Hello dearest readers, I'm back!

Time to get on with the happenings on Mount Reikaku.


-Trustworthy Bandits?-

Hotohori, after telling the priestess to run for her own safety and sending Nuriko after her, faces off their assailant with unmatched bravery. With blade and eyes sharp, he watches for the orange hair, listens for the trinkets he wears. The wolves he commands trailed Nuriko, but he's sure…

Yes, yes! The original attacker is still here.

"Come out, coward. Face me with honor!" His call rebounds through the clearing. He keeps his senses clear as the seconds pass in case of a sneak attack.

"Whoa whoa, now who ya callin' a coward? Yer the ones who've turned coward in my absence, takin' girls fer that asshole Eiken!"

Very deliberate stomping steps emerge from the darkness, and then the figure of the man himself. Hotohori narrows his eyes at the stranger, cloaked in black with fiery-colored hair and sharp features. His scowl has the added influence of longer than normal canines.

Then, as the clearing gets lighter with approaching dawn, the stranger squints and looks Hotohori up and down.

"Hold on a sec… Yer not… Yer not part of the Mount Reikaku bandits, are ya?"

Hotohori doesn't lower his guard but he hums in wonder. Chiriko strolls up behind him, dispersing some of the tension after exiting his hiding spot.

"No mister; we're traveling!"

There's a stillness that follows the youthful declaration.

The attacker's face droops in realization and he puts his hands up. A nervous grin and chuckle comes next.

"Heya~ there guy, this was all a big misunderstandin'. I thought ya were someone else and got carried away, haha," he says, sweat cropping up on his brow as he bashfully shuffles.

Hotohori assesses the behavior but doesn't let up. It's Chiriko, without his mark and glancing between this stranger and his emperor. Then he strolls to the stranger.

"Y'know mister, you're pretty tall."

His casual, spacey statement dispels all further tension at that point. Hotohori figures that, even without his character, Chiriko wouldn't approach someone who truly meant them any ill-will. He chooses to ignore the story about Chiriko sneaking off to the dangerous part of Jozen City.

Sheathing his sword, Hotohori keeps a firm glare of suspicion set on the stranger.

"What is your name? What is the meaning of all this?"

The stranger mutters incomprehensibly before sighing.

"I'm Genrou, and I'm s'pposed to be the boss of the gang on this mountain. But while I was gone looking fer a special herb fer our old boss, he died and some creep stole my seat!" The man, Genrou, explains. He does look rightly ashamed at his mistake, but crosses his arms and drops his guard to show he's not going to jump at them.

"You… are a bandit, then? And you were usurped?" Hotohori asks, earning a confused grunt.

"Huh? Dunno what 'usurped' means exactly but yeah, I'm a bandit. Izzat a problem?" Genrou glares in challenge, to which Hotohori gladly returns.

"Y'know, Tia musta run super far," Chiriko observes, staring out at the path he last saw the priestess run.

That's when Hotohori really notices that Tia and Nuriko haven't returned. It takes only an instant for him to comprehend his current disadvantage. He doesn't know these woods. Tia had been correct the night before in pointing out that none of them were used to being outdoorsmen. However…

"You, Genrou!"

"Huh?" The bandit straightens on instinct.

"That woman who ran for safety is the Priestess of Suzaku, and we must confirm her whereabouts now. These woods are familiar to you, track which way she went!" Hotohori orders, pointing to the very same path. Genrou stares in the direction indicated and shrugs.

"Guess I owe ya after everythin'. Let's go," he resigns, walking ahead and leading them down the path.

A fragile alliance settles into place in silence as they forge ahead. Chiriko manages to keep up, though it's slow going as he has to pick and choose carefully to keep from tripping. Tia had instructed him to be extra careful when they first entered the woods looking for a campsite.

"We're gettin' into the territory where traps are laid, so watch yer step. 'Specially you, kid," Genrou advises, then stops short. He gapes into a small, recently-made clearing. Hotohori and Chiriko peek around him.

"Holy… how did that boulder get over there?" he mutters.

