A choice of arms (Xing Cai/Open)

[Li Ying]

+ A choice of arms

Li Ying Jia Lin OPEN
Words : "The deadliest blade is the one that goes unseen."

They said you could buy anything on the black market and they were for the most part right too. You could buy drugs, poison and all matter of things that were considered too taboo to buy in the streets. Or were heavily taxed by the Han government. Such as it was...you could even buy people in the right places. This was in fact such a place, but Lady Li Ying had no interest in slaves.

She had her well training eye on something a little more, specialised. She was in the buisness of killing people, not for money so much as politics. Yet even so she needed the right tools for the right job. Poison needed a delivery system after all and here she could buy a very effective one. As well as some very rare poison.

What had brought a lady like herself here was what was called a blowgun. As well as specially made darts that were only made in the regions of Nanman. How they gangsters here had gotten them she wasn't sure but...if they had them she wanted them. They would give her more options and having more options kept her alive. 


At the moment she was entering the 'bad' part of town. Along with two of her family guardsmen. Both dress in unmarked clothes. They didnt want to be indentified as being from Wu. She of course was wearing one of her finer dresses. Which was to cause her trouble. Up ahead 3 men walked out of the stress to block her path...this could not be good.

CODED BY ELECTRIC OF GANGNAM STYLE

[Jia Lin]

     "Father, I will be fine! I need a break anyways. This will be good for me! Hey, don't worry, I will bring some guards with me, they will take care of me. Please!" After a long and very draining conversation with her drunken father, she finally got his permission to go on a little field trip. She was gonna travel around the area and take a look around and see what she could see. Xing Cai needed this badly. Her daily training sessions with the son of Liu Bei, Liu Shan has been really draining recently. And she needed some alone time, well, as alone as an officer of Liu Bei, daughter of Zhang Fei could get. She rode out of Xin Ye with two guards on each side of her. She need to change that.


     She arrived in the village as the sun was just beginning to lower itself. She got off of her horse and said to the two guardsmen next to her, "Help me get this horse tied up will you?" Nodding, both soldiers turned to help their "precious lady Xing Cai" they didn't notice her sneaking away into the crowd. Xing Cai did not have her shield with her, it was on her horse, but she always had her sword by her side. She wore a green dress that covered some light armor underneath her. She never knew what could happen. "Now, let's see what I can find!"


    Xing Cai wandered around the village for a while, and as she started realizing she wasn't in the best part of town, the sun was almost set completely. The lights of the village the only thing lighting the area. That was when she saw three men step in front of what seemed to be an innocent woman. That was when she noticed the two people standing by both sides of the women. "She isn't just some girl then." Xing Cai said to herself quietly. She watched closely, getting a little closer so she could try to hear what they were saying, while she placed her hand near her sword just in case she needed to use it.     

[Li Ying]

+ A choice of arms

Li Ying Jia Lin OPEN
Words : "The deadliest blade is the one that goes unseen."

This was the problem with coming to places like this, their were always those that thought they could take advantage of you. It was not the first time someone had tried to shake Li Ying down for gold...or worse things in fact. If you did not know how to look out for yourself this was a very dangerous place to be. This was why she had brought her guards, they looked intimidating which was usually enough to keep her safe, when it was not...well she had a few other...nasty surprises as these men were about to find out. The one in the lead was holding a large axe and stepped forward to extort her.


"Their is a toll to pass this way. We will be taking everything you have, or will can take it out of your skin." He threatened her holding out his meaty hand for her gold. Thinking her just another defenseless flower, sadly for him some plants were toxic. Instead of even trying to fight back, lady Li Ying reached into her pockets. Until she found a very special coin purse. being sure to be very careful as she handled it, she pulled it out and tossed it to those rouges. 

"Please that is all the money i have." Li Ying told the thugs, as they laughed. A more intelligent person might have noticed that the lady did not seem scared at all. She did not tremble even as she was robbed in the street. These thugs had picked the wrong rose to rob. The thugs opened her purse and poured out the coims, greedily picking threw them. The coins were wet, but they did not even notice. Li Ying smiled, their fate was sealed.


