[RP] The 'Verse (Accepting profiles)

[Akai_ryu]

◣ Jaden Chu ◢

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Jaden was clearly puzzled by the identification of the salt shakers as cute, but decided not to say anything about it. While Fayra looked at things, the ship's muscle-for-hire picked up a new serving bowl and a cutting board, which disappeared into the sack slung over Jaden's shoulder. Ze also inspected the knives a few vendors carried (Including one almost as big as Fayra) before letting the doctor take the lead through the row of kitchenware.

"Well now, look who's been domesticated..." A rough voice called out as a group of seven men shoved their way through the crowd toward Jaden and Fayra.

The voice belonged to the man in the middle of the group, who was the best dressed of the seven but even by Jaden's standards it was slovenly. All seven were clearly of the rougher element of the city and several of them looked like they would have been more than happy to beat Jaden into a pulp even in public. Jaden turned slowly to face the men before scowling and stepping between Fayra and the men so the doctor was between hir and the stall.

"What do you want Devon?" Jaden growled. "And before you answer that, remember that the last two times you took issue with me and Cap, I wiped the floor with your face."

"Looks like someone's wiped the floor with yours." One of the other seven chuckled before being silenced by a glare.

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[DeirdreTonbo]

Fayra Gardiner

The medic looked startled when Jaden pushed her back, peering around hir bulkier form at the group heckling them. Around them, sensing trouble, the more savvy merchants were securing their more expensive breakables. Others were just watching with nervous attention what was happening in front of them.

Her eyes lighted on the man Jaden had identified as Devon, adjusting her glasses just slightly to peer at him over them. As they exchanged words, Fayra chewed her lower lip before speaking up.

"Jaden, maybe we should just go back to the ship..." Really she'd rather avoid the confrontation if they could manage it.  

[Akai_ryu]

◣ Jaden Chu ◢

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"We'll go when it's time." Jaden growled before letting the sack slowly slide to the ground. "These gao yang jong duh goo yang are--"

"Hey!" one of the men objected and stepped forward only to take a sudden step back when Jaden drew hir pistol.

"Can't even settle a fight like a man anymore, can you, Chu?" Devon quipped and met the muscle's glare.

For a moment they both stood there, watching eachother. Then Jaden flipped the weapon around and handed it to Fayra without looking back at the doctor. Once she had the pistol, Jaden stepped forward with hands raised at the same time as Devon's companions spread out and the crowd thinned around them. It only took a moment before the crowd had formed a half circle around the group and bets were being placed.

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[DeirdreTonbo]

Fayra Gardiner

First Fayra picked up the bag, hefting up onto her shoulder. She was a sleight thing but she could surprise people with her strength. Wordlessly, she accepted the pistol from hir, handling it like something gross. She also handled it like she could use it if she had to.

With pistol in hand, she took a few steps back to be out of Jaden's radius. Not too far, she didn't want to be within reach of the crowd. She shook her head at the men fanning out, quite positive they were in for more than they were bargaining for.  

[Akai_ryu]

◣ Jaden Chu ◢

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The one on Jaden's left was a bit slower about getting settled into place and a ready position than the others and that was the one that ze decided to take out first. While he was off balance, Jaden burst forward and dropped him to the ground with a swift stomping kick before the others had a chance to react.
Ze ducked the first of the clumsy swings, this from the man next to the one who was now curled up on the floor, and took the second glancing blow to the shoulder. Jaden's hands blurred into a series of rapid strikes that staggered the third man backward and into the path of the fourth and fifth. In attempt to take advantage of Jaden's seeming distraction, the second man threw another wild blow which Jaden caught and a deft, practiced motion interposed him between Jaden and the sixth man's swing.

While holding him between hirself and the sixth man, Jaden slammed a knee into the second man several times before shoving him into the sixth man. When the other three tried to join in the fight again, Jaden wasn't there. Ze had moved to draw them away from eachother so ze wouldn't have to fight more than two at once. One moment Jaden was standing several steps away from the closest of them and the next, Jaden's shoulder was in the man's gut and he was flying through the air.

