thefarshore | Many Questions To Be Had

Entry tags:

Many Questions To Be Had

Who: Xehanort, Open
What: bothering people, and other things
When: June 13thish to maybe the 20th or so
Where:Other temples, his own after dark.
Warnings: None so far.

A

[Although it would be best if he saw to some of his prayers, instead Xehanort has picked up his notebook, a bit of tape and phone, shifted to the jackal-headed form most associate with the god Anubis, and gone looking for other temples nearby. He could have stayed in human form, but if he's intending to speak to gods and shinki both, isn't it best to be easily identified?

Once a temple is found, however, it's just a matter of looking for a door to knock on or a proper place to call out a greeting .. or even approach someone who happens to be standing outside.

He's really not that picky. God, shinki, it's all the same.]

B

[So someone wasn't home when Xehanort ventured to visit their temple. That's alright, there are a million things to do in a day. But at any temple that seemed occupied but nobody home, he's left a note.]

Greetings. I am Anubis; I visited your temple today but nobody was home.

I'd like to ask some questions about your experiences here (God or Shinki!), but since it seems I've missed you, perhaps you'd like to visit me instead, or leave me a message? I should be back at my own temple after sunset, but I can also be reached at [number] easily.

Thank you for your time.

[Visiting Anubis' temple, on the other hand, is visiting a desert. It's dry, even with the bits of oasis-like pools here and there, but it's not completely uninviting.. if it's after sunset he'll be there.]

Temple Description can be found here.

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Yes. It works for that too, as long as I've activated it. Otherwise my hand-eye coordination is pretty normal.

[Though "pretty normal" of somebody on this earth and somebody in a world filled with superpowers might actually be very different.]

[it IS scary! To normal people. Humans, typically. Xehanort didn't really quite count as one of those]

There's a god who's a dog? Weird. But ah, didn't really answer my question, there, Twosies.

And a bird and a cat and crocodile, hippos, snakes, other forms of birds..

[He makes a dismissive gesture; the Egyptians had a lot of gods. So far the strangest was the one with the head replaced by an ENTIRE scarab..

But that's possible to be found out on his own and Xehanort wasn't really inclined to give lectures on it for the time being.]

I had in fact been looking for whoever owns this place, but if they're not here then that's not going to get anywhere.

[Nope. Doesn't make a noise at all. Straight up ignoring is more his style.

Nari shakes his head.]

No on both. Or at least I think no on both. The stuff at the barbecue smells awful, so I'll stick to making my own. That totally reminds me I need to ask what in fuck Simon likes to eat. Else I'm making waffles all day every day.

[Now he wants to see if he can make deep fried ramen just for the hell of it. Let's fry everything.] I can tell you if I figure out how to deep fry candy bars, I will totes bring you some.

[He doesn't really want to be lectured, either. Egyptian history wasn't exactly something he was interested in. Except all that cool death and fighting and stuff. More of that!]

Ah, yeah. Sorry about that. I'm sure he'll appreciate the visitors later, though. He seems like a lonely guy. [The Hollow tilts his head, his mask... well, masking, his expression.] ... I'm actually glad I ran into you again. There was something I wanted to see.

..Mm. I'm not sure my visit would alleviate that, I merely wish to ask a few questions. When will your master return?

[If Zangetsu isn't the god here, he must be the shinki! Which was just fine, and as far as he's concerned there's no shame attached to calling someone else master.

He had his own, after all.]

Ah? If it has to do with another free meal I'm afraid I didn't bring anything.

[Aside from possibly more than one soul, and there HAD been that implication before, but given the fish it might not be an issue. Zangetsu's already eaten. It can't hurt to be polite.]

What can I do for you?

[he waves a hand and his head, and his chicken flutters back to the ground... and makes off with a half-eaten carp] He's not my master. He's just a nice guy who offered me a place to stay. I'm not in his service.

[He's strangely not offended by it. Master. Not a word he liked. It was a title that had to be earned, after all. But no use getting mad about it.

Zangetsu tilts his head down, his eyes and intentions hidden by the mask.

He then vanishes. Not like a god teleporting, there's a distinct static sound to it. When he next appears, he's within two feet of Xehanort, snarling behind his mask and hands curled into claws, talons brandished. He swipes upward, and if Xehanort isn't careful, he'll be torn open from hip to opposite shoulder]

How kind of him.

[It doesn't sound facetious. Having somewhere to stay is always good, and wasn't his own shinki currently dwelling in some other god's home? He wasn't thrilled about it but kicking up a fuss wouldn't help anything.

