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Ren Van

A Warrior Without Honor, But Maintaining his Humanity.

0 · 1,656 views · located in The Horat-verse

a character in “The Great Guild Fortune”, as played by Lord Saethos

Description

"I'll die not when honor dictates it, but when the universe itself does."

ImageName: Ren Van
Sex: Male
Age: 33
Race: Gwanish Human (from the Kingdom of Yeuxkyen)

Physical Description: Unusually tall compared to others of his background, Ren is slim but also maintains an athletic build typical of warriors and swordsmen. His hair is quite short, neat and tidy, either spiked up in the front or parted from one side (depending on how he styles it). He's kept it short like this since his long hair was cut in a battle, something that's cost him his honor.
Clothing: Black robes with red highlights, embroidery, and sashes, as well as a black cloak. This is typically worn under his armor, which is also black with some red and gold highlights. The armor is made to be both durable, and versatile, allowing for easy movement and speed while worn.
Height: 5'10"
Weight: 160lbs
Skin Colour: A pale peachy tone
Hair Colour: Black
Eye Colour: Dark brown, bordering on black

Occupation: Currently a sellsword, a merc, an officer for hire. Whatever you're able to pay for, within reason. Formerly an honorable member of the warrior nobility class in Yeuxkyen. Also formerly a member of the elite Oni warrior class, those having started as a slave.

History/Bio: Ren grew up in the city of Shakotira, in the Kingdom of Yeuxkyen. He was the son of a noble warrior family who ruled in a nearby, neighboring area, just north of the city, where the Onium had conquered. The area had been plagued by raids from the Northern Kingdom for a very long time, so much so that the many Yeuxkyen warriors made their careers, and even lives, in this region. Prowess in combat had always been important to the Yeuxkyen people, with their magnificent armies, colorful steel armor, cavalry battle tactics, and an unquestionable duty to their king, country, and honor.

As Ren was a third born, he had less to worry about in the ways of any traditional duties, but was destined for a prestigious life as a warrior in service to his warlord, and to the King. When total war broke out, Yeuxkyen found itself on the defensive against Onium and Yune, and was losing ground. Ren served in battles across the island, but it was in a battle against Onium warriors up North that his life would be forever changed. He, his comrades, and his subordinate forces, became overwhelmed by the Oni, and by battles end were captured. The city of Shakotira became the epicenter of conflict between the Onium, the Empire of Yune, and the Kingdom of Yeuxkyen.

As a result of the lost war, and the desire to maintain peace, Ren was one of many warriors enslaved by the Oni and conscripted into their armies. This "arrangement" was considered a "hostage taking" settlement, to help ensure upstart Yeuxkyen warlords would not seek further conflict with the Onium. Ren was trained to fight like the most elite Oni warriors, building on his existing skills and combat mastery learned in the Yeuxkyen army. He was outfitted and equipped in Onium armor and weapons, and over the years of his service, climbed from being a mere slave, to a respected warrior in their forces.

This changed, however, when his warlord sent him and his comrades to take a fort from a rival warlord faction. Ren and his men were beaten, captured, and then had their hair cut through. This simple act left Ren with only two choices. For warriors of his caliber, the hair was a sacred thing, a symbol of combat prowess. It showed your successes in combat, that you had not been beaten by an opponent, that you wielded your weapons and skills with such finesse that you were nigh untouchable. For many warriors, it was even expected that if you were to be beaten like this, your only choice for recourse was to take your own life. Ren had a choice, to die with honor, or live as an outcast.

Later that evening, he escaped imprisonment with some of his men, and in the dark of the night burned down the entire enemy fort, slaughtering every one of the enemy Warlord's men within it. Ren decided he would not simply lay down and die over some intangible value other men had concocted. Instead, he would live to his absolute fullest, fighting tooth and nail if he must until fate itself dragged him to his grave.

Since then, Ren has kept his hair short. The dishonor he brought had essentially cast him out from the military order of the Oni, barring him from any rights a warrior would have previously had, and he had no interest in hiding his absolute disdain for the idea that he should be dead over what he thought was a trivial matter. He found work as a mercenary, a warrior, even occasionally as an officer for some of the other Oni warlords, before making his way back to Yeuxkyen where he continued this career. On several occasions he has led small forces of peasants to storm rival warlord fortresses and castles. His employers may have thought it an amusing, silly little game. Ren did not. Never had people with so little experience been so terrifying, so awe inspiring, and so lethal.

