The Fate of Reim

Kinala didn't even backtrack a step when she saw one of the men drawing up behind her, Garret she believed she had heard he was called. Deadly sort he seemed considering he was moving faster than anyone Kinala had ever seen before. Still, where she had a will she could find a way, and now that she had the attention of her foes she would have to think quickly. And then the idea came along, and it was indeed such a marvelous idea. The young pup kept running when Garret ran ahead, and as he turned to strike she ducked right under his shot. Her small frame was perfect for the acrobatic maneuver, and thanks to her speed she managed to slide right through his legs. Oh but she wasn't quite finished with her assailants, she had a surprise for them. For as she had slid between the legs of her would be foe she had seemingly left behind a part of her staff between his legs, and as surprising as it would see the wood grew into the shape of the very wizard who had placed it there. Should Garret have decided to stand bewildered at her movement he would receive quite the shock when the clone burst forth with a punch to his chin. Even if that was not the case Kinala could still use the distraction and continued to run down the road.

130/150 Magoi:

[Do another round of posting because it's hard for me to judge the outcome based on these posts. I will say to Kinala that you would not be outside of the compound and on the road yet since you chose to run before actually reaching the exit and Garret pursued you immediately afterwards.]

Garret was honestly surprised that the small meta-human was so fast. Just as she dodged his downward chop, a beam of light from Azix struck Garret's Borg and was absorbed. A second beam had just barely missed him as he attempted to follow through with his spinning back kick as part of his attack, however the young meta-human managed to dodge that as well, though not before her Borg broke; when she ducked to dodge his chop, she didn't realize Azix had shot a spell at her legs and her arms.

As the stairs were slanted in an upward motion, Garret's body was tilted to balance in such a way that his body was actually close to the stairs above in order to perform his spinning back kick from before. It was due to this that he could feel Kinala crawling from underneath him after having dodged his speedy technique, even though her ducking underneath his legs temporarily put her in a blind spot of his until he looked beneath him.

Making a quick decision, Garret decided instead of attacking her directly he would go straight for her goal; the only escape this room offered through mundane means.

Garret used Water Falls in Reverse, a River Styx style technique he had learned from Hasan in prison not too long back, and jumped up the stairs and over Kinala at 15 m/s.

He was unaware of the effects of the spell Kinala had cast, as he didn't really have the time to look at what she had done. He had reacted as soon as he felt her crawling beneath him.

Garret would reach the door first, and he held the handle firmly with his right hand, not allowing it to be moved while surveying the scene before him and standing ready for Kinala, or her creation, to approach.

OOC:

200/250 Magoi/Stamina
1 D Tier damage to Borg

Water Falls in Reverse:

The white tailed girl was quick, Azix had to give her that. She dodged Garret's attacks, by sliding between his legs, but not before Azix's Fragments of Light disposed of her Borg. It was unfortunate that Garret took one, but his Borg, being stronger, absorbed the meter long light beam. Azix thought she had dropped her staff behind, but it began to grow into a clone of the purple magician.

Seeing as Garret moved to block Kinala from leaving, Azix handled the wooden clone. With a flourish, Azix unsheathed his Deviant with his free hand. He dealt a horizontal slash towards the clone, aiming towards the middle of its back.

Spoiler:

Kinala tracked off and tried to keep climbing the stairs that surrounded her, but she her captors were simply to overpowering on her. Garret had made the move towards the door to keep her within the confined space of the building, while the other had opted to handle her creation in place of stopping her. It would require greater cunning than Kinala had originally planned on in order to finish the goal she had in mind. She quickly climbed the stairs and made for the door and as she neared it she aimed a high kick right at Garret's arm in order to remove his barring of the door. Her clone on the other hand simply fell apart without her visual connection, a sad waste of magic but she would have to go on. Her borg was destroyed and there was no longer any way for her to defend against any form of attack, she would have to try her best to avoid the men at all costs.

[The other threads need to progress a bit more before this one can really move forward anyways. So go ahead and keep doing rounds of posting without me until you guys resolve the conflict. If anyone feels like they need a staff decision on something then just pm Yakuroro. P.S. Kinala, you've been a bit godmody with your dodging of attacks. Keep in mind that both of these men are just as fast as you and even faster when using abilities. You should have taken some damage by now between Azix's spells and Garret's attacks.]

Kinala approached Garret while he was guarding the door from her. She was quite determined to make her escape, which made little sense to the man; she was in the room, surrounded by people who developed their skills for warfare, fighting and espionage. Judging by the defensive power of her Borg he believed that, unless she had encountered some other fight on those desolate mountains, she was fairly young in her development of strength.

