Serious: A Master's Plight

The King's Memory had been sailing once again. It had landed on the shores of Xing Shi, the Dojo Island. There were many reasons for why they were there. Xing Shi was the next island on their route, and they were running low on supplies. They also needed capable people for their travels, and Dojo Island was sure to provide. It was a good place to be in for the Sons of the King

The vessel slowly settled itself next to the pier, and a rope was thrown out of the front of the ship. The rope was followed by a man in blue who tied the rope to one of the poles. Then he yelled back to the ship. "Julian! Get the other side!"

Once the ship was secured, the crew was gathered on the deck. "As Julian explained earlier, we're almost out of supplies. Right now, we need meat, all kinds of vegetables, fruit, milk, salt, drinkable water, rum.." Archon listed everything running low in the pantry. "Finally, there's only three of us here. We're going to need to do some recruitment. So, you two." He spoke to Julian and Houraieso. "Go replenish our supplies. I'll go find others to join our group."

"More drinks coming through!" A young waiteress shouted, making a small crowd move to let him pass. The crowd was gathering around a wooden table, one of the many tables that that particular bar had scattered around the dock area. The inner ring of the crowd consisted of a group of highly muscular men, all cheering for the ongoing arm wrestling match that was being held at the table.

"Take him down Jimbo! You can do it!!!" One of the huge blokes shouted. They were all heavy tattooed, and wore white sailor tops and jeans, the typical kind of people you would find lurking around a dock, sailors. "Just a little more!" Another shouted.

"Ok let's see what we have here..." The young waitress said. "two beers to the gentlemen in white" She said, handing out the overflowing beer glasses to two thugs near the table. "3 bottles of rum to the guys from table 2" She said, handing those out as well. "A glass of scotch to Red-Haired Jimbo" She said, placing the glass on the shaking table, near the huge, red haired sweating man who was doing his best to win the arm wrestling match.

Then, a loud thud was heard as Jimbo's arm was flattened on the surface of the wooden table by his opponent. The waitress gave the winner a friendly smile and said "And the regular for our reigning champion! HOT COCOA!" she laughed, placing the hot mug of chocolate milk next to the winner, who was no older than 10 years old. "Better luck next time Jimbo my man!" Kenny said as he took a long sip of his beverage, acting as if it was a strong drink. The 10 year old strangely muscular boy spent his entire life near pirates and learned to mimic their behavior. "Maybe 53 will be your lucky number" He added after his swig. "So, who's my next challenger?" he asked the group of muscular sailors, who weren't going to accept the challenge.

The door to the bar opened up and in came a tall, well-built man. He had blond hair and his skin was deeply tanned. He was wearing a loose t-shirt and jeans as well as a pair of sandals. His impossibly blue eyes were hidden behind a pair of sunglasses, which he took off so that he could see the source of all the excitement he had heard from outside. It seemed from the silence he had arrived too late, or that his entrance had caught everyone's attention, which he doubted from the looks everyone was giving to one particular person. And that particular person was a young boy who had just asked for another challenger. It seemed from the way his opponent was sitting they had either just had a drinking contest or an arm wrestling one. From the full glasses in front of them, he assumed it was the former.

It wasn't exactly the newcomer's cup of tea to get attention. Quite the opposite in fact. However, today he wasn't trying to remain anonymous and this seemed to be the best way to do it, even if his opponent was a boy only half as tall as him.

The blond man ignored the bar itself and crossed over to the boy. He smiled down at the man sitting across from the boy.

"I believe it is my turn," said the blond-haired man calmly.

[Presentation Box]
Sean Rogers
Former Mercenary/Strategist
Official Bounty: Nonexistent

Houraieso saluted the captain and said, "Yes Sir!" He then turned about and began to head towards the town looking for a market. As he reached the edge of town people began giving him strange looks. Most people shied away from him because he was a fishman. Other's gave him a look of downright hatred. This wasn't new to Houraieso because he had been getting these looks all of his time on the surface.

After enduring the stared of the townsfolk for a while he finally found what he thought was a market. He leaned over to Julian and said, "Do you think we can find everything there?"

Leaving Houraieso and Julian to handle the supplies, Archon went for the taverns and bars. It seemed to be an unspoken agreement that if you wanted to find capable people who didn't ask too many questions, you only needed to find the right drinking establishment.

