Author's note: After receiving a review from one of my long time readers, Winnow ask for the next chapter of this story, I felt like this story deserved some of my attention as my beta and I think on the next chapter of Last True Crime. I plan on doing a lot more after IO and me finish Last True Crime, like a story for Tennessee Kid Cooper and Slytankhamen II to name a few. It's good for us, since Sucker Punch had only focused on Sly's story throughout the games and not go too far in depth with the other Coopers, giving us a lot of freedom to experiment and give his ancestors their own stories how we want to. I'm excited, and I hope you all are too, what with the surprised success with Last True Crime, I'm looking forward to the future. That's my two cents for the night, time to hit the shower and beddy bye time for ol Tex.

See ya around.

Tex

Chapter 3

Making up Words

A woman's scream pierces his ears with its high frequency, finding the scream to belong to his mother. The large form of Slaigh swings his tree trunk arms out to slash at the slithering seething form of the avian ruffian as he reaps his gleaming scythe-like claws and tears at the large raccoon's chest. The Celtic behemoth falls to the ground, still thrashing as he wraps his large arms around the bird's neck into a choke hold and they grapple violently on the floor. Smashing a fist into one of the glowing yellow eyes, the shattering of glass fills their ears as the golden lens becomes marred by an intricate pattern of cracks. The struggle becomes all the more bloody as claws fly in all directions, the dark bird wriggling like a snake to gain freedom as his talons tear and sink into whatever they swipe against.

The large Cooper finally releases the bird, rolling onto his back in a defeated exhaustion as all the warmth from his body leaks out in deep gashes and cuts along his arms and chest. With the looming vulture leering down at the gray animal, it slowly pulls up its razor edged claws and brings it down in one swift motion.

Rioichi Cooper gasped as his eyes shot open, the black pupils shrinking to pinholes as they darted nervously around him. Shutting his eyes, he took a deep breath and exhaled slowly, unraveling his crisscrossed legs and standing up from his meditative position on the soft cushion. His ringed tail flicked with anxiousness as his bare chest dripped with a cold sweat. Rubbing the side of his head, he felt a slight temperature increases from when he first began his daily meditation. He scratched his left ear, darting his gaze to the window and spotting the burning sun in the sky.

It had been about two hours since he started his meditation, sighing as he found that he over did it and let his mind wander into horrid memories trapped within his mind. He glanced to the door, grabbing the top half of a judogi and covering his exposed upper body with the light fabric. Opening the door, he stepped lightly around the illuminated room and spied Kenta, the large middle-aged badger squinting down at the map that was pressed onto the table in front of him. "Well," the raccoon stated, causing Kenta to quickly shoot his head in the smaller animal's direction.

"Dammit, boy, don't sneak up on me like that. Didn't even hear you open the door." Cooper smirked.

"Forgive me. How is the route planning?" The badger shook his head grimly.

"Well...hope you plan on walking through snow. The overpass through the mountains will be snowing this time of year, if it's not already frozen solid. We'll also have to move through this trail section here. An easy spot for ambushes."

"Highwaymen I can handle," the raccoon stated calmly.

"I'm sure, but that's not our only troubles. Don't you remember this is deathly close to Imperial territory?" Cooper smirked.

"The closer the better. Just as long as we get there, I don't care the cost. My soul's been prepared for death since I was an infant." He stared blankly out to the distance for a moment, before returning his gaze to the map. "Where is our first destination?" Kenta rubbed the back of his neck with a meaty paw as he heavily pressed a finger onto the parchment.

"There, Iwata. Pretty close from our own position on the southern tip of Aomori. A good three days distance at the very least." Cooper nodded.

"Then we leave now," he said. Kenta looked up from leaning over the map to better inspect their path.

"Very well, you seem too eager to keep waiting. Who knows you might go off like one of the fireworks from last night." He chuckled and clapped the smaller animal's shoulder, causing the gray raccoon to stumble to the great force of the simple friendly contact. "By the way, how did things go with raiding the palace? I saw you didn't leave with anything in particular save for a few necklaces."

