Yosuke was still leaning against the wall as he listened to the jobs and what the others were thinking about doing. He wasn't sure going to the capitol was the best idea for him but if Xerxes thought he would be best he wasn't going to argue. "I can go to the capitol with Apophis-San. She would be the best to kill Daiki while I can provide the muscle if something goes wrong." Yosuke got off the wall and made his way over to Apophis. "Would that be ok with you?"

Sayuri though about the options. Xerxes was right about her fitting in in the capital. If it was the streetrats, thrives, and beggers she'd be fine but around nobles and such it would be hard. As for killing the Revolutionary army… She didn't like killing their members as she had no issue with them though the threat of an ally was something to think about. Then there was the danger beasts. The idea of bringing back freash meat and other useful materials was tempting. Besides she hadn't had a chance to work with Kotaro yet and was curious on what he could do. She turns to look at Xerxes, "I guess I'll help take care of the danger beasts. Hopefully bring some freash meat back and other supplies. Besides freash air suits me better than city air," she turns to Kotaro and nods at him, "I look forward to working with you."

"Hmmm so the kid wants to come with the boys huh? Alright let's see how you do. If you fare well enough out there then I'll consider taking you on more missions." commented Kotaro as he looked at the young girl with his hardened eyes. He scanned the girl and wondered if she had it in her for a walk in the mountains on a witch hunt for beasts of nature that could kill a man easier than breath. Hell some breathed on people to kill them. Natsuo on the other hand walked up to Sayuri and smiled at her and offered his hand. "Well welcome to the beast hunt. Glad to have you along Sayuri." commented Natsuo with a big smile on his face. He really didn't care she was coming it was all the same too him though. If she proved inept then so be it. But she had an Imperial Arms that had to count for something.

"Aw, I really wanted to see how Sol would look like in a dress." Apophis looked really disappointed when she was rejected, before long, turning to Yosuke and saying "Well, I guess that it's only Suke and I now, so let's try to make it fun."

After this, Apophis turned to Xerxes and asked "Is there anything else, old man?" and to Solanne and everyone else "See you, Sol, and the others." before finally heading for the door, if no one else had anything to say, beckoning Yosuke to follow her on their assassination trip.

"I can always talk more about anything Apophis but I have informats in the capital that you can go too. If you wish for the list of them I will tell you a few of them personally. However you must not drag them into things unless you must. Going to the ball will be easy getting out after you get done your business with Daiki will be harder now go and do as you will. Does anyone have any questions on their assignments?" asked Xerxes as Natsuo shook his head and Kotaro remained silent. Solanne cant' go alone so I volunteer to help her at the fort. I have no special fondness for the rebels though I must admit killing them will be less meaningful to me than Imperials. Still for the good of the Empire's Salvation I will do what I must." Nako said as she turned to Solanne. "That is acceptable yes?"

Solanne grinned as she watched the others volunteer for their appropriate missions. Good. At least now they had a bit more variety among them and the missions would each be completed on time for Xerxes. The Crimson Hound glanced at Apophis and gave her a reassuring grin. Stealth just wasn’t her style and she wouldn’t risk compromising the mission just for her. Maye next time.

“Yeah, it’s fine,” she told Nako as the other woman stepped in to join her. “Besides, I can’t have all the fun in busting heads, y’know? And it’s not like we’re fighting one of Esdeath’s goons. Should be simple enough.”

That said, she waved Apophis’ group off along with the others before she cracked her knuckles and grinned. The prospect of bloodshed was calling her and she waited for Nako to proceed before moving off. Right then. Time to get things rolling.

Sayuri returned Natsuo's handshake and smile, "No problem. The more the merrier especially when hunting danger beasts. Besides this isn't my first time facing some. Not neccesarily ones this strong but I have faced them before," she glares at Kotaro as he judges her, "And for your information I'm not a kid. I may have lost 4 years of my life to that bastard but I am 20. And I grew up in the forests and mountains. I may be a little bit out of practice in both fighting and being in the wilderness but I'll keep up."

She hated when people underestimated her simply for her appearance. Sure add several years of imprisonment and torture but still. Physically she was fine. No permanant damage other than scars. Her fathers weapons training hadn't worn off so she could still fight well she'd just needed a couple months of practice to get most of her skill back and even improve them. Though she still had no idea where she stood among Salvation.

Turning she started walking out creating a dagger to mess with as she walked, "We could probably get going if we wanna do it quickly."

Yosuke followed her out the in to the hall. "You head to the main gate and I will meet you there when I get my armor on." He ran off as fast as he could to his room. He opened his door and looked at his recently polished armor with pride. After getting it on he made his way to the main gate and if Apophis was there he would greet her. "Okay, I'm ready to go."

