Can one truly ignore what destiny places in front of them? No. For the evidence of it is everywhere- in every step and around every corner. In the shadows and in the stars. From sun to sun, it is everlasting. And the only way to get it off your back is to face it, and accept it. Life in My Hands ___________________________________________________________ Xianghua was sweating bullets as she assesed the situation. Here was this man- Wolf's Fang, he was called- about to piece her best friend up into a convienient matchbox size, and she was not afraid. At least, not for herself. She was afraid for the two that were behind her, now ready to attack, seeing as Mina had now lost the advantage, only to be saved by her weapon's defenses. But would they continue to work for long? One could not be sure of it- the Divine Treasures were only so competent without energy to be fed. And at this point, it had run dry, acting on whatever it had left. She knew this, and felt that it was up to her to set things in motion for Mina again. But something had stopped her... a voice. Some kind of voice called out to her, holding her back. It sounded calming- reassuring in a way. Still holding her sword in the defensive, she strained to listen. (Move not. She will be safe.) Don't move? She had lost her weapon, and was now practicly at her opponent's mercy. So why not move to strike? (She will be safe. Trust in me.) Trust in one who did not reveal their name? Laughable. If this spirit- or whatever it was- revealed themselves, then trust could be gained, if only a little. Did this person have a name of sorts? (I am given many names. In reality, the only true name is the one that you give me, for everyone has their own truth.) This was no time for philosophy. She was going to help her- (Hush now. It begins...) (Mina! No!!) ___________________________________________________________ Mina seemed to be the picture of calm, as if she had anticipated this outcome in the first place. She hadn't, of course; but she would not allow herself to make light of the situation. She was prepared to do what was necessary to protect her friends, even if her life had to end here. Xian would be devistated, and Talim would be once again lost, but she would be resigned to give her life anyway. (Do not be so foolish. There is a way to win.) She knew that! She just couldn't see one yet. (It's simple, really. Just trust in me.) No. She would not rely on a weapon or her technique forever. This was a battle that would be won on her own terms, and by her own rules. Even without a weapon. She had to prove to herself, and no one but herself, that she could do so. (As you wish.) The enchantment dropped. As if on que, Fang rushed at a speed which would seem inhuman, but was only fuled by insanity. Mina's eyes still followed the movements, but only barely. As the shearing, tearing claws were thrusting forward, Mina quickly moved to her left, and as they narrowly passed her, pulled her left leg into a crane stance. It was then that she felt the most awkward- this was a Seung stance, sure enough. It was just that she had not used it enough to understand it. But nonetheless, she found herself supporting her weight on one leg; an obvious weakness. One which Fang made every attempt to exploit, as he swiped his right claw at her right leg. An attack which she expertly jumped over with a back sault, neatly landing on her right foot on the way down to maintain her stance. Almost instantaneously, he attacked just when she landed with a high swipe to her chest, sure that he would hit. Imagine his surprise when her reflexes kicked in and she ducked under his assault, her left leg sliding forward. As she rose up again, right in front of Fang, she delivered a roundhouse kick to his ribs, then as he clutched his side in pain, planted her right leg on his left shoulder and turned, poised for a heavy left kick to the back of his head, which she delivered. As he was sent sliding forward, the skin of his face torn by the road, Mina's kick had sent her into a back sault, landing her neatly on her feet without harm. As she stood there, regarding the man who was apparently too crazy to know when he had already lost, she smiled. A faint, red tinted light surrounded her, as if her confidence and determination could be seen and felt. She issued a warning to the fallen, insane man before her: "You're out of your league. Go home and leave us alone, before I really hurt you." ___________________________________________________________ Talim was in awe. (What manner of woman is this? Even without a weapon, she still bests her opponent! She's like a fire that refuses to go out...) But her senses were still alert, still listening. Her ears listened, straining to hear the winds, hear their cries and calls. And without her knowing, her very soul aided her in this. Thus, every whisper and moan in the wind had been intensified thousand fold; every unnatural shift of the wind rang in her ears like bells, and for a moment, she felt faint. (What's this? I can hear it... I can hear everything! What's going on?) But she had no more time to think, as she heard what she was looking for. Someone was coming from behind her, moving at attack speed. The faint sound of something cutting its path through the air was as loud