Hidden Cove

[jinkagai]

A chill air swooped in on the merchant city Locke, causing the inhabitants to pull their cloaks about them a little tighter. Winter was setting in, and for the large import city that meant only a few days before the eastern and northern caravans packed up in an attempt to make it home before the first snows. The residents of Locke, mostly traders themselves, were well aware that this was their last chance to secure certain products that would fetch a pretty price in the southwestern cities, that is, if one could secure the goods.

The streets bustled as virtually every man, woman and child bartered, haggled, stole and yelled at one another, each trying to get the best deal, the last good, or attempt to retain some sense of dignity. Sand, dirt and mud kicked up at everyone's heels and by all accounts, it was a miserable day. The wind was relentless, biting and tearing at the inhabitants. The best dressed had brittle lips and rosy cheeks while the ill-equipped coughed and crowded together trying to steal warmth as well as money and or food.

Rain soaked boots, a muddy, crusted and cracked brown cloak wrapped around his body, and a hood that covered his face was the attire of a well-traveled man, and the attire of Deajin, a young man who sat off to the left side of the main merchant street. Hundreds of portable kiosks lined either side of the road, and he found himself about midway, with one leg stretched out before him and his other pushed up, as he rested his right arm on his knee. His left hand tossed a wrapped object up an down as his brown eyes stared off into the distance. He was no merchant, and had not a penny to his name, a typical bum of sorts, and no one paid him any heed. That is, until a little boy slowly walked up to him.
   
"Hello mister," A small voice echoed through Deajin's ears as the boy spoke. Clearly, the little one came from a poor family, as he wore a shirt two sizes to small and the color of Deajin's traveled shoes. His shorts were tattered and he had bruises lining his hands and knees.

Deajin kept staring, and kept tossing his little item.

"Whatcha got there?" The little one asked, leaning forward, trying to get a better view of the tiny thing. "It looks like a piece of candy."

Deajin slowly turned his head, "I'm sorry, but this is no candy." His voice was almost as cold as the wind, almost, but there was a hint of compassion behind it. He caught his 'candy' one last time before hiding his hand beneath his cloak.

"Oh...." The boy's voice trailed off, "I've never gotten to have candy, I was hoping you'd be nice enough to share."

"Hey, Kid," Deajin gave a little chuckle from under his hood, "If it was candy." He slowly stood up and looked to his right, seeing something down the road. "I'd give it to you, but...this little thing. It isn't meant for you." He patted the boy on the head as he turned and walked off in the direction he was looking and disappeared into the crowd.
   
He was dressed in fine red robes, made of an expensive, exotic material, and an even more exotic weave. His mustache was finely trimmed to a small point about four inches to either side of his nostrils. He was strong, well muscled and his breath smelt of the finest spices. He stood out like a sore thumb in the midst of a torrential sea of people gone crazy. He walked with calm and a straight posture, his hair combed perfectly to follow his cheeks and it did not tussle with the twists of the wind. He carried a long sword, sheathed at his side, and was one of the few people on the road that carried a sword, and he was also the only one who was not a part of Locke's military. He did not move for anyone and one man was walking directly towards him, neither changed their course.

"Excuse me," Deajin said, rather uncaringly, as his shoulder collided with the man in the red robes, smearing the fine dressings with mud.

"You dirty Son Of A Bit!.." He started to yell, but gurgled the last bit as Deajin flicked his little item down the man's throat without his hands ever leaving his cloak. The man coughed, falling to his knees, spittle gathering on either sides of his mouth.

"Help! Someone help this man!" Deajin yelled, falling to his knees, his arms opening and catching the now convulsing man, he leaned forward and whispered so no one but the two of them could hear.
"You have been charged for your crimes against the people of this world, may you find peace with God, or burn with the devil. It is neither my choice, nor yours anymore."

The red robed man's body was ripped from Deajin's arms as several men hoisted his soon to be carcass up, yelling and shouting to find a doctor. A few moments passed and Deajin was gone, amidst the crowd and commotion, he was nowhere to be found.

"A very interesting poison, my friend." A voice said from behind a black curtain.

"The final verdict."

"Deceased, as always. You never seem to disappoint."

"The report?"

"Unkown, He simply caught a strange illness. He did travel more in this past year than many travel in a lifetime."

"The burial?"

"Of course, he will be buried a hero, much unlike you when you pass."

"A hero..."

"Did you expect any less? These men you kill, the blind follow for they see only one path, you murder so that other paths may come to fruition. This world has no need for heroes, but people do, and heroes always think themselves invincible"

"The benefit of his death."

"His world will weep, and the leaders of Surile will remember themselves mortal."

"And if that spurs them to civil war quicker."

"Then that is their choice, we do not balance the world, remember this, we only facilitate cause, nothing more. You are dismissed. You will be called soon."

"I await."
    

[Shu]

"My lady, if you do not hurry up you are going to be late!" came the voice of the girl trying to help her 'mistress' get ready.

"God Adele, first how many times have I told you to -not- call me 'your lady'?" She air quoted, "I'm just the same as you are. Secondly do I really have to wear a full ball gown? Actually...do I really have to go?" Her voice as not whiny as much as full of dread.

"If you do not go to the ball the general with be highly upset, you know this." Adele walked toward her with the gown in hand.  "Come now, neither of us want to be back on the streets again do we?"

Akane sighed, "Sometimes I wonder if it wouldn't just be better to be dead in the streets than here..."

"You know you don't really mean that." Adele helped get the dress on her.

