Bread and Brawn (Open to up to 2)

[Delilah A. Black]

Marlenen returned, a small notebook in hand. Rolling her eyes at the girl now asleep in Delilah's arms.

"Every time, I swear to God..."

"It's a gift," she smiled, trading the now sleeping toddler for the notebook, taking a quick flip through before pocketing it with a grimace. "More medicine, huh?"

"The flu this year already took three of the more sickly ones," the older woman sighed "And everyone's caught a cold at least twice."

Delilah nodded, "I'll do what I can. It's rare to have people come in with medicine these days. But if I hear nothing in a week, I'll go looking for some myself."

Both women turned as they heard the screams and giggles of children who were...flying. Delilah grinned and Marlene looked worried, turning her concerned eyes to the raven haired woman.

"That's David Blaze, the Storm Dragon. They're in good hands. Trust me."

"If you say so..." she cats another wary glance as the children's feet hit the ground once again. "Thanks for all your help, Delilah. See you next week."

"Take care!"

She walked away from the entrance of the building, smiling at David as he fell into step with her with a fond shake of her head. Show off.

"David-san made them fly! Did you see?!"

"I did! It was very cool." She would start walking with David back to the 'Nest, a little thoughtful. "One thing we don't have a lot of is medical supplies. Bandages, sure. Things that are easy to make and get, But medicinal supplies are really hard to come by. We've lost a few to infection because we lack penicillan."

[David B.]

David laughed.

"Oh man…See, we have medical supplies pouring out our ears. What with our pre-war stockpile, plus the stuff mathew brings in, plus the stuff we pulled from the airport and medical facilities and many other sources- geez. Yeah, I'm thinking we could chat a bit, once things are sorted out with your Zero."

He would take a deep breath, watching the men who guard the walls, the men who walked about on patrol. He smiled and looked at Delilah.

"So, First, Who do you think the best fighter in your Clan is?"

[Delilah A. Black]

"I'd like that!" she agreed wholeheartedly.

But then he asked that other question.

Chuckling, Delilah cracked a wide grin, curious as to where he was going with this.

"Depends. Are you talking through ALL of the Crows or just my company?"

Meaning, of course, the Tengu.

[Kyrie Blaze]

'...hmn.'

Would it be any surprise that Kyrie had made her way into the Crow's Territory, following David, and to her knowledge, had yet to be discovered? No, and yet... She paced along with David, unseen, and unacknowledged.

She had been ponderously quiet, part of her reeling from the journey. Part of her listened intently. Still another made a decently accurate map. And one more...regarded the children with trepidation, a quiet sadness, and a soft joy. When would she decide to be the one to play with them and make them laugh? Feel her heart lighten in response to their innocent happiness..?

'Perhaps tomorrow.'

...tomorrow never comes...[/i]

She had her reasons for her maintained distance, but perhaps she could let them be part of her healing process.

But there was no time to dwell on such things, now.

So how did she get there, anyway, much less not be seen?

The answers were simple. One: she was hidden away in David's shadow. Two: she had decided to take an entire day - her day of rest, in fact - to tail him, to see if she could slip under his impressive radar.

Mission Difficulty: high to extreme. And now that he was within Crow Territory...the stakes were a little higher.

...on the other hand? Shadow surfing at high speed. What a rush.
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[David B.]

David paused, frowning, before glancing back the way they came. This was the third time he felt that chill. He rolled his shoulders, and shrugged the feeling off.

After all, there were tons of people around, any one of them could be watching him.

"Any of the above. Who would you say, out of everyone under you, are your strongest? You can name a few, if you'd like."

OOC: SORRY ITS SO SHORT

[Delilah A. Black]

Delilah paused when David did, looking over her shoulder as if a breath had passed over her neck. She saw nothing, and had felt nothing until she felt David react, but now she was...alerted. More so than usual. She was not as quick to dismiss it as David was, either; she could not sense where the feeling was coming from and she would not relax comepletly until it was gone again.

She looked thoughtful as he elaborated on his question, thinking about her team, "None of them are perfect," she said after a moment. "They all have their different strengths and talents. The most well-rounded are Sergei and Birch. The best hand-to-hand fighters are Talon and Nick. Cain is the most likely to rip your face off, that man has a drive like no one I've seen. The calmest and toughest are Nigel and Cain. The best shots are Sergei and Heather...Talon and Nigel are my bruisers, get in a scrap with them and you will have the injuries to show for it later. Heather and Birch are the most nimble...and Nick is the only one who is better with a bow than I am."

She shrugged. That was pretty much her team. Well rounded, evened out eachother's strengths and weaknesses nicely. A perfect compliment to Delilah's own style of training.

[David B.]

David liked that Delilah was aware, and stiff about it. He, on the other hand, felt no threat. Then again, someone would have to possess Barker-like strength for him to feel threatened. He would shift a shoulder under Olivers weight before taking the boy down in a fashion like what he had done earlier.

