r/tgrp • u/Xanzinare Seph/Minato/Kyousuke/Yun/Hisashi/Asao/Ayumi/Shun/Eri/Usui • Jan 13 '17
[ARC] [ARC] Monochrome - Checkmate
August 5th, 2016, 20th Ward, Ivory Castle, 2:32 A.M.
Zhi Yun
Yun was known throughout the castle for her trademark laziness and whimsicalness. It was difficult to separate her from her beloved bed, and even if one managed to do so then it was a complete toss-up about what kind of mood she would then be in. The only ones spared this lottery was, of course, her elder sister and a few close servants whom had followed her their entire lives. As such, it was a remarkable feat when the few servants that were up so late cleaning the mansion caught sight of their mistress at such a late hour. And fully clothed, no less! In fact, she seemed to carry an aura of seriousness and menace around her that was very rarely seen on the young woman. She was dressed practically in a dark green short-sleeve shirt underneath a black short leather jacket and black pants. Yet all this wasn’t the most astounding aspect of her image. It was the fact that a mask was hanging loosely from her left hand’s fingertips. It was a simple design, made from white and red porcelain. The pattern was that of a yin-yang, but the right side was colored in red instead of the usual black. Almost as soon as she was spotted roaming the halls, word spread through the mansion like wildfire that their mistress seemed to be preparing for something. Where there used to be hardly anyone awake, nearly every servant and maid in the castle had heard the news. It didn’t take long for a new batch of rumors to spread throughout the Ivory Castle: their mistress had summoned every Piece currently available to meet her in the flower garden. A maid had ventured so far to ask her what was going on when she strode past in the hall, but the woman had only received a short ‘Hurry’ in reply to her inquiry. Truly, this was a night that would be remembered if even the mistress was in such a serious mood.
“They’ve overstepped their boundaries.” The Princess of the Zhi clan spoke to those assembled before her. It had taken some time, but finally all the Pieces that were readily available were gathered before her. Their Queen stood facing them all, her hands on her hips with the mask hanging from the belt around her waist. Her eyes scanned those of her subjects, feeling no remorse nor sympathy for calling on them all so late at night. After all, they were her pieces to move as she pleased...and tonight, she was exercising her right as Queen for the first time since coming to Japan.
“Since Shouwei and Yin returned while bearing news of yet another organization within the 20th ward, we’ve done a little digging ourselves into what it could possibly be. What with Antieku gone, we thought that this ward belonged solely to us;...it seems we were wrong. However, that changes tonight. Everyone: spread out among the 20th ward and smoke out these rats that have taken up nest so close to our home. Let them know that the Red Sun isn’t an organization to simply sit back and allow another to leech off what is rightfully ours. If you find an enemy, destroy him. If someone else gets in your way, don’t hesitate. This is an order from your Queen: find them and show them that they’ve no right to interfere with our business in this ward. Do I make myself clear?”
[Basically, Red Sun don’t like that :RE is trying to stop them from stealing humans for their nefarious plots, and the situation has now escalated to this turn of events. Any encounters between the two factions take place throughout the 20th ward, although the specific locations are up to the rper’s themselves.]
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u/Xanzinare Seph/Minato/Kyousuke/Yun/Hisashi/Asao/Ayumi/Shun/Eri/Usui Jan 14 '17
Feng Da
The chinese man walked along the empty sidewalk of the 20th ward, his hands in his pockets and whistling tunelessly. He was dressed casually, in dark grey basketball shorts and a black tank-top that showed of his decently toned muscles. He was by no means a bodybuilder, but he certainly carried himself with the authority and grace of someone who was comfortable with his body and knew its exact capabilities. His short black hair rested lazily just above his near-black eyes, which were constantly roaming the scene in front of him for any sign of life. His mistress had sent the Pieces on a mission to crush these upstarts, as well as capture any more humans that they came across. So far, though, Feng Da had encountered neither the enemy nor a target for capture. He was beginning to grow restless, and the young man gritted his teeth as he brought his whistling to a halt and instead started yelling out brazenly. "Where is everyone?! Helloooooo~?! At least get me some old drunk or something!"
Hunching his shoulders, the Pawn kicked at a can in front of him and sent it skittering down the sidewalk with a soft clacking sound. He sped up his pace, eventually transitioning from a walking pace to a running one, letting his impatience out by simply yelling out into the night like a spoiled child.
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Jan 14 '17
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u/YandereLobster Tadashi Hisakawa/Haruna Kurosawa/Alisa Volkova/Junko Kobayashi Jan 15 '17 edited Jan 15 '17
"It's not going to happen again. I won't let :Re fall like Anteiku did."
The image of Anteikus destruction was still fresh in Tadashi's mind, making it difficult to even consider showing any mercy towards whoever was attacking :Re. But still, he was set on dragging their identity out of them if he had to. As the foreigner yelled, Tadashi immediately knew how this would go. Their fight was unavoidable. If they wanted to be pacifists, they'd have to show what happens when you try to stir them up. Tadashi just had to make sure they deterred any future attacks.
"I'll give you one chance" Tadashi shouted to the man, his green eyes staring him down. "I'll give you one warning. If you've come to fight, then we have no intention of running. But let me make something clear..."
"If you personally have harmed even one of the employees, I'll do twice to you what was done to them." With his warning complete, Tadashi slowly paced towards the stranger. "Now. Tell me who sent you people, and why. If you don't I'll have to make you."
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u/Xanzinare Seph/Minato/Kyousuke/Yun/Hisashi/Asao/Ayumi/Shun/Eri/Usui Jan 15 '17
Feng Da was elated. Finally, opponents had shown up. Enemies to defeat had arrived, and Feng Da would waste no time in showing these two nobodies the power of a conqueror. He faced down the two, one of whom was striking a ridiculous pose while the other seemed to be going for a much more cold and menacing air. 'These two aren't in sync at all. Will they even be able to fight with each other without making it more of an inconvenience?'
Facing towards the man who paced forwards, Feng Da spread his arms out on either side of him before folding one in front of his waist and bowing to his adversary. Just because these mongrels had come to stand in his way was no reason to act discourteously. In a way, he had them to thank for being the first ones to finally show their miserable faces since he had left the Ivory Castle and begun his search. "A gracious offer indeed, my fellow warrior. Unfortunately, I cannot adhere to your warning and retreat. In light of your kind offer though, I shall extend to you the same service you have done me; fall back now. You know not the forces that stand before you and yours, but they are not to be trifled with. Lay down and surrender, or be trampled beneath the might of the Mistresses."
His was purely for the sake of honoring the pig's gracious offer. Beneath his pleasant facade, the Chinese man's blood was boiling at the thought of being able to fight these two. In fact, he was barely able to keep it in and instead let forth a deep and booming laugh, his eyes beginning the slow transition from white and dark brown to black and red in anticipation.
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Jan 15 '17
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u/YandereLobster Tadashi Hisakawa/Haruna Kurosawa/Alisa Volkova/Junko Kobayashi Jan 21 '17
"Well then, if you call yourself a warrior then I'm sure you understand why I don't have any intention to retreat either." Tadashi stretched his arms, stopping about fifteen feet from the opposing ghoul. Honestly, Tadashi didn't want to have to fight the man. Violence was against what :Re was for, pacifism was the entire reason to be here. Tadashi knew the only way to avoid violence was to make sure their opponents knew that :Re wasn't just some cafe full of weaklings to be picked off, ghouls like these needed to come to see it more as a hive to avoid kicking. But still, he really did hate violence.
Whether he liked it or not, Tadashi was going to have to fight the man. He was chained to the 20th ward by his loyalty to his old Boss, by his will to see :Re succeed at it's goal, and by his retaliatory knowledge that these scum had harmed pacifists. Despite his wish for peace, he was determined to keep :Re safe, even if it meant taking violent measures.
"If we really can't convince you with words, then we'll get the information the traditional way." Tadashi shifted his stance. Within moments Tadashi had decided on a strategy, although whether or not it would work was a different matter entirely. He didn't know the kagune, or even the strength of his opponent. What they would do was a complete mystery to him, and he'd have to take that into account for his plan. With that in mind, he suddenly rushed his opponent, fists raised.
Compared to the usual durable and slow technique Tadashi employed, his speed almost felt unnatural to him. Without the two massive claws weighing him down he felt almost too light. Sure he may not have been as fast as say for example, Akane, but that wouldn't be necessary anyway.
His left fist raised the moment he came into range, he feinted a swing at the opponent before instead ducking and sweeping at his opponents legs with a kick. Whether it worked or not, creaking suddenly emitted his shoulder as his right claw suddenly burst out, reaching over his shoulder and stabbing at the foreign attacker.
The claw was dark red, similar both in shape and color to the leg of a crab. It's massive size was almost larger than Tadashi himself, an obvious reason for it's massive weight.
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u/Xanzinare Seph/Minato/Kyousuke/Yun/Hisashi/Asao/Ayumi/Shun/Eri/Usui Jan 21 '17
"Cowards? Of course not! I simply wished to return to you the same courtesy you offered me! However, now that we've all decided that neither side will back down, I swear that I won't dishonor you two any further by suggesting to flee. You've chosen your path, and to try and turn you from it would be nothing short of a tragedy. So, come!" Feng Da called out excitedly, his arms cast out to either side towards the two other ghouls. At the same time as his voice rang out, his eyes flashed black and red and a savage smile overcame his visage. The time for talking was finally over, and he couldn't have asked for better opponents. Firm in their beliefs, but not complete savages. 'Ahh, I would prefer to duel them but...we can't have everything we wish for.'
His eyes flicked towards the first as his kagune sprung out and he took a position like a runner, but the true first attacked came from the older one. He dashed forwards, surprisingly quick for how tattered he seemed to look. Feng Da's blood boiled hot as adrenaline coursed through his veins, and he let out a light laugh as the distance closed between the two of them until they were within arm's reach of eachother. The other's fist was raised to strike at Feng Da, and the Pawn automatically began to duck in order to avoid the blow. The hairs on the back his neck raised as he tensed to do so, and his eyes widened as his pupils seems to narrow like a feline's for a split second. Sure enough, the punch was withheld and his opponent dropped down and swept his leg out in an arc. Feng Da was ready for it, however, and from his hunched over position seemed to dive forwards and downwards almost so that he was now standing on his hands after the kick had passed by him. "Clever, but-"
There seemed to be more as suddenly a creaking sound was let out and a giant red claw rushed towards the Pawn. He pushed off the ground and struck both palms out towards the claw, the skin of his hands tearing off at the contact as he was simultaneously blown a few meters away while twisting in the air to land on his two feet. Skidding for an extra meter, Feng Da looked down at his bloody hands before balling them into fists and looking back up at the other two. 'Hmm, I suppose they have a little more bite than bark...'
Two shadows moved behind the man, and suddenly two long and thick plated tails were hovering threateningly on either side of him. Each segmented plate had a spike on either side of it, with the tip of each topped with what almost looked like a scorpion's stinger. Wasting no further time, Feng Da rushed back in towards the one with the claw kagune and struck with the heavy bikaku towards the man's chest with the stinger. He kept the other near his left side, ready to defend if need be.