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[DeirdreTonbo]

Fayra Gardiner

Mostly, Fayra remained quiet behind Jaden, making sure none of the men ze fought had the great idea to pull a knife or gun. Her eyes were narrowed, keeping everyone in her line of sight. As Jaden charged one of the men, another staggered and found himself too close to Fayra for her preference.

With an ease that would have surprised Jaden, had ze had the attention to spare, the medic flipped the gun to hold the barrel rather than the grip and brought it down on the man. Hard. He topped to lay face-down and didn't get back up.

Fayra's expression changed and, still keeping her attention mostly on the men still fighting with Jaden, knelt down and checked to make sure the man on the ground was still breathing and had a pulse.  

[Akai_ryu]

◣ Jaden Chu ◢

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Another stomping kick took out another man with a loud pop as his knee gave way, bending in a direction it wasn't meant to, moments before Jaden slammed a knee into his nose. A quick survey while dodging punches told Jaden that there were four men down for the count. Ze couldn't remember taking out one of the four, but given his proximity to the doctor, it wasn't too hard to guess what had happened. Fayra apparently really didn't like people standing too close.

That left two more, both of which closed to lash out with fists at Jaden. The muscle-for-hire took the first set of blows to hir shoulders and forearms as ze brought hir fists up to protect hir upper body and head. Then suddenly, Jaden was quite literally face-to-face with one of them, arms locked behind his neck as ze slammed several knee strikes into his sides before pushing away with a headbutt and a stomping kick. While Jaden had been beating on one of the two, the other had been sneaking around and just as the muscle-for-hire broke free of his friend he wrapped an arm around Jaden's neck from behind.

Automatically Jaden's chin came down to prevent the choke and ze threw hir weight toward the man's fist beside hir ear. When ze felt his weight shift, Jaden reached up, grabbed the man's shirt and twisted abruptly. One moment the pair was standing and the next the man was flat on the ground with Jaden's elbow in his gut and hir other elbow turning his face into pulp. After a few moments of this, Jaden finally staggered upright and grinned at Devon, whose face had gone bright red with rage.

"Hmn. I think it's time to run Doc." Jaden mused as the man opened his mouth and began bellowing.

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[DeirdreTonbo]

Fayra Gardiner

Despite her own participation, Fayra looked half-ready to tend to the injuries of all parties present. But she nodded at Jaden, slinging the bag more firmly on her shoulder.

"Lead on." Her hand closed around Jaden's again, one last look over her shoulder and ready to go.  

[Akai_ryu]

◣ Jaden Chu ◢

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Once Fayra's hand closed around hir own, Jaden took off through the crowd at what ze would consider a fast jog. Those who didn't move aside at the noise of Jaden's boots rapidly approaching were shoved aside. Ze slid through or past crowds that were too thick to shove hir way through, hampered slightly by the fact that Fayra had an iron grip on hir hand.

By the time more of Devon's muscle found him and orders were shouted, Jaden and Fayra had a five minute lead. Unfortunately, the mule was through a twisting path and on the other side of the market and there was no way to hide Jaden in the crowd. Fayra could have disappeared, but between Jaden's height and the mohawk, ze was relatively easy to find. The androgynous figure cut back through most of the kitchenware section before abruptly darting down a narrow alley out into a fish market. Boots splashing in the water and ice on the floor, Jaden led Fayra past several stalls that were in the process of cleaning up for the day before yanking her down another alley.

This was clearly the backside of another section of tiny restaurants from the sizzling, shouts, pots clanging and the smell of a dozen different dishes cooking at once. Jaden overturned a pile of boxes that had been stacked against the wall after they squeezed past before continuing down the narrow space. A few doors down from the boxes someone had left a cart with steel barrels of beer stacked up to chest height and upon seeing this, Jaden picked up speed and was just about to vault over it before coming to a skidding halt, having suddenly remembered that Fayra might not have been able to vault it.

"I'll give you a boost." The muscle grunted, "Just jump down on the other side."

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[DeirdreTonbo]

Fayra Gardiner

Fayra kept up with Jaden's pace rather well. Maybe at a full run it would have not been so but at the speed Jaden had picked the smaller medic didn't have a problem.

