{PoD Quest} Capture

[Xian Ye]

Xian looked out over the Northern Plains. While smaller then what most people would refer to as a "plain" it suited him, ringed on all side's by hills and valleys, A land unsuited to horses yet it helped breed some of the greatest cavalry. It was a land that made little sense in it's effect, but it was effective. The land itself suited him, as did his place in it. He neither ruled the land, nor was ruled by it, but existed alongside it in an effort to ensure it was properly maintained.

He'd left his men near Bei Ping, where his lord Gongsun Zan was Governor, to enjoy the land in peace after their trip back from the South. It was rare that He took such time to himself, and even rarer when He had such period's of enlightenment. He twitched slightly as He heard the sounds of men approaching, but taking into consideration that He wasn't too far from Bei Ping, It could just be peasants or farmers, And nothing hostile. Trusting his surroundings turned out to be a problem, When He was clubbed over the back of the head and saw nothing but an ever-encroaching abyss. When He came to, He was staring into a rather ugly man's face, Who was holding his sword. Now, Anything else of his and He wouldn't care, but his sword? That was a death sentance.

He focused more on what the man was trying to tell him, or someone, He wasn't quite sure. "...Looks like we caught ourselves an Officer! You've got some valuable belongings, and I think you'll make me a nice little profit when we sell you back. You belong to Tai Run and The Yellow Raiders now! Until I say you're free to go, or you can die, You'll just have to abide our hospitality." He turned his back on Xian, missing the look of hatred that conveyed Xian's emotions, and left him alone in a room that turned into complete darkness when the door was closed. Xian knew He'd have to escape, Or He could die here. He would not die here, His Lord still had need of him.

[Xian Ye]

After a few days, Xian lost count of how long He'd been there, in the dark, recieving the barest of meals a day, but He knew it couldn't have been more then two weeks, And his plan was starting to come together. He'd found a slightly jagged rock on the ground, and He'd been using it to try and weaken the ropes binding his hands for the last few days. He knew He had to be close, but after that He still had to get a weapon, find his equipment, then find Tai Run and take back his sword, He'd be damned if He left it in his hands!

He growled while He stretched his arms, Feeling the tension in the rope almost ready to give way, before going back to slowly scraping it away, fiber by fiber, until He managed to scrape it thin enough to snap. Standing after He managed it, He rubbed some feeling back into his wrists and hands, before moving towards the door, listening for the guard He knew was there. Pressing himself against the door, He smirked when He heard a snore, Now was his chance.

Xian, after quietly slipping the door open enough to get out of, He grabbed the guard and wrapped his hands around his neck while pressing him against the wall of his jail, Staring into his eyes as the guard kicked and fought to breathe, before watching the light leave the mans eyes. Grabbing the guard's sword, a chipped dao, He started to move around the Raider's camp, trying to avoid being spotted while looking for Tai Run or where his equipment would have been stored.

It didn't take long to find where they'd been keeping his equipment, and the rest of their "loot" what with the drunk guards singing rather loudly, off-key. In his, admittedly weakened, condition He doubted He could take both guards, but they looked on the verge of passing out. When He believed them to be out-cold, He slipped past them into their "storage room" and gathered his armor, Quickly re-dressing properly, before trying to slip out as unnoticed as when He went in.

Unfortunately, He stumbled on his way out, bumping into one of the drunk guards and waking him. Quicky He tried to bring the Dao up and silence him, But the Guard managed to yell first, waking the other Guard. Cursing loudly, Xian silenced the one guard as the other stood and drew his own weapon. He knew He was in trouble by this point, No matter how quickly He disposed of this guard, The rest of the camp must surely have heard the fool yelling, That meant He had limited time to find Tai Run, Get his weapon back, and Get outta here!

So absorbed in his thoughts, He failed to notice the guard slashing at him, And only realized when He took a nasty gash along his arm. Growling, trying to bite back the pain, Xian quickly slashed down and feinted into a thrust under the fool's guard and taking his heart, before kicking him off and moving towards where He could hear the most activity in the camp, trying to stay in the shadows and keep his wound from bleeding too badly.

[Xian Ye]

When He reached the center of the camp, He blanched quickly. There had to be atleast twenty of these fools surrounding Tai Run! He could see the arrogant moron, Standing on a cart or a barrel or something and waving HIS sword while screaming orders. Xian knew, deep down, He had to get out of here soon, and quite possibly He'd be forced to leave his sword. Ripping a piece of his shirt off, He wrapped it around his arm and tied it tight, forming a tournaquit to stop the bleeding as much as He could, before He settled into the shadows to watch Tai Run.

It wasn't long before his hopes were realied, and Tai Run sent his men to search the camp while He went back inside his hut, leaving only a single guard outside. Smirking to himself, Xian moved from shadow to shadow, and managed to get almost abreast of the guard, And quietly grabbed him over the mouth as He thrust the blade He had into his back, Holding him as He fell and lowering him to the ground. "Well, Now or never Xian...Time to get your sword back, Then get the hell outta here...You can always come back with your men and hunt these fools down..." He muttered to himself as He gathered his energy, before kicking Tai Run's door in. He entered just in time to see Tai Run turn and see him, and more importantly, the fear in his eyes.

Standing in the doorway, He grinned dangerously at Tai Run before speaking "I believe you have something of mine, and qutie frankly, I'd like it back before I leave. Now, We can do this the easy way, or the hard way, That's entirely up to you. Give me my sword, and I won't completely destroy you. Refuse...Well...I really hope you refuse." He knew men like Tai Run, Braggarts who lead a few men and thought they had real power, but when confronted on their own they crumpled, just as Tai Run did when He dropped Xian's sword and kicked it over to him. Oh, too easy, the fool actually trusted him...pity.

Reaching down, Xian picked up his sword and dropped the cheap sword He'd been forced to use, before smiling at Tai Run and closing the door. "I'm glad you choose to do this the easy way, Now when I kill you it'll take that much less effort, now stand still and I'll make this as pain free as I can." Less then two minutes later, Xian made his way out of the hut almost drenched in blood and leaving an unrecognizable mess inside, before moving towards the edge of the camp and the opposite direction the men had gone in. It was time to get out of here, and get back to his men. Taking the first horse He could find, Xian pressed his heels to it's flanks and rushed for Bei Ping and his men.

It was after dawn the next morning when He finally reached his men. After having a doctor fetched from Bei Ping to treat his wound, which would leave a nasty scar but no lasting damage, He settled in to get some much needed rest. His capture, while torturous, Had taught him a valuable lesson. There was no such thing as overly cautious.

[Xian Ye]

((It's done...Took me over 4 days to write this beast, but It's finally done...))

[Lu Xiang]

Nicely bulked out, but nothing great here. The repetition of the mans name makes it drag on a bit and there wasn't a change in the speed of the story nor did I feel emotion or an atmosphere pitch. Maybe its just me? Who knows, either way a worthy effort.

5 Bravery
10 Loyalty
10 Fame
200 gold