[BitP:R] Mortal World 2

[horngeek]

{{Wah. Whoops. I didn't catch that Rex used something different. }}

Izumi nods. "I see..."

She looks up. "Ah, here's my home."

It's a moderately large, two-story home. Nice place.

[Wahrheit]

"Well, glad to meetcha, Izumi-san. I guess I'll see ya at school... have a good night." Rex waited for her to head inside, seeing it as his duty to make sure the young woman got all the way home safely. She's kinda cute. Wouldn't mind seein' her more oft- no! Bad Rex! She's way younger! You're just tired, is all!

[horngeek]

Izumi entered her house, and headed up to her room, entering her body...

and drifting off to sleep quite rapidly, smiling. Well, looks like I've made a new friend...

[Wahrheit]

Rex, meanwhile, meandered his way back to his apartment, thoughts of chili gone for the time being and an absent-minded grin on his face. Upon getting home, he settled for a sandwich of the previous night's leftovers before a quick shower and bed, already not looking forward to the next day. Well, most of it, at least.

[Frozen_Feet]

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Sora's reiatsu fades, and he shuffles awkwardly.

"Well... You two are here, and this is kind of my private space..."

Oddly enough, he seems to be avoiding eye contant.

Spoiler

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[Sora's Hideout]

Silva blinked and turned around when she heard her name.

Yui? Wha-?

Then Sora sees them. Silva whips back around, and as his reiatsu surges, she draws her dagger in one fluid motion, taking a fighting stance.

Then Yui questions the boy, and he backs down. Silva looks between them, her stance relaxing slightly.

Okay...am I missing something here? What's going on?

She still holds her dagger.

"Silva, please, put that thing away. You look like you're going to stab someone", Yui says, giving Silva a dry smile, still tapping the ground irately. "You aren't going to stab anyone, right?" Then, she turns her attention back to Sora.

"And you, young man... your private place? This is a public cemetery, true? If so, by what permission have dug this thing here? Have you no respect for the dead? Not to mention, this place looks very poorly built - do you have a deatwish, coming to a place that could fall down on your neck any moment? It's awfully cold too, and unhygienic, you're sure to catch some awful disease lingering here..."

Yui's face stays serious as stone the whole time she speaks, but the further she gets, the more obvious it is that she's going off at a tangent. If she isn't stopped, she just might keep on scolding Sora for everything he's ever done.

"And what's the deal with acting all hostile towards the strangers? That's horribly impolite. You should be ashamed of yourself. Good grief, the manners of you kids these days! When I was young..."

[Kasanip]

Sayaka and Haruaki
[Houheiden]

Haruaki looked at Ken and then at Kaito.

"Very well, please think of it like this:

This world is the world we humans like to call 'reality.' it is maybe even with arrogance called the 'human world,' but such a thought nowadays ignores the other meaning of such a saying. What is the 'other world'?

Maybe in this kind of thought, we divide ourselves from other worlds, but actually it is a very small division between these things.

Those things that may exist in this world that stand between that divide we might call 'spirits.'

If they stand above us, we maybe call them 'gods', but it is difficult to know with our eyes.

You maybe also call those of us who 'pass over' but not leave as 'ghosts' which is also a 'spirit,' but in this situation even for us who think in 'human world' it means they belong somewhere else.

Of that meaning, we understand maybe best in 'afterlife.' And that lies outside of our 'mortal world' so it cannot be seen by us. But there are ripples that maybe you can.

Ghosts, for example. Some times of the year we may say the border is weak between our world, so they may come here, and some who never left at first... Of course there are spirits who may aid and guide others, and of these we may call them 'Shinigami'. Perhaps there are other things there we don't understand. "

Haruaki waited a minute.

"Some spirits may be 'evil' you have heard. But whether it is a case of 'good' or 'evil' there is afterlife and consequence... But these spirits who live between an 'afterlife' and a 'mortal world' are stuck within a border. And in that border they are alone and void, and lose themselves. In that loneliness they are consumed until they only desire to obtain something to fulfill that...
And such a desire is fulfilled through the brightness we have. A soul... We could-"

Sayaka coughed. "Please...About Hollows."

