originally posted in:The New Dojo
[spoiler]y'all I dunno the state of Dojoville since it was blown up and shit a few times so I'm gonna improvise[/spoiler]
[b][u]Dojoville, Some Random Bar.
14:00 PM.[/u][/b]
[i]It was a little past the middle of the day, the sun shining brightly even in the winter, bathing the streets of Dojoville in its warm yellow light, the bright blue sky sparsely dotted with clouds. The frosty weather nipped at exposed skin, leaving the streets almost completely barren and empty, most people hidden inside their cozy homes and comfy beds, warm and pleasant.
As such, the otherwise bustling bars, taverns, and other similar places were the exact opposite of busy, only the most faithful customers there and present... along with a few more interesting individuals, most of which had little more than ill intent.
It was in one such bars that the main focus of this post took place, a small gathering of interesting individuals seated around a circular table in the middle of the main room, all four of the wooden seats occupied. The table and its chairs was rustic, crafted from fine oak wood, giving a slight polish to protect against scratches and give it some shine.
The room itself was much the same, just about everything made from wood, leaving the tavern with a look that suggested it was ripped straight from the Middle Ages, or something. The other tables were circular as well, each accompanied by exactly four chairs, while the two corners next to the door were filled with L-shaped booths of sorts, the couch-like seats given some red velvet padding of soft cloth, the seats paired with tables that fitted.
As far as the more miscellaneous things went, there was a counter on the opposite side of the door, "walling" the place with the booze and the food off from the drunkards, though it was currently left unattended, the tender likely in the backroom.
The individuals around the middle table were all far, far less interesting than the fine furniture of the tavern, consisting of three males and only one lady, whose back was facing the door, almost as if for a quick getaway.
She was dressed in a cloth, gunmetal grey trench coat, the front of which was let open to show a piece of midnight black harness-like protection wear, the thing like a Kevlar vest but far sleeker, even as it hugged the woman's chest very nicely, the metal given a little rounding. It was likely made out of some metal weave, while her arms were seemingly unprotected, covered by the sleeves of her coat, hands dressed in black fingerless gloves that showed healthy tan skin and well-kept nails. On her legs, she had a pair of pencil grey jeans, with underneath, some black military boots, the right impatiently tapping on the wooden flooring.
And, well, her head... it was covered by a helmet that was similar to the harness she wore on her torso, black and made from some sort of sleek metal, stylized like an ancient Barbuta helmet, the visor filled with golden one-way glass, leaving the whole piece of headwear completely expressionless and even emotionless.
The men that accompanied the nameless, faceless woman were all dressed in fine, pencil grey suits, wearing polished black dress shoes on their feet, though the barbarians didn't even wear ties. Their faces were all generic and lame, handsome with slight facial hair and slicked back hair, black and blonde, and very much lame. They were uninteresting and only there to get harmed, or whatever.[/i]
"So," [i]The woman spoke, her voice lightly distorted by a very slight static tone, though it was undeniably feminine, warm, and lovely to listen to, like a gentle breeze in the middle of a day in summer,[/i] "I take it y'all're goin' with the deal?"
[i]When the three men nodded in unison, the lady pulled a chrome briefcase from beneath the table, the digits on her right hand firmly wrapped around the black grip. She plopped it down, sliding it to the middle of the circular surface, wearily watching the men, who were all eagerly eyeing it.[/i]
"It's all in here. I'd like it if y'all would abstain from opening it until I'm out of here, though, for entirely private reasons."
[i]Of course, since it wouldn't be any other way, one of the males took it upon himself to see exactly what was inside, pulling it over to him with a curious-yet-confused face, thumbs elegantly flicking the little clasps off, before opening the suitcase, revealing what was inside. When he did, just about everyone froze, except for the nameless woman, who just groaned in annoyance.
Within the metal-framed case was a whole lot of wiring and other fancy, technical stuff, a keypad with the numbers 0 to 9 on the very left, with above it, a digital clock that was at 02:27 exactly, counting down by the second, while below the keypad, a single red button sat. Dominating the rest of the suitcase's inside were whole packets of explosives, neatly held in place.
A bomb. Of course.[/i]
"Goddammit, you goooooons..."
[i]She made a dramatic sigh, her right hand darting out to the time bomb, tip of her thumb booping the red button, followed by the 5, followed by the button again, the clock going empty before flashing with 00:05.[/i]
[b]"Yo! What the fuсk?!"[/b]
"Sorry babe."
[i]In those four remaining seconds, she tipped her seat backwards, rolling in the same direction once it hit the floor with a harsh crash, deftly landing on her feet. She turned on her heels with a half-assed wave of her hand, her boots skidding over the wooden floor.
