RoChronicles - 5

Chapter Four: The Team Reformed (Part 1)
Shujiri flashed into existence in the town square of Geffen, The City of Mages; the only city more well-known for it's magic users and wealth of knowledge was Yuno, but Shujiri was certain he wouldn't find the man he was looking for there. After all, what need would a High Priest have with Yuno? But Shujiri had a hunch that he could find the apprehensive young man here, where they sold the one thing the Priest just couldn't do without.

Zira inspected the blue gemstones he was about to buy carefully. It wasn't that he didn't trust the salesman, but he found it was always better to be cautious when your very life (or, more particularly, the life of another) rested in how well a certain gem performed the necessary magic. These gems were used for just about everything the Priest used on a daily basis - his Resurrection spell and his Warp Portal spell (though there seemed to be little need for that particular spell in Rune-Midgard, since he could speak his destination and the world itself warped him there.) He vaguely remembered a time when he actually had to use that spell, but couldn't pull the details out of his foggy memory...

"I figured I'd find you here." came a voice from the doorway.

Zira was barely able to turn to look at the door before being bowled over by a flying tackle.

"Zira! You've no idea how much I've missed ye! Training's no fun without you to pick on!" The strange man grabbed in blue clothing that almost perfectly matched his blue hair wrapped one arm around the High Priest's shoulders...and started to give Zira a noogie.

"OW! MY HAIR! Knock it off, Shujiri!"

Zira froze, stunned, as the man let go of him, laughing. "Please tell me your name isn't Shujiri."

"Well of course it is, Zira. You losing it, or...? Oh, right. The rebirth thing." Shujiri scratched his head and looked sideways at Zira. "I guess that was a bit weird for you, being tackled by someone you don't remember." He gave a sheepish grin.

"Well..slightly, yes. But the weirdest part of it," Zira adjusted his hair back to its pre-noogie state, "Is how in the name of Freya did I know your name?" While he was sure he'd never met this man, he had the strangest sensation of comfortable familiarity - like he'd known him for most of his life, and shared some of his fondest memories with him.

Shujiri sighed. "Well, long story short, we've been pals forever. But I'll explain that more later. We've got some other stops to make. I'd rather only explain myself once, and we've got several more people to pick up before I go over this. If you trust me, and want to find out about our past, then come with me." He extended his hand as a symbol of his offering.

Warily, Zira held out his own, eying the muscular man suspiciously. They shook, and he turned to grab his scythe from where he had let it rest against the wall. This Assassin, garbed in dark blue and black, was so familiar, and yet strange to him. And he was offering what Zira had set out to find in the first place. With a sigh, he grabbed the gems, paid the shop manager, and turned to the other man.

"Alright, lead the way. But I'm warning you: if you try to screw me over, I'll blast you with Holy Light so hard you'll think it's the Ragnarok. We clear?"

Shujiri grinned broadly. "As crystal, and you have no idea how right you are about that. Let's go." And with that he strode out the door, the High Priest following close behind.

Elsewhere..

Alex sat in the shade of one of the many shops in Alberta. The port town was the center of trade in Rune-Midgard, and although he had been a Mastersmith for a while, he was still a true Merchant at heart. The sea breeze blew in across the port, and he relished the comforting salty smell.

Business had been slow lately (which obviously had nothing to do with the fact that he was spending more time lazing about than doing anything constructive.) So when the unlikely pair of travelers walked up to him and started browsing through his wares, he welcomed the change of pace.

"Welcome, take a look, I don't have much, but it's all very reasonably priced." A little too reasonably priced, but what else can I do? he thought, I don't have any rare items to compete with the other Merchants, so I have to set the lowest prices to draw customers.

"A little too reasonably priced, don't you think?" The Assassin Cross in dark blue asked. "Then again, what else can you do? No rarities to compete with the others, right?" The man grinned broadly.

Alex gaped. "What are you, a mind reader?"

The Assassin burst out laughing. It was such a deep belly laugh you'd think the man was three times his size. "Smith, you always were complaining about not having enough rare items and so you ended up selling yourself short. You haven't changed a bit, even if you do look different."

"I'm sorry, but you must have the wrong person. My name is Alex, not Smith."

The built male crossed his arms and looked at him searchingly. "You haven't progressed very far in your chosen field. You feel more at home out here amongst the Merchants than you do in the smithing districts, don't you?"

Alex felt a little ill at ease. This stranger was right on the money, as if he could see right into his soul.

"You hoard items in your cart until it's close to bursting, and then mass sell them at quite a nice profit to yourself. You keep only what is necessary for whatever your current pet project is, or whatever you think might be useful in the future." He took a breath. "How am I doing so far? Should I continue?"

"No, no, that's quite alright. Who are you?"

The Assassin smiled and held out his hand. "The name's Shujiri, and in a previous life, you and I were business partners." Shujiri smiled broadly as Alex accepted the handshake, and was pulled to his feet. "Tell ya what. You come with us, and help us out - whether it be carrying stuff in your cart, or selling things for a profit, or using that lovely axe on your back to split a few heads here and there - and I'll let you have your pick of all my loot. Not to mention, it'll be a lot more interesting than sitting here and doing nothing."

Alex looked beyond Shujiri to the man accompanying him. "Your friend don't say much, does he?"

The Priest shook his head as if awaking from a stupor. "Oh, I'm sorry; I'm still a little new at hearing everything he has to say, myself. He wasn't kidding when he said he knew us." The blonde man cleared his throat. "I'm Zira Vinova, High Priest of the Churches of Freya in Rachel and Prontera. Pleased to make your acquaintance." Zira said as he bowed humbly.

Shujiri clapped Alex and Zira on the back, making the former stagger a few paces and nearly sending the latter face-first onto the ground. "Now that introductions are over, it's time to be moving on." Shujiri started to walk off, while Alex and Zira stood there for a moment.

"Um, I never said I'd go with you." Alex said to Shujiri's back. "And why would you want me to come with anyway? I wouldn't be much help."

Shujiri stopped and turned, the setting sun silhouetting him just slightly, the last rays of the sun glinting off the silver armour plating on his arms and legs. With a somber smile, he said, "Because life's no fun without friends." With this, he turned and started walking again.

With a small smile, the blonde High Priest followed him, knowing without a doubt that this man would lead him to the answers he sought.

Alex stood there for a moment, pondering.

"Friends, huh?" Alex looked up into the rusty clouds of the dusk sky and smiled. "That doesn't sound too bad, I guess, does it?" And with that he ran after his new companions.