"I see. Well why don't I fight your team then?"

Yeah. He meant all of them.

He hoped Delilah knew him well enough by know to know he wasnt simply fighting them to make fun of them, or to prove his own mastery. David had many hundreds, hell, probably close to a thousand battles under his belt. He had no desire to fool other fighters. His only combative desire was to meet another in war and fight for the love of it. Of course, such was not the case in regards to her men. His purpose there was, surprisingly, to help them. If they wanted to be good- no, great- they would need to better themselves against the best. And David, Mathew, Leon? They were the best, whether you wanted that or not.

Yet each of them was probably only half as strong as Barker.

So?

David would build others up, help where he could.

So when Barker finally came for them?

He would find an army at Davids strength, ready to stomp a mudhole in him and walk it dry.

[Delilah A. Black]

As David lowered Oliver from his shoulders, he 'awwww'd plaintively before scooting back over to his mother, taking a hold of her hand as he looked between the two adults with a happy smile.

Delilah grinned in response. Not so very long ago, Mathew had fought her team when she asked him to help her train them. They hadn't exactly come out of it smelling like a rose either; it had been a harsh learning experience for them, but they seemed to rise to the challenge and be the better for it. The difference between David and Mathew - at least, in Delilah's mind- was that David wanted to be help people become better than who they were where as Mathew simply enjoyed the challenge and the chance to test his skill.

It was one of those things that she really liked about him.

Among other things,

QUIET YOU, YOU TALK WAY TOO MUCH.

"What did you have in mind?"

[David B.]

OOC: I'm gonna continue here, as Kiyrie is just observing for now.

David grinned.

"I'd like to fight them."

David would roll his shoulders, once, looking around at all the men gathered, still smiling as they stared down on him. He cracked his knuckles, letting out a deep breath at the small surge of adrenaline.

"I'd like to fight anyone here, but I want it to be your best. I want to test them, at their best. So what we'll do is have you call them forward, all at once, then I will drop from the sky and threaten to kill you. I want them to try and take my life. To fight me like YOUR life depends on it. So they- and you- can truly see themselves. During my combat with them, I will not take their lives, nor will I use my Qi. Agreed?"

[Delilah A. Black]

Delilah would take a moment to consider this. It was risky, dangerous even. If this went South, just that threat would likely make David a target of backlash. She would have to be nearby in just such a case, to alleviate the Storm Dragon.

Now, how to convince her team that THIS time, it was real?

"You may have to 'knock me unconscious' for them to really believe it. Falsely, of course: I still want to be nearby so I can prevent an incident. If it ggets out of hand, I'll step in...but not for my gang. For you."

As David's biggest advocater among the Crows, it was also her job to keep his reputation unblemished. She was more than willing to take on his "sins", not only for the greater good...but because he was her friend.

'JUST' your friend?

I said hush, you.

"If that works for you, I'll call them out to the Square," she said, lifting a hand to her ear piece. If he did agree, it would be a quick walk to the area she mentioned before, nit flooded with people, but certainly bustling.

Once there, it would take a couple moments for Delilah's team of seven to start approaching. Birch and Heather both lifted thier hands in a cheery wave towards their C.O. as they neared.

[Kyrie Blaze]

. o O ( Yep. No need to worry about me until she pops out. Chances are I'll post intermittently until that time. )

This was interesting. Of course, even without knowing David's train of thought, it was logical that he would want to strengthen those that the Dragons had bonds with; and judging by his continued interactions with Delilah, at least, the terms between the Crows and Dragons were decently matched. But then, that didn't account for whomever else was leading the Crows.

But it was a start. And Kyrie saw the value in it.

It was at this point she started to consider other things, what with how interesting this was turning out to be. No Qi for David, no killing.

...no mention of anything about Kyrie~

Yes. All things considered, it was interesting. But she would have to weigh her options carefully before anything else. For now, she was strictly building on her intel of the Crows, now that her primary objective was accomplished.

[David B.]

A grin and nod, before he took to the sky.

David dropped heavily as they were approaching, landing next to Delilah. Any logo of the Dragons, and notion that he was with them, was gone. That way, her team would not need to second guess. He was an enemy, pure and simple. He would throw a right punch to the side of Delilahs face, aiming to draw a little blood for effect and send her sprawling. He would then laugh.

"Well well. Looks like I finally got the First Crow. Seems Barker will pay a high price for your head."

He would seem to ignore the seven, though coiled and waiting for retaliation. He also tucked the shiver into the back of his mind again- this was now the upteenth time he felt it, and he would only go so far in ignoring it. Still, no time for that now- lets see what these seven would do.

[Delilah A. Black]

As her team approached, she dropped her voice to whisper quietly to him in Japanese, to let him know Mama would be alright and to go back and play with the other orphans for a while. The small boy looked up at her with worry in his mismatched eyes, looking up at the trail David had left behind before nodding solemnly. He would leave the area as his mother directed...