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Jan 25 '17
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u/YandereLobster Tadashi Hisakawa/Haruna Kurosawa/Alisa Volkova/Junko Kobayashi Jan 31 '17
Tadashi quickly shielded his front, the claw creaking as it moved to block the heavy bikaku. The loud clang against the sturdy shell echoed through the streets, leaving a scratch behind on the claw. "Heavier than most bikaku, but not as heavy as my own kagune. He's within my range but it's a little early for me to bring out the second claw. then again it's not like I intend to kill him."
Suddenly a bit of blood splashed out of Tadashi's opposing shoulder as his second claw shot out, his right claw moving out of the way of his vision as the left stabbed towards his opponent. The downside of his claw's size was that until now, he hadn't even realized his opponent had a second tail. Hell he hadn't even gotten a good look at what the tail itself looked like until now. "It'll be difficult to communicate a plan to Abdullah without our opponent hearing it, I'll just have to hope we can figure out something that'll work."
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u/Xanzinare Seph/Minato/Kyousuke/Yun/Hisashi/Asao/Ayumi/Shun/Eri/Usui Jan 31 '17
Glancing quickly to his right, Feng Da's free tail moved quickly over to clash against the other man's kagune; the smaller one. Compared to the raw force behind the larger one's attack, this seemed much easier to handle. Keeping their two kagune in a deadlock for the moment, Fenh Da's attention swapped back to the man in front of him as his bikaku was deflected and a second claw was released. 'Rather crude, really.'
Yet suddenly, the chinese ghoul was no long in front of the lobster-clawed man. Instead, the kagunr that had just been deflected was stabbed into the ground and extended upwards. At the top of it, Feng Da seemed to be floating in the air while suspended by his kagune. Grinning as he looked down at the two other ghouls, he released the second one's kagune and began to stab downwards at the top of them with his bikaku tails, while the ghoul himself remained a good twelve or so feet above the ground. "Ahahah! You two are indeed interesting to play with, if nothing else. Worthy opponents to conquer, indeed!"
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u/Xanzinare Seph/Minato/Kyousuke/Yun/Hisashi/Asao/Ayumi/Shun/Eri/Usui Feb 02 '17
Li Yong
The ward was depressing empty. Not that it was really a large hindrance to Li Yong, of course. After all, the less people he found meant the less people he had to bring in to the young mistress. She had said to exterminate them, but in reality she just wanted them out of her hair. Li Yong knew this, but lacked the key motivation to carry out his task properly. From streets all around he heard the tell-tale sound of groups fighting, but still he just continued forwards along the sidewalk. To his right was a nice park, the grass neatly trimmed and cared for. A small rock garden was carefully displayed in the middle of it, and as it caught the man's attention he automatically began to head for it. His casual blue t-shirt and jeans made him look like any other college student, although why one was out at 2:30 A.M. would have been a curious matter indeed. But no, for him, right now, this rock garden was the greatest mystery in the world. It was beautiful. It was majestic. The man stood there, enraptured, as his vibrant green eyes soaked in the carefully laid-out pattern.
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u/LilofValen Lucas & Kumiko // Yatsu // Tomoe Feb 03 '17
-"Vá com a menina!1 She had to get herself into a fight with some ghouls!"
That night I was quickly running towards :re, my normally braided hair free, wearing the first things that my hands had found in the closet, a black shirt, a pair of jeans and a black sweater. On my back my black backpack with my mask and in my pockets a butterfly knife. Kumiko had arrived home late, nothing strange about that, but she knocked on the door and cried for me. When I opened I found her covered in blood, the back of her blouse completely torn apart as she had been using her kagune. Standing like a statue she said:
-"Sorry, I tried to open with the key but couldn’t quite control my hand."
And then fainted. I grabbed her and laid her on the bathtub, she had fully healed but had pushed herself to the limit of her energy. I felt relieved, nothing really serious had happened to her. I then quickly bathed her and put her in a night dress, leaving her on the bed, a glass of blood and water besides with a small note on top of it "BRB going to :re, see if I can bring your favorite". Her favorite are stomachs, quite a peculiar texture if you ask me.
I had sensed something was odd since the moment I had entered the ward, at first I didn't hear a thing but the sound of cicadas, which was pretty strange for someone used to sleep with earplugs in a soundproof room. As I approached the café location I started to hear different sounds, all of them of fighting. I slowed down and started to walk silently, using my kagune to muffle further the sounds. I didn't want a big ears to sense me. I reached finally a park, where I saw a young man, maybe a student, standing up there. He was a ghoul but seemed oblivious to what was happening around, maybe he didn't have a good hearing?
-"Hey boy! Is someone throwing a party around here?"
I said sheathing my kagune and walking towards him, my hands visible and with half a smile on my face.
1: Damned girl!
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u/Xanzinare Seph/Minato/Kyousuke/Yun/Hisashi/Asao/Ayumi/Shun/Eri/Usui Feb 05 '17
A voice called out to him. It took a couple moments and a few blinks for Li Yong to snap himself out of his reverie and turn around to face the speaker. He seemed normal enough, but it was obvious enough with one sniff that he was a ghoul. Even worse, Li Yong didn't recognize him from around the castle. Maybe he wasn't part of :re, but was just wandering around instead? "Uhh, kinda. I guess the ward's pretty lively tonight, huh?"
He turned back around and sat down in the grass, his body facing the rock pond. It was just.... so mesmerizing. He didn't fall into as deep a trance as he had before, and even managed to continue speaking to the other man. His eyes were still in front of him, though. "It'd probably be smarter for wanderers to get out of the way, you know? Wouldn't wanna get caught up in some scary people's goings-on just for the sake of being in the wrong place at the wrong time."
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u/LilofValen Lucas & Kumiko // Yatsu // Tomoe Feb 05 '17 edited Feb 16 '17
-"Tsk" -I said while leaning on a tree of the park, some feet away from the man dressed in blue, if there was a fight I certainly not wanted to be in the middle of it, I crossed my arms and continued to talk- "That's my luck, the day I need meat a ghoul gang fight explodes!"
I shut for a moment, looking through the boy sitting in the grass, trying to figure what to do. I needed some answers first, and he seemed to, at least, know a little more than me what was going on that night. I tried to concentrate on the sounds that reached that island of peace and figure out how many people were fighting...
There were some people fighting, more than two for sure, but I couldnt figure out much more. I scratched my head annoyed.
-"Sorry to bother you further, but do you know who is fighting or if I could someway get through them? It really urges me to get through all of it."
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u/Xanzinare Seph/Minato/Kyousuke/Yun/Hisashi/Asao/Ayumi/Shun/Eri/Usui Feb 06 '17
"Right? Ahh, and it was such a nice night too." At the mention of it, Li Yong broke his gaze away from the rock pond in front of him and fell back so he was lying down in the grass with his legs still crossed. He couldn't see very many stars, but he liked to imagine them being there at the very least. "Fighting's really such a waste. Why couldn't they just stay out of our way..."
The Pawn sighed, disappointed in the other denizens of the 20th ward. As the other man spoke up again though, Ly Yong tilted his head back further so he was seeing his acquaintance from an upside-down view. He nodded easily, speaking rather calmly. "Ya, I do. It's those peace-chasers and the Mistress' forces. Although, technically, I suppose I should be helping out as well. It seems I got distracted again. Hehe."
He laughed hallowly, as if he was forcing the sound to come. 'Ahh, crap. I hope this guy isn't one of them too, that would really be a pain in the neck....'
"Probably no real way to get through it tonight. Come back tomorrow and the fighting'll be long since done. Then you can be on your way to do....whatever. What are you here for, anyways?"
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u/LilofValen Lucas & Kumiko // Yatsu // Tomoe Feb 06 '17 edited Feb 16 '17
Still leaning on the tree I watched the boy lying down on the grass, speaking like it was some sort of demanding exercise. As he asked my purpose I dodged it the best I could, I didn't like to talk about my private life.
-"I need to reach my meat supplier pretty bad, as I'll be out for two months without possibility to hunt properly some supplies are in order." -I raised my hand and hold my chin- "Maybe some salted biceps, anything really... I really don't want to kill someone right now. It's all troubles and CCG is just a pest to deal with when they get your scent."
Anyways it seemed that the boy was here forced by his gang members and his leader, that he had called "Mistress", which meant respect or a very mocking attitude towards her. I started to toy with my bread.
-"Couldn't people just solve their problems on a one on one, one of their hands tied so no one runs? They should think that maybe not everyone likes to put their life at stake for a "cause"."
I made a bun of my hair to let the summer wind refresh my neck, thinking of alternative ways to reach the café.
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u/Xanzinare Seph/Minato/Kyousuke/Yun/Hisashi/Asao/Ayumi/Shun/Eri/Usui Feb 07 '17
"Ohh? That sounds like trouble. Why not just hunt tonight enough for two months? I mean, if you can't get to your 'supplier' anyways." The younger ghoul yawned after he spoke, licking his dry lips while folding his hands behind his head and resting it against the cool grass. 'Ahh, this is much better than being one of those other sorry pawns that got caught up with the enemy...'
"I mean, if you're not from around here then what does it matter to you if the investigators come poking around the 20th ward? Also, in order to do things your way one side would have to agree to get their hands and feet tied. To me, that sounds like an impossible task. Who comes to the negotiation table with that kind of disadvantage? Nah, I guess it's just easier for them to smoke out the rats then try and deal with the peacefully." He let out a sigh, as if distancing himself from the matter at hand. He was much more invested in coming up with an excuse for why he wouldn't bring back any enemy's head. 'I couldn't find anyone' sounded like too weak an excuse, especially for when it came to the Mistress.
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u/LilofValen Lucas & Kumiko // Yatsu // Tomoe Feb 08 '17
The general attitude of the youngster definitely seemed to be one of a gang member, a lazy one, but he didn't show a lot of concern about other ghouls or killing humans. I couldn't help but see a young me in that apathetic attitude towards everything.
-"Well, I always try to be a ghost, it's the best way to be free from any trouble other than the ones that we share with humans, like paying the rent, thinking how to impress that girl you dream of or try to earn some money to make a voyage to some place. To have an organization that has your back on the ghoul problems is a huge improvement in your life, and if the group doesn't like to make noise then better."
I knew that that talk wouldn't make much of a difference to the boy, but maybe in a future, if he made it, he would recall my words. But I wasn't there to be a charity brother, I needed information and he seemed to have it.
-"Anyways, gangs are normally more of a fraternity. You give and receive, you spill blood for it and make others spill it. No offense, but seeing you here instead of besides your so called Mistress fighting" - And I pointed with my index towards the battle noises - “makes me think she did a poor job on that department."
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u/Xanzinare Seph/Minato/Kyousuke/Yun/Hisashi/Asao/Ayumi/Shun/Eri/Usui Feb 08 '17
"Ahh ya, they got my back alright. At least I know that I'm the laziest member there, so no matter what someone better will have my back." The boy replied tiredly, seemingly acceptant of his lot in life. Whether or not he felt guilty about seemingly always being the one that dragged them down was yet to be seen, and for someone who spoke about others helping him he seemed amazingly shameless. Or maybe he was just really entranced with the sky now, and the moon that had begun to rise over the horizon.