Her strange speed earlier, and her agile movements, certainly betrayed a decent combat sense and nearly inhuman reactions, but Garret also believed that this was, in part, a fluke. He was able to fight Hasan fairly well not only because Hasan was holding back, but because he was used to Hasan's movements. He was, after all, still new to close combat and hadn't the experience of fighting others in hand-to-hand.

But by now, he had seen how Kinala moved. She continued to charge him. She moved close towards him, within fighting range. Yet still, Garret waited. She took another step, stepping within striking range. Garret took a calm breath inwards, through his nose. He still waited, watching the entirety unfold. She took another step, now standing in front of him. Her leg tensed, and her untrained body had shown a 'tell', projecting her intention. This was confirmed not a moment later as the leg lifted off the ground and shot upwards toward his arm.

Garret knew he had an advantage in reach, here, as he was taller than the strange tribe girl. With practiced precision, his arm shot out at 20 m/s.  His technique would take into account her attempt to dodge, and follow the leg, however unlikely that would be; he aimed at it as it was halfway in the air. Setting the leg back down at that point before his technique landed, or jumping out of the way before the technique landed, would be incredibly difficult if not outright impossible.

After the first strike landed, 3 more strikes would occur, for a total of 4 strikes. The second strike would go from the leg she had raised to her stomach and, from her stomach, to her other leg. From there, Garret would attempt to strike at the arm that held the staff.

Garret had used River Styx Style: Sealing the Magoi Meridians. Each limb he struck would be paralyzed for some time.


OOC:
170/250 Magoi/Stamina

The paralyze effect lasts for 3 posts.

Sealing the Magoi Meridians:

As Azix swung his sword towards the wooden clone, it came undone in front of him. Deviant whistled as it passed through the air, not hitting anything. He was momentarily confused, but shook it off and turned his attention to Kinala and Garret further in front of him. It appeared she had abandoned keeping them both distracted in order to solely focus on escaping. Kinala was a tricky magician and Azix realized with a bemused expression on his face that while she was clearly not in the same ballpark as they were in terms of power, she was holding her own fairly well. She had not managed to inflict serious damage, but kept them chasing after her, unable to deal serious damage to her as well.

Azix trusted Garret's ability to handle her if he put his all into it, but he still approached the two to lend his assistance should an opportunity present itself. While he had no intentions of harming the girl, she could pose a serious hindrance to their plans if she got away. While he walked he gave a soft chuckle and clapped his hands. "Simply marvelous~" he directed his words to the girl, while she was dealing with Garret, she should still hear him. "I admire your determination, but I find your current plan foolish. It would be wiser if you quit resisting and refocused your efforts at another time. I'm warning you now, if you continue, I won't hesitate to give you my full attention." He said the last words with his staff pointed towards her feet, ready to react during his speech if she attempted anything.

Kinala's air left her lungs as Garret's strikes jammed into her body. They were quite painful, and she knew where he had struck as well. She collapsed onto the ground in a heap and struggled in vain to even move a single finger. It was of no use, she couldn't move a single muscle; the paralysis was complete. She made no more attempts to flee, how could she? No, she had failed the people of Reim and now even more men and women would die because of her failure. She despised the compliment of the second man, it unnerved her to no end. She spat back in a loud tone, "I don't want your praise nor your words, for this has been nothing but the fancy flight of birds. I've wasted my energy and thus yours as well, but it will not be enough to stop the coming hell. So I ask you to cease these actions you take, to leave these people in peace for all our sakes. Please, let this bloodshed end now, don't allow the hearts of more stop on this vow." With that she fell silent and spoke not a word, she had done all she could and now she would see what became of it.

Zhi and the Contractor simply stood by and watched as the escape attempt played out. The bastard prince from Zou stepped forward when the ordeal had first begun, but an outstretched hand from the Contractor stayed his impatience, "Do not waste your strength Zhi, you need to save your magoi until that moment or else the plan could fail." The prince would not like the idea of letting Kinala escape, however he resigned himself to entrusting her recapture to the men who had been capable enough to earn ones freedom from that accursed mountain prison. Thankfully, he would not have to wait long to see these agents successfully shatter the wolf girl's plans to egress from Zhi's company. Once she was captured and spoke her displeasure, Zhi made his way up the steps to her side and placed a surprisingly warm hand on her head before ruffling Kinala's hair playfully. "You just can't see the hell that was already around us. Don't worry, few will die and once I am emperor I shall end all suffering in this land. Twisted practices on men filled with greed and avarice will be cleansed from Reim like the cancers they are. Slavery and that barbaric coliseum will be things of the past...So behave like a good girl, and you may see the peace you want just yet."

As Zhi spoke to Kinala, The Contractor followed behind him and thanked the two magician's for their efforts. "Well done, albeit a bit sloppy. Thank you for handling that situation. We can't afford to have Zhi wasting his strength and time chasing down children who don't know any better. Shall we proceed to the inner city now?" Zhi would be sure to express his thanks as well before the group was led outside the compound and onto the city streets.

