Into the jungle - [Open]

Low-Key City was well known as the cesspool of Blackburn. Anything disgusting possibie could very well come out of there. If you were from there, then you would immediately classed as trash. Dimaria didn't like prejudice, but even she could agree with that sentiment, at least to an extent. Not everyone there was beyond saving, but she certainly wasn't about to try and save them.

You didn't go the city unless you wanted trouble though. Yet, she found herself there. A fr... acquaintance of hers she had met during her first couple days in California lived around these parts. He was a good setup for whenever she wanted just about anything. Reliable and easy to manipulate to get whatever she wanted.Alas, her trip had a unscheduled detour that landed her smack dab in the middle of a group of vixens. A female gang.

She frowned. Sixteen of them. And yet through it all, she was sure to keep her composure, never for a second showing uneasiness. One woman in particular - tall, muscular and generally animal-like in appearance - step up from the masses. Their leader no doubt. That was somewhat a good sign, she supposed.

"Look, I don't want any trouble," Dimaria reasoned once the woman was directly in front of her, albeit her expression remained hard set. The woman was practically same height as her, yet held a feminine maturity that made Dimaria, admittedly, feel small on all accounts.

"Oh, you hear that girls, she doesn't want nay trouble," the female hollered to her companions. A laugh erupted from them - mindless tools. "Well, here's what, hun, we don't want nay trouble either. So here's what. All you got to do is get down on your hands and knees and beg and we'll let you off."

Dimaria considered the woman with cold eyes. Her eyes drifted to the ground beneath. Filthy and wet. "That's all?" she asked finally.

"That's all, hun."

Dimaria hesitated, albeit slowly she got to her knees and her knees fitting uncomfortably onto the rough pavement. Her palms felt dirty and sticky as it met the Earth. Her head lowered onto it almost met the pavement and her mouth opened without regret to say the words, loud enough to hear. "Please let me go. I apologized if I offended you."

Another laughter erupted from the pack. Derogatory comments about her spoken in un-hushed tones and vulgarity. Like hyenas, Dimaria couldn't help but think. She stood again once the deed was done, nodding to the woman trusting that they had reached an understanding.

"Wait, hun. One more thing," she spoke, a smirk at her lips. Dimaria didn't like where she was looking. "That sword. I want it."

Dimaria eyes slitted just a little more now. "I'm sorry, but that's one request I can't adhere to," she said calmly. Silence fell over them like a thick veil, smothering. Dimaria didn't like the way this was going anymore.

Yui wasn't particularly fond of this section of town, herself. Low-key city always left a bad taste in her mouth by the time her business was done, but it seemed necessary. At least for the time being. She only ever came to this part of town for two reasons; to practice her stealth skills, attempting to stick to the shadows and remain - for the most part - unnoticed, and to fight. She didn't enjoy the fighting, but it was good money. When she first arrived in Blackburn, she had struggled to get by, unable to find a job that paid well enough for her to afford rent in Middletown. So she decided, after much contemplation, that she would partake in the underground fights in Low-Key in order to avoid a more permanent residency there.

It just so happened that today she was in town for both purposes. She had arrived a few hours before her fight at the old distillery in order to practice sneaking through some of the more active gang territories. She was doing fairly well -- as she had noted often before this particular venture, very few Americans were trained in counter-stealth and counter-surveillance techniques -- but after a measly hour of practice she heard some commotion nearby, and felt like it might be a decent opportunity to really push the limits of her skill.

It was the words, "Look, I don't want any trouble," that had piqued Yui's interest. It sounded like someone was either about to be mugged, stomped into the dirt, or both. Obviously, she couldn't pass up on the opportunity to sneak into the situation unnoticed, just to see if she could.

Yui approached from behind the rather large group of gangsters. It seemed that she had gotten a lucky break, as all of the gang members were gawking at their leader and nodding their empty-headed agreements, or sneering and cackling at their victim of the moment. She watched as it seemed the leader and a rather pretty, if quite petite, young woman seemed to come to an understanding. Yui smiled, a bit at this, but didn't take the time to process much else, quickly diving behind a large dumpster nearby as one of the weaker-looking punks turned, almost noticing her as she stood in the open briefly.

