Thanks for all the reviews, you know who you are. ;) (Tatsu, Relena, etc.) =)
------------------------------Chapter 9 Bandits in the Woods-------------------------------------
Guilin was a mountain region, so one would expect a rigorous journey both to and fro. Many moutain
ranges stood tall, superior, attributing a monstrous size as well.
The mountain pass wasn't exactly the easiest pass to traverse. However, Ryo and Shenhua had
come that way, so they would have to make their way back that way. Besides, Shenhua knew the
region extremely well. Most of the paths she knew like the back of her hand. Which was a lot
to say, since the paths sometimes stretched for several miles.
They had been traveling for a couple of days now. Ryo was hardly exhausted, and seem to always
be moving at a faster pace then Shenhua. He had slowed for her quite a bit, because exhaustion
had come over her quite a few times. Which was odd since she was use to moutain trials.
Shenhua looked up to the sky which was now regressing towards nightfall. The sun gradually
made its way to the other side of the planet, for it duties over the current hemisphere were done.
Ryo notices this, he knew they would have to find shelter soon. Shenhua seem to have the same idea,
as he looked at her face for compromise.
The trees seem to enclose around them making a secluded feel apparent. They were traveling downslope;
one avid in geography, would know they were headed towards leveled ground.
Casually, the moon had found its way into the sky now; stars continued to creep into their assigned
areas; creating a beautiful picture. Ryo looked to Shenhua again, this time initiating conversation.
"Shenhua we should really found shelter, it is getting dark and...."
She cut Ryo off.
"Can't you smell it?"
Ryo gave her a perplexed stare.
"I can smell wood burning, perhaps someone has settled up ahead..."
Ryo could smell it now that he was informed about it. He could also see a distant light, it was
at the bottom of the slope.
"Oh I do now, we should see."
It didn't take them long to reach the area where the fire was burning; in the middle of the woods.
Two locals sat by the fire, having not noticed the two strangers approaching them. Ryo decided
to alert them of their presense.
"Excuse me."
A bit startled, one of the locals; a rather pudgy fellow, picked up a piece of firewood and was ready to attack, but he
was immediately stopped by his companion.
"Sorry, excuse my friend, he is a bit jumpy."
The man seem to have the popular hairstyle of the region, with his head fully shaven; and a ponytail
going down his back. He wasn't exactly the most attractive fellow, having a few blemishes to
show on his face. His complexion wasn't the best either, eyes were beady, black, but filled
with a quite innocence. The gentlemen's clothes were nothing special, a white linen vest, with
firey red pants.
The fellows companion seem to wear similar attire, yet he was hardly considered anywhere near being
attractive; he would even admit that. The back of his head was fully shaven, leaving the top full
of bushy unattended hair. His eyes were also very dark and beady like his counterpart.
"No problem" Ryo responded, hardly wavered.
Shenhua cluthed on to Ryo's arm, she was a little afraid of the ordeal that almost occured.
"Sit down, sit down, tell us who you are, lets converse." The smaller of the two gestured.
Ryo and Shenhua sat opposite of the two, still a little uncomfortable with the new found strangers.
"My name is Ryo, Hazuki, this is Shenhua" Ryo said with some effort.
"Hazuki? That name isn't from this region. Forgive me for asking, but are you a foreigner?"
"Yes, I'm from a land far from here. Its called Japan."
"Interesting, oh excuse me, my name is Cai Lun, and this is my brother Cai Lin."
Ryo nodded.
"So why are you two wandering about?" Lun asked interested on the subject.
"Ah, we are traveling to a Miao village called Guiyang."
"Oh, Guiyang eh?." The Lin answered.
"A dangerous place for Foreigners." Lun added.
"I see."
"But you got to be careful, these woods aren't safe." Lin said in a nervous tone.
"Oh?"
"Yes, a bandit group called the Deadly Snakes they attack wanderers in this region, so be careful."
"Will be fine. But thanks for informing us, will watch out."