The man in blue dojo clothes opened the door to a bar. There were many like him on the island. Martial arts students, somewhat off from the regular color, but respected citizens nonetheless. Theirs was power on the island, and the greatest among their number ruled. That was how it had been for as long as anyone could remember, and that was how it would be in the future.

There was spectacle in the bar. A child challenging people into an arm-wrestling competition. Archon settled among the crowd as the newest challenger appeared.

Kenny was busy emptying a second mug of hot cocoa when a stranger asked to wrestle him. He lowered the now empty mug and flashed a wide smile under a brown milk mustache. "I get it that you're new here..." Kenny said to the stranger as his cleaned his upper lip with his tongue. He then raised his arm up and interlocked his fingers, stretching his arms from the last match he had only a minute ago. 'I must look super cool from the crowd...' Kenny thought to himself as another, even wider smile spread across his face. And then the sugar hit. It wasn't a big amount, but it was enough to fill the hyperactive child with a new energy. He sent his right arm down in an explosive movement, shaking the table as his elbow connected with it. "Let's do this!"

"Right, kid, right," Sean took the now open seat and reached out to take Kenny's hand in his. "In the off chance that you do lose, please don't cry and make me look like a bad guy, okay?" Sean told him, smiling pleasantly. He brought his own elbow on the table with sufficient force to send a tiny crack running along its length. This crack would only be visible to those right up against the table. Sean ignored it, but continued smiling at the boy across from him. "Tell me when you are ready." Then he settled in, ready to push as soon as the boy started.

Kenny likes the man's verbal challenge, and was about to answer back a wise comment when he noticed a crack forming along the table, originating from the man's elbow. 'Could he be that strong?' Kenny thought to himself. He decided not to answer and take this one match seriously. He grabbed the man's hand and opened his mouth. "On the count of 3... 1... 2... 3!" He said and then began pushing, his opponent doing the same.
Kenny was surprised by how powerful the man was, he never faced someone that strong, but he wasn't going to give up. He pushed with all of his might but his challenger was able to withstand it with relative ease, and even pushed Kenny back a little. As Kenny's hand was slowly moving to the surface of the table, Kenny regretted not eating one of his candy bars before the match, but as the forces of the two wrestlers piled on the table, the crack expanded and the table broke in half under their elbows.

Kenny was left with a shocked expression and watched at the crowd's stunned eyes. 'They believe it was a close match...' Kenny thought, relieved.
"I guess it's a tie" He said, rubbing the back of his head and straightening his arm to shake his opponent's hand. 'This guy must have some impressive skills, could he be a pirate?' Kenny thought to himself.

"I guess so," Sean replied smoothly, looking down at the wreckage of the table. "Ah well." He took Kenny's hand and shook it, smiling at the boy. "That was fun. We should do it again sometime. I would ask for another match right now, but I wouldn't want to ruin any more tables." With that, he stood and stretched before waving to the woman who had brought drinks earlier. "Could I get some of that hot chocolate, like what the kid is having? It smells really good." He sat back down and looked back at the boy. "So what's your name, kid?"

Seeing as the kid had apparently defeated grown men before in armwrestling, Archon wasn't sure whether he should have been surprised when the latest challenger started to slowly but steadily overpower the kid. This would've been seen by those without extensive combat experience if the table hadn't suddenly broken under their combined strength. Archon watched the combatants shake hands for a tie. As if. Still, both of them were clearly very strong.

Archon smiled. It seemed like hot chocolate was the drink of the day for people with actual skills. It was just as well. Archon didn't feel like drinking anything alcoholic right now. Archon stepped to the front of the crowd and spoke up. "I'll take a hot chocolate as well." Maybe he ought to challenge one of the previous contestants, though they did seem to be afraid of breaking another table. Nevertheless, he walked up to them. "Fantastic bout." He commented "Might I challenge one of you?" He then suggested.

The waitress couldn't believe how popular her hot cocoa became. Up until now, only Kenny had that drink. "Ye, yes, coming right up" She said and rushed to the kitchen.