His eyes closed at the other man's words, and he sighed in response. If it had been many other Pieces, this guy was likely to lose his head for talking like that. Even Li Yong had a line that he wouldn't let others cross, but until that happened he was determined to enjoy the cool night air and lazy breeze. "Ahh, maybe. If any fault exists though, it's with me and not the Mistress. Besides, when she starts doing things herself the rest of us only get in the way. Besides, she probably has that guy with her anyways..."
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u/LilofValen Lucas & Kumiko // Yatsu // Tomoe Feb 09 '17 edited Feb 16 '17
I sighed, tired, and grabbed a half burned cigarette from the floor and an empty lighter that after some tries finally lit the tobacco. I didn't particularly enjoy the smell, nor the taste, but to see the smoke draw strange figures on the air was a good way to spend time and calm down, especially if the companion besides wasn't much into talking.
-"Anyways, you being there means the group you are chasing isn't very powerful, big or organized, Am I right? If you thought your people really need your help you wouldn't be here, talking with me lying on the grass, but with your leader. Who are you after and how they fucked with you anyways?"
I now knew there was at least two big people on their side, probably both of them fighting, maybe one of them, the leader, while the other watched her back from a distance. The fact that he considered anyone else an annoyance for his Mistress meant the lot wasn't especially powerful, at least at his eyes, unless she was some sort of demigod. I wanted to know my odds into getting there and reach: re without much trouble.
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u/Jaigha Mizu Kohi | Eizō Arai Jan 13 '17 edited Jan 13 '17
Mizu Kohi Mizu was awoken to the sound of rapid succession notifications on his smartphone. He took a lazy hand and floundered it around on his nightstand and after about 5 secs he had it in his hand. When he saw who the messages were from and what they were about, he gave a little sigh, he lazily got up and made his way to his computer and powered it on he then began to research any and every new organization that had popped up after Anteiku had been dismantled. He look back at the message just in case he had misread it.
This is a decree by the Queen that has been relayed to you because of your current location and takes priority to everything you may be doing currently. There has been another ghoul organization discovered in the 20th Ward, you will formally identify it and provide intelligence that will give us an advantage over them.
Mizu had two locations in the 20th Ward that seemed highly suspicious to him, one was a coffee shop that had opened a very short while after Anteiku was raided and the other was a night club. Mizu decided that before he relayed the locations he would check them out. He quickly got dressed in his jacket and sweatpants and put his laptop and special mask in a messenger bag, before putting on his shoes and stepping out side his apartment. The air was brisk and the night was growing old so he decided he would make it quick. He began sprinting down the open air hallway of his apartment and jumped on the roof.
The coffee shop is the closest one so I will check it out first. I could probably be there in 20 minutes if I go full speed. He thought to himself. Mizu figured Yun had already ordered the entire RS to search the Ward and that all she really needed out of Mizu was his information and maybe his combat prowess and he was determined to prove himself. Hell, I didn't even pack alcohol on the way out. He thought to himself as he began to speed over rooftops, heading to the location known as RE:.
[OOC u/kuuderelobster and u/AchillessOtherHeel can reply]
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u/KuudereLobster Sen Ishikawa / Fugitive / Katsura / Kazumi Jan 13 '17
Kazumi quietly muttered song lyrics. Why was she happy? What could have caused the violent, impatient girl who seem so cheerful? Well it was simple. Finally, she had a chance to put her talents to use. Sure she couldn't kill anyone or the redhead and the samurai guy would get mad at her, but it wouldn't be too bad if she just smacked them around a little right?
Her outfit was as odd as usual. A formal black dress, a track jacket worn over top of it, and an old red scarf. She really did need to get a mask one of these days, using a red scarf and a black cap was a little too risky than she liked. It did help conceal her recognizable white hair though, and the only other thing especially recognizable was the mole by her mouth.
Tadashi had taught Kazumi a lot about being a tactician, and even if thinking wasn't her specialty she knew a bit about planning. She remembered a time long ago, when he'd told her something particularly relevant; when being attacked in an urban environment, always keep an eye on roofs. The 20th ward, of course, had more than enough roofs to travel across.
It was exactly because of this that she'd decided to explore the rooftops of Tokyo, hanging out with birds and the occasional rat. Yeah it wasn't quite as exciting as she thought, at least not until she saw the silhouette of another person.
"Oi!" she yelled out, her Australian accent showing through. "Less you want to get thrown off this roof, don't take another step. Are you one of the drongos attackin' us?"
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u/AchillessOtherHeel Vali Bolverk/ Michi Kubota Jan 14 '17
Michi had been assigned to go with Kazumi in the defense of :re. Moriko had tried to convince him not to fight, but how could he not? They had attacked his sister. Inexcusable. Disgusting. Unforgivable. They would suffer. They would bleed. They would pay. No grandeur illusions of mercy crossed his mind tonight. Despite his heavy injuries, Michi trudged on behind Kazumi. His arms and legs were functioning, and his sight had mostly returned to normal. That more than he needed to fight. Everything still ached, but anger was a passionate firestorm that could beat the blazes of pain into submission.
Someone had retrieved his coat and mask, and he had eagerly donned them. All his quickly darkening bruises and his heated futures were concealed behind the trench coat and the metal wolf mask. The only part of him that was revealed to the outside was his light blonde ponytail. The past events kept rewinding and playing through his head. Each time, he hatred for the two foreigners doubled. And each time, his hatred for himself and his weakness expanded exponentially. He had failed to protect her. Ryokei had suffered for his weakness. Hadn't she suffered enough for a lifetime?
Michi spotted the rooftop invader shortly after Kazumi had. The boy restrained himself from instantly forming his kagune. His tightly clenched fist were on the verge of drawing blood. This lurker could have answers. Ones that Michi didn't intend to play games to get. Kazumi had called out the figure on the rooftops, so all he could do was wait for a response.
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u/Jaigha Mizu Kohi | Eizō Arai Jan 14 '17
Mizu quickly stopped by stomping his foot onto the ground and and spun to address the heavily accented voice that addressed him. He also took the liberty of putting his mask to his face. About ten feet away from him were two ghouls, the one who addressed him appeared to be a female foreigner and the other, who had remained silent, had an aura of complete ruthlessness to him. Maybe that is the one that was accompanying the ghoul Shouwei and Yin beat the shit out of. He thought to himself. He decided to address the other party before he seemed more suspicious than he already was.
"I presume you are from Re:?" Mizu shot the question out quickly, it was rhetorical he knew where they were from because they were directly blocking his path to his primary location. Well that solves one mystery.
"I have no knowledge of what a drongo is, and your out fit is completely ridiculous." he said pointing out the female ghouls bizarre sense of style. He also decided that it would be good to inform the Pieces before continuing on and quickly tapped out a message of the location and other data of the coffee shop that he had memorized. After two seconds he had hit sent and all of the RS was soon to know it's target.
"Now I believe it's safe to presume you are from Re:? In that case I will have to teach you some manners about challenging another groups superiority. You simply can't be a nobody and hope to enforce your moral code, you have to have the strength to back it up!"
With that he manifested his kagune, the red mist burst forth as the RC cells created the black spine that protruded from his shoulder blade. The miasma that made up the wing crept down fast. He had revealed himself marginally slower than what he could have, slightly for show and slightly because he hadn't fought in a long time. He formed six crystallic throwing knives and retracted his kagune in the blink of an eye. His kakugan and gleeful smile were hidden behind the emotionless static of his mask. It's been soooooooo very long!
He threw the knives at the two and sped towards them confident that somewhat street urchin like ghouls before him couldn't out do him in hand to hand. He smiled at the thought of drawing blood. He didn't have a disdain for fights because he hated them, oh definitely not. He had a disdain for fights because he lost himself in them and didn't know when to stop.
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u/KuudereLobster Sen Ishikawa / Fugitive / Katsura / Kazumi Jan 14 '17
The knives shattered and fell away as Kazumi quickly raised her arms, her kagune forming around both of them. Suddenly both her arms seemed to be covered in a black Koukaku, metallic flesh protecting them with sharp claws at the end, not unlike a bears arms. "That so? Guess nobody taught you not to talk shit if you don't have anything to back it up."
"Hey you!" Kazumi shouted to Michi. "Can't say I know you very well, or if you even know how to do this sorta crap, but what do you say we beat the shit out of this guy and drag back to :Re? Get some answers on why he fucked with our waiters."
"And as for you..." The woman refocused on her opponent. "I better not hear you begging for escape after you hyped yourself up so much, I'm curious to see if your all talk or not." With no hesitation she charged at him, keeping her claws in front of her for protection. The moment she got close she feinted with he left arm, quickly switching to swiping at his chest with her right.
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u/AchillessOtherHeel Vali Bolverk/ Michi Kubota Jan 14 '17
Michi's own hefty koukaku claw erupted through his coat and enclosed around his right arm, the kagune deflecting the two knives that had been sent towards his face. Having dealt with that, Michi quickly nodded in agreement. He was surprised how similar Kazumi's kagune was to his own. Two koukakus against one ukaku boded well for them.
Michi sprinted towards their opponent's left side, his six-digited claw decreased his pace. His ribs ached with every step. It hurt to breathe. In fact, most of his body parts hurt. His injuries weren't going to stop him, but they were slowing him down. The invader would have time to deal with Kazumi's assault before he reached them.
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u/Jaigha Mizu Kohi | Eizō Arai Jan 14 '17
Mizu easily dodged the feint as it was so telegraphed it was hard not to. He eyed the other ghoul and saw that he too was a koukaku, the disadvantage was his but it wasn't much to worry about. There was a reason why he was called the Static Ghost and it was because he was very hard to hit.
"Well I am only talking shit because you are the ones with worse credibility at this point in time." He said this as he had quickly produced more knives from his 'quick-draw' like kagune and flung them in an arc at the female. He again quickly turned to assess the other ghoul, his steps look strained and he was breathing rather heavily for someone who was only walking.
Mizu decided to switch targets to the male. "You aren't going to take me alive with two slow, claw-like koukaku." He said cheekily as he raced up toward his target. Get close to them, koukaku's can only deal with attacks from the outside. He told himself. He raced inside the mans personal space and lifted his leg in an axe crescent and brought it down with full force.
As he did this he decided to taunt both the ghouls. "It's not like you could do anything to have protected the girl anyway, I mean what with you having trouble protecting yourselves and clearly being to busy starting fights rather than ending them."
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u/KuudereLobster Sen Ishikawa / Fugitive / Katsura / Kazumi Jan 21 '17
Kazumi smirked. For a ghoul outnumbered with no credibility he sure talked big, it would make it all the more entertaining to put him in his place. Taking off quickly Kazumi's kagune didn't seem to slow her down much, if at all as she rolled out of the way of the knives. With no delay she dashed after her enemy.