Not all poison had to be ingested or injected into a target. The most insidious type of poison was known as contact poison. as the name suggested just a touch was deadly. The plant she used could kill a man just for touching its leaves. The coins in her purse were dripping in a much more distilled form of the toxin. Those men were already walking corpses. She smiled, glad that these men who dared to accost her would soon be dead. The poison sank into the men's skin and they soon began to feel the effects. The man holding the axe creid out in alarm and dropped his weapon.


"My hands, i cant feel them anymore." He yelled in alarm, as the poison attacked his nervous system shutting it down. This was the first stage, untreated death would follow in about a half hour. The man looked at her in terrible fear and like all superstitious sorts jumped to the obvious if incorrect conclusion. "She is a witch." he cried out in alarm.

"Yes i am and those coins are cursed, you will get worse if you dont leave now." She threatened them. Terrified they ran, leaving the coins on the ground. Li Ying would have to be very careful when she picked them up, she always wore gloves just for situations like this. She had not yet noticed Xing Cai standing behind her watching this.

CODED BY ELECTRIC OF GANGNAM STYLE

[Jia Lin]

     Xing Cai watched everything play out before her. A few people looked at her as they passed, but when they saw her weapon they decided to leave her alone and continue to walk by. Even though she was a girl, anybody with a weapon in these times were pretty dangerous. Maybe if this woman before her carried a weapon, this wouldn't have happened. When she saw the man pull out the axe, she was about ready to go and deal with him. But the woman being threatened seemed calm. Like it didn't even phase her. This interested Cai greatly, and she held off a little longer, her hand completely on her sword handle, just in case this took a turn for the worse. Her eyes glued on the woman, who calmly pulled out her coin purse and handed it to the man. "Who are you...?" Cai said quietly to herself. She knew without a shadow of a doubt that this wasn't just a normal rich girl whose daddy has hired some guards to protect her. 

    And then there were screams. Xing Cai tilted her head out of confusion when she realized that the screams came from the men, and not the woman. "What in the...?" Cries of witch came from the men, which brought a nice chuckle from Xing Cai's lips. This girl was something else. She watched the men run away, back into the shadows that they called home. She decided it was time to say hello to this, "Witch." She took her hand off he sword as she walked forward, and leaned against a building a few feet away from the woman and her two guards and she laughed, saying, "Witch huh, how long have you been practicing the craft?"

[Li Ying]

+ A choice of arms

Li Ying Jia Lin OPEN
Words : "The deadliest blade is the one that goes unseen."

Li Ying could not suppress a smile of triumph, she enjoyed beating men like that using her mind. Swords and armies were perfectly effective but when you really wanted to kill someone attacking the body from the inside out was always more effective. Certainly when you were a small thing like herself unused to using large weapons. She was about to continue onto the black market when she heard someone moving behind her. Her training as an assassin had left her with pre naturally sharp senses. All too used to sneaking around in the dark during the dead of night. She turned slowly too find to her surprise another women looking at her. Quite as a contrast to herself though, this women was armed and armoured too. Her guards looked alarmed having not heard this lady approach. But Li Ying smiled coyly, if she had meant them hard should would have attacked them by now. No looking at her style of dress and armour she would lay a guess this women was an associate of Liu Xuande. A man known for his great....benevolence, among other things.

"Witch huh, how long have you been practising the craft?" The young lady asked her, her laughter giving away that she didn't really believe in magic. She was clearly far smarter than those men. Li Ying smiled, it was nice to meet someone intelligent for a change. As well as someone around here who did not seem to mean her harm. "Ohh you know, i had to study under the monkey king of the forbidden kingdom, he charged me a hefty price of 12 bananas a day for my tutelage too. I must warn you, monkeys are quite smelly teachers though." She winked, joking with this lady. Since she already seemed to know there was nothing 'magic' about Li Ying. She did not seem any point trying to maintain the ruse. She was a pretty, charming young women, she didnt need magic to get people to like and trust her, that was just her skill set. She made a courtsey to this women as she introduced herself. "I am lady Li Ying, a pleasure to meet you." She said, smiling even in a dark and dirty place like this. Seeing how relaxed she was, her guardsmen relaxed too, moving their hands away from their swords.

