The Blood That Flows In Vain

[Ryu // Kazu]

Ryumo rubbed his eyes as he sat in a dirt clearing not far from a base fortress. He squinted at the scrolls, brush, ink, and black pack that sat before him. "You're almost done," he said aloud. "Just list the forms and pivots and you'll be done." The troops had been begging for some new martial art forms since they had been taught the same ones for the longest. Personally, Ryumo liked the regular forms. They were efficient and never seemed to run out of possibilities. He seemed to favor Fuzai Kuromake, a martial arts style that consisted of utilizing all of your speed into each separated attack. If the attacks are timed carefully, each attack should have enough power to wear down the enemy, giving the user of the form a clean advantage. It required a lot of training to gain balance in the form, but the results were amazing. Still, the lazy sons of bitches wanted some new forms. "Hatonaki it is, then." Ryumo's right wrist popped as he dipped the caligraphy brush into the ink holder and then brought it back down to the scroll to finish the last few characters. Ryumo grinned a little bit as he looked at the finished scrolls and then at the sky. He sighed and blinked a few times. "Done. And I swear to god, if they ask for another Hatonaki form one more time, we're doing wilderness training for three months. I'm showing no mercy..." Ryumo bent down and blew air on the scroll for about 20 seconds in an attempt to make it dry faster. While the scroll dried, he began putting his supplies into his pack.

He counted each scroll, making sure that the number he had counted before matched the current one. Afterwards, he drained the caligraphy brush on a spare rag and then placed it with the scrolls. All that was left was the ink. He never used the same ink supply twice. He didn't know why, but it was a habit he gradually obtained. Ryumo looked to the sky as he thought of his deceased Kazuro. "I know, it doesn't make sense to me either my friend. Don't you judge me." He laughed audibly and then placed the metal closing over the ink supply case. Ryumo would probably just give it to another student the next time he taught with the assistant. Ryumo looked back at the scroll before him and lightly touched the writing surface with two fingers from his right hand. Dry. Ryumo grinned briefly before carefully rolling the scroll up with the two jade pegs on both sides. The jade gleamed in the sun above and the sun's light frantically ran the surface of the facing treasures.

He tied up the pack and put it on as he stood up in place. He popped his right wrist again and squinted his eyes as he stretched his back. "Oh! No more groaning and complaining from these students anymore! Do you know what I deal with on a daily basis Kazuro? These hot-headed trainees who automatically think they are qualified to talk to me as if they were on my level." Ryumo laughed. "Guess how many I've punched in the face." Ryumo stood in the clearing for a moment, gazing at the sun before him. "I never thought I'd get this far, you know, Kazuro? I was some kid on the streets ready to die. Now " He chuckled as he kicked a nearby rock. "We made it, didn't we?" Ryumo looked down at the rock he had just kicked and fell silent. He pondered the words he had just spoken and then nodded with a slight smile. "Time to head back," he muttered. And with that, Ryumo walked towards the fortress on the horizon, hoping he would make it back before the students began sparring. He was an adult, alright. These students had made up their mind to defend what they believe in. Truthfully....they don't know what the fuck they want.

[jiadaiyu]

Jia Daiyu was wandering, as if that was any different from what she had been doing for years. Somehow, she made it to, what was now called The Burning Legion. She wasn't sure how she got there, but she's never been great with directions. All she knew was that it was hot. Very, very hot. There was too much sun, there was too much dirt, and too much open space. When she was back in the Earth Kingdom, there were towns and villages everywhere. This place seemed too...isolated.

She looked to her pack, to find her water container. The heat had made her parched, especially with all the walking she had been doing today. She rummaged inside of the backpack that she had always carried around with her. That was when she realized that she had...nothing. There was barely any food left--just a few apples remained. She frantically pulled out her water container, pulled the lid off and attempted to drink the water, only to find there were only a few drops. After straining to get those few drops in her mouth, she took the time to worry about what she was going to do, especially since she had no money.

When she was low on supplies, she would always just take from merchants or the people that she crossed paths with. In the Earth Kingdom, even the most isolated roads had people walking down it, despite the war that has been raging. Ever since she landed in this awful location, she has seem absolutely no one. She hasn't passed a stream, which didn't help. She was completely and utterly out of her element.

She looked to the sky, to see if there were any clouds she could bend the water from. Unfortunately, there wasn't. Just sun, sun, and more sun. She raised her arm over her eyes, to shield herself from the heat, but it didn't help much. She would constantly stop under trees, to escape the blazing sun, but the shade seemed just as hot. This wasn't the time to get dehydrated. She knew not to panic, and that she would find water sooner or later. She hoped for sooner.

She continued her dreadful walk, searching for the seemingly nonexistent water. She saw a movement, far in the distance. She found a large rock, and hid behind it, expecting a large animal of some sort. She squinted her eyes, and found that it was a person. It was too far away to see if it were a man or a woman, but it was a person. It had seemed ages since she had found someone so perfect to steal from. She could almost taste the salvation of water in her mouth. The thought overcame her mind, and she knew what she had to do. She could see that the person had a pack with them, and she figured this to be their belongings.

She was always good at stealing. She didn't mind a little bloody fight between that, but the confrontation would only wear her out at this point, especially with the dehydration she was already experiencing. She decided to sit and wait for this person to let their guard down. She looked beyond and found the perfect stake-out spot. She inched her way to this perfect spot, behind two giant rocks that were side by side. At the parting in the middle of the rocks, she could see this person perfectly.

For the first time, she realized it was man. A rather built man, at that. The thought made her nervous, but excited at the same time. He'd obviously have the advantage, since she had no water anywhere near her. She took her backpack off and rummaged through, trying to locate her two daggers, just in case there WAS a confrontation between them. She looked back through the parting, and she saw that he had a couple of daggers himself, just laying upon the ground. He was probably just a wanderer, just as she, which would only make it more fun if she could kill him.