Sadly, even in Yeuxkyen Ren was an outcast, a warrior who had failed in his duties and had even served with the enemy, no less. Still, bickering warlords had need of skilled warriors, so he continued to find employment. It was almost embarrassing, to be beaten by a disgraced sellsword leading an army of farmers. But he got the job done, served his employers well, and, most importantly, always got paid in gold. It was by no means honor, but it could buy far more, and serve Ren much better. His life has certainly become more dangerous, but also more adventurous. That's what it's like to be a sellsword, but he has his freedom, and his life.

And this is how he leads his life. For now...

Home Town: Shakotira
Home Country: Kingdom of Yeuxkyen

Personality: A little stoic, but not unfriendly. Ren has learned to be somewhat cautious of people (particularly since many of them value his life very little), but rather than avoiding them he'd prefer to size them up and see who's safe, and who isn't. He also loves adventure, of making full use of the life he has and not wasting it. While he may seem materialistic in his demands for payment, he sees it more as realistic. Ren has needs of his own to meet, and the rich have more than enough to pay him a thousand times over if they needed him that much.
Fears and Desires: Death. Only a fool or someone facing death does not fear it. He fears wasted time, potential, and life. Ren wants to make sure that when fate finally brings him his end, that he can face it with a smile on his face and a sense of satisfaction in his heart. And as for other desires, he frankly doesn't know what they are yet. He intends to continue living his life, searching for more things to bring him fulfillment and a sense of purpose.

Equipment and Weapons: Two swords, the first with a strange golden-coppery tone to the blade, and the second having a one handed grip. He also possesses a crossbow, a long bow, a pole arm, and a suit of black armor, but with red highlights. He also has a horse, and equipment for it, but sadly he has had to leave her in the care of a Yeuxkyen stable. Ren was unable to take her across the seas with him, to Yune where he now travels.
Styles and Abilities: As is typical for warriors of his class, he is a master of mounted combat, an excellent archer (both on ground and horseback), and is skilled in sword fighting. Ren is also skilled in hand to hand martial arts, and has (in recent times) been learning some of the skills and techniques of assassins, in case it becomes necessary to use in future combat.
Chi and Augmentations: Ren's chi has enabled his body to be capable of greater physical feats than typical for even skilled warriors like himself. He's stronger, faster, and more agile. Able to lift more, hit harder, run faster, or jump higher.


Image

So begins...

Ren Van's Story

Setting

Characters Present

Character Portrait: Suiken Character Portrait: Yuwen Fortune Character Portrait: Xanth Character Portrait: Takai Character Portrait: Yamato Hibiki Character Portrait: Lo-Muna Vanhi
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"I don't think we should gamble the lives of anyone in the village for no reason, anyway," Suiken shook his head. "No need to drag more people into being a part of this without due warning." Listening to Yuwen's words, Suiken's disposition didn't change much. "Cheat. Cheat how?" he asked. "Assuming you just aren't going to come up with that as we go along....you are, aren't you?"

Setting

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Character Portrait: Suiken Character Portrait: Yuwen Fortune Character Portrait: Takai Character Portrait: Yamato Hibiki Character Portrait: Lo-Muna Vanhi Character Portrait: Namari Shioh
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"I concur," Suiken agreed with Lo-Muna. "It's high time we began sharing plans here, don't you think?" Suiken agreed. "Especially when you factor in the lives of people we don't know, eh?"

Setting

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Character Portrait: Suiken Character Portrait: Yuwen Fortune Character Portrait: Takai Character Portrait: Yamato Hibiki Character Portrait: Lo-Muna Vanhi Character Portrait: Sunaarashi
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Ren watched as the whole ordeal played out between the Guild and Makoko, and was left quite flabbergasted.

"I'm... Sorry? Are there not better approaches we could undertake here? Why did we opt to compete with him in terms of ticket sales? Or compete at all for that matter?" Ren rubbed at his temples as a gentler wave of pain came and went. He'd looked to the rest of the group, noting they were a member (and her dog) down. Not a great situation to be in it seemed...

"Look, if you want my humble opinion, we should bring Makoko to justice. Swiftly. Barring that, there is the option to try using our actual talents to impress the people of this town. I mean surely there is at least a handful of skills we can put to better use than-"

"Don't call me Sur-Li!" A decrepit and blind old man called out, following that up by saying absolutely nothing else.