'Most of the time...now days I do...' Akane thought to herself as she clasped a necklace on and made sure her makeup looked ok.  She hated dressing up like this, but the general was throwing another banquet and she was 'required' to attend.  If she got lucky she would be able to snag some wine, or better yet some liquor without him noticing before she got it into her stomach.  If she got really lucky something would happen so that everyone had to leave.  God she could only hope.

She slipped on her high heels and walked down the hallway slowly dreading each step that took her closer to this banquet.  As she turned the corner to the grand spiral staircase she could hear the general laughing with a flock of women surrounding him.  She sighed and put on a fake smile as she gracefully walked down the stairs, just as she had been taught to do and as she had done plenty of times.

Somehow she managed to slip away from the general after some time and made her way across the room to the bar.  "Dear god Nigel give me a glass of whiskey, please and thank you!"

"You know miss that the general does not approve of you drinking, it's not ladylike." he said but passed the glass to her anyhow.

"Yes, yes, I know, I know. But I'm the one who will deal with him if I get caught all right?" She called back to Nigel as she wandered onto the terrace. 

She was alone finally. She checked to make sure and wandered over to the far most corner, lifted up her skirt a bit and pulled out a case tucked in a strap around her thigh.  She pulled out a cigarette and lit it, after returning the case to where it had been she leaned over the wall of the terrace looking out over the city exhaling a plume of smoke and taking a rather large sip of her whiskey.

[jinkagai]

It was a strange sight, his orders. He sighed, taking a sip of this water and crumbling up the paper that was in his hand, tossing it unceremoniously onto the floor next to his bed. He rubbed his hand across his face in obvious lament for himself as he grabbed his cloak and two daggers, for his own safe keeping, and headed out from his quarters.

It did not take long for him to reach his destination. After all, coven buildings were always interconnected in some way shape or form.

"Well...you're a bit sooner than I expected." A rather gluttonous voice boomed, the sound bouncing off the walls, grating Daejin's ears.  His garb was lavish, a mixture of foreign silk and animal fur, he stood several inches taller than Daejin, and several inches wider. Though it could not be discerned just how much was his actual size, to what ridiculous clothes he was wearing. He sipped a golden cup, and wine drizzled a little onto his beard. The sound of a ruckus crowd could be heard outside the rather large, ornately decorated, empty room.

A banquet for fools. Deajin thought to himself, sitting in the windowsill.

"Would you care for a drink?" The general asked.

"No, thank you."

"Right..." a rather sad sound. "I forgot, you aren't allowed to partake in anything that would impede your skills." He poured himself another drink.

"Why have you summoned me?"

"Oh, and so much fun I might add..."

"The letter you sent."

"Yes yes, the letter, look boy." The man set down his glass, more sadness entered his voice. "I just wanted to say that I'll miss the man you killed today. I understand why he had to die. He was a man much like myself, someone people turned to in Surile for support during the oppression. Now the door stands open so the civilians will have to act for themselves, meanwhile causing this place to stir. Move in, put down the entire nation...more slaves..."

"Sir. There are better people than I to talk to."

"Is there?" The general walked to him, placing a surprisingly strong hand against Deajin's shoulder. "I'm old son. As old as your father would have been. Too many people in this world rely on words and falsehoods to bring security to their lives...I'm tired of security."

There was a loud pop outside.

"You may not understand it now...but soon things will come to light and you will have to choose. Your life? Or, what you call a life now."

A door slammed open, a man and woman were wrapped about each other, neither noting anyone else in the room.

The general turned, yelled a few obscenities with a false smile on his face.

Deajin disappeared onto a terrace and lost himself in thought. 

[Shu]

Akane heard the footsteps before the person was on the terrace.  She quickly threw her cigarette over the ledge, popped a mint into her mouth from her bodice, and turned around hiding her glass behind herself as she gracefully leaned against the rail to face the person who was walking out on the terrace.

She let out a small sigh of relief, barely noticeable to the untrained eye, as the man walked out onto the terrace.  He was, from what she could tell, an assassin.  She had stayed with the General long enough to know what he was involved with and the people he associated with, that is other than for looks.  The General had never spoken to her about any of this but she had listened and kept an eye out for papers lying on his desk.  She knew he wasn't all pleasantries.

She looked the man over, "If I saw you on the streets I would think you wouldn't be caught dead at this banquet." she quirked an eyebrow at him as she picked up her glass and took a sip.  Even though she hated it she knew that until she knew who this man was she could not let her appearance falter.  She had to act the stuck up bitch for the sake of having a roof over her head and being feed.  Granted the General had never mistreated her at all, save for a few advances on her, he had treated her quite well.  For what reason she did not know, be it to look good to the public or for his own reasons.

[jinkagai]

"Don't remind me" Deajin replied bluntly, slowly walking to overlook the terrace next to the woman. "It's ok...you don't have to pretend either. You're in safe company. Remember, I cannot harm anyone without orders, and I promise I don't have any for you. Or your father."

He knew who she was, just the same as she knew who he was. Though they had no understanding of one another, they at least shared one thing in common. They both had to hide who they really were, even if it was for completely different reasons.

"Please forgive me, I cannot give you my name, I hope you understand why. Perhaps your father, or someone else of higher standing will tell you if you ask them nicely." He didn't mean to be sarcastic to her, it was more satire for himself, for his stupid rules that he had to abide by.

He crossed his arms and leaned on the railing, lost in thought.

"It's a nice night out."