"I'm Kenny, Kenny B. Wukong" Kenny answered Sean while raising his fist up high to increase his 'coolness factor', "And I'm the greatest, strongest and coolest brawler in the entire dock area!" He announced, winking at an imaginary crowd. After he finished introducing himself with fireworks and drum beats, he asked "And you?".

But, before Sean could answer, another man, the other one that ordered cocoa, stepped towards them. "Thanks" Kenny replied to what he hoped was a compliment, thinking 'What the hell is bout'. The man then challenged Sean and Kenny to another arm wrestling match. Kenny's confidence was damaged after the last match he had, but seeing these two men order something other than rum made his consider the possibility that they were not pirates. 'But then how did this guy became so strong?' He thought, referring to Sean. "I never turn down a challenge!" Kenny announced, raising his fist again to create another heroic statement, "but since our match ended in a tie, you should choose your opponent instead of fight against the winner" Kenny said, explaining the rules of the house, his house.

Sean yawned and leaned back in his chair, now turning his smile on the newcomer. "Eh, arm wrestle the ki...er, Kenny." Sean looked around at the rest of the room. "Unless I'm very much mistaken, he is better at doing this arm wrestling thing without breaking tables..." Sean then stood up and moved to the side to let Archon have his chair, should he want it. "As for my name, you can just call me Crow."

The newly dubbed Crow went up to the bar and took a seat on one of the stools up front to wait on his drink. He turned himself so that he could watch the match.

[[Still on the ship]]

Julian was compiling the list, he didnt listen to Archon earlier because he was looking through the ships storage. Alot of food was eaten during the voyage, no big surprise there, Julian always used alot of ingredients to cook. He walked out ticking things off. He looked around. He had heard of Xing Shi, it was a big town, with alot of fighters dojos. Julian grabbed his double sided sabre and placed it on his back. He then jumped down to the dock and walked foward whistling "I should buy some things...... i wonder where Archon is......"

"Gladly" Archon said, grabbing an unused table from the side. "I trust we can keep this one intact?" He smiled a the kid before planting his elbow on the table. Despite his opponent's young age, he was willing to take this match at least somewhat seriously. The last match had shattered a table, and while the kid had been on the verge of losing, the fact that he could even put up a fight in such a match was testament to his strength.

Houraieso turned around wondering why Julian wasn't answering him. "Julian, I said what do you.....Where did he go?" He must not have followed me to town. Well maybe I should go find him.

Houraieso went looking for Julian around the ship. Seeing him on the docks he called out. "Hey, Julian weren't we supposed to be getting supplies?"

Kenny gulped down a mouth full of his own spit in fear. In his last match, he was about to lose, and he was saved only because his opponent was strong enough to break tables without noticing. If this opponent would be as strong, Kenny will find himself with no title to brag about, which will drop his cool value to the drain. 'Should I snack for this match?' Kenny thought to himself, considering throwing his special Sugar Gear into the equation. 'NO! arm wrestling matches are sacred and should be fair, if this man is stronger than me, he should win, I will lose with respect, like the great Roger did' Kenny thought, the kid really adored the former pirate king.

He sat in his chair facing Archon, and placed his elbow on the table's surface. "Let's do this" Kenny said, with much less enthusiasm than before, the boy hated losing.

Archon did not go all out immediately. He wanted to see how strong his opponent truly was. The kid apparently started using his full strength from the beginning, and while he was strong, he was no match for Archon. The two arms were locked in the middle for a few seconds, before Archon brought his strength to bear. Kenny's arm was calmly slammed into the table. At least no tables were broken this time.

Archon rose up. "Good match. You're much stronger than you look."

Julian stopped in his tracks, he had completely forgotten about Houraiseo, he then turned back and walked to the edge of the dock where the ship was , he then replied, "If you want to come with me you better follow, im going to have to buy quite alot of stuff since we are bare in the food department of things..." Julian was waiting , he wanted to go to the market and the shops and get this supply stocking over with so he could relax. He then mused at what Archon could be possibly doing at this moment.

Crow looked on from the sidelines. That man had an impressive level of power. At least, he did when matched against a child, albeit one that could beat most ordinary adults.