"Umm... To better use than trying to cheat our way out of it. Besides, its doubtful Makoko will follow through on any kind of bargains with us anyways. Sure, we could try to turn the townsfolk against him somehow, but is spellcraft truly our best option there?"

Setting

Characters Present

Character Portrait: Suiken Character Portrait: Yuwen Fortune Character Portrait: Takai Character Portrait: Yamato Hibiki Character Portrait: Lo-Muna Vanhi Character Portrait: Sunaarashi
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"You're right, it isn't," Takai replied to Ren, "Look, I know you're angry Samyan, but messing with the spiritual lives of innocent people isn't going to help you in the long term. Let's not tarnish the name of the Great Guild Fortune just yet."

He paused and squinted at Makoko's tent mysteriously.

"Nah, I think there's a better way we can cheat our way to winning, a way that will bring justice to Makoko and rescue Kaor and Wun all at once," he grinned, "Some good ol' fashioned sabotage."

Setting

Characters Present

Character Portrait: Suiken Character Portrait: Yuwen Fortune Character Portrait: Takai Character Portrait: Yamato Hibiki Character Portrait: Lo-Muna Vanhi Character Portrait: Namari Shioh
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Samyan sighed through her nose, leaning back against one of the carts. The oni being contrarian was to be expected, but did the rest of these really need to be so defiant all the time? The sheer misguided willfulness of these foreign children never failed to provide a source of frustration.

"We are doing this," she began slowly, enunciating each word as if trying to force comprehension upon them, "because it is the way it needs to be done. Our beloved ringmaster has a veritable army hidden within those tents, many of whom I suspect to be some small selection of the most competent individuals to be found outside Vashira. This little contest is nothing more than a sideshow as far as their master is concerned, and any attempt to win in a respectable manner is damned to failure.

"Were circumstances ideal, I would have simply plucked out that pompous little man's heart the moment he so much as entertained the thought that he could make property of me, however as it stands I am bound by my word to make no direct move against he or his. Sabotage, while a cute proposition, would be discovered almost immediately by the nigh thousand eyes which fill the big top alone, and so, despite your immature little cultural reservations regarding my craft, it presents the swiftest and safest path to our success and your guild master's continued survival."

"Our guild master," she corrected with a thin smile at Fortune. Samyan's gaze flicked back toward the oni and rabbit for a moment, considering each of them before she sighed again and rolled her eyes. "The villagers won't be harmed. The won't even remember anything come sunrise."

Setting

Characters Present

Character Portrait: Suiken Character Portrait: Yuwen Fortune Character Portrait: Takai Character Portrait: Yamato Hibiki Character Portrait: Lo-Muna Vanhi Character Portrait: Namari Shioh
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"If Takai has a plan, I say we give him a chance to explain," Suiken interjected. "I don't want to risk subjecting the villagers to any sort of necromancy, benign or not."

Setting

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Character Portrait: Yuwen Fortune Character Portrait: Takai Character Portrait: Ren Van Character Portrait: Ginchiyo Lao Tzu Character Portrait: Gonpo the Fisher
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"So," Takai began, sitting on a wooden crate and spotting a wide grin, "I presume the rest of you here wish to help me infiltrate Makoko's circus? Make it a real...SHITEshow if you will, heheh."

***

One of the teens looked incredulous at Yuwen, "Are you some kind of psycho - erm, I mean, psychic?"

Setting

Characters Present

Character Portrait: Suiken Character Portrait: Yuwen Fortune Character Portrait: Takai Character Portrait: Yamato Hibiki Character Portrait: Lo-Muna Vanhi Character Portrait: Namari Shioh
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Before Ren's eyes, the group was split seemingly in twain. Or perhaps several ways in twain. There were those going to prepare for their 'acts', those preparing for sabotage, Yuwen acting as their promoter, and Samyan doing... Samyan things. She, now more than before, was particularly troubling to the swordsman. Before, he wondered if her antics were those of an absent minded sort of person, but the way she spoke had far more intent and intelligence to it than he initially gave her credit for. No, she was well thought out, operated with intent, and cunning. That didn't mean she was evil or anything, but it did mean she was likely fully aware of any actions she took, and that would warrant an entirely new perspective of her.

But, for now, that was neither here nor there. They needed to get their friends (and friends of friends) back from the clutches of Makoko, and Ren was left wondering how best he could contribute. In the end, he was mainly left on his own, so he opted then to operate on his own, in one of the only ways he knew how:

Using personal experience.