Something she did notice while watching the man was that he was constantly looking up to the sky, and she could see his mouth moving. What was he doing? Talking to himself? That fucking lunatic. She waited about an hour before the man stood up. She stood up immediately, waiting for the chance to either charge him, or sneak up on him. She watched him walking in the other direction, and she knew this was her only chance.

Jia lept out from behind the rocks. She slowly crept up on this man, his built-bodied features becoming more noticeable with every step closer. She had one of her daggers in her hand, and the other in a little carrying case against her leg. It was too late to turn back now; besides, she had to do whatever it took to keep herself alive.

[The Jackal || Ji Taro]

The Jackal forced wind through his teeth has he made the trek uphill to where he was told he cold find Ryumo of the Burning Legion. He was one of the higher ups with in the group and apparently was one of the few Legionaries there when they took down the old Fire Lord. You didn't send underlings to negotiate contracts with people like that. It took charisma to deal with these kinds of people, and The Jackal took solace in the fact that if a deal he was heading went wrong then he had no one to blame put himself and was able to be sure that everything that could be done, was done. The tsk tsk sound he was making was to drive the ostrich-horse attached to his cart up the hill; he wasn't riding the smelly beast, it had to work hard enough to it's current burden. In the cart was something called and "abus gun" and two "volley cannons". Both weapons had considerable range advantage over the average Burning Legionnaire and could smash through stone walls with ease (something he'd hoped they'd find valuable against their earth bending enemies).

The trek was coming to and end and he was approached a clearing with ashen soil and surrounded by petrified trees. He heard singing...no talking, as if from a conversation but it was just one voice. He spied the man whose face was on one of the propaganda posters back at the base where he had asked for directions. But the Jackal had encountered plenty of crazy people in his life and this didn't really bother him (in fact, such a thing was only borderline weird compared to some of the Jackal's own habits), what bothered him was the suspicious movement of the foliage (or...whatever the hell he was supposed to call dead branches) behind Ryumo. "Now either some of his enemies have sent some unholy arboreal assassin to take him out, or there's a person lurking about those trees..." The Jackal whispered to himself as he raised his crossbow and peered through the scope of it to get a better look. "Mmm, not too bad looking, hot and sweaty...not sure if that's a good thing or a bad thing..." The Jackal mused as the girl crept out from behind a boulder. The Jackal's pulse quickened as he took note of the fact that she had at least one blade in her hands It really was an assassin!? he thought to himself as he loaded up his bow and aimed it towards the pair in the distance. He aimed near the girl and pulled the trigger "Perhaps saving his life might make him more eager to buy..." a smile moved across The Jackal's face.

[Varoen]

Taking a small drink of water from his pouch that was normally used for bending purposes Varoen stopped for a second, wiping his brow and wondering why Ryumo had chosen such a hot place in which to take up his residence. He realized, after a moments thought, that his long black overcoat with black attire underneath did not particularly contribute in any way to lowering his body temperature. Rather than complaining about it a second longer he continued on, having first stopped at a nearby base closer to the more habitable regions of the adequately named, Sun Parched Plains only to find that the General was not there.

Finding the place where Ryumo was at did not take long, though he had to struggle for several minutes with a younger and newer soldier, having to explain to his annoyingly protective mind that he was the admiral of the navy and was seeking the man to see about taking Firebenders with him to The Bulwark. After what felt to be half an hour Varoen rolled his eyes and left, making the trek further inland. He wondered for a brief moment if he had a thing for complaining to himself about every little thing, but then shrugged it off. He might have a pessimistic attitude, but at least it didn’t drag other people down… Or did it? If it did it was their problem.

Coming over a small rise he spotted the man he was looking for, standing in the sun, and talking to… himself? Var looked around trying to catch a glimpse of another person in the area, and seeing none. He did however notice a strange rustling in what passed for bushes in this place and a hand dropped to where his throwing daggers sheathes were in his pant legs. Movement off to his side caught his eye as well and he couldn’t help but wonder if he had arrived at the opportune time of an ambush. He unclipped the top of the throwing dagger sheathe and gripped the weapon as he walked closer to Ryu, waving to him with the opposite hand “Ryumo! How can you stand this heat?!”

Stepping closer to him, Var wondered for a moment if Ryu was going to see him with his dagger and attack him rather than let him make the man aware. Positioning himself between Ryumo and the rustling he saw he leaned closer and whispered “My friend, look over my shoulder. There is something there, as well as in the trees. I think you are about to be ambushed.” He then took a step back and laughed loudly bringing his arms up to cross them at his chest, hiding the dagger he held, but making it clear to Ryu that he held it. He decided he might as well continue as though he hadn’t noticed them, and fake the conversation he had come here to hold. “So Ryumo, I have come to ask you about taking some Firebenders with me to The Bulwark. They would be a great asset.[/b]” Varoen wondered briefly why he had called Ryu, his friend. Perhaps a bond of camaraderie or something, he didn’t think they had ever been that close. The man had taken an instant dislike for him upon their meeting after all. [/size]

[Ryu // Kazu]

Ryumo stopped pondering his future as he stayed silent and let the wind pass through his hair. The current breeze calmed his nerves a bit and his disposition turned to that of an expressionless state. He inhaled deeply and then let the breath loose with a slow exhale. Ryumo hummed a bit as he walked, but then stopped as his left ear picked up a foreign sound. A stray footstep? No...stray footsteps. Ryumo reached behind him with his right hand and removed a dagger from the top sheathe. The blade sang slightly as it was removed from it's hibernation and then settled in his hand. He continued walking and held the blade to his right side, the hilt facing downward and running along his right forearm. Ryumo adjusted it a bit so that the sun gained a bit of light on it and he could actually see what was behind him. A bit of quick thinking led to his success, as he saw a familiar figure approaching him. Varoen. A trusted fellow member whom Ryumo didn't like at all when he first met him. Maybe it was just his aura. I don't know. I'm over that now, it's been four damn years. Although Ryumo could see Varoen approaching him, he still believed that the footsteps he had heard before were not that of Varoen's. They were ...unfamiliar.

