It Begins and Ends With A Breath [Invite]

[David B.]

He grinned as she stepped into his shadow- lifting his leg, her slash would cut the outside of his shoe instead, leaving no room for drawing blood.

Once she was submerged, he would immediatly bend and grab the edges of his shadow and lift- that's right, lift, so there was now a sort of shadow bag that Kiyr was stuck in. She would find herself unable to jump to other shadows or even see the outside world- it was like being locked inside her own Qi. He would run over to a large piece of rubble and swimg her, still in the shadow bag, at the bolder.

Just before impact his shadow shattered, and Kiyr would fly head first into the bolder at a powerful speed. The old man would start jumping rope with his own shadow, take a few deep breaths. He was getting a little old for this...

"Hehe...stupid girl. I see you don't realize the adaptability of shadows. You'll learn some fun things before you die."

[Kyrie Blaze]

What the--!?

As with Levi and his light prison, Kiyr's heart jolted into her throat, but she swallowed it, pushing the phobia back down. Her next decision was simple: thrust a manifestation of her qi into the "fabric", intending on ripping herself a hole out with a sharp shadow blade, one of the records transferred to her other hand. She could feel movement, and could only assume that, because she was being carried, she was most likely going to be slammed into something.

While she did that, however, she focused on centering herself and drawing her qi inwards, compressing it and yet, letting it flood her body when she was certain she had it just right, as she had with the light manipulator. Regardless of whether it worked or not, the shadow 'prison' shattered--

--and instinctively the blonde acted to have her vision dim with a projected shadow in front of her face, causing her to momentarily disappear into her a shadow that melded to the face of the boulder. This, of course, had the unfortunate side-effect of spitting her back out, promptly. It was disorienting, because she did 'hit' the surface of the object before disappearing. Not quite so much as being knocked unconscious against the boulder, but it certainly caused the world to briefly spin as she coiled herself, and then snapped off towards him.

And it was interesting that, yes, she was learning from her assassin.

If she couldn't learn in battle, then she would simply deserve the loss. But she was hard-set and resolved that she would be the one living at the end of this. So she launched to close the distance, putting half the vinyl back to her other hand and then snapping one for his neck, whether he was jumping rope or not.

She would have to up her game, but finish this quickly.

. o O ( +5 CHA caused by her "boost". )

[David B.]

OOC: Levi and David arrive in 10 posts.

The old man giggled as she was spat back out. As sideways as her head would feel at this point, the old guy was impressed she attacked so soon. Jumping rope as he was, he attack would come forward without a guard, until her arm came within range. Once there he would step to the side before wrapping the shadow rope around the wrist, twisting his form so his back would be against the outside of her elbow joint before pulling on the rope as hard as he could.

He arm would likely snap as a twig.

If it did he would roll foward and laugh, glancing back at her with nothing but a tilt of his head.

"You looked so mean when I said I would kill the kiddies... But here you are again, all bluster. You are going to die, Miss. Yes, you will."

[Kyrie Blaze]

With every action and each time he spoke, Kyrie was quickly building a mental profile of him. Though, yes, he indeed was trying to kill her, he was also toying with her. His taunts were meant to keep her off-balance and instill self-doubt--to provoke the reactions he seemed to want so much. He wanted the kill to be drawn out and dramatic, hoping to see defeat and terror when he struck the killing blow.

Perhaps he was so sure because he had done this before. Perhaps it was just a front--but Kyrie herself much preferred one-hit, one-kill methods.

Because the longer she stayed in battle, the more likely she would die, especially against this one. He was more experienced, but perhaps he was underestimating her because of it.

With the shadow lashing itself around her wrist - not really a surprise - Kyrie moved her feet, strafing to the outside to buy herself a precious moment, arm resisting his pull to hopefully distract him, forcing him to move farther than he originally had to go.

She was so used to pitting herself against men that towered over her - David, for example, was easily a foot taller than her - that it was almost a relief he was so short. It would make her retaliation quicker as she wouldn't have to reach up and over. Was a broken arm worth it? If she managed what she was going to try...absolutely.

Her free hand shot up, the other half of the vinyl record sweeping up - the flat surfaces reinforced by shadow so it would not bend or snap - to slice at an angle through his jugular vein on the first slash. She didn't have time to line it up for the way back with no attempt on the forwards strike. As it was if she managed the cut she would shift her wrist to angle her fingers towards his neck after in order to drag her fingers across and into the cut to tear and further rip his flesh. If not, then she would aim to slash, once again for the neck, with the record on the way back.