"I left with something more important, although I would have enjoyed taking the Emperor's headdress."

"Care to explain," he questioned with the cross of his large forearms.

"Knowledge, my friend. I found that the explosion was deliberate, not an accident. Seemed someone fled the tower and detonated a large cache of powder kegs before departing." Kenta chuckled once more.

"We should find this man; probably make our task easier seeing that he went to all the trouble of blowing up one of his towers." Rioichi nodded, replacing his pale colored cloth with the more shaded, dark fabric of his shozoku, pulling the hood up and tying the sash around his waist. Sliding in both daggers strapped to each side of his hips, he continued mulling over all of his equipment as Kenta hefted the large sack of supplies over his shoulder, the large wooden kanabo club he carried resting on his other shoulder. The wooden club dotted with large pointed metal studs was almost three times the size of a traditional club the samurai carried, resembling that of something like a tree trunk studded with steel spikes. "The man we're looking for," he stated as both he and Cooper left their hut.

"He goes by Daimyo Hibiki, bit of a scrawny fellow. But he has to have done something right to gain the title as he reigns over his city in Iwata." Cooper already pictured the man in his head. He gave out relaxed, silent breaths through his nose as they walked, a large sum of coins and jewelry bustling inside of the pouches strapped to his person. He kept his cloak tight about him as he gracefully glided across the stone flooring of the pathway out of the city. "And then there was this time, when this fella' almost my size came rushing up to me. He and about five others were rushing at me from all angles around me. I grabbed ol Shinobu here," he said, squeezing the handle of his kanabo. "Took him by the handle, and swept them all away in a single swing, didn't even dislodge a single stud from the old club of mine."

"Quite impressive," Rioichi responded calmly. He faced forward at all times, watching the road in front of him as he continued listening to Kenta's stories on the battlefield.

"There's a reason they used to call me "Oni of war."

"Because you swung a kanabo?" Kenta laughed.

"No, boy. Because uttering my name was considered unleashing the very demon they claimed me to be from the abyss."

"You must have been quite terrifying."

"If only you knew me back then, boy. The things you would have seen. I may not be much to look at now, but I was stronger, bigger too."

"Larger than you are now?"

"At least twice as large! Ah...age truly is the most deadly of poison in this world." Cooper's ears perked up to a distant sound. He waved a paw, signaling for the badger to remain silent as he lowered himself to the ground. "What you doing there, boy?"

"Listening," he said laying his ear flat on the ground. Kenta grunted.

"That trick really work? Just a bunch of damned foolishness."

"Shh...I hear something." Kenta cupped a paw to his ear. "Five sets of sandaled feet, heavily set...moving this way."

"Sandals, eh?" Rioichi pushed off the ground and nodded. "Bandits?" The raccoon shook his head.

"Samurai. Their footfalls seem too heavy for light armored bandits. I don't recommend a confrontation. They don't know of our activities yet. We let them pass as we pass them, if it does come to blows...kill if you must." Kenta's brows rose in slight surprise as a grin crossed his lips.

"Certainly don't like to leave anything to chance."

"Less soldiers, less work for us when we reach our goals. We don't need anyone living to spread among their ranks of our operations." Kenta nodded and tightened the grip on his club as they continued down the road, the badger looking up to see exactly five samurai carrying the standard of their lord heading towards them down the road. As they neared, Kenta's knuckles whitened as he squeezed the handle of his club, glaring at the soldiers as they passed, the armored faces of the honorable warriors returning a similar look of hostility. They eyed the shadowed face of Rioichi for a moment until they passed by the two travelers without a word.

As the two groups took a few steps farther down the road, they stopped. The soldiers slowly turned their heads, leering over their shoulders to the two that had their backs to them. Rioichi closed his eyes and sighed comfortably as Kenta pressed his lips together as he anticipated battle. Cooper's paws moving on impulse to grip the handles of his daggers. The samurai turned their bodies fully around and clasped their armored hands onto the handles of their katana.