"Not a problem. You can sleep here with us for the night. I guess will part ways in the morning." Lun smiled.
Shenhua eyes were full of fear; was this really getting to her? He thought to himself.
Ryo gaze was comforting to her, it release some of the tension she had on her shoulders.
"Don't worry Shenhua, just rest for now."
Shenhua nodded, resting her head on Ryo's shoulder
---The next Day---
Ryo was somewhat tired of eating nothing but dry fish, it annoyed him, but he would never show it on
his exterior. The wind rustled effortlessly through the leaves, resulting in a restless sound. Above, the
sun found its way back to the Guizhou region.
Having bid farewell to their newly found friends; Shenhua and Ryo set off again. The paths looked
boringly the same to Ryo. Well, getting to Guizhou wasn't gonna be an easy ordeal. Both knew
it would take days, maybe weeks, they were prepare however.
It was about noon when they came across a tree with an omnious message that read: "Beware of the
Snake." Ryo turned immediately, their was a rustling noise in the bushes behind them.
"Ryo..." Shenhua said fearfully.
Two figures jump from behind the bushes, revealing themselves; one laughing hysterically, the other
smirking arrogantly. The two agressors, both dressed in ragged attire; homemade mask concealed their
faces. Only their eyes could be seen, black, and full of menance.
"What the!?" Ryo said somewhat confused.
Shenhua let out a shriek as two more appeared from behind them, dressed similar to their allies. Ryo glanced back in with his peripheral
vision.
"So we got stragglers do we?" The apparent leader gestured.
"I think so, give us your things, and the girl too" Another spoke.
"She'll come for a pretty price hehe"
Ryo sized up his opponents, he would have to take each them out with decisive moves. At the same time
he had to watch that Shenhua doesn't get hurt.
"So what will it be? You gonna do it our way right?" The leader asked.
"Like Hell I will, Shenhua run!" Ryo retorted.
Shenhua ran towards a nearby tree; crouching by it; in fear, her concerns focusing on Ryo.
"Hah! If that is your decision...will show you what the Deadly Snakes do to fools like you.."
They begin to surround Ryo; snickering confident they would do away with the foriegner promptly.
Ryo got into his stance, raising his right arm to his chest level; his left arm slightly above
his waist.
"Come on!" Ryo Challenged.
Ryo saw an opening in their defense; decisively, he performed a foward tumble to get out of their circle. Any
advantage they had of attacking him completely were all but gone. As soon as he rolled up to his
feet. He was met with his first attack, a unorthodox spinning roundhouse kick; Ryo easily parried
the kick, following up the parry with a strike to his opponent's abdomen. The bandit eyes gaped out
from his sockets as he fell back; disoriented, the wind escaping from his stomach.
Ryo wasted no time charging at the next bandit, where he was met with a left punch which he
anticipated completely; dodging it slightly, he immediately focused his strength into his mid section;
charging head on with his elbow into his enemies solar plexus. The result was the same as the first,
the bandit dropped to the ground unconscious.
The Japanese native, took a shot to the chin, which he was unprepared for; since he had finished dispatching the
previous fallen. A little off balance from the punch, Ryo quickly recovered; basically because
he didn't possess a glass jaw. His focus hardly lost, Ryo countered with a series of punches that
decimated the bandits upper and lower body.
The leader looked in awe at his fallen comrades, he quickly regained his composure however.
"You! I'll show you!"
"Bring it!" Ryo countered.
The leader stormed at Ryo with a flying axe kick, in which Ryo easily evaded. The bandit
followed it up with a high side kick; Ryo found this very easy to guard since it was intolerably
slow. Ryo countered with an open hand strike aimed at his opponent's left pectoral, the impact
stunned the bandit, before he hit the ground; incapacitated.
"Ah..." Ryo sighed a relief
Shenhua ran over to his side hugging him with an unyeilding grip.
"I'm so glad you're ok" She said with compassion in her tone.
"I would never let them hurt you.." He looked down into her eyes; sincere.