...at the same time her arm snapped.

Much as she wanted to give no reaction, it just wasn't possible to ignore the sensation of bone being rent asunder. Her scream was piercing and then hoarse as she stumbled back.

Her breaths shuddered out and in, and under her breath as she looked back up with shadow coiling over her arm to keep the joint steady despite the break. Despite the pain.

She managed to stay on her feet, though her body was shaking with the onset of shock.

It was a precautionary, gasped description of the tiny old man before her, along with his name, that she uttered beneath her breath, if he escaped her backlash. Kyrie had no intention of being killed (and knew there was no chance of aid arriving in time)--but just in case he left her to escape, she wanted something on the wind. Perhaps if David was around Dragon Territory, he would hear.

It was probably wishful thinking.

She didn't care. It helped.

[David B.]

David:

His eyes would narrow as a name and description met his ears, like a petition to the living from the damned. He pressed onward, this time with highly renewed vigor- she wouldn't speak it unless she thought he would need to know.

Unless she thought she wouldn't be able to give the information in person.

Fred:

The man felt a slice across his throat- but her further mangling would be prevented by the shadow extending across her form- he was becoming tired, now, and his vien had been split wide open. The shadow he held exploded- and would rip the skin from the arm and from her ribcage, shredding the shirt like a pincushion.

The girl and her weapon would be blown away, and the old man would fall to a knee. He would gasp as blood spurted out- his hand would darken, and shadow would slip under his skin, wrap around the damaged artery, and prevent him from bleeding out. He would grip the knife- which was now near his feet, and stumble to a standing position.

"You... Are too irritating...I grow tired of this game."

He would walk over to Kiyrs body and stab her in the shoulder closest to her broken arm, pinning her body to the ground. The gasping old man would raise a hand and form a shadow spike at the end of it.

"I'll...heal. And kill...your friends. Think on that as you die."

He would then stab with the blade downward for her forehead, in an attempt to end her life.

OOC: Due to renewed vigor and David now pinpointing their location, Levi and David arrive in 2 posts.

[Kyrie Blaze]

At this range, and wracked by pain, there was no chance for Kiyr to even blink, let alone slip to the shadows, that the blast caught her, full-on.

Her skin flayed and torn, possibly ripping pieces of muscle. Like a ragdoll, she landed, stunned and not able to roll, though her spine arched off the ground. She gasped, heaving breaths that continued to shudder in and out. The blonde's blue eyes, clouded with pain, swivelled. Caught sight of the blood pumping down his neck, and she felt a distance sense of grim satisfaction.

Her brother's commanding voice sounded in her head, ordering her to get up. She wanted to apologize, to say something else. But she was not staying down--!

Until she saw him just before he plunged the blade in through her shoulder. Her lower back arched further and a screech of pain shrieked its way from her throat.

His words echoed faintly in her ear, in her mind. She was an annoyance. A thorn in his skin. And he would--heal? Kill her family?! Frederick should have learned by now - now, even as she was instinctively pulling upon the knife to free herself, even as it wasn't seeming to budge but only hurting herself - that threatening her family was the last thing he wanted to do.

"--per aspera."

Kyrie dredged the strength in her delicate, damaged body, and tore the knife free. There was a sickening, bone-grounding sensation similar to when it went in as Kiyr twisted her hand and shunted her upper body to the side, plunging the wicked, bloody knife up beneath his jaw, aiming mostly-straight up, driving the blade into his brain with a soft cry of pain.

[David B.]

The old man would grin and flex his arm, intent on stabbing this child through the-

His thought was cut off, as the blade slipped through his jaw like butter, piercing his tongue and the roof of his mouth as it would stick his brain. How could she, did they...?

His eyes rolled back into his head as a faint giggle would roll up from his throat, his arms going slack as breath left his throat. Blood would pour down her arm and onto her face, as the d mans body would sag and fall off to the side, legs still on her lap as death greeted him kindly.

OOC: after kiyrs next post, Levi is up.

[Kyrie Blaze]

"If I die young,
Bury me in satin;
Lay me down on a
Bed of roses..."

Kyrie gasped, giving the old man one shove as he collapsed. Though she could hardly focus - the shadow that bound her broken arm had dissipated when she was blown away and she hadn't spared the concentration to do it again - she wriggled, gasping, away from him. Fire arced from her side and arm, spitting and threatening to have her pass out again.

