Welcome to Gaia! ::

*Mal laughs, slightly surprised. He didnt think it would be this easy. He walks over to the unconscious body and picks it up like a doll in his hand. he walks ou with it, back to the mainroom*

*She raises up...holding her head...she staggers to the stairs wanting her room*

***Entry into the History Book***
**History of The Red Dragon Syndicate**

To be perfectly honest, I don't recal the name that I was going by at the time. It was probably something lame anyway and doesn't really matter to the story. I do remember that I was in Japan at the time and it was exciting as hell. Most nights you could still see the fires burning. Could of been a fortress or a villiage. Maybe just some unfortunate farmers field that was in a crossfire. Some nigths the fires burned so brightly it was as if the sun had never set.
It was the Chaotic Time.
The Bakumatsu.
I guess the name would give a big clue to those that have spent any time with me why I am so enamored with this time period. There were battles fought in the offices of the big wigs but, the majority of it was down all over the country side. Edo would never be the same in the end. In fact, the end of the Tokugawa would be marked by the changing of Edo's name to Tokyo. Kyoto will always be remembered for the amout of blood spilled throughout her borders.
The Ishin Shishi. Loyalist. Patriots. Take your pick. They waged their war to start a new government. The Tokugawa Bakufu and thier elite soliders, The Shinsengumi were, well, just a tad against the idea.
Both patriots and Shinsengumi carves bloody paths all over the country. I felt so alive roaming Kyoto and Edo over this time. You never knew when a battle could spill out into your lap! At the time I roamed the coutry with little aim. If not for all the action of the time, I may have had the time to take note of just how alone I was then and would be for some time following. I know your not reading this to learn of my history. Most seem less then pleased that I even exist. Still, my life and that of The Red Dragon Syndicate have always been tied together through the centuries. Even when I tried, I could not escape it. I'll get around to that some other day.
At this time, I had been making money enough to buy food by doing a multitude of things. Whatever work I could find but, I much preferred taking advantage of the chaos. Not to mention, I could cause mischief and feed myself with one blow. I became a rather adept theif and pickpocket. I would rob homes that were abondoned due to fighting. I even robbed solider encampments and then later sold then their own goods back. I tell you it was so hard to keep from laughing as they paid me!
One night I happened to be robbing the right place at the right time. I was privledged enough to see the infamous hitokiri (assassin) Kawakami Gensai destroy one of his marks. It was like a bloody ballet as he carved his way through the guards and eventually his target.
An unstoppable engine of death.
Once his work was complete, he returned to the shadows that had spawned him and they seemed to embrace him. Welcomeing him home. He also moved with a speed that I thought only myself capable of. He was amazing.
That night set off a ripple effect in my own life. It started a series of changes that would one day lead me to the place you now stand.

**appreciate all comments but, request them to be PMs please. Thank you**

*sighs softly, watching her for a while from the shadows, then shakes his head, whispering something under his breath before turning, vanishing once more back into the darkness, as the words on the page in front of her morph, squirming, then settling into new words* And one day, there was a man in pain, having lost everything, only to lose everything once again, but one came into his life, giving him reason to live, giving him someone to care about... And he cared greatly for her, the one thing with meaning in his life, and he swore to protect her forever... And his name was Vlad, and hers? Satine.

*as she looked back down at the book, there was once more a message on the page...*
heart
I will return...

*walks in, taking a seat beside her, waiting silently, not wanting to interrupt*

*shrug* Magic. And care. Sometimes my mind does things that I am not aware of. It notified me later, after it did that.

*smiles faintly* I'm glad you did.