CODED BY ELECTRIC OF GANGNAM STYLE

[Jia Lin]

     Xing Cai straightened herself as the woman turned around, probably aware of her being there the whole time. That would be the least surprising thing that has happened so far. After all, Xing Cai isn't hailed for her ability to be sneaky or quiet. She looked at the two guards, who she probably could have killed already if she wanted to. They didn't seem to be doing a good job at protecting this woman. Though, from what Cai has seen so far, the woman didn't need protecting at all. But having extra hands can never be a bad thing. She looked down and saw the coins on the ground, normally she would try to help the woman, but after what happened, Cai thought it would be better if she left that to the woman who stood before her. Xing Cai would prefer to not be "cursed."


     "Oh the Monkey King? How lucky for you to meet such a wise man!" A laugh escaped Cai once again. This woman before her knew how to make jokes. Lady Li Ying, Cai herself has not heard of her or her family, at least, not recently. She thinks she remembering hearing of the family at some point, but she can not remember when or where. She smiles towards the woman, does her own curtsy (being new to even doing them, it is very sloppy) and says, "I am Xing Cai. And you, my lady, are very interesting. If I may ask, what did you do to the fools who stopped you?" She once again looked back down towards the coins, trying to see if anything was on them that may have caused the men to freak out and run away. 
        

[Li Ying]

+ A choice of arms

Li Ying Jia Lin OPEN
Words : "The deadliest blade is the one that goes unseen."

Li Ying bent down to retrieve her scattered coins. Her guards knew better than to help her as did this this lady apparently. She was of course very careful, even wearing gloves. She had to make sure her gloves were water tight and had not even the smallest hole, otherwise she could end up poisoning herself. For perhaps the most skilled poisoner the land, that would be rather an ironic fate, one she was careful to avoid. It was a little undignified perhaps for a lady of her station to be doing this herself but she had done more embarrassing things. Like crawling threw the rafters in Wu's royal palace like a spider girl. Oh her way a certain lords room, to drop a little flavouring in his tea. She did enjoy her job some times, she certainly got to have a lot more fun any of the other court ladies. Once she had collected her belongings she took a better look at her new...friend. She hoped.

She might by her accent also be a noble, but her style of dress was completely different and the way she carried her sword. It was just like her brother Li Shimin, she probably knew how to use it pretty well then. She had already guessed this much when the lady gave her name, Xing Cai....well she knew exactly who was was now and her manner made sense as did her terrible curtsey. "Oh your the daughter of the mighty Zhang Fei." She said, being very well up to date with the major players in the world, as well as their families. Her father kept a very close eye on such things and so did she. Of course Xing Cai was still curious how she had gotten rid of those thugs, she wondered how much she should say. It was clearly not a good idea, to go announcing her career path. But a little honesty now would allow her to lie about other things later on if she needed to. She withdrew one of the coins, keeping it away from everyone else but allowing the light to reflect on it, so the poison was visible.

"I am afraid my father isnt a great warrior like yours, nore i am Lady Xing Cai. I'm really not any use with a sword but in such times everyone even a women needs to be able to defend themselves. So i came up with a different solution. You would be amazed what you can do with just a few rare plants, if you know what your doing. Those men will be dead within the hour." She said very carefully putting the coin away again. She smiled trying to brighten up the mood. "Of course it wasn't really the monkey king who showed me how to do it. He does not use such things, it was his court physician...a flying tiger with a pink tale." She said giving Xing Cai a mischievous wink.

CODED BY ELECTRIC OF GANGNAM STYLE

[Jia Lin]

     Xing Cai knew she probably shouldn't be throwing her name around like she was, but just like her father, she was very boisterous. She was confident in her abilities, she didn't need guards. But if something got out of hand, she may have needed the back up...Her mind went blank when she noticed something wet on the coins. Her mind began to race, and her eyes opened wide for a second. Poison. Xing Cai quickly looked at the woman, and she took a half step back. Xing Cai wanted to make sure she stayed out of hands reach of this woman. She knew poison was dangerous, but she did not know that this kind of poison existed. One touch...

