The Rise of the Yuan [SOLO/PLOT]

The dirty ground sunk away from the guidance of the wind as Yushin took his steps into the western front. It had been a while since he visited this particular field of the world. He was no stranger to the nomadic life of a particular group, traveling here and there across the expanses of the known world; aimlessly...seemingly with no purpose. It was quite well known, even throughout the far reaches of the east, that this particular region had once been a site of great battles, but he knew of a group that had found a way to thrive here. Yushin preferred it this way. A life of roaming had developed predominantly over the years, and the Sangju youth made many acquaintances along his travels, one of which resided here in these very grounds.

He had remembered, on one occasion, when his father was ill, Yushin was sent on a diplomatic mission to the Jeongju. To his dismay he was turned away and on his return back to the Sangju camp, he was ambushed by a particular group of people. Apparently he had trespassed their 'territory'. Sure there was a misunderstanding, but after an initial tense and hostile situation, the clan and Yushin warmed up to each other.

He attempted to recall the markers that had led him to the clan. They had agreed at one point to meet again in the future, however it had been a couple years since then. I could have sworn it was around her. He racked his brain to remember. The clan had a peculiar greeting call towards their brethren, but they were generally hostile towards strangers, especially strangers who wandered into their territory.

The breeze had simmered down to a gentle touch, and the sun began to fade away towards dusk. In a matter of an hour or so, it would be nightfall.

Yushin took a seat and rummaged through his bag and procured a piece of jerky and a jug of water It wasn't much, but if he wanted to find any chance of seeing the clan, it would have to be at nightfall. "Once night sinks in, they should set camp and fires." He deduced. As he chewed into his piece of jerky, Yushin huffed at the strange idea of waiting. For a place that was so expansive and clear, it shouldn't have been this difficult to locate a large group of people.

...

A half hour had past and Yushin awoke, dazed and slightly confused. I must have nodded off. He deduced. He yawned accompanied by a stretch and rose to his feet. The sun had nearly gone by this point he had noticed, yet some was off. "I don't remember...where am I?" It didn't take him very long to realize that he was no longer in a clear space, but in a rocky, mountainous area. He could make out camps and tents surrounding him, and the smell of hot food trickled up into Yushin's nostrils uninvited.

"Welcome...to the Night of the Yuan." Yushin spun around to these words and he was met with a ferocious group of people glaring down on him.

The demon eyes of the Yuan pierced deeply into Yushin's essence, and in turn, the Uncrowned Prince's radiant light responded to the glaring red eyes.

"Well I finally found you...I am graciously humbled to accompany you this night...my dear Yuan friends."

The man in the middle, who seemingly appeared to be the leader of the clan, stepped forward ahead of his retainers. His red eyes gazed into the outsider as he surveyed the white haired boy up and down with his eyes. From Yushin's perspective, the greeting wasn't a strange one. In fact, he had expected such treatment from the Yuan. It was their way to be untrusting of strangers, no matter how familiar they appeared to be. He stood his ground, unrelenting as the scourge of eyes penetrated deeply into him. Why should he fear, they were his friends after all.

The man in the middle finally, raised his hand and signaled his retainers to cease. Their eyes relaxed, and in turn, the leader of the clan devilishly grinned. "So you've finally come then? He took a step forward and laughed whilst patting Yushin on the shoulder. "That was a bold move, laying around asleep like that. You could've been..." He didn't finish his sentence. Rather he mockingly chuckled at his visitor and crossed his arms.

Returning the laugh with a smile, Yushin greeted his old friend. "Kan...it's been too long." The entire clan had approached the scene now, and many of the onlookers watched with curious eyes. Many grinned, others appeared stagnant, nonetheless, they knew who this boy was. He was no stranger to them. Long ago, he had cured a plague that had riddled the clan, almost exterminating the entire people. Of he hadn't arrived, the Yuan would most certainly have died out, erased and forgotten from this world.

The two remained locked to each other, one grinning, the other smiling. With a simultaneous laugh the two took each others hands in a sign of friendship. "I knew you'd come back again someday!" Kan exclaimed in a delighted voice. "But this is so unexpected! What brings you here now? He asked.

"Oh you know," he started, "It's always nice to reunite with old friends! Traveling clans like us, we need to stick together." Kan, amused by the answer rubbed his chin in response. "I see. Well then. It's been a while. What do you say?" He unsheathed his sword and pointed it towards the Uncrowned Prince. Yushin, in turn amused as well by the turn of events unsheathed his geom as well.

"I say," He swung his geom downwards towards Kan, "We give your people a show."

The clash of steel rang throughout the barren wastelands of the Western Front as the two swordsman met each other midway. Kan, an exceptionally skilled warrior in his own right, impressively parried the oncoming attack and ran his blade down the geom. Yushin, who was experienced as well on his own, recognized the maneuver and pushed off his opponent to the side by pivoting his front food and turning his body.