to her as someone's scream at point-blank range. On instinct, she raised one of her elbow blades in a half circle, just behind her, and heard the telltale ring of something reflecting off of it. Following through with the movement, she turned to shove the butt of the other bladed tonfa into the agressor's gut... And saw nothing. Her eyes shifted among the crowds that had gathered to watch the battle, looking for who had just tried to hit her with either a rock or a dart. Which one, she was not sure of, but she could guess. She saw and heard three men eariler that day, but only one was here. The tall, lanky one that fouled the very air around him with his madness. That left quite a few questions... where were the other two? Why did she get the feeling that they were after more than just that woman back at the inn? The questions stopped when she heard it again. The sound of something hurtling through the air at a rate that was much faster than a rock. Definitely a dart, and probably poisoned. Her body moved faster than her mind, the training that was beat into it now coming to fruition. She raised her left elbow blade and heard the sound of not one... but two. The assailant was determined now. She dragged Xianghua along with her as she began to flee, hoping that Mina would forgive her for abandoning her at this important time. However, she was protecting both of them... It was the least Talim could do to protect Xianghua, and leave Mina free to take care of her current problem. Thus, she fled. And sure enough, she heard someone behind her. ___________________________________________________________ The man of medium build- Tashiro was his name- was calmly standing in the crowd, assesing the situation. The woman in red was in battle with Fang, defending the honor of a woman that she had barely even met, much less had befriended. And she was doing so with all the calm and grace of one with her skill. (So, this must be the one who had won the tournament. Impressive. And the other two must be her friends...) He regarded them as well, taking his attention from that idiot subordinate of his. One of them looked like a native, the cheekbones and petit, shapely body very much at home. That didn't faze him at all... the fact that she had an intricate tai chi sword in her hand did. And with the way that she held it, she looked like she had been using the damn thing since she was born. (A threat. Not good for me, seeing as I want to do this as painlessly as possible. On both sides.) Then, he saw the other. A girl of no more than fifteen, holding what appeared to be two bladed tonfas in her hands. The weapons seemed ceremonial at best, and were thus useless to her. (Ah, there we go. A target.) Of course, killing was out of the question. He only needed her unconcious, for the time being. Then, he could use her for... other means. Like getting information about the Ultimate Treasure... The Soul Edge. He grinned wolfishly, just thinking about it. If he had that sword, he would hand it to the pirates and be done with them for good. Riches beyond measure would be his reward, and he could die a very happy man... The very thought of the treasures goaded him into action. He pulled from his coat a small, 7" blow gun, each tip coated with a special chemical that would render any targets unconcious for a good four hours- long enough to move her to a more secure location. She was a sitting duck. He smiled as he put the blow gun to his lips... fired a dart.. And stared wordlessly as she quite easily deflected the oncoming dart without looking, before turning and thrusting the back end of her opposite weapon into an invisible target. A target that could have been him. With a speed and silence that was uncanny, he moved from his position to a better one to her left. Okay, so he had guessed wrong about her weapons. Perhaps they weren't just ceremonial after all- she had turned them into efficient tools for defending herself. She was looking, scanning the crowd for him. She would find nothing. The smug look on his face now replaced by one of concentration and determination, he readied two darts this time, aiming both of them for her pulse line. He fired... and scowled as both darts were blocked. It were as if she could hear the darts moving through the wind as he fired them! Then, he shook off that notion. They moved far too quickly for that- it was damn-near-impossible. And then, he blinked, shook his head, and growled softly. (Why the hell do they always have to run?) ___________________________________________________________ Mina knew perfectly well that they were fleeing, running from someone. She could feel Talim's mind working, planning a way out. Apparently, she had found one in a nearby alley, and the man from before was chasing them. She was somewhat greatful for this, and afraid at the same time. She was free, yes. But Talim was apparently the target, and whatever they wanted from her could not be good... (Take care of her, Xian...) She was snapped out of her thoughts by Fang's incredulous and rage-laced voice. "My face... damn you, you ruined my FACE!!" Sure enough, as he rose to his feet with a startling speed, his face was torn and bleeding, the road and gravity doing its work well. Mina face-faulted. (He's bleeding and probably in