Leaf in the wind.

My story is one of danger.

One of treachery.

One betrayal.

But most of all, my story is one of an unexpected adventure. An adventure that came in like the wind and swept me away to unimaginable places with unimaginable people. 

It's funny how such an adventure started so dully. 

CHAPTER 1- Leaf in the Wind

It's strange how after the roar of the engine in my ears, the world can seem so loud in its silence. The thrum of the turbine ever so present in the background was replaced by the chirping of insects, while my view of the sky was no longer restricted by the panes of glass above the cockpit. Sometimes I forgot how beautiful the world could be up close. I could still hear the city behind me, but that was a world away. All that mattered to me now was this lovely tree that served as my resting place, and the deafening quiet of the meadow that I lay in. 

"You shouldn't be lollygagging about," came my father's ringing voice in my head. I guess my peace of mind couldn't last long, I had to spoil it for myself somehow. His memory clamored in my mind's eye, with his red raging face and beefy flying fist. 

"A proper lady wouldn't be dirtying her skirts lying about and doing nothing with her life! You should have a line of suitors at this point!" 

Dirt crackled under my pantsed rear as I shifted my position, trying to clear my mind. The whole point of me running away was to get away from my father, yet here and now he haunts me. At least I'm not dirtying any skirts while doing nothing with my life. And I had my suitor, a suitor who gave me a life, no less. Or at least had given me a life. 

I peeked around the tree forlornly, gazing some yards away at the smoking wreak of my beloved biplane. 

"Don't worry darling, I'll get you fixed up somehow. We'll be together in the sky soon enough," I promised quietly. 

Then I heard the whispering of grassy footsteps. Out of old habit of sleeping alone in alleyways, my hand flew to one of my hip holsters while my feet prepared to jump.

I look toward the footsteps and sees a dark-clad man walking up the hill to the tree. An odd mask covers his face and he carried a long slender pole. 

"Who goes there" I called once he was in hearing distance.

"Just a friendly wanderer looking for a pleasant place to rest" He called back. His response was slightly muffled by his mask. He reached the crest and stuck his pole into the ground, as if to make a point that he was not looking for trouble. Up close I could see now it was a Japanese weapon, a naginata. I remembered Klofkin showing me his, when I was part of his crew...

Before I could dwell on the past ,I refocused on the stranger. He stood passively with his hands behind his back, as if waiting for a response. I eyed him for a few seconds more, then shrugged. 

"Not my meadow, not my tree. Ground is all yours to rest. Make yourself comfortable, I guess." 

He gratefully took a seat against the worn wood of the tree a few feet from me. "You rhymed just there" came the muffle from under his mask as he sat.

"Huh, I s'pose I did" I replied absent-mindedly. I was too busy trying to figure this guy out. He wore a hood under the mask, so no skin was showing. The only physical trait I could derive from this mysteriously ninja attired man was he was tall, slender, and old. A few strands of white hair poked out from the edges of the hood before it met the mask. 

And the mask, oh lord. I couldn't tell from far away what it was, but with him sitting here I could now see it was actually meant to look like a dragon. But it wasn't the dragon part that caught my eye, it was gears. The entire thing was constructed with gears, a few pieces of leather, and some impressive lenses. It was a work of art. 

"How'd you come upon a mask like that?" I couldn't help but ask.

"A colleague of mine made it for me" He demonstrated a zoom feature on the mask. "I'm quite happy with it"

Oh you should be, that mask is a masterpiece. I kept my hands in my lap, in fear that I'd rip it right off the poor man's face so I could examine it for myself. 

"Your colleague must be an excellent mechanic, then"

"Oh, the best I've ever known. He invented some of the craziest things"

My thoughts wandered back to my precious plane sitting, or should I say laying crumpled, just on the other side of the hill. So this colleague can invent, but could be also build?

"Best mechanic, eh? Good enough to fix a totaled biplane?" 

