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There was no reply from the soldier as he watched Ryugi refill his bladder till spilling from a bottle that was three times smaller. He took the water-holder with a firm grip, and as Ryugi and Ryumi walked away, every single set of soldier's eyes followed after them, their chatter now dead, their bottles now lowered.

Up the road a little, John crouched besides the Captain, who was briskly explaining something as he drew figure into the dirt with a small rock. "...suspect a large force, probably over twenty men."

"They'd attack a full company of armoured soldiers in broad daylight?"

"They are that ruthless." The Captain replied to John's bemused question, before looking up to Ryugi with a frown. He was a young man, barely halfway through his twenties, yet his brow was well furrowed and his eyes gleamed with indignant fire. "So nice of you to finally join us." He said sarcastically to Ryugi, his eyes flitting to Ryumi in a unsure manner, as if not sure if he should be acting this way in front of her, before seeming to give up on the antagonising, cutting Ryugi off before he had a chance to fully reply. "I was just informing your partner here about what we face once we leave Kolosa and march through Kyudon."

He motioned to the small dirt map he's scratched into the ground. It was a large wavy oblong shape, seperated by a line through the middle. In the top left corner was a circle with a rock sitting within it - a line snaked its way through the center of the rock, pierced a small divot, and wound to another rock sitting in the center of the line cutting the oblong shape in two. The line then continued forth in an almost direct line to another rock, this one sitting in the bottom right corner of the circle.

"This is Tellasa." The Captain explained, drawing his knife to point the tip to the rock in the top left corner. "And this is where we are now." He said as he pointed to the divot in the line within the Tellasa half. "The plan is to rest the night in Kolosa here, before heading on to Kyudon first thing in the morning." He finished, pointing the tip of his knife to the rock within the line separating the two halves, before stabbing the blade into the Kyudon half so it jutted from the ground.

"Kyudon is a desolate place, mostly rocky terrain - no crops can grow there. They live by selling their soldiers to other nations as seasoned warriors - they find it an honor to fight in the name of their nation." He spat, his voice clearly tasting the bitterness of memories past. "Their land is also rife with bandits and mercenaries not unlike yourselves, the largest of which is the Delvish Band, whose modus operendi is to 'case' potential targets in Kolosa, signal their greater forces within the Kyudon lands, and strike when we are travelling through."

John looked up to Ryugi. "With you and me, though, we might not need to face the bigger force - we should be able to spot any threats within Kolosa without any troubles."

"But you should not underestimate the Delvish Band. Their stories tell of many ruthless activities - using children as messengers, for one. Torturing people for information another. I have no doubt of my men's valor - but even the toughest tongues can be moved by a hot poker in the right place." The Captain's dire voice wavered a little as he looked back to Ryumi, coughing to clear his throat, before sitting back on his haunches. "If we are able to give their messengers the slip, or delay them even, we might not have to face the Band within the narrow passes in Kyudon. If we fail in this...our trip will be much, much harder."

John considered the map for a moment. "This line through Kyudon...there are no other paths?"

"I'm sure there are, and the Band will use them greatly - but we have no knowledge of them."

John grunted in disappointment before standing up, scratching the back of his neck as he looked over the grassy fields around them, the sun warm on his back. He looked deep in thought, those lightening filled eyes narrow as they processed the information...

Tomorrow, however, had no time for such brash arrogance. Disrespect given, especially when not received first, was high on the list of things John hated.

"I suggest - "

"We go into Koloda peacefully. Ryugi and Ryumi guard the princess whilst the men rest - I will handle the rest."

Tomorrow's voice held the tonal command of a general, a great leader of men, and the Captain clearly did not know how to respond to such orders given. "Ah, I, uh..."

John turned to the young man, sizing him up, his lightening-filled eyes levelling into the Captain's steely gaze from his height advantage. "Give me another solution."

The man had none, and he knew it. It was the whole reason why he'd called them over - to guide him. He clearly had no idea what he was doing, and this frustrated him, over-inflating his own opinion of himself to the point of arrogance to compensate for his lack of experience. "But the paths - the Band!"

"We will deal with that when we get to it. My man will protect the princess with his own life, this i can garuntee."

"And you?!" The Captain demanded, bristling at John's confident words, as if the facts he bestowed were the same as pointing out the sunrise at dawn.

John looked to Ryugi, locking eyes with the man. "...I will deal with the rest."

The plan was simple. Ryugi would guard the princess for the night. John would deal with anything that would stalk them. The men, brave souls, would get a night's rest...and the Captain would just have to wear it.

"The brilliance is in it's simplicity, yes?" John suddenly remarked, his sour tone suddenly flipping around as he beamed a smile down to Ryumi, tousling her hair a little as he walked past her towards the caravans. "Let us leave, daylight is burning!"

