Chapter 11:
The ship passed over a few more areas that showed signs of conflict but none with the death toll incurred at the river battle. They passed a column of soldiers on horseback that fired on them, but they floated safely out of the archaic weapon’s range. The farther they traveled, the fewer people they encountered. The less death they witnessed below the craft.
“Those are forces of the Qing Dynasty,” Captain Cox announced as they flew overhead the soldiers on horseback. “It seems the Empress is giving mixed signals, at one moment she backs the rebel’s efforts to clean out the foreigners, at the next she steps closer to the invaders. The land is in chaos. We should not expect help from any Chinese forces, nor civilians, now that we have left the city. Our mission will mean nothin
