[IC] Avatar: A New Cycle

[21308]

Avatar Korra's rule had been an eventful one, and while she may have never faced a single threat as terrible as the Firelord's armies, she struggled with more particular crises than possibly any single avatar before her. In her 91 years, she oversaw the restoration of the Air temples and was instrumental in bringing the Air Nation back into the world and defending the vulnerable, fledgling nation. Several of her years after defeating Kuvira were spent in Republic city however, as the struggles there never entirely seemed to cease. While Korra had dealt with most of the city's serious external threats relatively early in her life, there always seemed to be a new political disagreement that required her attention. She tired of this quickly, and moreover citizens were beginning to complain that the Avatar was far too valuable as a political prop, and that any issue she lent her name to was bound to have an unfair advantage. Once again, president Raiko was forced to ask Korra to leave Republic City, and she agreed, this time for good. For 77 years, Republic City got along well without an Avatar.

The product of those 77 years is where you find yourself, for some reason or another. It is late afternoon, the city's factories are just shutting down and the local shops and restaurants are experiencing their busy hour. In the business district a slight, well-dressed woman with ill-fitting cuffs, recognizable to most as President Kanna, is proudly addressing a crowd about the opening of Republic City's first triple-decker street.

[21308]

Business was starting to pick up in Shizue and Azomes' tea shop, and Azome was still caught in traffic coming back from the stadium after a successful pro-bending match. An old man finished sipping his tea just before the evening crowd started to line up, as he often did. He had been a regular customer at the sisters' shop for about a month now, and came in almost every day at around the same time. One would assume that this was how he kept some semblance of a schedule now that he was, ostensibly, retired. He stood up and approached the counter even though he had already paid and slid Shizue a white envelope. "Just a little something extra for you." he said. Before Shizue could object, he was already through the door. He was surprisingly sprightly for a retiree.

Masika had just gotten home from her job and was sitting in front of her window, the decent view being one of the nicer features of this apartment. She heard her mail slot open and abruptly slam shut. A plain envelope sat in front of her door.

The bounty hunter known to most only as Stalker was sitting in a local bar which was frequented by his type. A rough looking black-haired woman with prominent facial scars took an adjoining bar stool and addressed him without turning her head in his direction. "If you want money, take this and do what it says." She spoke firmly but quickly. She got up and walked out of the bar, leaving an envelope next to the bounty hunter.

In the basement of the same bar, which the bartender would insist was only used to store supplies, a lone thief leaned against a wall after having been tipped that someone who had work for him wanted to meet him here. The same man who had been in Shizue's tea shop wordlessly entered the bar and handed the bartender an envelope, hidden between several large bills. The bartender casually said "Say no more, I'll be right back." He walked into the cellar where the thief was staying and handed him the envelope and some of the money, then grabbed a bottle which used to be filled with very expensive alcohol. "Clearly you're a man of discerning taste, this is the best stuff we've got." The old man took the bottle and left.

An odd, hooded individual with no clear features entered the humble building that was Alysia's air nomad center and approached her desk. Without saying anything, they placed an envelope on it and walked out.

Inside each of these envelopes was a letter which was individually addressed to the recipients. Each letter read:

"We are contacting you in regards to a matter of the utmost urgency. We have witnessed your unique talents and are reaching out to you specifically in the hopes that you will respond to us in our most dire hour of need. Should you choose to aid us, we will pay you any price you ask to the greatest extent of our abilities, be it your weight in gold, a specific favor, or the knowledge that our organization is forever in your debt. If you have chosen to accept our request for help, come to the address listed below by midnight tonight. A representative from our organization will be in the basement of the building."
Each of these letters bore the symbol of the Order of the White Lotus.

The address was of an abandoned temple in a slum on the outskirts of the city.

[bcc]

Alysia was well accustomed to hooded, secretive individuals coming into the air nomad center in search of assistance. When the figure entered her little storefront, she immediately greeted him.

"Welcome! What can I help you with today?" He ignored her, apparently, and left an envelope on her desk before hustling out of the shop. She called after him, "Please! Sit down and we -" but he was already gone. The envelope was very intriguing, but she had a job to do. She slipped it into her desk's only drawer and locked it, but its strange and sudden arrival buzzed at the back of her mind as she went about her day. Frustrated by the distraction, Alysia sat on the floor with her legs crossed to meditate, but found that her mind quickly wandered back to the nondescript envelope awaiting her attention.

