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Post by Alissa on Oct 11, 2009 13:52:32 GMT -5
Yumio walked through the port. Most of the time, he would be trading in Sailand, but bussniess brought him here to Asteria. The black market; that's his bussniess. The boat he used, along with other members of the black market, was in the port. He had just gotten a permit to stay here for the night, but he's have to get going the next morning. They had busniess in Astar and repairs are quick, espically when it's just a few small breaks in the wood.
Walking through the market, he was in need of a few supplies. Accaully, the entire crew needed another few days supplies of food, and he's just the one that drew the unlucky straw. Yumio smiled. At least they got here around noon; lots of shops would be open and selling varities of foods.
He made his way through the crowds, holding a rather long list in his hands. People were bussling through the streets, but none looked like potenial buyers. He sighed. If he couldn't sell at least one thing here, he might not be able to afford the food. They hadn't brought much money with them, since they did not need it when they came here to do trading, in their favor.
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Kaijukote
Soilder
Who decided my worth?
Posts: 213
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Post by Kaijukote on Oct 11, 2009 14:14:27 GMT -5
Arms pinned behind my back, blindfolded, the hateful guards marched my up the steps to the scaffold. The small wooden platform, just large enough to hold the bodies of myself and executioner, creaked as I ascended to the top.
The blindfold came undone and floated away on a breeze.
My first sight was the jeering crowd, so many angry faced people, surrounding the raised platform. My vision swam in the bright light, and I was struck with a feeling of nausea. A small child to the left escaped his mother’s grasp and flung a rock. The projectile clipped my shoulder, and the young boy howled in triumph.
The rope swung to and fro, lazily. I was forced to stand under it by the guards, who stood aside after uniting my arms.
I felt… surprisingly calm. I wondered if it was ironic that I’d die in the same manner as my parents, or just destiny. Probably the latter.
The tall man in flowing black robes lowered the noose around my neck and tightened it until it became uncomfortable. I had to stand on tip-toes to breathe.
The robed executioner in black roes looked down at me.
“Any last words?” he asked, cruelly. I wasn’t scared to die. However, I felt like spitting on this man for speaking so condescendingly.
“Hold on a moment, old man. I’m trying to think of something clever.” I smirked.
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Post by Alissa on Oct 11, 2009 16:12:55 GMT -5
Walking around, something caught Yumio's attention. A group of people gathered in one little area, but why? As he neared the crowd, he saw a girl being brought up onto the stage. A boy threw a rock at the girl but it seemed like no one took notice since they continued one doing what ever was being needed to do.
"What'd that girl do?" he asked a man nearest to him.
"She's been carryin' around posions; deadly ones too" he said. Yumio stared at the man aqwardly for a moment. More than half of posions were ment to be deadly. He thanked the man before nearing the stage. A man in black robes tightened the noose around her neck. All Yumio thought was, Hanging? Really? How barbaric.. he said shaking his head slightly. And just for obtaining poisons...how stupid... he thought to himself. He climbed up onto the stage and began to untie the noose from around the girl's neck.
"What do you think you're doing!?" the man in black robes asked as Yumio untied the noose compleatly. When Yumio didn't awnser, a few gaurds came up onto the stage. "Stop that! You have no right to do that!" he yelled. Again, Yumio did not respond, so the man took things into his own hands. He clenched his hand into a fist and punched Yumio.
"YEOUCH!" the man screamed falling back. The gaurds, shocked, looked to each other for help before deciding to do the same. The first man hit Yumio's forehead before yelling out. The two other's took out their swords. Quickly, Yumio grabbed the girl's hand and pulled her as he ran off. Somewhere in their running, he pushed her forward, making sure she was infront of him.d**n, he thought. Maybe I shouldn't have used my +Anima.
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Kaijukote
Soilder
Who decided my worth?
Posts: 213
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Post by Kaijukote on Oct 12, 2009 13:18:34 GMT -5
Like a bolt from the blue, a boy suddenly appeared from the crowd. I glanced at him momentarily, and he looked well-to-do and slightly aristocratic. What was he doing, shouting like that? Trying to halt the execution? Perhaps he was one of the moral pacifist types.
He stormed the wooden platform. The guards leaped forward, but when he showed no sign of stopping, the executioner struck him. The stranger didn’t falter, however. When the guard strode forward and hit him in the head, I flinched, expected the boy to crumple like a leaf. He didn’t even seem fazed.
The guards flinched and drew their weapons.
In the space of a few moments, I was yanked from the stage and hauled into the crowd, propelled forward by the pressure on my shoulders.
He had strong hands… and rough skin. I wanted to turn around, but I decided that this simply wasn’t a good time.
The mob parted like water, every person with a horrified expression. They may have been afraid of me or my invulnerable savior--I wasn’t sure. It served it’s purpose, and we eventually cleared the area.
Finally, he let go. We continued to run, and we quickened after shouts of “Guards! Somebody--call the guards!” rose up. I let him lead the way.
On my back, I still carried the trunk or various concoctions--they hadn’t been confiscated during my imprisonment. Perhaps they had wished I’d do myself in, saving them the trouble of holding an execution. Ah, well. Such matters had a habit of turning in my favor.
Eventually we slowed our pace, but kept moving. No thunderous footsteps followed after us--we had lost them. I turned to the boy, amused by his worn-out expression.
“So. What kind of trick did you use to pull that stunt? I’d be interested to know.”
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Post by Alissa on Oct 12, 2009 18:46:34 GMT -5
Slowing down, Yumio wanted to turn off his +anima -since his +anima often gave him a headache if he used it too long- but didn't in fear of a suprise attack from the gaurds, if they ever found the two.