As they left the compound, the hooting of an owl sounded as a signal through the night air as young child operatives let each other know that a group had left the building. The Contractor stopped and turned to look down the closest alleyway where the sound had come from to find himself locking eyes with those of a young boy. "There is a boy in that alley who saw us and gave some kind of signal..." A sadistic smile played across The Contractor's lips as he turned his head meeting Azix's eyes at a glance before resting his gaze onto Garret. The magician politely made a request of him in order to test the loyalties of both men, "Go make sure that we are not followed." Despite the words, The Contractor made a motion with his thumb across his own neck to suggest that he wanted Garret to kill the child, just to be sure.

Garret listened to Azix advise Kinala, and raised an eyebrow, wondering why the man was trying to make things more difficult. Kinala explained how she was happy to just have been a burden on their resources, and revealed that she wanted to delay them as much as possible.

A real pain. But orders are orders. Garret shook his head and sighed. Zhi walked towards her and played with Kinala's hair, explaining his plans for the future. Garret did not particularly care for the changes that the man was claiming he would make, but that was neither here nor there.

The man who was never truly introduced provided a half insult, half compliment, which Garret didn't pay much mind to. He focused on the tasks that were assigned to him, and completed them. It was as simple as that.

Considering that Kinala was paralyzed, somebody had to carry her. That somebody turned out to be Garret, as he was the one with the orders to ensure she didn't escape. Sighing, Garret hoisted her over his shoulder. The small thing was just another burden he would have to deal with.

As they left the building, the sound of an owl's hoot was heard. The man, who had never been introduced, turned to them and explained that a boy was hiding in the alleyway not too far from where they were at. The man ordered Garret to make sure they weren't being followed, and motioned his thumb across his throat. Sighing, he briefly glanced over to Zhi before rolling Kinala off of his shoulder and passing her over to Rin, who simply smiled at him while whispering "Wan~" to him. Again, Garret sighed. He would ignore Rin for now; he had another task to take care of.

"Soft, soft~" Rin would carry Kinala in the 'princess carry' form, instead of the rough way that Garret had been carrying here.

With wand in hand, Garret turned towards the kid while simultaneously gathering magoi and releasing it. Frozen Jagged Ice formed around Garret's legs, up to his knees, freezing them in place as a rectangular block of floating ice. It moved forward, carrying the blue mage with it as he stood straight with arms crossed and directing the ice to crash into the child, which moved at 10 m/s.

The child panicked when he realized that his snooping had been sloppy and that he had been discovered. He turned around and tried to run away through the shadowy alley, but Garret would quickly descend upon him. The child was knocked to the ground and began begging for his life. "Please, I don't know anything!"

The ice melted, and Garret grabbed the child with a tight grip around the child's left arm with his left hand. He slid around and behind the child while holding the arm and used his right hand's gauntlet to bring the sharp point of the index finger against the child's throat. "Move, and I kill you. Shout, and I kill you. Speak only when spoken to, and answer my questions quickly. Do you understand?" The gauntlet's sharpness, while not particularly deadly, would certainly get the job done. The boy could feel that it was just a little bit more pressure before it broke skin.

Tears streaked down the boy's face as he nodded. It appeared that this child hadn't understood the risks involved with snooping, he complied, hoping it would save him.

Having dealt with Kinala just moments before had made Garret much sharper with the child, as he had expected a greater deal of resistance. But the child's display betrayed that he wasn't anywhere near resolved enough to hold any sense of what he was actually doing. Garret let some of the pressure from his index finger off of the boy's neck, but did not loosen his grip.

"Good. Tell me, how many of you are watching us? Do you have orders to follow us?" If the boy hesitated, he would re-apply the pressure as a threat.

The boy shook his head, "I'm not sure, I know there's at least one or two more around. We're just supposed to watch that dome-shaped building."

"Oh? At least two others. Do you have a call for backup? That you can call the others to us? If you're willing to cooperate, I promise nobody will be killed." Garret hadn't made the decision on whether or not he would keep that promise, yet. It all depended on the answers he would receive.

The boy mentioned that there was an emergency meetup call that could be made, where they would gather at a place nearby. Garret directed the boy to use it and awaited for the others to approach as well. He had the child call them into a nearby alleyway, threatening harm if he didn't comply.

When the children walked far enough into the alleyway, they would see that their friend was being held hostage. Garret immediately took control of the flow. He pulled out his wand and caster Water Manipulation Technique, gathering nearby water and forcing it into the boy hostage's mouth. "Listen carefully. I am a magician. All of you have been poisoned through my magic, and I just gave this child the antidote." The children saw his use of magic and were frightened, not having a good grasp on what they should do.

The child who was the hostage up till this point was on the verge of tears.