Perhaps for a moment, she did.

The pain brought her back.

She could still hear Armand's voice. Demanding. Ordering. So far from asking or even pleading. And there was never, nor would there ever be, a choice for her in the matter. With shadows coiling around her arm once again, the entire length, as well as her chest, Kyrie struggled to tame her breathing. Fought through the shock. Pushed herself to her feet, though she swayed backwards to gain distance. from the body. She had no regrets.

The body there was just another added to those she had already sent into death.

She bowed her head, splaying her feet slightly wider than shoulder-width, trying to make it to the wall. Anything that would be stable in a world that was lurching and swaying from her exhaustion and pain. It was will and determination that held her to her feet.

For however long that would last.

"...sink me in the river,
At dawn;
Send me away with
The words of a love song..~"

[Levi Kayamei]

Levi's eyes widened and the sweat was now visible on his face as Kyrie's Qi began to wane and then before he knew it, they were there, a wounded Kyrie stumbling around and the body of an old man ...bloody....dead. Levi didn't wait for David to descend as they arrived, he hopped off of his platform, placing light under his soles to slow his landing as he reached out with his left hand to make a wall of pale, white light in front of her for her to lean on. As he landed and rushed to her side, the wall would morph into a chair as she leaned on it the light shaping so that now she was sitting comfortably in it assuming she indeed leaned against the wall.

Levi placed a hand on her knee as he knelt down in front of her, examining her wounds, "Anything broken?" Levi held up three fingers, "How many fingers am I holding up?" Part of his question was answered as he quickly noticed her broken arm and made a splint of light to make sure it didn't become worse. Her knife wounds were tightly wrapped in a thin bandage of light that would feel warm, though potentially painful as they put the right amount of pressure to stop the bleeding. His medical training would pay off as he continued to monitor her condition and maintain his objects.

[David B.]

David landed more slowly- his reaction to seeing this was different, internally and externally. He showed no visible signs of relief of worry, instead turning his gaze to the body of the old man. Why would it seem that David had no interest in Kiyr, when in fact bis chest had relaxed on seeing her?

Well, it all came from who he was.

One thing the three Dragons had in common was respect for strength. David, being a named, was showing her a sign of respect by not coming to her side. To adress her conditon, to show weakness to be to insinuate weakness of her part, when the reality was she had beaten her attacker. That is what mattered to him. Of course, later, when Levi wasn't around he would attend to her, but both of them being there? He would not show such emotion. Plus, Levi was there to do it for him.

"He was an assassin, similar to the ones Mathew, Leon and myself fought. I had hoped we saw the end if them... You said his name was Fred?"

[Kyrie Blaze]

Kyrie jerked with a hiss of pain as a wall of light materialized in front of her, and instinct kicked in. Flight or fight? Kyrie chose to fight. She pivoted, moving away from the wall as quickly as she dared, pushing a blade of shadow into her good hand. Of course, this caused the one wrapping around her arm to disappear. The sound of pain was squashed in her throat. Her lips pulled back in a grimace, and the blood-splattered blonde advanced and held the edge and tip towards her foe..!

To realize it was Levi.

Instead of shaking, she simply clenched the hilt of the shadow knife harder. If he was surprised from her initial reaction, it was easily explained. She had just faced off against an assassin with the same qi she had. What was stopping another from holding one similar to Levi's? Slowly, her arm fell and she worked to rein back in both breath and heartbeat and adrenaline. Her gaze wavered, then focused on his fingers, his questions registering, but slowly. She was still in shock.

"...troi--three."

She swayed, but remained on her feet, the blade not quite dissipating but lowering, slightly. It enabled Levi go get in closer, though as the pressurized light pressed down against her shoulder wound, she half-gasped and started to cave inwards...before forcibly stopping herself with a shiver. Kiyr grit her teeth and choked back the sound of further pain at the splint, though she was starting to lose her "grip" on her qi from all the different stimuli and pain sets. Everything seemed to be re-aggravated, though she was thankful that Levi was there to do something for her, all the same. She didn't even notice her knee still throbbed. Her eyes landed on the jagged half of the vinyl record, then swerved to the body. Blue eyes jerked to David as he spoke, and her brow furrowed. His manner was unlike the last time, but, that was probably because of her mistake and the fact that he knew more than he should. Maybe. She couldn't quite wrap her head around the difference in Levi to David, but one thing was clear.

He'd heard. And he had told her.