Haruaki smiled, and continued.

"Yes yes. A 'Hollow' is such a thing- a spirit that has been consumed by it's own loneliness and lost itself. It is a monster, but maybe we should take some pity on the fallen. Why do they not pass on?

This is a good question. But what you should know is that they have lost themselves. And there are some who attempt to correct their path - the shinigami. "

He stopped curiously.

"Should Sayaka draw a picture for explaining?"

[nothingclever]

Ken
[Houheiden]

Ken beamed with anticipation. "I'd love to see what imagery a picture perfect person like her could conjure! I bet she captures admiration with her drawings as well as she does with her conduct. I'm sure it would greatly help explain things."

[KnightDisciple]

Kaito shakes his head at Ken, but his focus is clearly on the subject matter.

"So, to recap. We have the world here; let's call it the "mortal world". That's where us living, breathing humans live. When we die, our souls retain their identity, and should move on to this "afterlife world", we'll call it. This process is often helped along by "shinigami" (and there's an arrogant name), who...run the afterlife world? Never mind, tangent for later.

So, sometimes the souls of the dead get....missed? Something happens, and they go from "regular soul" to "Hollow", like that thing last night. So...them turning into a Hollow can be reversed via some method these "death gods" possess? What about people like us, or priests like you?

I mean, we're obviously able to see these spirits. So something's changed about us. But it's not a uniform change. Each of us seems to have unique abilities. I'm a telekinetic, Nakahiro can turn an umbrella into a deadly weapon, Ayase turns into a magical catgirl, Valeria gets a nifty mask and energy blasts...You see where I'm going with this? We sound like a comic book superhero team. Why?"

He stops, tapping his chin in thought.

"You know...I've seen spirits occasionally before yesterday. But never a hint of moving things with my brain. But...I remember that surge of something that gave me a migraine. Remember when I was in the nurse's office? I'd just gotten my abilities then. So, it's like we all required an external trigger to realize our potential. Is this something that any person with any amount of awareness could have occur to them?"

He now seems almost...eager...about the idea. Clearly this discussion has taken a fascinating academic turn for the boy.

[Prime32]

[Houheiden Shrine]

Ayase's eyes widen in alarm as she receives confirmation of what the Akumushi are. To Denden's relief, she does not question why she would not know something so basic about her sworn enemy.

"So, sometimes the souls of the dead get....missed? Something happens, and they go from "regular soul" to "Hollow", like that thing last night. So...them turning into a Hollow can be reversed via some method these "death gods" possess? What about people like us, or priests like you?"

At least I can help them. After all, that was how magical girl powers worked.

"...Ayase turns into a magical catgirl..."

"Who's Ayase?!"

"You know...I've seen spirits occasionally before yesterday. But never a hint of moving things with my brain. But...I remember that surge of something that gave me a migraine. Remember when I was in the nurse's office? I'd just gotten my abilities then. So, it's like we all required an external trigger to realize our potential. Is this something that any person with any amount of awareness could have occur to them?"

She hesitates. That sounds... familiar.

[KnightDisciple]

"Who's Ayase?!"

Kaito turns and gives Ayase such a look. One that clearly says "don't treat me like I'm stupid".

[Steilos]

Henry sits and listens to the discussion to the time being, mostly because a surprising number of his questions are answering themselves. Apart from "Why the HELL didn't I come here 20 years ago!?", of course, but you can't have everything. Suddenly, something perked the Inspector's interest.

"Thing last night, you said? Did something happen at the school?"

[strawberryman]

"Valeria gets a nifty mask and energy blasts..."

"...is it?" Val speaks up, her voice cracking. "That mask, it's like... that things'... And when we destroyed it, I started breathing smoke like it did. I don't even know what I am! Am I one of them, or am I a human?" The girl clenches her fists.

[Kuroimaken]

[At the cemetery...]

For a cemetery, today this place is really crowded. Hasunaga is visiting the grave of his old pal Mori Souta. He didn't know of his fate as having turned Hollow and being eradicated from the face of the Earth by his students.

He'd arrived with a pack of smokes and some incense. He's fairly sure the janitor wouldn't have appreciated flowers. All they would manage is create a bigger mess when the wind inevitably swept their petals away.

