Name of the Storyline:  Earth Kingdom Adventure!
Name of the Creator:  Sailor Uranus
Forum: Silver Millennium
Plot Summary:  It's time for a super awesome adventure! Prince Endymion and his Shitennou (loyal bodyguards, friends, confidants, and sons of the four rulers that swear allegiance to the Earth Kingdom from the four cardinal directions, North (Zoisite), West (Kunzite), East (Nephrite) and South (Jadeite)) are off on a tour of the Kingdom! The official story is that the five of them are to attend the marriage of a courtier's cousin; it's a highborn affair and they're expected to be there, but rather than travel with the caravan of court, the five of them strike out by themselves with the wedding present, a fabulous gem, and make their own path on their own time! Through forests filled with ne'er-do-wells to magical cities with dragons and damsels-in-distress, the five of them break their way across the wonderous landscape of the Earth Kingdom!
 
Of course, things wouldn't be nearly as fun if everyone knew who they were...
 
Details on any necessary information:  This story takes place before Serenity meets Endymion; the Earth is completely separate from the rest of the Silver Millennium. The Shitennou are in their teens or early twenties. The heroes take on different names in an attempt to hide their identities; these names will be decided by their roleplayer and listed in their profile.
Restrictions:
---Canon: Senshi: None! Characters: Endymion and Shitennou, Kunzite, Zoisite, Nephrite, Jadeite // Villains: None!
---Otaku: Otaku Senshi: None! Characters: Lillyfar, a damsel in distress caught by a dragon! // Otaku Villains: Thug Lord, King of the Forest Thieves! Thugs! (sword fodder) and DANGER the Dragon!
 
OOC Thread with One or More Willing Participants: DISCORD
Character Request Thread with our open characters: Here
 
 
Characters And Claims

• Prince Endymion - Sailor Uranus (Kyralih)
  
• Zoisite - Yamichan16
  
  
• Jadeite - Arichan
  
• Nephrite - Sailor Saturn (Verdandi)
  
• Kunzite - Luna
   
  

 
Awards

Activity Contest Award:

The sun was shining, the skies were the brightest shade of blue, and light white clouds drifted across the afternoon lazily. Endymion - Ender – hoisted his bag higher up his shoulder and took a deep breathe of free air, surveying the forest in the valley below with a welcoming eye. This would be a grand adventure. He smiled and glanced down the hill, tracing a path through the green grass with his eyes as he awaited his companions; he wondered, too, how long this trip might last. One week? Two? Zoisite’s kingdom wasn’t entirely too far – especially the southern portion – but he had only travelled that way by horseback, never by foot.

Perhaps he was a fool for requesting he and his friend(s) to make the trek on foot; for certain it would be tiring and a test of their wilderness survival training, but Endymion – er, Ender – he simply had to get used to that name! – thought an adventure with friends was the best way to greet the summer season. He looked back over his shoulder and lightly asked, “You guys coming?”

ooc:

Zoisite was not in a good mood. He was all up for an adventure, but didn't like the idea of traveling by foot. They'll to have walk on a dirt road which meant that the dirt would be picked up and get all over his boots and pants. At least he was wearing clothing that didn't matter.

"So Ender, where are we exactly going?" he asked the prince. He then stopped walking and bent down to wipe off the dirt off his boots.

“Well,” Endymion answered thoughtfully, a smile playing at his lips at the idea of planning their trip. “First, we’ll head North through the forest; there’s a road through there that should take us out near where we need to be. We’ll spend the night in the town on the other side, then continue heading north west until we reach your borders, and then it shouldn’t be too many more days until we reach your cousin’s castle. It shouldn’t take more than a week, a week and a half, tops.” He looked down with amusement at Zoisite already brushing dust and road dirt off of his clothing; an outing like this would be good for him.

“Ready to get going? Kunzite and the others said they’d meet up with us along the way; if we start now we’ll make it to the village before dark.” He turned and gave a final wave to the rest of the royal caravan, seeing a small figure wave in return before rushing back to the small line of carriages on their way to the wedding.

OOC:

When the dirt was all of his boots, Zoisite stood up and looked at the prince. He gave him a look of uncertainty. The way he describe their route sounded like they would be walking for quite some time. He also doubted that they would make it to the village before dark. Maybe if they were riding horse back.

"Yes let's go," he said and started to walk forward. "But I bet you that we will not make it to the village before dark. The road through the forest is long and narrow. So it's easy to get off the road and get lost. Plus we will be going up many hills." Zoisite knew this since this was the path he would take when going home to see his family. "If we were riding horses it would be easier."

Endymion patted Zosite on the shoulder heartily, a huge smile on his face, "You worry too much! We'll be fine so long as we keep moving!" With that he took the first step down the hill, planting his feet carefully to avoid slipping down the grassy incline. He continued, watching his step for loose rocks or small animals, and turned back to Zoisite to say, "And I'll take you up on that bet! We'll be there by dark, or I'll pay for your bath --woah!" he slipped, but recovered before he had to windmill his arms about like a loon. Turning to give another smile, relieved that now, away from the castle and castle politics, he could make such mistakes and not fear embarrassing repercussions, he continued as though nothing had happened, "What do you say? You know standard inn-baths are expensive!"