The exchange had been quick, but the subtle conversation between the two men was undeniably real. With no more than a brief second occupying the time between the next actions, the two combatants flew at each other in a thundering rush and clashed their blades once more. "Is this all you've got Yushin? I could've sworn that you were far better than this!" Despite the mocking remark, Kan's tone showed visible signs of grunting as he struggled to keep Yushin at bay. The white haired youth in turn, also found it difficult to continue the scuffle. "Don't sell me too short," he grinned, "I'm not quite done with you yet!" Yushin proceeded to kick his foot behind Kan's and managed to trip his adversary to the floor. Kan was visibly surprised by the move and fell to the floor.

"Ugh!" The clan leader tried to swiftly recover himself but it was too late, Yushin's blade stood inches away from his throat. With a sigh, Kan relented and dropped his sword, throwing his hands up as he did so. "Fine." He laughed and scratched his head at the results of the little bout. "You got me, now help me up would you?" Yushin obliged and took Kan's hand. With a pull from the two friends, Kan stood to his feet and picked up his sword, sheathing it shortly after he managed to grab it.

The wanderers locked eyes with each other, and once again, the clash between demon eyes and white aura raged between the two. The clan, who had spectated the bout between their leader and their savior, watched with intense focus. After a while, Kan advanced towards Yushin and embraced him in a brotherly hug. "I'm glad you're here!" Yushin returned the hug and laughed. "I'm glad to see you Kan!" The entire clan came to life after holding their breath for son long.

"Why'd you have to be so tense like that?!" One of the clansmen cried out. "Had me cringing!" The clan began to laugh at the emergence of bantering between the clansmen. Yushin was viably satisfied by the liveliness and overjoyed by their presence. When he had first met the Yuan, they had been intensely hostile and cold towards him. It wasn't until after he had gained their trust that Yushin was opened up to another world. The Yuan were a family, as such, they were like brothers and sisters. With each other, they showed overriding love and compassion. Strangers, however, did not receive such treatment, or at least not until they were deemed trustworthy.

They trusted Yushin, and in return, he trusted them back. However, the reason why he had come was a serious one, and the Sangju man mustered up his strength to proceed with his visit. "Kan. We need to talk."

The Yuan leader carefully rubbed at his chin at the result of Yushin's words. It wasn't entirely shocking, but it would be a lie if Kan didn't admit that it was unexpected. "A preparation huh?" The question was contemplative in nature; in honesty the request was a heavy burden to bear. The two friends had retired to Kan's office quarters where he dealt with official business regarding his clan. By custom it was offensive to barge in without prior notice unless there was some form of emergency. Now that he thought about it, Kan was relieved that he had taken measures to confide in such a secure room. The Yuan clansman turned his gaze away from the desk back to Yushin with a questioning expression. "This is a great deal of you to ask, friend." The feint hesitation in his eyes watered into the Sangju man's presence as the two conversed with each other privately.

Yushin stood across from Kan away from the table that the other had taken close to. The look that he received from his friend gave Yushin no shudders or doubts throughout his body; rather he merely looked pressingly back to Kan. The two of them had been friends for a little while now, and even though they had rarely seen each other they had come to understand each other in a clearer way than that of mere friends. Kan, at such a young age, took the reigns of his clan to lead his people into prosperity whilst Yushin had been exiled in the most opposite fate. Two crowns stood together side by sides yet one of the two remained the thorn.

Giving no signal of relenting towards Kan, the young white haired prince saw right through the Yuan's expression. He knew what was happening,he's trying to shake my resolve, he deduced. By now Yushin had come to realize that Kan was the last person to back down and run away from adversity, and truly he was not a man to turn away from his friend. In quite contrast, the Yuan man was loyal, extremely so, and the devoutness of his heart swelled Yushin to approach him first in the endeavor set before him.

"I'll be heading to Heliohapt soon." The Sangju man's words caught Kan off guard as at that moment he dropped his sorrowful gaze. Sighing, the clan leader relented. "So you're determined then?" He gazed seriously towards the one who would become his future companion, perhaps even patron. All Kan received from the inquiry was a simple nod, and a furiously blinding gaze back. Kan had known for quite some time that this man before him was not normal. He was special, and not only in a gut feeling way, but in a radiant uncontrollably bright way. It was at this moment, as Yushin stood firm before him, that Kan saw a flashing aura emanate from his friend in a way that he had never seen before.

The Yuan man was in shock. To think, that a proud leader of the Night Raid would fall under such a spell as that from an Uncrowned Prince. In awe, Kan remained his outer composure and smirked. "So you're going to do it then?" Yushin picked up his small belongings into his pack and headed towards the door. "Yes," was his simple reply. And as he walked away to return back to Reim, Kan trembled at the imposing radiance of the Sangju prince. As the slide of the tent opened and fell to close, the Yuan leader took a seat at his desk and stared out into a lit candle. "So...you're going to the great doctor."

Yes, Yushin walked away from the camp and headed towards the bustling center of Reim, I will mend our scars...just watch me....Hye-Won."

[EXIT]