Of course, he comes upon a shocking realization when he find the top of the old janitor's tombstone knocked away.

"What the hell...?"

He looked over and replaced the top of the tombstone where it belonged.

"Guess you're not getting the 5-star treatment, old friend..."

He noticed there were a few more tombstones knocked down, and proceeded to pick each one up... until he came across the tombstone Sora used to create a passage.

Checking around to make sure he wasn't being observed, Hasunaga jumped straight down.

[tgva8889]

Kina Yoshimoto

Kina, who had been quietly milling about the group, remains silent. She leans against a wall behind everyone else, thinking to herself. So...these Hollows are just maligned souls? What...what is it that we really do? Do I...really destroy them like Grandfather said? Is it...is it right to judge a soul in such a way? What right do I have? Kina turns the cross on her bracelet over and over in her hand. What reason could we have for this? What reason is there for us to be given the power to judge?

At Kaito's comment, Kina looks up. "Not likely. I still only see spirits, and I went through all the same things you did. I...should have had the same thing happen...right?" Kina stands up. "And...what makes you think it's safe? We could harm ourselves. We could harm the souls. We could harm each other."

[KerfuffleMach2]

"Silva, please, put that thing away. You look like you're going to stab someone", Yui says, giving Silva a dry smile, still tapping the ground irately. "You aren't going to stab anyone, right?" Then, she turns her attention back to Sora.

Silva blinks a couple of times, still slightly shocked. She nods at Yui once and relaxes. However, she keeps the dagger out, hanging from her hand at her side.

[Terry576]

Spoiler

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"Silva, please, put that thing away. You look like you're going to stab someone", Yui says, giving Silva a dry smile, still tapping the ground irately. "You aren't going to stab anyone, right?" Then, she turns her attention back to Sora.

"And you, young man... your private place? This is a public cemetery, true? If so, by what permission have dug this thing here? Have you no respect for the dead? Not to mention, this place looks very poorly built - do you have a deatwish, coming to a place that could fall down on your neck any moment? It's awfully cold too, and unhygienic, you're sure to catch some awful disease lingering here..."

Yui's face stays serious as stone the whole time she speaks, but the further she gets, the more obvious it is that she's going off at a tangent. If she isn't stopped, she just might keep on scolding Sora for everything he's ever done.

"And what's the deal with acting all hostile towards the strangers? That's horribly impolite. You should be ashamed of yourself. Good grief, the manners of you kids these days! When I was young..."

Sora blinks a few times.

Then he realizes she's yelling at him in his own house.

He twitches, glares, and looks like he's about to have an aneurysm.

[Kuroimaken]

And then Hasunaga barges in.

He seems simultaneously surprised at seeing Silva and Sora.

He also seems intrigued as to their current activities.

"What the hell is going on here?"

[Frozen_Feet]

Yui almost jumps in the air when Hasunaga tumbles in. She turns to stare at him with wide eyes, then glances at the entranc of the small cavern. "You know, there was a perfectly usable flight of stairs there. Why on earth did you jump down? Goodness, I almost had a heart attack!"

[Kuroimaken]

Hasunaga shrugged. "Because I'm Snake under the direction of Ryuhei Kitamura, obviously I could use the exercise. That doesn't answer my question though."

[Frozen_Feet]

Yui turns to stare obliviously to the roof. Come to think of it, what exacly is going on? "Well, uh, I was telling this young man here how rude he was being and... uh..." Yui beckons frantically towards Sora, before her eyes stop at Silva again, and she notes she's still holding a dagger. "Silva-san, I could use some help here..."

[Kuroimaken]

"Oh, that reminds me. Who are you two?" He points towards Silva and Yui.

[Purple Rose]

[Takara]

Finishing her icecream, Takara laid back and looked up through the leaves as the sky above them.

"I don't know if it will work... but won't it be fun?"

She smiles broadly.

"Besides, after what happened at the school... I want to find out more about ghosts and stuff. And what better way than to talk to one?"