"That was Nuriko, who possesses unnaturally great strength. They were here, but where did they go?" Hotohori wonders, looking around for any hints. Genrou's eyebrows furrow, but he also starts searching around.

"They musta backtracked a little, here…" he mutters, walking back. Carefully, he watches around and then catches a divergence in the path.

"Aha. They were walkin' back but musta accidentally lost the track in the poor light."

While they did carry on without delay, it became increasingly clearer that something was wrong. Tia and Nuriko didn't hear them approach. Didn't call out. It didn't take much of a trek farther in to tell why. There are multiple tramplings from several pairs of boots, and…

"No!"

Some blood and the snaking line of Nuriko's braid stands out amongst the brush! A blade stuck in a nearby tree is the obvious culprit. Hotohori picks up the braid, a grim frown forming on his face when he feels that it has blood on it as well.

"Attacked, and Nuriko could be in peril," he says. Genrou grunts.

"They ain't dead yet. If they were, bodies woulda been left. I know where the stronghold is. I got business up there anyway, might as well all go and take 'em," he says, growling afterward as he gets riled up at some inner thought of his.

Hotohori stands back up, glancing at Chiriko.

"There seems to be far more drama within a bandit gang than I could ever have imagined," he muses, disliking his current situation. He's stuck with a man he doesn't trust as far as Nuriko could likely throw him, and a child warrior without his Suzaku mark that grants him intelligence…

"I am doubtless in the most troubling of situations. Suzaku give me strength," he prays, desperately needing some form of divine providence… and patience, for that matter.

"We must return to gather everything from that campsite for now, and plan as we do so," he directs. Genrou, predictably, starts up in protest.

"Now hold up, there ain't nothin' back there that ya really desperately need, is there?" he argues, but stops when Hotohori holds up a hand.

"There is an item that Lady Tia needs with her, or I fear her spirit might shatter. As brave as she is, we all have limits…" he explains, earning a confused look. Chiriko hums sadly.

"Well alright, but let's hurry. I gotta pal up there who's expecting me and I can't promise yer priestess chick'll be safe fer long," Genrou relents, heading off back to the ruined camp. As he does so, he begins talking about the specifics of how much danger Priestess Tia is in.


"The border at last."

His mumble isn't to anyone but himself, but he wonders if perhaps she can hear him a little. He hears her sometimes, although he's heard nothing this morning. His gut feeling is that something went wrong, she could be in danger! But she isn't calling to him, and she's with the other warriors (he has absolute faith that she got Hotohori out of the palace somehow), and she's so very strong... Surely his mission comes first right now. He has to ignore those feelings.

Chichiri takes a deep breath, closing his eye.

Ever since they parted, all he desires is to return. Before he left, before he turned tail like a coward steeped in memories of nightmares, she took his hand and made him look at her, really look at her.

He can still feel the warmth of her lips at the edge of his temple, at the edge of his scar. The warmth of her words, "be safe, come home." The warmth he doesn't deserve.

But it's that warmth he keeps holding close. These past nights, that same nightmare hasn't crept into his mind again. Her words, filled with a deeper, dearer meaning, have banished it away. He doesn't know how long it will stay gone. For now, though, the refreshing and terrifying reminder that he's capable of feeling so alive is more than enough to keep him determined to return to her.

He knows things still can't progress between them, but that voice of dissent gets smaller as time goes on.

"Time to focus up, no da! I have to be safe for this to be a success," he thinks, glancing around the wooded area carefully. It's not a border crossing, of course. That would be too obvious, although he might watch one for a couple days just to see if there are any obvious Kutou spies entering from that point. Open war hasn't been declared yet so the two countries remain open for commerce. He doesn't understand all the political intricacies regarding trade mixed with military tensions but he's not entirely sure he wants to. The war room meeting was more than enough to tell him that running an empire is not his cup of tea.