Anything else he might have said, or asked, is cut off by Zangetsu disappearing suddenly. Xehanort still wasn't in fighting trim, he consciously knew little but basic defense courtesy of the unrelenting efforts of Aeleus and Dilan, but the body he wore had fought and been trained for years. Long, hard years. While his mind is busy trying to figure out what the hell Zangetsu's up to, instinct takes over. It doesn't last long, just long enough to grab the reaching hands in a grip of what would be bone-crushing strength versus any human opponent and wrench the attacking Zanpakuto-Hollow to the side and try to hurl him away with as much power as he can put behind it.

But it doesn't last long at all. As soon as surprise gives way enough to think, immediate cross-purpose impulses get in the way; stay in melee range and fight, or seek distance and use what spellcraft he knew? The desire to do both at once ends in neither being accomplished, but he should at least have a moment or two of breathing room..]

[something snaps in his arm; a minor crushing injury to his distal radius. Something that would require a cast and maybe some pins in a human. Zangetsu allows himself to be tossed to one side. He rolls and lands in a crouch. He looks at his arm, which bruises an ugly blue color. The mask vanishes and he grins at Xehanort. He stands, but makes no further moves to attack, keeping a good distance.

The skin on his arm bubbles a bit, like boiling latex, and the blue bruise is once again replaced by corpse-white]

I knew it. I knew I sensed it in you. I smelled it on you, even on the beach.

Edited 2017-02-12 05:51 (UTC)

[Good instincts, the guardsmen had called it. But they'd been surprised too. He hadn't felt the need to explore those reactions any. Giving it much thought didn't happen either.

Maybe he should have. But for now there's surprise turning rapidly to irritation only a whisker away from anger, sharp white teeth bared in a silent snarl of displeasure. Such a display might be frightening to a normal person, but to Zangetsu? It's not much of a threat.]

What do you.. WHY would--

[It's not often he's at a loss for words, but the sheer indignation of being attacked for no reason overshadows any concern that should rationally be there for damage he might have done. His own clawed hands grasp briefly at the air as if he could just rip answers out of it but there are none forthcoming.]

Smelled what?

I'm not sure either, unfortunately. The only way I know of to restrain an ayakashi is for a shinki to use a borderline. Trapping one would require at least three to maintain the effect. But as far as I know, there's no way of making a borderline permanent.

[an angry dog face? No, that doesn't scare the Hollow one bit. He's eaten scarier things than you without batting an eyelash.]

Strength. It's hiding in there, deep. [he gestures] But it's there! Your body is seething with raw potential! A killer instinct. [he extends his hand a bit, palm up] Tell me, Two-Souls; do you want to harness that power? [what a strange departure from attacking him out of the blue; indeed, Zangetsu seems almost giddy.] Make me your shinki, and I will draw that power forth.

[Silence meets this, and nothing else, for quite a while.

The thought that he had power he wasn't using wasn't a new one, hadn't even Master Ansem mused that some of his skills slid into the superhuman? But following the path Ansem chose was one he'd preferred, which meant ignoring combat in favor of intellectual pursuits. But..

But it tempted him anyway. Lured him with the promise of being able to throw down those who threatened him and what was his, called to the places left hollow by lost memory never quite filled in by the desperate effort of countless nights and dawns to fill in those holes, echoed in the certainty that he'd been so much more once, more than a mere apprentice to a tired old king in a tiny world.

Power. It would not return to him what he'd lost.

But maybe he could guarantee it would never happen again.]

I have a name. Never call me that again, and I think we might be able to come to an accord.

[He would never have to fear again.]

[Zangetsu waits, patiently, while the gears turn in Xehanort's mind. While his hearts settle on what they want, as a unit. Zangetsu has no memories of his past, but he has intrinsic knowledge befitting a zanpakutou. He sees it. He feels it. The drive for power, that desire to protect oneself and loved ones, a strong need to rise above and conquer so that one never has to feel fear.

Zangetsu could give him all of that. And in return? Zangetsu could become more powerful himself.

He approaches Xehanort and offers a sweeping bow]

Say it, then. --Your real name, not the persona the Gods here gave ya. I am known as Zangetsu, the blade that slays the moon and slices the heavens. Give me another name and let me add my power to yours... partner.

[Lilka, he knew, wouldn't be much of a help in growing stronger in the ways he was sure he would need to. She seemed a sweet girl but not particularly driven by things like needful violence. Not likely to hold up well under serious combat.

He doubted this one had any such issue.]

I am Xehanort. Here I am also Anubis, and that is the name I choose to answer to when seeing to the tasks I have been given. Let's see if this ridiculous sounding nonsense works.

[He takes this god business rather seriously, even if it hadn't been his choice. A god was definitely at least a start to greatness.

The black and gold 'deity' studies Zangetsu silently again. A weapon already before even becoming one via being a shinki? What was his past?

