Iron Fist and Steel Blade (Veil, Shura, Invite only)

Veil sat quietly waiting on his throne. It was not like the one back in the palace. No, this was not a royal throne at all. It was the throne of the head member of the disciplinary commitee. His metal fingers tapped the arm of the chair beside him. He was one of two members on the commitee. The other was gathering up those to be disciplined. At the sound of the door opening he rose to his feet his 14-year old appearing body not looking scary at all, but even so it was the most feared body in all of Aurego. It was the body of Iron Fist Veil the Crimson Prince of Aurego aka Lord Vile. His human eye red in colour surveyed the man who was being brought before him. The man was bound with handcuffs which the Prince grabbed manipulating the iron within them so it chained him to the floor unable to escape. One part of the chain was held in his hand as he returned to his seat.

"Why have you brought this one before me Tomokosho Shogun?" he demanded not sure how this one had betrayed him. His voice was icy cold and sent chills through the man chained before him. The man was scared of the helmeted child-like figure a visor covering his other eye, the robotic one that gave him his amazing accuracy. As he waited for a response his metal fingers extended into claws. The Tomokosho Shogun was the only man who was not afraid of Veil, the only man Veil trusted and his most loyal soldier. Like Veil the Tomokosho Shogun was not entirely human, but unlike Veil this was not due to cybernetic parts. No, it was due to something else instead.

A small breeze blew through the room tussling the hair of Veil ever so slightly and rattled the swords that sat on either side of his chair: a tachi and a tanto sheathed in crimson leather with a skull at the top of the hilts. Their blades literally forged from the blood of thousands, afterall human blood only contained enough iron to make a nail. The blades themselves, when revealed were not the silver of usual swords, but dark grey with red flecks. They were truly the weapons of a demon. His skill with them did not match the Tomokosho Shogun, but he was deadly enough. The good thing about blood blades was if damaged there was plenty of blood about to repair them.

Shura adjusted the chains he held in his hands connected to the handcuffs that squeezed around the soiled man. They jiggled fervently, as if holding such a vile man was a sin. Shura sighed, "Maku, I've told you before...call me Shura," He said in nonchalant tone. His jade eyes flashed dangerously from across the room and they fell onto the prisoner with a deadly glare. His appearance and voice now changed completely into a more refined and polite feature. "He was caught stealing weaponry--hiding it in his room. He is believed to be an Amestrian spy. ...Would you like me to take care of it? It seems it is hardly a matter of importance." Shura's hand twitched towards his kikuichimonji, the katana of chrysanthemums, blessed by the gods. He stroked the hilt as his auburn hair was taken by the soft breeze filtering in through the window. It was tossed around slightly as he took a step forward and fell to one knee in a bow, his cold, green eyes never betraying his hidden anger. He focused on the prince, locked with the throne in front of him. Maku was the one that had saved him from death, his closest friend...his only ally. The modern day samurai smirked in an act of thrill. It wouldn't be long now...before their plans would be put to action. It was time to rid the world of foreign scum and make Aurego the paradise it ought to be.

Without even blinking he gripped the chain in his hand using his alchemy to manipulate the iron in the man's blood. The man stared for a moment before a nail came shooting out of his throat into the metal hand of Veil. The man was bleeding profusely. Veil held the nail flat on his palm and then it suddenly shot off piercing the man right between the eyes before coming back to his hand.

"Get him out of my sight." he whispered coldly. "Show him to the soldiers....make them realise the price of treachery." He chucked the nail to Shura. "Take that with you. Tell them....how easily their only part in my army could only be as a nail or a bullet." He thought for a brief moment. "Then take it to the forges. I'm sure they could use some extra iron." There was barely any emotion in his voice, but the voice sent chills through almost all who heard it.

Veil ruled his army not through loyalty to the throne, not through loyalty to a leader, but through fear. He truly rules them with an iron fist. The only one they feared almost as much as him was Shura known to some as Steel Fangs. The army's target was the barbarian lands of Amestris though only Veil saw it as such. He saw every other land as below his particularly Xing and Amestris. Their greatest king was lower then the lowest beggar of Aurego in his eyes.