     "Well...we all must do what we can to survive...especially us women. And while I may not be a fan of your, methods, they do the job, I saw them do work."

    Xing Cai knew this woman had to protect herself in some way, but she just wished she could do it in a more honorable way. And Cai had no right to go tell this woman how to live her life or how to protect herself. She is doing well enough on her own. She smiled a bit, "Wow, you sure have met many great people. May I ask where I can meet them myself?" Cai wanted to see how well this woman could make up a lie on the spot.
    

[Li Ying]

+ A choice of arms

Li Ying Jia Lin OPEN
Words : "The deadliest blade is the one that goes unseen."

It was only her years of training at hiding her emotions that kept Li Ying from smiling, as Xing Cai took a step backwards. Was that fear, yes it probably was, even if just a touch of it. It was of course perfectly understandable. Warriors understood battle, blades and weapons of war. They did not understand poison however, nor did they know how to protect against it. It was a very different, far more subtle weapon than they were used to fighting. With it even a small women like herself could become...deadly. Even a warrior the likes of Lu Bu could be undone by her art, with just a touch of a scratch.


"I carry them only for self defence of course. In places like this, a lady can easily find herself in trouble. The dynasty is faltering and bandits appear to be everywhere." She explained her reasons, of course lying about how she used her poisons. Still as long as she didn't display her quick reflexes or gymnastic ability. This Xing Cai would have no reason to think her an assassin. 


"Well it was many years ago in the magical palace of Emperor Xian. Before Dong Zhou you understand. Im sure everyone's told you how...perfect things were back then." Li Ying said with heavy sarcasm. Her words making it quite clear that in her opinion, Dong Zhou had been the symptom of a larger problem. The Han had not lost power overnight. "It was the golden kingdom of heaven itself. The monkey king would bend the knee to the Emperor, for the light of heaven shone...out of his backside. Ooh did i mention they also had talking cake, of course i was only a few years old so my memory might not be the most reliable." She joked, really remembering almost nothing about her time in the imperial palace. She only knew the stories that her older brother had told her as a child. She might have embellished them a little for Xing Cai's amusement.

Up ahead another group of armed men stood in the shadows. They were guards for the black market and were wondered what had happened to their comrades.

CODED BY ELECTRIC OF GANGNAM STYLE

[Jia Lin]

     "Of course, now more than ever, everyone needs to be able to defend themselves from the people who would take advantage of the chaos. And, as long as it does the job, it is not my place to judge your way of protecting yourself. You must do what you have to do to survive." With a smile, she looked around the area. The sun was almost gone now, darkness falling over the town. She wondered how long it was going to take for her guards to find her, but she was gonna take advantage of her alone time. 

    "I will be honest, I don't really remember much from my childhood...my father kept me away from all the problems of the world for as long as he could. He was always so protective of me, hah, he still is to this day." Cai smiled a bit, thinking about her father. Even though he was a little too protective, she knew it was because he loved her, and wanted to make sure that she was safe. Her father may not be perfect, but she is blessed to have a father like Zhang Fei.

    Xing Cai laughed as Li Ying spun her grand tale. The imagination on this girl is astounding. It is refreshing, actually, to see someone enjoy themselves like she is right now in these times. Xing Cai smiled at the girl, a very genuine smile. Cai looked towards her two guards, still thinking they are not the best guards at all. Then, an idea crossed the Shu Officers mind. "You are probably a busy woman, and have places to go, but I really am enjoying our conversation. How about I walk with you and your guards? Maybe my presence will help keep away the friends of the scum you scared away." She smiled again, waiting for Li Ying's response.

[Li Ying]

+ A choice of arms

Li Ying Jia Lin OPEN
Words : "The deadliest blade is the one that goes unseen."

Li Ying smiled sadly, she was comforted though to learn that the might Zhang Fei had a soft side, for his daughter at least. That was rather touching actually, he was a big man but he also seemed to have a big heart. "My father might have done the same if not for Dong Zhou. He saw that fat brute abuse the Emperor then only 5 years old, in front of a court full of his allies...who dared do nothing. After that father decided only we could really protect ourselves." Li Ying confessed to Xing Cai, feeling a certain amount of kinship with her. Of course it was also because of Dong Zhou, that her fathers own ambitions first began. She tried hard not to think about that.