Zoisite pondered for a second about the prince's bet. Inn baths are quite expensive and he only brought so much money with him for their adventure. Plus if he lost Endymion would never let him hear of the end of it. He looked up at his prince and saw him smiling. The smile killed him. It was great to see him smiling since lately the princely duties have been getting to him. Zoisite didn't want to make his prince feel sad for declining the bet. Besides Zoisite hated to lose and what kind of man would he be if he decline the bet?

"Sure you're on," he said and hold out his hand to shake.

Endymion reached up to take the offered hand, but paused, wondering if his general's hesitation had corresponded with some sly scheme to assure his winning. He decided to add on a condition, just to be sure. "No purposeful delays," he said, his hand poised before Zoisite's, waiting for a possible return condition on to be placed on him, such as 'no running' or 'no shortcuts'. He'd agree to either - it's all in good fun. But this negotiation would need to end shortly, else Zoisite's victory would be assured.

Zoisite just laughed and grabbed a hold of the prince's hand and shook it. "I promise there will be no tricks." After the handshake, Zoisite let go of the prince's hand and continued to walk along the path.

In the past Nephrite would always make Zoisite join in on some pointless bet. Zoisite then would think of cunning ways to win the bet to get back at Nephrite's mean tricks that he would play on him. This was first time he was in a bet with Endymion and that he would be playing fair. So this will be very interesting.

Endymion nodded and shook solidly before sliding the rest of the way down the hill and stepping again onto the packed earth of the path. The trees overhead stretched high, their branches and leaves obscuring the sun and dappling the road in shadows; he took that moment to readjust his pack, putting both arms through the straps for stability, for, as Zoisite had suggested, while the path looked reasonable for now, he would hate to come into a situation where he wished his pack were attached better.

Their initial journey wasn't too bad; at first the Prince of the Earth stayed quiet, silently enjoying this different sort of nature. It was not the same as the nature in Elysion; it wasn't groomed, managed, planned, or even taken care of; it was natural. It was wild, and unexpected. The animal sounds would rise and fall, birds calling all around them, dead leaves from the last autumn rustling as animals quietly made their way through the underbrush; it was wonderful. But the more time passed, the more accumulated he became to the atmosphere, and he started to find other ways to entertain himself. First with idle whistling, picking up a favorite bard's tune as he walked. He wondered if Zoisite would join him - Zoisite was musically inclined, as his several piano concerts had shown, and he was sure the blond could make the intricate patterns better than he.

Spoiler:

They have been hiking for sometime besides the prince's whistling it was mostly quite. Zoisite wanted to join in on the whistling, but he could only carry a tune by playing the piano.

So instead he decided to start a conversation with the prince. "So, I have been curious. What made you want to go on adventure?"

Spoiler:

He ended the tune and looked over to Zoisite as they walked, the frivolity of the afternoon slowly draining with a reminder of the mess he had left back in court. But Zoisite looked sincere, and he couldn't just shrug off such an honest question. He sighed, returned his gaze to the path ahead, and drew in strength from the color of the bark as the pillars reached for the sky, the green of the leaves striving for light, the small sounds of nature that surrounded him. He let these comfort him as he revealed the true reason as to why he volunteered them to go to the wedding in the North, and then again why he chose to head off on a different path from the caravan with the gem.

"My birthday is coming up," he started simply, "And the ladies of the court know it as well as my Royal Mother does." He paused, waiting for a laugh if Zoisite were to give one, and continued before Zoisite could ask anything; he'd elaborate, but he'd prefer to do so at his own pace and not at another's request, even if that request came from a best friend. "For the past few weeks I've been barraged with questions about the celebration and not-so-subtle hints that certain court females are available for marriage. If it's not a daughter or a grand-daughter, it's a sister or, in bolder cases, themselves. I'm turning sixteen and it is as though I've been put up on a market stall, ready to be taken by the highest- or most-convincing bidder." He looked up, trying to see the sky through the dense canopy of leaves, and added in a quieter voice, "And I can't be quite sure if my Mother has a role in it. She and my Father have said that I need not be married until I was eighteen, but I wonder sometimes if she is already attempting to push a betrothal on me."

He sighed, looking back to the path ahead of them, watching as the scenery moved closer one step at a time. "So I took the opportunity your cousin's wedding presented and left court. Only... court followed. Do you know how many eligible girls were on that caravan?" he paused for a moment, just for effect, for he knew full-well that Zoisite knew everything, if not more, than he knew. "Twenty six. And I heard an attendant saying that more would be heading straight to the wedding for the chance to meet me there. I feel terrible about the imposition I have set upon your poor cousin; they'll be coming to see me, not to see her, and it is a great injustice to the bride and groom."