They must have recognized them, Cooper making a name for himself in the Emperor's city from his previous actions. Kenta dropped the bag over his shoulder and brandished his club, lowering it off his shoulder and letting the tip rest upon the ground. The five withdrew their swords at once, the ring of steel echoing through the still air of the road. Cooper's daggers slid from their sheaths, yet they remained unknown to his opponents as they were concealed under his cloak. Turning around, he bowed politely.

Finding that politeness would not sway them, he knew that they would simply brush off any word of pacifism so they continued leering at one another, waiting for the other to make the first move. Kenta grew impatient as he swung the club around over his head and growled. "Come on then!" They obliged his request. Three rushed forward while the other two took each side respectively.

Kenta blocked the first sweep of the folded steel blade, rushing forward to slam his shoulder against the armored hide of the smaller soldier, sending him onto his back. Placing his foot atop the samurai to keep him floored, he swung the kanabo wildly, smashing into two others and cracking their plated armor, along with the ribcages they encased. Rioichi stood still until the first of the two samurai stabbed towards him. Stepping out of the way of the stab, he hooked the curved end of his dagger onto the blade, pushing it down and bury into the ground as he brought the second dagger up to bury into the unprotected area on the underside of the soldier's arm. Kenta roared as he slammed harder into the unyielding armored bodies of the still standing samurai, finally shattering the plates and sending them flying back, unable to crawl back up off the floor.

Cooper, dodging each swipe of his foe's attacks, crossed his blades over his head to stop a blow that would have cleaved him in half and hooked the bladed with his "C" curved knives and wrenched the katana from the animal's paws, swinging the weapon around in the hook so that the hilt smacked into his face, dislodging the helm from the coyote's head. The one behind him regained his footing from his previous attempt at attack and charged from behind, Cooper crouching low as he tossed a shuriken from behind to bury into the unprotected neck of the soldier. Gagging, he fell silently, never to get back up. Kenta, finished with his battle, turned back to see the lone raccoon standing amongst the battered bodies of his foes, smirking in approval as he nudged an unresponsive reptile's head with the tip of his club. "A fine job."

"We should move," Rio stated as he sheathed his blades and they started walking farther down the road, their stride more cautious now. "How much farther until we reach the city checkpoint?" Kenta shrugged and reached into his pocket for the map, unrolling the cloth and squinting through harsh eyes.

"If we keep at a regular pace…should be at least by morning." Rioichi glanced up to the sky, seeing the sinking sun through a soft blanket of clouds.

"We should continue, then." The majority of the walk was spent in silence, Kenta fishing out bottle after bottle of sake as he guzzled it down. Smacking his lips, his movements were a little smoother as he let the rice wine's influence take hold of his body. Rioichi continued staring forward, his mind replaying the incident at the palace last night. The face of the woman he had met in the palace halls seemed to swim around in his subconscious.

She was beautiful, he repeatedly thought. Such grace and agility when they fought, that which was matched only by his own skills. He was not familiar of women being in the order of Shinobi, at least not within his own guild house. But she was gifted nonetheless. "So…who is she?" Rioichi slowed his stride as he felt a hard shoulder knock into his.

Kenta smiled groggily as the raccoon blinked in confusion from under his hood. "Who is who?"

"The girl you've been muttering about for the last five paces, that's who." The ninja's brows rose as he realized he had been speaking his thoughts out loud.

"She's…no one to be concerned with."

"Of course not," Kenta chuckled, rolling his huge shoulders. Craning his neck to the left to gaze upon the jagged peaks of distant mountains, he looked back down to the slim raccoon. "She only has 'grace and agility only matched by her beauty' as you so poetically muttered under your breath." Rio's face grew warm, but he kept his composure.

"As I said before, she is of no concern. Not to us."