After feeling the tiny chi of the sentry on the other side of the wall pass by on the other side on his patrol, Chichiri uses as little of his power as possible to transport to the other side of the wall. Once there, he keeps still and suppresses his chi. This is the most dangerous portion of his journey so far. Once he's deeper in the country and away from the border, however, no one will question a wandering priest. With the strife of the world at present, it's only natural to have them around.

No alerts. No yelling. All is peaceful. The camp of soldiers nearby that must patrol the area doesn't stir. Chichiri breathes a sigh of silent relief. Now he can sneak by and be on his merry way!

"The outskirts of the capital will be the best place to hear any mutterings of the priestess no da. I wonder if Tia would know her if the rumors turn out to be true," he wonders, getting easy distance between himself and any soldiers around. Soon enough, he's gone to the point where his pace can be relaxed and natural, not so suspicious.

He turns more northeast, but stops when a breeze picks up. It brings with it the smell of ashes, and unmistakable death. He frowns deeply.

"Even in the midst of civil unrest they can still invade Konan. Perhaps their priestess will save the people instead of helping the terrible desires of their overlord, no da."

He pivots to avoid the carnage. For now, he doesn't want to chance walking into a battleground. He has a feeling there will be plenty of opportunities for him to wander into poor towns downtrodden by strife.


Tia slides along, wondering how she'll get out of the mess she's in while also keeping Nuriko safe. The man leading her to his boss gives off an okay vibe but the situation obviously dictates that she can't trust anyone.

"What's your name, Mr. Underling?" she asks, breaking the monotonous shuffles in the hallway. The man perks up and pauses, turning to look at her. He tilts his head in study, and she shifts impatiently.

"I'm Koji," he answers, but then his eyes go wide in realization before he puts his hands to his cheeks, which go rosy. He bats his eyes at her. "Why, have you fallen fer lil ol' me? I warn ya, I'm an infamous heartbreaka 'round these parts!"

Tia blushes brilliantly before stamping her foot.

"No! God, I was just asking!"

Koji roars in laughter at the retaliation and continues down the hallway. Miffed, Tia mutters about him having thick eyebrows that need a weed whacker held to them. A few minutes later, the group is standing outside a large set of double doors. She keeps her grouchy expression as Koji takes a deep breath. Behind her, the henchman bandits groan a bit.

"Knock knock; Who's there? It's Koji, with the one girl we captured here to parley with the boss! Oh, is that right? Come on in! Thaaaaank you!"

Tia observes the strange ritual with a somewhat troubled expression.

"Maybe his vibe isn't malicious because he's plain weird," she thinks, but has no more time to ponder his behavior when she's shoved forward into the room.

"Ah, Koji! I see our lovely guest woke up at last to join me!"

The man in the room who called over has Tia's face morphed into an outright, unabashed grimace. The leader of the bandits lounges drunkenly on a mound of cushions, bottles of alcohol strewn around him, with a cloud of stink wafting around him that reaches her nose all the way across the room. He's large, with a scraggly neckbeard, and even unkempt dirty clothing and armor. Koji jabs her in the ribs and hisses for her to straighten up.

"Foreign! Nevva had one-a them before," the boss burps, eyeing her with too much lechery for her comfort. All sense of inner calm flies away when Koji bows.

"We'll leave ya to it, then."

He turns. Leaves.

Tia gapes between the now closed doors and the cruddy mess of a man in front of her.

"Crap. Well, at least Hori-sama is still out there probably!"

The boss beckons her over, having decided she's definitely his type. She resists throwing up in her mouth and trudges over.

"Koji said ya wanna parley?" he asks in what he thinks is simpering. To Tia it just sounds like if sludge could be vocal.

"I'm the Priestess of Suzaku, and I'm looking for the rest of my celestial warriors. I was brought here for a reason, so tell me: Are there any men in your gang with a red glowing character on their body, or are named for a constellation?" she asks, going for broke and getting straight to the point before the situation goes askew. The boss blinks slowly, comprehending her words with a dopey grin.

"Oh, uh… Like a rash or sommat? We pretty clean here, missy, a right buncha gentlemen!"

Tia groans and rolls her eyes.