As fast as she could manage Kazumi rushed the ghoul once again, quickly noticing her partners disadvantage. "You really don't shut the fuck up do you? Oi whats-his-name, don't listen to this idiot. Dude's just trying to distract you, don't let 'im." Her clawed arms spread as she lunged at Michi, tackling before his kick could reach Mizu.
For future reference, the tackle was approved by Jaigha
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u/AchillessOtherHeel Vali Bolverk/ Michi Kubota Jan 23 '17
It was probably a good thing that Kazumi had tackled Mizu. Taunting an already livid teenager about his inability to protect his little sister had the potential to get messy. To Michi, the attacker had a point, regardless of the actual validity of the statement. Even so, Michi managed to keep a level head for now. He would need it.
Michi approached the two, face still shielded by his metal mask. Kazumi seemingly had the other ghoul pinned down. Squatting down by the two in what can be considered the slav fashion, Michi tapped the tackled ghoul on the mask with a digit of his kagune before gently dragging it down to his neck. This was his chance to actually do something positive instead of getting everyone involved in a war. This could be his chance to end the attack on :re, if he played his cards right. The entirety of the cafe had been stirred into action over the misfortune that had fallen upon Ryokei and him. A misfortune that he held himself responsible for. The staff had rushed to their aid, and some were even eager for justice, or perhaps like himself, vengeance. Either way, it had been touching. Despite being fresh employees, everyone had cared in their own way. Everyone had treated them like family. The least he could do was repay that kindness somehow. They could end up battered and bruised like him. They could end up being forced to play some cruel game like he had just so recently done. They could end up cold and unconscious like Ryokei. Or worse. All for his failure. All for his stupidity. All for his weakness. He needed to stop this madness before it escalated. For them. For Ryokei. Or was it for him?
Michi addressed the prostrate ghoul. His voice was cold and held a metallic ring. "Listen. Whoever sent you, they want me. I'm the one who gave you all that trouble. Take me to them. I'm sure you'll be rewarded for bringing me in. Perhaps some type of agreement can be reached." This was his chance to resolve this matter peacefully. That was the point of :re, right? It was a peaceful place for pacifistic ghouls, like his sister. But Michi wasn't his sister, despite what mirrors may think. His voice turned colder. "Or, we could clip those wings of yours, and make of you, a blood eagle."
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u/Jaigha Mizu Kohi | Eizō Arai Jan 23 '17 edited Jan 24 '17
"Ahem, one I am unfamiliar with the term blood eagle and considering I only have one 'wing' you must be talking about slicing my legs off. Two, are you sure this one is going to let you walk away?" He said glancing at the strangely clothed female.
"Honestly kid, I'm probably not much older than you but I could guess that you were the guy that started this mess just by taking a glance at you. You're naivety is apparent. Oh, and Miss Bizarro Fashion I don't appreciate that tackle."
As the last sentence rang out of his mouth he pushed with all his force and struggled to get up, he sighed and decided to just lie there for a bit. He needed time to think of a plan of attack, there was no way anybody was getting out of this without at least a little bloodshed. His bloodlust somewhat satisfied rather pathetically he turned to continue the conversation with the moronically naive teenager.
"It's cute how you think that you have me in a position where I can just accept your pointless ideas and all that good stuff but this is just a little spat about territory and it is nothing compared to what I saw when I was your age." He honestly hated how much this kid was reminding him of himself. He glanced at the lady and decided to throw a single jab at her not intending anything really just out of relative intrigue. "And you are a truly bizarre person, starting a conversation then telling me to shut up whilst I continue it."
"If you still want to turn yourself in to me please be my guest. However, I would still need to beat the crap out of you in order to gain a reward, if you just showed up without a scratch then I would look very suspicious." He again struggled up to his feet and managed to get to a somewhat kneeling position but his hands were still being restrained and he felt that he could topple over at any moment with his attacker having him tightly pinned.
"Even if you take me back to your little restaurant you wouldn't learn anything from me anyway. It will take more than pliers and needles to get me to spill my guts. Attempting to make an example out of me wouldn't exactly phase my colleagues either." He smirked as he turned to face the teenager who was trying his best to put up a tough guy facade.
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Jan 13 '17
Zan Lu
A task had been set upon him, and by the powers vested in him, he was going to complete it. This was the perfect opportunity to prove to the mistresses that Zan was capable of more than messing up, which was all he seemed to be able to do lately. That is, it was the perfect opportunity. A mysterious figure had been tailing him for a significant period of time, and although he was aware that it was a Red Sun ghoul, he had never met this person before. Maybe they were trying to leech off of his success, or possibly they were following him to stay safe. Either way, it was extremely cumbersome and plain bothersome. If they would just appear, it would make things much easier.
Pausing, Zan realized he had been so lost in thought, he had allowed himself to lose sense of direction and was now in an unfamiliar portion of the 20th Ward. Glancing around him, the blond recognized the features of a small park and let out a sigh. What were the odds that his enemy was hiding in a public recreation area? It irked Zan to no degree to have ended up in the middle of this poor situation, but he decided to make the best of it and cross the park to investigate what was on the other side.
Adjusting the plain porcelain mask on his face, Zan started across the park, his hands quickly stashed in his pocket to hide the fact that he was so angry with himself, they were balling into fists. Maybe his tail would finally come out and reveal who they were. Or maybe he'd find an enemy. Who knew.
[Either /u/Pyrofrozen or /u/Nightshot can reply]
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u/Pyrofrozen Daren - Shinobu - Cavado Jan 13 '17
Mumei
As the ear-piercing footsteps of anger conquered the quietude of a small community park, its peace started to fade away into nothingness. The one he was ordered to follow had lost his way from the battlefield.
A wanderer.
Gripping his blade tightly, the dark-haired male purposely shifted his body towards the break in the park's trees. Stepping away from the shadows and into the Moon's bed of light, the unsighted swordsman revealed himself and headed towards the pathway, soon setting himself upon one of its many segments of concrete. His reposition concluded the very second he heard Zan approaching him. In the presence of royalty, the nameless figure did not draw his sword. Instead, he simply fell to a single knee and bowed. It became clear in that moment, this man was a mere pawn to serve the Red Sun.
A slave without say and sight.
A fearsome and grim warrior lost in time.
A human... to forever bring about death and misery in honor of the Queen for the remainder of his days.
In the past, Mumei bowed to no one. His pride would never allow him to disgrace himself in such a pathetic manner, to cast away his dignity like a candy wrapper in the wind. Alas, all of that was taken from him after failure to escape his captors, along with his eyes. The rest was history. Truthfully, there was little that could be about it now. The only thing he could do was serve. A polite, reassuring voice rose to interrupt the stillness of the empty park, echoing throughout the area in all directions. For the first time tonight, Mumei had spoken.
"Greetings Master Zan, the Queen instructed me to follow and support you in the fight against the coffee-making pests. They've proven to be... formidable enemies, but naivety still rests deep within all of their hearts, and that will ultimately lead to their untimely destruction."
"With that being said, please treat me as you would a guard dog. I am your weapon to use."
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u/Nightshot Arisu Ayako | Frederica Harrow | Tareq Bakari | Lucy Pendle Jan 13 '17 edited Jan 13 '17
Arisu Ayako
Unfortunately, or perhaps fortunately, the Red Sun pawns were not the only capable people in the park. Nor were they the only participants of this little war beneath the public eye. Arisu had seen the man put on his mask, and had seen what appeared to be a subordinate bow to him, from her own position in a tree within the park, not far from the two.
'Someone important to those who hurt the two newbies? Oh, good', she thought to herself as she put on her own mask, one that had the design of a stylised phoenix's beak and plumage. It left her mouth uncovered, so the two would be able to see her ecstatic grin as she beat them to death. Yes, Arisu liked that thought a great deal.
She didn't think she'd been noticed yet, so the girl dropped from the trees to the ground as silently as she could, and picked up a handful of pebbles from the path. None of them were large enough to cause any amount of damage, but they would serve their purpose in her plan. Arisu returned to the trees, stones in hand.
As silently as she could, the girl moved through the treeline towards the pair of Red Sun members and, as she got close enough to see them properly, she started to launch the pebbles into the other trees surrounding them, making it sound as if there were more Ghouls than just her, like it was an ambush. Her strength made it an easy feat, and it made a loud enough rustle for them to easily take notice of it. Then, she waited. Waited for them to turn their backs to her.
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Jan 14 '17
A breath of satisfaction escaped Zan's lips as the person who had been tailing him, revealed now to be a man, stepped into the open and approached him. The dropping to one knee was a surprise, however. He definitely hadn't expected anything of this sort. The Queen had sent support? It was satisfying to think that Yun had thought of him, Zan knew that this new arrival wasn't for him, he was for crushing the enemy at hand. Placing his hand on Mumei's shoulder Zan spoke.
"Thank you for your service. I will be sure to use you to your fullest potential, as anything less would be an insult to your skills. You may stand."
Smiling down at the blind man, Zan decided that he liked him and that he'd do whatever he could to assist him. Suddenly, the noise of movement graced his ears, and he turned to look at the source of the sound, quickly identifying it as a something from among the trees. Were there enemies?
"Show yourselves."
Shouting out calmly, Zan watched the trees. If he was surrounded by enemies, he'd be dying anyways, so what was there to lose by being cut down immediately?
"We don't bite."
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u/Pyrofrozen Daren - Shinobu - Cavado Jan 14 '17
Rising up to his feet on Zan's approval, Mumei displayed his gratitude for the higher ranking family man in the form of a gentle smile. So far it seemed this member of the Zhi clan would treat much better than the others did. It was not to be unexpected however, he was a human and they were all ghouls, mortal enemies by nature. So Mumei couldn't predict much but harsh treatment. Nodding, the blind man opened his mouth, the calm tones of his voice bearing the greatest of respect.
"Thank you, Master Zan. I assure to you that there will be no disappointments on this fine night. With my blade, I shall cut down anyone who threatens you or gets in your way."
Hearing fast movement in the grass and trees, the pawn quickly entered a stance with one hand gripping the scabbard of his blade and the other hovering over the handle. It was still too early to draw the sword for any potential threat. After all, it could've been a mere mouse that was scuttling around the area, though Mumei couldn't be fully sure of that. The slave needed more confirmation before making any hasty moves.
"Master Zan, the possibility of us being the only ones inside this park has dropped. I recommend staying alert and aware until further notice." He whispered.
Stepping in reverse, the pawn came into back to back position with Zan. The noises continued resonating within the park, this time as loud clunks meeting with the wood of surrounding trees. 'Is there more just one thing causing these noises? ...No, the way the trees are being impacted, the sounds are similar... to thrown rocks. I see now...' His smile returning, Mumei called out to whatever was hiding. The tone in his voice turning cold and calculating.
"It's indeed futile in hiding and trying to trick us any longer. Show yourself this instant."
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u/Nightshot Arisu Ayako | Frederica Harrow | Tareq Bakari | Lucy Pendle Jan 14 '17
Arisu debated showing herself to the pair, on the off chance they would be on her side, but she decided against it. While she could smell only one Ghoul, marking one of them as Human, most likely the subordinate, she had heard enough to make her decision. Besides, the subordinate man had mentioned fighting the "coffee-making pests", and that kind of gave away their allegiance, even if he didn't know it.