Garret began asking details about who they worked for, and how they operated. It looked like they weren't part of any group he was aware of, and that they weren't too deep in their very own organization. "Here's the deal. The poison won't kill anyone for another three days. Meet me here again in two days, and I'll make sure to give you all the antidote." The children looked relieved, as if a lot had been taken off of their shoulders.

"On one condition." They all held their breath. This man before them was not something they had expected to run into. "Your report must include how dangerous it will be out here, and that everyone should stay inside. If I catch even one of you following us, or one of your friends following us, you'll never have the antidote. Understood?" The children nodded, solemnly. "When I leave, nobody moves from their spot for the next five minutes. If anyone tries to follow me..." He gave them a warning look as he motioned his wand to signify dire consequences.

Before he left to find his way back to Zhi's group, who he knew were heading towards the Inner Palace, he would watch the children from out of sight for a minute to make sure that none of them tried anything funny.


He moved quickly, running back to the group. It would take him some time, as they were ahead of him as it had taken him some time to get matters settled with the children. Garret did not forget the primary orders he was given, either; he was to make sure that they were not being followed.

Keeping to the shadows as he took the quicker routes towards their destination, Garret moved in a manner as if he were shadowing someone who would shadow their group. He picked out places it would seem best to watch their group from through the use of familiar knowledge through working in the city, and then chose movement that allowed him a good view of those who would shadow their group. Once confident that nobody was, in fact, following them, Garret would make his way back to the group.



OOC:
150/250 Magoi/Stamina available.

I understand that everything I just did takes some time to do. Just let me know, IC, when I'm back in the group or OOC when I can join the group again before I post. I'll continue posting after your posts, and just describe things I see as I move along, nbd, until I'm able to join in again.

I worked with Azix on this post to create the responses/reactions from the children, since the children NPCs are his creations.

The poison was a bluff, and not something that's actually real.

2 posts until Kinala is no longer paralyzed.

Abilities used:

Even with Kinala's attempted escape, Zhi treated her as if he were teaching one of his flock the ways of the world. The Usurper was a curiosity to Azix, it was interesting to see what kind of person one of the Emperor's spawn had become. Azix noted Garret took it upon himself to carry the girl with a smile, the man had grown a touch softer during his time in prison, but he didn't appear to make it a weakness. Azix followed the group outside, glad to be finally moving forward with the operation.

Outside, Azix caught the sound of an owl call and a distant memory briefly resurfaced of the first time Azix had met the Contractor. The Grumptoes had been watching out for people, the owl call had been a signal to alert Azix of intruders. Afterwards, they had walked away. It clicked, that was how the Contractor had been aware. Azix felt stupid, but he didn't let it reflect in his body language. Azix met The Contractor's amused glance with an ignorant smile, using his years of practice to mask the spark of recognition.

While The Contractor ordered Garret to remove the problem, Azix caught a glance of the boy's face. It wasn't a member he knew, but they were sloppy. Internally, Azix was torn between feeling irritated that they were so sloppy and remorseful that his past actions pushed the boy into his current position. Externally, he appeared indifferent and was about to offer to carry Kinala before Garret passed the girl to Rin.

Azix waited behind, since The Contractor had asked Garret to handle the child spy. The orange magician continued to follow behind the others if they continued to walk. "I'm curious Zhi, what else do you plan to do once you claim the throne? You seem a compassionate man who is highly respected. Such a man must have a reason for inspiring people so."

Kinala hissed in anger at being touched by the man she called mad. "You fool, you'll doom everyone around even without your tool. Enough is enough with your idiotic games, let these people go and be on your way with no more flames." She attempted to struggle as she was handed around like a ball between little children. But her muscles refused to respond to her commands as they remained locked in place thanks to Garret's former attacks. She could do no more, so she simply resigned herself to remain as she was and try and keep on the up and up for things she could still do. She watched complacently as the group left from the building and started their way towards the royal palace. She watched as best she could in her attempt to understand what was going on, but she could still be thankful that she was being treated as well as she was. She had been tossed over Garret's shoulder like she was luggage, but when he left to chase after some child as she heard he passed her off to the girl who seemed to be more careful with her as she carried her. Kinala sighed as she held her position, things would only get worse.

Garret would not have to run long or far, as the group had stopped while he dealt with the Grumptoes children. There would have been no way for Garret to know which way they went if Zhi's party had continued on without him and the Contractor had an invested interest in how the magician handled his task. The unnamed enigma kept his eyes on the alley way and watched the movements obscured by shadow with careful focus while the rest of the group passed the time with conversation.

