Traveling alone through this unearthly shell of a city seemed to do things to one's mind. The entire place felt strange, almost sinister, and from the moment Akio had set foot in the place, he had felt as if he was being followed. He kept turning his head, half expecting to see some sort of a demon standing behind him, holding the corpse of Noble, the man that had disappeared into this nightmarish place about two years before. Obviously, Akio never saw such a thing, but this time, there was no mistaking it. Through the mist and gloom, a figure stood. He could barely even see the thing, but it was definitely real, not some illusion created by the uncanny surroundings. At first, Akio thought about running, about hiding somewhere and hoping the figure would pass by. There was a structure just in front of Akio -well, now more accurately to his side- and it was so out of place that it had to be of great importance. It was a wall, probably that of a temple, and while he saw no gate, it probably wouldn't be too hard to find. Even if it wasn't an important building, it would be a change of scenery, and someplace to elude the approaching figure. But that was cowardice that he couldn't allow from himself. He was a trained warrior, a skilled mercenary. True, he had broken his sword on the way to the City of Jade, but one such as he did not need a blade to defend himself. Whoever or whatever it was standing before him, he would face it.
Akio let out a short sigh. The man had seen him anyway. There was probably no hiding at this point, even if wanted to. No, if the person- or creature- approaching was a malicious being, he would find out soon enough. If it was friendly, then he would have an ally to help him find his friend. Not even for a moment did he allow himself to think it was Noble. No, after Noble disappearing for so long, it would be wishful thinking to expect him to just walk out of the mist and gloom, ready to chastise his young apprentice for following after him despite the warnings given. What it could be though, was a caretaker of the temple, some guardian or defender of its sacred grounds. Maybe it was another mercenary sent into the strange city, payed to take care of whatever it was Noble had been sent to do. Or,
maybe Akio was thinking too much and doing too little. That settled it. be the thing friend or foe, it could be useful to confront. It could hold information about the location of Noble, or at the very least, a few supplies to aid with the quest at hand.
With one last glance at the surreal landscape, Akio began to approach the figure, casually allowing one of his hands to slip from his boa staff to the shurikens hanging from his belt. The language of the surrounding kingdoms had always been somewhat hard for Akio to speak, but he was good enough at it to get by with little problem.
"Hello, Friend. You seem a far ways from any sensible place. I thought this city to be all but abandoned. Tell me, what brings you to this cursed land?"Akio spoke firmly, but he wasn't shouting. He only allowed his voice the amount of force needed to carry over to the figure across from him. Strange... Akio's voice sounded unfamiliar to himself. It felt as if somebody else was speaking. No doubt it was his mind playing yet another trick on him, but he couldn't help but grimace slightly. The sooner he could leave this forsaken city, the better.