"As you wish," Shura answered with a bow, yanking on the chain, and dragging the bloody mess to the door. He turned and caught the nail in a flash, examining it. He smirked viciously and continued to drag the body outside. The heavy wooden door slammed shut behind him... Of course, Shura eventually reached his destination, but he left a long trail of blood behind him. With a huff, he swung the corpse onto a wooden spike, impaling the already dead man. It adorned countless traitors and those deemed unworthy by Veil. Happened all the time. Shura shrugged and threw the nail into the air, catching it with a single swift movement. It was getting boring in Aerugo... he hoped their plan would be set in action soon. Shura looked behind him: already people gathered around the dead guy, trying to identify him. Honestly, the chimera didn't give a damn. He filtered out the shrieks of sorrow and tried to ignore them. This was for the greater good... he would ruin families and friendships if he had to in order to destroy the foreign barbarians. Next stop...the forgery!

He strut along with his own beat, approaching the man who knew him too well. By too well, Shura was there way too much delivering various things...like this nail for instance. The auburn head sighed and sat down on a wooden bench as the old man rambled on about his new family life. Apparently his daughter was getting married. Frankly, Shura didn't give a damn, but he sure as hell pretended to. Slapping on his trademark facade, the wolf-dog smiled through his teeth. ...But shock hit him hard across the face when two words entered his all-hearing ears: candy shop. A new candy shop!? "Where is it exactly..." Shura said, trying to mask his voice with nonchalance. He mentally wrote down the directions and stood up, waving goodbye. Of course...it took him an hour to find his way back to where Veil had been last spotted. He was sweating profusely and looking very angry as he barged in the door. He hadn't been lost!! No..he just took the long way to get some exercise. Coughing as discreetly as he could, Shura ran up and grabbed the shorter man's arm. "Lez go~!" What? He had no money... and Veil was the perfect victim.

Veil sat there silently awaiting his only friend and most loyal subordinate's return. He was used to waiting. Everyday was filled with waiting as his armies readied to attack the south of Amestris. The time was drawing near. South City along with most of the South's military had been wiped out by alchemy and the country was in a panic due to the attack in the North. He smiled darkly. If only Creta or the cursed Xing would attack. They would be perfect decoys for the launch of their attack. When Shura returned an hour later Veil raised an eyebrow questioningly at his exhaustion and even more so at the fact he had taken over an hour to return. When Shura grabbed his arm and began to drag him off somewhere he followed without a word.

Shura's expeditions usually ended up being fun despite their expense. He suspected it was due to the new candy shop. Veil had eyes and ears everywhere, not that he trusted any of them fully, but it let him know of all that was happening within Aurego. After a while Veil spoke.

"We will move our troops nearer the border of Amestris tommorow and launch our attack on the night of the crescent moon." he stated calmly and coldly. Veil had a thing about crescent moons.

Shura was elated by the fact that he didn't have to drag the younger man all across town; it was much easier if he walked himself. It seemed Veil had given in to his impulses. Shura smirked. How perfect--to capture the prince and force him to have fun! Of course by now... Shura had completely forgotten where the candy shop was and they ended up wandering all over the place. Shura refused to ask for directions and figured it would be too embarrassing to appear as if they didn't know where they were going. The dog chimera stopped in front of a tea store as Veil began speaking of their plans. So they had to wait four more weeks in preparation, did they? Shura stared down at his sword and sighed, looking up into the setting sun. A whole month... being as tonight was a crescent moon. "I like full moons better." He began walking again, coughing slightly in the crisp air. It was getting colder...maybe it would snow soon. He tried to muffle it in his hands so the prince wouldn't notice. He never liked when Veil saw through to his weakness. It infuriated him to no end. He hated being looked down upon and in no way wanted any form of sympathy. Then he saw it, a store filled with bright colors, reeking of sugar and clogged arteries. But before Shura's feet was the wood of an ancient bridge dating back to before the Meiji Era. He frowned, glancing back at Veil. Great, now he either had to get wet or find a way around. Clearly he was never good at finding anywhere even when he knew where he was going.