She placed a sign on the door that said she was closed for lunch, shut the door, and slowly opened the envelope. She immediately recognized the symbol of the Order of the White Lotus, and her hands trembled slightly as she read the letter. When she had finished reading, she shoved it back in its envelope, replaced it in the desk drawer, and locked the drawer again.

While Alysia was accustomed to strange requests and offers of favors, none had been quite like this one. An elderly gentleman offering his life savings so that his grandchild might be rescued was a very different sort of request, and typically made without an understanding of what motivated the air nomads. The Order of the White Lotus, however, was sure to be informed about her culture.

She sighed, and lifted the phone in the corner of her shop. It was the most valuable thing in the whole storefront, and stood out rather jarringly among the chairs which had been reupholstered and patched too many times to count and the rickety desk which seemed as though it might collapse at any moment under the weight of the short stack of papers atop it. She dialed the northern air temple and waited. A new initiate answered after a brief wait, and Alysia said,

"This is Alysia, the representative in Republic City. I need to speak to Milo right away, please. It's rather urgent."

After a long fifteen minutes of waiting, Milo picked up the phone, and Alysia explained the situation. Milo, though surprised, was much calmer than his protege. Eventually, the two decided that Alysia would attend the meeting, and report back immediately to determine whether she would participate.

With that settled, Alysia reopened the shop, knowing that a long night awaited her.

[CLIW]

Masika had had a long day at work, and she felt it in her back. She'd been delighted to fall into the cheap armchair by her window and lean back in its softness while looking out at the city from her window. Her view was her second favorite thing about the place; the first was its private, roomy feel. Despite it not being a large apartment, a home felt much bigger when there weren't brothers to trample the place. She'd just sighed with the bliss of not having to do anything when a noise caught her attention and interrupted her post-work-day relaxation.

Annoyed, she turned her head to the door. It'd sounded like the mail slot slamming. On the floor she noticed a single, plain white envelope. It didn't look all too important. Masika sat still for several minutes, reveling in the feeling of a spine that wasn't bent into a C-shape. In fact, she fell asleep for a good ten minutes and upon waking had forgotten that any mail had arrived.

It was when she got up to make herself food that she finally remembered the envelope and made a face. She didn't like to leave things unopened, plus it was probably from one of her parents, asking if she needed money or suggesting that she come back for a visit (or for good). Right now, though, it was just another thing between herself and dinner. She snatched it from the ground and tore it open without much thought at all, then scanned through the letter inside to see if it could wait.

What is this? She cocked an eyebrow and read through it a couple times. It was, of course, a practical joke at best, but Masika couldn't help but be curious. Her earthbending could surely fend off whatever tricksters were behind the latter.

She cooked dinner and tried to imagine what would happen if she did show up at midnight. The more she thought about it, despite most of these imaginings ending in her death, the more she wanted to check it out.

[Akayaofthemoon]

A Collaboration between Akayaofthemoon and OneWayOut

Shizue's eyebrow quirked as one of their recently regular customers approached the counter even though the elder had paid his bill. It made her think that perhaps he had a complaint or something important he wished to express with her, which seemed a little odd for this person. He wasn't usually one for much words, though he was always pleasantly friendly without such things. She didn't know much of what to expect from the retiree but a simple blank white envelope had not been it. Shizue had went to object, thinking it was some kind of extra money or tip that was too big to just leave, and she wasn't one just take hand outs, but he didn't even give her the chance. She didn't know one that advanced in years could move so fast and it had her leaning over the counter, calling out to him to wait but it fell on deaf ears as he continued onward. A light frown found its way onto her features, her eyes moving to the envelope in her hands and turning it to try to see if it had any indication to what was inside but even the seal was blank. It tickled her curiosity, her fingers moving to break the seal only to be interrupted by the call of a customer which made her realize that the strange letter would have to wait.

Shizue made sure to place the letter aside in a safe place, keeping it on the back of her mind for later. If it really was something of great value or importance than she should open it with Azome. They were in this together no matter what, and she would not leave her out of strange or important occurrences. Whatever was in that envelope was as much her older sister's as it was her own. If Azome thought it wasn't right to keep than they would just have to wait for the elder man to return, thank him for his gift or whatever it was, but apologize that he needed to take it back. She trusted her sister's decisions after all just like Azome did in return.

