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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Emperor Valerian" data-source="post: 1995850" data-attributes="member: 15043">Next update... the first part didn’t truly happen “in game,” but I felt it needed to be added to give some of the dimensions of Cho’s character, such as his motivation for joining the group, and what makes him tick.  He’s harder to characterize than the other PCs ‘cause he’s so far appeared in only one session...==============================A Town on the EdgeA day laterA twig snapped.  Felonca immediately rocketed from her sleeping roll, her hands furtively snatching her warfans, her eyes looking about, wide and fearful.  Another snap. Felonca followed the direction the noise came from, until she saw its cause.Sheepishly, Cho looked down, putting the small twigs away.  The monk’s hands quickly hid the small whittling knife as well.“I apologize for waking you,” he said, pausing before he added, “Why are you so skittish, Wa-Feng Felonca, may I ask?” he asked, his voice a rolling tenor.  “Have none of your traveling partners ever whittled as a means to pass their time on watch?”“Nayu used to,” Felonca admitted, thinking back to their first night traveling, on their way to Xianlung to sell a few tomes of magic.  “But that was months ago.  It’s just that since... well...”  She sat up, trying to find a way to explain herself, and what was going on in her mind.  “I... we... me and Nayu and Liu... have been through a lot.”  She paused again, trying to figure out what to say, before blurting  “I... guess I never really thought I’d be helping someone search for their parents, or have undead chasing me.  I was supposed to be a warrior, not a thief stumbling about the countryside...”  Her voice drifted towards silence.  “But Nayu is my friend... that’s why I’m here.  Even if I can’t be a soldier like my ancestors, at least I can do something here that’s right!” Felonca sighed.  Despite that, Father is probably so ashamed of me right now, Felonca looked down, the smallest pebbles on the ground drawing her eyes.  Cho had seemed just as patient as Liu, and just as kind, without the attempts at conversion.  Why did you just blurt that out to him?  He doesn’t care!“Ah... I too wonder why I am doing this sometimes,” Cho said, and Felonca immediately gaped at him.  A monk?  Not knowing why they are here, or what they are doing?  Liu would never say something like that!  That’s... that’s like Liu saying a scholar is right!  As confusion ran through her mind, Cho gave a slight smile and leaned forward.“But then I remember that for all the bad in the world, there is much good, and I try to protect it.  That is why I am here, why I have my speed, my fists.”  The reply was simple, sure, and filled with as much confidence and gravity as a lecture from a scholar or a prayer from Liu.  “I need to keep myself honed, to fight for what is good... and most certainly trying to assure the reunion of a family is a good thing, is it not?”“Of course,” Felonca gave a slight smile.  Nayu finding his family is better than neither of us ever seeing our families again. “And since I joined, I have more reasons to go.  If this village is being harassed by a monster, it is my duty to help to try and free the people from such a danger.  If a corrupt Imperial official threatens innocents, it is my job to help stop him.”  Felonca could tell that even while all of Cho’s words were delivered with the same frank, blunt speech, the monks eyes were looking past her, to something different.“So you’ve dedicated your entire life to helping others?  No time or thoughts to yourself?”  Felonca asked, disbelief on the edge of her tone of voice.“Yes.”  The same sure smile.  “I am one part of many.  You’ve likely heard Master Liu talk on and on about that, correct?”  Now, a slight smirk.“Yes!  He rambles on and on about how according to Master Shenyang, we are all linked together; noble and common, warrior and farmer, even the foreign devils are linked to us in spirit, albeit dimly.  It seems rather... broad, if I should say so.”  Felonca stopped again, before speaking, trying to focus her thoughts.  “Naive... especially considering what I’ve seen.”“Well, taking into account that I happen to follow Master Shenyang’s teachings, and that I am one part of the many, if I can make the many better, I better myself, no?” Cho asked, picking up his twig again.  “If I defend the many from those that would misuse, abuse, or destroy them, I defend myself, right?”Felonca tried to follow his train of thought, and found it far easier than Liu’s convoluted theological blasts.  She still doubted him, but it was very late, and she knew even when fully awake, philosophical arguments with religious personalities were not her forte. “Why’d you choose this life... of dedicating yourself to helping others, as opposed to... well... doing your own thing?” she asked instead.  You are extremely fast and strong... Master Hsiu likely would have loved to had you at the Academy instead of me...“My parents were devotees of Master Shenyang, and The Way,” Cho replied, his eyes snapping back to the present.  “I suppose some of it rubbed off.  As for any other reasons why I do this... I suppose in my heart of hearts, helping others in need is the right thing to do.”  