The Calling of a Blackbird (Kyoshi//Open)

[Rina Vade]

Rina

What's that I hear upon my window?

With Jaus gone, Rina had returned to her secluded lifestyle. For a while. Until she caught wind of a bunch of Barker's troops down by the Waterfront. They were after something. And if Rina had to guess, she'd say it was an Experiment or two. If she could get whatever kid they were after away from Barker and his men, she'd be able to take them back to the Olympian Apartments where most of the other Experiments where.

But she was a long way from there.

The only reason she'd made it this far in only a few hours was thanks to someone she'd hitched a ride from. Going back would be such a pain.

Taking out a cigarette, - yes, she still smoked - she lit it as she gazed around the area as she took a long drag. It was quiet here. She could hear the river splashing against the docks far off, and the sounds of sea birds was sharp and carried on the wind. Seagulls; nasty creatures. Could be found anywhere. Especially near water. A different sound made her turn.

Caw, caw! Caw!

It was a raven. It's feathers were dirty and it gazed at her with green-tinted eyes. What was wrong with it's wing? "Oh, you've broken it have you?" she said quietly, looking back at the bird steadily. It blinked and turned it's head, then opened it's beak and cawed again.

Caw! Caw! Caw!

It tried to flap it's wings, but the movement seemed to be painful, and the raven nearly hit the ground below him. Rina stepped closer, but paused as he continued his insistent cawing. "What is it?" she asked over the noise.

Rina turned to look behind her, only to come face to face with one of Barker's troops. Shit! She'd dropped her guard.

Quoth the Raven, nevermore...

Notes;
Words; 442
Muse; Excellent!
Other; Haha, what better way to Rina to trust Kyoshi than to have him stop her from being killed/captured/thrown into the river (lol kidding about that one). ^_^

[Deleted]

If any group had their territory on "lockdown", it was the Crows. They were well aware of the intrusion into their area, no matter the reason, but had let it slip for some time. You might ask why and the answer was really quite simple, a trap. Let the madman's men think they were fine to intrude and then pounce when the time was right. It made things much easier when everything went according to plan, but when does anything ever actually go according to plan?

Kiyoshi snarled lightly from the nearby rooftop as the girl found herself in a most precarious position. It made things more difficult to be certain. Alas that little bit of "white knight" in Kiyoshi wouldn't allow him to sit by in order to gain further positioning at the expense of anyone, he was going to have to make a move. He drew the Kinbuchi Tsume, channeling the energy within it to launch a blast of wind with the wave of his blade at the troops. It wouldn't do too much damage given the distance and that Kiyoshi was still only at 65% of his strength but it would startle them and halt any advance. In that break he'd use, for the first time, the powers he'd gained from Areon and drop down between the two entities, landing softly thanks to the Wind Dragon.

Meanwhile the ambush squad would take the initial strike and move into positions at the flanks and rear of Barker's men, the salvaged cars acting as both barricades and transport. Crows quickly disembarked from their vehicles to surround the men.

"You shouldn't have come here."

[Rina Vade]

Rina

What's that I hear upon my window?

The man's face was hidden, just like all the rest of Barker's troops. Rina instinctively took a step back, eyes darting in search of an escape as he raised his weapon. Before he could move any further, however, a blast of energy struck him and he stumbled. In the next instant, someone very familiar dropped down between the man and herself.

Although Rina could sense that his strength was low, there was still much left within him. He reminded her of someone. "Kyoshi?" she half-asked, surprised, though it did not show in her expression.

"You shouldn't have come here." where his first words to her. He seemed...distracted.

Of course, Barker's men were here, though Rina wondered why only one had attacked her. Had she been paying attention to her surroundings, the man would never of snuck up on her, but she had. And inwardly, she berated herself for not paying attention. One mistake could get her killed. She would learn from this.

It was a moment before she finally replied to Kyoshi. Looking at her old schoolmate with a curious gaze, she said quietly, "Too late."

Quoth the Raven, nevermore...

Notes;
Words; 285
Muse; Good^^
Other; not really

[Deleted]

Kiyoshi didn't pay much further attention to the intruder from Barker as his own men would take care of him in short time and then fan out for others. Beyond that, the recovering leader shifted his gaze over his shoulder to look at the girl who'd wandered into this precarious position. He thought about chastizing her for endangering herself to tend to a little bird but part of him was glad some people still acted normal while the world was falling apart.

"What are you doing here?"

He spoke rather flatly and straight to the point without any sense of recognition about him. Sad to say, Kiyoshi had met a lot of people and a lot of girls, he couldn't remember them all especially with so much more now pressing on his mind.