"I'm going to get my mask and tracking gear." Kotaro simply stated as he bid farewell to his partners and then bowed to Xerxes once more before leaving. Natsuo stated he needed to get his armor, his mask, and his weapons. He bid farewell to his teammates and gave a over exaggerated bow to Xerxes. Nako said she'd meet Solanne in a bit but she was also in need of his weapons, armor, and protection gear.

Natsuo made his way to the armory and found his armor where he usually left it and put it on securely with the help of Nako who smiled at him and wished him good luck as he told her that he hoped she made it back in one piece. After doing that he left for his room as Nako went to find a wig to put on after she had grabbed a face mask that covered the lower part of her face. Natsuo whom had gone to his room found everything in order and went to his side table which held books, some handkerchiefs, glasses, face paint, and of course his prized mask. He grabbed the thing and smiled at it as he moved his hand over the smooth metal surface. It had two slits in the front of it for eye holes and a nose hole. It's mouth was also cut it too make it seem like it was constantly smiling in a mocking fashion. The eyes had two large painted stripes going down. One was purple the other one was green. It was a clown's mask to some people but for Natsuo it was a very important keep sake. It also kept his face safe in a fight. He put the straps on it securely around his face and slid it up so that the thing rested on his head and grabbed his white coat. He flung the thing around his armor and adjusted it. It wasn't anything special it was for style but it also gave him a certain look.

Of course this was probably going overboard but hey why not. If he had to get could get rid of it and get another. Then he went over to the desk he had for himself and grabbed the sword that rested between two holds and adjusted it so that it hung from his belt. Looking at himself in the mirror Natsuo nodded to himself and left but then rushed back and grabbed his daggers before moving out towards the gate. He found Kotaro there with his typical outfit, the brown coat/cloth(covering his mouth), guns, and relatively well worn clothes, with some additions of some various forms of tracking equipment and molds. He also had a map in his hands he nodded at Natsuo as he arrived.

====

Nako waited patiently for her partner to come and meet her outside by the front gate. Her hair had been tied back into a bun and she now had short cut black hair. She had her face protector in her backpack and her kusarigama was hung from her belt along with a various collection of knives and a short sword. She had a bow as well just to make sure everything was covered though she disliked using it because she had little practice with it. Better safe than sorry.

Solanne gave a farewell nod to the departing assassins, moving off on her own to get things ready on her end. Considering this was a mission in which all the targets were to be eliminated, she saw no use in bringing slow method makers such as poison or the like. Of course, they would also have to sneak into the establishment first.

With everything in check, the Crimson Hound twirled her Imperial Arm, placing it into the holster on her back, before meeting over with Nako. She noted the girl’s now black and short hair, raising an eye slightly. Right then. Time to carry onward with the mission.

Group One - Two Days later Daytime Afternoon - Capital:

The Capital was bright and vibrant and full of life as the Emperor's castle loomed over them. There was the typical amount of peasants roaming about off to their jobs or pedaling wares. Luckily for the group at the capital, Yosuke and Apophis, even though they opted to not ask for his contacts list he had sent a messenger bird ahead to one of his contacts there and they had sought the two of them out. It was one of the clerks for a bank that then nobles went to frequently and he had taken them to his home. He had stated to them that 'he worked for the Salvation of the Empire' and that the man they were after was a true piece of scum. He had been racketeering and making profits off drugs that he sold to the poor at ridiculous prices preventing anyone from getting out of the slums. Worse yet he had been burning down offices under the guise of a street gang that had taken an anti-government stance. His name Daisuke and he was the typical looking banker with suit and all. "You two are lucky that...our friend had the foresight to call ahead to me you'd two would be lost without me. Did you even have a plan on how to get that fool's attention without knowing his sweet spots?" Daisuke grumbled to the duo as he led them along. He had stated they were free to leave his side if they chose to but he wouldn't take them back if they did so. He had done this out of his obligation to the organization. "Tell me what do you think of the capital? Nice looking place right? Wrong. You'll never find a more wretched hive of scum and fools. This place disgusts me." Daisuke grumbled to them as he pointed out a nearby young girl in the corner and told them that girl was a underage prostitute and that she was run by a pimp in the nobility. And then he pointed out Imperial Patrols in the corner talking to a merchant. He informed them the...glorious and precious Emperor's financial minister took 'taxes' from the merchants directly. "The Empire we once knew...it doesn't exist."
----

Group Two - Two Days Later Late Afternoon near dusk - Near the Military Base:

After leaving the compound Sol and Nako had stumbled onto another member of Salvation on his way back from a mission. Klyde was a former Imperial Cadet whom had been recruited by another group of Salvation but had been assigned to their sanctuary instead. Nako had taken command of the group and had led them through the dense mountains where they came upon a summit that was heavily guarded. They had scaled a hill on the other part of the mountains. Nako had decided not to press her luck and advance forward. The guards wore common leather armor and looked relatively untrained. However if one of them got word out by a horn or something they'd be out of luck with stealth. Nako disliked luck and had found out the hard way it was an actual thing. Fate was such annoying mistress or master. "From what I see we won't make headway breaking through the gate. It's been reinforced since they got here. A frontal assault would be poorly executed and it'd be risky. Night is coming soon we should find that tunnel Xerxes told us about and do our best to make sure it isn't booby trapped. If we can't we need to quickly kill the guards on top of the guard towers and climb the walls. I brought a hook and some rope for that but I'd prefer not to use it. If we don't get up quick it will be pointless as they'll just drop a rock on our heads or push the hook off." Nako said as she scanned the fortress. The guards on the route up were chatting but the guards on top of the wall were stalwartly looking out. It was only because of a conveniently located small cave that the group had been able to keep from being noticed. They had found one of the exits on the way up to the base of the mountain they had climbed. "I hate fortresses...any other options i'm not thinking of?" Nako muttered grimly as she considered the odds of actually getting this done.

----

Group Three - One Day Later - Forest - Tracking Danger Beasts:

Kotaro had taken Sayuri and Natsuo on one hell of a tracking spree as he had found large foot prints and blood trails that had allowed him to track the beast's habits and movements through the jungle. They were spastic and random as far he could tell and the fact that the beast moved around a lot would be a huge bother. However they had managed to find a recent trail that had led deeper into the forest. The trail was fresh and that meant they'd find the beast soon enough. "I hate these forests...watch the trees. Watch the ground. The smallest movement get ready for a danger beast. They could be anywhere and we're in a remote area. It's kill or be killed be as brutal as you need to be or be prepared to die." Kotaro said as he traced a faint sign of a trail dragging on the ground as his eyes darted back and forth occasionally. Natsuo groaned as he kicked a tree in boredom causing Kotaro berate him for making noise as Natsuo flatly apologized bored out of his mind. The hot, wet, and muddy forest had been successful in doing everything to ruin his mood and not give him any actual proof of danger beasts. Natsuo almost tripped into the mud when he foot got stuck in a sudden pot hole as he barely caught himself by grabbing onto an nearby low hanging tree branch. "Should've went to the fort...should've done anything but this mission." Natsuo said as Kotaro ignored his statement.

Klyde made brisk grim strides as he returned from his assigned mission from before, it was a simple task that he completed with little effort. Though on his way back he bumped into Nako, and...Was her name Solanne? Pretty sure it's Solanne. Either way Nako asked him to come along and he accepted the offer. As they traversed he did converse a bit, giving greetings and some basic sharing of kindness. After two days they loomed near the base and Nako mulled over a lack of fortune in her eyes. He would simply follow their lead in this, if it were his choice he would find a way to knock that door down, and clear the place that way. Though Nako was clearly right, it was suicide, and he accepted that, though he had no regard for his own well-being. When she made mention of the tunnels he nodded in agreement and smiled. As he scanned the horizon he heard her comment on her dislike of fortresses, and he scoffed. "A fortress is much more fun." Was all he said, but it got the point that he loved fighting across loud and proud. Now he waited, waited for the moment o show that his two blades, will easily crush One Thousand Axes. Without one moment of legitimate trouble.

"Whoever taught you about fun needs to change their definition of it." Nako grumbled chuckling to herself as she pulled out her bow from it's spot on her back and considered taking an arrow to snipe out the guards on the trail but decided against it. Too risky. They'll just have to die later. Shame these men weren't inherently bad men and were fighting for a, hopefully, good cause. All the same they threatened a contact that was valued enough for Xerxes to send out them to kill them. Or was it the One Thousand Axes man who was the cause behind that? At least they didn't send down Soul...he'd just break half the mountain in the process. Luckily Soul wasn't at Sanctuary and was running his own private missions off somewhere at his own pace. She pitied whoever he was after or whatever he was in conflict with. They were dead men walking if he hadn't already killed them. Luckily her younger cohorts didn't know about how terrifying the boss and Soul were just yet. "I hope we don't get caught by some sort of patrol, rebel or imperial, on the way there or worse yet a danger beast." Nako grumbled as she took one last look around the area finding nothing of particular interest though she did note that the hills down the left side, while sloped, were a possible escape route if they had to retreat. The right side was craggy and would cause them to hit a rock or fall off the mountain too quickly. The left had a somewhat smoother and more inclined slope. There were hopefully footholds they could use to get out but that would be last ditch effort. They would be better off breaking through the gate before attempting a possibly suicidal escape.