The monk then shrugged, before chuckling lightly.  “My mother was full of old cliches!  One of them sticks with me even now!”“What was it?” Felonca asked, sincerely curious.Cho cleared his throat, and his voice changed to an impersonation of a creaking, aged crone, as he wagged his finger through the air.  “My son, if you are pressed to make a choice, remember thus!  Always do the right thing!  Then, you will never look back with regrets!”  Always do the right thing... it sounds so simple... but it’s so hard... Felonca thought silently.“I wish the world was that simple, Master Togashi,” Felonca sighed.  “But as for now, I’m going to lay down again.”She found she couldn’t sleep for a while, however, as her mind reflected over the simple phrase over and over again.Gently, Nayu ran his hand through the thicker, longer strands of hair coming from his mustache, his fingers combing them until they looked perfectly in balance with the nascent beard slowly enveloping his face.  As soon as his hand moved away, a small gust of wind caught the hairs alight, and soon blew them awry again.So close... Nayu thought as he rocked back and forth on his horse.  The young sorcerer stared into the mirror, and for a second, the youthful reflection changed; the smooth skin looked cragged and wrinkled with age, the brown eyes turned a sky blue, hard with age, while his black beard became streaked with gray.So close to my father, yet so far...“Aren’t we feeling vain today?” Felonca laughed, bringing her horse next to Nayu’s.  Hurriedly, Nayu’s mirror disappeared into his saddlepack, his eyes averted from her, even as she pressed more.  “You’ve been toying with that mirror quite often, young man!  Once we reach Mafeng, should I ask your mother for some paint to properly make you a beauty?  Or would that make your father...”She suddenly stopped, recognition on her face.“Yes... I grew it to look like him,” Nayu sighed, answering her unspoken question.  “His is longer... his hair is long enough he needs to wear a queue, but in a few months, I’ll be close to his.”  There was a tone of hopefulness in Nayu’s voice.  I will see him again! he reminded himself.“Good... I don’t know how to put queue’s into boy’s hair,” Felonca grinned again, happy that her friend wasn’t too morose, “so either your mom or dad’ll have to do it!”Only a few hours later, Felonca began to smell the distinctive odors of many people living together... whiffs of baking, the smell of unwashed bodies, the wetness of straw.  Only a few minutes later, the party rounded a bend in the road, and before them lay the small town of Mafeng.It looked to be moderate sized... Nayu guessed that normally perhaps 1,500 people called the village home.  However, it was plainly apparent that things were not as they should be in what should have been an idyllic little place.  Most obviously, a hastily thrown up wooden palisade surrounded the entire village.  Outside of the improvised walls were the remains of an abandoned camp... many tents still pitched, their cloth flapping in the breeze.As they rode closer, it was also apparent that there were guards mounted on the palisade walls, and the closer they got, the more guards seemed to arrive.  They did not look like professionals in any sense... most were armed with a mishmash of old weapons and haphazard bits of old armor.  Finally, just as the wooden walls seemed to loom above them, one of the guards called down.“Who goes there!  Who are you!  More trader scum bent on conning us?!”  The man looked better armored than the rest... he had a boiled leather vest, a couple pieces of scale mail attached, along with an ancient great helm.“I am Wakabayashi Nayu, these are my companions Wa-Feng Felonca, Liu Ganxi, and Togashi Cho,” Nayu called back.  “We come here searching for my family!  They were refugees from the village of Red Lotus!  Prince Hu has stated the refugees have been sent here!”The “well dressed” guard disappeared from the wall for a moment, and the party heard loud mumblings of a discussion.  Finally, with a creak, the wooden doors opened, and the party cantered into the village.  Even more quickly, the wooden doors were shut.“Have you met the prince?” a different guardsmen said, wide-eyed as he held Nayu’s horse.  “Is he sending hunters here to get rid of the beast and the councillor?”  The sergeant immediately gave the young man a scowl.“Don’t be bothering them just yet, Mao.  Just got here and he’s already asking questions,” the man muttered.  “I’m going to have to ask you to go talk to the prefect before you do anything else.  He is the one that needs information about what happened in Mingzhong a few weeks ago, not corporal Li Mao.”“Sir... I understand you’ve been having issues with a great beast of some kind.  What exactly is this beast?” Felonca asked, before adding, “If you don’t mind explaining, of course.”“It is a great creature, eyes as wide as a house, with fangs large enough to be made into a sword!” the one they called Li Mao exclaimed, before another soldier gave him a cuff.“You’re talking drivel, you’ve never seen it!”“But my brother’s cousin’s wife saw it!  She told him everything!”“Your cousin isn’t even married!””Yes he is!”“Aha, that’s how that drivel began,” the sergeant replied.  “Why do you ask?  