"So I selfishly decided to strike out from the caravan to save my own sanity, and while part of me hopes to make this trek last as long as possible to miss the wedding entirely, I know I cannot put another burden upon your cousin by giving her a reception filled with unhappy women, so we must arrive in time."

He turned back to Zoisite with a resigned smile, "That, and it's been a while since we've been permitted to venture out without additional guards, right?"

There was something strange, an odd turn in the atmosphere of the forest around them... everything had suddenly become quiet. But as the Prince was talking, he did not notice the subtle change...

Zoisite just laughed and said, "Please don't feel bad for wanting to skip out on my cousin's wedding. To be honest I rather skip it as well. I'm not very close with this cousin of mine and it's nice to take break from royal life. Perhaps we could use the we don't the wrong path by mistake excuse?"

As Zoisite waited for the prince's response he noticed that forest grew still as they were walking. Earlier he heard birds were chirping along with Endymion's whistling. The silence from the forest didn't sit well with Zoisite. He had a bad feeling about it.

Silently the crew of men crept closer to the road, their bodies hidden by trees and their feet muffled by wet, hard-packed leaves. One smiled slyly at another, who answered with a disbelieving quirk of his brow - honestly? Two such finely-dressed young men waltzing down their road like they owned it? Whistling and talking freely? Another highwayman shrugged, as if to say, well, they should have known better, and now their stuff is ours for the taking. The group of six smiled at each other, looking to their leader for the final command to attack.

They wouldn't kill the boys - if possible, that is. They would rough 'em up, sure, but their main goal was whatever loot they had on them. Clothing included - such fine and expensive fabric and padded armor would well very well. The leader crept forward and drew an arrow across his bow, readying a warning shot to confuse and intimidate the intruders, but then he got a closer look at one of the boys and plans changed immediately. He looked sharply back at his men, nodding them forward and using specific hand gestures for 'capture' as he pointed at the blond son of the King of the North. Who knew why Prince Zoisite was in the forest that evening, but he, and the coffers of the North, would soon regret it.

They backed off for just a moment, waiting for the boys to reach a certain place in the road...

-----
Endymion chuckled at Zoisite's plan, but shook his head. It was their duty to be where they said they would be. ... well, he amended, considering their current situation, in general.

He had seconds to move out of the way as an arrow whizzed towards his head. Ducking quickly as it thunked solidly into the trunk behind him, he took only moments to draw his sword, regretting now that he had settled his pack so solidly; it would throw off his balance, but he had no time now to remove it. He would cut it off if necessary.

Slowly a man in a feathered cap stepped from behind a tree, the bow in his hands. He had a weathered face, framed in facial hair, and his green eyes had a mischievous look about them as he stared at them, his gaze trained on Zoisite as a smile twitched his lips. "Well, well, well, what do we have here, boys?" he playfully asked as six armed men joined him, blocking the path in either direction.

"Looks like some rather important people to me," another thug crooned.

"Rather important, indeed," the leader mused, moving his hand to frame his face thoughtfully, though it was clear he knew exactly who they were. Stupid, Endymion cursed himself - he should have known. How naive was he that he thought they could make it through a forest road unbothered? And they took the wedding gift - this was not well-thought through. He prepared to defend.

"Wait, isn't that..." a man stepped forward daringly, then turned to smile at the leader, "Don't you think the blond one looks suspiciously similar to Prince Zoisite of the North?"

The leader smiled and waggled his index finger, "Ah, I think you've hit it on the head, Dannen; I believe that is Prince Zoisite of the North! And so far from home and Elysion; poor fellow, and with only one guard," he made ironic disapproving clucking sounds, "Tch tch tch, that won't do; we can't just leave you here! What if you run into... unsavory characters?" he offered, and his men laughed heartily at the play. The leader stepped forward, "Best come with us, your highness, we'll escort you back to your father safely and peacefully. That is, if you cooperate."

And there was the threat. Out in the open - cooperate or get hurt. The only good part about this situation, if there were a good part, was that they didn't seem to recognize him or know that they were carrying a gem. The bad parts were stacking up against them, however. Endymion kept quiet, as a proper 'guard' would, and left the talking to Zoisite, who was clever and might already see a way out of this situation. He kept his sword out and his guard up, his blue eyes scanning the men around them.

Zoisite gave the bandits a small smirked and remained calm. However on the inside he was laughing at them for not knowing what he was capable of. Perhaps it was his delicate look made him look weak.

"Well, that won't be necessary, gentlemen," said Zoisite in a calm voice. He was hoping he could talk his way out of this situation. He did not want to them finding out his "guard's" true identity. "You see. It's not in your best interest to offer your services to me. It would be best to offer it someone who isn't train in combat."

Spoiler:

The men of the group guffawed, openly laughing at his claim, "What kind of fightin' can 'e do?!" one man roared between bouts of laughter, "Dance fightin'?" Their group laughed harder, pushing each other in their mirth. As they sobered, the same man, a beefy fellow holding a short sword, added gruffly, "This ain't no ball, yer highness, and we ain't fencin' coaches. When we fight, we fight fer real."