If his experience with Lilka was anything to go by, he would find out soon. Another thing to find out.. if these spells' wording could be changed. One claw rises, and the lines he begins to etch in the air aren't at all Japanese.]

You, with nowhere to go and nowhere to return, I grant you a place to belong. My name is Anubis. You shall remain here, bearing a posthumous name. With this name, I make you my servant. With this name, I use my life to make you a shinki. You are Zangetsu; as shinki, Qes. Come!

[he wants to take the god thing seriously, huh? Well, whatever. More power to 'im. Zangetsu hated the old gods here, hated their way of doing things. But he could still better himself in their system.

And he would.

It's not a true memory. Just an inkling, his own kind of muscle memory. Knowledge that his true form wasn't a flesh and blood creature, but a soul inhabiting a blade. He doesn't know what Zanpakutou are, what their name is. He just knows he was born to be a weapon.

The symbols burn in the air, then flatten themselves against Zangetsu's right shoulder, glowing even through his shirt before vanishing. Then, instead of turning to light, the Hollow turns to darkness; blistering hot black and red flames. The flames swirl around Xehanort before coalescing into an odd, but perhaps familiar, shape. A strange sword with an intricate hilt and guard, with a long length of chain and a charm dangling from the end. That, and a dragon's skull and spine crowning the end. A keyblade, but not like any that there ever has been before.

And with the new weapon come the memories. A bearded man in dark clothing stands over a broken, bleeding boy, a boy that looks remarkably similar to Zangetsu -- albeit with normal skin coloration and ginger-orange hair. But the memory seems less focused on the boy, and more on the damaged sword he holds in his hand; it's shape is not unlike the body of the keyblade. The dark man radiates a terrible power and says something that the memory does not recollect. He grabs the boy by his head and the boy screams in pain and anguish.

Then, as in a dream, the scene shifts completely. And just like in a dream, the viewer knows where they are; inside the soul of the sword. The land is strange, with glassy skyscrapers turned on their sides. The whole world tilted. The world is in the midst of a tempest. A great black hole has been ripped into the sky and a storm, with driving rain and flashing lightning, surrounds it; a hurricane around an eye. The hole is a vacuum, sucking in pieces of the buildings, glass panels, and debris. A white shape clings to one of the buildings, his claws leaving deep gashes in the glass and metal. The claw-marks are stained with dark blue ichor, blood from the creature. Zangetsu. He looks a bit different, lacking the horns and tail, but it is undoubtedly the same monster.

"Gck.... I can't... I can't let go...! I must... protect... Ichigo! --Gah!!" he slips, and only barely manages to keep himself from being sucked away. But even now, the building he's holding onto and, indeed, his feet and legs, are beginning to flake away like so much old paint, pulled into the vortex. The building starts to come apart ahead of Zangetsu, a fissure opening before him.

"... S-sorry.... partner..."

The chunk of building with its passenger breaks off, and is sucked into the vortex. The Hollow lets out an inhuman, anguished scream of his own, and the memory ends with a sense of deep, penetrating despair.]

Edited 2017-02-13 01:09 (UTC)

That makes sense, indeed. I'm just a shinki, so I may not possess any answers that would interest you. However, you have to remember to ask the right questions and know where to stop.

[While it wasn't his intention to make it sound harsh, it comes off like just that. But, he's quick to explain his point, at least:]

This place seems to be abide by many rules, as far as I am concerned. Some of them are bizarre, but that's solely my opinion. The most important thing is to simply adapt, as soon as possible, I think.

Edited 2017-02-13 12:12 (UTC)

[There's something like a smile from the jackal-headed creature, but with canine's teeth it's not as friendly as it should be.]

The shinki are the ones with the power in many situations, don't sell yourself short or buy too much into what seems to be intentional misinformation to keep your kind obedient.

[It's waved off before he can continue that thought.]

But in truth it's the opinion of shinki that are often more useful. My questions are not ones that should lead to trouble for either of us. What rules did you find most bizarre?

[None of it was about the history of a shinki before they arrived here, so he should be in the clear. All he wanted was what happened post-arrival.]

[Dokugakuji's Shrine of Kshitigarbha's Vow has a valley entrance down to the main Shrine itself. Before Doku's even aware that the man is on the premises, he'll come across two Soulless shinki tending the walking path, sweeping and checking for loose bricks mostly.

As they don't speak - much - they just look up when the other God arrives, looking very blasé despite the unusual visit by... well, anyone. One is an adult man, medium height but slender and - of note - with his shinki symbol emblazoned across one sealed eye. The other Soulless shinki is much less remarkable, although she is female. Shorter than the man, average in build, and long black hair typical of the women they often meet locally in the Near Shore.]