"So…what really happened in that palace last night? I need to be kept in a loop here if we are to be partners." Cooper's ears lay flat against his hooded head as he opened his mouth to speak.

"The woman had snuck in along with me, intent on stealing the Imperial headpiece as I did. We met, exchanged blows, and ultimately I gained the upper-hand."

"Until…"

"Until…" he paused. "The guards were alerted of our presence. I allowed the woman to leave with her life…as well as the crown."

"Such a sweetheart you are, Rio. I would have you for a stuffy, no nonsense type of man." The raccoon was about to retort, when the smell of smoke caught his attention. A small plume of dark smoke floated up in the distance, begging the duo's attention. Kenta shrugged as Rioichi continued forward, a paw resting on the hilt of one of his daggers.

A mile or so down the road, they stood in front of a roadside campsite, quickly constructed and very small. They raised their eyes to see across the camp, the barren landscape was charred and pockmarked with soot covered craters in the dirt, some still smoldering as inky black tendrils rose from their deepest pits. "A warzone?" Kenta darted his gaze about, letting the large bag over his shoulder fall to the ground as he shouldered his club. "No…no there aren't any standards. And not nearly enough evidence of an army having been here."

"What could it be then," Rio questioned. A sudden loud explosion rocked their feet as the ground rumbled beneath them. The two exchanged glances as Cooper clenched his fist around his dagger. Walking a little closer to the campsite, they poked around the small soiled bowls and the bedroll, the small fire pit still glowing with embers. A high-pitched whistling projectile screamed across the sky until it arced its way down the ground, spiraling downward and leaving a trail of sparks in its wake.

"Fireworks," Rioichi chuckled. Kenta slowly shook his head, watching the snaking flaming projectile smash into the grown and explode in a shower of brilliantly colored flame.

"No fireworks like I've ever seen."

"Ha, it works, it really works!" The excited gleeful shouts came over the rolling thunder of the last explosion, Kenta and Rioichi quickly looking to the voice's source. The small hunched over form seemed to be lugging some sort of cylinder shaped object, setting the large object down, he pointed it upward, loaded a firework rocket into the spout and lit the wick with his smoking pipe. The fuse sizzled until a loud explosion sent the firework into the sky, where it spiraled upward, and then suddenly dwindled downward, smashing into the ground in a brilliant shower of sparks. "Now…if I measure the length of the fuse…I should be able to get them to explode in the sky. But how safe the distance would it be?"

"Good afternoon," Rioichi spoke, raising a paw up in greeting. The fox as they found the animal to be a fox quickly turned his head to the two animals and nearly jumped out of his wooden sandals. The red vulpine appeared to be of a moderate age, the area around his eyes dark and sagging. His brow bore deep wrinkles under his reddish fur as the hairs on his chin and the tips of his ears were growing a striking silver color. His body was covered with fuses jutting out from every pocket on his coat and slacks, a large dark blue sash wrapped around his waist where he stuffed tools and bombs of clay within.

His brows rose, at least what was left of his brows and squinted down the two animals. "You two…aren't from the Imperial palace, are you?" Kenta shrugged.

"Perhaps, what have you got to persuade me otherwise?" Rioichi waved a dismissive arm to Kenta and acknowledged the vulpine.

"No, we are not imperial. My traveling companion and I are simply on our way to Iwata when we came upon your campsite. Tell me good sir, what is that you are tinkering with?" The vulpine eyed them suspiciously for a moment, and then gave a little jumping jolt of what had to be a dance as he chuckled.

"Why, the future, gentlemen." Cooper and Kenta exchanged glances.

"It looks like a cannon."

"Correction, a portable cannon, one that shoots fireworks. You see," the small hunched over fox slapped Kenta's large paw away from his invention as he continued to explain. "Don't touch! It's still hot. As I was saying, what better way than a traveling pyrotechnician such as myself to have his own portable firework mortar?" Kenta scratched his striped head.