Zhi was acting surprisingly patient, all things considered. The white haired prince sighed in response to Kinala's retort and calmly looked up at the night sky and tried to gauge what time it was by the position of the moon and stars hanging overhead. Azix's question brought Zhi's attention back to earth and a subtle frown curved its way onto his lips. "As I just said, outlawing slavery and dismantling the coliseum are some of the first things I'll be doing. But that's not all. I intent to remove every stain and blemish upon Reim's people. Society must be cleansed of all moral pestilence." Zhi's fists clenched tightly and his teeth grit audibly in his mouth as he continued, "The cruel monster known as fate or destiny led this city to glory but left it's underbelly covered in a plague of mindless violence as men try to snatch a bigger piece of paradise for themselves. It is sicking that such a powerful nation would be so infected with avarice and so parched of compassion. I will destroy this fate and build a new destiny for Reim." This dialogue brought Zhi's mind to linger on curses directed at the fate of others, but these feelings all stemmed from his own depravity and a resentment for his own destiny. A flock of pitch black rukh would flutter around the man as he spoke and the air around him would feel heavy with malice.

"Zhi."

The voice of the contractor whom had yet to take his eyes off the alley way would pull Zhi from his depraved thoughts through a stern and firm voice. The prince responded like a student being warned by his teacher not to do something wrong. He looked down in shame at losing control of himself and took a deep breath before thanking the Contractor and finishing his speech. "Apologies...thank you for keeping my mind on track, old friend." The black rukh surrounding Zhi lost their catalyst and faded away as his thoughts turned towards the bright future Zhi was aiming for. "In any case, Reim is just the beginning. It's a testing ground in many ways. Both to test if I am worthy of my father's recognition as well as a place to test if the path I've chosen is indeed as just as I believe it to be or..." Silver eyes fell on Kinala as Zhi said his last words, "...if I am indeed simply a mad man." A slight smirk came over the man as he felt rather pleased with himself, thinking that such a prospect was too outrageous to even consider as a possibility.

Garret would return shortly after to find the tophat wearing magician staring at him with the most disturbing of smiles. A toothy grin that spanned from ear to ear framed sharp eyes that were filled with an otherworldly glee. "That won't do at all. I thought I made myself clear that you were supposed to deal with them. Do you plan on letting Prince Zhi's efforts be foiled by yet another child?" It was a statement intended to provoke Garret, but it held a flaw of sorts. From the Contractor's vantage point, he should not have been able to see the children through the obscuring veil of shadows that existed in the alleyway. He inadvertently revealed that he had known about them for some time. "Go on~ Go back~ Finish the job, or are you a traitor to your country? Hmm?~" The Contractor seemed to be having too much fun and Zhi took notice of what was going on.

"Enough." The prince stepped forwards and placed a hand on the magician's shoulder before turning to look Garret in the eyes. After measuring them for a moment he would nod to the man in acknowledgement, "We have nothing to fear. I shall trust his judgement." The Contractor's enjoyment drained from his face swiftly but his expression simply returned to its default creepy smile. "Very well...Shall we move on towards the Inner City then? We've wasted enough time here."

[It will take two rounds of posts before travel to the inner city is complete. In that time, please ask any final questions and bring up any last dialogue you may want to say. Once the group enters combat there will be little time for discussion. If no one wants to pursue anything then we can expedite the travel to take only one round of posts. Just make an OOC note if you want to simply move on.]

When he had returned, Garret was slightly confused, due to several things in concert. The first of which was that they hadn't moved from their spot at all which, he supposed, made sense if he were to catch up to them at a good time.

The second of which was the man's slip of knowledge that he knew how things had played out. Garret had went down an alley way, and then had to go to another spot further from that alley way in order to meet up with the other children that were watching their location. Knowing the limits of his own magic, he understood that the man had some means of long range communication available to him.

The third, and most confusing of which, was the man's insistence that he didn't do what he was ordered to, and that he was somehow betraying the Zou empire. Garret voiced his concerns. "My apologies," he said, bowing to the man. He would walk with the group as he explained his actions. "I am a member of the Zou nation. I have been conscripted as a soldier under my current leader, who has chosen to go by name instead of title; Zhi. Zhi has made it clear that you are his partner in this endeavor, so I will work to cooperate with your goals insofar as they align with his." The underlying message here was that The Contractor did not hold any real known rank and, therefore, his 'orders' didn't officially come from Zou. Garret's compliance to move on his suggestion was entirely due to the fact that Zhi said they were partners.

It was only a part of Garret's explanation of his behavior to the man. "Their immediate threat level is minimal, and I have deemed that the use of force was not necessary. In fact, working to take them out would have been detrimental to unknown future operations today, as I do not know how much will be required of me before the day is over." This was Garret's way of implying that, without knowing what operations were in store and what would be expected of him, he would be forced to ration out his strength appropriately until the throne was under Zhi's control.