Veil smiled darkly, but said nothing. Four weeks was nothing if it meant the conquering of one of the barbarian lands, particularly Amestris where his traitorous cousin held sway. Oh how he wished she had been transferred to the South then his vengeance would be gotten sooner. Then again anticipation made it all the sweet and everyone knew vengeance was best served cold...and where was colder then the North? He noted as they were walking they appeared to be going in just about every direction. Once again Shura was lost. He wondered how a dog chimera could get lost. Surely, there should be some kind of instinct that stopped it. At several points he had to move and partially drag Shura with him to get them back on the right track. It was annoying, but it made a change from punishing traitors.

Soon, however he noted that his friend's tuberculosis was acting up, but said nothing. He did not like it to be let known and he also did not like to show weakness so Veil ignored it. He did not want to annoy his only truly loyal subordinate and the man who had taught him swordplay. That was one thing he would never beat Shura in. Even without the dog and wolf enhancements, Shura's sword fighting skill was inhuman. However, it was due to his samurai way that the very phobia that was stopping them getting to the candy shop was made. For a samurai fighting on a bridge was one of the worst place and that loathing had become so strong in Shura that it turned into fear. Veil smiled. Here was a chance to have some fun. He pushed Shura trying to get him onto the bridge.

"Come on Shura, the shop you obviously want to go to is just across the bridge. Get moving." he whispered into the man's ear. "It's just a bridge away."

What Shura had gained from the experiments done on him was increased hearing, smell, speed, ...and the fact that he was no longer human. It made people expect more things from him and he would sacrifice his life to deliver, but the look in Veil's eyes suggested that he wasn't amused. Who would be after walking all over town? It frustrated him to no end; the last thing he wanted was for Veil to be bothered by his lack of directional skills, especially if he wasn't having a good time. Shura tended to whisk the Daimyou away from work on occasion to insure that he wasn't getting too stressed. Nonetheless Shura would always get lost despite his efforts.

Shock struck him when Veil smiled suddenly. What was he...!! Shura was pushed from behind, ushered towards the bridge that he would not cross. WOULD NOT. "No no no no!!" He flailed his arms and managed to escape his leader's grasp, panting. There was no way in hell! "I'll go around..." Yes, in this instance Shura had no qualms with acting like a child. In fact, he never realized it. His personality has become so tweaked that it sometimes seems as if he is bipolar. He never had a childhood--never had chances to enjoy himself aside from sword work so his changing attitude is to be expected.

[is this thread all in bold for you? It's freaking me out]

(It is but that seems to happen a lot here)
Veil saw this was the ideal moment to gain some vengeance on him for getting them lost so much. He smiled even more wickedly. "Oh no ya don't. We don't want you getting lost again." he whispered and then pushed suddenly shoving him into the river. "The only other way across is to swim. Enjoy." he said loudly as he walked across the bridge. Shura would know Veil was only joking that was just Veil's way. He was a teaser with his friend and a bit of a bully, but the two of them got on well enough. He walked over to the other side manipulating his left arm into a ladder for him to climb.

"Hurry up. No-one likes the smell of wet dog." He waited there calmly thinking of other ways to torment his friend momentarily. He decided to leave it at this though for now. However, he would resume his torment on the way back by leading him back around the river showing how he could of avoided the water and the bridge if he had not got lost and came that way. If he had been direct he would not have to cross a bridge. The candy shop was on a small peninsula in the middle of a lake.

Shura slid over the edge abruptly and dropped into the waist deep river. It was freezing cold, the icy water gnawing at the skin beneath his kimono. Immediately as his sandals touched the bottom, he began shimmying across, revenge in his sights on the opposing shore. With a permanent pout plastered over his face, dripping wet auburn hair emerged in time to grasp the ladder attached to his gracious friend. He took hold of it, but instead of climbing it to the road, he launched himself backwards, dragging the prince down into the river with him. Laughing maliciously, Shura's green eyes gleamed with victory. "Hm. Wet dog, you say? Well, I very much enjoy the smell of wet prince," He laughed out in a cool voice, matching the temperature of the winter water. Now he had to dry his katana, attempt not to freeze, and receive strange looks by the candy shop's occupants. He shrugged to himself. Wasn't this normal?

Veil growled and detached the ladder before climbing up it himself and pulling it up after him reattaching the ladder and forming it back into his arm. He walked over to a door and kicked it open sitting down by the fire in front of a cowering Auregese family. They knew of Veil and knew not to argue with the fact he had just invaded their home.