[Rina Vade]

Rina

What's that I hear upon my window?

Not surprisingly, he didn't remember her. Rina didn't take this to heart. There were probably many people she herself had met, but most likely didn't remember. Upon Kyoshi's question, Rina opened her mouth to answer, but the black bird that had warned her before let out a pained twitter.

Turning to it, Rina crouched down and scooped it up, ignoring the way it tried to nip her fingers. "Oh, stop that." she said lowly, tapping him on the beak. The raven stilled and blinked at her and she gazed right back steadily. "Thank you." she told him briskly, tucking the bird into her arms gently. He settled down and looked about, now calm. She looked back up at Kyoshi and considered what she would say in reply to his question. "There's an Experiment, or two perhaps, that I caught wind of here. That's why Barker's here, I think." she finally said, keeping her gaze steady. She'd never seen Kyoshi so tired-looking, but yet he was still strong.

"I won't let that man take them." her words were sharp and cold when she spoke of Barker. "Not if I can help it." she'd seen what had happened to them, the Experiments. She didn't want to see them afraid anymore. She wanted to help them if she could. And she'd be damned if she didn't try everything in her power to do so.

Quoth the Raven, nevermore...

Notes;
Words; 340
Muse; Pretty good
Other; Tired...

[Deleted]

Kiyoshi just watched and waited for his answer as the girl picked up the injured bird. A simple nod was given in acknowledgement of the thank you given to him, though he didn't do it for the gratitude. Eventually she got to answering, in response Kiyoshi's eyes narrowed initially in disapproval but again there was a part of him glad there were still bleeding hearts around in this city. However that didn't really excuse the lack of foresight.

"And what was your plan, exactly?"

He crossed his arms across his chest and scowled slightly, giving off the demeanor of a disapproving older father.

"Didn't it occur to you that Barker heard the same thing? That he was after all them? What were you going to do all by yourself?"

He waited rather impatiently for the answers to his onslaught of questions.

[Rina Vade]

Rina

What's that I hear upon my window?

Rina was glad that he was patient enough to stand around this long. Then again, she was in his territory so to speak. She was the one who had intruded here. His tone made her bristle, but she didn't reply in anger as she might have before. "And what was your plan, exactly?"

Rina flinched. Did he really have to ask that? Out of all things, he had to ask that question? "I had no set plan," she stated, glancing away momentarily as she muttered, "But that wasn't going to stop me."

"Didn't it occur to you that Barker heard the same thing? That he was after all them? What were you going to do all by yourself?"

A bunch of questions at once directed at her left him, demanding and...was that worry she heard? Did things like this happen often? "Yes, it occurred to me that he knew." she answered, her voice almost thoughtful as she considered how to answer each question. "And yes, I already know that he is after all of the Experiments." every single one of them. Barker thought they were his. What he didn't know was that most had a sanctuary. The Olympian Apartments.

Rina often wondered, though, how long it would be until he discovered this.

"I was, and still am, going to do whatever I can, wherever I can. If I have to carry a kid on my back all the way across town just to get them safe, then I will." she turned her eyes away sharply, gazing out at the water with her jaw set into a small frown. "I don't care if I get knocked down a hundred times..." she said lowly, blue eyes on the deep blue water. "I'm gonna get back up."

Quoth the Raven, nevermore...

Notes;
Words; 407
Muse; Wonderful!
Other; Nada

[Deleted]

((OoC: Sorry about the delay))


Kiyoshi had figured that the girl didn't have a plan of any kind considering the situation she'd been in just a moment earlier. He couldn't help but sigh softly and raise a hand to rub his forehead in frustration at the whole idea. It was nice to have people running around caring about others but far less nice when they were putting themselves in serious danger without thinking properly about it. After a moment he sighed again while preparing to lecture the girl, because there was no denying that was what he was going to do.

"It's not about getting knocked down... it's about being dead."

There was a harshness to his voice but one that came from not wanting to see her end up that way. He paused to let the severity of that comment sink in, to make sure she knew exactly what the odds were, his hand resting on the hilt of his now sheathed blade.

"Now, I'm not saying don't help people but be smart about it. Think before you act. Otherwise Barker will put and end to you without a second thought or care, and then you won't be helping anyone but the worms feasting on your corpse."

The lecture was more or less completed with that, though he didn't like being so blunt with someone trying to do a good thing. After a moment, he raised a hand rested it on her shoulder with a smile.

"It would just be a shame to see such a warm face become so cold."

[Rina Vade]

Rina

What's that I hear upon my window?

