Lulu was once the most fearsome bandit south of Abyssinia. Her gang's reach covered miles upon miles of land, and not even the most powerful warriors the Savannah could raise would dare challenge her.
Competing gangs would run away at the mention of her name, and entire villages would cower at her mere presence.
She brought carnage and destruction wherever she went, and her piles of riches continued to grow.
She had a good thing going, holding prisoners she took from the villages of the savannah, using them to extort gold and food out of the paws of their own homes. She really hit the sweet spot.
Only a few more years and she'll be able to move her gang into one of Afcari's nations, hole up as a Kingpin of a city, really rake in a profit.
And then the devil himself showed up.
He came in sailing on a sea of black clouds, the ground thundering under every step he took, followed by his army of followers, all wielding weapons she could only dream of having.
In a short time, he took down her entire bandit empire, her gang captured, her gold returned to its previous owners, and her prisoners released to their homes.
She had no choice! She had to put an end to this monster!
But he already expected her to try!
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"You are not the first to try and take my life." The Storm King towered over her, the open doors of the balcony behind him acting as the only light source in the dim room she found herself in, "And you certainly won't be the last."
The shadows on the walls stretched like limbs attempting to grasp at her, clawing at her flesh like an armada of insects, devouring all he pointed them at.
"So come, Assassin, and try your luck." He told her, "For only luck will save you now..."
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Sure, she was dramatizing the actual events, but they still happened!
She had to escape him! She had to run away, she couldn't allow herself to remain in the land that was his!
She had to lie low, escape him, change her name, hide, do anything!
The Bandit called The Hyena.
Caenis of the Argonauts.
Lulu the Aardwolf.
She had to get away.
And so in the middle of the night, While the rest of the Argonauts were sleeping, following the celebration at Asclepius's village, The Hyena ran.
Not noticing a certain cat keeping an eye on her.
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"It needs to be brighter, I need them to think of a savior when they see this airship."
Standing inside a large factory, I stared at the design that was brought before me. Something that I ordered the designers and workers to make a few days ago.
"But your Greatness!" A bipedal purple Hippopotamus, and self-proclaimed Princess of the Hippos, Princess Lavender, spoke up, "The colors won't match with your pre-established aesthetic! Too much white will simply blend with your fur to create a mess! Darker colors also pop out more on the canvas of the bright sky."
"I see your point..." I told the Hippo, "But I need it to be more... Regal in appearance? No, Regal is the wrong word... Something more Heroic~" I snapped my fingers as I turned to look at the Hippo, who, despite being the leader of the physically strongest group of people under my rule, was still a head shorter than me.
"It needs to give the impression that I am there to save the people who see it."
"You didn't have bright colors when you saved us." Princess Lavender said before she twirled, hugging herself, "You gave us a voice, stopped the Abyssinians from taxing us relentlessly, and gave us a platform to voice our woes! You're as heroic as they come, Your Emperorness! And bright or dark colors will not change any of our minds!"
A Shout of agreement echoed around the factory as the many Hippos and Hedgehogs working in it gave their opinion on the matter.
"I understand your point, but I want Prince Abraxas to see this ship in the sky and think of a hero; it needs heroic colors. You can keep the purple of the balloon, and the lightning horns should stay, but the dark greys could be replaced with gold, or perhaps a silver color." I told them.
"We could replace the keel and spine, but the front needs to remain dark grey, Your Majesty." Princess Lavender told me, "That dark grey with the Lightning Horns is your sigil, your flag, the very symbol of your rulership."
"Fine, keep the front, but I want the rest to change. Also, I want to make it bigger, at least three stories inside the ship. And add electric blue lines, if we're keeping the purple balloons, we can at least add some blue lines on the keel of the ship."
"Sir! If we add more stories, we'll need to add another Engine room to the design to offset the added weight!" A Hedgehog wearing a hard hat said loudly from across the factory.
"Then add another engine room! Just make sure the designs are ready for me to look over before you start constructing the damn thing!" I yelled back, "I want the designs ready by next week, and I want the ship to be built quickly after!"
After another few minutes of discussing with the factory workers and the leader of the Hippos, I exited the factory and returned to my private transport airship, not to be confused with my private housing airship that currently acts as my mobile base of command.
I ignored the salutes and bows I received from the guards and workers as I walked past them and entered a room in the center of the ship.
It had no windows, and only one door. Aside from that door and a small vent in the far corner of the ceiling, this room was closed off, soundproofed, and empty.
I sat down, took the ruby crown attached to my hip, and placed it on my head, taking my own crown off in the process. I placed the crystal blue blade that I kept on my back on the floor beside me. And allowed my hand to wrap around the amber amulet of the Orisa Eye.
I used the crown's scrying power to look deep into the desert of Farasi, the power of the Orisa Eye shaping the sand in my vision as I continued to prepare my plan for conquering Farasi.
And as I worked on preparing the next parts of my plan, I began to prepare my future monologues and speeches.
The work of an Actor is never done. The show must go on!
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Lulu ran through brush and weeds, dry plants and rocky outcrops, making as much distance as she could from the Argonauts and the Okapi village.
"Where do you think you're going?" Lulu froze as a familiar voice called out to her.
The Aardwolf bandit turned around to see a cat with brownish-orange fur, staring at her with half-lidded eyes, several pairs of chakram resting on his wrists like deadly decorations, with a large bladed wheel held on his back by a pair of belts that crossed over his chest.
"I'm just going to take a piss, what's it to you?" Lula snarked back, a bit of confidence returning to her at seeing that only one Argonaut followed her.
"Cut the crap, Caenis, we both know you're trying to escape," Castor said lazily, ignoring the snarl that began to spread on the Aardwolf's face, "Come back to camp and we can all act like this didn't happen,"
"Why do you care if I run or not? Aren't you Abyssinian? The Storm King took over your Kingdom, and you're licking the ground he walks upon!" Lulu tried to argue.
"I couldn't give less of a shit about Abyssinia, Meowmere was a puppet ruled by cowardly governors, and Mittens was only useful in enriching his pockets," Castor lazily said as he flicked a chakram off his wrist, catching it in his paws, "I was living on the street, clawing and fighting for scraps of food, for a place to sleep without getting stabbed, and then the Storm King came and gave me all of that and more, all I had to do was swear my loyalty and do my job~"
"So you're helping him because he gave you a fucking bed?" Lulu spat out in disgust at the lazy cat.
"Yep~" Castor said simply, "Now, orders were to capture you alive if you attempted to escape. The Storm King and Lord Strife both made it very clear what would happen should you manage to leave," He began to spin the Chakram in his hand, "However, catching you alive is going to be such a pain, so just come willingly so I can go back to sleep, please~"
"You're fucking insane if you think I'd willingly walk back to the Storm King just because you asked nicely!" Lula barked, her hands grasping the hilts of a pair of large fishhook-like weapons, a long rope connecting the two hooks together.
"Bummer," Castor said tiredly, "I would have added a pretty please with a cherry on top, just to make sure you understand how much I don't care to fight you," A second chakram slipped off his wrist, catching itself in his other hand before he began to spin it as well.
Lulu bared her fangs, her back hunching low as she prepared to charge at the Cat, her grip on her hooks tightening.
"Very well," Castor said before releasing a yawn, "Please die quickly~"
And the spinning blades shot out from his hands.