"If Shura attempts to come in tell him by order of Veil he is not allowed to enter this house or any other in order to warm himself and if he does i'll tie him to a bridge." He said before giving them a look as if asking if they understood. They nodded quickly and stood by the door. "Does it take four of you to look for one person?" he asked shaking his head in disbelief. "And is this how you treat a prince when he enters your house soaking wet?" Three of them dashed away and began making a hot drink of tea, getting him a towel and stoking the fire. Everyone knew how he liked his tea. They placed the towel next to him and he removed his helmet before drying his hair.

Shura noticed suddenly that he was now alone in the river, shivering to his death. The ladder was gone and all hope lost. He shrugged and unsheathed his sword with one, quick movement. He plunged the tip high up into the stone wall. With some effort, he maneuvered his light body up atop the blade. Balancing carefully, he pushed off from it and grabbed the ledge. Using his feet, he latched onto the hilt of his katana and withdrew it from the wall, leaving a gash in the ancient, damp rock. He climbed the rest of the way up and panted, his lungs struggling to inhale enough oxygen through the cold wind. It felt like his hair was freezing to his scalp. He reached up a pale hand and felt pieces of his bangs. It was freezing--the strands were sticking together with frost!

Shura stood up angrily, sheathing his kikuichimonji. Now where had the prince gone? He glanced both ways and caught sight of smoke coming from a nearby house. Smoke meant fire; fire meant warmth. Like a moth to the flame, Shura darted to the front gate and saw a lone man standing there, staring at him awkwardly. It pissed Shura off. "Where are you hiding the prince?!" He demanded in his coldest voice. Of course it was shaking slightly because his teeth would hardly stop chattering by will alone. The man now looked like he was going to piss himself. Maybe that would be better than standing there not..saying..anything! Shura slammed his sheath into the large wooden gate, splintering a gaping hole in it. "Tell. Me. Now," He hissed, green eyes ablaze. The man pointed a shuddering finger to the nearest shoji screen on the veranda near their mediocre koi pond. Shura yanked out his weapon and the wood clattered to the ground. "Thank you," He grinned, stalking off and throwing the door to the side. He ran to Veil's side as his hair was getting dried and pouted. "You abandoned me!"

[I laughed sooo hard "'I'll tie him to a bridge'" and "Everyone knew how he liked his tea" -dies-]

"Really?" Veil asked with a shrug. "I thought I just left you to a refreshing swim in the river." He then went silent and rose to his feet now completely dried. He downed the cup of tea which scalded his tongue and throat slightly, but did not bother him unduly. He stared at the man for a moment. The man had disobeyed his orders, but then again seeing him frightened out of his skin at a soaking wet and angry Shura was quite funny so Veil decided to not punish the man...too much. As he walked past to head out side he backhanded the man. "Fear should not stop you obeying orders. Consider yourself lucky I am in a good mood." He said and walked out of the door before turning suddenly.

"By the way thank you for the tea." he said and nodded to the still soaking wet Shura. "Dry yourself off then join me, the shop is across the road, you won't get lost now will you?" he statted calmly before heading over to the candy shop.

"Very refreshing...considering it's WINTER!" Shura stammered, clutching his ice cold body But secretly, he was happy. Even though Veil knew very well of his illness, he still didn't take it easy on him. Of course, Shura would never mention that, instead, he merely smiled. He watched Veil get up and backhand the idiot who had been too horrified to tell the chimera where he was. Shura had to hold his mouth to prevent himself from bursting out laughing. It was just too funny. Not only that, but the prince then thanked them for the tea. Priceless! Shura wrung his hair out in a towel and took out his hair tie, letting the shoulder length auburn hair fall to his shoulders. Satisfied for the most part that he wouldn't freeze to death, the dog chimera ran out the door after Veil.

He stopped once he exited the gate, looking around bewildered. Wait...where did he say it was again? He wandered aimlessly for a little until he hit the bridge. Shying away from it, he turned in the opposite direction and saw it! There it was! The scent of candy assailed him and he sprinted towards the shop, seeing Veil among the children. Hey...he blended right in.