Meanwhile, a few minutes away, Azome groaned in frustration and pressed the horn on her brand newMoped once again.

"Come on! Drive!" she yelled at the person in front of her going snail speed in what looked like a brand new Satomobile. She honked her horn again as the driver seemed unsure if he could fit between two cars that were ahead of him. Of course the guy wasn't going to take any chances with his hot new ride, but Azome wanted to get home. She wasn't going to let some horrible driver keep her from a warm cup of tea and her cozy bed.

With another frustrated groan as the people behind her started honking as well, Azome decided to find another way around the guy. She revved her Moped a few times before taking off, making a sharp right turn and illegally crossing lanes to get to a side street. Inner city traffic was one of the reasons why she hated being one of the last matches in the Probending Arena. It seemed every time her team went late in the day, by the time she was able to go home, the traffic was at its worst. Despite having a maneuverable Moped, it was always a struggle getting home.

What Azome hated the most was leaving her little sister, Shizue, at home to run the tea shop on her own. She was reassured time and time again by her sister that she was fine running the tea shop alone, that Azome could follow her passion with pro bending, but there was always a thought in the back of her head... a thought that made Azome want to stay by her sister's side at all time. There were some crazy people out in the world and Shizue was so cute and weak looking, even if she was an adept Waterbender, it was only a matter of time before a group of drunks stumbled into the Tea Shop and tried to harass her.

The worst part was, if that were to even happen, there was no way Shizue would tell her. She knew Azome was a worry wart and would throw away her pro bending career at the drop of a hat if it meant keeping her sister safe.

After going down some side streets and cutting through several alleyways, Azome made it back onto the main road, almost hitting a man as she swerved and cut across the sidewalk to get to the correct lane. She was only a few blocks away at this point, and sooner than later, she ended up home, coming to a stop with a screech.

Getting off her Moped, Azome would make her way to the back of the shop that her and her sister called home, locking up the small bike before lifting up the seat. Under the cushion was a storage compartment that was really handy to keep her things in as she was driving. She reached for her bottle of water first, bringing the thing to her lips and taking a long drink from it. She downed over half the container at once before taking a moment to breathe, wiping at her chin where some drops had trickled down from the corner of her mouth. Azome wasted no more time gathering the rest of her things: a small bag, her probending uniform that needed to be washed, and a brown envelope with her share of this weeks winnings.

When she had everything, she closed the seat of her Moped and moved to the back door, fishing around in her bag for a key before going inside and locking the door back behind her. Azome's first instinct was to call out to her sister and surprise her with the money - finally enough to get the renovations done that they'd wanted to parts of the shop - knowing that Shizue would be happily surprised, but she had to remember that a Tea Shop was a place of peace, so she couldn't go screaming. Instead she placed her things at the door and went to find her sister.

Azome would appear from the back of the shop and go to the counter, surprised to not find Shizue there. Shrugging and assuming she went to help a customer, Azome would patiently wait for her sister to return.

It didn't take long for Shizue to return to the counter once again but this time she was happily greeted by the sight of her older sister which brought a bright smile to her lips."Azome! Welcome home, how was your match?",she warmly asked before giving her a gentle hug.

Azome returned the hug with a smile. "Hey sis." she greeted, releasing Shizue after a moment. "It went alright. It was tough though... I may have a bruise in a really hard to reach place." she said with a light laugh.

It didn't bother Shizue to run the Panda Lily alone but was always better to have Azome around as it made her feel a little more at ease, though she wouldn't admit it. She wasn't ignorant about the fact that danger could occur anywhere which meant even the Tea Shop wasn't completely safe. She wasn't defenseless by any means, but Azome had always been, and still was the stronger out of the two. Shizue's looks were even weaker in appearance than the other, though again that was something she would deny. She listened to Azome's reply, a smile stuck on her face until she heard about the bruising that may have happened do to the match as she dug out the plain blank letter and waving it lightly.

Azome couldn't help her curiosity and so she snatched the letter from her sister's hand.

"Let me know if you need help with healing that bruise. You shouldn't be uncomfortable just because you can't reach it. In other news, I received this today from one of the more recent customers. He said it was just a little something extra but I am not sure what that entails. I would assume a large tip but I thought it might be nice to open it together though I admit it was very tempting to do alone."

