AN: Hello guys! I just made a Tumblr account. So I'd you guys want to talk to me or know about future projects, you will find them mostly there.
I'll stop posting updates here on the notes. Making it as clear as possible. I am not a regular at social media, since I really don't like using them, but I'll try my best.
By the way, my fics will also be posted (and reposted) in both Ao3 and Royal Road.
Sorry for the short chapter, a lot has happened this week.
[This means Japanese]
(This means mongol)
"This means a thought or memory"
This is a Location
This is emphasis.
This is also emphasis
ALL CAPS, or like this is a shout.
Jin woke up, not seeing his companion at his side. Probably for the best. He was still thinking about the whole "selfish" debate they had.
He felt… Angry. Like what the man he called friend was purposefully going against what he stood for. Sure, face the enemy head on was proved to be suicidal, he already admitted that. But now go against normalcy and call everyone, not a single exception, selfish?
Jin saw his point, but he didn't agree with it.
"Humans only commit selfish actions" is in itself, something that ignores important nuances and criteria for judging actions.
Jin's first assassination for example:
It's egoistic of him to use of backstabbing tacticts? No. Because he isn't doing it out of his own benefit, but benefit of other individuals. It's a collective thought process. It's in fact, the complete opposite. It's altruism that is shining. He is doing it for other people's lives.
An action that is more beneficial than detrimental to everyone aside the the agent of said factors. Whatever Aiden said to him doesn't apply for him. Sure, both points are right in a way. But if Aiden uses this philosophy to everything and everyone, things might be bad for him. If anything, Aiden is a personal ethical egoism.
Jin sighed. He needed sake to get his mind ready for today.
He got up and asked one of the maids of the establishment for food since he was quite peckish. As soon as Jin left his room, something got his attention. He saw Aiden swing his sword in a Bamboo Stand and failing to cut up to the fourth piece.
He saw how his stance was better, but his strength was lacking. Aiden managed to use his whole body to swing his blade, trunking his hips, using his legs and twisting his elbow, just like a basic punch. Yet, the angle of the swing was off and would never cut it unless it was the sharpest iron in existence.
"Aiden, try swinging like this", Jin said, doing some practice swings on his own.
Aiden was gasping for air and in frustration to properly reply Jin, but still followed his instructions.
swoook*
This time, instead of stopping at the fourth piece, he stopped at the seventh, which was a great improvement.
"Godthisishard", Aiden said really fast as to not waste much of his almost depleted breath.
"What happened to you fo you to be in this early in the morning training? And I never saw you training", Jin asked amused.
"I kinda don't want to fully rely on you. Be independent and all", he said sheathing his sword.
"You should eat. We will go after Yuna at Azamo Bay. The sooner we get Taka, the sooner he can develop the tool needed to climb the walls of the Castle", Jin said as he showed the way to the food.
"What about the Straw Hat Ronins?"
"You will escort Taka to the Komatsu Forge. The mongols will probably be there, but we will be able to repell them", The Samurai said with a quiet determination.
"I sure hope so", Aiden said as he started eating.
"Keep quiet!", A male yet young voice could be heard inside a voice.
Both Fox and Samurai dismounted their respective horses and walked to the house where the noise came.
"You want quiet? Don't asked me to go against people who drink horse blood!", The same voice came, although slightly louder.
"I wasn't asking. Not after Komatsu", Yuna's voice echoed disdainfully.
"That was misunderstanding…", the man said too quick for his own good.
"That was a scared sake merchant trying to waggle out of trouble", she pointed in a matter-of-fact manner.
"And it worked! I off-loaded that sour rice water, and you—"
"—had to look over my shoulder for a month", she completed, annoyed, "You owe me. You know that".
"Fiiiiine…"
Meanwhile the men outside are looking at each other with a simple thought in their minds:
"They have history together".
Jin opens the door and both enter in there house.
"Taka is counting on us", she said demandingly.
"Oh and I love the kid, but this is too dangerous, it won't work", He said, scared.
"We will make it work", Jin said, just like a General would speak to his army.
"These two? One has a broken armour and the other isn't even Japanese", He said, underwhelmed.
"Watch it. You're speaking with Lord Sakai, Jito's nephew", Aiden said uncaringly to the poor merchant.
The said merchant immediately gasps, apologizes and bows respectfully.
"I am Kenji, upstanding merchant, renowned sake brewer, and—"
"—the man who almost killed me. Twice", Yuna interjected with a grin.
"I already said I'm sorry!"
The trio ignored his cries.
"And… the best swindler of the island. That's why he will help us rescue my brother in Azamo Bay", she said now looking at Kenji.
Who could only sigh.
"So what, he is going to deliver booze, we'll hide on the back of his wagon and infiltrate the town?", Aiden asked as if this was the worst plan imaginable.
"When you out that way it does sound dumb…", Kenji said sheepishly.
Aiden and Jin just groaned at the merchant.
"It's not like we have much if a choice. If we are spotted, either going in or out, Taka is dead", Jin declared, still unsure.
"Oh c'mon! Let's have little drink… Talk this through… eh?", Kenji tried to bargain.