-----------------------------------
Again thanx for the reviews, I will continue to update. Keep this fic alive with reviews. :)
------------------------------Chapter 9 Bandits in the Woods-------------------------------------
Guilin was a mountain region, so one would expect a rigorous journey both to and fro. Many moutain
ranges stood tall, superior, attributing a monstrous size as well.
The mountain pass wasn't exactly the easiest pass to traverse. However, Ryo and Shenhua had
come that way, so they would have to make their way back that way. Besides, Shenhua knew the
region extremely well. Most of the paths she knew like the back of her hand. Which was a lot
to say, since the paths sometimes stretched for several miles.
They had been traveling for a couple of days now. Ryo was hardly exhausted, and seem to always
be moving at a faster pace then Shenhua. He had slowed for her quite a bit, because exhaustion
had come over her quite a few times. Which was odd since she was use to moutain trials.
Shenhua looked up to the sky which was now regressing towards nightfall. The sun gradually
made its way to the other side of the planet, for it duties over the current hemisphere were done.
Ryo notices this, he knew they would have to find shelter soon. Shenhua seem to have the same idea,
as he looked at her face for compromise.
The trees seem to enclose around them making a secluded feel apparent. They were traveling downslope;
one avid in geography, would know they were headed towards leveled ground.
Casually, the moon had found its way into the sky now; stars continued to creep into their assigned
areas; creating a beautiful picture. Ryo looked to Shenhua again, this time initiating conversation.
"Shenhua we should really found shelter, it is getting dark and...."
She cut Ryo off.
"Can't you smell it?"
Ryo gave her a perplexed stare.
"I can smell wood burning, perhaps someone has settled up ahead..."
Ryo could smell it now that he was informed about it. He could also see a distant light, it was
at the bottom of the slope.
"Oh I do now, we should see."
It didn't take them long to reach the area where the fire was burning; in the middle of the woods.
Two locals sat by the fire, having not noticed the two strangers approaching them. Ryo decided
to alert them of their presense.
"Excuse me."
A bit startled, one of the locals; a rather pudgy fellow, picked up a piece of firewood and was ready to attack, but he
was immediately stopped by his companion.
"Sorry, excuse my friend, he is a bit jumpy."
The man seem to have the popular hairstyle of the region, with his head fully shaven; and a ponytail
going down his back. He wasn't exactly the most attractive fellow, having a few blemishes to
show on his face. His complexion wasn't the best either, eyes were beady, black, but filled
with a quite innocence. The gentlemen's clothes were nothing special, a white linen vest, with
firey red pants.
The fellows companion seem to wear similar attire, yet he was hardly considered anywhere near being
attractive; he would even admit that. The back of his head was fully shaven, leaving the top full
of bushy unattended hair. His eyes were also very dark and beady like his counterpart.
"No problem" Ryo responded, hardly wavered.
Shenhua cluthed on to Ryo's arm, she was a little afraid of the ordeal that almost occured.
"Sit down, sit down, tell us who you are, lets converse." The smaller of the two gestured.
Ryo and Shenhua sat opposite of the two, still a little uncomfortable with the new found strangers.
"My name is Ryo, Hazuki, this is Shenhua" Ryo said with some effort.
"Hazuki? That name isn't from this region. Forgive me for asking, but are you a foreigner?"
"Yes, I'm from a land far from here. Its called Japan."
"Interesting, oh excuse me, my name is Cai Lun, and this is my brother Cai Lin."
Ryo nodded.
"So why are you two wandering about?" Lun asked interested on the subject.
"Ah, we are traveling to a Miao village called Guiyang."
"Oh, Guiyang eh?." The Lin answered.
"A dangerous place for Foreigners." Lun added.
"I see."
"But you got to be careful, these woods aren't safe." Lin said in a nervous tone.
"Oh?"
"Yes, a bandit group called the Deadly Snakes they attack wanderers in this region, so be careful."
"Will be fine. But thanks for informing us, will watch out."
"Not a problem. You can sleep here with us for the night. I guess will part ways in the morning." Lun smiled.
