Chapter 1
Grace and Beauty
'How do you get past that door?' Sky growled into the ear of a man who's throat was conveniently in front of the blade of one of his sabers.
The ugly sailor explained exactly how to open the door and how you had to get the old man to open it for you. Shame he was already dead.
Sky pulled him away from him wiping his hands on his pants, disgusted. The bastard that had killed his daughter was hiding behind a door he had no partner to open with.
'Fuyao!' I women in Tho Fan screamed. 'Give her back to me!'
Sky froze in place as the memory of seeing his daughter on the roadside hit him like a sword through his gut. Oh, Pinmei.
He would not let this women share his pain.
He stalked the noise silently crouching as a pirate yawned and stretched.
Sky leaped with the grace of a cougar, He had spend his whole life training the grace and precision of the shadows.
'Help us!' A older women, the same women, shrieked in Tho Fan. He gripped the twin blades and the wood split to shards into splitters.
'He freed the slaves!' The pirate slurred in a drunken voice. ' You'll pay for that maggot!'
Sky sneered. He hated alcohol. ' Will I? if you have any sense at all you'll let me drive a blade through your masters throat and I'll forget I saw you.'
The man spit toward the direction of a person in purple. One with a gold BLADE. 'Oh certainly, We'll let you stroll upstairs and kill our master. Would it help if we drew you a map?
The other pirate beside him sound like he was… uhhh… lacking. 'Uh, I don't think Goa would like that.'
I wasn't serious you idiot! We'll kill this fool and the go back to our drinking! He's just one man, he can't beat us all!'
Sky sneer. 'Look around the odds aren't so much in your favour. There's still a chance to run'
'What are you talking about fool?'
'You haven't noticed my partner over there?' Sky invented wildly, we hoped this women would have some ability in the battle field. ' Don't let her grace and beauty fool you. She's deadly. This is your last chance to run' Sky Smirked at the obvious confusion on the pirates face.
After a moment a drunken growl ripped through the drunks lips ' Good, that only means that the thief won't die alone! Attack!'
Sky drove a blade through the leader as a second women jump from behind the first. Her hair was in a ponytail and she wore magenta. She was a fighter obviously, but nothing compared to the women he dragged into this.
The women in purple drew her blade and almost danced towards the pirates, she weaved and spun killing pirates after pirates with in seconds. But it almost looked like she was attracting them with some kind of weakness…
The last pirate in the room fell to her feet, she smiled towards the slaves motioning them to run. They obeyed without hesitation.
With a glance she turned to Sky, her brow dropping into a slightly angry look. The women was beautiful, even when she was mad.
Sky's eyes opened in amazement 'How'd I know you would be deadly in a fight? You'll have to accept my apologise for dragging you into that. But I can't afford to be stopped. Not now.
' My name is Sky, it's good to see another person in this place who can't stand these slaving dogs.' The bastards who can kill a five year old girl…
The girls face curled up into a half smile ' Good thing I was here to save you.' The girl in magenta laughed, it was a giggling sound. The sound of a child.
Sky fought himself, he wanted to laugh and ask this girl a million different questions. But the man who killed his daughter was just beyond a few walls. 'Indeed, I find I'm just not saved enough these days. Shame that.'
He shook his head. Go you idiot, it's just a women! But she could help you open that door… 'It was obvious you weren't with the pirates. Why not deal with them quickly? There's bigger game upstairs.'
Sky's lips threatened to pull back again, what was up with this girl? 'Speaking of which, there's a very secure and equally intimidating gate blocking the way, but if we work together it will be simple to crack.'
The girl pulled her brows together again, this time in confusion. 'How do you know this place so well?' She spoke in a powerful voice, but it was as soft as wind chimes.
'Oh, it's funny the things you can learn if you ask at the right time. Like when you have a knife to someone's throat.' Sky snickered devilishly under his breath, ' Questions like, How to get to the upper level of this place despite that security door.'
The girl in magenta looked sick, as if my killing a man slowly disturbed her. The girl in purple merely shifted her weight. ' Why are you here, Sky?'
Two things happened at the same time, within a second. His stomach lurched to his throat when she said his name and a whirl of pictures of his dead daughter filled his mind. He internally shook. ' That's a… personal matter. A man here took something very valuable from me and I intent to repay the favour.'
The women nodded. 'Gao the Greater.'
Sky goggled at her. Was she here for the same reason as he was? Not to avenge a daughter of course, she looked like she was maybe 20. Then again. He was only 22. Having had Pinmei younger then he thought they would.
'If I had more time.' which I don't. he added internally. ' I'd want to know what brought you here, I expect it would be quite a tale.'
A flicker of something crossed both of the women's faces. Was it pain? ' After we open the door why don't we work together?' The girl in purple asked as the girl in magenta shook her head slightly.
Sky laughed 'Coming from you that's a tempting offer. I'm a fool to turn you down. But what I have to do here I have to do alone. Once you press the button on the door we can go our separate ways.'
Sky thought about the million questions he wanted to ask her. The strongest was What's you name? which with a smile would have put any woman into his bed. But He didn't have time for that… now. 'I have to ask… in case we never meet again. Who did you train under?'
The women back up a step. 'Under Master Li of Two Rivers.'
Sky nodded. ' He must have been a genius. You fight like no one I've every seen before…' He was deeply impressed by the women in purple. Who would have thought such a perfect women would waltz into a place like this.
Her eyes narrowed as forced her… full… pink lips… Focus Sky! To move. ' People have told me that before. What's so strange about how I fight?'
Oh crap. She took it as a bad ting. ' It's more intriguing then it is strange. Like a trap that isn't there… I'm sorry I'm wasting time. I'll pull the lever when your close to the door. Good luck with whatever brought you here.'
Sky jogged into the other direction, the women who had cried for her daughter ran to the women in purple and told her that her daughter was missing. What did the women in purple care?
Hopping onto the platform he was happy for an excuse to watch the women in purple. She hugged the women who spoke in Tho Fan and promised to find her daughter.
She was with the Way of the Open Palm.
She moved up gracefully towards the stairs. As soon as she touched the door the weasel head Sky pulled the lever. She disappeared behind the door with the sound of battle.