"Ya think his father'll give us a fair price if he's delivered missin' a piece er two?" one, a tall, skinny man, added, his eyes dangerous as he casually asked the question aloud of another brute.

"Well, he'd probably be a little put out if a limb were missing..." the man answered thoughtfully, "But a finger, or a toe? Or maybe an ear? I still consider that whole, m'self!" he laughed, and Endymion noticed that the man was without an ear and was missing half of one of his fingers; was that an indication that he wasn't a good fighter, or that he had survived many tough matches? In any possibility, Endymion was getting a little nervous now; seven of them against two, and their confidence didn't seem to be entirely composed of bravado.

How many could he hope to take down? One? Maybe two? And they were right to criticize; while he didn't know about what Zoisite had come up against in the Shitennou's private practice sessions while he was attending to other duties, he himself had never faced an opponent that wasn't highly trained and meaning him no real harm. Cuts, bruises, scrapes, but never a serious injury against a serious enemy. He was trained, he had good reflexes, but how would he fair against someone who would easily see him dead? Endymion's confidence wavered; what the hell had he gotten them into?

Zoisite still remained calm. He wasn't going to let these unruly characters get to him. He was confident that he could beat these men alone and protect his prince. He was trained by the best unlike these men.

"I wouldn't get too cocky," he said to the man who was talking about toes and fingers. "Seeing how you are missing a ear and half a finger."

The man was now glaring at Zoisite and took out his sword and said, "That sounds like fighting words."

Zoisite smirked and pulled out his sword. The man then charged at Zoisite and attacked with his sword. Zoisite blocked the attacked with his sword and used it to slightly knocked the man off his feet. He then quickly ran behind the man and hit the back of his hand with the handle of his sword. The man then fell to the ground unconscious. Zoisite then looked at the other men and noticed that they now have all their weapons out. He was hoping they would battle him one by one. He just stood his ground and prayed that some miracle would happened.

Spoiler:

Jadeite sighed riding along the trail on his horse next to Nephrite. It had been the brunettes idea to take horses. the blond had no doubt that it was mostly to get to Zoicite and Jadeite being Jadeite he was all for it.

He was enjoying the beautiful day and not having to wear his uniform just made it all the better. He listened in on the birds chirping and the like. Well he was until he had heard something that didn't sound a thing like what one would expect to hear from the forest.

The blond looked over to the man riding along side him o see if he had heard or not. After a moment he had the horse he was on up to a gallop to see what was going on. Nearing where he had heard the noise he saw Zoicite and Endymion with a bunch of bandits around.

"well this seems a bit unfair!" she blond called bringing his horse to a halt.

some attention came to him but not much. Weather Nephrite had fallowed him or not he had no clue but he could help with this a bit. Jumping down from the horse he walked over to Zoicite and Endymion his hand resting on the hilt of his sword though he was pretty sure it would be the double daggers he had hidden in the sides of his boots.

"so how about we even this out." he said standing next to the other blond and his prince.

Spoiler:

Nephrite heard Jadeite's sigh, but he ignored it, just as he had ignored all of the others that had come before it. Other that, their riding had been mostly in silence. They were currently trying to catch up to Zoisite and Endymion, so that they could continue on as a group.

The horse underneath him let out a whinny, and Nephrite smirked as he patted the side of the large beast in an attempt to calm him. Endymion and Zoisite had set out on foot and Nephrite couldn't wait to see the reaction upon Zoisite's face when the blonde realized that Nephrite and Jadeite were on horseback.

And it was exciting to think of all the adventures he and his brothers would encounter on this trip. Nephrite's smile widened at the the thought of all the different stories he could share in the tavern when they returned.

It was quiet for a while, with only the sounds of the critter around them. Nephrite enjoyed the silence, void of any sighs from little Jadeite. Yes, it was nice to enjoy the sounds of nature. Birds chirping, leaves rustling, the sound of swords ringing as they clashed against one another...

What?

Jadeite was already rushing off in the direction of that sound as Nephrite realized what was happening. He didn't waste any time in following, already drawing out his own sword from its belted scabbard on the saddle.

It was both surprising and a little disappointing to see Zoisite and Endymion surrounded by a gang of bandits. Nephrite pushed away his hopes of saving a damsel in distress and focused instead on the anger at seeing his prince in danger.

At the moment the fight seemed to be in a small lull, with Zoisite holding his ground against the bandits, while Jadeite had joined him at his side. Nephrite hopped off his horse and stood next to Jadeite. "Are these bandits trying to steal the gem from you, Endymion?"

That simply wouldn't do, those uncivilized bandits would have to be punished.

The leader of the bandits watched with some admiration as Prince Zoisite completely unarmed and outmaneuvered one of his men, mildly impressed that the Prince's trainers had obviously put him through proper trials before. But, no matter; a ransom was a ransom and it was about time they end this sport and get moving. He was about to signal for the other five of his men to attack when he paused, the sound of thundering hoofbeats racing down the road towards them causing him to wait for a moment; he'd need all of his men on guard should the new arrivals be constables of some sort.