She responded, quietly: "...Frederick Donald...Amberhash."

Kiyr closed an eye as blood trailed down her forehead and into the corner, managing to reach up and brush the back of her hand across her eyes, both smearing and cleaning the blood, though she didn't seem to notice.

[Levi Kayamei]

Levi did not insist when she refused to lean on the wall and took his time getting close and applying his first aid when she clearly reacted on instinct at first by drawing her knife. As he finished his treatment and was content with her level of awareness, he stood up and walked over to the body as Kyrie responded to David. Kneeling down, he touched the man's tian-tien to feel what was left of his qi. It was indeed indentical to Kyrie's which rose many questions.The ability to instill our powers in others.....Barker must be a man of unfathomable power.

Levi stood up and looked to David, "The elders were attacked in the same manner too? So Barker is trying to take out key Dragon members.....this also makes it difficult for me to tell who is walking into our territory since the Qis are identical to the members they try to assassinate....any ideas?"

[David B.]

David took a deep breath.

"One thought is to seal the borders until you find the rest of the spies and assassins. Unfortunately, the strain on our...your manpower would be too great."

He took to his feet, stepping over the body and checking his neck for tattoos. There were none. He chewed his lip a moment in thought.

"My recommendation would be to always travel in groups of three- no longer alone. But it's not my decision. You need to address this with the Eart Dragon immediately. He will have to decide what to do."

He would turn and walk over to Kiyr, crouching in front of his slowly.

"Kiyr, I need you to close your eyes for me."

He wouldn't tell her why. If she argued, his eyes would harden, and he would wait until she did so. If she refused he would pull rank, but he hoped it wouldn't come to that. If she did as he asked without question, which he hoped she trusted him enough to do, he would purse his lips and whistle- it would be a high pitch note that would send a pressurized stream of air into her mouth. Kiyr would seize up for a moment and feel a blinding pain, almost mind numbing, for approximately one second.

The air, rushing into her lungs would pass into her body through veins and vessels, securing any internal injuries. He cuts on the outside of her body would seem to dry and scab immediately, and her broken arm would crick back into place before air wrapped around in tightly, fusing the bone and pieces of bone back into their proper place. This would all happen in about twenty seconds.

Once complete he would fall forward, onto his hands and knees, now covered in sweat. Taking several deep breaths, he would stagger back to his feet, ghastly pale. And blink a few times blearily.

"We.... Need a p...a place to stay. Levi?"

David was, in essence, giving the male control of the situation, as he was now too weak to do much of anything.

OOC: Kiyr's body is now near fully healed (at about 90%).

Davids physical stats are reduced to 8 for the remainder of the thread, or until he can sleep.

[Kyrie Blaze]

Kyrie's gaze flicked, and she made it the last few steps to the wall. Her unbroken arm reached out, now devoid of a weapon, pressed against the wall. She was cold. And...

"Thirsty."

Everything she knew about shock was forgotten in her growing confusion; she was weak, exhausted, and not thinking straight. The blonde shook her head and leaned against the wall, locking her knees to stay up on her feet. Kyrie strained to focus. Something Levi said was important, but why? She had something to say, but it flit away. The blonde's brow furrowed. She had certain moments of clarity, here and there.

"...track the same signs..."

Would that make sense? It made sense to her clouded mind. She slid, slightly, then managed to stop. Feeling her qi gradually diminish from where she blanketed it against her stripped flesh. The pain was so acute it just wasn't worth it to cry. Or if she was, she wasn't aware. She wasn't paying attention, that was obvious, when the next thing she knew she was seeing was a pair of blue...eyes? The vision shook slightly; she was shivering, slowly but surely.

Her eyes started to close, got only a third of the way, then snapped open.

"H-Here? No, not here--t-too vulnerable."

He had to be crazy.

He was. This was worse than when they had been in Crow Territory. 'Get me out of here, first.' If she could have pleaded, she would have. Without knowing. she was concerned that it could be what they wanted. Her eyes closed, slowly.

Her breath hitched as her qi finished unravelling from her arm and the majority of her chest, and she forgot whatever it was they had been talking about.

"Nnh...need to shine a light on that..."

Bizarre. Though, perhaps, not so much as her legs gave out and she slid down the wall with a hissed groan of pain, leaving a smear of red.

[David B.]

OOC: skipping Levi quickly, will be short.

He smiled.

"Luckily I didn't ask for your opinion."

And he would proceed as planned, events unfolding as mentioned before.