...but the most intelligent of children frequently succumb to their inherent curiosity. Instead of going to the orphanage, the young boy found a nearby little nook to seclude himself in so he could watch.

Delilah could hear the air moving above her, knowing David was dropping down from the sky now, giving her a second to think. She knew David would want this to look good to avoid the suspicion Delilah had been concerned about initially. She thought, for a moment, that this would probably hurt.

He landed beside her and Delilah had just enough time to look bewildered and threatened, a hand going for a knife...when David punched her in the face. Hard.

Delilah flew back a few meters, falling and skidding on the ground to a halt, blood pouring from a cut on her lip as she feigned unconciousness. But she was still dazed and her jaw positively ached. There would be a large, swelling welt there in a few minutes. Fuck, David did not pull his punches. Something she appreciated, even admired.

*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*_*

The smiles of the few Tengu with that actual ability dropped from their faces as they witnessed a strange man land near their leader and wallop her in the face faster than their eyes could follow. They stared in shock for only a moment, just long enough to hear his words, before the group would drop into combative stances as one, looking furious (except for Nigel, who looked mild and even a little happy his commanding officer had been dropped by a single punch).

"Over my dead, goddamn body," Cain snarled. He and Talon would rush forward, quickly splitting off to flank him on either side. Cain would drop to a knee as Talon swung a large, meaty fist for David's head, the other one coming in for an upper-cut to his guts. As he did this, Cain would lash his leather hands towards David's legs, seeking to tear muscle and flesh in the style Delilah had taught him.

Birch would run quickly to a nearby merchants stand to secure a pole for fighting and move towards the fray to begin circling with Nick, who had his hands held up in a boxing stance. Nigel had neither of his cast iron tonfa on him, but he was just as deadly with his fists, hanging back a little bit, but covering the fore front, just in case. Heather would hang back to where she was, looking for an opening to shoot the intruder Qi user with her little chrome ball bearings from her wrist mounted sling shot. Sergei would do the same, though he was much closer than the girl was. He needed to be versatile and react to the situation as it arose.

[David B.]

David grinned as the soldiers attacked, bending his knees slightly to prepare for the assault. As a fist came for his face and one came for his gut, he would use one hand to catch each fist. Grabbing the fists and throwing the bodies aside like rag dolls- he would make his strength apparent. Let them know they were dealing with someone superior. The first he would throw toward the man with the pole, the second, he launched at the girl with the slingshot.

The man who slashed for his legs would get a swift kick, planted firmly under his chin, aiming to send the body toward where Delilah was laying. These movements he would be doing at the same time- the air around him positively hummed. It would seem like near heat-waves cooking about him. He wouldn't use his Qi purposely, but he unconsciously felt the air, able to feel each movement. His limbs and strikes were precise, not unwasted. He would dodge any projectiles shot at him easily, again, the wind giving him more than the necessary leash. He would move toward the other one who was in a boxing stance, Nick, but this time, there was no smile. He would spit in his face to distract, before grabbing him and turning to put him in the way of any projectile the other man shot at him.

This was going to be fun. Seven on one?

He hadn't fought so many since…well.

A long ass time, ok?

[Delilah A. Black]

As Talon was thrown --which was no mean feat, considering the man's size--Nigel moved in to strike for the man's midsection and he too, was thrown. He turned himself over in the air and she slipped to the side to let him roll past her, firing projectiles that the man annoyingly began to dodge. To both these Tengu, the man seemed familliar....but it was a distant ring of bells in the back of their minds.

Cain recieved the swift kick to his jaw with a clack of teeth and a grunt of pain. He felt weightless for a moment before hitting the ground with a thud near Delilah. Seeing her unmoving form and the blood seeping from her mouth only served to enrage him further. He leapt to his feet, moving in to attack.

As David grabbed for Nick after spitting in his face (which, oddly, didn't seem to bother the shorn, tattooed man at all) Nick would grab back, keeping a tight hold of one of this man's hands while the other grasped for his shirt, pulling them close together. He winced as a couple of the bearings Sergei had fired found his back. They would be bleeding welts in a matter of seconds, but they didn't bother him at the moment. His adrenaline was high. He would start using his legs to keep the black-haired man distracted, aiming knees for the crotch, slamming the toe of his boots into his shins, stepping painfully on feet, if he could.

Birch would also have just enough time to move to the side as Talon was thrown his way, using the opportunity to charge in from behind David and aiming a downward sweep with one end of the staff to strike the top of the head, pivoting the weapon around his body and aiming to batter the ribcage of the Qi-user.

Cain would come in on David's flank at this time, seeking to grab a hold of...anything. Hair, clothes, skin and start tearing at it like mad, hopefully still held in place by tougher-than-nails Nick.