant, and even hunter."

"We're already have plenty of those here," commented Shere Khan as he licked himself. Scar, Shenzi, Benzi, and Ed nodded and murmured in agreement.

"Indeed," agreed Maleficent. "The giant may be useful but we'll hold off on bringing anymore people in for now."
Samuel and Rumpelstiltskin have an audience with the Emperor of China, and pledge their aid in the coming war against the Huns. Meanwhile, the Villains of the Overtaking continue to conquer with their newfound power. 

I was originally going to title this "Ripples" but found that "Rumblings of War" is much better given what is going on. Although you could argue that the war is already starting with the Disney Villains winning. 

Again, this chapter is a combination of a few that I had outlined but decided to mesh together. I really wanted to put a focus on the thoughts on General Li as he was a pretty minor character in Mulan but effected other characters at his passing. I wanted to provide more background to him, and maybe some people watching Mulan again will be more emotionally effected at his passing after reading this. 

Of course, the introduction of the Cauldron Born is a big deal as they are a HUGE game changer. So, I wanted to make it so that they're very presence not only is a topic that is discussed by the Heroes but also by the Villains as it effects both to different degrees. 

Rumpelstiltskin is inspired from the character of the same name from OUAT. 
All Disney characters belong to Disney. 
I don't own anything except for Samuel. 

Questions and comments are welcome! 

Coming up: After training in the ways of war at the camp, Samuel and Rumpelstiltskin march with the army to fight against the Huns, and realize who the envoy is that the Villains had sent. Jafar and Maleficent meet with the Horned King to discuss the use of the Cauldron Born. 
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sirbelch's avatar

I typed in Prince John & this appeared, not one thing about Robin Hood appeared.