Rather than constables, however, as his men wisely stepped aside to admit the charging horse, another blond young man calmly dismounted and approached their pair of captives, spouting out some nonsense about being fair. His brow quirked - oh, the naivity of youth. One more was no matter; though the two appeared to know each other, so he would have to continue encourage caution in his men. It just wouldn't do to lose the Prince by underestimating the boys.

As the second horse arrived, bringing yet another armed young man to the Prince's aide, he was beginning to get a little annoyed. This wasn't a party for the young and stupid, it was a holdup. But as the brunet joined them in their little cluster, his sword drawn and all the cockiness in the world on his face, the newest of their little foursome said something rather interesting, the key words ringing in the leader's years, "gem" meaning that there might be something else of great value on their captives, and "Endymion", which caused him to pause completely, the wheels in his head turning quickly as he looked from each boy, his eyes settling on the youth with black hair, the one he had assumed to have been a guard for the Prince of the North. A smile crept across his face.

"Do you know whom we have here, men?" he asked coyly, his eyes shifting to his second-in-command.

"Well," Jeoff replied back, a smile on his own face as he took a tighter grip on his blade, "If I heard correctly, which I imagine I did, it appears there's some sort of gem to be had."

The leader nodded, "True, true; sounds expensive to mine ears, if the boy be asking about it immediately. But, pray tell men, whom did he address?"

"Why," Canon drolled playfully, "It appears he was addressin' the guard; but then, the name "Endymion" does ring a few bells..."

The leader smiled; they all knew who he was; they were just playing with the boys. That's what he loved about his men. Ruthless, cutthroat, but most had a flair for wordplay that kept things interesting. No new heist was the same, and it very much appreciated it. He'd been in the business for neigh-on seventeen years now, and repeating the same old holdup over and over again could get rather boring. But then, he had never had the Prince of the whole of Earth in his grasp before.

"Hey," Garson played along, "Isn't that the name of the Prince of Elysion?"

"I do believe it is!" Dannen crooned, "Which would actually make sense; wasn't Prince Zoisite sent to live in Elysion to represent the North to the dear Prince of Earth? Along with, oh, four other Princes? Prince Jadeite of the South, for example, and Prince Neprhite of the East?"

"You don't think..."

"Oh, but I do."

"You heard the man," the leader cut in, before they got too carried away, "Stand up straight, boys, we're in the company of Princes." he bowed with a flourish to the Prince of Earth, "I apologize for mistaking you for a common guardsman, Prince Endymion," he returned upright, "It's not every day we get such royalty in our presence. Would you mind coming with us? Our coffers are so low, you understand, and we would all like to retire rich men with land!"

His men applauded, and the downed fellow picked himself back up, having recovered from Prince Zoisite's brutal attack. He laughed along, though the fool probably had no idea why they were laughing and clapping, and stood shakily, holding his sword. The leader smiled, glad to have his full regimen back. Seven to four were good odds.  

----
As Zoisite took down the brute with relative ease, Endymion felt a bit better; perhaps there was a bit of hope for them yet. But as the sound of horses thundered in his ears he couldn't help but feel anxious - two horses, two people heading their way, but whose side were they on? As Jadeite arrived relief washed over him; Nephrite's addition solidified; if Zoisite could handle one of the enemy so easily, surely the four of them could stand a real chance. ... but then Nephrite, with his good intentions, leaked more information than he should have, and the bandits ran with it. He didn't blame the brunet; he didn't know about the situation at hand. He offered him a small, forgiving smile to Nephrite before anyone could say anything else; he didn't blame him for the change in situation.

To the leader of the ruffians, Endymion nodded his head in acceptance to his first statement, as though accepting the bandits apology, shrugging at his admittance of not knowing him on site, and said, "You're forgiven; however, I'm afraid I cannot go with you. Despite your financial problems, I have places to go and people to see; we're on a tight schedule, you see. So, if you'll just let us pass, I'll forget this whole thing happened and you can be on your way."

"Shame, Prince, I thought you were more intelligent," the man shook his head in mock disappointment. "Well men, you heard him; we'll just have to try harder to convince him to come with us. Don't be too rough on them; we don't want the good King to be too angry with us."

The thieves smiled, readying their weapons, and charged!


One brave soul went straight for Zoisite.

One went for Jadeite.

Two went for the larger Nephrite.

And one, the second in command, went straight for Endymion.

Their leader stood back and watched.

When Nephrite spoke Jadeite smacked himself in the forehead. He had no way of knowing if these men had known who Endymion was or about the gem but they did now. "Well that was smart." he said sarcastically looking at the brunette out of the corner of his eye. "Well you see I'm sure there are better thieves that we could deal with." Jadeite said. Sure probably not the best thing to say right now but really who ever accused him of using his brain with some things.