Ryumo turned around and gave a brief smile to his comrade, keeping his eyes on Varoen's eyes for any signs of detection. Apparently, Varoen could tell there was something wrong too. His deadly blade was also out, yet seemingly hidden to the surroundings. Varoen's arms were crossed, so only someone in his line of sight could see. Ryumo flicked his right wrist up, letting the blade lie flat against his forearm as he returned Varoen's greeting.

"It's not so hot out here Varoen! What, you act like you've never been in the heat before. The past couple of years must be going to your head! Or maybe it's your little acquaintance..?" He gave a brief laugh and then flicked his eyes from Varoen's eyes to his own blade. He gazed briefly behind Varoen and let out a slight gasp as he saw a woman with her own blade. Ryumo locked eyes with her briefly, but did not pursue immediately. She was actually an attractive woman, but Ryumo focused on the blade and the posture in which she approached. She knew exactly what she was doing. The way she held her blade gave away her intentions. She didn't plan on making a mistake. Ryumo cocked his head to one side as he looked straight at her. He didn't mean to ignore Varoen's request, but there was a slightly bigger event happening. "Just a second, Varoen...follow me please."

Ryumo sheathed his dagger and began to walk towards the woman. No, he didn't sheathe his dagger out of underestimation, but he wanted to see how this would play out. He had his firebending readily available if needed, so he would just confront her. No use delaying the inevitable. Ryumo stopped about 3 yards away from her and just stood there. He took on a cold yet collected and patient disposition as he eyed the woman. She wasn't there for just any reason, she had a goal. And Ryumo intended to find out this goal. Ryumo began to speak to Var, though never taking his eyes from the female before him.

"This...is unexpected. I need assurance that if there is indeed a violent confrontation in the near future, you will fight alongside me. If this woman needs to be disposed of, do everything in your power to do so unless she surrenders. I do not plan on letting a disturbance come to the Plains after a period of peace. Please let me know if there is a problem. Of course, this will require you to stay alert in case there is actually a second disturbance. This I am not sure of, but there is always that chance. Have I made my initiative statements clear?"

There was no malice behind Ryumo's words, yet there was a sense of authoritative aggression. Ryumo pivoted his feet and clasped his hands together in front of him, like he would in his barracks. He let out a long sigh as he kept his gaze upon the woman and awaited Varoen's response. Ryumo hadn't killed in a while, but he vigorously trained his body to be ready for immediate response. Well...now was the right time, eh?

[jiadaiyu]

Jia Daiyu watched anxiously from her stake-out spot, watching a new man walk up beside the one she was targeting. The only thing on her mind was that this was either going to get harder, or easier. Obviously it was going to be impossible to pickpocket the man, for the other man would undoubtedly see her. She shrugged and stood out of the brush that she was hiding behind.

She was no longer afraid of being seen, seeing as how it was soon to happen anyways. But the first thing that she sensed was not the other men seeing her, but an approaching object. She heard the sharp whizzing sound that she has heard many times, from many different wanderers. It was quite amazing how many wanderers had even carried a crossbow.

She had encountered this weapon many times, so she knew what she would do. Although, she did not have any water to counter the attack, but it would have to do. There's no way an arrow could change it's path, so she merely stepped a few feet to the side, hearing the quick sound of the arrow digging into the ground.

She knew someone was watching her from above, or else the arrow would have come in straight, rather than an angle. She didn't worry too much. The person was a great shot, but she could hear those things from a mile away, which was one of the few talents that has kept her alive today.

Once the arrow hit the ground, she looked towards the other man she had been targeting, and found him staring at her. It's about time he had noticed she was there. He had his dagger out, but as he walked toward her, he noticed that he had put her away. "What the fuck? Does he think I'm weak or something?" she thought. She found this quite offensive, and although he had put away his dagger, didn't mean she had to put hers away. She kept her position, not moving an inch. She watched as the man walked toward her.

Something about him she had hated already. It could have been his annoying hair-style, or it could have just been the fact that he was a man. Yeah, that was definitely it. He had that smug look upon his face, almost as if he was underestimating her abilities. She couldn't use her waterbending, but she was trained enough to use her daggers. How DARE he undermine her. Damn him.

The man beside him, the weird looking one, he had his dagger out, at least expecting an attack from her. "Thank you ugly man for respecting me." she thought to herself. He looked rather smug, just as his counterpart, but she would soon change that.

Jia's mind was always focused, except about 90% of her battles. Her curiosity always overcame her mind. This time, she was pondering if blood boiled in heat, and what it looked like. Did it look like boiling water, with those large bubbles popping off the surface? And did it change colors? I mean, the darkest color after crimson would be...black?

She shook her head, refocusing herself. She looked straight into the eyes of her main opponent, and spoke to him. It was rather strange for her to speak to her rivals before she went up against them, but she was desperate. Just this once.

"I see that pack you have on your back, and I'm assuming that there could be some rationings of food in there, so I'll be taking it. Oh, and if you have some water, that would great too, kay?"

God, how she hated men. This man in particular, looking at her with such...ugh! She disgusted him. The weird looking one too! She didn't want to fight anymore, she just wanted to get the hell away from them and their bulky feminine bodies. Is that even possible? Apparently. Them and their weird looking clothes, and their weird looking insignias. Fuck. She needed water.

"I'm waiting."

