[Kanji_The_Wanderer]

TATSU

Nozomi was gone... The emptiness that had filled my heart so long ago was once again poking at my being. I shuffled my feet through the dirt, head lowered, crunching the finely grounded bits of rock under my boot.

Slowly I drag myself back towards Aisha's house... The mid day sun glistened into the clearing ahead, dancing upon the surface off a small stream.

The grove was quiet, and in the absence of the sounds of nature, I could easily make out raised voices not far to the west.

Carefully and skillfully, I creep through the low grass, and find an overgrown fallen tree. I move along a side, and angle myself down to the ground.

I peeked over, raising nothing more than my eyes, which was shrouded under the darkness of my hood, and the shade of nearby flora.

A group of four men argued and waved about fliers in their hands.

It wasn't hard to make out what they were saying, even though they were in such close proximity to each other, the thought of whispering seemed to never cross their minds.

" No, no! The Dragons said to post these in the town! No one comes out here! Who is gonna see if they plaster these posters to a couple o trees?!"

Another man raises his voice over the first.

"Who cares! As long as we put them up, it doesn't matter where, everyone in Shinkirou needs to know about this criminal, this Tatsu!"

What?! ... I think to myself

The third one speaks next, clearly the most level-headed and collected of the bunch.
"Leinurus' messenger was very specific. This article on Swiftant, ex-Assassin of the Dragons, and Suzette, ex-Spy of the Dragons hold top priority. Treachery is the biggest crime to the Dragons. Traitors and Deserters are the lowest forms of beings. It is imperative that these two are taken in. Their capture is of the utmost importance!"

Well, he's definitely concise, I'll give him that...Still I need to dispose of these men, apparently they haven't posted any of these wanted posters in the town yet. If someone saw them other then these four, it would be a problem.

The four of them are in sight, now having encountered these men, I can feel their spirit, their aura... With this sensory ability that has evolved within me thanks to Yogensha, I can keep track of them. It is important for me to discover their immediate moves before I make any hastily decisions.

The second man, accompanied by the fourth, proceed to ignore the other two, and begin to attach a poster of myself to a nearby tree.

Tchh... The dragons ID me when I was in that prison. I was so prideful, I didn't stop me from blurting out my name to my captors.

Now the Dragons know all of our names and faces. This is troublesome. The fact that their are people in Shinkirou who know about the Dragons, and the fact that they have contact with them, makes me question the security, and motives of this city... If these men are here, they were either tailed by the Dragons, or the Dragons have known about this place all along.

With that, I came to realize in that instant, that this place would not be a suitable sanctuary for our group.

The other two men ignored what their companions were doing, and headed off in the direction of the city...

Now's my chance. They are alone.

I close my eyes and concentrate on the spot the men were in before they walked off. Through a whirl, and a jolt, I was kneeling in that clearing, where the men were.

I open my eyes and glanced about quickly...I snicker. Looks like I am getting a hang of this space-time teleportation technique.

I draw Sora, from it's sheath. The men were unsuspecting, their blades tucked away, and they wore little protection.

Without them even noticing, I cut both of them down in an instant.

They bore a pack, and inside it was stuffed with coin and posters.

Face first in the dirt, I turned one to his side. Looking for any kind of order slip, or documentation from the their Dragon commander.

Heh. Just like them. They never give any written notice, all their orders are word of mouth, to prevent leaking of information.

I turn, and focus my attention on the other two, who posted fliers of Nozomi.

Big mistake... I swing Sora down, holding the hilt with two hands to my left thigh, the tip of the sword inches from the ground. I turn the blade hard, and run it through the man's back. He falls in a heap, and the thunk caught the attention of the other.

"Wait! Your the guy from the pos-" before he had time to finish, Sora was already playing around inside his chest.

Humans who ally the Dragons are less than trash. I had no pity, or mercy for those who betray their race... They were right about one thing. Treachery IS the worst sin.

I took everything they had on us, ripped down the posters from the trees, and stuffed them in the pack. I began to hurry back to Aisha's, when I heard more footsteps coming up.

I slipped into a hollowed out trunk, and waited...

Swift and Suzette! It's them. I came out of my hiding spot.

Swift!! Su!!" I bursts out.

"Wh-?" Suzette starts.

"Just hold still and listen,The village is out for our heads." I yanked out, from my pocket, 'Wanted: Dead or Alive' posters, with our photographs printed on them.

"The goverment!" Suzette silent exclaims. "Those dogs of the dragons, they must have given us away!"

"I've sent Nozomi on her way, but the rest of us need to get away from Aisha's ASAP, lest they suspect her involvement with us," I explain to them in earnest.

"Suzette, we need to send you off to Asgard right away. Come on. Hurry you two!" We move quickly back to where I parted ways with Nozomi.

They eye the two men by the trees who I had killed.

"They were Dragon Spies. They were about to expose us. I had no choice."

Back at the exit. I kneel down and take out a parchment. I look at Suzette.

"Like horses?" I give her a grin.

"What?" She asks blundered.

"I'm sending you to Asgard on Flearin. A horse spirit who can run as sound. Not my kind of travel, but you should get to Asgard in a couple of hours, not bad seeing how the capital is about half a continents length away..."

She is dumbfounded and is at a loss for words.

In a flash of light, the silver stallion Flearin appears in a rush of blowing golden feathers.

Suzette is astounded, I can tell she has never witnessed a summon before.

"Flearin, lead the way, bring this one to Asgard, aid her as if her commands were my own!"

"Swift, if you have anything to say, now is your chance...."