[center][h2]Mako Kurohiko, the Exiled Warrior[/h2][/center]
[center][h3]A Long Journey's End[/h3][/center]
[center][@GamerXZ][/center]

As the wind kicked up the dust from the road between the small town of Hantsel and Crocus, a lone traveler made his way to the capital city, his face protected from wind and gritty debris by a hood. When he'd heard of the Grand Magic Games and who would be in attendance, he'd set out for the capital of Fiore immediately. The guilds Frenzy Plant, Dragon Fang, and Phoenix Wing would all have access to information that he, despite his best efforts, did not have the same level of access to. He certainly had established a number of contacts across the country in his five year exile in Fiore, but they were street urchins and other rabble, not the kind that had information on the names of bandits and their locations.

He had stayed over night in Hantsel and left early that morning, determined to catch all the guild masters in one day if he could. As he walked, he reminisced on how he had ended up at this point in time. His training had all but guarenteed that he could easily accomplish an escort mission and return home unscathed with coin in hand for a job well done. So why had it all gone wrong? [color=DarkOrange][i]I blame my lack of experience, a lack of information and a lack of proper discipline. Or...maybe it's the proper amount of discipline that I had lacked. I should have been paying more attention to the surroundings instead of asking the dignitary about his own family.[/i][/color]

This had been a constant reflection, and the traveler almost always came to the same conclusion, but in the end, he would wonder if the end result would have been any different if he'd been watching the treelines instead of speaking with his employer about his family and the differences between them and the Kurohiko clan. Pausing in his self reflection for a moment, he looked up and spotted the city walls of Crocus, indicating his journey was almost at an end. Speeding up, he was within sight of the gates when footsteps behind him caused him to pause and turn around.

Before him stood three men, one with a number of tattoos, another who, for all intents and purposes, was unscarred in anyway, and the final man, who lacked a shirt and sported a large scar across his chest. This was the one who spoke. [b]"'ey, weirdo in the cloak! Yeah you! No one goes into Crocus from this way without paying the tax. Three thousand jewels now or we rough ya up and send you to another gate."[/b] The traveler took a moment to appraise the three, looking them up and down before nodding to himself and reaching up to reveal his face, his teal eyes shining in the midafternoon light.

[color=DarkOrange]"You are scoundrels and rapscallions seeking to cause trouble for those who don't cower at the mere sight of you. I will pay no such fee."[/color] Turning, the traveler began to walk forwards towards the gate when he heard rapidly approaching footsteps from behind. Without missing a beat, he activated his Dragon Chi Enhancement, the electric blue of his magic appearing as a tattoo running the length of his body, though only the head, resting on the travler's neck, stood out. Spinning, he redirected the metal covered punch of the flawless young man to the side before delivering a palm strike into his chin and sending the now unconscious theif sailing backwards. The second attacker, the tattooed man, swung a giant hammer towards the travler, confident that a fancy move like what had floored his friend wouldn't save his target.

The traveler leaped over the hammer swing and landed on the ground on the otherside of it before he'd even finished swinging the oversized weapon. Now next to the weapon's wielder, the teal eyed man delivered a quick series of four punches to his side and finished with a sweeping kick that put the man on the ground out of breath. His breathing became less labored when an ax kick to his temple, while not lethal, would have him unconscious for the next several days. The final man's face was a mixture of surprise and rage, the former at the traveler's skill and the latter at how easily his friends had been dealt with.

[color=DarkOrange]"Your friends, fortunately for them, will live. But if you persist in attempting to accost me, I will not hesitate to maim you at best. At worst, I will kill you and not feel any regret if you do nothing more than rob others of their hard earned money."[/color] The man with the scar on his chest continued to stand there torn between rage and surprise before rage won out.

[b]"You think you can do that to my partners and get away with it? T' hell with that! Flaming Scythe of Pain!"[/b] A scythe made of fire appeared in his hand and he rushed forwards, swinging for the traveler's torso. When it looked like the attack would be successful, a triumphant shout escaped the scarred man's lips. However, it was cut short when he realized that there was something blocking the flaming blade from meeting flesh.

The travler could only smile softly when the scarred man realized his mistake. [color=darkorange]"You have til three to get out of my sight. It is not my mission to spill blood today."[/color] The man, who's flaming scythe had disappeared along with his confidence, nodded frantically as he turned and ran for the tree line. The traveler, watched, the single glaive poised in a throwing position. When the teal eyed man hit three, the bandit was still within sight. Sighing, the traveler sent the glaive flying towards the man, taking off his right hand before it returned after bouncing off a tree. [color=DarkOrange]"You will not rob anyone ever again."[/color] Turning away as the man dropped to his knees with a scream, he approached the gates as the glaive disappeared into a hidden position up his sleeve after compacting, but found himself stopped by a pair of bored looking guards.

[b]"Name and reason for being in...ah, just a name."[/b] The traveler sighed softly.

[color=DarkOrange]"Mako Kurohiko."[/color] The guard who had asked the question nodded and he entered the city. [color=DarkOrange]"Finally, the end of a long journey. Hopefully I didn't waste my time coming here..."[/color]