[The Jackal || Ji Taro]

The Jackal drew his eye away from the scope of his crossbow as the girl stepped out of its path. Sloppy shot he muttered as he adjusted the tension in the bow and filled the cartridge to it's max of six shots. The magazine-design allowed The Jackal to shoot bolts in rapid succession without reloading, and was designed more for speed and power than accuracy, though he was still a good a shot with the weapon as most experienced archer's were with the hunting tool they passed as a weapon. The Jackal hummed a few notes from a song he couldn't remember and then continued it whistling as he got focused on his target and waited for her to stop walking. He enjoyed a tussle, but seeing someone bleed out from a neck wound that was supposed to be a clean head shot wasn't pleasant, and he didn't consider very sporting to drag out other peoples' pain. This time he was calling in a little insurance; incendiary rounds. They were heavier, harder to aim, a bit slower and were only slightly easier to avoid than the regular bolts, but the fact that they exploded roughly ten seconds after the tips made contact balanced out their usefulness. "Gonna light up her ass like new years." The Jackal punctuated with a maniacal cackle, and put his index and middle fingers lightly over the trigger of his deadly device. The cloven air made a nasty whirring sound as the projectiles traveled along an arched path; first going up towards the clouds, and then they would come down towards the enemy.

The Jackal watched the journey of the bolts and couldn't help but to admire some of the finer points of the devices. A fuse in the tips was ignited on impact, the small flame made a journey to the black powder located in the shaft of the bolt, which upon ignition would combust, and send razor sharp pieces of shrapnel in all directions. It was a common misconception that the heat or concussive force of the explosion killed you. The force may hit you hard from a few feet away, but unless you were hit by the bolt it would do little to harm you, and the heat was even less likely to hurt anyone than the force was. "Well, used all those up," The Jackal said to the ostrich horse pulling his cart as he realized he had only normal bolts left to fire. The beast made a strange noise that was some ungodly combination of a neigh and a squawk and The Jackal tried to calm it the best way he knew how "Shut up fuckface!" he spat, scarring the helpless creature even more into a frenzy. He then refocused his attention the events happening in front and slightly below him. It had only been seconds since he fired the shots, and the none of them looked as if they were going to hit the girl, in fact, they looked just as likely to hit Ryumo and the new appearance as they did their intended victim, even more likely to land in the ground somewhere in between.

[Varoen]

Despite the weapons they held while knowing a danger was present Var couldn’t help but chuckle a little bit at Ryumos comment about the last couple years “Perhaps you forget Ryu, I have been in a cozy island chain far from a blistering sun, and instead under a warm gentle sun…” His words trailed off at the mention of an acquaintance. He was about to question his words when he suddenly thought of Alena. Rumors had run through the squad about them from a secret relationship to her being pregnant, especially after everyone found out about the impulsive kiss that had gotten Varoen thrown into the pit. Aiden especially had a hay day with these rumors… He could think of more than one occasion where the Airbender had received a fat lip for his teasing. For some reason it got old at the point of four times a day.

Var gave Ryu a scowl as he walked past him to stare down at the girl, who rose as he spoke to him. He didn’t know what his feelings on the subject of Alena were… if there were any, and he hated people insinuating otherwise. Back to the subject at hand however, Varoen nodded to the mans terms. “Of course Ryu… I’ll do whatever it takes to keep the peace that we have here. You should know that.” ‘Even if that means fucking up some pretty little bandit in the name of it.’ He kept less of an eye on the woman and paid more attention to the trees where he had seen movement. Var could see the girl out of his eye, staring Ryu down, and the stone cold Firebender doing the same right back.

The dead branches rustled as a bolt came flying from it at the girl. “There!” He nodded to the trees where it had come from, That ones mine!” Var made a wide arch around where the bolt had come from, though with the shooters vantage point he more than likely saw him coming, but he liked to think he was going to get the better of him. Hearing the girl make some arrogant demands Var couldn’t help but roll his eyes in amusement. She wasn’t going to last long against Ryu with that attitude.

Var wondered why the man would be attacking the girl if both of them were here at the same time, while one was attempting an assassination. Maybe Ryu had a soldier guarding him? He would have said something if he had… It was all just a mystery that would have to be solved later, preferably when the shooter had a knife to his throat. Honesty came quickly that way. Var hit the trees and came into them, sneaking his way through and avoided stepping on anything that would give him away. He crept slowly and methodically, until he heard a faint sound of a bow string releasing several times, indicating multiple bolts being fired. Seeing the ostrich horse before the man Var hid behind a tree and crouching low, snuck around to the back of the wagon as the man turned on the animal. “Shut up fuckface!” Taking advantage of the animals squawking Var quickly drew his war dagger, the sound muffled by the birds panicking.

Watching the mans legs from under the cart, he saw them turn and head back to his vantage point. If he hadn’t noticed Varoens absence by now he must have been a halfwit. Rising quickly he took strides as fast as he could while being as quiet as he could manage and held the war dagger level with the mans lower back while touching the tip of the throwing dagger to his neck. “What are you doing here?” Var demanded.

[Ryu // Kazu]

"I'm waiting."

Ryumo blinked as the woman before immediately made demands when he faced her. He blinked a few more times before her words finally registered in his brain. He looked at the woman one more time to see if she was actually serious about her demands. Her face told him that she was. Ryumo's eyebrows widened as he held in a chuckle and continued to look at her. Ryumo certainly didn't mind sharing his food and water with her, but....demanding it from him? She must have been used to demands and getting what she wants..like a thief or bandit. Was that what she was? Maybe he would find out, if time permitted. Ryumo flicked the long lick of hair in front of his face away and then sighed.

"Ma'am, I don't mean to sound like an asshole, which I may indeed sound like, but you will not be TAKING any items unless I give them to you. On the other hand, I would be glad to share my rations with you...without violence. I prefer to keep these Plains clean of blood. Now...I'm going to take the food and water that I have in my pack and gladly give it to you. But..you must agree to not let this situation lead into violence. I prefer to give than take away...but if you do not oblige to these peaceful terms...I will be forced to react with aggression."

He looked at her for a moment and then sighed with weary eyes. She seems....misplaced. As if she doesn't know where she belongs...I don't see many like her. Ryumo knew that this woman could be a threat if she chose to be one. He kept his eyes on her as he removed his pack and then looked through the large front pocket instead of the main storage space. After a brief minute, Ryumo removed a cloth that held a bit of moose-yak meat, even a steak that he had prepared. He didn't really want to give it up, but for the sake of the Plains, he would.

