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.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[the temple of Guan Yu, currently portrayed by one Yamanami Keisuke, was as beautiful as it was enormous. Temples and castles were built into the mountains with precarious bridges connecting them. Waterfalls poured from cliffs and greenery was everywhere. Off to the side of the main temple, there is a "small" (ha!) guesthouse with an open field and what looks like a crude chicken pen and coop. The birds are out in the yard, along with their owner -- a beasty that Xehanort may find familiar. He has a small pile of silvery carp and is working on eating them, more slowly and deliberately than he'd inhaled the chicken wings. A few of the chickens hang out nearby, apparently begging for scraps. Zangetsu snickers to himself and obliges, tossing small pieces of fish-flesh to the birds, who go after it with gusto.

But there will be no sneaking up on him. Without turning around, he addresses the visitor]

Well, well. If it ain't two-souls. The God of this temple isn't home, if you're looking for 'im. [he turns to look at Xehanort, raising his eyebrows] Well, that's a new look. [in anticipation of his awful joke, he starts to laugh a bit] Hehe... why the long face? Heeahahahahaha!

Edited 2017-02-12 03:12 (UTC)

[There's no attempts at stealth at all. A bit of scuffing of feet, lots of pauses to study the scenery, and not even anything like a great bit of speed while looking for someone. Part of the fascinating aspect of visiting other temples was seeing what they looked like and often enjoying their settings.

He's still waiting for one to be mostly fire and brimstone, but hadn't found it yet.

Searching for intelligent signs of life is part of it though, he still needs to collect more data where he can for a proper compilation, but what he doesn't expect to find is the thing that ate all his chicken wings. Zangetsu HAD to be a god or shinki, so sooner or later it made sense he'd stumble across the hollow-spirit, but he'd almost wished otherwise.

At least this time there's food on hand, and it's not his.]

I see you found your people. [The response is serene to being laughed at. Not even an ear twitch.] Though you'll never sleep well in a coop that small.

[He gets a cackle in return. Insulting and/or picking on Zangetsu is... a tricky exercise. It usually does not work] You'd be surprised the spaces I can fit into! But that house is just for my girls. I'm currently livin' in that one. [he points to the guest house. He stands and brushes some grass bits off his hakama and folds his arms. His favorite chicken, the largest and alpha bitch-est, flutters up and perches on his horn. She is watching you, dog-face]

What brings you here? With that face, no less. I feel like I should put on a mask, too! [he pulls his hand over his face, and a small "fwoom" of black and red flame coalesces into a black skeletal mask, incorporating his horns. Bold white stripes cross the eyes and come to an almost heart shape at the top] Now we match.

[Tit for tat. If Xehanort had been bothered by Zangetsu's jab, it doesn't seem so - neither does Zangetsu seem bothered by the jab in return. The chickens were ... really no concern, they're just birds.

The mask would draw a raised eyebrow if he HAD eyebrows right now, but he does not. Instead an ear twitches a bit to one side, a gesture that somehow conveys the same thing. It probably meant more to those who knew what a hollow's mask was.

It looks.. decorational. Maybe meant to be fierce and scary?]

When a god, doing a god's job, it's best to look the part. I am Anubis, this is Anubis's guise.

[Easy, straightforward. Not a mask, just.. a different appearance.]

[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.

[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?

[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)

[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.]

[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 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.]

[not all of them! But even in his eyeless vessel forms, he had a vague idea of what was going on... he could "see" even if he couldn't see.

Man, the way this guy was reacting, it was almost as if he hadn't really used his god-assigned shinki much. A bunch of normal shinki things seemed foreign to him. But hey! No big deal. Zangetsu was here to be a teacher, after all]

I've never been anything but a sword, so I can't say what it'd be like. Hehehe... But... hm.... I can think of a few ways to kill someone with a teacup!

[a pause]

... Far fewer if I'm not allowed to break the teacups, though.

[the chain unwinds from Xehanort's arm and coils on the ground]

Unfortunately, I got no way of tellin' what kind of power you have from our bond. It'll be a surprise?

[How right Zangetsu was. With his other shinki elusive, even finding out the basics of how this sort of thing worked was .. not happening. That leaves study, watching the way the chain seemed to move of its own independent will; did the Hollow still have some control over what he did in this state?]

... I could too. But it was an example, not a suggestion.

[No killing people with teacups.]

At least I was told what to expect from my 'god power', but I have other skills to rely on if your only gift is this. I have a little magic, at least. I wonder if it's possible to channel any of that through this shape you've taken.

[And he's almost tempted to do it ... but this is a strange god's home, and destroying it out of curiosity would be rude. Perhaps later.]

I suppose you should be advised, much like you shinki, I have no memory of my past. .. Save I have the benefit of the last two years or so as apprentice to a very learned man. Much by way of scholarly pursuits, not much in the way of anything else. Your task may prove ... difficult.

Incidentally. Are you remaining in this place, or returning with me?

[As he speaks, tone idle, the blade is swung. It didn't feel quite perfect, like something was missing, but it still felt far more comfortable than any other weapon he'd held since waking.]

Well how am I supposed to know if a question is rhetorical or not?! Geez.

[Man, this guy didn't know anything. Good thing he has a former nora to show him the way]

No no, I meant-- when a god makes a contract with a shinki, and that shinki is in vessel form, it gives the god some new ability! Like for Jin, I turned him into a really strong monster. Yoruichi-san got access to some of my abilities. Maybe you got one of them, too?

[... a god with no memories? Now that is interesting. Zangetsu has nothing to say about that, except a slight "hm" of interest. He tucks that information away for later.]

I should probably go with you. But I need to get my shit together and let this nice fella know I'm leaving. So perhaps leave me some directions and I'll catch up to you later. ... Is your temple hospitable to chickens?

...Assume if I'm asking about ways to kill a person and not an ayakashi it's rhetorical and I don't actually want to know.

[Especially from someone like Zangetsu, who probably could get messily creative pretty easily, and that wasn't the sort of thing he wished to dwell on. Defeat was enough when dealing with most foes that aren't monsters.

The explanation is mused upon; nobody had mentioned having a shinki granted more than the obvious of a weapon and drawing on their ability to kill those things. There had to be a more reasonable way than simple trial and error, though, that could mean losing an advantage when it was most needed.]

Perhaps I have, though I admit I feel no different. I saw no difference in my alternate form either.

[After a moment's pause, Xehanort allows Zangetsu to reclaim his humanoid form, turning to study the chickens with a frown. As far as he knew, chickens were ubiquitous.]

Not as well as some places might be. Anubis is a god from a desert pantheon. Though there's plenty of places for a bird to hide, it's pretty hot. They should be alright if given enough water.

[In.. theory.]

Awww. Damn.

[They'd have to agree to disagree on that. Defeat wasn't enough; you had to make sure they'd never get back up to challenge you again.

Back in his humanoid form, Zangetsu brushes off his clothes and straightens them out. The alpha chicken comes to investigate for a moment before going back to her business.]

Mmm... these girls are pretty tough, and they ain't as birdbrained as they look. They came from a jungle. If it gets too hot, they can always come inside. Your temple is cool, right?

Many Questions To Be Had

A, June 20

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