"No! Not like that!"

But she sucks in a breath when she sees his hand jolt out to grab her. Like she's seen from her warriors and from what she's learned with her soldier friends in the palace, she hops away in a light dodge. The boss grumbles in disappointment. Tia's heart rumbles in her head as she hopes beyond anything that she can stall long enough for a miracle!

"Hey, grabbing a lady is rude. We were talking," she garbles, flashing an anxious smile.

"Now c'mon Miss, if ya want me to talk about yer man with a character on his body, there's gotta be some give 'n' take! That's what parley is, right?"

The boss approaches again, having rooted Tia with his words confirming that he knows there's a Suzaku Warrior around. She tries, briefly and desperately, to feel for them.

"The one nearby must be Nuriko, that's easy, but…" her thoughts trail to the other two warriors somewhere down the mountain. Try as she might, she can't feel them yet. She doesn't feel anyone else either, anyone who would be her "fifth."

In her lapse, the bandit leader clamps a hand around her upper arm and drags her back a few feet. Snapped from her concentration, she snarls and attempts digging her heels in, her sneakers making squeaking sounds against the tile.

"Hey hey hey you stop that, I was thinking about something! Dickhead!" she spits, managing to wrench her arm away because her opponent is too sloppily drunk and still in a playful mood.

"Oooh, well awright, tell me whatcha want," he slurs, not put off in the least.

"Stop touching me, first off. I ain't giving you what you're looking for, so quit that right now," she snaps, face flushed at even having to endure this situation. He hasn't looked at her face once.

She gasps when she feels the nearby chi spike, Nuriko!

The bandit boss has frowned now, starting to get tired of waiting. His mind hasn't worked out how to get her pants off yet, because what kind of woman wears pants like that, and it's aggravating him. He reaches for the knife he keeps on his person, as any reasonably skilled bandit does.

"I don't like this game yer playin' anymore," he rumbles, drawing the blade and earning a desired step back out of Tia. She keeps backstepping, fumbling over words, knowing that merely shouting for help or for Nuriko wouldn't do her any good. Calling more bandits to the room would be the opposite of progress.

"Uh… uh… umm…" she fumbles and stutters, knowing she's running out of room fast. Nuriko needs to know where she is, he's obviously found his opportunity to break free and get her out! But how to do it without alerting other bandits?

On instinct, she tips her head back and sings a lyricless call. The boss stops, confused, as Tia's face contorts into a strange grin.

"That's right! I can sing. Like a lark, all day long. Here, listen," she says quickly, before rounding into a frantic, but altogether complete version of "The Sound of Music." Having participated in the musical in high school, the words are ingrained forever in her mind.

It works. Nuriko is getting closer, and the boss is distracted. Not only that, but her lips tip up more when she realizes…

Faintly, at the edge of her mind…

Three more presences, the chi of Suzaku Warriors, have appeared. Three.

"Oh yeah, it's all coming together," she thinks victoriously, hopping about to increase all appearances that she's performing as dutifully as any professional! The jig comes to an end quickly however, because the bandit leader isn't as amused with her display as she hoped he would be. He advances with his knife at the ready.

Tia shrieks, jumping away as best as she can with her arms still bound behind her.

To their right, an explosion of plaster and stone bursts through the air. Chunks of the material hurtle through the room and slam straight into the boss's face, and luckily whizzing by Tia. She still feels a pinch in her left arm, but nothing bad enough to draw her attention. She looks, frantic, to the one who busted open the wall.

"Nuriko!"

There, with Koji hardly resisting while being "dragged" around in his other hand, stands her Suzaku Warrior. His face is contorted in rage, any and all pain gone from the wound on his back. The symbol on his chest blazes bright. He stomps forward, dropping Koji. The bandit doesn't mind, and doesn't even leave to get reinforcements. He looks rather pleased with these developments.

"You!" Nuriko snarls, focusing solely on the dazed bandit leader. He grabs the louse by his grubby shirt and easily lifts him. "A lady resists, so you resort to that, huh? How does it feel when you're up against someone who can really fight back?!"