Ryumo patted the cloth and then removed the water flask clipped to the underside of the pack. He swished it around to see how much water was actually in the flask. About a fourth. Eh, it'll have to do for now. Ryumo watched as Varoen went into trees resting nearby and hoped that the second disturbance was found out. He didn't have time for that now. Ryumo walked to the woman, cloth filled with meat and flask in both hands. Truly, Ryumo didn't have time for unexplained violence. He had students to tend to and family to keep. The Squad being his family, that is. Ryumo's view of the woman got clearer as his position became closer to hers. She was an attractive one who didn't seem much younger than she was. Yet, there was a sense of maturity acout her. I wonder why she's out here....in the Plains. No one but mercenaries and the Squad usually come to the Plains..hm...doesn't look like the assassin type. Still, you can never be too sure. Ryumo set the meat and flask gently on the ground in front of her and then removed his dagger quickly.

"I remove this weapon only out of concern for my life. I do not intend to fight or kill you." Ryumo's words left his mouth genuinely and then hung in the air. Again, he layed the blade of the dagger flat against his right forearm and nodded. "If you would like more food or water..there is a fortress nearby. My section offers necessities and other things." Ryumo eyed his blade with his hazel eyes and exhaled. "Is there a reason that you are-" Ryumo's words were interrupted by a sudden mass of whizzing sounds between the woman and himself. He blinked as he saw the silver bolt before him and then the many other bolts embedded in the earth near it. He widened his eyes as his conscience came into light. "Explosives.." Ryumo whispered in one breath. He looked at the woman briefly and spoke with quickness.

"We need to move into the clearing immediately. If there are any other attacks, we will be able to maneuver much faster. Do as you wish." Ryumo glanced at the bolts before flipping backwards and then running towards the clearing. Why is all of this chaos coming to the Plains out of...out of fucking no where!? Hopefully, both of these newer guests had some sense. The Plains were meant for peace. Ryumo had told the woman that he wished for peace, but...if needed...he would kill her and the other disturbance. "This just isn't my day," Ryumo said aloud in a morose tone.

[jiadaiyu]

She watched as the horrid-looking man ran off in the direction that the bolt had come from. She giggled from the thought of someone as scrawny as him catching this sniper. Although, it shouldn't have been too hard, the seeming-to-be sniper was, apparently, a horrible shot. He couldn't even hit her with that bolt!

She turned her head back to the other man and watched him intently. He didn't seem scared, but no man had ever taken her seriously, so she was used to this. She used her free hand to scratch the back of her head as she waited for his response. She expected to hear some cruel words retorted back at her.

When he had spoken to her, he spoke in a more rushed tone, so she guessed that he was in a hurry. He spoke words of...peace. This was so strange to her. Peace? Really? He said something about keeping the PLAINS clean? What is he? Some sort of eco-freak? Although, she had to admit that she liked him just a little bit better than when she was watching him. She refused to admit that this little scuffle was her fault in any way. In her mind, it wasn't. She relaxed her body completely. She didn't want to have to fight in the first place, so who was she to argue? She stretched out her limbs, seeing as how she had been in that fighting position for, what felt like forever.

"So...if we don't fight, I can have your food? Hell, if you had said that in the first place, then I think we could have skipped this whole situation. Gimme, gimme, gimme."

She watched him rummage through his pack, impatiently. The food that appeared was better than she expected. She expected some grain, maybe a little meat, but a whole steak? The sight of it made her mouth water. She never realized just how hungry she was until her eyes laid eyes on THAT. She then, once again, became aware of the dehydration set in her throat. She watched his backpack, wondering what other wonders would possibly be pulled from it.

She watched as the flask was slyly pulled out and her body froze. That's what she needed. And she needed it now. He shook the bottle, and she could hear the water within. It didn't seem as if he had much, but it would have to do until now. Maybe she could ration that as well? Doubt it. She was way too thirsty. She just wanted to chug the whole damn thing.

He placed the 'rations'(seeming more like a full meal to her) in front of her. She didn't blame him for pulling the knife out; she would do the same thing in truth. She bent down to collect her meal, excited to eat it. He then mentioned something about MORE food and water. She shook the flask in her hand, knowing there wasn't much, but she had to check anyways. This water would not get her through 20 minutes, not with how thirsty she was.

She looked at the strange man, and wanted to know why he was being so nice. Truthfully, she didn't care. She needed the water, and she needed it now. She hesitated before speaking, but then, it seemed like she didn't have to. Explosives surrounded her and she needed to get out of there. The man told her what to do, and although she really didn't like to take the commands of others, she didn't have much of a choice right now. It was either that or have her body split into thousands of pieces. Yeah, the decision was pretty simple. She dropped the water and steak and ran.

She followed him out to the clearing, keeping up with his pace. She knew they didn't have much time, and the dehydration was not exactly favoring her at the moment. Her throat burned from the exhaustion from her running, but when he had stopped, she had. She felt the explosion against her back, but it seemed almost distant. How far had she ran in only the few minutes they had?

She coughed from the smoke that she had inhaled. She looked back to the man, and straightened herself up, trying to show no weakness. The water she had, she had to leave at the spot of the explosion, so that she wouldn't be weighed down by it. Well, this sucked. She spoke to him with her natural, defensive voice. She didn't want him to hear the shaky desperation in her tone, especially with her throat feeling as if it were on fire at this point. "So...this fortress....think I can get some of that water and food?"

