Three Kingdoms Side Story: The Legend of Big Goose

Autumn, the third year of Jian'an. Lu Da'e woke up shivering with cold. It wasn't the dry chill of late autumn in the north. This was a damp cold tinged with the stink of water, like a frozen snake slithering down his collar. The reek of rotting grass and silt came with it, choking him into a violent cough and filling his mouth with the earthy taste of mud. “Damn...” He tried to swear, but his throat felt scraped raw by sandpaper. All he managed was a hoarse rasp. It took a full half an hour for his vision to clear. A gray sky hung overhead, its leaden clouds pressing low. The faint sounds of battle carried from the distance. They weren't sound effects from a TV show, but the real clang of weapons colliding, mixed with the dying screams of men. The noise pierced his eardrums.