She actually giggled with Xing Cai, she was enjoying herself tonight. Truth be told, she really enjoyed her job because of the thrill she got of of it. Being quick witted was also important but it helped her have fun while she worked.
"I actually have business further up ahead, but i would love to have you along Xing Cai. If not only for your blade, i could use someone intelligent to talk too." She suggested, clearly not really expecting her guards to be of much use either. They were more or less...ceremonial.

Up ahead however trouble was not it seeming going to wait for them any longer. Five more armed men emerged from the alley way. The one in the lead only had one eye and a wicked looking spear. "What do we have here, a little girl, two wimps and one of Liu Bei cronies." he insulted them.

CODED BY ELECTRIC OF GANGNAM STYLE

[Jia Lin]

     Xing Cai hasn't had this much fun in a long time. Not even training, or fighting gave her this kind of joy. She was just having a nice, not really normal, but still nice, conversation with this woman. And she was just having a good time. Cai finally got to go out and travel a bit so she could explore and just have a good time. She got away from her bothersome guards that she didn't even need, so she had nothing holding her back, and she met this awesome, albeit very dangerous, woman. She knew the woman was dangerous, but she couldn't help but enjoy her company and the time she spent with Li Ying. Though, in the back of her head, Xing Cai knew something was going to come along and ruin the fun. She knew those three men probably had friends, and they would be coming along soon. She knew she could handle herself, but it was at this point when Cai wished her guards were still here. She saw the group approach, and with a sigh, she turned towards the group of men.

     The man who spoke tried to be intimidating, but Xing Cai lived with Zhang Fei, so this little rice ball wasn't much to scared of. Cai sighed again, deeply. "Yes, Xing Cai, the daughter of Zhang Fei is but only a crony. Do you want to lose your second eye? If you don't, I suggest you take YOUR cronies and go back to where you came from." Xing Cai pulls her sword out partially, to show the men that she is very serious and she makes good on her threats.
    

[Li Ying]

+ A choice of arms

Li Ying Jia Lin OPEN
Words : "The deadliest blade is the one that goes unseen."

Li Ying sighed, she was much more used to using the black market in Jiang Dong. There the local gangsters were all aware of who she was, they would never dare give her this much trouble. For fear of her father as much as her poisonous touch. Still getting into an even bigger fight did not seem like a good idea. Even with Xing Cai here it would be a risk. Why take it if she could get out of this with a few words. She reached down to pull up the hem of her skirt. Revealing her very pretty legs, as well as a few other things. To her left calf was strapped two wicked looking daggers, both sheathed carefully, but they were coated in lethal poison of course. She pulled her dress up further past her knees to reveal a lot of upper thigh. Here she had strapped a small case, which she unstrapped to remove a single small glass vial. Many of the poisons she used had no antidotes but with contact poison...well it was just too risky not to have one on hand. She could easily kill herself or an innocent like Xing Cai, even as skilled as she was. She was not carrying enough for all 3 of those thugs, only enough to cure one of them. But this thug would not know that. "Leave now and i will give you this charm to save your friends. Stay and you will get the same curse i used on them." She warned them, she did not expect them to listen but the effort had to be made.

From the shadows of the alley way her keen eyes picked out several more figures. Several more armed thugs emerged, bringing the numbers of their foes up to 8. Apparently these scum were not brave enough to attack them without a significant advantage. While her own tactics could not be considered honourable, at least she was bold enough to take on odds that were often against her. She could tell by looking into the mans greedy piggy little eye what he was going to do already. "Take the witch alive, kill the rest of them." He commanded, probably having nasty things in mind to punish her for what she did to his men. The one eyes man drew a long scimitar but he let his thugs go first. Apparently meaning to keep himself safe at the rear.