At the cart the doctor panted to catch her breath but was still capable of continuing. Her green eyes moved over the structure before she nodded at Jaden. Really, she could have slipped beneath it without too much difficulty, but she wasn't going to argue with hir at the moment.  

[Akai_ryu]

◣ Jaden Chu ◢

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Jaden let go of Fayra's hands and laced hir fingers together. The muscle-for-hire's plan quickly became visible as ze stopped slightly and braced hirself. Ze waited for Fayra to put her foot in hir hands before flinging the doctor upward with a grunt. Once Fayra was in the air, Jaden wiped hir hands on hir pants before backing up a few steps. At a dead run, the androgynous figure ran at the wall, leapt up and pushed off of it with a twist.

On the other side of the low wall of kegs, Jaden hit the ground and rolled before springing to hir feet. Ze glanced over at Fayra before offering a hand and taking off again. Their next turn took them through a corner of the fabrics market before cutting through a section filled with butchers and caged animals. Jaden led the doctor past several stalls before charging through one and out the back into yet another alley. They had almost reached the end of the alley when a burly giant of a man stopped in the entrance and faced Jaden with a toothy smile.

Once again, Jaden let go of Fayra's hand, this time to sprint forward and leap up, knees forward. Jaden and the man landed on the ground with a heavy thud, the androgynous fighter on top and pounding away again with hir fists. After Jaden got several swings in, the man batted hir off of his chest with a massive hand. He was in the process of levering himself up when Jaden twisted and contorted, locking one of his arms straight with hir body. The pair strained for a moment before Jaden managed to dislocate his arm before driving the heel of hir boot into his face several times.

Now completely covered in dirt, mud and blood, Jaden staggered upright and gestured for Fayra to follow. From the opening of the alley, the mule-bike could be seen where they had left it and behind them were more angry shouts then a crash as the men following knocked over the cart full of kegs.

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[DeirdreTonbo]

Fayra Gardiner

Jaden's boost was rather more than Fayra needed, her fingers barely glancing over the barrels as she tucked her legs up close to clear and reached down to half-vault the cart. She landed with more of a clatter and scrape on her hand than the more absorbent roll Jaden performed when ze landed. Well, it got the job done.

Hand in Jaden's again, Fayra finally realized she still had the gun in one of her hands. She was also still holding it by the barrel, strange she had managed to forget all about it.

After another fight Fayra helped Jaden get back to hir feet once again, this time pulling the large muscle toward the mule. Either she didn't really want to see more fights or she wanted to get Jaden out before ze got hirself into a worse state.  

[Akai_ryu]

◣ Jaden Chu ◢

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Jaden followed Fayra to the mule, hissing in pain every time ze took a deep breath. Ze slid into the driver's seat and turned the mule on. Once the engine was rumbling, Jaden pulled out of the parking lot at full speed, leaving behind a group of men shouting angrily. Just before they pulled out of sight of Devon's men, a group of Alliance police showed up to round up the men at the direction of several irate shopkeepers and vendors.

"Thanks doc. Mind giving me back my gun?" Jaden asked, breathing shallowly and holding out a hand without looking at Fayra. "So...where to next? There's supposed to be a place that has a good view of the city about twenty minutes from here."

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[DeirdreTonbo]

Fayra Gardiner

"Back to the ship," Fayra issued what was nearly a command, looking at Jaden very narrowly as she handed the gun over.

Sitting this close to the big chinese, she could simply hear that something was wrong even if her eyes didn't work. Besides that, looking at hir face, Jaden was pale beneath hir natural complexion. She pushed some bits of hair that had come loose back behind her ears impatiently, looking behind them at the commotion as they drove away.  

[Akai_ryu]

◣ Jaden Chu ◢

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Absently, Jaden put the sidearm away before taking the mule down a side street that was less crowded. Technically the street was a two-way street, but it was just barely wide enough for the mule and the pedestrians walking along the edges. After a few minutes of thought, Jaden sighed then winced.

"You sure, doc? We'd be going that way anyway to get back to the ship since we've gotta go around the market area."

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