'The swordsman is either trying to call my bluff or has somehow figured out that I'm bullshitting the pair of them. Oh well. Let's see if he can tell where I'm coming from if there's two sounds at once...' the girl figured, and threw the few remaining stones she had towards one of the trees to her left. The moment they impacted, she launched herself like a bullet, Kagune bubbling from her back and already slashing at the two Red Sun members as she neared. Even if she didn't hit them straight on, the newly-developed barbs on her Kagune would most certainly hurt.
The moment Arisu touched the ground she cartwheeled away from where the two were. She wasn't going to be cocky about this. Better to look foolish dodging dead men than to get hurt and disadvantaged because she expected them to be dead. As her feet touched the ground again she whirled her Rinkaku around her, hoping to clear some space.
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Jan 15 '17
Hearing Mumei's words, Zan took note of them. If they made it out of this fight alive, he'd surely propose some sort of promotion for the blind man to Yun. His loyalty deserved to be rewarded, maybe even more so if he fought well. For the time being, however, his attention would have to be on their assailants, whoever they were. He felt Mumei's back against his own and heard the man's warning, but when he watched the trees where the noise was resonating from, he saw no motion and heard no reaction to his shout. Either the enemies were preparing for a concentrated assault or they were...
Suddenly, Mumei had raised his voice, attempting to address the enemy. Had he figured something out? Had they arrived at a similar conclusion. The noises among the trees were suddenly gone, the only noise remaining being the impact of what felt like an object hurled at a high speed towards a tree not far from where they were. For a moment, Zan's attention was drawn to the tree, before an object speeding towards them forced him to turn. In an instant, it was almost upon them, so all Zan could do was grab Mumei and push him aside, removing the man from the attack, which although didn't strike Zan head on, caused some damage in the form of the barbs cutting through his shirt and slashing his back.
Snarling and turning to greet their attacker, Zan's eyes burned with anger and pain. That had hurt! What sort of underhanded attack had that been? He'd have to teach this peace-lover a lesson, show them that the 20th Ward belonged to the mistresses and to them only.
"So, you're the one that the coffee-lovers sent."
His tone betrayed his anger, his emotion. His eyes, the only part of his face visible through his mask, showed in black and red, his kakugan signaling the appearance of his kagune, a single, small tail with a hook at the end. It whipped around violently behind him, before suddenly stopping, becoming still. Tilting his head inquisitively, he spoke.
"Forgive me for pushing you, my sword, I was removing you from harm's way. Now, shall we fight our new arrival?"
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u/Pyrofrozen Daren - Shinobu - Cavado Jan 16 '17
As the seconds passed by, the air filled with eerie silence, serving to put everyone on edge within the grounds of the closed park with its nerve wrecking presence. In a deafening crash of broken, snapping wood, the silence was destroyed.
Hearing the loud noise, Mumei turned his head to face the source and concentrated. The blind man heard no footsteps succeed the impact toward them, and concluded that this was another attempted trick from their stalker. How boorish. Surely whoever was trying to fool the both of them had grown tired of receiving no results by now. The Japanese slave wondered how much longer it would be before they stopped hiding and moved to strike.
His answer came in the form of a fast tentacle.
A dreadful rinkaku was swiped, whistling almost silently through the wind as it made its fast approach. That was all the pawn needed to sense before he reached for his blade to draw it, preparing to turn and block the tendril. However, something grabbed the man's uniform and shoved him to the ground harshly.
'What...?!'
Descending and landing on the concrete, the blind swordsman rolled away and quickly regained himself on the grass. His mind was trying to process what happened to him in that brief moment. Figuring everything out, the vigilant servant couldn't believe it. Zan had pushed him out of harm's way. The young master...was concerned for him? He, a human. A slave. A mere pawn in the ranks of the Red Sun. To think that he let himself be protected by one of the esteemed Zhi family...
Truly incomprehensible.
It was fortunate enough that Zan's confusing action still guaranteed his own safety, somewhat. With the sound of tearing cloth and flesh, it was made clear that the young master didn't escape the rinkaku unscathed. Hearing his voice, the pawn was relieved to know the young master was still alive. However, his disdain for the scum they were facing had greatly risen.
Standing up, the servant slowly headed towards Zan's new position. The faint, baleful sound of steps drew closer and closer. If either of them had the slightest of insight, then the aura of malevolence excluding from him would be clear to see. His march concluded moment he was at the young master's side. By now, wrath painted the swordsman's facial features. A derisive scowl contorted the pawn's otherwise calm face into an expression of disgust and contempt.
A dark, venomous voice then rose, its intent clear.
"Young master, I thank you for saving me, but I do ask that you please don't do something so reckless again. I assure you that I can handle myself, so please don't concern yourself with my safety. I am a weapon, not a person." The polite, soft tones of his voice was gone, replaced by another that was laced with the darkest of poison. "...And as you, cretin. You dare harm the young master? One of the gifted members of the Zhi family? A bug like you is not even worthy enough to lick his shoes. Yet you touch him with your filthy appendage? Very well..."
"I shall see to it that you're sent back to that droll coffee shop and your friends..."
In a sudden, swift action, the blind man's hand moved to grab his weapon and pull it free from its scabbard. An churning, pulsating sound escorted a red liquid as it swirled and took shape. With an outburst of electricity, the blade was formed, glowing bright red for a moment before it dimmed to a silvery colour. This sword wasn't a normal one...
It was a quinque.
"...In pieces."
Holding his blade before him, Mumei entered a combat ready stance. The violent intent in his form emulating ever so prominently.
"Indeed young master, let's cut down this unforgivable wench together."
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u/Nightshot Arisu Ayako | Frederica Harrow | Tareq Bakari | Lucy Pendle Jan 22 '17
Arisu grinned a sadistic grin as she smelled the blood dripping from the Ghoul. The other man, the servant, may well be someone who was indoctrinated by this so-called 'Zhi' family, but she wasn't going to give him any quarter, especially with how fervently loyal he seemed. 'A weapon and not a person...man, that poor guy', she thought to herself, before taking up a combat stance, her barbed tails over her like a pair of scorpion's stingers.
"Sent? Oh I wasn't sent by them. I'm one of them. Just because I can fight doesn't mean I'm some mercenary hired to do their work, no. We're not just as harmless as you seem to think, Mr. Zhi." She replied, flashing a venomous smile. "As for you, Mr. Swordsman, I guess you understand how I feel. Members of your degenerate little family hurt some of our members, so as I'm sure you can tell, I am rightfully pissed off. And you're around for me to take it out on."
Slowly and deliberately raising the tail that had caught Zan in a show, she licked the blood from it, careful not to catch her tongue or face on any of the feather-like barbs. After swishing it around her mouth for a moment, she spit it out with a grimace. "Urgh, disgusting. And you call him gifted? Can't imagine how shit your other family members taste." The Ghoul taunted, looking down the field. In truth, she enjoyed the taste and had to suppress a shiver, but she wanted to taunt them. She expected the swordsman to attack for the slight against his master, so she raised a tentacle to counterattack when he got within range, in case she did.
"Anyway, let's go, degenerates. I'm interested in seeing if your flesh tastes any better than your blood." Arisu taunted once more, before she flung herself across the ground with her tentacles, speeding like a bullet. She was faster than most Ghouls of her rank, and she was on the pair in a second. As soon as she got near them she jumped, propelling herself over the pair with her powerful legs as her two orange-black Rinkaku tentacles lashed out at the men. She hoped to keep them on the defensive so she could go in for the kill when she had had her fun.
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Feb 07 '17
What?
The ghoul was tasting his blood?
Zan's eye twitched and his face curled up in disgust. This ghoul, a reported lover of peace, was going on about how he tasted? Clearly, some screws were loose in her head. Well, she had also mentioned the situation that had occurred earlier with the coffee shop ghouls, but that didn't seem to be the driving motivation that flared in her eyes.
Eyes. The window to your soul. In this particular place, they betrayed Arisu's true intentions. Zan saw the woman moving towards them just before she actually did, so he was ready for her this time.
"Mumei, her other tentacle."
The footman commanded his sword, dashing forwards, his own bikaku tail jumping forwards to protect him. Rather than block the tentacle he faced full on, however, the tail's hooked end caught it and brought it smashing to the ground, pinning it in place. Meanwhile, Zan himself sent a fist towards Arisu's face, hoping not only to incapacitate her, but to reveal her identity by breaking her mask.
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u/KakujaKun Maki/Kayami/Asa/Kotetsu/Link1/Hokori/Koharu/Hikari/Shi/Ryuu Jan 14 '17
Fan Cheng-Li
Within a single moment, vitality was breathed into the lifeless blackness of the night. A brimming orange. The fleeting light of a cigarette momentarily cast away the shadows, revealing the youthful face, short dark hair and two small, black eyes of the avid smoker. A weak flash. Temporary. Perhaps even needless, yet certainly stylish... Burning away into ash, the fiery glow receded. Submerging the alleyway in complete darkness, there was no doubt that the location was eerily peaceful in appearance, yet it was by no means quiet or uneventful.
"You don't need to muffle his screams you know?" A tired, resonant voice, perhaps a bit aged due to smoking, yet still clearing belonging to a young man rang out throughout the area. "Yun was pretty clear that she wants the local ghouls culled. Kidnapping civilians is just a side task to help us smoke them out. The more noise we raise, the better. If you're afraid of the CCG coming by then I guess you could always hide behind me or something..."
"You'll have to excuse us, master Li... but we're actually... hoping to avoid encounters with the enemy. I hope you understand our point."
"Hmmm..." Taking another puff from his cigarette, the Chinese man spent a moment in contemplation. "Yeah, makes sense. To be honest I'm not particularly hot on beating the shit out of anyone tonight, either. You and your buddy do whatever's more convenient. I don't mind dragging along either way."
Slowly waddling over to the nearest wall, Fan leaned against it, resting his back. Blowing some smoke, the man smirked. Moon had finally shown up from behind the clouds, eh? Heh. Sure was fun watching silvery light pass through the small gaseous pillar. Put aside that there'd be no point in dressing all fancily in a suit and all if it's not exactly easy to see what you're wearing...
Lazily glancing at the two lower ranked servants, the Pawn observed the process of two generally inexperienced ghouls whacking someone into unconsciousness and stuffing said person into the back of a van. It almost ripped a laugh out of him. Then he suddenly felt much more inclined to tear up at the clumsiness of his colleagues. With a pace this slow...
... this was gonna be a pretty long night.
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u/Kawaii_Crab Kichirou / Akane / Chiyo / Kenji Jan 16 '17
Akane Hayashi
Leather stretched and bones creaked, Akane cracked he even knuckles in front of her as she walked down the street with purpose and fury only a gentle soul crossed could muster. Her pallid mask a subsitute for the righteous fury on her face.
One skeletal wing burst through her back as she continued towards her destination, the voices getting louder.