When the man charged at him Jadeite bent down pulling the twin daggers out of his boots in one smooth motion. He stood back up straight catching the mans sword with on of the daggers and slashing at him to back him off a bit. With a smooth turn he was back behind the man using one leg to knock his legs out from under him. In moments he was beside Endymion blocking this mans sword with the same dagger he had blocked the others sword with.

"Really you people picked the wrong group to attack." The blond said smirking. When the other man had gotten back o his feet Jadeite stopped him with the other dagger. He was enjoying this a bit to much he was sure. he almost had to wonder just how many would have gone for Kunzite if he had been here. If they were smart they would send the whole group after the white haired man. Than again if they were smart they would probably back off. He just had to wonder exactly what the other man was up to.

At first, Nephrite didn't quite understand what everyone was talking about. He just wanted to fight and protect his prince, so why was everyone wasting time on talking?

But as he listened, he realized that he had unwittingly made a mistake. His blunder had outed both Endymion's status and the gem's existence in one blow. Nephrite almost would have been proud of his own incompetence if he hadn't felt so much like an utter fool.

He would get his revenge on the bandits if it was the last thing he did!

Before he could lunge forward with what would have undoubtedly been a perfectly executed attack, Nephrite saw Endymion's small and forgiving smile, and that helped to quell his anger. For now. Nephrite stood his ground, but his blood still boiled at the humiliation that these bandits had caused him.

"Well that was smart." Jadeite's voice practically dripped with sarcasm. Nephrite ignored the boy and tightened his grip on his sword. Endymion was addressing the bandits now and it would be rude to attack while his prince was trying to negotiate with the ruffians.

But of course, being uncouth bandits, they would not listen to sensible negotiations.

Nephrite was more than ready when two of the bandits came to him. He swung his heavy sword to parry an incoming attack, and used his momentum to push the wielder backwards so that he could duck the second bandit's swung sword.

The first bandit was back now and Nephrite had to use all of his skill to keep them from being able to land a blow on him. He was taller than them, but they were quicker and they were two, but his sword had longer range than the bandits' short swords and Nephrite used all of this to his advantage.

Nephrite stayed on the defensive, though he constantly looked for a way to push the tide of the fight in his favor, but with two opponents, he could only keep up with blocking and parrying.

He was nicked a few times on his forearms as he swung at the shorter swords attacking him, but his larger sword was generally able to be used as a makeshift kind of shield if he was able to time his blocks and parries correctly.

Going up against two opponents was not something Nephrite had much experience in. He and his brothers had practiced such things in their training, but those sessions never felt like this. His heart was racing and every movement drew his eye as the ringing of swords echoed in the forest. It was good to simply react instead of thinking about what to do next. His blood felt electrified and it thrummed inside him as he brought his sword up to block another attack. He laughed and grinned, enjoying the thrill of the fight.

Another block, and Nephrite used his larger size and greater range to push the attacking bandit away from him, trying to unbalance the other man. The bandit stumbled backwards and Nephrite turned to attack the second bandit without hesitating. It felt better to have the slight advantage now, and Nephrite swung his sword to cut a strip across the other man's chest. It was not a deadly blow, but it was enough to force the man back for a moment, and just in time for the first bandit to return.

But Nephrite was ready for him too, his sword met against the incoming blade and he effectively blocked the attack. Only one attacker was more easily dealt with than two, though the remaining bandit still seemed quite eager and unafraid. As the bandit lunged in with his short sword, his shorter range forcing him to come in close, Nephrite missed the block by a few inches and the sword sliced across his leg. Nephrite ignored the pain and grabbed the man's arm to pull him closer, and with his other sword-wielding hand, Nephrite smashed the guard and pommel of his sword into the bandit's skull. The bandit fell to the ground in a heavy heap.

The second bandit had yet to return, though Nephrite could see him from the corner of his eye. Nephrite took the moment of reprieve to catch his breath and look to see how his brothers were faring, silently berating himself for not thinking of them sooner.

OOC:

Zoisite was outraged seeing his commrads arrived on horses. Did they not get the message of no horses? He was going to confront them about this once they deal with these bandits.

When Nephrite said, "Are these bandits trying to steal the gem from you, Endymion?" Zoisite just slapped his head. How could he be that stupid? They were suppose to be undercover. Before he could yell at him, he saw a bandit charging at him.

Zoisite prepared his sword and used it to defend himself from the bandit's sword. They clashed their swords back and forth for a bit until the bandit left himself opened and Zoisite was able to kick him in the stomach. The bandit fell to the ground and Zoisite kicked him in the head which knocked the man out. Zoisite then looked at his commrads to see if any of them needed his help.

As the bandit headed towards him, others pairing off against his friends, Endymion reached for his sword, his mind racing as it attempted to recall everything it could from training lessons, his body hesitating to let his head catch up. Unsheathe sword, raise to block, brace for impact, use their momentum to side-step and slip sword safely away. He’ll end up behind his opponent and could decide what to do from there. Unless their sword slid down the length of his and cut into his hands. Hold sword carefully, then. But by the time he had the proper grip and was determined to pull the weapon free of its sheathe, his attacker was too close; there was no way he could be ready in time. Fear struck him momentarily – what would happen were he unable to defend himself? They needed him alive, right?