"I'll let you have a look at it once we close up the shop. So... I wonder what this is..." Azome said curiously, turning the thing over and finding nothing interesting. Impatiently, she broke the seal and opened the envelope, taking out the paper inside and turning it so Shizue could read it too. The message read:

"We are contacting you in regards to a matter of the utmost urgency. We have witnessed your unique talents and are reaching out to you specifically in the hopes that you will respond to us in our most dire hour of need. Should you choose to aid us, we will pay you any price you ask to the greatest extent of our abilities, be it your weight in gold, a specific favor, or the knowledge that our organization is forever in your debt. If you have chosen to accept our request for help, come to the address listed below by midnight tonight. A representative from our organization will be in the basement of the building."

Beneath the words was the familiar symbol of a White Lotus along with an address.

"Well... that's creepy." Azome said, turning the paper over to see if anything was on the back. She was unsure what to make of it. "Who did you say gave this to you? Did he look shady?" she asked, turning to Shizue.

"You got that right..." Shizue replied with a frown before continuing to speak in order to answer her sister's questions. "It was one of our newly regular customers. He has never seemed shady at all and is always completely pleasant like most of our other elderly patrons."

"Huh. That's odd." Azome said, handing the letter to her sister before stretching out her arm and rolling a shoulder. "Do you think it's serious? I mean, maybe the guy is in some trouble or something. It says we'd get paid but, I don't want to get wrapped up in anything dangerous." she paused and remembered she too had something to show. She reached over to where she'd placed her bonus and held it up to her sister, wearing a smirk on her face.

"Then again, we'd have a bit more cash to add to our renovation funds." she said, waving the brown envelope.

"I don't know if it is serious or not but it seems like it if they went through all this trouble or someone is just that creepy enough to believe I wouldn't show this to you and appear alone. If he is in some sort of trouble than aren't their better people to turn to or wouldn't he come to you before giving it to me? I'm just not sure but if it is true than it might be worth it even if some risk is involved." Shizue replied, lost in thought for a moment before a brown envelope came into view and she looked to Azome curiously as her sister wore a smirk. It definitely made her feel like she was out of the loop somehow until Azome told her exactly what it was. Shizue's eye widened before lighting up, excitement easily bubbling to the surface as she bounced up and down in a childish manner. "Oh this is wonderful!" she squealed before hugging her sister tightly and quickly letting go to list off the things they needed to fix first. She stopped for a moment, looking to Azome calmly before asking,"What are we going to do about that strange letter? Should we go? At least to check it out?"

Azome shrugged and crossed her arms. "I guess. I mean, if anything goes down, we're more than capable of handling ourselves. And, why wouldn't he come to us? You're looking at a member of the probending team that won the championship three years in a row. Soon to be four by the looks of it." she said proudly.

"And I'm pretty sure I've heard a few people call you the Tea Goddess or something." she paused and put a hand to her chin. "Or was it the Tea Whisperer...?" After a moment of deep thought, Azome shrugged. "In any case, as long as is nothing illegal, I'm up for anything that can make us some quick cash. We sure could use it." she said.

A blush dusted over her cheeks at Azome's words since she did not fail in making her feel silly for her previous comment. She was right that they were two members on a probending champion team that was three...four years running. It makes sense that that would bring in some attention if help was needed. The blush on her face deepened greatly when her sister's next statement of what people called Shizue. She had heard both names and more from people though the reason she didn't quite understand half the time. "Than let us hope all goes well tonight and that what they ask is none to difficult or illegal since you are completely right that we could use it." Shizue stated softly with a gentle smile before getting back to work. The shop would be open a little while longer after all and she couldn't keep everyone waiting.

[Eodwyn Aether]

Hmph, cozy. Stalker mumbled as took a seat and ordered a drink. Five minutes passed and soon his quarry had entered the bar. Stalker did not really know much about the man, except for the fact that he was a suspect in a string of robberies and that he was hired to capture said man….dead or alive. As the bartender slid the drink over to him, Stalker noticed his target enter the bar and take a seat at a nearby table. For the next half hour Stalker watched his target slowly get borderline drunk. As he observed his target he noticed a woman out of the corner of his eye approach him and placed a letter next to him, telling him to read it and go to the location mentioned in said letter if he wants to make some money. Stalker ignored her until she left before slowly reaching for the letter and pocketing it.