Li Yin flicked her sleeves and suddenly a sharp needle appeared in his hand. With one quick gesture she threw it, piercing one of the thugs legs threw his cloth pants. She knew where to aim, so the poison went right into his blood stream. He looked up at her, more annoyed at first than anything, the pain was slight. Then he began to feel the effects of the toxin. His breathing began to come laboured and his pulse raced. This poison was fast acting, he would be dead in less than a minute.

CODED BY ELECTRIC OF GANGNAM STYLE

[Jia Lin]

Xing Cai sighed as the man called for her death. She noticed others come out from the shadows. Cai knew that they were messing with the wrong people. Now, if only she had her guards...Cai finished her action of pulling out her sword. And in an instant, she stabbed right into the stomach of the person closest to her. As she pulls her sword out of the gut of the man, she looks towards their ring leader, and glares at him. "You made a bad choice." Cai quickly took a step back, to gain some distance from her enemies. She looked towards Li Ying, and saw her throw what appeared to be a needle into the leg of one of the thugs. From what she saw with the three thugs last time, Cai knew that the man wouldn't be alive for long. "Be careful Li Ying!"

[Li Ying]

+ A choice of arms

Li Ying Jia Lin OPEN
Words : "The deadliest blade is the one that goes unseen."

Just at the moment, Li Ying wished she was dressed a little more appropriately for a fight. Her skirt was too long and ungainly and her dress would provided her no protection at all. She could not move around very fast, never mind dodge attacks. Silly court fashions...they might look pretty but they really were not very practical. If she was wearing the black leggings and vest she used on her...other duties, she would have had a lot more mobility. Although it also might have made her really profession glaringly obvious. "Protect me." She ordered his guards, who were loyal at least if not competent. As well they should be given what her father paid them. They drew their swords and took up position in front of her. Xing Cai had already skilfully dispatched one of their foes. While the man she had hit with a poisoned needle was retching blood up against the far wall. The venom she had used had apparently reached his heart...too bad for him. It was just such a shame to waste it a common thug, it was difficult extracting that venom from the frogs she cultivated. But it seemed she had no other choice.

"I will try." She promised Xing Cai. For once she really wished her brother was here. He could take down his thugs no problem. Well she still had a few more tricks. She reached into her other sleeve and pulled some thing else out. It was what looked like an egg but it had been painted black. In fact it was an egg, but no normal one. She had hollowed it out, leaving just the thin egg shell intact. Then filled it with sand, poison and broken shards of glass. Once the thugs got close enough, she took aim and threw it one mans face. It shattered across his nose, spraying his eyes with the egg's deadly contents. The glass blinded one eye and the poison sank into the cuts that it causes. The man screamed terribly as he went down. His friends however were undeterred, as they attacked her guards. One of her two men going down with a spear in his guts.

CODED BY ELECTRIC OF GANGNAM STYLE

[Jia Lin]

     "Yes, I have seen the woman you are talking about. She went down that street about ten or so minutes ago." 

     "Thank you for your time, ma'am." Handing the woman some coins, the two guards of Xing Cai hurried down the street that was pointed out to them. They new Xing Cai could handle herself, but if Zhang Fei knew they let her out of their sights, god knows what he would do to the two of them. They prayed for her safety as they rushed to find her.
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     Xing Cai had two opponents directly in front of her, she blocked one attack from her left. A spear came in from the right, Xing Cai used her sword to change the direction of the attack and the spear went straight into the throat of his ally. Cai quickly swung her blade back, going right into the shoulder of the spear wielder. She cut the entire arm, and part of the shoulder clean off. Moving past the man who was bleeding profusely from where his arm used to be, she got closer to the leader of the bandit group. With a feral roar, Cai screamed, "I AM COMING FOR YOU FOOL, COME AND FIGHT ME LIKE A REAL MAN, OR DIE A COWARD'S DEATH!"
    

[Li Ying]

+ A choice of arms

Li Ying Jia Lin OPEN
Words : "The deadliest blade is the one that goes unseen."