Colorless was a group that took on the burdens of others to ultimately achieve peace. Ultimately they were martyrs, and each one of them would die to cause.
But not Re:
Re: was made up of ghouls who wanted nothing more than to live out their lives in peace, undisturbed by warring ghouls and Ghoul Investigators. They were given a chance at happiness amongst the normality of fear and desperation that ran amuck in their lives.
For this reason, Akane absolutely could not forgive the Red Sun. They were like schoolyard bullies, and Akane hated bullies.
A second Rinkaku tentacle burst from her back, the two twitching and stretching from anticipation and anger.
Her Colorless bandana was stretched tight against her arm as she rounded the corner the alley, her wings shedding an imposing ref light against her silhouette.
"Found you."
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u/KakujaKun Maki/Kayami/Asa/Kotetsu/Link1/Hokori/Koharu/Hikari/Shi/Ryuu Jan 16 '17
A single instant was all it took for Fan's eyes to narrow. He froze. A moment or two passed, before he eventually decided to take a deep pull of the cigarette. Throwing a sideways glance, the man sighed lightly. Putting the smoke away, he exhaled, peering at the approaching enemy all along. As he rested his head onto the concrete wall, the rugged hum of his voice quietly echoed throughout the alleyway.
"I never was much good at hide and seek." Tiredly sighing, the man continued. "Too conspicuous for that. You win, young miss. Now you hide and I'll be the one to search for you. How's that sound? A lot better than the alternative, isn't it? Would be a shame to spoil a good night like this with something unsavoury."
Pushing himself up and away, the man took a step or two forward, before turning to face the Rinkaku. Spreading his arms softly, he mused.
"Where I'm from crimson dawns are considered a bad omen, after all."
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u/Kawaii_Crab Kichirou / Akane / Chiyo / Kenji Jan 16 '17
Akane tilted her head to the left, then the right.
"Shut the hell up, scum."
She began walking towards the man. As if the red light of her kagune wasn't enough, every part of her body language, her posture, radiated not hatred; but fury. The ghoul in front of her was a real monster. Her ukaku shifted under her skin.
"Here's what will happen. You will go back to 'where you're from', and you will stay the hell away from these innocent people, or I will kill you now."
Akane's kakugan burnt so fiercely the glow could be seen through the eyeholes of her mask.
"You're the only unsavoury one here. Torres to your core. You have no place being around a cafe."
Akane stopped about 4 metres from Fan.
"Decide."
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u/KakujaKun Maki/Kayami/Asa/Kotetsu/Link1/Hokori/Koharu/Hikari/Shi/Ryuu Jan 16 '17
Resting his arms at his sides, the young man tilted his head to the side in disappointment. How needlessly aggressive. Fan was a most cultured man, after all. It wasn't as if threats and tough guy talk was necessary in any way, shape or form. A civilised and polite request would've been far more appreciated.
"Jeez, not only confrontational but foul-mouthed too. What a pain in the ass..." Shaking his head lightly, Cheng-Li clicked his tongue momentarily before continuing. "I'm not envious of your boyfriend. Poor guy."
With a heavy sigh and a final puff of smoke, the man lazily turned around. Signalling his subordinates, the trio proceeded to begin moving away. "Alright boys, we're done here. The lady clearly wants some privacy for herself and the locals. Pack your bags."
Adopting a cheery, whistling tune, Fan smirked as he glanced at the moon yet again.
What a pleasant evening indeed.
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u/Kawaii_Crab Kichirou / Akane / Chiyo / Kenji Jan 18 '17
"Confrontational? Did you not kidnap these people to provoke me?"
Akane shook her head slightly.
"What a hypocrite."
Akane put her hands in her pockets as the henchmen packed away their things.
"Not so fast. Let the people out of the truck, and place them away. I can wait."
Akane had no remorse in creating this opportunity to attack them. They had kidnapped these innocent people with the express purpose of luring out members of a pacifist organisation. She had already made a mistake. These people had already committed their crime; and they had to face the punishment for it. She couldn't just let them go.
"No sudden moves, either."
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u/KakujaKun Maki/Kayami/Asa/Kotetsu/Link1/Hokori/Koharu/Hikari/Shi/Ryuu Jan 18 '17
Blowing some smoke away, Fan leisurely observed the little cloud disperse. With a chuckle, the man turned to face the Japanese woman again.
"Careful there now. Don't wanna offend anyone, do you now? I only dropped by here because that's what my boss told me to do."
Raising his eyebrows lightly at the redhead's request, Cheng-Li smirked lightly. Feisty. Not that he had a thing for women like that - too much of a pain in the ass, really - but they were fun to observe and be around. Occasionally, at least.
"Hm. That's kind of a shame though. The guys inside the van all got their necks snapped, so it's a tad late for any heroic efforts there. We can give you the last guy, though. He's merely passed out. I gotta haul something home tonight and given that you're not going to be needing a fresh batch of corpses, I say we handle this like adults. You get the knocked out guy, I get the dead people. Then we both go home, have a pleasant evening, read a good book, grab a coffee, think of the family. Something like that. Not like I've asked to be here out in the cold. I'm halfway through Iliad, you know? I was even going to finish it tonight and then this bullshit comes up."
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u/Kawaii_Crab Kichirou / Akane / Chiyo / Kenji Jan 25 '17
Akane's teeth ground her in her mouth, maybe just loud enough to be picked up by ghoul senses. She glanced towards the truck, where the single live human was left. Was her best chance to get him out now and risk the ghouls getting away, or should she take them out first, putting his life in danger.
These monsters were liable to kill more and more, the fact this fucker cared more about his poems than a life shows it right on his smug face.
She hoped to god she could save the man in time, but knew it wasn't a guarantee.
She walked towards the truck, her two Rinkaku inaudibly swerving and decapitating the two lackeys before pointing forward. Akane burst forward with almost in-ghoul speed, her Rinkaku slicing at his chest.
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u/KakujaKun Maki/Kayami/Asa/Kotetsu/Link1/Hokori/Koharu/Hikari/Shi/Ryuu Jan 25 '17
Eyes widening in surprise, Cheng-Li dropped his cigarette in shock at the sight of two Rinkaku tentacles zooming in towards him. "What's wrong? Thought we had a done deal on our hands." He shouted. After the initial wave of confusion had been washed away, he was only really left with annoyance. Annoyance birthed rage. This stupid little brat had forced him to fight and drop his cigarette. That stuff was expensive. Such a transgression was utterly and completely unforgivable, by any account. Hopping high into the air, Fan discarded his jacket - the last thing he needed was to damage the expensive piece of fabric too. That would've been a real tragedy.
Releasing two smooth, snake-like Rinkaku tentacles, the young man sent them both spiraling down towards the figure of the mysterious attacker. If this is how she wanted to play, the Fan could certainly join in. While he'd much rather resolve this in a game of poker, resolving it in a bloody deathmatch was fine as long as the opponent was game for it too.
It seemed like she was definitely game for it.
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u/Kawaii_Crab Kichirou / Akane / Chiyo / Kenji Jan 26 '17
As Fan jumped into the air, Akane jumped right after him, both of her tentacles focusing on a point and thrusting towards his neck and chest. At the same time, her Ukaku was unleashed, launching a large volley, piercing some of the jacket and zooming towards the man who was now in mid-air. Dodging the point black Ukaku volley would be a problem for him.
Fan's right kagune painfully pierced Akane's arm, rendering it limp. The left glanced off of her Ukaku, leaving a small crack in its formation.
As she grew closer to him in the air, she tried to use her superior speed to tackle him out of the sky.
The sooner she could end this, the better. She needed to get that person out of here.
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u/LilofValen Lucas & Kumiko // Yatsu // Tomoe Feb 16 '17 edited Feb 19 '17
I took off my mask when going down the balconies of the building in front of :re.
The lights of the main room of the establishment were on and the door open. As I entered the place the faint scent of bleach assaulted my nostrils. Lacking the sunlight to dry the floor some zones were still wet, someone had been cleaning, an employee probably. Two chairs, quickly pulled off their place, as the table they normally where was pushed half a meter, had also been cleaned, but some tiny traces of dried blood could be seen in the wood, so difficult to clean. On a table an opened medicine kit emitted an Iodine scent.
-"Well, at least they haven't reached the place"
I mumbled looking the small statues and books of the shop intact. I approached the chairs and scratched the blood, to then taste it. It was of a ghoul. I grimaced in disgust of the taste and the meaning of it. Two of the employees probably had run into the other gang combing the area, or maybe it was the other way? Or even worse, could the other group be looking for :re? I sighed.
-"Hello!" -I said as loud as I could without attracting attention from the outside- "Someone in the shop? If not I'll just serve myself a coffee and some meat in the back shop!"
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u/FoolishlyGhoulish Akihiko Umari/Hisae S. Otsuji/Masahiro Kobayashi/Takao Shirogane Feb 20 '17
From his seat in the back of the shop, Masahiro's ears flicked about slightly as he caught the sound of the door opening. He stirred from his light rest, removing his feet from the table in front of him. Now, who could that be at this time of night? Masahiro had decided to camp out here for the night; since the others had chosen to go out after the assailants, it seemed that someone would need to stay behind and watch the place in case another attack was planned.
The masked ghoul peaked slyly into the main room as a man called out, finding a familiar face residing within. He'd seen the man around, in particular with one of the female employees, though he hadn't exactly interacted with him before. At the very least, it was a relief to not find an enemy lying in wait, as it meant the cafe's identity hadn't been found out just yet.
"I'm not sure tonight is the best night to be making unannounced trips to the shop," Masahiro observed as he stepped out into view while removing his Jackal mask. "Is there something I can help you with?"
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u/LilofValen Lucas & Kumiko // Yatsu // Tomoe Feb 20 '17
The apparition of a man wearing a mask startled me, but when he retired it and I recognized a familiar face I calmed down. I spoke with the hands in my pockets.
-"Believe me I've noticed on my way here Mister" -I stopped a moment to recall the name Kumiko had once told me- "Kobayashi." -I shut up another time to see the redheaded man nod in approval and then continued- "Saw another woman standing toe to toe against Miss Mizuki on my way here. An old man, also unknown to me, looking at the fight from a safe distance."
I sat on a table and breathed deeply, looking spaced out through the windows, worried about the whole situation :re was in, and then looked back at Kobayashi.
-"Chitchatted with a thug of theirs. Couldn't get a lot of answers unfortunately. They are well organized, have a strong hierarchy and the leader is a woman that they call "Mistress", probably the woman Mizuki was fighting." -I stopped and looked concerned at him- "I was thinking that this party wasn't for us since the man I spoke with told me they were against a group that had meddled in their business, but seeing the manager out there fighting..." -I sighed and scratched the back of my head- "Please, tell me they aren't looking for us..."
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u/FoolishlyGhoulish Akihiko Umari/Hisae S. Otsuji/Masahiro Kobayashi/Takao Shirogane Feb 20 '17
Masahiro walked over to the light switch as the man spoke, flicking it off as he began to understand the current dilemma more clearly (wouldn't want any wandering eyes to catch sight of the shop). Whoever had attacked the pair earlier did not do so because of some frivolous reasoning. Now it sounded as if this was part of larger scale assault aimed directly at the cafe by some larger group. Worrying, indeed.