As for the Old Rock, those that knew about it would know about it. Simply put, it was a large rock on the side of a hill, covered with graffiti and a known gathering spot for delinquents. It was also close to both the school and the bus stop, so Takara knew it would be easy to get to.

[KerfuffleMach2]

Yui turns to stare obliviously to the roof. Come to think of it, what exacly is going on? "Well, uh, I was telling this young man here how rude he was being and... uh..." Yui beckons frantically towards Sora, before her eyes stop at Silva again, and she notes she's still holding a dagger. "Silva-san, I could use some help here..."

Silva also jumped a little when Hasunaga arrived.

And right now she shrugs at Yui.

I have no idea. I just came down here cause I-

Sensed a Hollow?

-heard some noise, and I wanted to investigate.

Not knowing either Hasunaga or Sora, and the fact that she sensed a Hollow, is why she keeps her dagger in her hand. But, it's held at her side, in a non-threatening way.

[Kasanip]

Sayaka

Sayaka looked at Ken with a small annoyance before becoming neutral again. How to respond to such a statement that was compliment and also a threat of embarrassment?

She decided to be silent on it. Taking a pen, she drew this easy picture to show it.

Haruaki smiled at Kaito's summary.
"You asked several questions... so let us talk on one by one.

First, to say 'arrogance' maybe is a dangerous view. We may be quite arrogant with our assumptions also. Even if we talk to one from the 'afterlife world' - one of these shinigami, he may tell us only a little... It is forbidden knowledge, so let's not take guesses onto what happens later. We will all find out someday.

To think of a Hollow as a soul that has lost something - it is not whole anymore. So it cannot be 'reversed' to a way before by our own mean. Of course spiritual atonement and only those shinigami may teach them that way." Haruaki touched his clothes.

"I am a priest. My world is the world of Life- this mortal world. So for me to interfere in those kind of affairs is forbidden. And for you- you do not possess the authority or ability to lead these souls on. Let's be humble. What is our purpose? That is a good question.

Maybe to think then further- all of you have been sensitive to spirits- you have been able to see them for most of your life perhaps. I still remember when Sayaka first saw one and-"

Sayaka coughed.
"That story is not important father." She interrupts with force.

Haruaki smiles.
"Ah, of course dear. I mean to say that being sensitive to spiritual energy will be the opposite in some ways as well.

Think of it like a pool. For many people they may stand in the water but not notice ripple waves hitting them. But for you, you can. And then you may also learn that you may create them too."

"Umm.. That was a bad example I think." Sayaka said. "But to think if you want that 'outside force' caused the change is not so important."

Haruaki nodded. "Yes, you live in this town, which is a border and so very heavy with spiritual energy. What may be a 'trigger' for you could be different to someone else. And surprisingly one might say that really you should have died yesterday. It did not happen, fortunately. But do not think it was the attack that was the trigger. It could be your increase in spiritual power is what lured the hollow to you- for food."

He nods to Kina.

"Yes, it is such a thought. You are very smart young lady, and it is a good warning." He smiles like he knows something to her, but to say no more of this.

"I have lived for a long time, but I have never heard of people gaining powers this way. Becoming more sensitive to spiritual power yes, but not 'gain powers.' But I have not seen your powers very much." He said to Katio.

"But do not abandon yourself. You are yourself. You are human. So do not despair quickly. We will find the answers." He said to Valeria.

Erima
[With Takara]

Erima looked over at Takara with a thoughtful look while she finished her ice cream.

Then she lay back to look at the sky peacefully.
"Yes, it will be fun." She agreed reluctantly.

Takara's thought made sense. To learn about a ghost, one should ask a ghost. To learn about a tsukumogami, one should ask a tsukumogami. To learn about a human...well....

Erima looked at Takara sideways.

Well, humans did not make sense. But maybe you should ask a human, Erima thought.

She looked at the sky again. There was a nice wind here.

"If we got a lot of people, do you think that Shrine Maiden will come too?" Erima asked.

Of course Erima would come. But she wondered how she would come. As a human or a scarf? Of course an exploration would be more fun as a human- she thought. Though Takara was maybe 'enough human' for two of them.

But Erima hated mathematics too. Two humans + tsukumogami = ???