The cover of darkness hid them well and Solanne was grateful that night had approached. Both she and Nako lay still as they scanned the fortress looming before them. It was doubtful their targets would spare little expense in keeping trespassers out. Frowning, she shook her head in response to her partner’s question, eyes narrowing as she made sense of their results.

“Not really, no. Our best bet is to probably take the subtle approach and that means using the tunnel old Word Weaver told us about,” she said, cracking her knuckles. “As much as I hate the scenic route, it’ll at least keep us alive a little while longer."

With a fiery grin, the Crimson Hound glanced over to the side and made contact with their newest recruit to the mission. A former Imperial Cadet was he? Things were getting more interesting.

“Yo Skull Grinder, you got any plans to offer up?”

Apophis kept her usual silence for most of the time during the couple days travel alone with Yosuke. Sometimes she would give him an enigmatic gaze, or try to engage in some idle chatter. Ultimately, the snake girl wasn't as acquainted to him as she was to the veteran members of Salvation so their travel was kind of awkward, not that Apophis is one to worry about awkwardness, to begin with.



Not long after they arrived at the Capital, Apophis remembered that they had forgotten to ask something important to Xerxes, that is, who they were supposed to meet once they arrived here? This was yet another one of the pile of blatant blunders that Apophis had under her belt. Seriously, the snake girl could be extremely deadly, but she was so simple minded that one had to wonder if rescuing her from her life in the wilderness was the right thing to do.

"I thought that we could find a way?" Apophis said, before looking around somewhat marveled by the sheer size of the Capital and the up and downs of the life there "That's a big city, it looks much better than living in the wild, I wonder why people can't enjoy it?"

Eventually, the smell of food caught up the preternaturally accurate nose of Apophis and her stomach growled at the prospect of getting some warm food after two days living on trail rations, causing her to deviate a bit form the path as she asked Daisuke "Hey, mister, can we get something to eat before that? I'm not good at thinking with an empty stomach."

"Yeah of course food. I will have my wife cook you two up some food so you can go and find out how you will get in. My suggestions are too try to 'whore' your way in. You got something to flaunt use it to your advantage. Or if you have dignity you can try to rent yourselves off as some mercenaries though you'll have to make some sort of statement quickly. Your friend can offer himself as a traveling cook or bard and try to get in that way. Or you can go in guns blazing and try to escape the body guards undoubtly there and the imperial army and piss off the big boss. As long as you don't trail them back to me I don't care. I have work that needs to be done." said Daisuke quietly as suddenly a carriage rounded the corner and slowly passed by as a triage of guards match alongside of it towards the palace. "Emissary of a Imperial Noble somewhere east of here. He will be at the party. Rumor has it he has a highly competent guard regiment with him. If you can take him out then do it. It will show the Emperor how weak his reign actually is and hurt the Empire. It's not the main objective though kill the fool you were assigned to and kill anyone else you can that is of importance to the Emperor. It's important to send a statement it's another to hurt our own cause." commented Daisuke quietly after the carriage had past. He had stopped to tell his companions this.

[[Sorry for trash post.]]

Klyde turned his gaze to Solanne, though he was hard to read as the light went low, and spoke quiet as he gazed over the horizon. "I don't care. The Culling craves blood, as do I. So lead, and I shall follow." He wasn't being harsh, he was being direct, and trusting himself to their judgement in this instance. He really had no idea where they should go in perspective of engaging this fortress, no idea seemed truly well in his eyes, but his Commander always taught him to be cautious. Though...Look where it got them both, Klyde is now an enemy of the Empire and his Commander lies dead, and labeled a traitor. Though he spoke one last time and wanted to make one thing clear: "Thousand Axes is mine." and with those words, he stood, and waited for them to start moving in whatever direction they chose.

Klyde was ready to fight, and he hoped the red-head and Nako were too.

"I'll do all I can too help you fight out there. I'm not unkillable juggernaut like Kotaro and I'm not some unpredictable dervish like Natsuo. I'm a jack of all trades so I can be there for you all when you need it the most. Don't think you're on your own out there Klyde I can't speak for Solanne though I trust her but I will be here for you. Now come on we got a job to do guys." Nako said as she led the group down towards the exit to the cave. It took awhile longer for them to trace themselves back to the mountain trail that led towards the mountains but Nako's instincts told her that the cave would be off to the side somewhere. Nako led the group on a sideways path until they came towards a dead end. Nako however found a fake rock towards the entrance to the secret tunnel. "Quickshot taught me some stuff about tracking and finding secrets. If it weren't for that I don't think we would...oh no..." Nako said as she knelt down suddenly and looked at a claw mark on the walls and some foot prints of a danger beast. "Well looks like a low class danger beast has hidden itself in here somewhere. Hopefully it's not home but if so we need to kill it or knock it out if we confront it. You guys ready for it?" Nako asked the crew.