Now, Ren wasn't an actor or performer by any means, but he'd seen plenty of theater back in Yeuxkyen. And so, in the vein of that, he grabbed his coin purse and headed deeper into the village. He sought out weavers of fine, bright garments, preferably those covered in red and gold, whether or not they were intended for men or women was irrelevant, he'd make due (it wouldn't be fancy, but it didn't have to be). Then, it was makeup and face paints; red, white, and black. He grinned to himself as he envisioned it all coming together. He'd probably need to 'borrow' Master Wang Chang later from Yuwen, as well as some sort of staff or spear.

Oh yes, and potent liquor...

His eyes landed on one last item, something he'd nearly forgotten, but so so obvious as soon as his eyes landed upon it, he grinned as he ran over to an old village man, with a long, flowing dark beard.

"Excuse me sir," Ren began.

"But might I be able to purchase your beard from you?" He asked with eager intent.

The man's eyes alighted with astonishment. "NO! What? NO! Are you crazy! Whatsamatter with you! Coming around here to buy a beard! What are you, some kinda psycho? Some kinda sicko?"

Ren dropped a hefty some of gold coins on the man's lap. "Please, sir, I promise to put it to great use."

The man looked up at Ren in disgust.

______________________________________________________________________________


A short while later, the old man sat pensively counting his gold coins, while Ren walked away with his bolt of facial hair in hand, whistling happily to himself as he went. Now to find a tent where he could begin to prepare himself for his own performance later. He'd almost wished there were more articles he could purchase from his homeland, but alas, this was rural Yune, villagers like these were unlikely to care for items of interest from far off lands.

But, what he had managed to acquire would suffice. He felt a little giddy to be honest, but also anxious. Despite the fact that this was all mostly a rouse, he did have a vested interest now in trying to do as well as possible. But he'd just have to put himself out there, give his all, and hope for the best.

Setting

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Character Portrait: Takai Character Portrait: Lo-Muna Vanhi Character Portrait: Ren Van Character Portrait: Gonpo the Fisher
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Gonpo sat and nodded towards the red-haired archer. "We'll follow your lead, Good Friend Takai!"

Setting

Characters Present

Character Portrait: Suiken Character Portrait: Yuwen Fortune Character Portrait: Xanth Character Portrait: Ren Van
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From behind Suiken, Yuwen, Xanth, and Doot, two heavy thuds could be heard. Turning to see a figure covered in a heavy burlap cloak, they were surprised to learn that the thudding came from the individual's footsteps. They had an average frame, so why did it sound like they were a walking mass of stone? The face too was hidden by burlap hood, but there was a length of hair that draped down out of it, a beard. In his right hand was held a sturdy staff, with a straightness and precision more befitting of an arrow than a walking device.

"The threat of fire awaits all destined for Hell, friends." The voice spoke with a depth and volume unexpected, carried with such ease the figure could have been standing next to each Guildmate's ear.

What was perhaps more unexpected than this deep and loud voice was the fact that it was unmistakably that of Ren Van, the swordsman. Nonetheless, he left the hood down over his face, all features save the beard obscured.

"What Makoko needs is not the threat of fire. He needs to witness Hell itself, come to collect him for judgement." He let out a low, menacing chuckle.

He drew closer, leaning down next to Xanth and placing a sturdy hand on her shoulder. "Prison is meant for the wicked, wouldn't you agree Xanth? No place for your friend to be trapped. Let us go bring her freedom, and her captors... The fair judgement they have earned."

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Character Portrait: Suiken Character Portrait: Yuwen Fortune Character Portrait: Xanth Character Portrait: Ren Van
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#, as written by Nulix
"Is this your character for the show or...?" Yuwen questioned as Dark Ren shimmied about in his burlap sack disguise.

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Character Portrait: Suiken Character Portrait: Yuwen Fortune Character Portrait: Xanth Character Portrait: Ren Van
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Ren was silent for a moment as he contemplated whether or not Yuwen was being facetious or not, but ultimately decided the observation wasn't wholly inaccurate.

"As it so happens, character would be the correct word for it. Though, I have my means for trying to breath some... Unique life into it."

Setting

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Character Portrait: Suiken Character Portrait: Yuwen Fortune Character Portrait: Xanth Character Portrait: Takai Character Portrait: Ren Van Character Portrait: Gonpo the Fisher
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"I...was just going to suggest we fake a fire, evacuate the tents, and free Kaor in the confusion, Suiken added.

