Akio doesn’t remember much about his family. He doesn’t like to think about them, and the clearest memory he has is of the whip they used to punish him. The scars still cover his back, and though the pain has long since faded, his dreams are plagued with the harshness of those that were supposed to love him. The cruelty was too much for him to bare as a child, and he soon found himself fleeing from his home, letting his overwhelming sense of misery drive him further and further from the land of his birth.

Akio had no other family that he knew of, he had no friends. He wouldn’t return home though, not for all of the riches of the world. He didn’t care if his parents had a reason for the pain they caused him. He didn’t even care if they would now recognize the error of their ways. To return home at this point would probably mean an even greater punishment than he had ever received. Instead, he resorted to thievery, stealing as he traveled from town to town. His skill grew, and he was actually able to live somewhat comfortably, or at least as comfortably as a homeless thief could. Still, it was only a matter of time until his luck would run out. This happened when he picked the wrong man to rob.

He looked like an easy target. He was a foreigner, with a strange accent and a look of a man who was lost and confused, like a wounded animal. Akio followed him closely, until he found his chance to strike, grabbing the man’s money purse as subtly as he could. Instantly, the seemingly drunk foreigner snapped into action, grabbing for the young boy’s wrist. Akio wrestled free, and ran as fast as his legs had ever carried him. He was quick and athletic, but the foreigner somehow proved to be faster. At first, Akio feared the worst, that he would be turned into the guards, or that the man would gut him on the spot. Instead, the foreigner did something that would change the boy’s path forever. He handed him back the coin purse, and smiled. No, not smiled. laughed.

The boy had spirit, that was for sure. Better still, he wasn’t afraid of getting his hands dirty. He told Akio as much, and that a boy like him was something he needed. He then said that the boy could run off with the money he had, or he could choose another walk of life, one that would supply him with a hundred times the amount in the purse, as well as a newfound purpose. The promise seemed too good to be true, but Akio couldn’t pass it up. The man told Akio to call him Noble, and led the boy to an encampment full of men that were armed to the teeth. Noble told the boy that his group was a bit unconventional. They were a band of mercenaries, of warriors for hire, most were just barbarians, farmers seeking a better life, even a few ronins. Noble took the boy in as his own, and began the arduous process of teaching him everything he knew. Despite his gruff appearance, Noble was a skilled martial artist, combining several techniques he had “picked up” over the years and teaching him to use his enemy's weaknesses against them. Soon, Akio found brotherhood among the men. They were thieves, killers willing to sell their services for the right amount of money, but to Akio, they were good people.

Eventually, Akio grew up, matured from boy to man, and though Noble taught him more skills every day, he was now a trusted member of the group, a respected member. Not all good things last though, and one day, Noble took a job that he told Akio very little about.
Noble decided to enter a place known as the City of Jade, alone. He never said why, or who had given him the job, and despite the trust he put in Akio, he refused to tell him anything. Akio was in charge of the group until he returned. Without Noble’s guidance, the mercenaries would be missing their moral compass, their sense of direction. They would look to Akio for guidance and leadership. He was to keep them together and to await Noble’s return. Noble never did return though, and as days dragged on to months, he decided to follow after him. He said a few quick goodbyes to his many friends, and set off to bring Noble home, or at the very least, lay him to rest. He would not lose the family he had worked so hard to find...