While that certainly covered, logically, why Garret had done what he had done, he was not finished explaining. "Furthermore, as my commanding officer, I will attempt to operate in a similar manner as Zhi, unless ordered otherwise by my commanding officer." This wasn't determined by logic but by emotion, as it was a show of respect for his commander's choices. It was not Garret's place to cross Zhi's choice of compassion over execution. Had his commander been a man who would prefer execution, Garret would have followed what he would believe would have been expected of him at that point; execution of the children.

OOC:
Kinala is no longer paralyzed in her next post.

Azix considered Zhi's words, there were indeed social injustices he had seen. He had formed the Grumptoes because he had seen starving kids and was outraged at the lack of compassion from those with wealth. With his own money, he had given them a chance to earn a chance to live, to eat, to have more than they did. Azix wondered how far the man was willing to go before a flock of black Rukh fluttered around the man as his words became more resentful of destiny. Recognizing the feeling of malice, Azix wondered if he too would become so spiteful.

He put those thoughts to the back of his mind as the Contractor snapped Zhi out of it. Azix wasn't surprised to learn that this was only the beginning of their plans. The thought of the Contractor playing Zhi like a puppet, over Reim gave Azix pause. It was certainly a frightening thought, but his attention turned to Garret's arrival. Azix wondered whether Garret had killed them, but was pleased to hear that he had let them go. For one, that prevented unnecessary deaths. For two, it also revealed the possibility that the Contractor in front of him, might be a clone. He remembered the Contractor's trick from his meeting with Zafar. The other possibility would be the real Contractor was with them and the clone was elsewhere, watching. Or, he had other means of sensing what Garret did.

Regardless, while the idea of taking out the possible clone seemed like it would be amusing, especially if Kinala proved a distraction, Azix wasn't sure it was a good time. He hated the idea of the Contractor entrenching himself, but it would do no good to react in vain as Kinala had shown up. As Azix would expect, Zhi stepped in between Garret and The Contractor, trusting Garret's judgement that the child would be no further threat. Azix would have to find out what Garret had done later, for now, he was ready to continue on.

Kinala twitched the hand that was still wrapped around her staff, her motion was coming back. She could move again, but this was not a good time for her to attempt to escape again. If she tried to run she would either be defeated again or she would be killed, and neither actually seemed like a good choice at that moment. Instead she tried to remain as frozen as possible, she could wait until a better moment to take a chance at saving Reim. She only moved her eyes to look at Zhi and cracked a smile, "You won't win, not with your sins. You claim to be a savior of some kind, but really you're just a man with a sickened mind. You want the praise of your people and your father, but it won't happen as long as I can still be a bother. Make all the claims you want about peace and hope, but you can rest assured you'll hang at the end of a rope."

There were not many words shared between the group as they walked down the paved Reimian roads of the capital until Kinala voiced further objection towards Zhi and his actions. It was already clear to everyone by now that she disapproved of his methods and perhaps even his goals as well. It was almost impressive how she persisted in speaking out against the man. No doubt, it would probably have been a wiser choice for Zhi to have ordered her death long ago, but even now he appeared to be tolerant of the young wolf girl's words. Only one of her comments actually managed to strike a chord with the man, bringing forth a twist of agitation on his expression as he retorted without looking at the girl. "You should hold your tongue child, flaunting your ignorance of others will get you no where. I'm not doing this for praise and least of all to please my father. If I had such sentiments, the Emperor would not likely have given me this chance to prove myself in the first place..."

As the white haired usurper clenched his fist and looked up to the night sky, the Contractor spoke after him and explained a bit more about the nature of Zhi's mission. "The ruler of Zou is not a man who appreciates familial bonds. He had long since cast Zhi aside from the time that he was still in his mother's womb and it was only through my recommendation that he was allowed an audience with Gao Yuan Zu. Can any of you guess as to the reason why the Emperor entrusted so many resources into the hands of an illegitimate heir whom he'd never met before this year?" There was a pause to let anyone present try their hand at the question. Zhi was listening, but he appeared to be content to allow his partner to enlighten the group, opting to spend his time sharpening his focus for the conflict that was soon to come.

[There is 1 more round of posts before the group arrives at the Inner City]

Garret was somewhat surprised to hear from the man that their Emperor had not known of Zhi until a short while ago. He briefly contemplated the implications, and understood that this man didn't simply have a connection to the prince, but to the Emperor as well.

He understood that this meant that, insofar as influence and political power as concerned, it was blatantly obvious that this unknown had incredible pull with those in the Capitol. Once Garret was reinstated in a position within the intelligence group, he would have to gather more information on the royal lines as well as the nobility and those who hold rank. Garret had thought he had known a good deal about his country's rank system, as it was important to know who held authority to give orders. It seemed that even after studying under Spymaster Takahashi Sato, on those who held authority, neither of these two were part of his teachings.