"Pyro….what? You're making up words now." The fox rolled his eyes and glanced up to the tall stalk of a man standing in front of him. The vulpine's ears measured up to Rioichi's waist.

"I understand you are the intellectual of the group, yes?" Rio smirked in amusement under his hood, but it was quickly wiped away from his face. "You'll appreciate the validity of this invention, I know. You've got the look of an imaginative mind about you, my ring-tailed friend. Come here, and gaze at the future of the world. I'll be famous."

"You'll be hanged for being a maniac is what you'll be." The fox narrowed his gaze to the badger and ten turned back to his mortar.

"As I was saying before your mentally incapacitated friend sucked back all the good air around here, this is not only a revolution for fireworks, but as a firing mechanism. You see, the small wick is placed within the bit here, then, a long needle is placed by it, and when the trigger mechanism is pulled back, the needle scrapes against the flint I have placed right here, causing a spark to ignite the wick, and burn the gunpowder stored in the chamber underneath it, propelling the projectile within with explosive force." Rio watched in silent amusement as he crouched down to level with the fox as he gazed at the cannon.

"Impressive," he said calmly. "And you made this all on your own?" The vulpine nodded admiringly. Kenta shrugged his shoulders and picked up the cannon, lugging the large cylinder in one paw.

"Seems flimsy," he grumbled. The fox shrieked as he jumped up, swiping his paws up as he latched onto his cannon, suspended in the air as his feet dangled above the ground.

"Let go you ogre, don't damage it. You sake brain brewed brute. You filth spewing club swinging alcohol swilling lunk-head, let go!" Kenta looked down at the shrill voiced animal dangling from the cannon in his paw and quirked a brow.

"Damned, you're annoying." He dropped the cannon, letting the heavy metal slam into the ground hard along with the fox.

"Blast it, you could have broken it, you manic-

"Enough!" Rioichi shouted. "Kenta, leave his things be. Sir, we meant no harm to-

"Yes, yes, yes," the fox shrugged off the raccoon's assisting paws as he got off the ground and dusted off his clothes. "All you young people are so destructive, it's almost an instinctive drive for you." He dusted off his clothing and took an irritated puff at his pipe, spewing circle after circle of smoke from the corner of his lips. "Touch it again and I'll assure you a permanent residence among the gods."

"That a threat, old man?" Kenta balled his fists, towering over the elderly fox who shot a sharp glance up to him.

"You best keep your distance now," he warned, the lit end of his pipe growing dangerously close to one of the fuses sticking out of the fox's sash. "Least things get too messy around here." Rioichi watched with slight amusement."

"Well…as long as we are all making friends, my name is Rioichi. My large and overzealous friend here is-

"Kenta, I heard already. A proud name that is…shame it's wasted on a worthless pile of meat."

"And pray tell what name the gods saw fit to bestow onto you, tiny man?" The fox bowed, billowing smoke from his lips.

"I go by many titles, but you may refer to me as Takumi." Takumi wrinkled his nose up to the badger above him and gave a dismissive glance, looking back to the raccoon. "Rioichi…a very familiar name…"

"It's quite common."

"Your clothes suggest you to be anything but common. You look more along the type of…a backstabber." Rio gave a warm smile in reply.

"First impressions can be deceiving." The fox returned the grin and reached up, giving the raccoon a slap on the shoulder.

"Too true, at least there is still some sense in the world. Now, if you'll excuse me," and he turned back, prodding toward his camp, Rioichi's sharp eyes catching a small hint of a familiar mark on the fox's clothing as he rummaged through the large bag next to his tent. "Aha," he proclaimed, holding out a ball shaped object. Loading it into the mouth of his cannon, he pulled off the small stalks used to hold the weapon up at a tilted angle and hefted the large weapon with both arms. Pulling back the thread that was connected to the cannon's hammer, the flintlock mechanism ignited the wick and the gunpowder within ignited.