A message to read later he said as he noticed his target was leaving. He slowly got up and proceeded to follow him out of the bar and around the town for about twenty minutes before his target stepped into an alley.

Stalker immediately ran after him, seeing this as an opportunity to pounce. As Stalker turned the corner he was met with a small boulder to his torso that sent him crashing into a nearby wall. Before he could even recover another small boulder was sent his way, this time Stalker just managing to pull himself out of the trajectory of the boulder. As he did he caught a straight punch to the gut forcing him to gasp for air and fall to his knees. Heh, I rob banks and high class jewellery stores, I outwit those idiots who call themselves police and they send a bloody kid to get me. Very well then you shall have the honor of fighting me, Rinzo Rani, The greatest burglar in Republic City!” The man replied cracking his knuckles.

Oh great another target so full of himsel- wait isn’t Rani a girl’s name? Stalker asked pulling his mask over his face

N-no i-its its its a Unisex n-name.

I am pretty sure it’s a girl’s name.

It. Is. A. Unisex. Name. Okay?.

No its not it is specifically a girl-

GOD DAMMIT ITS UNISEX. Rinzo blurted out before realizing that Stalker was no longer in front of him. Before Rinzo could react he was hit with a head kick and was sent stumbling side wards using the wall to regain his balance.

Okay Ran- I mean Rinzo we can settle this little bout in two ways. The first one being that you surrender yourself to me and I take you to Republic City Police Department. Or, and this one seems to be more likely, You don’t surrender and I send you to the Republic City Morgue instead. So your call bud. He said going into a rather defensive, low, stance.

Hmph, you honestly think you can best me kid? Fine have it your way. I choose the second option. Be prepared to feel my superiori-

Okay Mr. Unisex enough with the talk, come at me.

With a slight chuckle Rinzo stepped forward, before bounding towards Stalker throwing a few bits of rock at him before he stomped his foot on the ground pushing a huge boulder from out of the ground and hurling it towards Stalker, This time however Stalker was ready and ran towards the boulder before sliding under it and using the momentum of the slide to propel himself up towards Rinzo landing a hard blow to the face of his opponent. As Rinzo stumbled backwards Stalker kicked off a nearby wall twisting in the air. As he did so Rinzo noticed that there was flame following his opponents body and raised two small pillars from the ground just in time to defend himself as Stalker stopped twisting and smashed his flames into Rinzo’s barriers, cracking them and sending it flying.

Rinzo was immediately bombarded with fire balls, just barely dodging the first few that were aimed at him. Just as Stalker finished his bombardment of flame Ronzi went on the offensive chucking rocks at Stalker who was able to dodge all but one that met his forehead and sent him staggering. Rinzo almost instantly rushed Stalker hitting him with two rather large stones. Rinzo then went for a straight up punch to the staggered Stalker. As he threw the punch he was met with a spinning head kick as Stalker somehow managed to dodge his blow.

Yet again Rinzo staggered before lifting his right hand up and violently aiming it at Stalker. As he did a huge battering ram of stone was sent towards him. However, Stalker jumped on top of the ram and ran towards Rinzo, this time putting his hands together and unleashing an endless amount of Flame towards Rinzo’s face. With a sudden cry of Pain Rinzo lifted up his other hand and yet another stone battering ram shot out of the ground this time catching Stalker straight in the torso and sending him to the opposite side of the alley wall with a thunderous crack. Rinzo Covered his face with his right hand, the smell of charred flesh beginning to reach the nose of Stalker.

Heh heh….whats the matter little girl? Did you burn yourself? How bout you, argg, run back to mommy little Rani? Stalker said between heavy breaths and violent coughing.

Rinzo, Filled with rage started thrusting his left hand back and forth, each time he did so the stone ram would let go of Stalker and pin him back against the wall yet again, each time with more force. After the third time Rinzo put his left hand down, releasing the battering ram and letting Stalker fall to the ground. Rinzo walked slowly up to Stalker and knelt down next to him. heh who’s the girl now? Any last words, bounty hunter? He said before trying to listen to what little Stalker could manage out of his mouth.