Li Ying last guard managed to put his sword threw one of the bandits, before he was too went down. A wood cutter axe splitting his skull clean open. The last man stepped forward and grabbed Li Ying by the throat. Pushing her up against the wall brutally. In his position she could not reach any more of her weapons. "Dont struggle bitch." He warned her, meaning to knock her senseless. The boss wanted to punish her for what she had done to his boys. All Li Ying could do was claw at him with her finger nails. She left several shallow cuts across his arms as she struggled against him. A few moments later he started to feel strange, his vision swam as he looked at her. Li Ying raised one of her delicate fingers. It was then he noticed she had tiny needles hidden underneath her finger nails, it was those she had scratched him with. He looked back at her with horror knowing he was gonna die.

"Let me go and you can have the antidote." She told him, as soon as he released her however she drove a knee into his groin. He fell at her feet instead. At which point she ignored him, the poison running threw his bloodstream would render him too sick to move in another minute or so. At the least his death would be fairly quick, if not painless.

The last bandit standing was the man with the eye patch. He looked now terrified at the two women, who had almost single handedly. Killed all his men. "He is all your dear" Li Ying said. She reached under her dress and pulled out a dagger. She would give the wounded a merciful end.

CODED BY ELECTRIC OF GANGNAM STYLE

[Jia Lin]

     "With pleasure, dear."

     Xing Cai began to slowly walk towards the final bandit, as she smiled ear to ear. They underestimated them, and they have paid the price. Cai knew she could finish this fool off at any time, but she wasn't done playing. She was gonna have some more fun. She dodged to the left, stabbing into the bandit, but only enough to cause pain. She ducked below a horizontal slash, reaching behind the man's left leg, severing his hamstring. Another swing, another dodge, his hand fell onto the ground. Xing Cai lowered herself to the man, looking him straight into the eyes. "This shall serve as a warning for anyone else you have around here, you bandits shall not be tolerated in these lands, or anywhere else. You have no place in the world Liu Bei is going to create." She stood up and turned around, looking as if she would let him live, but she turned back around abruptly, severing the man's head with one horizontal swing. She began to clean the blood off of her blade using the ground, as she turned towards Li Ying and shrugged.
    

[Li Ying]

+ A choice of arms

Li Ying Jia Lin OPEN
Words : "The deadliest blade is the one that goes unseen."

Li Ying watched as Xing Cai punished the man, cutting off his hand to leave with a reminder that crime didnt pay. Well actually it did, so maybe the real lesson was...'don't get caught'. That was the real trouble, but it was one Li Ying had never suffered from. She was just 'too damned good' at her job to ever get caught, she hoped. That level of arrogance it seemed was genetic, her father was just as bad her brother...problem even worse. That kid saw himself as being another Xiang Yu....she still thought of him as a kid even though he was older than her.

"You better run to whatever physician this rat infested pit has, or your gonna bleed to death." Li Ying suggested happily, as the man screaming in pain staggered out of the ally. His men were all dead, Li Ying having put her knife into those that had still been moving. It was always good too make sure of your kills. You never knew when someone might have a natural resistance to a certain poison. Her job done she walked over to Xing Cai. She wasnt too upset about her dead guard, they had proved useless and so their fate was hardly regrettable. Xing Cai though...what a wonderful find in a place like this. It was her good fortune she had come along. She peeked down the alley the thugs had emerged from the black market with be down there. "I belive we have taken care of all the guards. Do you wish to arrest the dealers, once they are gone peace will return to this place. If they remain, well they can always hire new thugs." She reminded Xing Cai.

CODED BY ELECTRIC OF GANGNAM STYLE

[Jia Lin]

     "I agree, we must finish this. If you want the weeds to never grow back, you can't just pick at the top part, you need to rip it out by the roots. Let us-" Cai was interrupted when her two guards ran towards her. She smiled at them, and said, "Looks like you were late to the party!" She laughed at this. They began to look her over to make sure she was okay. "I am fine, I am fine! Those fools underestimated us, and they paid the price for their crimes." Cai put her sword back into her sheath, and looked back at Li Ying. 

     What a strong woman. What she lacked in strength, she made up in her wit and intelligence. She supplemented her weakness with her strengths, to make her a stronger person. Cai admires that deeply. Although, Cai still wishes the woman could go about it another way besides relying on poisons, though Cai had no right to judge a person she just barely met. "So, Li Ying, what do we do next?"