2.
She made a mad dash towards the door, right shoulder aimed at it as she prepared to ram through it.
1.
She made contact, her speed and weight crashing into the door, snapping the lock and causing it to fall open. The missus fell with it, so suddenly turned around when it shot open, making her stumble back.
0.
The bomb exploded with three rapid beeps mid-fall, the blast knocking her flat on her back and sending her onto the street a good meter or two. She was perfectly fine, however, even as the tavern was torn apart by a fiery inferno and a whole fuсkton of force, the three men in suits very much dead. Then, a large piece of shrapnel very unceremoniously dug into the front of her viso, hitting with a thud, sending a jolt through her body before she went limp.[/i]
"Mmmmmmmmoooother[i]fuсker[/i]!" [i]She exclaimed after a good few seconds of silence and limp-ness, her voice cracking the silence that had managed to set in... no, wait, her ears were still blown out, leaving her deaf for the moment.[/i] "Fffffffuсking hellllllllll, Gods, oh Christ! Shrapnel huuuurts!"
[i]She squirmed around in agony, twisting and turning as her hands wildly grasped at the piece of jagged metal that was embedded into her helmet. Her ten fingers wrapped around it, the edges digging into her flesh and her skin, blood dripping onto the front of her helm with soft little thuds, and yet, with a mighty yank, it came out, sent flying to the sidewalk, the piece that had been stuck thickly coated in blood.[/i]
"GODS! Fuсking, fuсk, good Christ, ohhhhh FUСKING HELL!"
[i]She squirmed some more, rolling over to her front in her wild flailing, blood dribbling out from the hole in her visor, the "glass" cracked rather thoroughly. Then, the woman went limp again, the trickle of crimson slowing down, only to stop completely. She groaned quietly, swearing underneath her breath, rolling back onto her... well, back, only to find herself surrounded by people.
When her hearing returned, she found out they were bombarding her with worries, asking if she was okay or whatever. She didn't really care, waving them off with a gesture of her bloody hands and a quick, rude, and very brash "fuсk off already" until she was bothered no more. She grunted as she rose to her feet, her hands soon... no longer dripping blood as she slid them into the pockets of her trench coat.[/i]
[spoiler]open y'all[/spoiler]
English
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A man stood over her then, wearing a duster, a wide grin on his rough face. A good shirt beard framed a strong jaw, blue eyes and prominent cheek bones. The man was a looker, she had to admit. White teeth flashed at her, as he stuck a gloved hand out to her. "Well, I've seen people blow things up, but a bar? All that wasted whiskey, its almost a crime." He chuckled then.
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[i]Handsome as he was, she thought to himself, she still swung for the other team. Still, didn't stop her from firmly taking his gloved hand into her own, pulling herself up and off of the ground with a soft groan. Cody would get a glance at the hole in her helmet, just big enough to show a golden eye and a red eyebrow. A redhead, no doubt, and one with very pretty eyes, at that.[/i] "A whiskey man, eh?" [i]She asked with a light laugh of her own, the corners of her lips curling up into an unseen grin.[/i] "Person'ly prefer rum, but 'ey, to each 'eir own."
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The man scratched his rugged beard then, making a whatever gesture after. "Hey, to each their own. Redhead though? And rum? Damn, a woman after my heart. But most these days swing the other way, I can't deny that stuff is hot though." The man grinned again then, getting a good measure on what was the limit for jokes.
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[i]Seemed he wasn't getting to the border of what the nameless woman found acceptable yet, though, if the amused chuckle that answered his words was anything to go by. She nodded in agreement, her hands folding together.[/i] "Aye, gotta agree there... 'n yeah, I'm one of 'em -- sorry t'disappoint, eh?" [i]She was quick to unclasp her hands, though they reunited at the back of her helm, fingers intertwining as she looked up and at the sky, head cocking back. It was certainly a pretty day, even with all the smoke blocking the sun.[/i] "Name's Helena."
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"Blackwall, Cody Blackwall. Smuggler, con-artist, and gun for hire." He crossed his arms then, glancing up for the moment.
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"Crimson Void... glorified space pirate." [i]Her eyes found themselves looking back down at Cody, giving him a curious enough once-over, though she soon looked back into his eyes. Interesting man, this one.[/i]
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Cody himself was a sight to behold, holsters seen on both thighs under the coat, rugged clothing, a metal chest piece over his torso, the man did match up with his description. Most lamely he had weapons hidden all over him, most obvious was the holsters. His appearance was rough, but graceful in a sense, sapphires eyes countered by slicked back brown hair and a chestnut beard.