It failed. Miserably.
"When we approach the place, you climb up the wagon", Kenji said as he prepared the horse for the wagon.
"The mongols won't check it?", Jin asked.
"Oh no", he waved his worries aside, "It's the same delivery of sake I always sell them! They love my 'dars' hehe", Kenji said with a mix of pride and malice.
"You're helping the enemy?", Jin asked, now a bit angry.
"Careful Jin, he is doing it only so the mongols don't target him. With them drunk and him alive, he gets both of best worlds. Not dead and free to walk", Aiden explained to the samurai who now was calmer.
"All set. You all sure you want to go through with this?", Kenji asked, still hoping for them to give up.
"I'm not sure, but I can think on a solution to help you complete what you need", Aiden said.
"Anything for Taka", Yuna said grasping every help so this plan won't fail.
"It involves grenades", Aiden said, much to the concern of the samurai. And a puzzled face of merchant and thief.
"Are you—"
"Using it far away from the cages and attacking Mongols? Yes", Aiden clarified before any misunderstanding was made.
Jin and Yuna sighed in relief.
"What's a grenade?"
The infiltration was incredibly successful, giving that the group was at every disadvantage. The group split into two (three) groups. Aiden would cause havoc away from the cages while Jin and Yuna followed the Mongol Captain that had the keys. (Kenji is just going to escape as soon as possible)
As soon as Jin used his grenade as a signal that they secured Taka, he would start killing every single mongol in the camp. Well, as many a she could.
Sure enough, the explosion came and Aiden got down to business. He used his kunai and threw it on a barrel of powder. The explosion was big enough for the Mongols to divert their attention from the initial blast. A few grenades were thrown here and there and no one batted an eye to the missing blacksmith. Like he never even existed.
For a few brief moments, Aiden felt he was at home. Shooting criminals (or rather, exploding them), taking his time to plan the next move and a getaway if things got south. Ever since he got here, it's been a paradise for him. He didn't have time for his intrusive thoughts to interfere with how he lives his life.
His habits of looking at his shoulders are a must-have in this situation. It wasn't paranoia, he was just… It's better to be safe than sorry.
Nah, Aiden is not a hypocrite. He knew very damn well that he can only comfortably live in the ends of the worlds, regardless if it is his own or other doomsdays. He panicked when he arrived? Yes, but now he feels like this is the only place he wants to be, and if not this, any other battlefield, warfare, disaster…
Aiden Pearce, the protector of Chicago, wants a very simple thing:
The world to be under constant war.
"(There he is! He's the one causing up this mess!)"
Aiden looked down at his watch tower and saw a few mongols showing themselves. They are either going to climb up, shoot him with the archers or cut the columns so the structure collapses. Aiden had a better idea. He jumped from the tower to the nearby mongol, sword in hand, descending with full speed and force, piercing the entire body with the sword.
It was hard to take the sword out of the body. He even needed to use his legs to push the body away from it.
"(Get down! I'll shoot!)"
Aiden heard the usual noise that came out of the archers every time they would shoot an arrow. It was good so the soldiers could duck before being hit, but also telegraphed the attack for whoever was being shot. Aiden just bent his torso to the side and the arrow passed right through his side.
"Close, but not close enough", Aiden comments mentally.
Aiden prepare to use his [Wind Kenjutsu]. The gods, mythological creatures or whatever that comes to his dreams when he sleeps, they are going to be responsible for his death if this turns out to be a fluke.
"[Storm Strike]!", Aiden thinks while performing the attack on the biggest mongol near him.
The amount of blood that came out was inhumane. The other Mongols were shocked to see an older and foreigner man be able to kill the meanest and (technically) strongest soldier in a single attack.
And despite his age, he was fast.
"Okay, that's a start".
Another Mongol tried his luck against the foreigner. I mean, it was just one man. What can he possibly do against an entire town? All by himself?
This same man never lived to see the end of that day.
Aiden used the tactics he learned with the gods. If his sword got stuck in a shield? Twist your sword towards the offhand, so not only they can't use their swords, but have their back fully displayed. A kunai or grenade would do perfectly fine against the unwarned Mongol.
He got surrounded? A body feint, roll or human shield later and he could quite easily micro-manage the battlefield, as long as he wasn't gasping for air. Indeed, the [Wind Kenjutsu] allowed Aiden to move fast, kill precisely and go after the next one, rinse and repeat.
However, Aiden was also noticing how ineffective some of his attacks were. The fact that he needed to use both hands constantly to properly swing his sword made his off hand useless in some encounters. A shorter blade would do just fine, using only one hand while the other could grab a tool, the enemy or even feint more properly. A knife or dagger, hidden enough, could greatly improve his skills.
But alas, it's time to leave.
"Hiraki!", Aiden shouts to his horse since the battle was getting long enough.
The dapple horse sure appeared right after, allowing Aiden a smooth escape. Or he hoped for at least. Of course the Mongols ran after him, shooting arrows at his horse and trying to block his way. It proved fruitless when said man kept throwing grenades at anyone who dared approach them.
Hiraki for his part, was utterly terrified of the explosions, but maintained composure.