That sigh. She could tell that he was going to lecture her as if she were a child. Anger flamed up inside her, but she pushed it away for now. Getting angry wouldn't help. It would probably only make her miserable in the end. Still, that didn't stop her from snapping at him with her next reply. "Then I won't." she said, eyes flashing. "I won't die."

Rina knew that her psychic abilities had grown stronger, but sometimes she wondered if they were enough? It was strange. She could picture her life as a chess board, and her psych seemed to use that as it's basis. Sort of. She really didn't hear all of his next words. She kind of tuned them out, but she still heard some of it.

She hated it that he was right.

The crow seemed to caw in agreement and Rina scowled at it. "Oh, shut up you." she hissed at it. It's eyes glittered in a smirk.

When he spoke next, Rina felt him step closer and place a hand on her shoulder. She flinched, tensing on instinct. Looking up at him, she said, "Huh, you've met so many people, you don't remember me, but I can still see those sunglasses and that cocky grin on her your face." her lips twitched in an amused smile. She only spoke half of what she was really thinking. Despite the fact that he didn't remember her, she never recalled him being like this around most others. That "I'm lecturing you, so listen" tone was one she remembered well.

"Okay," she said, keeping her eyes on him. "I'll be more careful. On one condition." she shifted her arms slightly around the raven as it twittered, sounding like it was amused and knew exactly what she was going to say. Her psych automatically reached out to it, but it's mind was walled off from intruders. Rina held back a gasp of surprise, then continued what she was going to say. "You clearly have the ability to use wind. Even if that's a physical ability, you would have needed to hone your mind. I need a psychic mentor. It doesn't necessarily have to be you, but I need someone to help me figure out to work with my...I guess you'd call them growing abilities." she shrugged.

Quoth the Raven, nevermore...

Notes;
Words; 505
Muse; Awesome
Other; Dun dun dun...

[Deleted]

It was expected that the girl wouldn't take too kindly to the idea that she'd been overtaken and killed while trying to help those people. Of course there was no way that he was going to waver from his point. Sometimes one had to stick to the unpopular point to drive it home and get the message across for the greater good.

However, his demeanor shifted quite quickly when the girl mentioned his grin and sunglasses, obviously she knew him from somewhere. As much of deviant he was is many moral scales, he didn't like the idea of not remembering someone he was with. He pulled back his head slightly to get a better look at her, a slight quirk to his brow as he scanned through his memory as quickly as possible trying to find a name for the face. It would take him quite a bit of time so she would have all the opportunity to say whatever she wanted without interruption while his brain hamster spun that wheel. The positive in all that was that she did end up agreeing with him on the matter.

Now, the befuddlement grew as she asked him about training her abilities. Kiyoshi never really thought about it too much, be it the flying from that weird dream with Areon or the abilities the blade provided. It did raise intrigue over the odd serenity that he had when it came to being on a battlefield, and in these war-like times. Another item to think over... it takes him a while.

"Yeah... I figure I can do that on one condition. You consult me before doing anything stupid like this again. Got it..."

A smirk formed on his lips.

"... Rina?"

He finally figured it out.

[Rina Vade]

Rina

What's that I hear upon my window?

After she spoke, she could just see steam coming from out of his ears as he puzzled over where he might know her from. She found this amusing, but didn't say anything. Let him figure it out. Although, it was taking him a while to think it through. Rina shifted impatiently and the raven in her arms cawed, annoyed.

Caw, caw!!

It flapped its good wing a little and snapped its beak. Huh, so it was laughing was it? "The raven seems to think you're funny." she murmured, not looking up from the bird. Now, if only Kyoshi would agree to help her out, she'd be happy. Well, as happy as anyone could be in this now bleak world.

She was getting impatient, but she tried not to show it. Just as she was trying to decide if she should say anything more, he spoke and soon, she was grinning widely. The grin became a sly smirk, however, as she said, "Deal. If I think it's a stupid idea, I'll talk to you." she knew he'd probably get what she meant, but she wanted to see if he knew her well enough. If he did, he'd figure out that just because something might seem like a bad idea to him, didn't mean it was to her.

She grinned again and spoke, using the old nickname that she'd dubbed him back in high school. "Glad to hear that you still have a heart, pretty boy."

Quoth the Raven, nevermore...

Notes;
Words; 348
Muse; A'right
Other; Nope!

[Katsuri Katashi]

What was it about armed men that always seemed to attract Katsuri? Perhaps it was the notion that he may find danger there, or more likely armaments were fuel for over confidence, something he enjoyed enough that he was guilty of it himself. For good reason mind you.