This meant that neither of them held traditional standing within the rank system at the time of his training. It was understandable for Zhi, who recently met with the Emperor and convinced him to command a takeover operation in Reim. It's a sudden promotion that obviously took place while Garret was in prison. However the same could not be the case for the unknown man.

This unknown man had some sort of connection with the Emperor that wasn't formally recognized. Garret briefly closed his eyes, considering this fact. After he analyzed these things, he came to believe that this had several implications. The man could be part of a hidden private group, directly created and led by the Emperor himself. These individuals would be discreet in their execution of orders, perhaps bearing the burden of truly atrocious acts that the Emperor deemed necessary. Such an army could also be in the employee of the nobles, or perhaps both nobles and the Emperor could potentially make use of such a group.

Or perhaps he was a merchant. While merchants didn't directly have any traditional power, the influence of money was not to be underestimated. It was how they had converted some of the Reim official's loyalty over to Zou's.

Of course, there was also the chance that the man filled a position more along the lines of a personal guard to the Emperor, in which case there would still be a high level of influence if he was a trusted individual.

Regardless of what the truth was, Garret would not bother with the answer, as a guess or otherwise. He had spoken enough as it was, any further speech would give up information about himself and his thought processes. Instead, he would take this opportunity to listen to what the others would say. The man could attempt to provoke an answer, but Garret had no reason to say anything.

Finally Kinala had invoked an aggitated reaction from Zhi, which Azix noted. It seemed that Zhi was annoyed that she thought he was attempting to seize Reim for his father. Azix wondered what motivated the man, if not for a father's approval. The Contractor's words surprised Azix, the man claimed to hold a great influence with the Emperor. If Azix had a bad feeling about the mysterious magician, it had grown now.

If the Contractor was respected enough to hold sway over the Emperor of Zou's decisions, then he was an important man. He was a most dangerous man as well. Azix wondered at whether the Contractor had the Emperor dancing by puppet strings too, that would be a sight to see. Either way, the Contractor was either highly respected or trusted, which didn't fit the Emperor at all.

Regardless, Azix also would keep quiet, preferring to hear them voice a reason. If Azix guessed or was told, he was sure that the true reason would be hidden behind clever words and preferred to see what they said.

Kinala huffed, anger was such an easy emotion to invoke if you could find the right strings. Speaking of strings, or rather strands, she carelessly blew a few of her loose strands of hair from her face as she was carried along like loose cargo. "Blood and water run so close together, but here we will see which stays and stands the weather. Forgive my offense however, I did not mean to ruffle feathers. My tongue is sharp and has been known to sting, but other times it has been said to sing. I know not about how this political system of yours plays out, I just wish to see people alive and not without. You've killed so many back at the jail, why must more be slaughtered while babes cry and wail? It is a tragedy to see it so, must you continue on with this show? I understand your reasons for this conquest, but you will create a land without rest. This path is dark and full of pain, let it end now like the stopping of rain."

Zhi kept his focus sharp as they approached the Inner City. The sounds of conflict could be heard ringing out through the city and he appeared to be done listening to the lyrical tones from the small girl. Now was not the time to be distracted. He turned to the two men, his face stony with concentration, his voice once again composed after lashing out at the rhyming girl. “We will use the commotion of the combating groups to infiltrate the Palace of Kings. Keep the girl contained.” He turned to the Contractor, who tittered calmly and waved his hands as though to move them along more quickly. “Time and tide wait for no man, Zhi. The fighting will not last forever. We should move quickly to ensure victory.”

As they approached the Inner City, a blockade of Brotherhood of Ash men were standing guard, using their magic tools to fight off the intermittent groups of Reim soldiers attempting to reclaim the city. At the approach of Zhi and his group, two of the Brothers turned, their weapons at the ready in case they were being flanked. Upon noting the unique appearance of the Contractor and the white-haired prince, one returned to securing the blockade as the other offered a brief overview. “Sir, the General and his forces have appeared in the Inner City and are attempting to secure as much area as possible. The last we heard, he was holding his own fairly well, but elite soldiers are being forced to fight more and more due to the sheer number of Reim soldiers.” With that, the Brother turned back to ensuring the group could pass through the blockade without harm.

The group breeched the Inner City to be met with complete chaos in the distance, Kou and Reim forces fighting viciously, one to protect their home, the other to try and rip it away from them. The entire Inner City seemed to be in complete uproar, soldiers battling as sentries attempted to secure vital choke points to stave off the invasion and protect the Palace. Zhi and his group had entered the Inner City, the fighting was quickly spreading and they still needed to make it to the Palace to ensure the success of their plan. The fighting was visible but not an immediate threat, and the Contractor cleared his throat, waving to a nearby building. “Perhaps a better vantage point might suit us well.” Zhi scanned the area and found a set of stairs leading to the top of the building and nodded in agreement, leading the group to the top. The bastard prince glanced back at pair of magicians as they climbed, waving at the Palace of Kings in the distance. “Our goal is to find the quickest route to the Palace of Kings, avoiding as much fighting as we can. I do not suppose either of know of any secret passage ways? A way to get past these soldiers without being seen?”