A brilliant explosion shot the ball forward, the force of the shot sending the fox flying back several feet before landing on his back. Kenta hollowed with laughter until he glanced to the ball's path and saw its devastation. What foliage there was on the charred landscape was now reduced to dust as the trunk of a tree was splintered in half. Takumi picked himself off the ground and shouted. "Yes, yes, yes!

"It really does work. Never before have there been a machine capable of what I've just accomplished!" Rioichi clapped his paws together slowly, impressed by the power of the device. "You two," he said, swinging around and jabbing a finger towards them. "You two are the first witnesses of the new era, I tell you!

"And you've me to thank for it." Rioichi nodded his head, kneeling down to the fox's level.

"An amazing feat to be sure, but to what use are you putting it in?" The fox quirked a brow as Rio placed a paw on his shoulder.

"What do you mean, Rioichi was it? Well, whatever you've getting at, I'll take no part of." The raccoon grinned once more.

"You wouldn't happen to know of anything that deals with the recent destruction of our dear Emperor's south tower, now would you?" The fox's ears perked up to this and he raised his shoulders tensely.

"I…I'm a simple traveling firework maker, enough of your pestering, please."

"I am asking for your assistance, Takumi, not to pester you or to turn you into the authorities." The fox halted.

"How have you come to figure this?"

"I noticed an insignia etched on your clothing. A seal of the Imperial house. I also remembered your anxiety towards us for being Imperial officials sent here to arrest you." Takumi sighed.

"You are a sharp one, Rioichi. To which house do you hail from?" Rioichi stood tall, his body concealed within his cloak as he bowed his thin form.

"The house of the Cooper Clan." Takumi's eyes lit up as he turned around.

"The line of master thief?" Cooper nodded.

"I knew your name sounded familiar." The fox went back to his bags, diving into its deep confines. "You're the one, the ninja turned vigilante back in the Imperial city. I must say, I think the route of work has you stepping down the economic ladder, my friend." Rio's grin remained on his face.

"While saving the innocent doesn't give food on my table as well as killing for the right sum, I admit I have been sleeping better at night. Also, it gave me more time to hone my craft. Speaking of which," the raccoon the pulled out a cloth wrapped stick with a wick poking out one end, the wrapped stalk reeking of oil. "I believe this belongs to you." The fox quickly snatched the explosive from the raccoon's dexterous paw and replaced it within his sash.

"So…if not to pester me and expose my reason for fleeing the city…why have you come to my humble camp?" Rio glanced to the badger to his left.

"It was my strong friend here who actually gave the idea that we seek out who caused the palace's destruction before we left early this morning." The badger rolled his shoulders along with his eyes. "Takumi, we both are on a mission to sabotage the Emperor and his plans of conquest. Will you not help us to save this land from tyrannical rule?" The fox quirked a brow.

"There…is more to this tale than you are letting on I assume. For me to take this offer would be to exact revenge."

"Mine as well," Kenta grumbled. Rio looked to the eyes of the fox and blinked.

"Revenge is just a fortunate byproduct to bringing him down. But yes…that is what I intend to do." Takumi glanced among the two for a moment.

"You have a plan of action?" Rio nodded, pointing north.

"Iwata, the first city to fall before us and be liberated from the Emperor is due north of here, along this road. We are preparing to bring down Daimyo Hibiki, along with every other wretch who takes orders from the Emperor." Takumi placed a paw to his chin, scratching it in thinking.

"Taking out his military strength…he'll be left vulnerable. Along with his constant stream of materials coming in from other territories he's taken control of being shut down…he'll be nervous…open for a chance to strike against. It is a solid plan." The master thief's eyes grew anxious, but he remained calm. "But it is a plan full of holes, flaws."

"What flaws, old man? You could come up with something better?" Kenta crossed his arms, rising up his chin to the fox. Takumi brought his lower lip into his mouth to nibble at for a moment before squaring his shoulders.

"As a matter of fact, I can, and will."