Tia has to shake herself from the suddenness of the situation, and her surprise. This isn't the way, it wasn't back in the tavern with Chiriko, and it isn't now. Not to her.

"Nuriko, calm down! I'm fine! He didn't get to do anything to me, I held him off long enough. You didn't rest like I told you to, just look at your back," she scolds, though shakily. Indeed, red is beginning to seep through the bandages on his back. Despite this, Nuriko keeps his hold.

"Tia, haven't you noticed what he did to your arm?"

Tia blinks, and looks down at her right, which ends up clear, then…

In her upper left arm, the bandit leader's knife. Blood is soaking into her shirt sleeve. Now that she sees it, the pain begins to register, along with nausea at seeing a knife in her arm.

Swaying, she takes a deep breath, and whispers, "Nuriko, this isn't what we're about. You know that. He knows who the fifth warrior we're looking for is, anyway."

A pause stretches between them before Nuriko growls. Slowly, he places the boss back on the ground. Once finished, he turns to Tia, expression changing completely.

"Hey, you'll be fine. We'll have to keep it in for now so you don't bleed out right away but I'm sure we can get it fixed up soon," he comforts, keeping hold of her with a tough grip to keep her from passing out.

"Ugh. I could feel Hori-sama and Chiriko and someone else nearby a bit ago, head's too swamped to try again. They might've called him back," she mumbles, the pain in her arm growing as the feelings of immediate danger pass. Nuriko nods.

"Well, ain't this been interestin'? You two better come with me. I know all the other boys have heard this racket by now and are strollin' down the hall ta see what's what. You c'n trust me tho, my buddy should be arrivin' soon to take back his spot as the leader of this gang." Koji, for all the calm he attempts to project, does approach hastily with hands up. Nuriko glares but Tia giggles tiredly.

"I think we can trust this guy. Sort of."

Koji smirks at the vote of confidence.

"You heard the lady. Let's move, before that fat bastard wakes up and sics everyone 'n everything on us!"

Without any other option, Nuriko allows Koji to carry Tia, which he does respectfully, and out they run from a hidden door in the back of the room. Nuriko grunts from the increasing pain on his back.

"That's pretty convenient," Tia murmurs, though Koji manages to hear it. He surveys the area before leading them onward to a set of stairs set in a nearby cliff face.

"The old boss had lotsa tricks, that's what made him a great leader," he explains, keeping his voice low. All talk ceases as they wind up the stairs. Their efforts are rewarded with a small, tucked away building that Koji opens after asking Tia to stand. Once the trick lock is opened, Nuriko and Tia are hustled in.

"I'll be right in, but I gotta send a signal to Genrou that there's been an upset and that I'm up here," Koji explains, and then disappears from the doorway. Nuriko leads Tia over to a low table and sits her on a cushion.

"We got lucky, for now…" Nuriko mumbles, delicately taking Tia's arm and laying it on the table. He mumbles apologies when she hisses in pain. Sweat beads more on his face as Tia stares on, and she sees how much paler he's getting.

"Nuriko broke those chains and did all that for me… while injured so badly!" Feeling touched at the unbelievable show of ferocious loyalty, she buries her anxieties, tears, and guilt for now.

"You should try and keep still. I'll be fine, I'm a tough girl, a corn-fed American," she says, voice a bit hoarse after singing with no proper warmup. Nuriko pokes the side of her head before leaning to rest on the table more.

"Hotohori-sama won't be impressed that I let you get stabbed, though," he sighs, eyes drooping.

"Oh please, it's not like he could've done any better in that situation… Nuriko? Nuriko!" Tia realizes that her friend has drifted off, eyes closing. She calls frantically for Koji to return.

No one and nothing seems to answer her cries.


To me, Genrou is the epitome of "He a little confused, but he got the spirit." This will, of course, be elucidated further as the story continues.

Thanks to everyone reading, and to those who review/fav/follow/etc! It's greatly appreciated.

Til Next Time!

-A