As he approached the men at the caravan, they all stood from where they sat, donning their helmets and shouldering their halberds once more. Tomorrow was greeted to them like a comrade - men touched his shoulder and nodded to him, and he grinned back and joked with them. But the majority kept their eyes upon Ryugi and his little girl, watching them intently...

The men watched on silently as Ryugi said his piece, the cute little Ryumi boasting her father's prowess and legendary, sunlight glinting off their clean armor and shining weapons. John kept back in the crowd, watching the Dragonkin make his facts clear, for they were facts, not assumptions or boasts nor prattle of an overconfident man - he did as he said. This was Ryugi Kazamaru, the greatest fighter his daughter knew.

As Ryugi bowed low, he'd hear footsteps crunching on the ground as several men approached him, and he would feel a hand grip his shoulder to pull him back up to a standing positon. The man who looked into his eyes was a young, stocky man with a bushy beard and glinting grey eyes, and he peered into Ryugi's face like he was looking for something.

"...You talk to much!" He finally said in an exasperated tone, a wry grin spreading on his face.

"Fast-Talking Ryugi!" One of the men beside him proclaimed, waving his hand to the Dragonkin, and the rest of the Brave Tellasa Knights burst into warm laughter.

"If you lay your life down for our princess, you will walk by us as brother, for we are all soldiers of Tellasa today!" The man gripping Ryugi's shoulder said with a hearty laugh, clapping his arm around the Dragonkin to drag him back towards the caravan as the Captain took his position with a stiff upper lip and motioned for them to march.

"Fast-Talker Ryugi, strongest will of all the land!" The man beside him said with a laugh as he broke off from them to take his position.

"Aye, he certainly has the tenacity of a Tellasa! He never lets up!" Another said with a laugh as the wagons began to roll.

"Guess you wore them down." John said to Ryugi with a warm smile, patting his free shoulder with a brawny hand before leaning down to Ryumi, speaking to her but out to the men as he walked past them. "The sun is bright and the grass is green, and we have a little girl traveling with us - surely she must know some songs!"

An uproarous cry of song came from the men as the driver of the princess' wagon lent down to reach for her hand. "The best seat in the house for our little mascot to sing her songs!" He cried, and the shouts redoubled. There was a stirring sound from within the princess' wagon, the cries of joviality waking her from her sobbed slumber - but the cries did not take up again. Hopefully, the good nature in the air was easing her pain...

Ryugi was a part of them. They had shared water. They had shown each other that they would not falter or fail. Ryugi's supposed arrogance had been discussed amongst the men, who knew a thing or two about frustration - it was clear he wished them no ill will. Indeed...to say he would lay his life on the line for the princess again and again...he must mean it!

So Fast-Talker Ryugi was brought into their fold. Now he would hear their jokes, listen to their conversations, be one with them, if only for a short while. The man with the bushy beard and the grey eyes aspired to be a cook, even though he burnt everything he baked. His comrades told him his soups were elegant, but he had no time for soup - pastries were his passion. The man walking ahead of them had a brisk singing voice, and told everybody who would listen about how his wife made him practice every morning, so their children would learn the talent. The men on the other side of the wagon were brothers, and little Ryumi reminded them of their sister, who had moved to Latent to go to university to learn agriculture.

These were men with lives. Downtrodden, beaten at every path in the life, tenacity flowed within them - tenacity, and a voracious appetite for life. No wonder Fast-Talking Ryugi was welcomed after such a hairy start - he exhibited the same symptoms as them...

It was not so farfetched for a daughter of a warrior to not know nursery rhymes or children's songs that the men were totally surprised, and a few even knew the words. It was still sweet to hear a child's song, no matter the type, and with newfound friendships and entertainment, time passed swiftly. The rolling hills of the Plains would soon begin to flatten, the fields becoming wider and more open, and more trees began to pop up in the area, and just as the sun was beginning to kiss the skyline they strolled into Koloda.

The place was not a bustling metropolise like Latent, but it was definately sizable - over 2000 people lived in Koloda, and they all 'worked the road' - their sole source of income was tending to travellers, fixing broken vehicles, and resupplying their stocks. The town was built like a snake that winds across the ground, with the road curving around then back, never allowing the traveller to see the other end until they had walked the entire town's length.

There were stables at one of the more influential inns, the Vingolf, and the wagoneers pulled their cargos into the stables as the Captain entered the main foyer. The place looked much like a five star hotel - a lot of marble and polished benches, 30" flat screen TV's adorning the walls depicting pictures of lush elegant forests and bubbling brooks, tourist attractions closest to the town. Big vases held huge wreaths of flowers and plants in every corner of every room, and the people working there were all dressed in crisply ironed suits and dresses and had big warm smiles.