"So…you will help us?" Rioichi leaned forward, awaiting a reply from the fox who continued giving an angry glance out of the corner of his eyes towards Kenta.

"Take me to Iwata, we'll walk amongst its people and learn of what our next course of action shall be. I'll come up with what I can from the information we gather and formulate a plan of action. Where this Hibiki is…what his plans are…his weaknesses." The fox offered out a paw to which the raccoon clasped with his own.

"Thank you, Takumi. We are grateful for your assistance." Kenta grunted in reply, shouldering the sack of supplies and starting down the road once more. "Even if some of us do not show any appreciation."

"Well, I would be sending you off you your deaths if I let you leave with that fat ogre leading the way. Help me gather up my supplies, then we'll travel to Iwata."

Iwata was something of a paradox when they arrived. Guards complained of the constant stream of refugees entering the city, yet the walls and gates were so thick, they couldn't leave as easily as they arrived. There was no snow at the moment, but the biting cold breeze hinted something to come for the three travelers as they would continue north. Iwata was small, miniscule compared to the Imperial city, but it was still sizable to be considered a city, and thus, of great importance to the Emperor. It was famous for its alchemical practices with herbal medicines and concoctions, an invaluable resource for the Emperor's armies, being able to self sustain itself when the warpath became all the more brutal.

Rioichi drank in his surroundings with an instinctive sweep of his eyes, noting every detail as they walked. Kenta grumbled to himself as he took a large gulp from the bottle of sake he had hooked on his thumb. Takumi, also with an inquisitive eye, squinted through his wrinkled lids and gave a rasp of a sigh. "Quite a sight," he mumbled. "Are all these people refugees?" Kenta nodded, giving off a loud belch as he wiped his lips.

"It's a price of war; I've seen it enough times to never doubt it. But I never thought it would be this…far reaching." The first words the badger had spoken that weren't laden with explicatives for the whole two and a half days traveling to the city.

"All the more incentive for us to press on and put an end to this," Rioichi said dryly, stepping over the outstretched leg of a drunk passed out in the street, seeing similar sights at the city check point a few miles away. Turning back to his companions, Rio squared his shoulders. "We should find something to serve as a temporary hideout." Takumi nodded.

"I'm sure there are a few empty homes around here, I doubt any of the residents around here weren't evicted from the skyrocketing tax increase." The fox glanced around, sighing at the sights. "Two hundred yen for a damned drink, it's enough to make the gods weep." They continued on, ignoring the pleas of homeless and the insane mutterings of those gone mad in the head from a new strange ailment that had been sprouting up from the countryside. "See their eyes? A sure sign of the sickness."

"Contagious," Kenta questioned, covering his mouth with a paw. Takumi shook his head.

"It's a mental sickness, not a virus."

"Virus…?" The fox shook his head.

"Honestly, does anyone read anymore? It's Latin for toxin." Rio bumped shoulders with an ailing weasel that seemed to be oblivious to the raccoon as he continued staring forward like a corpse, his body trembling and shaking as he doubled over and vomited in the street. Cooper looked at the unfortunate man and cringed, but decided against helping him as he walked along after noticing guards giving them looks of suspicion. "Caused from too much stress on the body, I found many suffering the effects close to battlefields." Kenta glared at the miserable sight and shouldered his bag, continuing forward stoically.

Takumi led them on towards the poor district, each home as empty as the faces of the people who once lived in them. "This should do," the fox gestured to a condemned shack. "Dark, out of the way…"

"And falling to pieces. What's stopping the damned thing from collapsing on us the second we step foot inside?" The fox glanced around the building a moment.

"It has brass supports along the frames, it'll hold up, at least long enough for us. We plan on finishing here quickly, correct?" Takumi glanced to Rio who nodded. All three entered and took a moment to set up their equipment.

"It even has a little candle for us," Rioichi chuckled, reaching over to touch the stick of wax, his finger barely grazing it as the candle snapped in half. "Well…at least our eyesight isn't the worst in darkness."