N-now……O-Orro Before Rinzo could say a large armadillo tiger came pouncing out of the shadows hitting Rinzo straight in the stomach, forcing him to bend over in pain. With a sudden last bit of strength and adrenaline Stalker got up and ran towards his opponent one final time, slightly jumping as he did a quick swirl in the air, before sending one last huge flame into the back of Rinzo’s Skull pushing the earthbender face first into the ground with a loud boom. Stalker stood there for a few moments before his legs gave way and he fell only to be caught by his pet, who motioned for him to get on her back. Stalker did so and Orro instantly took off.

15 minutes passed and now Stalker and his pet were going door to door asking for healing. Eventually He was told of a tea shop called the Panda Lily which was run by two waterbenders who might be able to heal him. After another two minutes of looking for the shop, He eventually found it. Alright pal, go and lay low for awhile okay? And stay close, we might need to run should the police find out about our little contract. He said as he made for the tea shop before stopping and taking his mask off and giving it to Orro. Keep this safe for me aswell alright? Don’t lose it. He whispered as he pat her head and once again made way for the tea shop.

As he entered the shop he took a quick glance at his reflection and what he saw was anything but pleasant. There was blood still dripping out of his mouth, His head was covered in tiny cuts and bruises and that was just his face. He definitely had at least one broken rib and more than a couple broken bones. Slowly zoning back into reality he made his way to the counter and spoke to who he thought was the owner. Uh hi, I was told that this establishment was run by waterbenders am I right? If so I was wondering if they would be able to heal me or not. As you can see I really need it He said gesturing towards his whole body and awaiting an answer. I will pay any amount you desire I just……I need help. He said whispering the last part.

@Akayaofthemoon

[The Kraken]

The waning afternoon sent wave after increasing wave of customers into the cozy restaurant that Kieran called home for now with his father. He was the low man on the totem pole, though he was a step above a bus boy, he got the privilege of doing the grunt work of the kitchen. Orders continued to flood the kitchen, and the knife in the young earthbender's hand had to work overtime to prep all of the veggies and garnishes for the accompanying dishes to be pushed out the service window.

"Try to keep up, son. Dinner rush can make or break you as a chef." Kieran's father called out to him from underneath a chef's hat that identified him as the head chef of the kitchen. For him, this was more than just a job for Kieran. Kuruk wanted his son to stay in the kitchen and take over when the time came, but Kieran had already decided to follow his mother's path and join the RCPD. As soon as he got enough money he could be out of this kitchen and in the academy, working his way towards that shiny metal uniform.

"Don't worry, dad. I'm right behind ya," Kieran reassured his father.

The next hours were filled with the clanking of pots and pans and the smells of harmonious ingredients being melded. Finally, the last order was sent out of the kitchen and Kieran let out a breath of relief. He smiled warmly when his father placed a plate of hot food in front of him, relieved to have a meal cooked by his dad after such a busy evening. Kieran ate the meal while his father cleaned up and then said his goodbyes, leaving the young man to clean up his station. He used a little metalbending trick he learned from his mother to sharpen his knives, and then put them away.

Kieran was the last person at the restaurant, removing his apron and hanging it on the rack with the others and grabbing his coat. He reached into his coat pocket to grab his keys to lock the restaurant up, but felt something thick and heavy in between his hand and the metal of his key chain. Cautiously, he removed the object to reveal an envelope. How did this get here? And who put it there? But the best question, what is it?

Curiosity got the best of him, and he broke the seal to read the contents of the envelope.

'We are contacting you in regards to a matter of the utmost urgency. We have witnessed your unique talents and are reaching out to you specifically in the hopes that you will respond to us in our most dire hour of need. Should you choose to aid us, we will pay you any price you ask to the greatest extent of our abilities, be it your weight in gold, a specific favor, or the knowledge that our organization is forever in your debt. If you have chosen to accept our request for help, come to the address listed below by midnight tonight. A representative from our organization will be in the basement of the building.'

That symbol at the bottom... it looked familiar. Kieran had seen it before, somewhere. He just couldn't put his thumb on it. Kieran looked around the kitchen, and then poked his head into the dining room, and finally out the back door into the alley. He was alone, and no sight of whoever left this letter. His eyebrow raised as he exited the restaurant and locked the door, the letter still in his hand. Should he risk it? It could all be a hoax. Then again, if it turned out to be legit, he wouldn't want to miss out on it.