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Character Portrait: Suiken Character Portrait: Yuwen Fortune Character Portrait: Xanth Character Portrait: Ren Van
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#, as written by Nulix
Yuwen looked at Suiken and then Ren before squinting up at the afternoon sun. "If we're going to start a fire we'll have to do it quick, soon enough we'll have to perform..." Yuwen paused, realization coming over him. "Wait a minute, the show! Kaor is guarded, right Xanth? I assume that's why you weren't able to escape with her." Yuwen stroked his chin. "Makoko has guards, but from the intel I've gathered his most ferocious warriors are performers in his show- and to beat us tonight and win Samyan he's sure to have them all performing, meaning it'll only be lackeys guarding her."

Yuwen turned to Ren and Suiken. "If we stage an accident backstage during the show Makoko will be too busy hosting to see himself, and all his best men will be busy, we'll have deniability because we'll be performing!"

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Character Portrait: Suiken Character Portrait: Yuwen Fortune Character Portrait: Xanth Character Portrait: Ren Van
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"So, one of us slips off during the performances...this will have to be well-timed," Suiken sighed. "Though I'd advise against truly starting a fire, but make sure no harm comes to anyone trapped within. In fact, whoever slips off can re-convene with Takai and Gonpo in order to collaborate further. If you're up to it, Xanth, perhaps you can do so?" Suiken asked.

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Character Portrait: Suiken Character Portrait: Yuwen Fortune Character Portrait: Xanth Character Portrait: Ren Van
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Xanth nodded in response to Suiken. She wanted to go. There was only one problem. Kaor wouldn't come. But if the circus is on fire she'll have to, dark Xanth reasoned. She huffed the devil on her shoulder away and got to drawing with her finger again, rubbing out the bear. In Kaor's place she drew a face with a long schnoz. She pointed to her eye, then down to the picture. Keep an eye on that one.

Setting

Characters Present

Character Portrait: Suiken Character Portrait: Yuwen Fortune Character Portrait: Xanth Character Portrait: Takai Character Portrait: Namari Shioh Character Portrait: Sunaarashi
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#, as written by Nulix
"If you could do that, the greatest travelling circus in the land of Yune would be free," Zhaoprazu commented with a small smile. "But that would be impossible- Makoko keeps his contract in the safest place this circus has." The slippery mander leaned in to the monkey and his fruity little goblin companion so they could see into the blackness of his inhuman eyes. "His own body."

The metallic echo of a chau gong echoed through the packed passages of the tent. At the sound the temperate pace of the tent inhabitants swiftened. "You should get to your station," He informed the fire-oni. A few stagehands pushed passed Takai and Gonpo, hurrying to do the same. "Tickets just went on sale, that means mere hours until the show and a million things to do." Zhaoprazu turned back to the guild members. "I wish you luck, and if Makoko catches you and hangs you from your innards, I will weep." And with that Zhaoprazu scurried into the chaos of the big top...

***

Yuwen grimaced as Xanth drew a long nosed person in the manure between them. "Xanth, you were probably never told this but the tengu really don't like these caricatures." Yuwen went to a knee and placed a hand on her shoulder. "Don't let Yamato see this, it'll really hurt his feelings," He advised sincerely, trying to protect his friend from the deeprooted bigotry of his guildmates.

Suddenly, the sound of a gong bellowing out from the horizon. Yuwen rose as in the wake of the sound one of the many smaller tent in front of Makoko's bigtop parted it's curtain to reveal a ticket booth. Leering out at the assembled village was a woman, her hair tied back tight enough to rip the roots from her skull, and a makeup plastered smile cemented permanently on her face. "TONIGHT! THE FINAL OF THE FIVE DAY PERFORMANCES! MISTER MAKOKO'S MARVELOUS MOVING CIRCUS! FEATURING NEVER BEFORE SEEN CREATURES AND ACTS! COME EARLY FOR PRE-SHOW QUESTION SESSIONS WITH STARS OF THE STAGE POUNAMU SENSHU AND SHANG-LO!"