[The Jackal || Ji Taro]

The Jackal couldn't help bursting into laughter. It wasn't that he didn't take the threat seriously, he just had a few issues with this guy's critical thinking. "BWAHAHA! What the hell man? You took all that time to sneak up on me, just to announce yourself?" The Jackal brushed aside the inadequate blade and strolled towards his cart nonchalantly going about his business. "Why didn't you just stab me dumbass? If I hadn't been laughing so hard at you failed little covert op attempt I would've just shot you." He taped his crossbow suggestively and raised it to his eye to once again gain a view of the battle field below him. He could see Ryumo and the bandit girl conversing calmly with one another; things seemed to have reached a nonviolent resolution. "Crap, looks like all hugs and giggles down there..." The Jackal muttered. grabbing Fuckface's reigns The Jackal guided the creature to the slope of the hill and began to coax it down. "See, I was actually trying to help you guys out. I came her to broker a arms contract with the Burning Legion, but most of my guys got detained back at that base/fortress thingy yall have around here. I..."eluded" my captors and came looking to talk to was ever in charge of this place, got some merchandise in the back." Ashitaka punctuated this by flipping the canvas off of the wooden cart to reveal the poured steel cannon with in.

He wasn't even looking at Varoen, he knew if this guy was trying to hurt him he would've attacked already. He shifted his wait onto his hills and slid down the graveled hill with Fuckface in tow, yelling over his shoulder as he went. "I saw him getting attacked and says to myself, I says 'Jackal. Dead customers bad for business. You the only person missing from a group explicitly ordered not to go SEE aforementioned customer while he's killed....even worse.'" His slide concluded and Fuckface came to a halt soon after. He led the beast towards the two combatants who'd just narrowly avoided his antipersonnel explosives, and continued adressing Varoen. " You're Varoen Hai Rijo, I know. I saw a poster of you back at the the fortress, you're an admiral. These cannon on a ship are infinitely more effective than a trebuchet. Better at close range, easier to load, fire, aim. You should think about it. I got an airship full of the things just waiting for clearance to be on its way to the Burning Legion." Shi continued coming ever closer to Ryumo and the bandit girl, and slung his crossbow over his shoulder in a non-threatening manner. "Gee...Sorry about almost blowing you up there...yeah, my b. But hey! At least we got done in time for lunch right? I'm pretty ravished myself, where we eatin?"

[Varoen]

The laughter from the youth caught Varoen off guard and almost made him wonder if he had the right guy. When he spoke, mocking how he had attempted to sneak up on this man who was apparently called ‘Jackal’, Var wanted to stab him on general principle of annoyance. ‘I’m an assassin goddammit! Secrecy is what I do![/i]’ On the inside he was fuming, throwing a tantrum like a child, though he only conveyed a stoic expression of confusion and slight annoyance. He was both embarrassed and hated being mocked like this, especially by someone who was clearly younger than him and was trying to make excuses for why he had done this, despite knowing that Jackal had seen him. It may not have been logical or relevant in any way to what had just transpired, but it made him feel better and, dammit that’s what’s important!

Looking at the crossbows scope Var wondered how Jackal had managed to miss the girl and was about to ask he heard him say something about hugs and giggles. He wasn’t entirely sure what he should be doing, but he had a feeling that standing there, weapons out, listening to this man, was not it. True he should not have announced his presence as he did if he were planning to kill the man, but death was not the reason he had been there, but rather finding out the mans reason for shooting. And he had found it much to his surprise as Jackal told him his intentions, as well as a proposition about the cannons he carried with him. Needless to say Var’s interest was caught as he watched Jackal and the ostrich-horse, whose name was apparently Fuckface, slide down the hill.

Varoen followed close behind, partially disturbed that this man knew so much about him. Being an assassin meant secrecy, and yet the whole of the Execution Squad was well known around the world for their feat; perhaps not the best idea for business. But killers weren’t all they were anymore. ‘A whole airship eh? Those would be quite effective… perhaps we could make some sort of deal with this trader.’ Catching Jackal and Fuckface as he spoke to Ryu and the girl, Var nodded in the new mans general direction as he spoke to Ryumo “Well, this ones all right. Just trying to protect you apparently. He has a business proposition that sounds… intriguing. What about yours?” His eyes flicked over to the girl who seemed to be drooling over some food that Ryu had given her, much to Vars surprise. ‘This new Ryumo seems to be more peaceful than the other… maybe he has found a degree of inner peace finally?’

Something about food was mentioned and Var shrugged the thought off. He had eaten on his trip, although he wasn’t sure dried fruits and jerky constituted a meal. Quickly reconsidering he decided he would eat perhaps a small morsel, after their business with these two strangers was concluded. Especially this Jackal. The cannons he offered would be a welcomed addition to the defense of their navy and would be an excellent tool to bring with them to the Bulwark. Thinking of the Bulwark reminded him of the business he had come to discuss with Ryumo in the first place, and he made a mental note to bring it up again later. [/size]

((Sorry its so late. I just couldn't think of a post... sorry this one sucks lol))

[Ryu // Kazu]

Ryumo nodded to the girl's acquisition. "The fortress nearby has a large surplus of supplies needed for travel and other necessities. If you'll follow me, I'll take you right to it. It's heavily guarded, so you'll need my clearance to get into certain stores and supply centers, but I will let them know that you are there. Also-" Ryumo's words were cut off as a man and an animal that he had never seen before began to approach, with Varoen not too far behind. Varoen didn't seem too happy, but Ryumo listened to the stranger's words and sighed with an audible reply.

"Uh..yes. Don't worry about, I'm sure it was a misunderstanding. Please try to sort out the situation before coming to a conclusion."Ryumo smiled and Varoen then proceeded to explain to Ryumo a proposition that the man had spoken of beforehand. Cannons. Powerful ones, at that. The weapons offer peaked Ryumo's interest. The fortresses in the Plains could always use another line of defense, and these cannons just might be the answer to potential threats or security breaches. He would consider it. "I'll tell you what. I will take you ," he pointed at the new man and his animal," back to the quarters and we will discuss your propositions." Ryumo turned to the woman and spoke in an assuring tone. "I will allow you to get what you need, since what I gave you was lost back there. The supplies bought and brought to the fortresses are supplied by the citizens of the Burning Legion, tax money really. It allows for people across the nation and other nations that are in need of supplies for home or travel to get it without worrying about debt. If there are any special items that you may need such as weapons or another request, I would like you to alert a guard and I will come and see what I can do. The stores close in a few hours, so I suggest we get moving." Ryumo chose not to let himself be annoyed and angered by the preceding events because everything was fine now. No need dwelling on the past.