Did you see the beast yourself on the way here?  They say the Puyin Road is the beast’s stalking grounds...”“No... we saw nothing on the way here, save several travelers that told us to be careful,” Nayu replied.  “Nonetheless, we’d like to know what it looks like, so we can be aware on our return trip.”“Hmm...” the sergeant grunted.  The man then looked sharply around the gathered gaggle of soldiers, before his eyes came to rest on one man.  “Bai Ren, you explain!  You saw it yourself, just a few weeks ago!”There were a few sputterings from Li Mao about how Ren didn’t know what he was talking about before the sergeant cuffed him again with one hand and shoved another forward with his other.  The one called Bai Ren looked to be middle aged, his hair going gray.  He didn’t even have any armor, and his darkened hands spoke of someone who normally was a dyer, not a soldier.“Well...um...you see, myself, my neighbor Li Su, and his son Li Sin went outside the city two weeks ago to get some wood, for the last parts of this wall,” he said, his voice starting to tremble.  “We were making good progress, and had several pieces of lumber, when were heard some twigs snap, nothing big.  Li Sin said he thought it might be a deer, since he’s part hengeyokai and whatnot and could smell it.  So he said he’d go take a look, and we went back to cutting wood.  I then looked up, to check on him, and that’s when I saw it.”  The warrior stopped for a moment, his wide eyes a window into memories of terror.“What did this thing look like?”“I...it was like...a lion... save it was enormous!  It’s haunches were as tall as a h...horse!  And it was longer than a h...horse!”“Dear gods,” Felonca whispered.“It was eating two deer!  It then raised its face and looked at us... its muzzle was covered in blood and gore, and it roared! It roared like the heavens themselves were crashing down upon us!  So we ran, as fast as we could, me and Li Su!”  Tears were coming to the dyers eyes as an the wound reopened in his mind.“They never found the boy,” the sergeant interjected quietly.  “His bones are probably out in those woods somewhere.  Probably out by that damned councillor’s abode.”“Excuse me?” Nayu’s interest increased immensely at the remark.  The beast lives by the Imperial Councillor?  Most odd...  Suspicions began to arise.“That... thing has been spotted often close to where the new Imperial Councillor has taken up residence!  The beast started stalking only days after he arrived!  He has brought great evil on us, and brought Heaven’s displeasure!” Li Mao spat.“And the beastly man demands hostages to keep our prefect’s loyalty!  He’s even gone so far as to demand refugees from the north as hostages as well!” Bai Ren jumped in, his horrible memories now being replaced by anger as well.“He’s demanded refugees as hostages!? Which refugees!?”  Nayu was immediately in the midst of the soldiers, only inches from their faces.  His voice bordered on panic, his eyes danced between them in desperation.“Only one couple.   The woman was short and slightly stalky, with an iron gray set of hair and this small necklace of blue stones around her neck.... the man was tall and thin... as a matter of fact he looked a great deal like you...”Felonca could immediately tell by the look of horror on Nayu’s face.Those are his parents!There was only a second’s worth of shock, before Nayu stalked back to his horse, and mounted.  There was no more shock, just a grim look of determination and anger.  Before the soldiers could grab his reins, he was already starting to canter towards the gate.“Nayu, wait!” Felonca called, running over to her own horse.  He’s going to get himself killed!  A flurry of footsteps told her that Cho and Liu were running jsut behind her.  In the chaos, one of the soldiers managed to grab Nayu’s reins finally, holding his horse in place.“Sir, its too dangerous!  The beast will surely kill you!” the soldier yelled, as Nayu tugged at the reins, trying to pull them loose.“Nayu!”  Felonca reined up in front of him, blocking his path.  “If you go out there alone, you’ll be killed!  This beast was bad enough that the town militia couldn’t hurt it, what makes you think you can take it on by yourself!”  Please think before you leap out and get yourself ruined!  You’re the only friend I’ve had in years!“Let go of the horse.  Move, Felonca.”  The voice was even, deadpan, but Nayu’s eyes were wild with a deep, powerful fury that threatened to explode forth any second.“Sir, I am afraid I cannot do that.  You will go out and get yourself hurt,” the soldier said simply, even as he flinched away from the seething anger that was Nayu on horseback.  A hand touched the soldier’s shoulder, and gently urged him aside.“At the very least, if you’re going to run amok, young man,” Cho gently took the reins, “you can let us go with you!”“Yeah... and you know I’m good at that fighting thing!” Felonca smirked, before turning towards the soldiers.  She remembered many things from the military academy, but at that moment, none were as useful as remembering morning parade drill, and the words of Master Hsiu himself.“Move you lazy rabbits!  Open the damn gate NOW!  We’ve got some villagers to free,” she barked, before looking at Nayu.And two parents to save!</blockquote>

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