"Wait, that name..." Yuwen plunged his hand into his trousers and from them pulled out the folded flier for Makoko's circus. "Of course! This isn't racism, it's the world's greatest smeller, Shang-Lo!" Yuwen deducted, slapping the poster with the back of his hand. On it standing with the other performers was a noble illustration of the large nosed man. "This says he can identify a single orchid from across the stage. Alright, this settles it, during our show we all have to perform, and when we aren't we'll infiltrate, find Takai and Gonpo in Makoko's crowd, concoct a plan, free Kaor in the ensuing chaos, then get back to our show before the final curtain call, where all of us will cleanly and calmly take a bow, having outsold Makoko and won Wun back fair and square."

Yuwen looked over to the ticket seller, who already had a line of curious villagers queued. "Of course, that still means we have to put on one hell of a show." Yuwen dusted himself off and began to march back toward the village streets. "The four of us will reconvene tonight at the show!" He called back to Suiken, Xanth, and the man formerly known as Ren.

A lemur leaning against the side of a shack tracked Yuwen as he pushed a wooden stall into the square, across from ticketseller tent. "What are they planning...?" Makoko's lemur spy hummed as he bit into a plumb.

From their karts Yuwen emerged again, pulling behind him the kimono'd husk that was Namari. "Ladies and gentleman! There is simply TOO MUCH magic in this one town!" Yuwen announced, causing the line lookers. "Why see Makoko's tired old show yet another time when, instead, you could witness the GREAT GUILD FORTUNE For the same price! One night only, tickets on sale now!"

Namari reluctantly plopped her elbows down on the wood as a few curious villagers approached. Yuwen backed away, placing his hands together and mouthing a thank you to the woman. Namari paid the guild leader little mind, instead ripping off a piece of the hastily written tickets and handing it out to their first customer. The customer swallowed upon seeing the hand that held the ticket had a shackle and shattered chain hanging from the wrist but still took the ticket regardless.

***

"Do it!"

"Jump!"

"What are you, chicken?!"

"Am not!"

"Then do it!"

"AAAAH!"
The girl let out a mighty bellow, running forward off the rock-ledge and leaping out. She plunged into the river, water splashing out onto her friends her watched. A moment later the girl herself rose to the surface, a bucktoothed grin on her face. The children cheered from atop the tiny drop-off.

"You like danger, do you?" A voice called. The children turned to see out of the tall grasses Yuwen Fortune sinisterly rise. "Then you'll love the Great Gilly Fortune." Yuwen handed one a poster. "We have real warriors from Yutan and beyond."

"Real warriors?" A child repeated.

Yuwen nodded. "That's right."

"But... I don't have any money," Another child added sadly.

Yuwen scratched his chin. "How many children live in Ginori?

"I don't know, fifty?" A child replied.

Yuwen pulled out from his cloak a bustling sack of coin. "Then you give this to every kid your age you know, and keep whatever's extra. You dig?"

***

"I never knew!" The man had a wide smile beneath his sunburnt stubble. He was barely paying attention to the field he was meant to be sowing. "What are you, year of the horse?"

"Year of the goat," The woman across from him said, she too smiling. In the large field of farm workers they seemed to be the two having, by far, the most fun.

"Girl, I can't be messin' with no year of the goat! Are you kidding me?" The man exclaimed, wiping the sweat off his brow.

"YOU LIKE ASTROLOGY, DO YOU?!" Yuwen exclaimed, emerging between the two. The man screamed in horror and dropped his woven baskets of seeds as Yuwen arose. "You like the wonders of the cosmos? Then you should see the Great Carnival Fortune." Yuwen handed each a flier.

"I'm sorry sir, but me and Cao Chen already went a day ago," The woman informed.

"You've seen Makoko's circus yes, but did Makoko's circus have the great Star Seeker, holy man of the north, and visionary of the stars? " Yuwen asked. "Because ours does."

"Really?" The woman whispered, taking in Yuwen's words before raising the poster to her friend. Yuwen grinned as he knelt again, ready to creep up to the next worker.

***

The market had died down as the orange sun stretched on the horizon, but the group of patchy faced teenagers were still gathered.

"I keep thinking about that little bounce, you know- that jiggle," One breathed.

"It's the ears for me," His friend said, closing his eyes.

"So you liked what you saw?"

The teens turned to see Yuwen Fortune had again invaded their space. "Come on, it's nothing to be ashamed of," Yuwen continued, ingratiating himself to the group. "You saw an attractive beast-man, can't imagine you get much of those here, right?"

"Right," A teen said bashfully.

"You liked her, yeah?"

"Yeah," Another added.