---Front Lines---

When Asisiak, Lagi, and the Imuchakk forces breeched the inner city, the sight in the distance was one to behold. Troops along the front lines were embroiled in a dangerous dance with death, the Zou forces barely holding their own, but steadily gaining advantages through the use of magic tools and the elite forces on the magic carpets. The Reim forces were too busy fighting to take note of any reinforcements for the moment, but would rejoice at the first sign that they were not fighting alone. General Hei Lu had made an admirable dent in the Reim forces, considering his limited number of soldiers, shouting orders to his troops and the prisoners as he sliced and slashed his way through soldiers. He pushed his own troops forward steadily, trying to cut through the lines and clear the way to the Palace, the prisoners taking the brunt of the damage while the troops ensured a slightly more even playing field in battle. The elite forces were still trying to stay out of the fray as much as possible to reserve their strength, but as they pushed closer to the Palace, they were forced to fight more and more often against the formidable onslaught of the Reim soldiers.

Asisiak would take stock of the situation, pondering on the best manner in which to approach the fray before turning to Lagi, clapping him on the shoulder with a strong hand. “Are you prepared for this, human ally?”

Garret continued to listen to the Contractor as he trailed off and the walking turned into uncomfortable silence. The battle raging about them, and the sound of steel clashing against steel, made Garret wonder exactly how deeply their forces had penetrated the Inner City. Zhi provided further instructions to contain the girl, and Garret bowed, turning over to Rin who was still holding the girl with no problem.

Rin didn't seem willing to hand her over, so Garret moved to walk side-by-side with Rin in order to keep an eye on the girl. It seemed as if his entire job throughout this operation was babysitting. Rin seemed in incredibly high spirits, and was humming along as she walked where it wasn't necessary to speak.

Some soldiers, that Garret could only imagine belonged to Zhi's ally, approached them and filled the man in on the current situation. As they continued up a series of stairs, Zhi asked a question of the two. Garret bowed to the man. "I myself do not. However, before I was incarcerated, there was a mole that was planted. His superior was implicated of crimes and our mole, a treasurer, took position in a higher level of authority. He has more intimate knowledge of the palace."

If Zhi was interested and asked, Garret would offer to lead the way to where the man could be found; the man's place of office within the Inner City, where he would be holed up.

Azix walked behind the group, keeping to himself as they continued into the Inner City. He had been curious to know the Emperor's reasoning for allowing Zhi the resources to attack Reim, but it seemed neither the Usurper or the Contractor intended to provide an answer. Kinala lectured Zhi on the consequences his actions might have and Azix recognized the truth in her words. After a brief exchange of words, the party resumed the journey in silence against the noisy backdrop of fighting.

A little while later, they approached a checkpoint guarded by the Brotherhood of Ash, if Azix had to guess, seeing as they did not wear the uniform of Reim's guards. They provided a brief report on the situation to Zhi and The Contractor. The Brotherhood of Ash member's report gave Azix the impression that any advantage Kou had was slowly being lost with time. Knowing that Reim's forces could break through the front lines at anytime, Azix kept a closer eye on his surroundings.

The Contractor directed the group to a roof to look for a quick route to the Palace. Azix looked down on the fighting, wondering who would be the victor this night. He wondered where fate would lead him by the end of this night, as well. Azix was brought out of his thoughts when Zhi asked them if they knew any secret passages to the Palace. The orange magician was about to reply that he did not when Garret informed Zhi that a mole had been placed prior to his incarceration. Azix hoped the mole would prove useful in getting them there unharmed. For now, he kept behind the group, keeping an eye on Kinala.

After catching up with the Imuchakk, Lagi jumped off of Zygus and told him to stay put. “I’ll take care of this, but you’ll know when I’ll need you. You have permission to act on your own as you see fit, but be mindful of your injured partner. “After saying that, Lagi walked over to Asisiak, who pat him on the back and asked if he was ready. “ To be honest with you, it’s Saturday. I was expecting to sit on my ass and sleep the day away, but it doesn’t seem that ill have that luxury today. I have my bird, so I’m pretty good to go when you are…. Leader of the Imuchakk.” Neutral grounds for neutral gain, Lagi saw her as an invaluable chess piece in order to take back his home. That was the method that he had to resort to, and the lady herself was tolerable. He had his bow as well, which was a cheap but effective way of combat. Along with his other Magic tools, Lagi wasn’t without the necessary requirements to achieve victory. At the very least, he refused to be the weakest link.