She gave up such a strange thought and enjoyed the clouds and peaceful time.

[strawberryman]

"But do not abandon yourself. You are yourself. You are human. So do not despair quickly. We will find the answers." He said to Valeria.

Valeria bites her lip, eyes averting to the ground. "...I hope so."


[Elsewhere...]

Deep underground, underneath a mysterious shop on the edge of town...

Viatrix jumps to and fro in an underground cavern, which she built some time ago for her... exercise. On her back, a silver fox hangs onto the red tracksuit the Bount wears. After a few jumping drills, she crashes into the ground, mass modified by her doll.

Careful...

"Shush."

Breaking through the rock, Vi starts a furious variation of kata, shaking the ground with every punch and kick. After a few minutes, she stops, breathing heavily, and contemplating...

"More weight."

...what? Viatrix... you know that it's dangerous for me to increase your mass by too great a...

"Did I ask for your opinion? More weight."

...very well...

Viatrix feels her pressure on the ground increase even as she begins another barrage of punches and kicks that go so far as to create minor quakes in the area immediately around the shop...

[KnightDisciple]

[Houheiden Shrine]

First, Kaito turned to face Valeria, his face deadly serious.

"Valeria. No, Val. Look at me. You're human. As human as the rest of us. Even if your powers are like one of these Hollows, it doesn't make you one. You have a body. You don't have a hole in your heart. You care about people. You're human in every way that matters. So what if you've developed imitation powers? It's up to you what to do with them."

He turned to face father and daughter.

"As for what you're saying...I only speculated arrogance on the part of the shinigami due to their names. They don't seem very godly. I saw some out in front of the school; they had wounded. One of them was glaring at me like I'd done something wrong, just by existing. I bet they have saints and sinners, just like we do.

As for "forbidden knowledge", that's stupid. Why is it forbidden? Wouldn't sure knowledge of the afterlife revolutionize the world? So many people spend their whole lives questioning it. These shinigami are the guides into the next life. Why can't we know about it?

And as for being concerned "with Life", so am I. That's why I want to know how to deal with Hollows. Sayaka, you saw that thing last night. It would have killed us if not for our powers. What if one of those gets loose in the middle of a busy rush hour traffic? If I could stop such a thing, I would. It's the right thing to do. If I can't "send it to the next step", fine. I'll hold it down until a shinigami can come do his mojo. But I'm not just forgetting these powers. I'll train and practice. I'll make sure they're only a threat to whatever innocents, especially the people I care about. So don't think you can tell me to sit on this and not do anything. My parents raised me better than that."

There was a fire in his eyes and fierce determination in his voice and posture.

'I'll have to revisit the idea of latent abilities and possible triggers later. They clearly don't care about science and research like that.' he thought to himself.

[strawberryman]

[Houheiden Shrine]

Valeria respects Kaito's speech with her gaze, looking a bit guilty. For a few moments, she's silent. Then, her voice cracks as she responds. "...t-thank you, Kaito. Everyone..." She pulls up a more determined expression.

"...I'll do my best. I... want to find out more about this, too. And hiding won't do that..."

[tgva8889]

"As for "forbidden knowledge", that's stupid. Why is it forbidden? Wouldn't sure knowledge of the afterlife revolutionize the world? So many people spend their whole lives questioning it. These shinigami are the guides into the next life. Why can't we know about it?"

Kina speaks in response.

"Would you...really want to know your future? Would you want to know where you'd end up? If the afterlife wasn't what you wanted... would you seek some way to escape the cycle?" Kina hides her cross pendant. "Perhaps it would revolutionize. But...it wouldn't revolutionize for the better. Millions...millions would commit suicide to reach that better life. More would try to escape the cycle entirely. Could...could the Shinigami keep up with that many dead? How many...would become Hollows?"

[KnightDisciple]

Kaito frowned.

"Hrm. Instead, we have people arguing for all time over things. Whatever. I suppose that doesn't matter as much."

Clearly, he's not quite convinced, but he's dropping the subject for the sake of not arguing.

[tgva8889]

"People would argue regardless." Kina leaves the comment in the air and returns to her place at the back of the group, the cross dancing in her hand for a moment.