Young Writers Society

Nathan was on a walk in the park, and that had been the plan since he got home from school. Go on a walk, burn through the half-empty pack of cigarettes in his pocket, listen to some music, come back home. That was it, until his mother had other ideas.
""Why don't you bring Daniel, Nathan?"" Nate quoted in a high-pitched French accent as he kicked the ground bitterly. He scowled at the scenery about him before he looked back to Daniel, his father's giant Leonberger dog. The beast, twice Nate's size, tugged him along by the leash in his hand.
"You're not even my dog!" he groaned. "Hell, you're lucky I don't just... just let you walk your dumb self into the street!"

Ruma Glider
The strange looking man lands in a tangled heap of clothing and limbs. A pair of silver eyes stare out from the cowls of his cloak.
He gets to his feet. Where is the wizard? Where is that foolish king? He racks his brain for some explanation of what just happened to him, and finally realizes that the wizard had cast some sort of magic spell on him.
Straightening out his all too precious black cloak, he utters a swear softly. He's Ruma Glider, the most powerful assassin in all of Drea. He isn't supposed to lose to some snotty wizard!
The man glances around. Among many people there's a blond hair girl wearing strange clothes exiting the scenic area. He stares at her in confusion. What is that strange device that she has in her hands, and why in Drea is she wearing pants?

???

A well-dressed, young gentleman strolls underneath the gate that marks the entrance to a park. He wears a simple black suit and walks casually, stepping to the slow tune that he is playing in his head. In his right hand he holds a gold-tipped cane, and his white hair is buffeted by the light breeze that rushes through the area. The man flashes a quick grin as he enters, and looks at ease and relaxed. Staring about him, he finds nothing of particular interest, save for the strangely-dressed man standing in the middle of the park, who he quickly takes interest in. Having never seen this chap in the place he has visited a million time, he is instantly curious. He decides to accost the man and figure out who he is. In the event that this man happens to be threatening, the gentleman thinks, well...it can be truthfully said won't be a problem. He can handle just about any problem that comes his way, and this strange doesn't seem to present any major threat. Beyond that, he notices that a girl has just left, the crowd in the park is largely sparse and separated by a fair distance, and the atmosphere otherwise appears to be tranquil.

He smiles his little, wicked grin. Oh, what joy! It's time for my favorite game; mischief, he thinks, as his eyes momentarily flash red. Ideas flash through his head about the kinds of games he plans to execute on the stranger, but says or does nothing out of the ordinary as he continues to proceed through the park, wearing his good-natured smile...

I felt people watching me, I quickly rushed away, and bumped into a tree . . . Whoops . . . Well that was stupid. So I quickly got up, brushed off my clothes. I felt something watching. Well . . . It was people. I picked up my book and covered my face. The makeup smeared on the tree. My scars were about to show . . .

Ruma Glider:
He stares at the girl who had just bumped into the tree, extremely interested in the scars on her face. Ruma guesses that she has gone through some sort of torture before. It doesn't seem to have been a choice to have those scars from the way she continues to peek out from behind the book she is "reading".
His gaze shifts to a young man with strange white hair. Ruma wonders quickly if he is some sort of wizard who used an uncomplete-age-reversal potion, but that thought seems far fetched.
As Ruma continues to watch the man with the gold-tipped cane warily, he feels a sense of unease. Something about this man unnerves him. Underneath his cloak he grips one of his many knives tightly. It offers him a small sense of comfort.
The unease grows in size when he sees the man's eyes flash red.

It was no use, hopefully there was no one looking, or caring. I really don't want any attention. I quickly glanced at a really weird looking man. I quickly looked away. The sun was melting the makeup and showing the forever smile etched onto my face. I held my book really close to my face, the makeup smearing the book.

I hear footsteps nearing . . .

???

As the gentleman walks closer to the stranger, he begins to wonder if his judgment is truly correct, if he has properly judged this man and his capabilities. The smile begins to diminish, particularly when he notices the wary smile of the man with the black cape. Furthermore, he notices a movement, which, while almost imperceptible, does not escape his sharp vision. From the looks of it, the stranger seems to be clenching something, and, given the shape of that 'something,' the gentleman assumes that it must be some sort of a weapon. The gentleman becomes wary himself.

He decides to test the stranger's reflexes, and identify the weapon. The gentleman stares away from the stranger, observing the awkward girl who has just run into a tree, and is now hiding her face behind a book. Resisting the urge to laugh at this socially awkward person, he takes a closer look at her appearance, and his curiosity is piqued. He can swear that, as the girl repeatedly peeks up from behind book hiding her face, scars cross her face. However, he has not long to look. Shortly after he begins to stare, girl spots him, and shrinks back where she stands, not daring to peek and look at him again. He smiles momentarily, considering about talking to her later and learning more about her, given her mysterious nature and those scars, but then switches his thoughts back to the task at hand.

Let us see how this stranger can handle the element of surprise, he thinks. Suddenly, he steps wrong, losing his balance a few steps away from the stranger. Staggering towards the man with the black cape, he moves to 'accidentally' run into the man and knock him over. However, much to the gentleman's surprise, the stranger's reflexes are exceptional; the stranger pulls out the knife that he had been clenching, and makes to strike the gentleman. The gentleman is stunned; he had not expected the stranger to react so quickly, and with such ferocity. Yes, he had seriously misunderstood this person, and realizes quickly that he is engaging in a more challenging game than he'd previously assumed.

However, he is only this way for a second. With superhuman reflexes, the gentleman regains his balance and thrusts his cane in front of the knife. The two collide, the knife blocked by the strength of the cane. The gentleman frowns, and his eyes flash red once again. This will not be as easy as I first thought, he thinks, as the two stand there with their weapons still outstretched. Thankfully, few others in the park notice this action, and nobody seems to react in an adverse way - in fact, most people begin to walk a safe distance away from the scene. The gentleman, however, ignores their responses; he is curious to see what the stranger will do next...