But then Jadeite was there, slipping in fluidly to stave off the attack with one blade, having already fended off his first opponent. He was comfortable enough to even chide the man. Looking around Endymion found that Nephrite was dealing easily with his two attackers, and Zoisite had already floored his man. Embarrassment flushed the Prince’s face for being so slow in his defense, so unprepared in the face of a true fight, and so untrained as to have actually been afraid. To cover his momentary discomfort, he held on to the pommel of his still-sheathed sword and stood tall, his face cold as he looked to the leader of the bandits. Behind him he heard a solid thunk from both Zoisite and Nephrite, and while he sensed one man standing beyond the Leader and his own attacker, he sensed the others were down and, with any luck, would not be up again any time soon.

He added on to Jadeite’s address, “Would you care to fold?” he asked confidently, his back straight and shoulders squared to the leader.


---

The Princes were prepared, as the guardians of the Prince of Earth should be, but his men did not fare as well as he had hoped. He frowned at the ruthlessness shown to his men, while he did admire the tactic. Too bad Princes seldom joined Highwaymen; he could’ve gotten far with them.

When none but Jeoff and Canon stood, and the blond boy from the south drolled slyly, he looked to Canon and motioned the man off of the brunet soldier; he’d just end up knocked out anyway. Garson should be rewarded for drawing blood; if he woke up he’d be sure to do something for the man, besides getting him something for his head. When the Prince spoke, standing as unflustered as a mountain during a windstorm, he had no other choice but to listen.

“And what, pray tell, would my ‘folding’ entail?”

---

Endymion hesitated; honestly, he wouldn’t know what to do with the man. He would like to just call a truce and walk away with the understanding that they, or any other traveler upon the road, would not be bothered again, but he had honest doubts as to whether the orders would be followed. What other option had they, though? They didn’t have time to cart the bandits off to the nearest jailhouse, and they certainly weren’t going to execute them. Trust might be their only option. He paused, however, to see what the others might offer as an alternative solution.

Spoiler:

When Endymion spoke Jadeite watched over his should but kept full attention on the bandit in front of him. He wasn't stupid enough to look away. He listened as the other spoke and than Endymion started looking around at them for help it seemed. Jadeite had no idea what to offer these men he usually left stuff like that up to Zoicite or Kunzite or anyone else that was better at this kind of thing. he looked to the other two shitenou standing around. The blond crossed his arms looking at the men standing in front of him still standing between them and Endymion. He was not moving away from him just in case they decided to attack again. "this is one of those times we could definitely use Kunzite." he stated looking at Endymion out of the corner of his eye.

The fight was finished and they were victorious against the bandits, which was what Nephrite knew would happen all along. There was no opponent that could win against himself and his brothers.

"Would you care to fold?" Endymion was asking of the bandit leader, to which he received a questioning answer.

Nephrite frowned down at the bandit leader, leaning in a little closer to stare at the now defeated man. "You will address the prince properly when you speak." Nephrite still kept a strong grip on his sword, and he was ready for any sudden movements from the bandits that remained awake. Never let your guard down, that was one of the very first rules they were taught as children.

Silence seemed to take over before Jadeite spoke up. "This is one of those times we could definitely use Kunzite."

Nephrite turned and glared at the younger boy. Kunzite? They didn't need Kunzite. They defeated the bandits well enough on their own without Sir Perfect. Did no one see the way that he, Nephrite, fought brilliantly against two bandits alone?

Putting his attention back onto the problem at hand, Nephrite thought over their options. This wasn't something he was terribly good at, as he was often told, but he would be damned if he would let his brothers wish that Kunzite was here to solve everyone's troubles! He would show them that he could be just as good as Kunzite once and for all.

"There's not much we can do with these ruffians," Nephrite began, thinking it over again, a frown on his lips. He made a silent plea to the stars for their wisdom. "We could bind their hands and bring them with us to the nearest town. Or perhaps bind them to the trees and let nature have its way with them. Another option is to tie them to these trees and alert the first authorities we run into."

Nephrite shrugged, and looked to his prince. He was done thinking about this, as he didn't truly care what happened to these bandits. They attacked his prince and his brothers. The animals could have them for all he cared. "The decision is yours, Endymion."

There. Kunzite didn't need to be here to come up with such intelligent options. Not when Nephrite could do it for him.

The corners of Endymion's mouth twitched with Nephrite's comments - they were good plans; he was glad he waited. But perhaps combining them would be the best choice? Tying them to trees and leaving might have unfortunate consequences should the night bring wolves or other large predators, yet waiting for them to regain consciousness and travel nicely seemed a little far-fetched. Yet if they tied all but one to a tree and took the straggler with them to turn into the authorities in the next town, the straggler could lead the sheriff back and the sheriff could collect them with his own band of men. He nodded, and began to speak, only to pause, wondering which of the three should go with them.