more pain than I can imagine, and all he can think of is his face?) Oh, yes, he was insane. And his scream of rage, along with his wanton, headlong rush, proved it. Fang stabbed forward with both claws in a maddening, bloodthirsty assault, aiming for her stomach. Mina had little time to react, less time to dodge, and no time to think. Her body moved with all the grace and skill of a seasoned warrior, the years of dicipline paying off. She hopped to the left, moving into crane stance instinctively. Kick to the shin, kick to the head. The heel of her left foot slammed into his temple, making him reel back with stars in his eyes. However, this only made him slash blindly in the direction from which he was hit. But it was only that- a blind slash, and easy to avoid. Mina slid underneath the attack... And the man grinned. He knew perfectly well that she would make the same attempt at the same move as last time. He was ready this time, with his claw at his waist, ready to tear into her leg should the need arise. The kick never came. Mina leapt from her low position, her right leg snapping upwards and outwards, hitting Fang clean on the chin as she rose. With a cry of surprise and pain, he was sent airborne along with Mina... Then was soon sent back down to earth with a vengance as the right leg came down in a high, overhead circle, slamming onto his midsection with the force of a truck at about 45 miles per hour. It might seem like a slow speed... but it still hurts like hell. And this particular kick sent him crashing to the ground. The aid of gravity's pull made the impact that much more devastating... And *BOOM*. ___________________________________________________________ "W-what's going on, Talim? Explain yourself!" Being dragged through the back alleys of Beijing were not all that great for Xianghua, and she wanted to slow down and piece together the situation, so she could find a good enough reason to be torn away from Mina. Talim had a fierce blush on her face, probably due to the close proximity of Xianghua at the moment, but managed to explain herself. "A man attacked me earlier, and he's following us. I don't think he wants to talk to us about anything, and Mina was busy... so I thought that it was best to run away." Xianghua was stunned- half at the fact that she didn't sense the man's approach, and half with worry for Mina. She was somewhat angry at Talim for just running off like that... "And you just left her there? To fight him by herself?" Talim's blush deepened- she was already ashamed of simply leaving her to her fate, running off like a scared child. And now, Xianghua had to rub it in! She started to get a little angry herself... "I had no choice! She would've been distracted by having to protect us both! And then what? She would have lost, and he would have no qualms about killing her." Xianghua backed off at this. It was a logical decision to make, and she found herself blushing at her mistaken anger. Essentially, she had saved them all, and had given Mina some precious time to form sone kind of defense. "I see. You did the right thing, then. Sorry for-" Talim shook her head at this. "It's just as much my fault. If I had faced him, I wouldn't have to leave her in the first place. I'm no good at fighting all that much, so I just run sometimes. Is that bad?" They turned another corner. Surely they would've lost him by now? But no matter. It was better that they didn't keep track of where they were going anyway. "Nope, not at all. You're smart enough to run when you have to- I'll give you that. I respect you for admitting all that, too. But there's just one problem..." Talim responded, without looking back, "What's that?" Her friend then made a very interesting query about their situation- one that would be hard to awnser... "Do you have another plan besides running?" ___________________________________________________________ Bear was definitely not having a good afternoon. First of all, he wasn't lucky enough to bed that wench on the second floor... second, he couldn't keep up with the boss when he had gone off to chase those two girls... and to top it all off, he was bored, bloodthirsty, and running out of ideas for amusement. (Maybe I should've stayed back at the hideaway...) Usually, thses things didn't happen to him, but today, his karma... or whatever, was catching up to him. He suddenly felt bad about all the bad things that he had done... but only for a brief second. Then, he walked on his way, finally moving at a leisurely pace. It was then that he felt something bump into him. Twice. Well, not exactly felt. More like barely registered. But it was there nonetheless, and he looked down. His yellow, rotting teeth were exposed in a malicious grin. Perhaps his luck had improved after all... The two girls that were being chased had run into him and fell hard, as if slamming into a brick wall. He raised his fist at the older looking one- he cared not about age or height, only reward- and swung. And just as she looked up, an expression of pure shock on her face, it was lights out for a certain Chai Xianghua. (Heh.. now for the other one. As far as I could tell, he wanted this one alive...) Slowly, he walked toward Talim, a glint of greed and malice in his eyes... ___________________________________________________________ Mina frowned distastefully at the fallen man before her. (How does he do it? He just won't stay down. He must have a high tolerance for pain.) She casually waited for him to compose himself. If she had not learned anything during her time abroad, it was to give the opponent the honor of actually standing to fight, instead of kicking them while they were down. (Well if he wants it, he'll get it.) Fang stood and growled menacingly at her. He was bleeding, unbalanced, and angry, not to mention out of his mind. He had been slowly heading in that direction for the duration of the fight, and seemed to break, now that he had been sent back to earth with a punishing blow. "SHI-NE!" His rush, however, was halted by another voice. One that was calm and confident. A voice that came from behind her. "That's enough, Fang." She whirled and was met with a sight that horrified her. The biggest man she had ever seen, along with a much smaller one. Well built, dressed in a yukata, and with a short sword on his left hip. He expertly twirled a blow gun between the fingers of his right hand, and he had an appraising look in his eyes. But he did not frighten her. What did was the fact that Xianghua was falling rapidly towards the ground, the bruise on her left cheek starting to purple, and the unconcious (but perfectly fine) Talim hoisted over the big man's shoulder. As she hit the floor with a sickening crack, Mina's eyes widened in fear as she rushed to her aid. (No... no, Xian! Don't leave me now! We haven't even started the journey!) "Idiots, both of you... it wasn't supposed to go this way. Why do I even bother?" Her eyes narrowed dangerously. The aura of calm and determination was turning into one of sadness, shock, and anger. And as such, it began to flare and grow in intensity, as if she were on fire... "Did you do this?" The man smiled at her, a knowing, calm smile. "No... but I cannot control the actions of my associates. However, this does place us in a position to do business." Mina's anger was barely concealed as she spoke in a calm, measured tone. Usually a bad sign. "Couldn't you simply talk to us in our room, instead of doing something like this? You would have a little more respect from me if you had." He shrugged, as if he had no reason to explain himself. "I heard an interesting rumor earlier today... you were the one who won the tournament just recently, am I correct? And on top of that, you seem to be looking for something." She scoffed at him, almost a laugh if the situation were humorous. He simply ignored her, as if she were nothing? And after one of his cronies had tried to kill her and hurt her friends, dumping one of them on the street and leaving her for dead? Hell no! "We have nothing to discuss. Tell your buddy to put Talim down, and I promise that you'll get away... without anyone dying." He frowned, as if there were a bad taste in his mouth. Why did things always have to end like this? He sighed. Such was the life of a theif... "Oh, I think we do. I have reason to believe that you and your friends are involved with Soul Edge. Our boss is looking for the fabled Sword, and he will pay handsomely for it." Her false humor evaporated at this. They knew... somehow, they knew. But she couldn't let him get to her this easily. Besides, he was starting to piss her off. "So you know. So what? And what makes you think that I'm in this for money? You're wasting your time. Put her down and walk away. Matter of fact, run away. Fast." He shook her threat off, shooing it away with one hand. "Now, now... no reason to fuss. We wouldn't want an accident to come of your friends." She stopped cold, her gaze unwavering. She gritted her teeth and gave him a stare that would have burned, had she actually been ablaze. For a brief moment her eyes turned green... then settled again. "If you'd like to actually speak without throwing insults and threats all day, you can meet us at the port, in our hideaway. Of course, you won't be able to find it easily- it is a hidden location after all. Let's go, you two." Fang quickly stood up and, with a movement that almost made him seem to vanish, he suddenly was right next to Mina. He smiled wickedly and whispered into her ear before walking away. "I'll kill you next time... and I won't hold back anymore." And as they walked away, and the crowds thinned, she felt herself drain of her strength and energy, her aura fading. As she slumped to her knees on the road, she sobbed. Powerless. Hopeless. Utterly pathetic. Childish. She cried. And cried. And cried. (Talim... Xianghua... Forgive me.) ___________________________________________________________ -End- Yup this was a long one. Took me a good while to do this one. But it's here, and done, and good. Or is it? You tell me. You know the drill. Visit the thread and lemme know what you think! - Next Chapter - In which Talim is used as a pawn, and at the same time, admits to herself that she could be in love, when she doesn't even know what love is. In which Xianghua has a moral dilemma with not keeping her promise to her friend. And in which Mina discovers that there is another side to her that not even she knew about. A side that had been within her throughout her entire life...
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