That was close... She thought to herself, regaining her composure and waiting a moment or two before peeking out from behind cover. She had noticed a sudden rise in the level and frequency of cackling and vulgarity that the crowd of minions was producing. Seeing the girl she had noted before now bowing before the leader, Yui began to worry that perhaps this wasn't going to end well, after all. She knew that the leader would probably get cocky at this point, get carried away and start making more demands.

Judging by the silence that followed as the girl on the ground spoke once more, that's exactly what had happened. Yui tensed up, clenching her teeth and beginning to debate whether she should stay and try to defuse the situation or simply leave. It's not like this kind of thing didn't happen every day in Low-Key, and she'd ignored it before. Still, this time... 16 on 1 just didn't seem fair. It seemed wrong, and Yui did have some level of honor, even if it wasn't all that much.

Maybe she could get involved... Just help out a little. Even the odds, as they say. So she stood up, stepping calmly out from behind the dumpster, and approached the mob, which was still far too focused on what was going on near the girl and their leader. Especially now that she had dared to refuse the leader's demands. It wasn't long before she was noticed by one of them, but she simply strolled on past like there was nothing wrong. It was an old stealth technique she had learned a while back -- pretend you're supposed to be there and most people will assume just that. Once she got close enough to strike at the back-most member of the group, she did so. Quickly lashing out and delivering a stunning chop to the woman's temple, she knocked the punk out, moving fluidly on to the next gangster and snatching her hand off of her hip, where it had been firmly placed as the girl stared at the gang's newest victim like a vulture.

An almost comical yelp was easily heard through the silence as Yui put the punk into a painful wrist lock, holding her arm firmly against the small of the other woman's back. When the heads of many gang members, including the leader, suddenly swiveled to address the situation, Yui twisted harder on the punk's wrist, letting another sharp yelp speak for her. All this time though, her eyes seemed to be set on the girl on the ground.

It was perhaps her fault things had escalated to such a point. If she had simply taken them all down to begin with instead of subjecting herself to such humiliation then she could have already been on her way. Still, violence was something she really didn't like to resort to. Her craft was one meant to deal with only the best of the best. She didn't dare taint her body with sweat to deal with any and every small fry. And if the cost was her only humiliation, then so be it.

Alas, she was always a woman of deeper thoughts. Everything had a surface reason, a beneath the surface reason and a beneath the underneath reason. Her beneath the surface reason was her being honest: her chances of taking down all sixteen girls was high risk. Sure, most of the punks who roamed Low-Key looking for "prey" couldn't actually fight to save their lives. But still, it was risky, a few of the girls actually looked somewhat competent and her style still wasn't suited for multiple enemies.

Her beneath he underneath reason was always the same though. Manipulation. The one thing that she always sought, even when meeting someone for the first time was the possibility of manipulating others. And she had the same plans for this group of... amazon warriors, last minute as it might have been. It would be great to have such a fierce group backing her where necessary. The leader in particular seemed to be a worthwhile investment.

Alas, there was always a set back. Her set back that day would have to be the good Samaritan who thought her life needed saving. Well, actually it kind of did, since as she said, she wasn't sure if she could actually take all sixteen of them, plus the leader. But still, she certainly wasn't hoping for anyone to get in the way. Still, it was a sweet enough act that Dimaria found herself smiling briefly and grateful for the fact that the girl at least seem able to fight. And if wasn't for her then she probably would have had to fight anyway to keep her sword.

Still, the girl was a problem. No doubt they would assume she was with her. All focus was on her now. "Wait, stop!" she called out the female, composure still maintained. "Don't hurt them. This is my mess, let me handle it please," she said in a plea. God, she really hated playing the noble type. All for the greater good she reminded herself. The silence was stifling now.

She turned to the leader, her expression still maintaining her cold resolve. "I can't give you my sword, but I'll give you anything else you want. Money, I'll beg, whatever it takes," she said, looking the female in the eye for a change of heart, even though she wasn't really expecting it. "Here, I can get you... a makeover. All of you," she said, a smile tugged at the corner of her lips at the not so subtle insult.

"You little bitch, what the fuck is that suppose to mean!" the woman snapped. Dimaria felt light like a feather as the woman took her by the shirt roughly. "I'm sorry, forgive me, I meant nothing by it," she said calmly. From the corner of her eyes, she was watching the girl to see her next course of action in response to the once more escalating situation.