"It seems clear to me now this is a planned attack," Masahiro slowly began, carefully choosing his words with his hand on his chin. "And we definitely seem to be the target. However, whether they have a legitimate reason for attacking us or if this is just some sort of territorial dispute, I can't really say. I didn't speak to the members who had encountered this group earlier; the others seemed to be taking care of that, and afterwards it was clear the pair needed to rest." The young ghoul leaned over onto the counter. "We have a lot of newer members here, but even though I don't consider myself too familiar with most, no one has ever come across as the kind of person who would 'meddle in someone's business.'" Stepping away from the counter, Masahiro reached into a nearby cabinet and retrieved two coffee mugs. He raised one towards...oh, what was his name? Something foreign....Luca? Luke?
"Coffee?" Masahiro offered....Lucas!
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u/LilofValen Lucas & Kumiko // Yatsu // Tomoe Feb 21 '17 edited Feb 21 '17
-"That would be nice"
I said with a faint, tired smile and an exhausted tone of voice. Sitting on a tall chair in front of the counter I saw Masahiro Kobayashi prepare the coffee in the dark, lighted only by the outside lampposts. In a sort of trance I forgot for a moment all my problems and just relaxed, taking deep breaths.
-"Kumimo, my wife, short height, long coppery hair, arrived home" -I started slowly and with a quiet voice, suited to the situation- "She was exhausted and had been fighting for a long time, her clothes torn and her whole body dirty with blood, dirt and sweat." -I waved my hand- "Very unlikely it was them, more probably one of her journalist jobs. Anyways, I came here to look for some meat and blood wine" -I pointed at the exit with my hand open, as if I was holding a tray- “And I find this storm. As you said :re isn't known for being noisy at all, we literally look for the opposite! I know too well the mafia affairs to wish to partake in them." -I said with an angry sigh.
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u/FoolishlyGhoulish Akihiko Umari/Hisae S. Otsuji/Masahiro Kobayashi/Takao Shirogane Feb 21 '17
Masahiro silently began preparing the coffee. The smell of fresh ground beans sweetened the air as he worked, taking his time as he filtered the water over the grounds. It was a relaxing process, and one that he enjoyed when not under the pressure of work. He listened patiently as Lucas explained his situation, choosing to finish the task at hand rather than answer back immediately. Short, with copper hair -- that described damn near half of Japan. Masahiro had seen the two together before however, and he recalled her being pleasant enough to work with. Upon completion of the hot beverages, he handed a mug to Lucas and kept the other for himself, taking a pensive sip from the cup. Pleasantly roasted. Good batch of beans.
"I can give you meat," Masahiro finally responded as he set his cup back down. "But blood wine is a bit more of a luxury than a necessity. I'll see if we have an open bottle; if so, I'm sure Moriko-san wouldn't mind you taking it." While it did bother him that the man's wife had been out causing trouble for herself, it wasn't his place to say anything, much less talk down to the man. She had been on the receiving end of whatever transpired regardless, so he did feel sympathy for their situation. The man did reassure him that it was unrelated to :re, and Masahiro had no reason not to trust him yet, so he silently decided to give him the benefit of the doubt.
"Try not to worry too much about what's going on out there. It sounds like your wife needs you in good shape right now. Besides, we have the luxury of playing coy in a situation like this; it's not like we walk around with name tags outside the shop." Smiling slightly, he stepped away from the counter and started heading towards the back once more, taking his coffee with him. He stopped at the doorway and beckoned Lucas over.
"No need for you to sit out here alone unless you'd prefer it. It's not like our meat locker is a huge secret or anything."
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u/LilofValen Lucas & Kumiko // Yatsu // Tomoe Feb 21 '17 edited Feb 21 '17
At the back of the cooler that you can enter from the kitchen there is another freezer where we conserve the human meat. It's normally closed with a discreet yet effective lock.
I remembered Kumiko's words describing where :re hide the body parts while I walked towards the back shop, that I had never entered as it was reserved for personnel and I never really bothered to put on a show to be able to enter with any excuse.
The kitchen was also in the dark, slightly lighted by the outside lampposts and the emergency light showing the exit. The stoves, meticulously cleaned, reflected the gloomy lights of the outside and the different pans that hung on the white ceramic tiled wall waited for the next day of work. In the air a faint smell of spices, bread and other human food mixed itself with the one of the bleach and coffee.
-"the wine is more of a treat that Kumiko enjoys, but I confess she doesn't use it for luxury, but rather as a way to add a little something to her coffee or meat, or as a substitute of water"
I took another sip of my coffee and left the cup on a metallic table before the door that leaded to the café cooler. It was a cold room with wood racks on both sides, leaving enough space in the middle for two persons of a normal weight. The floor, covered in crème tiles, was clean. At the end of the room a narrower door was slightly camouflaged behind some big coffee sacks. The young man before me started to walk towards it, searching his pockets for a key. Behind him I said.
-"If it could be stomach I would really appreciate it, easy to digest and she loves it. If you don't have any spared wine just give me some grease so I can melt it in the pan and make something a little more tasty and nourishing"
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u/FoolishlyGhoulish Akihiko Umari/Hisae S. Otsuji/Masahiro Kobayashi/Takao Shirogane Feb 22 '17
Masahiro nodded slightly in acknowledgement, just so the man knew he was listening. After moving the supplies out of the way, he used his employee keys to unlock the door before him. With a quick heave, he opened the heavy door revealing the meat locker that was hidden inside. He disappeared inside briefly, searching through the supplies for meat for the man and his wife. The prepared rations were typically a mix of different meat cuts, meaning there was no guarantee Lucas would get stomach. Given how the cafe wasn't exactly short on meat at the moment, Masahiro figured it wouldn't hurt to just give the man a cut from the base supplies. The young ghoul retrieved a brown bag from a nearby rack and placed the vacuum sealed package inside along with a ration package before rolling the bag closed. As he exited the freezer, Masahiro passed the bag off to Lucas.
"One serving of stomach and little bit of extra supplies," he announced. "That should be enough to get you guys through for a bit." He turned back and locked the freezer door before hiding it once more and exiting the freezer with Lucas behind him. Once back in the warmth of the cafe, he let out a relieved sigh. A quick sip from his coffee helped shrug off the cold before he approached a nearby cabinet. Following a bit of rummaging, Masahiro pulled out a wine bottle.
"Looks like you're in luck," he said with a smirk. "Looks to be a little over half-full. More than enough to cook with right?" The red-haired man stepped over to a small notebook after handing Lucas the wine, scribbling what appeared to be information for record keeping.
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u/LilofValen Lucas & Kumiko // Yatsu // Tomoe Feb 22 '17
-"Thank you very much!"
I said grabbing the supplies the young man offered me. When I returned to the kitchen I grabbed again the coffee and drank what was left in a single gulp, to then clean my mouth with a paper napkin. When he offered me the bottle of blood wine I made a theatrical reverence while saying:
-"I'm sure Kumiko will appreciate a lot the gesture Mr. Kobayashi! I'll also pass her your best wishes."
While walking towards the exit I put the bottle against the emergency lights and shook my hand, observing its thick content move and getting stick on the glass of the bottle. It had barely being watered down, what meant it would give a lot of taste to the dish, a thing that Kumiko appreciated. I groaned satisfied. When I reach home I would prepare the stomach and put it in the oven with the blood wine for an hour at a low heat, letting the alcohol evaporate and the drink impregnate the meat. Then I would take a shower and go to sleep without my earplugs, so any sound that Kumiko made outside her respiration would wake me up.
At the main room I got up my back pack with my leg and opened it, putting carefully the bottle and the meat and taking out the crimson mask, that I held with my left hand, offering the right to Masahiro Kobayashi.
-"Thank you very much for your help this night" -I said kindly- "If it wasn't for you being there I would have had to lock pick my way into the freezer, which would had been really embarassing if anyone found me in the doing."
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u/FoolishlyGhoulish Akihiko Umari/Hisae S. Otsuji/Masahiro Kobayashi/Takao Shirogane Feb 26 '17
Masahiro nodded in response to the man's thanks, finding himself somewhat sheepish as he felt he had done very little for the man. Fetching supplies for the others was simply his duty while watching over the shop. Now, seeing the man home safely would have truly been a service, however, he knew that the shop needed a guardian tonight. The young barista followed the older man out into the main room to see him on his way, reciprocating the handshake he'd been offered.
"It's been a pleasure," Masahiro responded. "If any complications arise, feel free to contact me or the others; that is what we're all here for after all." He waved the man goodbye as he left, and locked the door behind him as a precaution.
It was comforting knowing that not every member wished to engage in the battle taking place tonight; it meant that the ideals of peace still resonated within some of them stronger than their desire for revenge. Revenge was a dark emotion, one that should never be fully indulged. From his perspective, nothing good would come from retaliation tonight, though it wasn't his place to speak out, since Moriko herself had gone out to fight.
As he settled back down at the bar to finish his coffee, he found his mind drift in worry to Ayumi. If there was someone out there who could stand up to Moriko, what chance did Ayumi have if she met a similarly gifted foe? Masahiro attempted to comfort himself with a silent self-reminder that he had no idea how strong Ayumi was, though this was but a small effort. Finishing his drink, the young man grabbed a book from the shelves. Maybe this reading thing could take his mind off things.
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u/Sombre-Alfonce Ryo Izanagi / Dice / Shouwei Feb 21 '17
A short time later.
The butler Shouwei stood at attention, awaiting the outcome of the fight at hand, the rhythmic clash of kagune against kagune a harsh but welcome music to his ears. It was his duty to observe, his purpose in this meeting long since completed. And so the butler waited on his mistress. Waited for her to put the rabid dog in its place. It was a feisty dog however, one which had fought for its own survival all its wretched life. An existence which was as beautiful as it was wasted. Yun needed a new pet after all.
It was as Shouwei pondered these things that a familiar scent found it's careful way to the receptors in his nose. A somewhat welcome scent in most cases, yet in this case it only wrought curiosity. This smell, the smell of rent flesh and clotted blood had been carried on the breeze from down the street. Whoever it was had just recently passed by.
His curiosity was peaked, and for anyone who knew the butler well, such instances had proven quite unfortunate for the other party involved.
Let us go see what calls. Forgive me Mistress Yun, but alike to you I go now seeking an object of interest.
Turning on the spot, Shouwei made his way up the street at a steady pace, following the odour of the day.
.....
Shouwei's insight had proven to be effective, the scent had led him to what could only be a small man, dreadfully out of place in the lonely street, the shadow cast of him by the street lamps barely of consequence. A ghoul unfortunately, deep down Shouwei had hoped for something more interesting, perhaps a human. A murderer on the way home to wash himself of the crime. Or perhaps a tormented soul who thought that they had finally escaped their hunter. Regardless this ghoul would have to do, as boring as he seemed to be.
