Unspoken
one night...
"They sing to
the heavens
They speak to the dead
I've never cried to give you more
Than I already have
Don't take my ocean
This safe harbour wanes
Take me far away
Hide me from my demons"
The tall woman finished
the last verse of the song, carrying the note high up, emphasizing it using her
arms. Her companion gazed softly across fire at her, running his eyes across
her tanned face. She was tall for a nineteen year old, her silky night hair
drawn up into tight buns, each adorned with roses. Her eyes were of a bright
blue color, shimmering with a mysterious secret. Once she was finished, Tao Mai
plopped herself down next to her squire, leaning against his shoulder.
" Ya know, it's
not exactly the best thing to be singing that," the fifteen year old stated.
"Oh shut up. I
like it. It gives me hope," Mai informed him, sitting up to stir a large metal
pot over the open fire.
" Yeah, gives
you hope, me willies!" Haano Yuki
complained. Behind his determined face, two large horses whickered in dismay.
After mumbling something about horses not liking the song, he fell silent and
took over the job of cooking.
His black hair
and black eyes matched perfectly with his Asian skin. Everything of theirs was
pretty tattered, but they had managed to mend most of the stuff. His brown
slacks moved gently to the rhythm of the wind, shifting the green shirt he wore
unbuttoned. Neither of them carried much jewelry, except Yuki wore a set of Dog
Tags around his neck.
Mai simply wore
a short purple skirt and a neck cuff silver shirt. Above that she wore a very
light suit of black armor which simply looked like cloth, however it was spun
from a firerat's fur. Thigh length boots managed to cover four knives. Pieces
of purple cloth were wound around her hand, creating a sort of glove. Her only
noticeable feature (besides her strange clothes) was a tattoo of a tiny black
butterfly, dead center on her forehead.
Yuki cursed
loudly into the still forest as his shirt almost caught on fire. Turning
towards Yuki, Mai nearly gasped from fright. Yuki stared at Mai as he once
again stirred the pot. An eyebrow raised on his forehead when he saw the
hackles rise on her back. She again had that familiar gleam in her eyes, a
deadly one. Catching on almost immediately, Yuki began to whistle loudly, as
though he had no care in the world. A few moments passed, before she made her
move.
With a great burst of sudden
strength, Mai leapt across the small fire and behind Yuki to hit the cloaked
figure dead on, straight in the forehead. With a loud smack, the dark figure
hit the ground and did a backwards roll towards the edge of the clearing, away
from light of the fire. Yuki sprang into action by grabbing several pieces of
firewood and dowsing them in perfume. Mai followed the attacker using a
combination of handsprings and flips. Finally, both opponents stood face to
face with each other.
Yelling wildly, the cloaked man
sprang upwards, hoping to land on top of Mai. Dodging swiftly, Mai held off his
followed kicks and punches, silently biding her time. Striking forward, Mai
brought her fist and leg forward at the same time, smashing into his stomach
and nose. Quickly she turned her back to him and rammed her elbows straight to
his chest area, bringing her left foot back and up at the small time, hitting
him in the groin.
Meanwhile, Yuki fumbled with his
several torches, trying to latch them to nearby trees without burning down the
royal forest. Giving up, Yuki jabbed each one into the ground, lighting up the
arena. Sighing deeply, the boy returned to his pot, so as to not spoil the
batch.
The mysterious attacker was now in a
bad position: flat back against the cold ground, Mai sitting daintily on his
chest. Yawning loudly, Mai shifted her position on him, digging her knee
muscles into his sides, knocking the wind out of him.
" Okay, why
don't you tell me what you're doing attacking an innocent girl like me?" Mai
questioned the man, latching her hand around his neck, ready to squeeze. From
the fire, Yuki coughed, almost sounding like "bullshit".
" I'll never
tell a wimp like you!" the man cried furiously, but fell silent as her hand
began to squeeze.
" I wouldn't be
talking, 'shrimp'. Now, how about this. I'll tell you a nice, little secret,"
she whispered into his ear, making the man even more afraid.
" You see mister, when I squeeze this blood
vessel right here," she demonstrated by placing her fingers on the main blood
vessel to the brain, " and I squeeze real tight, I clog your blood flow, so no
blood or oxygen goes to your brain. Meaning, you have 30 seconds to live," Mai
finished her "lesson", squeezing the vessel tightly, nearly snapping it in
half. The man immediately tried to double over from instinct, but was forced
back by Mai's body weight.
" I can fix it,
if you answer my questions," Mai teased him, flashing an evil grin. After
quickly nodding, Mai squeezed the vessel back into place, causing the attacker
to take in deep breaths.
" I was told by
my employer to attack anyone within these woods tonight! There are many more
like me, poor men willing for any job that comes by the tavern, and I am
guessing many more are here tonight," the man informed her, slowly taking off
his mask, revealing two ugly scars on his cheeks.
" Who's your
employer?" she prodded again.
" I don't know
that mistress. He never gave a name," he whimpered in reply. After shaking him fiercely,
Mai threw him out into the forest with the message, " And don't come back!"
Mai sat down
across from Yuki once again, this time staring at the trees.
" It's going to
be an exiting night in the forest today," Yuki sang in a childish voice.
Should I
continue?? You tell me...