Crow turned back to face towards the kitchen. He was still waiting for his cocoa. Not that he minded doing so. He had much more important things on his mind right now. Like: how was he supposed to gain popularity in this town? Any pirates in the area would probably just laugh at him if he tried to brag about beating that kid. Heck, he would laugh at himself. Not to mention, he didn't even know where to find pirates in the first place. It wasn't like he had tried joining a crew before now.

Crow clenched his hands into fists in frustration, but as soon as he remembered why he was doing this, he felt the tension run out of him. This was all for her, his sister, who he had lost track of during one of their many battles. They were mercenaries. Soldiers who hired themselves out to the highest bidder, which nowadays was often the only bidder.

At one time they had had class, but now they were on the run from their own people. And it was because Crow's sister had refused to be married off to a man she did not know. Not that Crow could blame her, but he would be lying if he said he wasn't irritated by the whole situation. After all, he had left behind a lot of good friends to go with her and make sure she stayed out of trouble.

Leaping behind Julian Houraieso began to follow Julian. "I thought the whole point of me coming was for us to be able to carry more supplies? Anyway, lead the way as I don't really know much about the surface yet." He fiddled with his sunglass goggles to make sure that they were properly on his head and so that the harsh surface light wouldn't hurt his eyes.

Kenny's mouth was wide open. Not from shock, but from amazement. After years of arm wrestling, Kenny knew when someone was fooling around with him, and that man wasn't even trying when he gently placed Kenny's arm on the table. As the crowd cheered for the new winner, it was more than obvious: Kenny was no longer the reigning champion, he lost, twice actually.

"Yes... a good match" Kenny mumbled, still shocked by the man's power. The waitress then arrived at the table with three hot mugs of cocoa, handing them out to Archon, Crow and Kenny. "I see our little champ was beaten. Don't worry sweetheart, you're still the champion in my eyes" The waitress said to Kenny, as if she was his grandmother or big sister. She could remember the days that Kenny used to rage every time he lost. But this time, Kenny had nothing to rage about. These men were obviously stronger than him, he could do one thing now: Become stronger.

And just like that, he had a plan ready. A childish, imaginary, lalalandsish plan.

Crow came back over to the table, carrying his cocoa. He set himself down in between the two arm wrestlers, casually leaning back in his chair before taking a quick sip of his drink. He didn't want to look overly interested in them and so he took on an air of contentment, as if he was merely passing the time.

"So, what's your name, guy?" he asked Archon, looking over at him and smiling slightly. "I'm assuming that you're like me...you don't live around here, I mean. Otherwise the kid here wouldn't be called the champion." He chuckled. "That is unless you've never stepped foot in this bar before today..."

"I'm Archon Jon." Archon said, also taking a sip of his drink. Ah, cocoa, the drink of champions. "And I have never stepped foot on this island before." He continued. "Really, it's just another supply stop on my voyage. But I'm also here to find people. This is the island of Dojos after all." He smiled. "And who are you?"

"I am..." Crow started to say. He shrugged. "...just call me Crow. I don't need any other name." He set his cocoa down and leaned forward with his elbows on the table. "Sounds interesting. Hope you find who you're looking for. Actually, I'm looking for some people as well." He turned to the boy on his other side. "Since you seem to be local, I guess that I'll just ask you. Kid, I'm looking for pirates. I'm not looking for any crew in particular. I just want to know if you know where I might find some in this town. Do they have a meeting place around here or is the Marine presence too strong for them to approach this island?"

In speaking the way he had, Crow revealed his own lack of knowledge about how pirates operated. He just figured that since they were criminals, they wouldn't gather in public areas. Take this bar for instance. What kind of idiot would just walk into here with a bounty on his or her head? To Crow that seemed like pure foolishness. Anyone might recognize the pirate for what they were and report them to the Marines.

Julian then walked along with Houraiseo as he looked at the list "chicken, milk , eggs , bla bla bla, well the usual, we will need fish too i guess, nothing much to know about the "surface" as you call it, everywhere is the same old thing, well except for home....." Julian adjusted his sabres at his back. He had heard of Xing Shi, there were a heck of a lot of fighters here but ever since the old rulers of Xing shi were defeated and exiled from the place there had been a new wave of danger in this area. After all, lack of law lead to anarchy. Still Julian was a cook and a first mate, not a vigilante to go around solving problems.