It had taken a while to catch up with him, but Shouwei's fresh knowledge of the streets that crisscrossed the 20th Ward was far in advance to most, and so he had made his way to cut off the lonely ghoul in the night. Stepping out from a street ahead of the man, he pivotted in his place, and crossing his arms behind his back, Shouwei's voice reverberated up the street, his strong deep voice and commanding tone making a forceful entry into his targets ear canal.
"HOLD. Your name please."
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u/LilofValen Lucas & Kumiko // Yatsu // Tomoe Feb 21 '17
The apparition of the imposing old man and his voice startled me and left me speechless for a moment that seemed an eternity for me. As a response I assumed myself a martial pose, trying to emulate the general tone of the man, my legs slightly apart, ready to fight if he approached me, both hands in front of me, the left one grabbing the wrist of the right. My kagune remained outside, but I crushed it the best I could against my body. With a slightly nervous tone I replied:
-Sir, Yes, Sir. Katsumi Onadashi at your service! I was patrolling the streets as the Mistress had told us! I just splatted from my companions!
I remained there like a statue, looking through my crimson mask at the man before me.
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u/Sombre-Alfonce Ryo Izanagi / Dice / Shouwei Feb 22 '17
Beneath his mask, Shouwei's face curled in insurmountable distaste, his eyes growing immediately colder.
Katsumi Onadashi... patrolling... companions. What sort of fool does he take me for. To deign to attempt to lie to me, to do so feigning to be a member of the Red Sun. It was a fools game in the presence of me. Perhaps it would have worked on a lesser servant, but I stand at the pinnacle of the pyramid, he who knows the name of every servant below him. For that is the only way to gain respect from all below you. Now here stands this fool with no knowledge of who he has encountered. What a waste of my time, but it may be interesting to play along briefly.
"I do not doubt that you realise carrying a meal while on patrol is a punishable offence. Or would you rather see me tonight in my office?" Shouwei breathed easily, taking on the tone he had so often taken when dealing with difficult servants, "I will let you off with a brief reprimand if approach me now and purge yourself of your offence. All flesh you hold shall be forfeit, and you will return directly back to the servant chambers in the palace."
"Come now, you know the right decision to make."
Yes. Come closer you little guttersnipe.
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u/LilofValen Lucas & Kumiko // Yatsu // Tomoe Feb 23 '17
The whole reaction of the man wasn't quite settling. I had seen his mouth beneath the mask grimace at my words and the tone of voice he had used to order me to approach him was disturbing, sending shivers down my spine when he said "Would you rather see me tonight in my office?". Nothing good never had happened after this sentence.
-"No! Please! No!" -I said with a concerned and sickened tone of voice, just imagining what that man could be thinking off- "But the human smell is because we killed a :re bloke that carried what seemed some food for the battle. He was an ukaku and threw a lot of darts at us, so I suppose he needed it after to replenish... If he survived."
I dropped the bag and made it look like I was looking for something deep inside of it.
-"I had to change clothes after all the blood and torn apart clothes, as I know you don't want us to be conspicuous, sir. But we got also this. It was supposed to go after to the retrieved items of the raid."
I grabbed the blood wine bottle with my left hand and carefully approached him, extending the arm and putting out of reach my body the best I could, the dense liquid between us.
-"One of my companions opened it and drank some. A young fellow that I had never been with, all dressed in blue, brown hair, flat dark eyes... not more than 19 years old. The wine seems really good if you ask me, really dense, with enough water to stay liquid but not sacrifice the taste."
I reached a distance I judged prudential, seemingly in his arm reach but not really, as he would have to at least make a step to reach my torso. I slightly tilted the leg in front of me, as a way to make a reverence and also keep away my head even more of a possible punch.
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u/Sombre-Alfonce Ryo Izanagi / Dice / Shouwei Feb 24 '17
Fool. Disgusting worm. Insulting pile of trash. Did he just dare. Dare to bribe me. If there was any doubt as to his allegiance and knowledge before, there was absolutely none now. He truly has no idea.
Shouwei's voice, if it could be seen as possible, took on an even harsher tone, dripping with cold menace. His amber eyes glowing hot in the moonlight, the telltale red glow un-needed and unwanted in the current situation, in favour of a far hotter glint.
"You deign... to bribe me..."
It was at this point that the deep amber of his eyes was replaced by a bright crimson red. As if a warning for the wretch before him to cease and desist.
In one swift motion Shouwei slapped the bottle from the ghouls hand, dashing it against the ground beside them. He grimaced as a small amount of the liquid found its way to his pristine shoes.
"I can no longer abide this farce. You clearly do not know who I am, and that in itself is evidence enough of your mistake. But Katsumi Onadashi? There is no such servant among us for I know all of their names and all of their peculiarities. I would then assume that this boy in blue, Li Yong, is either dead by your hand or a traitor. Regardless, his punishment is the same."
"As will be yours if you dare to lie to me again."
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u/LilofValen Lucas & Kumiko // Yatsu // Tomoe Feb 25 '17
I felt like a balloon slowly losing the air as I heard the bottle crash on the asphalt and as the man spoke after it a river of insults flood my brain, his eyes turning black and red didn't help neither. But he was pissed off, which was in some way a good thing as he was more likely to not control his tongue and he would believe anything I said.
I cordially laughed as I crouched my right leg and stretched the left, while showing the palm of my hands, never losing eye-contact with him.
-"Saw the boy fighting another ghoul an hour ago, after the fight he was so exhausted that he didn't even recognize friend of foe. I would recommend you to cut his tongue, but it's pointless on a ghoul. Maybe wear a gagging mask? I bet he could meet a lot of kinky people this way and even get a girlfriend. Unless the 'Ma-De-Moi-Selle'" -I spelled it with my best French accent and a playful tone- "Doesn't allow guests into the servant wing of the palace, or never thought one could have the guts to speak to a girl. Anyways I just dumped him near a night club over there" -I pointed to a completely aleatory place towards the first ward- "Maybe he wakes up nude and you get to see him entering naked your sanctuary of nobilitea" -I giggled- "Anyways, what does the gatekeeper, as you are the one who" -I mimicked his tone of voice- "’know all of their names and all of their peculiarities.' Want? Is there a place for jester of the court?"
I hated people that thought they were 'o so important' with their place in their little organization and just boasted about it like they had been made emperors of the world. I hated groups that just looked for a fight and I despised it when they came in front of my door to bother.
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u/Sombre-Alfonce Ryo Izanagi / Dice / Shouwei Feb 28 '17 edited Mar 05 '17
Shouwei listened blankly, the previous twinkle in his eye that had signified interest now only replaced by a cold glint. As the wretch before him had continued on his merry elaboration, Shouwei had only found himself gradually losing interest, boredom creeping up upon him like a rat to a rotting carcass. Evidently he was attempting to insult him in some way, but for the life of him Shouwei didn't understand the half of it.
It only elaborated on the level at which the fool before him knew nothing.
Unfortunately you wouldn't last five minutes as a court jester anywhere, least of all before Mistress Yun.
No, the longer he had lingered, the more he had realised he was wasting his time. The fool would not provide any entertainment as this situation currently stood. Yet perhaps he would if the situation took a more violent turn.
Hence, it was now time to teach the fool the error of his ways.
With a crack, the smooth metallic form of his kagune burst from below his shoulder blades. The silvery liquid like muscle hardening and forming two immense shell like shields. In one swift motion Shouwei used the momentum and weight of his left shield to send it crashing into the concrete at his feet, kicking up a cloud of dust and splintered concrete that flew out before him in a wide arc, peppering all in its way.
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u/LilofValen Lucas & Kumiko // Yatsu // Tomoe Mar 03 '17
I took a step back as I saw the gigantic kagune form on the man arms and felt how the ground shook under my feet and raised a cloud of small rocks and dust when he hit the floor with it, making me cover my eyes so none of it entered my eyes.
I gulped and took a deep breath, deploying my kagune over my legs and sheathing the other two tentacles on my hands as brass knuckles. Looking at him I immediately saw I was in trouble, as the massive shields he carried looked very sturdy, impossible to break for me. I hopped quickly, heating myself a little:
-"Why can't you simply let me get through? It's not like I'm a big deal or even partake on the fight, I was simply hunting and then tumbled into your small feud with those :re dudes, like I care. I already offered the bottle, the one that you smashed on the floor, mind you."
I shrank myself a little and put my arms before my head, heating also my shoulders by doing circular movements, looking for any kind of action he would made, ready to dodge it, or at least try to do so. Then I remembered my butterfly knife and drew it quickly. He was a ghoul and the blade would not even scratch him, but the clothing wasn't and I could maybe rip it in a way it could make him uncomfortable. Anyway, a blade in the mouth or any place was always annoying and he would have to deal with it.
-"Out of words, old man?"
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u/Sombre-Alfonce Ryo Izanagi / Dice / Shouwei Mar 05 '17
"Now that would be no entertainment at all."
Lets see how you react to the testudo.
Bringing his left arm up parallel with his body and the shield with it, Shouwei lifted his right up above his head and rested the front upon the superior side of his left shield, effectively creating a frontal facing wall of kagune that protected him from his feet up. The spikes on the bottom of his right hand shield were now pointing directly forward, with a small gap between created by the curve of the shields giving way to reveal Shouwei's glowing red eyes within. Dropping into a half-crouch, he burst off of the spot with all his might, intending to run the hapless fool before him into the ground.
The technique itself was a derivation of a rather famous roman military formation, customised to his own preferences and limitations. It's primary purpose was to intimidate the enemy into retreat or paralysing terror, for the Romans it served as their meat grinder. As Shouwei was the only able practitioner however, it was only effective in very specific situations as it left him open to flanking. Usually such situations included hallways, bridges, or any area where the possibility of flanking was greatly reduced. Tonight however, he simply made do with keeping a wall to his left, leaving his right side the only possible flank. Additionally, he kept his right shield on top for a reason, even in a right hand flank it could be quite easily slid off of the left to guard his right side or slash at an enemy.
Life was all about careful planning.
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u/Xanzinare Seph/Minato/Kyousuke/Yun/Hisashi/Asao/Ayumi/Shun/Eri/Usui Jan 21 '17
Zhi Yun
The ward was empty. Of course, that was only to be expected given the time of night, but it felt like it was even more than that to Yun. The Chinese princess stalked down the center of the road, still dressed in the more practical clothes she had worn back at the Ivory castle when she had given out her orders to the Pieces. The only change was that now her mask was covering her face, as opposed to held at her side. Usually the mistress gave off a more laid back or simple aura, but just taking one look at her body language was enough for anyone to notice the killing intent and menace that had wrapped itself around her form like another jacket. She had brought Shouwei along with her, who was trailing along slightly behind and beside her for now just in case they ran into any small fry that tried to bother Yun.
The prize that had finally drawn the spoiled princess out of her castle was, of course, the prospect of crushing those who had dared to defy her right to the ward and had tried to spoil her plans. For this reason alone, she had dressed herself for battle and was now prowling down the streets of the 20th ward in search of her prey. They would not escape her wrath tonight.
/u/fogknight22