Dark clouds covered the moonlit sky as the lone hermit gazes into the fire. The waterfall roaring outside sounded more dull and subdued from indoors, creating a soothing deep drone; the kind one finds themselves lost in and spaced out. The flames of a hearth always fascinated Riano. His father, long ago, was a potter himself, and Riano was raised watching him transform seemingly hopeless globs of dirt into the finest pottery in the country. So it only makes sense that, in order to hide himself and his abilities from the governmental self-struggle happening throughout the planet, he would take the guise of a potter under an assumed name. It was the only thing, other than drinking sake and sword training, that he could find complete relaxation and enjoyment.

However, this night was quite different than the peaceful life of a hermit he had been leading for several years now. Riano coughed up gobs of blood at a time, and his body temperature had soared to over 117' F. Not only was this a dangerous combination, especially to a Konat-jin, but there was no other soul for miles who could help him. He had to fight this sickness alone. His hearts had already stopped twice, but through some divine intervention he was allowed a continued existence. He could feel his energy waning, being sucked dry from him by the sickness eating his body. Even if I do survive this... he thought, I won't ever be the same again...

Added (02.19.2010, 5:32 Am)
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1 year ago...

Most days, living a mediocre life that you are simply content with has it's benefits. You don't have high expectations, so you don't get let down. You're never really happy, so you're never really depressed. Living in the grayish area between high and low is, most of the time, good enough for Riano. But today... this day was different. This day, Riano had one of those annoying urges for just a bit of positive in his life. All he really wanted was for something exciting to happen, to see the face of another sentient being, to feel the spirit he had once carried and shared with others on a daily basis through his art. However, no matter how much he yearned for this excitement... it was very, very unlikely.

Happiness, these days, was hard to come by for the lone mountain swordsman. He survived a deadly virus that had nearly wiped out the Konat-jin race thousands of years ago. The virus, known as Gaidoku, was the remains of a very powerful chemical weapon used in one of the less admirable chapters in the long history of the planet Konat. All traces of it were long ago thought to be extinct, but exploring the more secluded areas of the mountain forests can expose you to a whole plethora of strange things. The Gaidoku virus had drained the master swordsman's body to a mere fraction of his original strength and speed, and his internal energy was reflecting that as well. He could meditate and feel the flow of energy course through his body, but he had lost the extent of control he once had. If felt like he had been robbed, but had no one but himself to blame. He had been blind-sided by fate, but it seemed that a divine force had kept him alive throughout the darkest parts of the symptoms.

Unable to ignore this yearn for control of his body and spirit, Riano dropped the axe in his hands to the ground. Chopping wood wasn't going to calm his spirit. He gathered a bottle of sake and made his way upstream to the main area he had previously made his training grounds; a clearing in the forest along the river, right next to the roaring waterfall that could be heard for miles. Taking a drink from the sake bottle, he looked around at how the place had not really changed over the past 5 years. There were still holes pounded into the rock face next to the waterfall, a small set of young trees growing in the area where he had accidentally set fire to the ground while practicing a control of the flames with his energy; there were even bare spots of ground where he had suddenly taken off in the middle of an intense aura control session.

Setting the bottle down, Riano walked over to a rock that was about knee-height, and sat himself on the rock in an attempt to be comfortable. Closing his eyes, he began to focus on the warm, calming flow of internal energy coursing through the metaphysical meridians throughout his body. He began to form it with his mind, moving energy from one side to the other, feeling the warmth move across him like waves in the ocean. Several hours passed, and he had gotten to the control of moving from arms to hands, and even from finger to finger. A smile appeared upon his face, the first in a very long time, as he put his hands together and felt the energy form in his hands. It felt like a warm ball of air brushing across the skin of his palms. Opening his eyes, a determined attitude reflected on his face as he launched the ball of energy forward, decimating the tree in front of him. How did that happen? he thought, Since when has my energy been able to do THAT?