[Things would be set right. If they were going to make him a god then a god he would be. And if his domain was over the barrier between life and death itself, then ... so be it. He would find a way to make it advantageous, once he had more understanding. Knowledge too was power.

The black and fire doesn't frighten him. There was nothing to fear from darkness or flame, properly controlled.. and that he would see to. The weight of the strange skeletal weapon Zangetsu's become is familiar in a way swords never were, with all the heaviness down the end like a mace or an axe but still different. He knew how to hold a weapon like this, but wondering why was just going to have to wait. It only takes a moment, a span of seconds that seems to last far too long.

Another time, another space. Some other world and possibly not one but two people dying, the anguished scream of the ginger haired boy echoed in the despairing howl of the white creature that was his strange pale mirror.

Xehanort doesn't understand. But he doesn't have to in order to feel the echo of crushing emotions that weren't his at all. Even as the memory breaks off in fragmented pieces like the events themselves had, the despair lingers. He ... didn't know what it was like to be so determined to try to protect someone.

Well. Maybe he had an idea now. And it hurt.

The skeletal keyblade is raised, long chain dangling like a serpent's tail.]

Well now.

[Anything else is going to take him a minute or two.]

That's very interesting! I wonder if you might be interested in running a few tests just for fun sometime?

[Tests. For FUN? But he does seem to mean well, and is genuinely interested.]

I'd like to see how it works in practice, and what the results are. And if the effect can stack with other similar gifts. ..Though that means finding someone else who can do it too, hn.

[How quickly the gleam of sudden interest dims at the prospect of having to find ANOTHER person like that, it'sj ust chance he found one at all!]

[Claw-tipped fingers twitch once. It's difficult to not grab the cellphone again and get to looking things up instead of asking questions; Nari's pretty much devastated his willingness to bother when he can just find out on his own. But that would be rude and he intended to at least pretend to have some level of common courtesy.]

Waffles can come in a lot of different options, at least, depending on what you put on them. I don't think anyone objects to eggs either.

[Wait why is he suggesting breakfast foods. The idea is better than the idea of a deep fried candy bar, which sets his long ears back briefly in barely hidden disgust. How did everyone like sweet things? Was he the only person out there who didn't??]

... I might have to give it a try myself. Maybe something with bacon, I hear that's a classic in many countries..

[And it's meat. Not sweet at all!]

[The memory has passed, and Zangetsu knows none of the despair of it. Probably for the best; such a strong emotion would tank even the hardiest of Shinki, twisting them into Ayakashi in mere moments. But he can sense the overwhelmed emotions of his new wielder.

The eye in the hilt of the blade opens and rolls about before focusing on Xehanort, pupil dilating then constricting down again. The chain wraps loosely around his wrist and arm and the strange creature's voice echoes in Xehanort's mind]

Sorry 'bout that. I've been told it's a rough one, hehehe. But you made a smart move, partner.

[the eye rolls around again, looking. Pieces of the keyblade seem to move more like flesh than metal as the shinki settles into this new vessel]

This is a weird lookin' sword. Nice long chain, though. I'll show you how to use that properly.

[That would be a problem. The jackal's ears set sideways in consternation, debating.]

I suppose it would be possible to simply catch a few little ones to see and practice upon, though it would mean some temporary poisoning of the one doing the catching.

[He sounds as if he knows from experience.]

Perhaps the shinki who have been here longer than the oldest of the 'new' gods would know ways, or something in the libraries, but I'm.. not precisely sure I'll have the time to search both venues.

[That eye is a little unsettling, but perhaps it is best that a shinki can see what's going on around them while an object? Did all of them have that? .. Unsettling too, that Zangetsu seems aware of what just happened. They weren't supposed to know their own memories.]

A bit of a surprise. All things come at a price, even this I suppose..

[Having someone talk in his head is strange, joltingly strange, he hadn't been warned about that and hadn't experienced it yet with Lilka, but it seemed to be the way it was supposed to be, or at least he could detect no alarm from Zangetsu about it.

He ... wasn't sure suddenly being able to feel his shinki's emotions in this case was going to be a good thing. The strange blade is turned this way and that, studied carefully, the lingering echoes of someone else's emotions carefully shoved away until all that remained was a dull ache he could ignore.

The black furred jackal form disintegrates like settling powder, blowing away in shadowy wisps and leaving him in his default state again. The difference in senses might be useful.]

It feels alright. Better than ordinary swords, their weight distribution never seems right. I'm glad you're actually in the form of a weapon, some shinki become things like .. teacups. How do you kill with a teacup?

[Creatively.]

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Many Questions To Be Had

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