Shenhua eyes were full of fear; was this really getting to her? He thought to himself.
Ryo gaze was comforting to her, it release some of the tension she had on her shoulders.
"Don't worry Shenhua, just rest for now."
Shenhua nodded, resting her head on Ryo's shoulder
---The next Day---
Ryo was somewhat tired of eating nothing but dry fish, it annoyed him, but he would never show it on
his exterior. The wind rustled effortlessly through the leaves, resulting in a restless sound. Above, the
sun found its way back to the Guizhou region.
Having bid farewell to their newly found friends; Shenhua and Ryo set off again. The paths looked
boringly the same to Ryo. Well, getting to Guizhou wasn't gonna be an easy ordeal. Both knew
it would take days, maybe weeks, they were prepare however.
It was about noon when they came across a tree with an omnious message that read: "Beware of the
Snake." Ryo turned immediately, their was a rustling noise in the bushes behind them.
"Ryo..." Shenhua said fearfully.
Two figures jump from behind the bushes, revealing themselves; one laughing hysterically, the other
smirking arrogantly. The two agressors, both dressed in ragged attire; homemade mask concealed their
faces. Only their eyes could be seen, black, and full of menance.
"What the!?" Ryo said somewhat confused.
Shenhua let out a shriek as two more appeared from behind them, dressed similar to their allies. Ryo glanced back in with his peripheral
vision.
"So we got stragglers do we?" The apparent leader gestured.
"I think so, give us your things, and the girl too" Another spoke.
"She'll come for a pretty price hehe"
Ryo sized up his opponents, he would have to take each them out with decisive moves. At the same time
he had to watch that Shenhua doesn't get hurt.
"So what will it be? You gonna do it our way right?" The leader asked.
"Like Hell I will, Shenhua run!" Ryo retorted.
Shenhua ran towards a nearby tree; crouching by it; in fear, her concerns focusing on Ryo.
"Hah! If that is your decision...will show you what the Deadly Snakes do to fools like you.."
They begin to surround Ryo; snickering confident they would do away with the foriegner promptly.
Ryo got into his stance, raising his right arm to his chest level; his left arm slightly above
his waist.
"Come on!" Ryo Challenged.
Ryo saw an opening in their defense; decisively, he performed a foward tumble to get out of their circle. Any
advantage they had of attacking him completely were all but gone. As soon as he rolled up to his
feet. He was met with his first attack, a unorthodox spinning roundhouse kick; Ryo easily parried
the kick, following up the parry with a strike to his opponent's abdomen. The bandit eyes gaped out
from his sockets as he fell back; disoriented, the wind escaping from his stomach.
Ryo wasted no time charging at the next bandit, where he was met with a left punch which he
anticipated completely; dodging it slightly, he immediately focused his strength into his mid section;
charging head on with his elbow into his enemies solar plexus. The result was the same as the first,
the bandit dropped to the ground unconscious.
The Japanese native, took a shot to the chin, which he was unprepared for; since he had finished dispatching the
previous fallen. A little off balance from the punch, Ryo quickly recovered; basically because
he didn't possess a glass jaw. His focus hardly lost, Ryo countered with a series of punches that
decimated the bandits upper and lower body.
The leader looked in awe at his fallen comrades, he quickly regained his composure however.
"You! I'll show you!"
"Bring it!" Ryo countered.
The leader stormed at Ryo with a flying axe kick, in which Ryo easily evaded. The bandit
followed it up with a high side kick; Ryo found this very easy to guard since it was intolerably
slow. Ryo countered with an open hand strike aimed at his opponent's left pectoral, the impact
stunned the bandit, before he hit the ground; incapacitated.
"Ah..." Ryo sighed a relief
Shenhua ran over to his side hugging him with an unyeilding grip.
"I'm so glad you're ok" She said with compassion in her tone.
"I would never let them hurt you.." He looked down into her eyes; sincere.
-----------------------------------
Again thanx for the reviews, I will continue to update. Keep this fic alive with reviews. :)
