Atlantic Roleplay Community Boards

[Thrax]

---

Chastity sat quietly on the wooden bench beside the campfire---the one that was kept burning in the middle of Papua to allow the homeless and beggars to cook their food. She was one of them but did not mind; she was used to fending for herself, especially since her brother, Eric, had been tried and executed for treason. Few people would talk to her anymore. Even those who used to know her and call her friend now shied away, hardly speaking at all out of fear or contempt. It didn't matter. Like her brother, she had grown up here and meant to stay until she died, whether anyone liked it or not. She held a kryss in her hand. It had been blessed as a slayer weapon, of ophidians. Lately they had become bolder, entering the town at dark to haul away someone to their lair to the northwest. She did not intend to become one of their victims though if she did, she meant to take a few of them with her first.

A man appeared beside her and it startled her. She had not heard him approach. He was dressed in black and his face was hooded. A red sash was tied at his waist from which two swords rested, their long hilts crossed in front of his stomach. She first thought he was one of the new officials, possibly the one who had been appointed envoy; the one rumor had it was a were-creature. She had no grudge against them. In fact, the fifty gold coins she received the day of Lady Noir's visit, like the rest of the townsfolk, had helped her buy enough food to last out the month. So she spoke kindly to him. "Good evening sir. Are you on patrol?"

The man hesitated, then bowed. He spoke in a low voice in an accent she did not recognize. "I come protect you. I from Zento. I am Otori Yotogi Clan. Lord Tai Kwan Leap send me," he explained. "My name Ruku."

Chastity stood up and returned the bow. She was awestruck, having heard stories of strange new city being found, but doubting she would ever meet one of its inhabitants. "My name is Chastity. I am glad you are here. You say you are from Zento? I have heard of it. Welcome to Papua."

Ruku nodded. "I look over town to see where best stand. Town not guarded well. Enemies easy to come. Why not better defenses? This very bad."

Chastity shrugged. "I don't know, but I am ready for them!" she boasted, raising her kryss to show him. Its rusted, chipped, blade did not impress the warrior. Still, he did not laugh or mock.

"You go now. Trouble comes!" he warned, reaching into his belt with his hands. Suddenly he whirled about, flinging something metallic into the darkness behind him. An unearthly bellow echoed from the shadows and an ophidian warrior came stumbling forward, clutching at his face where twin shuriken had embedded deeply into his forehead. He fell with a crash to the ground. Two other ophidians rushed forward, hissing, the blades of their enormous halberds glinting in the light of the fire as they waved them menacingly. Chastity took a few steps backward and readied herself, fighting off the compulsion to run for her life into the darkness. Ruku did not move until the ophidians were upon him. Chastity screamed a warning wondering why he stood there so foolishly, inviting death. The first ophidian took a swing at him, aiming to sever his head with one clean swipe, but Ruku deftly ducked and spun around in a crouch, drawing his daisho in the process, slashing with both blades into the saurian's exposed belly. It groaned and dropped its weapon, falling to the ground thrashing. Chastity, regaining her courage, ran over and stabbed it again and again with her kryss until it stopped moving. The second ophidian swung its weapon at Ruku's legs, hoping to take him down while his back was turned. But Ruku, as if he had eyes in the back of his head, did a backward somersault just as the halberd reached where his legs should have been. He landed on his feet facing the saurian, who was desperately trying to bring his heavy weapon back around for another attack. It was too late. Ruku took one step forward, crossing his blades horizontally in front of him, and scissorlike, sliced the ophidian's head cleanly from its body. Before the head hit the ground, Ruku, without so much as cutting a single thread of his garment, had placed his weapons back neatly into the belt at his waist. He bowed slightly to his enemies and turned toward Chastity. "You safe now. No more come this night. If so, they die too." He bowed to her and walked silently away to the north, into the darkness.

Even though he did not see it, Chastity smiled at him, feeling quite safe indeed. She looked down at the two corpses and began to wonder what ophidian steaks tasted like.