Maybe the best idea would be to run it by his parents, particularly his mother. Maybe they knew what this symbol was on the letter. The more he thought about it, the more he thought he should go. Even if his mom advised against it, he made up his mind that he would go to at least check it out. If anything should go down, he could take care of himself.

Kieran zipped up his jacket and shoved his hands in his pockets, walking down the street towards his apartment. Midnight would come soon enough, and he would know what new adventure this letter would set him on.

[Akayaofthemoon]

When Shizue heard someone approaching the counter, she had thought it was another customer so the smile that had lit up her face seconds before instantly died. Her eyes widening a fraction at the state of the man in front of her that was still leaking blood from his mouth and a not so pretty face at the moment. She would give up this shop right now if none of his ribs were broken and who knows what else might be damaged. Shizue had no idea what he had gotten himself into but that he needed help was most apparent even without him saying so.

Usually she would have rushed to the man straight away before he even had a chance to speak but she had just been so startled by his appearance in the shop and his own looks that she had logically checked out for a moment. Shizue gracefully jumped over the counter, careful not to hit him as she did before worriedly speaking,"Please come up stairs with me. Can you walk or would you like some assistance? We have a place upstairs and can heal you there."

She wanted to help in any way she could, money not really mattering to her at this point. It wasn't like she could do it right here though and some of her customers already seemed to be upset or worried for the man that had come in and healing him here would only heighten that feeling for everyone.

"Please relax and enjoy! I will be back momentarily with free drinks on the house!" She called out which had some cheer before the they headed up and away from the crowd.

[Eodwyn Aether]

As Shizune jumped over the counter, Time seemed to slow for Stalker as he realized she was standing rather close to him. Stalker immediately averted his gaze from her, blushing slightly before realizing that she asked him if he could walk by himself.

U-uh y-yeah I ca-can walk on my own. He said as he walked as fast as he could upstairs , which wasn’t very fast seeing as though he was heavily injured. When he eventually reached the top of the stairs he stopped for a moment to catch his breath before standing as upright as he could, and bowing deeply to shizune. I am sorry for being an inconvenience and disturbing you out of the blue but I thank you for agre- He said before a sharp pain hit his torso that forced him to his knee giving out a slight pained gasp. It took him a few seconds to stand back up. I guess what I was trying to say was thanks, I promise you that I will repay you in any way I can. He said softly before continuing to follow her.

@Akayaofthemoon

[Akayaofthemoon]

Shizue glanced back at her new companion every once and awhile over her shoulder trying to believe that he was really alright walking. She was worried about him falling down the stairs which would not only make him worse off than he was at the moment but it would only add to the job ahead of her. She was practically relieved when they reached the top with nothing happening and she started to fish for her keys,but was suddenly a bit startled to have her injured guest bow deeply to her.

She was about to speak up to advise him to not do that but it was already to late as he dropped to his knee with a gasp of pain. Shizue quickly rushed to his side, bending to his level and making sure that if he was unsteady that she would be right there. She slowly stood up as he did, a small blush at being thanked or trying to be thanked so properly. "Your welcome but it is honestly no trouble at all. You don't have to repay me since it is my pleasure to help those in need." She answered, unlocking the door to Azome's and her's home. "Make yourself comfortable while I grab some water." Shizue said before heading into the kitchen, wondering where her sister had gotten to and how she would react to the injured man in their home. She rapidly filled a bowl of water before returning into the living room to get started on healing.

@Eodwyn Aether

[21308]

It was now nearing midnight. The thief who had received a letter earlier had already made his way into the slum and darted toward the door of the temple, hopefully before he could be seen. The front door was unlocked, which made sense, although getting the old thing open was a bit of a challenge. The inside of the temple was spacious but in disrepair. There was only one door in the building, on the left wall, which presumably led to the basement. The thief entered through it and walked down a winding flight of stairs. When the stairs ended, he was in a stone hallway barely wide enough to accommodate two people walking side-by-side. The hallway eventually led to a room mostly full of empty crates, which presumably contained donated goods at one point. Halfway down the hallway, on the right side, there were two wall mounted lanterns on either side of the door, and the thief assumed that this was where he was supposed to be. Instead of going in right away, he quietly walked to the end of the hall and hid behind a box, listening for anyone else to arrive.