"Komatsu is just over that bridge", Yuna said.
"I see everyone's all right. Hello, Taka", Aiden says as he gets out of his hiding spot.
"You were the one that made all that noise?! How are you even alive?", Kenji said exasperated.
"If only he knew", Aiden thinks back to Chicago. How would they react to a grenade launcher?
"It's a pleasure to know you, Lord Aiden", Taka said, ever so politely.
"I'm not a Lord but, thanks".
"Komatsu has a forge. The best in the island", Jin said, refocusing on the objective.
"Great for making tools", Yuna added.
"Maybe something for Jin to climb up the walls of Kaneda Castle?", Aiden asks.
"What do you say, Taka?", Yuna turns to her brother.
"My saviors, I'll do anything to repay what you've done for me", Taka struggles to say, but manages to.
Aiden, Yuna and Taka galloped their way towards Komatsu. Taka was still very shaken up given the recent events he endured, but as Yuna said:
"With food and rest, he'll be fine".
They didn't talk much. Aiden was still thinking about how he can make his PX4 worth the keep. Bullets are out of the list. They would need to constantly steal powder in order to mãe them. Not to mention the fact that the bullets are millimetrically equal. It's hard to make one bullet, imagine making thousands of them.
"Aiden?", Yuna asks, breaking his line if thought.
"Yes?"
"I spoke with Jin before. We saw you fight while we were searching for Taka and he told me about your… philosophy. Quite a unique philosophy".
"And you also disagree", he says, not really caring too much about it.
"That's not my point.", She says, which makes The Fox confused, "My point is that you're lying".
That makes Aiden stop his horse, "What?"
"You are lying. If you only cared for yourself you wouldn't help people in need. Not even in England", she says with a neutral face. As if she was just telling him that the food is ready.
"I already told him why I did and do what I do", he rebutted.
"But then you wouldn't care about the safety of your family. You became something they despise so they could be safe", She pointed out, making Aiden scoff.
"That is different. I would obviously protect my family", he said with bitterness.
"And that benefited you how, exactly?"
Aiden couldn't say for sure. They are safe, yes, but he doubted that Nicole or Jack would want to see him. His actions doomed his family and only when they left was when he had a slight sense of security.
"You don't lie only about the past, but the present as well", Yuna continues, "When we were retrieving the sword of Lord Sakai, you constantly reminded us that you could save the others that are still alive. When I asked you why you bothered saving that man with his baby, you said that 'it was only natural'. You had some connection with Jin in his dilemma about breaking his code, showing constant care about him, making sure he evolves past his pride and code. You also helped with the grief of Lady Masako Adachi, allowing her some sense of self. If that's being selfish, I don't want to be selfless", She finishes quite triumphantly.
"That…", Aiden couldn't say anything.
"Sir, allow me, but you do care about others. You just don't realize it", Taka says after being inspired by his sister.
The siblings look at him, waiting for his answer.
"I need time to think".
"Take as long as you can. We still need to go to Komatsu and kill the Mongols that are there", Yuna advised.
Aiden looked afar and saw Komatsu full of Mongols. He noticed how they are far more well equiped than before, using armors and weapons that probably took time to craft. Yuna was the archer of the group. Aiden was the assassins, but Taka was only a blacksmith.
They needed to make this right.
"Taka, can you make something that helps us distracted the guards?", Aiden asks as soon as they approached the city without the horses.
"I p-probably can, but what should I do?", Taka stutters at his suddenly inclusion.
"It has to be something that make noise. Maybe a ball full of chimes?", Yuna suggested.
"I can make that. The forge has a lot of chimes we can use", He says, pointing at the house where the forge is.
"Good. I will kill the ones in our way. Yuna, you take the ones above us. Taka will follow us closely", Aiden orders his allies.
At that, everyone nods.
Aiden, thanks to the [Wind Kenjutsu, swiftly kills many of the guards in a multi-assassination technique. This speed was noted by both siblings that were in awe at his speed. Yuna however, didn't have time for being shocked, since a mongol almost spotted them. With a a quick jolt of her hand, an arrow hit the Mongol in the head, sending him to oblivion.
"Yuna definitely needs the Hunter's blessing", Aiden thinks.
Taka, even though he couldn't help much, still spotted new paths to walk and a few enemies they could take out. He wasn't useless and made it clear. Of course he is a blacksmith and no blacksmith is useless, but in this setting? He need to show business.
The trio manages to reach the forge and Taka makes quick work of the distraction tools.
"I just need time to work here", Taka says as he opens a few drawers.
"We'll make sure no one gets here", Yuna calms her brother.
"This city is full of them. We probably killed twenty and there are still more of them", Aiden says in slight frustration.
"The island is full of them. Only when we kill the Khan they will think about setting their foot here", Yuna says with anger in her voice.
"For now, let's wait. We shouldn't take unnecessary risks", Aiden says as he closed a few doors.
Taka works silently in his craft. This tool can be uses both as a way to make other leave a location or lure them to a trap. It will be loud enough to attract one Mongol. Luckily two, but that's enough for the task they have.
Date of Publication: 22th, October, 2023