The men stood outside with the wagons, doffing their helms and wiping the sweat from their foreheads. They had marched far, and a good night's sleep was in order - after a beer or two, of course!

John approached Ryugi and Donner, the big cook, and looked over the Vingolf. "Fancy looking place..." He remarked, looking over the expensive Ferarri parked in the parking lot next to the stables.

"The perks of working for royalty." Donner agreed with a smile.

((Bleh, crappy post, will try better next time))

((Thats okay! Something is better then nothing! Hope you feel better soon sweatdrop ))

The Captain returned from speaking to the people at the desk within the Vingolf, taking off his own helmet, his wavy brown hair hanging low over a sweat-covered face in a rare show of fatigue. "Okay....the Princess has the Royal Suite, and we all have the servant's quarters to it." His face went pale as the men hollered and cheered - the servants quarters, though sounding menial, were still ten times better then the regular rooms. The Captain had to shout in order to be heard over them. "Make sure... your armour is well cleaned and your weapons oiled for tomorrow. Make sure to not drink too much...I want clear heads and sharp eyes for tomorrow. Any man found drunk or hung over tomorrow morning will be sent back home, understand?!"

The men went quiet, thoroughly cowed, and there was a murmur of agreement amongst them.

"Right. Come and get your keys - Donner, please go and get the Princess so we can take her to her room."

Donner nodded and left John and Rygui's side to approach the royal wagon. John was watching the road - travellers filled the streets, peddlers trying to sell their wares. There were many eyes watching them - not too often Tellasa men walked through the streets of Koloda in such numbers, especially with wagons. There were men on horseback with packs full of camping gear and people driving through in all-terrain vehicles as well - a lot of people apparently went to Kyudonn to have a bit of fun negotiating the terrain. One vehicle even had two dirt-bikes strapped to the tray. This made John frown a little...why were they on their way to such a hostile place with the thoughts of a holiday?

The men had all taken their keys, and the Captain approached Rygui and John. "Here are the keys to your rooms, gentlemen....courtesy of Tellasa herself."

"Pretty rich for an impoverished kingdom." John said as he took the key, pocketing it instantly without checking the room number. His comment made the Captain bristle, his fists clutching tightly.

"There are still friends who wish to help Tellasa whenever they can - the owners of the Vingolf are native Tellasa's, and would do anything for the royal family. I do not expect you to - "

His sharp barb was quickly blunted as Donner returned to them, looking quite defeated. "Where is the Princess?"

"S-she refuses to come out. Ever time I ask, she does not say a word....I know she's in there, I can hear her moving, and Davinal has been by the carriage the entire time - if anybody had gotten to her, he'd know it!"

The Captain sighed with an irritation that leveled on ulcer-inducing, and lifted his fingers to pinch the bridge of his nose, emitting a breath that could melt steel. "...I do not understand why she is being the way she is..." He growled.

John nodded at Ryugi's words - the dragonkin had a point. "Aye, I should not be such a pig-head. But, as much as I'd love to party with the Tellasa soldier's, I have work to do."

He winked at Ryugi and clapped his hand on the smaller man's shoulder, his smile broad and his eyes gleaming. "Don't have too much fun without me." He said, giving Ryugi's shoulder a friendly squeeze before releasing him and walking out into the crowd, the tall Asgardian fading into them disturbingly well for a man of his stature and dress...

Meanwhile, the young soldier who had spoken to Ryugi before they had all accepted them into their fold was standing beside Ryumi, looking at the carriage helplessly. He let the little girl speak to the princess - at this point, he was willing to try anything to coax her out.

You didn't need to be an empath to know that the princess was still upset, very, very upset...but what the clueless Davinal couldn't know - and the little dragonkin Ryumi could sense - was the want for the soldier's to go away and leave her be.

"M'lady, you....you haven't eaten anything all day....please, please come out!" Davinal implored pleadingly - but Ryumi would feel the want for the boy to leave redouble at his words....however, when Ryumi had spoke, that feeling had not been there...indeed, there had been a yearning feeling intermixed with the sadness, as if the princess wished for comfort from the small child...

"She has some fruit and water for the day's trip. She will want for food soon." The Captain said in his gruff voice go away! to Ryugi as he walked towards the carriage, standing beside Davinal and sighing heavily. "Despite it's appearance, this carriage can withstand small cannon fire. leave me alone! Short of an explosive device being planted on it, I doubt anybody can break into it. Irregardless, go away! I shall post guards with her throughout the night, to make sure she is tended to."