"Yeah, she's really foxy."

Yuwen paused, debating whether to correct the teen about Lo-Muna being a rabbit beast-man, but instead dismissed the thought. From behind his back he held out a poster. "You know she'll be performing tonight- at this." Yuwen grinned at the teens leaned in. "You should be there."

***

By the time Yuwen returned to the tent the sun had set, and the guild leader was shocked to see that almost every soul in the village of Ginori had crowded into the town square, though it was unclear if they had gathered to enter Fortune's carnival or Makoko's. "Okay," Yuwen announced, approaching Sunaarashi who stood outside their tent. "I did what I could. Our circus has danger, excitement, eroticism, music, and mystery, and Makoko's will have... well, sabotage and animal cruelty. Is everyone inside ready?"

Setting

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Character Portrait: Suiken Character Portrait: Yuwen Fortune Character Portrait: Xanth Character Portrait: Yamato Hibiki Character Portrait: Lo-Muna Vanhi Character Portrait: Namari Shioh
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"Ready as we'll ever be," Suiken nodded. "I've got the act order written down here...." Suiken said, lifting up a scroll for Yuwen to read. "Added a bit of extra space in case anyone has a bonus act they'd want to perform. Are you ready to rally the crowd?"

He then turned to Samyan, who had just arrived at the Guild's tent. Or, to be more accurate, Suiken had sensed the aura emanating from her bag before she even stepped past the curtain. So, that's what she was up to. Needless to say, Suiken didn't approve, but this was no time to incite any inner-group conflict. Instead, the Snow Oni took a deep breath and stated. "I'm going to get my instruments tuned before I go on. Let's give this our all, everyone!"

Setting

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Character Portrait: Suiken Character Portrait: Yuwen Fortune Character Portrait: Xanth Character Portrait: Yamato Hibiki Character Portrait: Lo-Muna Vanhi Character Portrait: Namari Shioh
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As Xanth, Suiken, and Yuwen discussed the possibility of fire, a though had occurred to Ren of something that would make for an interesting addition to tonight's entertainment. He started to feel very uneasy about how everything would go down, but if nothing else... Ren certainly knew he'd make for a very capable distraction.

It seemed as though they had a plan now, and as Yuwen rambled off about someone with Chi Based Smelling Powers, Ren looked back to Xanth. "If you need any help tonight Xanth, you shouldn't have any trouble finding me. Though I warn you; I will be ill equipped for anything requiring secrecy." He chuckled in that low voice he'd constructed. "Other than that, I'll soon be prepared with everything I need, just have one more thing to work on."

With that, he nodded to be Suiken and Xanth (Yuwen having already run off to set up the ticket booth) before heading back into town. He needed to find some kind of craftsman...

___________________________________________________________________________________________


'Old Man Ren' was back in town a short while later, and had already picked up a few things. Some small metal parts and pieces from a local tinkerer, a strange resin like substance from a carpenter, and bits and pieces of fire starting materials, such as a flint. He'd made his way over to a small workshop, finding a woman inside fast at work on designing what looked like a rather ornate birdhouse. "Excuse me miss." His voice bellowed. "Can I trouble you? I'd appreciate a few hours to work with some of your tools, if you wouldn't mind." The woman jolted slightly, turning around to peer at the strange figure.

"Uhh, sorry. I'm in the middle of another project for someone. You'll have to come back another time." She turned back to her work, expecting the man to leave.

Ren shifted uncomfortably. He'd expected she'd just... Stop doing that job and do his instead. That was, in hindsight, a poor assumption. Reaching into his cloak, he produced a small, hefty bag, opening it to pour a dozen gold coins onto the counter. "Surely you can spare even a few moment of your time to assist me." He pressed on.

She looked at the gold and almost immediately shook her head. "I'm sorry, that's not how I operate here. You can't pay to skip ahead, you'll just have to wait."

A heavy, agitated sigh emanated from the man, who slammed a hand down on the counter. Her eyes lingered over to it.

It was red. And covered in unholy black markings. Wait... Did they move?

"Where I come from, they have a saying about thrice denying the request of someone in need. Would you like to hear how it goes, or would you rather take the gold?"

The woman's eyes were widened in horror as she looked up to the figure. She wanted to scream or something, but realized what a mistake that could be. Instead, she acquiesced. "A-alright. But- But at least let me do some of the work. Forgive me I just... I want to make sure my tools are used correctly."