Just looking into the green eyes of the ruffian leader told Endymion that he couldn't trust him tied to a tree; unless they knocked him out, he had the distinct feeling that he could wiggle his way out of any situation. ... Perhaps it might even be best to take the man straight into the jail and just give directions to the lawful authorities, rather than trust them to keep the bandit leader under their control. Honestly, he had no choice. The lesser two would have to stay behind. But do they knock them out? Regardless,

"You will accompany us to the nearest town, where you will allow yourself to be submitted to the lawful authorities for your dishonest actions. Your men will be tied to trees and will be collected by the sheriff's men and brought to justice for their crimes. Do you fold?"

----

"My men remain untied. The forest is home to wolves, and the town is more than a half-day's walk. Your sheriff and his men would never make it back before sundown, and by then it might be too late. If I must leave my men I refuse to leave them in potential danger." the man returned, looking for a bargain on his brigand's behalf. Canon looked over gratefully; the grey wolves of the forest were not known to be too kind to weary, unsheltered men.

---

Well, now what? He wouldn't wish wolves on anyone, but he couldn't exactly let them go free for their crimes - they would only attack more innocents. His father never bargained with criminals; should he do the same? But what if the night fell and wolves came upon them; Could his conscience allow him to even consider leaving them tied up when wolves were a serious possibility? He was growing increasingly annoyed with his lack of practical training in these matters. The worries and concerns with Noblemen and their problems were second-nature to him; he had breathed court-life since he could breathe, but those carefully-worded judgments were all but useless out here in the real world. When he returned he would be sure to mention this lack of a skill to his tutors. But until then... would it be strange if he called a side-council to discuss the matter? Good judges conversed with peers before passing sentences, especially in areas outside their expertise. Perhaps Nephrite had an idea for keeping the bandits safe from wolves? Or maybe Zoisite had ideas for deterring wolves or storing bandits, this being his Kingdom?

He paused again, hoping someone had another idea.

Zoisite stood there and watched his prince talked to the bandits. He zoned out a bit and thought about Kunzite. He wonder what Kunzite would do in this situation. He was the mature one out of the group so he would be able to come up with go blame.

'Damn it, Kunzite,' Zoisite thought to himself. 'The one time we really you need and you're not here.'

He then noticed Endymion looking at him. Zoisite was able to read his expression. He was looking for help. Zoisite frowned and looked down at the ground. He tried his hardest to think of something, but his mind true blank.

'This shouldn't be hard,' he thought to himself. 'They're just bandits....yeah that's right they're just bandits!'

"I think," he spoke aloud. "We should leave them here for the wolves. Why should we care since they tried to capture to us to gain money."

His plan was a bit heartless, but why should he care about a bunch men who only care about greed?

Jadeite shook his head a bit when Nephrite started speaking. Kunzite even gets mentioned and the other man was all over trying to make himself seem just as good if not better. He would admit though it seemed like a good idea though the blond knew Endymion would probably not go with it. He listened as everyone else spoke about what to do. "I think I may have to agree with Zoicite on this one." He didn't feel to happy about not being able to contribute to much it just wasn't what he was good at really. He also knew a good idea when he heard one but he would go with what the others decided on in the end anyway.

Nephrite wasn't certain as to why his prince was even listening to the demands of the bandit leader. The idea of tying them to trees seemed like a perfectly find one to him, especially since they were bandits who attacked them. There was no reason to care if wolves decided to eat them or not.

But Endymion was kinder than that, and Nephrite knew that the prince would not be satisfied with such a solution. So there had to be something else they could do, something else that would give the bandits the justice they deserved, while not taking up much more of their groups valuable time.

Zoisite spoke up then, and then said almost exactly what Nephrite had just been thinking.

Well. That wouldn't do at all.

After Jadeite added that he agreed with Zoisite, Nephrite turned towards the two blonds and frowned at them.

"We can't leave them for the wolves," he said with an indignant air. "That would sully our name! We need to bring them to the appropriate authorities and let them handle these miscreants. That is why why we have sheriffs in the first place."

Nephrite paused, attempting to think. He sent a silent plea to the stars, asking for their guidance and wisdom. Though he was not certain he received an answer. "Perhaps we should forgo worrying about the time we will spend bringing them to the nearest town. We can use the horses to make up any lost time after the bandits have been properly dealt with."

He gestured to the two horses that he and Jadeite had arrived on. He mostly pointed them out just in order to see if he could rile a reaction from Zoisite who, as it seemed, was very much horse-less. Nephrite grinned in Zoisite's direction before turning his attention back onto Endymion.

"I cannot think of other options than these, and we all trust your decision." Nephrite paused, giving a slight shrug. He had come up with another plan, and he had been able to make a few jibes at Zoisite in the process. All in all, he was pretty pleased with himself. But now he was completely done thinking about these bandits and their fates. There were other more pleasant things to worry himself over.

"What say you, Endymion?"