Curious to know the extent of this newfound ability, he concentrated the energy again to his hands, this time with more intent. He felt energy moving from each part of his body culminate to his dan'tian and form in his hands again, this time with a very bright and very visible aura. Oh my- ...how could this be? Was this the work of the Gaidoku? It seems as if a barrier has been lifted from my spirit! With that, Riano's hand thrust forward and launched the ball of energy into the air. Impact came upon a rock that was behind the tree he had initially knocked down. The small boulder burst into thousands of pieces, the impact itself causing an explosion that even knocked back the surrounding trees. Riano had never felt this kind of control of energy before, he felt the innate sense of power that had been hiding in his body for his whole life. Even as a master swordsman, capable of defeating anyone in a battle to the death, Riano had never felt this sense of empowerment even once before. Each time he focused his energy into his hands, it became easier and easier, much to the chagrin of the surrounding forest. In a final attempt at experimenting with his newfound power, he focused his energy throughout his entire body, intent on releasing himself from the constraints of the planet's gravity. He pushed and, with surprising ease, lifted his body off of the ground. It felt absolutely divine, and the longer he stayed up the easier it became; as if his body were adapting to the use of this new energy and making it easier to manipulate. With a loud yell, he shot straight up into the sky, flying higher and higher until it became too cold to be comfortable. He did circles and spins, even performing a few katas in the air.

This is what he lived for. This is what he longed for. This is what he found.

As the sun gave way to night, Riano reluctantly returned back to the training area where he had begun. Taking his first swig of sake since the morning, he walked back to his hut hidden in the trees. It felt good being on the ground again, but the excitement of the day had not yet passed him. As he lay his head down for the night, thoughts and ideas of this new future ran through his mind until his body just gave in, defeating the inadvertent insomnia that usually claims people after an exciting day. His eyes closed... His thoughts disappeared... and the dull roar of the nearby waterfall filled the silent air with it's cry.

OOC: 1354 words, learned kaiho, ki shot, and bukujitsu

Added (02.23.2010, 10:45 Am)
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One
He draws his katana with the ferocity of battoujutsu. The victim tree slides off of it's base and crashes into the ground, sending birds flying in all directions as the sound echoes away. With a proper finish to the technique, Riano sheathes the blade and readies his stance.
Two
With a lightning fast draw, the master swordsman slices the air with his katana, eliminating yet another sturdy tree from the land. As it slowly loses the battle against gravity, a loud creaking noise filled the air and was followed by a deafening THUMP. Wincing a bit from the chaos he had created amongst the forest life, Riano sheathed his katana and decided to prematurely end this training exercise as to not lose the peace of his sleep at night from and outraged wildlife population.

Training these days was serious business to him. He had finally began feeling like himself, something that hadn't happened in ages. He felt accomplished as his ability to crush rocks with his own energy became second nature to him, and his ability with the sword had began to rival what he had previously considered the high time of his development as a swordsman. Something still alluded him though. Something inside of him still felt as though it was holding him back; a personal spiritual barrier, if you will. But how do you get past yourself? This problem had led him to find the seven elders of Mount Erus. To the common people of Konat, if there were such a thing, the elders were simply a myth, something you hear stories about and every nutjob in town claimed to have their blessings. But Riano had met them before, he had witnessed the spiritual rebirth of his former teacher when he was much younger. This was an important moment to him, it was the turning point in his life where he realized that being a swordsman goes beyond training; it goes beyond just the katas and techniques. Swordsmanship... kenjutsu... Hiten Mitsurugi... it is a way to live your life. It is what defines your soul. It carves it's mark into your very heart and consumes you with the fervor to need to be better than what you are, a fire that had gone out in Riano as soon as he began to recover from his illness.

A pool of sweat began to bead on his temple, finally giving way to gravity and slowly falling down to his neck as it traced the side of his head. He packed a few necessities, such as bread and sake, and began his trip to Mount Erus, following an old path to the bottom of the small mountain where he called home. The journey down was a short one, and the main road that ran between the bases of all the mountains was full of vendors and travelers, all wanting attention from everyone else around them. This, of course, made it easy for Riano to walk among them stealthily, even being as tall as he was. He would stand out of any normal crowd, but this one was too occupied with itself that it payed no heed to the 6-foot-2 Konat-jin walking within it. The normal bickering could be heard; vendors yelling and casting signs for all to see, and customers all making their way from one stall to the next, trying to haggle the best deal they could for whatever they wished to purchase.

People... so self-serving. Nothing to live for except themselves. I wonder what happened to the warrior spirit the Konat-jin race was once known for; the ferocity and discipline that made this mighty planet what it is now. It's a shame, really... But then, what do I care?