"Trick? Stunt?" he laughed. There was no way in hell could what he had just done be a trick or stunt, unless he, of course, had the gaurds arrest her and send her off to be exicuted just for him to save her and make her think it was a stunt or trick. No, he didn't have the time, want or need to do something like that. Also, he had no need to gain this girl's trust, or anything from her.
"Good one" he said, wiping away a tear from laughing a bit too hard. "No, no. I'm a +anima" he explained as if it were something normal or compleatly common.
"What's in that?" he asked out of plain curiousity, pointing to the box on the girl's back. Sure he that the girl was arrested for having posion, but the gaurds let her keep it, and so much of it?! That was alot, and that much could be sold in the black market for a very high price, but after just saving her from death, he though it wouldn't be such a good idea to ask if he could take some to sell later. Or steal it.
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Kaijukote
Soilder
Who decided my worth?
Posts: 213
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Post by Kaijukote on Oct 13, 2009 10:22:02 GMT -5
“Ah.” I said shortly.
+Anima, eh? Most people didn’t flaunt that sort of info so carelessly--but then, if invincible armor was part of the package, secrecy didn’t have to be a priority. I briefly debated whether or not I should confess my own +anima state, but quickly decided to withhold such information. After all, my own +anima was much more conspicuous.
"What's in that?" he asked, glancing at the large bulky pack. Because I was the suspicious sort, my immediate thought was why do you want to know? But I doubted he’d saved me just to rob me later, so I shrugged off the case.
It was an interesting object. Two feet tall and at least a foot wide, secured by two thick leather straps to my back, it was more like a wooden box than a conventional backpack. After setting it carefully on the ground, I undid the lock with the key hanging around my neck on a chain. It opened with double-doors, exposing the rows upon rows of tiny shelves within. Each shelf held a line of small bottles or vials, none of which were in any way labeled. I knew each one from memorization.
Casually, I pointed out a few.
“Cinnamon extract, baking soda, rose water.”
He looked slightly bored.
“Cyanide, arsenic, mercury powder, saxotoxin.”
With the years of accumulative knowledge had come a certain measure of expertise, and I’d ventured into the art of creating original poisons.
“This one closes the throat and can cause asphyxiation within five minutes. This one turns blood into sludge by concentration particles of iron. This one turns you blue. It doesn’t do anything else, but it’s a pretty interesting process.”
I smiled happily, quite confortable explaing the details of my profession.
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Post by Alissa on Oct 13, 2009 20:17:26 GMT -5
Yumio smiled as the girl told him what was in the box of hers and what some of the items in it could do. Turn blue, he thought to himself. Sounds fun to watch, he decided.
"I'm Yumio Oman" he said with an out streched hand. "Head of the Black Market" he said. "And you would be?" he asked. He'd like to know who he had just saved and who he had just risked his identiy as a +anima for. Or better yet, his bussniess. If those people reported his apperance, and it got to his customers, his bussniess could be ruined.
Oh well, he though. I always have my back up savings in sailand, he assured himself, still waiting for the girl to shake his hand.
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Kaijukote
Soilder
Who decided my worth?
Posts: 213
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Post by Kaijukote on Oct 15, 2009 10:31:17 GMT -5
I took his outstretched hand, shaking it lightly. Black Market dealer, eh? We were two of kind.
“My name’s Kumo. I create and sell poisons, as you can see. The authorities call my sort a ‘Black Apothecary’ .”
After the handshake ended, I gathered up my case, locking it up and swinging it back across my shoulders. It settled there, straining at the straps because of it’s weight.
“It’s quite illegal, of course; punishable by death. And with the kind of customers I get, you never know who’s going to turn on you. So that explains the… situation, from earlier.”
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Post by Alissa on Oct 16, 2009 13:17:03 GMT -5
"Yeah, I get that sometimes too" Yumio stated blankly, as if he were remembering the times he'd been fooled and almost killed. He placed his hand in his pocket and looked down at her as an idea came to mind.
"Why don't you join the black market then?" he asked with a smile. "Same danger, but with better, let's say, protection." The black market was better than randomly selling items. Plus, someone was with you as a body gaurd, now a'days due to a certin accident with one of his workers.
"We could always use a new member" he said.
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Kaijukote
Soilder
Who decided my worth?
Posts: 213
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Post by Kaijukote on Oct 19, 2009 10:16:35 GMT -5
Join the black market? I was definitely interested. In all honesty, I wasn’t exactly a good salesmen; the only practice I was adept in is was quality production.
I liked this deal. But, I also had a history of getting ripped off or taken advantage of.
…
Then, in my method famous of indifference, I decided to just go with it.
“Sure.” I nodded.
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Post by Alissa on Oct 27, 2009 22:08:08 GMT -5
"Good" Yumio said, inwardly sighing with relief. Another helper was always nice. Plus, relying on stolen goods wasn't always enough. Posion might sell with high prices, too. He let his +anima rest, giving him a break from his constant head aches.
"Come, come Kumo" he beconed Kumo as he began to walk off. Many things needed to get done at the dock and, because of this incident, he needed someone else to do it.
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Kaijukote
Soilder
Who decided my worth?
Posts: 213
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Post by Kaijukote on Oct 31, 2009 8:36:11 GMT -5
I trotted after him, having to walk slightly faster because of his long strides. He was taller than me, after all.
We took shortcuts through back alleys, avoiding the main roads for the obvious reasons.
"So, where are we going?" I asked.
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Post by Alissa on Nov 6, 2009 19:19:48 GMT -5
"To the port" Yumio said. "My crew is there and I need them to do the errands in place of me because of the incident before" he said, almost like he was made to save Kumo. But, that tone would change once Kumo did something that worked in his favor
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