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[i]Helena was... somewhat of a sight herself, even if her kit was hidden beneath that trench coat of hers, the rough thing reaching to around the middle of her thighs in length. Beneath the coat, lining the insides of it, Cody could catch a glimpse of all sorts of guns within holsters and straps -- all of them either a pistol of a revolver.[/i] "So then, what brings ya 'ere, Cody?"
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"Well I mean its not like some loud explosion went off at my favorite bar, and some girl was laying in the middle of it. I dunno, could be anything really." The man smiled then, teasing Helena.
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"Guess it'll always be a mystery," [i]Hel joked back at Cody, her grin practically etched onto her lips at this point -- she'd been amused from the moment the man first opened his mouth, really.[/i] "Truly somethin' we'll never decipher. Think ya might like this, though." [i]Her hands moved away from the back of her head, left one slipping into the inside of her coat, digging through stuff and things until, at long last, she pulled a bottle that was... surprisingly, very much intact. It was whiskey, coincidentally, but the bourbon... type of it. Man, how much space did she have beneath that thing?[/i]
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Cody let out an amused huff. "You have one of those too!? Damn I thought I was the only one!" He reached into his own duster then, producing a good sized metal bottle, popping the top, alcohol was smelled then, cinnamon, whiskey. Most likely burned good going down.
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"What, the magic coat or the alcohol bottle? 'Cause the bottle I snatched b'fore I blew ev'rythin' t'high hell..." [i]Helena sorta just pushed the glass bottle into Cody's arms, her hand dipping into the great, vast, eternal abyss underneath her coat, soon bringing out a second bottle, this one a personal favourite of the pirate. Kraken Black Spiced Rum.[/i]
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"I mean, my coat is magical, but not on that level." He chuckled, sealing the bottle and tucking it away again, opening the glass one and sniffing its contents.
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[i]It smelled a bit like warm caramel and toasted vanilla, like a tasty dessert presented to him. Even deeper still, spiced chocolate dry-down and a barest hint of cherry, even just an accent of leather. It was an interesting smell, and one befitting of bourbon. Nice.[/i] "Magically stylish," [i]She jested with a light laugh, finally pausing her rummaging through all that she had hidden.[/i]
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"Hell yeah it is. And it could probably store my entire shipment in it as well. Damn that would be amazing. And quite the joke with authorities." He grinned again, downing some of the drink, then put the cap back on.
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[i]It tasted nice and rich, a bit like how it smelled -- overall just good. Either way, the shipment Cody mentioned definitely got Helena's attention, her eyes twinkling with curiosity.[/i] "Ha! Yea, yea, I can imagine... What's your shipment made of, though? What kinda things d'ya like?"
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"Closed deal, delivered to the buyer and only that buyer. I may be a low life, but I'm good at what I do."
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"I don't want ya t'deliver anythin' of your shipment t'me," [i]She retorted with a slight shrug of her shoulders,[/i] "I just wanna know what y're sellin'."
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"That I can't say, I don't expose the contents or anything in contracts."
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"How d'ya get new buyers, then? Seems like a bad business strat t'me."
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"What, keeping my contract info confidential? I put my name out there, get a deal, but don't discuss the details with anyone but the buyer."
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"A-ha, a-ha... 'n how does one b'come a buyer?" [i]Hel seemed to be pushing it for a reason, clearly intent on... becoming a buyer. Maybe she just wanted more merchandise.[/i]
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"The stuff I'm delivering, sweetheart, isn't up for grabs. Someone already bought it, paid me to get it to its destination. I'm not a trader, I'm a smuggler."
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[i]And basically, she was just rеtаrded. A silent "oh" came from the other side of the helmet, Helena's left hand semi-awkwardly tapping the back of her helm, fingertips drumming on the metal.[/i] "Ah, like that, then..."
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The man was average height at 5'9", with light brown skin, brown eyes and a dark brown Afro. His face was a handsome, but not rugged one, and the robes he wore were black in color with accents of green overall, particularly over the hood (currently down.) and wrists. He held a metal staff, where a metal snake twisted around the rod to a large green Crystal ball. A green glowing knife was at his belt, with a heavy looking brown satchel. He had seen the explosion, and with a large, toothless smile on his face, began searching for the person who caused it. The smile might have been seen as sinister, if his eyes weren't so bright, and his demeanor so positive. However, his search was stopped short by a woman who had ripped a piece of shrapnel out of her head. Wait- what the helł? "I'd ask how you did it-" He took the bottom end of his staff, and poked her in the leg as she passed him, mumbling to himself before speaking up. "But I'm sure it's some sort of magic."