"Oh and Varoen. I'll be sure to come straight to you after all of this is done. I hope you'll be willing to stay at the fortress for a little while." He then gave a brief yawn and excused himself for his tiredness. "Alright......let's go. Hopefully, I'll catch your names when we get there." Ryumo tightened the casings that held his daggers and then began to walk quickly towards the path that he had came from. He felt a bit sorry for the girl as he knew that she must be thirsty. Losing the other supplies in those explosions didn't make things better. She'll be ok once she gets there.

~~

Ryumo squinted at the large fortress gates and eyed the guards that stood before them. About seven. Ryumo flicked the lick of hair in front of his eyes away once more before waving briefly to the guards. He stood before the large black gates and waited for the guards to recongize him. The bird's eye tower above allowed the soldiers and gurads to see targets and travelers from afar. The gates whined as the first lock was released and the soldier in the tower waited for Ryumo's clearance.

"Master Ryumo! Friends of yours, I suppose?"

Ryumo smiled and gave a breif chuckle. "Yes, yes Kazuya. Your superior Varoen is here as well. I have business with these others. Will you please send the rank 3 recruit Tomokazu to assist me, please?"

The soldier nodded in agreement and the second lock on the large gates was released. The gates opened slowly, also with a whine, and then stopped as the view of the inside of the fortress was clearly seen. Ryumo walked inside of the fortress and breathed in the familiar scents. Civilians and soldiers alike walked in the main streets of the fortress and the din of the conversations held hung in the air and carried themselves along the wind. The large stores and barracks lined beside each other collectively for easy access and Ryumo was proud of them. He turned to the group behind him and shrugged. "Welcome to the first fortress. This is where the main barracks are as well as my quarters." The recruit named Tomokazu arrived before Ryumo and bowed before standing at attention before Ryumo. Ryumo knew this recruit had many accomplishments and talents and he trusted him with his life. He knew he wouldn't screw up. Then again, this was a female and Tomokazu was prone to being....a dumbass around the opposite gender.. Ryumo almost grimaced at this thought, but then rubbed the thought from conscience. As long as Tomokazu obeyed, Ryumo was satisfied. He wouldn't do anything to jeopardize his current loyalty and respect from his master.

"Master, you wanted to see me?" he said with a concentrated look on his face.

Ryumo gave a small smile and and placed a hand on the young male's right shoulder. "I want you to show this lady where all of the necessities are such as water, clothing, and food. Of course, you know how to charge the foreign purchases to the fortress purchases, so tell the shop owners and merchants not to panic if she wants something else. Do the same for this man here," he pointed at the man he met before," and do it with earnest. If anything is needed, you know to alert me. Is this understood?" Ryumo's hazel eyes bored into the recruit's and the male responded with a hesitant yet respectful reply.

"Y..yes sir." He bowed again and then stood by the two.

"Now," Ryumo began again as he nodded to the man with the animal. "Follow me and we will go to my quarters to discuss this..proposition you have. Be mindful of your surroundings and leave your animal with the soldiers. If you'd like, we will feed your animal and treat it with care. And please be aware that there are over five thousand soldiers waiting to take care of a threat if needed. Well...five thousand and two if you count Varoen and myself." Ryumo nodded to Varoen and the woman and then motioned for the man to follow him as he made his way to the central barracks. He sighed as he hoped the propositions were efficient and advantageous.

Tomokazu looked around sullenly before bowing to Varoen and then directing the woman to the water. "The water outpost is this way and there are food stops along the streets."

[jiadaiyu]

As the man spoke to her, she could tell he spoke in a...kind way. Almost as if he ACTUALLY cared. Eh, he'd get over that as soon as she left. She agreed to following him to the fortress, only because she needed the food and water very badly. Especially the water. She could barely speak with her throat in such searing pain, but that wasn't about to stop her.

She saw the weird looking man arrive back with a misshapen looking man. He was wearing a mask, which only could prove that he had the disformed face that his body portrayed. She giggled at the sight of this monstrosity, which only pained her throat more. As the strange man, and the weird looking man conversed with each other, she looked to the sky. She was getting impatient with all their speaking, and would much rather get some water. She tapped her foot impatiently until the strange man turned back around to face her. He spoke to her about all this food and water, blah blah blah. Something about poor people get food there, she didn't know.

The strange man turned back to the weird looking man and spoke to him...again. Although this annoyed her, she picked up on his name. Varoen. What a fucking horrible name. The strange man FINALLY started moving, and she followed behind him, making sure there was distance between her and the three men she pursued. She highly doubted that they would turn around and attack her, but it was always better on the safe side, right?





They reached this fortress, and it was nothing like she expected. She expected some type of...hut, or something along the lines of that; not a whole damn castle. Goddamn... she thought to herself. She didn't want to show the awe upon her face, so she kept the bored looking facade instead. These guys didn't deserve her satisfaction.

There were too many guards around this place. She didn't trust it; but then again, she needed the food and water. A guard came and spoke to the strange man, and as they spoke, she heard his name as well. Ryumo. Not as bad as Varoen, but still pretty stupid. What struck her as weird though was that they called him...'master'. Was this guy high up or what? Now it was time for her to worry.

She reluctantly walked through the gates of the 'palace', eyeing the guards, keeping a close watch on her surroundings. The inside is not what you would expect from the outside, at all. The outside makes it look like a torture chamber, but everyone on the inside was so cheery. It was disgusting. She would vomit, if she had anything IN her stomach to vomit.

ANOTHER man walked up to them, and she was guessing this was the Tomokazu that Ryumo was speaking of to the guard. It was almost like there were no females in existence anymore. She crossed her arms, waiting for their fucking conversation to end. Really? I'm standing here, dying of thirst, and you're gonna KEEP on talking? This fucking sucks.