He chuckled, "I have a feeling that that wasn't just a hypothetical question"

Well, at least he's good humored about it. Maybe he'd also be willing to help.

"You're right." I sighed, looking down the hill at my crashed darling. "Been stuck here since I crash landed. Freaking sky pirates got me"

"What perfect little mishap we have here"

This calm grandpa was starting to unsettle me. I'm sure my crashed plane wasn't a "little" mishap, and in no ways could it have been perfect. Perplexed, I waited for him to collect his thought and continue. I didn't wait long.

"What if I told you I can have you a new biplane built that's even more suited up that your last one?" He stood up, as if getting ready to leave. My suspicion grew existentially, and I eyed him warily. 
"And how does that happen?"

"My friend I spoke about, he can build you something far greater. Under one condition of course. But..." He paused, as if doubting that he should have said anything. 

My curiosity go the better of be and I stood up as well. I was probably going to refuse what ever he offered, but I just had to know what exactly I was refusing. Just as I opened my mouth to encourage his train of thought, he stopped me,

"I just don't expect you to accept, that is all"

I raised my eye brow. "Now I can't really accept unless I know what it is, now can I?" 

"Well, no. I suppose not." He scratched his head around the mask, and more white hairs poked through. Could he even feel that through all that fabric?

"Alright," He said, "Let me start with an introduction at least. I am Masaki, the S-2 pilot for the Rebellion" he finished with a perfectly executed bow. 

I was a little stunned. An old ninja man who was a pilot. The world is full of surprises.

"Well, uh, I'm Rowan" I stick out my hand awkwardly for a shake, because I was sure as hell not curtsying. "Ex-free lancing biplane pilot."

He accepted my hand. "Well Rowan, would you be willing to fight against the Tyrant of the Ice alongside the Rebellion? We will supply you with state of the art equipment and of course, plane. 

I said I was stunned before, but this totally caught me off guard with my trousers down. I stood silently for a moment, trying to take it all in. I've heard of the Rebellion against the Tyrant, of course. There wasn't much talk about either of them this far out, but there was still talk. The Tyrant of Ice had taken over the major cities south of the Central district. The Rebellion wasn't very big, and it was the only group of people so far known to be crazy enough to fight against him. But apparently clever enough to have survived this far. If this guy was telling the truth...

I looked once more to my biplane. It was my only means of freedom at this point. Before I had her, I was hopping rides from one crew of a transport vehicle to another. I've been on ships, boats, trains, anything that moved. Anything that could keep me from my father. I suppose this was my next hop.

I fiddled with my braid,"You guys are willing to recruit me like that, without even seeing me fly yet?"

Masaki turned to look down the hill, as if looking for some mystic answers that would come to him from the endless expanses of grassy meadow. "Well, lass. We need all the help we can get."

"The Rebellion in bad shape or something?"

"Not bad, just... not good enough"

Even with his entire body covered and his face hidden, I could almost feel the immense dejected vibe coming from him. He and his crew needed help. 

"Alright, alright," I tried to pass off as nonchalant. "I have nothing better to do anyways. If you guys need me, then I'm here to help"

He turned back to face me, with his dragon gear mask glinting in the weak sun, almost as if its eyes were alight with new hope for the rebellion. "Fantastic!" He grabbed his naginata in one hand and my wrist in the other. "Right this way, then!"

He took off in a sprint faster than I thought an elder man could manage. I suppose he wasn't as old as he let on. 

Trying not to trip and land in a face plant, I raced along side him. I was totally unsure of where this odd man was taking me, and what my future had in store for me now, but I couldn't help but be a little bit excited for this new journey. I got this little feeling every time I accepted boarding onto a new crew ship, but this time it was different. Maybe it was the big, and perhaps impossible, goal of throwing over the Tyrant of Ice, maybe it was this mysteriously quirky man that made me more curious than ever. What ever it was, I was ready. 

We raced through the grass towards the nearby woods. Leaves on the early evening wind raced right along side us, almost as if guiding me to the start of my new adventure.