The eight foot tank with legs had seen the men pull up, a few moments before he had planned on going down to greet Barkers men.. you see, when you despise something, primarily a police state, you often find out what they look like quickly.. the others, however, he had no idea who the hell they were, just that they seemed to have an issue with Barker as well.

Rising from that half kneel he'd have dusted himself off out of habit, even though there was no need and straightened that suit, including wrapping fingers around that knot on his collar and tightening it up back to its full height. The hint of white plastic was draped down from his ears, disappearing into the suit jacket, a hidden pocket where that battle hardened mp3 player lay nestled nice and neat. Music was a delight for the big man, no surprise it was on him nearly twenty-four seven.

He approached calmly, seeming out of place in the docks, not armed, not dressed in some sort of indicating attire, and a business man certainly had no business here, particularly one of his stature. It was not the two directly in his line of sight though he was interested in. It was Barkers men that had fled. A large hand was planted on the back of one of the barricading vehicles and he would have reeled back, every muscle in his body lighting up as the sound of screeching tires would have given a hint the thing was being moved out of the way.

Once it was? He stepped through and headed off in the direction Kiyoshi's men had been going to clean up the left overs.

[Deleted]

Kiyoshi wasn't entirely sure how he felt about a bird thinking he was funny. After all, birds didn't really laugh specifically so they couldn't have a sense of humor... right? At least that was how it worked in his head, which probably makes less sense than the concept of a bird having a sense of humor about something. Of course, this prevented him from thinking about how or why she would think something like that from a few squawks.

And yes, he knew exactly what she meant in her response. Kiyoshi was often on the opposite end of this kind of discussion, being the one told to be smart about things... he never really listened to them either. In spite of that knowledge, he really doesn't want to argue the point because the fact that she, much like himself, wouldn't do much listening to even more lecturing on the matter. Instead he just sighed softly while pinching the bridge of his nose.

"Just don't get yourself killed."

Protecting people was a pain in the butt, seriously. If he ever thought of having kids people needed only to remind him of this whole situation... he'd rethink that right quick.

"Yeah... yeah... it's going to get me killed one of these days."

He commented sarcastically to the comment about his heart before watching the mammoth of a man push through on his way... somewhere.

"Now that's not something you see everyday..."

[Rina Vade]

Rina

What's that I hear upon my window?

Rina's grin faded just a little when Kyoshi sighed and muttered that she shouldn't get herself killed. "One of these days, I'll be strong enough that I won't really have to worry about that." she replied, giving him a pointed look. His next words made her smile. Him? Get killed? "Or it just might save your life, too." she told him quietly.

Having heart could get him quite a few allies if need be.
In the moment of silence that settled between them, Rina ripped a part of the bottom of her jeans off and grabbed a random piece of wood that was lying around from off the ground. The raven's wing wasn't going to heal on its own. With much fuss from the bird, she placed the wood in the underside of its wing and wrapped the cloth around it, making a sort of brace. "There." she thought. "Now it will heal properly."

The screech of metal and tires made her glance up.

"Now that's not something you see everyday..." Kyoshi said and she could just see him raising a brow, even though she wasn't looking at him. The guy who'd just walked by had pushed a truck out of the way. It hadn't looked like he was even trying! In a half-joking, half-amazed voice, Rina said, "Someones on some serious steroids."

Quoth the Raven, nevermore...

Notes;
Words; 340
Muse; Great!
Other; Not really

[Katsuri Katashi]

A few moments would have passed since the man disappeared, and one of Kiyoshi's men would have been running back in the opposite direction. Fearless or not, it was not them he was after.. and they were in his way. If one would look up, it was almost the faint sound of a whistle, like a bomb dropping, but it was nothing but a body. Those fatigues, stereotypical for one of Barkers men, landed down into the dock with a solid thud the body still attached it seemed. The wood splintered on impact, meaning the thud was not the only thing heard but soon a 'ker-plunk' and subsequent splash as the male would have fallen into the water shortly after. Lips parted and he yelled at the man fleeing,

"Quit runnin' get back here."

Psychopath was an appropriate definition for the titan waltzing among others as if it were everyday and mundane. Why was he now after the other dressed up men on the scene?... We went over this. They had gotten in his way, he was an equal opportunity provider of destruction you see. Chaotic, the only side he was always one was his own... one minute he could be your best friend, the next he could be a rabid dog trying to tear the arm out of someones socket.


Shadows were dancing in his mind, distracting him from the sensible and instead focusing on that adrenaline.. eat, fuck, kill, the mark of a beast driven by inner instinct. It was too bad he gave into a whim so often or he'd have been a lot more dangerous.