As her mind wandered, she realized that she was pointed to by Ryumo, and then the monstrosity man was pointed to. Wonderful, she had to go with him. She uncrossed her arms at the thought of the cold liquid running down her searing throat. Oh, that's probably going to be the best moment of her recent pathetic life.

She knew the two groups were going to split up, and she knew it was for the better. But did she really have to be with this ugly man? Goddamnit. She was off into her own world again and barely heard the words of Tomokazu. She thought back and deciphered the word, 'water'. She followed him hastly, but not looking too desperate, that would give them an advantage upon her. As they walked, she looked upon all the delicious looking food, the thought would make her salivate if she, once again, HAD saliva.

First priority: water.

[The Jackal || Ji Taro]

It was an honest mistake, really. The Jackal really wanted to stress that if anyone was hurt that it wasn't anybody in particular's fault and he appraised each of his traveling companions to be sure there was no damage he could be charged for later. He Took into account the slight build of Varoen, the movements of Ryumo which were precise without being tense, and the girl, who looked like she was about to die of heatstroke. The Jackal was "raised" in the desert (the loosest definition of that word applied here) and had always taken great care to be prepared for whatever climatic dangers he thought he might face on his travels, but he was acutely sensitive to the dangers of heat. Sun-sickness wasn't pretty; a death of exposure was one of the cruelest ones mother nature could throw at you. He was glad, however, that it wasn't too sunny out, and the head wasn't as dry as it was on the sands. Still he was concerned about the girl, she might topple over any second.

He led Fuckface after the others and let out a sigh and thought Screw it, I'm not gonna worry about her if she's that dumb. Some people are just too stupid to live. He removed a number of his personal effects and placed them on the cart as he led the beast of burden along. Mainly it was superfluous ammunition he was carrying on his person as well as a few close quarters weapons like small knives as he figured the Burning Legion wouldn't dare spark a national incident by attacking a foreign national who was just there to sell some stuff. The most noticeable thing he did was take of his outer long sleeved garment and unwrap his cheich. The skin covering garments were better for a place with extreme sunlight, but it wasn't bright enough here to warrant such attire, and The Jackal noticed instant relief as he placed the sweat soaked pieces of black fabric in the back of the cart and felt a slight breeze on his now uncovered face. He refastened his bandoliers about his waist and was about to reattached his canteen on the makeshift belts when he heard the swish of the water there in. He knew thirst, as one might know an old school master who beat them whenever they made the tiniest error, neither one would care who you were or how old, they would punish you for your foolishness regardless. He tossed the canteen with a bit more force than was friendly towards the girl's head. "If your thirsty, you should probably think about bringing water with you. Stupid head..."

***

The Jackal was shaken out of a trance when he was addressed by Ryumo. He hadn't been paying attention as to what was going on around him much, just that there were orders being given and he didn't here any of those key words that made his ears twitch and let him know he was being talked about so he lost himself in his thoughts. He had been look over the fortifications of the fort. On his last visit a few hours prior he was much too busy playing twenty questions with the authorities to really enjoy the architecture that much. The Jackal exuded a child like glee (that is, if children got excited about working on logistics to maximize kill zones) and took into consideration all of the fortifications. He'd have to ask Ryumo or Varoen if it was standard for Burning Legion military bases. He was looking around and did take note of the fact that this base still had catapults, not unlike the type used in the Great War in the days of Avatar Aang. He cringed a little, and then remembered he was there to correct that problem, and cheered up the way a bored doctor might who was finally getting a patient. When he finally did register that the comment had been directed at him, he gaped a little at the earnest bravado in Ryumo's voice.

He really didn't have to be reminded there were armed men everywhere; it was a military installation after all. He sighed within himself at the attitude, but understood with the position and the clout of being a commander in the military, too came a certain amount of posturing that needed to be done. He was about to reply with a smart ass remark, but was distracted when he noticed his crew still being detained at a processing center. "Hey! Nine-Fingers!" He yelled to the big burly (and nine-fingered) man, who looked as if he was trying to puzzle out when The Jackal had slipped away until The Jackal made a gesture warning him not to say anything. The Jackal greeted the rest of his crew, and noticed on the tables before them were several weapons which at one point earlier this day would've been called "concealed". He was actually surprised at how sly some of his workers were with this sort of thing as he saw several weapons on the tables that hadn't been issued to them. He was impressed with their work ethic and was wondering where they hide them all until he hear groans coming from behind a curtain set up near by and then saw one Burning Legionnaire walk out holding a dagger at arm's length and a Mirage Merc' limp out with a grimace on his face. "Yeah, really wish I could unsee that one..." Most of the men were genuinely glad to see him in some capacity, and the ones who weren't were just happy that eccentric person who made sure they got paid didn't get himself killed this week. He got a status report- SNAFU- and then motioned for Nine-Fingers, his lieutenant, to come closer. "If all goes well here, we can have Leviathan up and running with in the month. Get the production orders ready"

It was about this time he realized Ryumo, Varoen, and the girl were still with in his immediate vicinity, and he resumed his goofy composure "H-hey...you wouldn't mind helping my buddies out a little here would you? This is mostly just the boat crew. A salty bunch, but don't let the scars and communicable diseases picked up at brothels fool you, under neath all that they really are a ruthless pack of bastards." The Jackal smiled and a few men let out belly laughs while a few others snickered. "It would really be a lot easier to negotiate price if I knew all my boys here had full stomachs and a spot in the shade. It really would make me a lot more reasonable, if you catch my drift." It wasn't a threat, not a serious one anyways, and he doubted Ryumo would take it as such. It was more assurance, and a little peace of mind. Also, he was adding up how much he would save if Ryumo kept playing the gracious host and picked up the tab on feeding these lovable baby killers so The Jackal wouldn't have to use company funds to pay for this little foray, which was taking considerably longer than anticipated or appreciated.