I turn and see, the strangest thing that I've ever seen! I could tell that these people weren't from here. I sit back and relax, still holding the book to my face, knowing that no one would bother me.

Ruma Glider:
From the moment that the man made one wrong step, Ruma's suspicions had been confirmed.
This man, Ruma realizes as they face off, will certainly be more of a challenge than his recent opponents. Which is a good thing. He needs the practice if he is going to rescue that foolish prince from that damn dragon.
The knife returns to its sheath on the side of Ruma's leg. The assassin then, in a silent and effortless motion, draws out his thin sword.
Behind the mask that hides the bottom half of Ruma's face, he bits his lip. He does it whenever he is thinking. It is a habit that may someday cost him his life, and the mask prevents his opponents from knowing that he's trying to figure out what to do next. There is a second, just as important, reason for his mask. None can ever see his face, even in this strange land.
Ruma stops biting his lip. The man is without any form of protection, save for his staff. Though the man could easily defend with the staff-something that he has already shown-he is left wide open while blocking.
Ruma grips the sword tightly with his right hand, while his left reaches for his poison tipped needles. The poison only stuns, but Ruma figures that he can capture this man and interrogate him for information.

???

The gentleman, deep in concentration, parries the dagger with the cane. He ponders his next action for a brief amount of time, but decides to see how powerful this man can truly become, and what kind of a strategy he will have to implement in order to combat him and succeeding in playing his elaborate game. Thus, he takes a step back when the man in the black cloak withdraws his dagger, and watches as the man instead pulls out a long, thin sword.

Stage 2: Code Yellow The gentleman mumbles, taking advantage of his own conflict-categorization system to assess the present conflict with also the aid his quick thinking abilities, otherwise known as the reflexes he had gained from past conflicts. Decent reflexes, armed with variety of weapons. At present, still not a significant threat; my cane has been able to block his main attack, and will no doubt block this one. No need to reveal my sword or any other of my possessions, and certainly no need to contact the police. He says nothing to the stranger, but looks at him with a determined stare, waiting for a reaction. All is quiet for but a second longer before the fight resumes.

Clang! The stranger whips out his sword and tries to strike, but the gentleman once more blocks the attack with his cane. The stranger looks momentarily stunned, not expecting that an old, wooden cane would be that hardy, but the expression subsequently vanishes, and the gentleman can see a determined expression in the stranger's eyes. This person, whoever they are, can obviously bounce back from surprise and/or adversity, the gentleman thinks. Stage 3: Code Yellow-Orange, the gentleman thinks, updating his rating based on the 'information' that he had acquired. Capable of prolonged fighting, but weapon capacity and capability still the same as before. Still, only a minor threat.

It is then that the gentleman notices the stranger's free hand moving in and among the long black cloak. He quickly realizes that the stranger is trying to take advantage of his being distracted with holding back the opposing sword in order to throw another weapon into the situation. He isn't sure what the other weapon may be, as it could range from another sword to a disorienting weapon, or perhaps even a gun, though he discredits the last possibility, given the fact that the man would've pulled out a gun at the beginning of the fight, rather than a sword. Nonetheless, the gentleman realizes at once that he needs a form of a distraction to keep the man with the black cloak from succeeding. Fortunately, he notices the mask that covers the lower face of the mysterious man. He surmises that, quite obviously, it must be there to keep something secret. If he makes a move to somehow expose that secret, it might prevent the stranger from using a second weapon.

The gentleman devotes more energy to the hand holding the cane, and pushes with a great ferocity, sending the cane and sword closer and closer to the mask. Let's see if this works, he thinks, as he tries to dislodge the mask...

I sank lower into the bench, watching the two strange men fight. I looked in confusion . . .

[spoiler][Hey guys, would it be okay if you guys noticed me, to spice the story up a little bit, I have a lot of ideas in my head . . ./spoiler]

???



But, of course, why not add a little more risk to his present situation? While continue to press his cane closer to the stranger's mask, he looks away to stare at the shy girl sitting on the bench. It is apparent that she pretends to be ignoring the battle and is trying to mask herself, as she hides her face behind a book, but the gentleman quite easily notices the way that she peeks from her book and stares so intently. Obviously, his previously having intimidated her had not worked for very long, and she is fixated, with a sense of curiosity and what he determines from her eyes to be confusion, upon the fight. He decides to strike up a conversation with her, in spite of his present situation, to both learn more of her, and to see what might happen next, whether for better or for worse.

"And who might you be?" he inquires, giving her a wide, peaceful grin.

Ruma Glider:
He makes the foolish mistake of looking at the girl when his opponent does so. Just like him, she wears a sort of "mask". She lost her precious mask by not paying attention, just like Ruma.
She replies to the man's question, but Ruma is too caught up in his battle to hear her answer.
Though Ruma struggles and struggles against the man's strength, the mask starts to dislodge itself. That one, careless moment causes it to be knocked to the ground. The hood that was attached to it goes flying back in the gentle breeze, and Ruma doesn't bother to conceal his distressed swear.
Because when Ruma's mask is gone, and when his appearance is finally revealed, both the girl and the man are able to see that Ruma, in fact, is not a he.
Standing before them is a woman in her mid-twenties, with extremely short black hair and a pair of cold grey eyes that long ago lost their warmth.

One of the fighting men come over to me and flashes a wide grin. I held my book higher. he swiftly removed the book, I hide my face in my hands. Looks at me in surprise. I thought I was safe . . . I heard my phone go off, he was still there . . . Oh dear . . ..