The figure nodded their veiled head slowly and let out a content sigh. "That will be acceptable. Shall we begin?"

___________________________________________________________________________________________


Hours later, Ren stepped back out onto the streets of the village, the craftswoman standing in the doorway behind him. Ren produced the bag once more, and handed her six more coins. "Your assistance is greatly appreciated miss. Thank you again." He gave a slight bow as he prepared to leave, but stopped short and turned back to the woman for a moment. "You know miss, there's another performance in town tonight. Not that Mr. Makoko's, a new one. Perhaps you'll come watch, should you have time. It will be a show to remember forever, I can promise you that much."

The frightful figure left, heading back towards another encampment. The craftswoman was, at this moment, preoccupied with trying to figure out whether or not she was invited to watch this performance, or if she'd been threatened to go. She was also trying to figure out whether or not that just made her more interested in going.

.....................................................................................


Ren continued down the street towards their tent, his staff carrying a little more weight in it now that before, landing with a slightly heavier thud. It was a bit unbalanced now, but Ren was skilled enough to continue to wield it, and in exactly the way he had intended to. Anyone that ended up near to him seemed to naturally veer away, making pathways open up quite easily for the man as he wove his way through the crowd to the tent.

He'd arrived shortly before Fortune, neither too early, nor too late, but precisely when he intended to arrive. Ren caught immediate sight of the necromancer tossing dirt on the ground for reasons that were almost certainly a crass perversion of nature, life, death, and everything one should hold as sacred. But he was also covered in curse words now, so this probably wouldn't make things any worse than they already were for him.

Yuwen entered shortly after, giving everyone a rundown on the situation, then asking if everyone was ready. "Should be good to go. Only thing I'm lacking is Master Wang, assuming you can spare him for a short while during the performances."

Suiken briefly addressed the plans he'd come up with, and indicated he'd go get his instruments before telling them to give it their all. "If all else fails Suiken, we can always host an impromptu concert."

He turned his gaze back to Yuwen, as he'd not had time to spy what Suiken had shown him. "So, what IS the order we're going in?"

Setting

Characters Present

Character Portrait: Suiken Character Portrait: Yuwen Fortune Character Portrait: Xanth Character Portrait: Yamato Hibiki Character Portrait: Lo-Muna Vanhi Character Portrait: Namari Shioh
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#, as written by Sepokku
Ginchiyo slogged out of the nearby wilderness, a tired scowl on her face. Her usual ragged clothing and cloak had been replaced with a colorful outfit adorned with feathers of every shade. Her gait was unusual, her knees bent as if she were trying to sneak behind a particularly short box. Pursing her lips and rolling her tongue, she made a small chirruping noise; which prompted a rooster with scarlet red feathers and a bright blue comb to follow her out of the wilds.

She let out another small chirrup, which caused a long-legged flamingo to tip-toe after her. A third chirrup caused a third bird to fly in; this one was a dark black raptor with dark red fake eyes on its wings. A fourth chirrup, another oddly colored bird; then a fifth, and a sixth. Before long she had a procession of oddly-colored birds following her or resting on her shoulders; one particularly flamboyant bird had made an honest-to-Gods nest in her hair and was silently looking around.

"Can't believe I'm doing this..." Ginchiyo grumbled as she awkwardly continued her awkward walk into the tent, the eyes of quite a few townsfolk on her. She arrived just in time to hear Ren ask their leader a very important question.

"So, what IS the order we're going in?"

Without waiting for Yuwen to answer, the procession of wild birds made their way into the tent, following their temporary leader, not one of them entirely silent. Ginchiyo pursed her lips and let out three more awkward chirrups. As if on cue, all but the bird on her head scattered to roost in the tent. "I'm first." She locked eyes with Yuwen as if daring him to disagree. Seeming to take offense, the bird roosting in her hair began to flap its wings. The rest of the birds in the tent began to mirror its aggravation; the rooster even ruffled its feathers and let out an angry "COCK-A-DOODLE-DOO"

"Alright! Alright. We go last. We'll go last!" Seeming to understand, the bird on her head settled down and began to clean its feather with its beak. In unison, the rest of the birds calmed down and returned to whatever they had been doing. Ginchiyo let out a defeated sigh and sat down so that both her knees were to her chest. She rested her chin on her knees and wrapped both her arms around them.

"If anyone laughs, I'll make sure every one of these birds flies over you after they've been fed."