Or at least as well as someone with metallic limbs, armed to the teeth who ruled the entire country could fit in. He still looked a bit older then most of them there. Veil had few problems with his appearence, except for those who treated him like a child. However, that had given him an edge before and also because his body was that of a rather young teenager he didn't have to shave. Plus it allowed him to get into small spaces easier. Veil quite liked the body.

There were two other major differences between himself and the other children. He was not cowering in fear and they were not being given free candy. When Shura entered the children stared for a moment before running out. EIther one of them wa sbad enough, but boh the Iron Fist and Steel Blades...that was too much for almost anyone.

"You took your time Shura." Veil said as he spat some chewing gum into the bin. "Get lost again?"

Shura loved children. Loved. Some things never changed. He caught them before they were fully out of the candy shop. Smiling wildly, he bent down to them and opened his hands. He hadn't even appeared to touch the candy in the shop, but there it appeared in his hands. They gasped and glanced at each other with secret smiles. Tentatively, they reached out and took what he gave them. He stood back up to his full height, a ridiculous smile still on his lips. Then the children grinned and thanked him, running off.

The steel blade turned back to the ruler and frowned, deliberately ignoring the question he was asked. "Makuuu~ stop scaring the children! I know about picking on those your own size...but that's just cruel!" He stammered, his hands on his hips. But this only lasted a moment before the candy captivated him. He leaned over to inspect it. The kind he had given the children was the new brand of his favorite type. He had swiped it with godlike speed so no one noticed, but he still intended to force Veil to pay for it. Well...some of it. He was sure the shop owner would have a heart attack and die if Veil payed for all of it. Shura gathered handfuls and began piling it into a bag. Hm, this should last him a week. "This plus the four pieces of this kind." He pointed and then his eyes set onto Veil. "We have to pay for some of it at least."

Veil placed a single coin on the table. "That will be enough won't it my friend?" he said a glint in his eye and a tone of voice that made certain that the shop owner would know disagreement would be unwise. The man stared for a moment stuttering as he nodded. "Excellent...obedience is worth rewarding." And with those words he placed enough money on the desk to pay for all of the candy. The man stared and pushed some of the money back. Veil smiled and raised an eyebrow.

"Royal discount." he said knowing this sort of thing would please the Iron Fist. "And...have some more candy...twice as much if you like." Veil nodded and smiled more broadly as he gathered some of his own sweets.

"Now my friend...we will return home." With that he left leading Shura over another path that was much swifter back to their home. "If you didn't get lost so much you would realise that the shop is on a peninsula and then there would of been no need to cross the bridge."

Shura pouted. "That's mean. I don't know what you're talking about. I'm never lost. I just--" He coughed, covering his mouth and turning away quickly. He forced himself to continue with barely any breath, "--like wandering around a lot." He grinned with childlike innocence, green eyes sparkling. But his head began spinning and the night around him grew dimmer like a flickering candle. He lost his place beside Veil, slowing down as his equilibrium spiraled into oblivion. He continued to cough, his lungs struggling to capture oxygen and failing to hold it. He collapsed onto his knees and shut his eyes tightly from the burning pain in his chest. Shura didn't bother to look at his hands, he could already feel the thick liquid splattered on them. His last thoughts as he felt his consciousness leaving him was the hope that Veil wouldn't notice that it was blood this time. He fell over sideways, his hands dropping from his red lips and his auburn hair falling to cover his closed eyes.

Veil stopped at the sound of couging and turned walking back towards him sighing deeply. He lifted the larger male onto his shoulder and carried him back to their home carrying the sweets in his other hand, which fortunatly was close enough for few to see the incapacitated Shura. No-one asked what was wrong and if they did Veil told them that the two had got into a small fight and Shura had lost, which only enhanced his own reputation further. He placed Shura in his room and wiped the blood from him.

"Get well soon my Steel Fang." he said before walking away and heading to his own room. He was glad for the automail at the moment. It enabled him greater strength then most humans, plus with his manipulated ability it gave him an almost limitless amount of weaponry. He sat down on his own bed looking at the large amount of sweets, both his and Shuras. "I should probabaly give him back his candy...then again it would work as punishment for him collapsing and showing such weakness...hmmm."

[I figure this is a good place to stop and start the next one... right before the next mission. Would you care to take the honor of writing up the Aerugo invades South City mission?]