"Speak for yourself," Takumi grumbled, setting his heavy pack down against the wall as he reached behind himself and rubbed his hunched back. "I don't remember the last time I ever had the good graces to gaze upon the backside of a young lady without having to make sure it was in fact a lady's backside." Rio grinned under his hood, pulling off his cloak and lowering the cowl from his head, his ears flicking as they found freedom from the confined slits in the hood.

"Kenta," the raccoon raised his chin to the badger. "You know of this city, correct?" The burly man nodded.

"Yah, I'll bet you'll want to know where Hibiki is, eh?"

"I'd be very grateful if you could point me in the right direction." Kenta chortled, his large chest rumbling with his chuckles.

"Daimyo Hibiki…what part of that name does not make sense to you, boy? He's not some petty citizen out walking the streets for you to stick a knife in his back. He has guards, sanctuaries, a large fortified estate."

"Guards and traps only serve to kill seen enemies. I don't plan on making myself known until we're miles from here." The badger shook his head.

"It's still not that easy, boy. Now, you're a skilled lot, not many can take down multiple samurai and walk away. But Hibiki is a smart leader and tactician, along with his bit of paranoia I mentioned on the road. He knows he's not well received by the populace, therefore is a very cautious sort. We have to plan this." Takumi scratched his chin.

"Showing hint of a brain, at last. But please, leave me to the plan of action, hmm?" Kenta flattened his ears and ground his sharp teeth together. "Now then, I noticed coming in the Iwata has a very bountiful sewer system. There was a large storm drain with a rusted cover, Kenta; you'll probably be able to break it open.

"Now, before that however, we'll need to gather some information, what's going on in this city. Rioichi, walk amongst the people and find out what Hibiki is doing."

"That seems easier said than done. Most people here don't seem the type for conversation."

"Then find other ways! Use your head. Eavesdrop, hold someone at knife point, bribe them, I don't give a damn. Or…if you're feeling like that would affect your morality too much…help an old woman across the market or give a beggar some money, then they'll have to give you something for a reward. Ask for information on an important matter."

"And what of you, old man? Only good for barking orders or do you have something on your plate as well?" Takumi chuckled.

"Of course. I'll do my part by watching guard patrols and the residence of the Daimyo. Kenta, while Rio gathers information, you'll accompany me to Hibiki's home. I'll need the protection incase problems arise." The three thought for a moment, and nodded in agreement.

"When we get all the materials that we need, I'll come up with a plan of action against Hibiki."

"How will we remain in contact, though? What if something arises and we're not together to tell each other?" Kenta snorted. Takumi merely gave a quick bark of a laugh and reached into his pack.

"We'll use this," the vulpine exclaimed, holding up what looked like a round ball made from bamboo and certain metal elements, the wire like frame of it showing the exposed gears and machinations inside.

"What is it," Kenta questioned.

"The future. Watch." Takumi gripped the small handle and cranked the device up, turning the switch sharply to the right. After a moment, the multiple propellers began to rotate, quickly speeding up so that the whirling propellers became a single disk like blur. The object then began to lift off Takumi's paws and floated in the air.

"I'm not too sure how to accurately control its flight path, but I'll figure something. Until then, I'll wind it up and send it upward. If you happen to be on a high place and see it floating about, head straight for it, I'll have a note attached to it with the current situation."

"But…what is it?" Rioichi quirked a brow as Kenta scratched his head, narrowing his gaze at the strange contraption as it buzzed about him like an insect, causing him to push it away with a paw as it came close to his head.

"I call it…a helix flyer."

"What in the gods' names is a helix?"

"It's Latin, you oaf. It means 'twisted' or 'spiral'." The fox explained as he made the motion as he twirled his finger in a circle in the air. "See, the helix flyer makes the same motion as it flies; the added force from the rotating propellers causes it to twirl in the air. It's still in its theoretical stages, but I believe the term is called inertia."

"Inertia…you're making up words again."