thenearshore | Closed

[It's reflexive, really. Hakkai takes a step towards Sho and Goku, one hand coming up as he lets out an artificially cheerful laugh.]

Come now, Susano'o, surely Goku is as significant as I am.

[Also: whether Goku is Susano'o's shinki or not, Hakkai does not intend to allow him to be manhandled in their library without an objection or two.]

Yes, surely.

[There's an edge to Elsa's voice. She hasn't moved to try and break this up (at least Hakkai has; clearly they're of the same mind in this, and what a good thing), but she's tensed and ready should she need to take action.]

And I do believe Hakkai is very significant.

[ Minamimoto's never been one to be able to read the room, but there's something at the edges of Hakkai's smile that gets his attention. He'd only been grumbling to begin with on a scale of his temper, and he blithely disregards the warnings that he's being given.

Nonetheless, Goku's getting a noogie before Sho lets him go. It's his duty as a god to keep his minion in line. ]

Heh, that so? It's that significance that made me think you'd be worth talking to.

[Hakkai lets his own hand fall back to his side as Susano'o releases Goku, but the next words out of the other god's mouth ensure he won't be feeling too relieved.

Surely he can't be planning to try asking Elsa the same question Hakkai already turned down?

The smile fades, slowly, like a sunset until his face is left carefully blank.]

Is that so? You didn't come just to leave us an owl?

[Ah, the taunting and teasing that people do to show their friendliness towards one another. Elsa has seen it time and time again, and she'd buy it now if not for the fact that Goku is a shinki, and he had no choice in becoming one, much less in being Susano'o's shinki. A god who is so violent with his shinki, whatever form and however slight that violence may take, isn't really one Elsa is inclined to be too kind to.]

Why did you come to see us, Susano'o? It's a lovely gift, but there must be a reason.

[That noogie makes Goku duck his head down, grunting with the force of it and trying to shove away from it. Sho is letting go, though, so it kind of does a double effect of letting him stumble back a step. This treatment is starting to get status quo, but it doesn't mean he particularly likes it.

The ~adults~ are talking, though, so he'll just stay quiet for now and rub the back of his wrist against his cheek. He really doesn't have anything to add anyway.]

[ Sho shoots Goku a smug little grin. Haha, showed him who was boss, didn't he? It's petty and positively childish, but he's never been good about being the mature one.

But then it's back to business, and business is going to be very good. ]

Heh. I don't know about you, but that inverse matrix that got pulled got me thinking. Shorty here even got put down for the count. [ There's a surprisingly casual rhythm to his speech, like he hadn't just had an outburst before. For that matter, it's entirely too relaxed for talking betrayal and life and death. ] You two were running ragged to do damage control, too, weren't you? How'd you like it? Good game?

Ah, I never like playing catch-up.

[So this is their topic. Hakkai's eyes narrow with sudden interest. It's much more to his taste than the one he'd suspected.]

It seems like that's the side we've been on since we arrived, doesn't it?

[Well, if we're going to air out our gripes with what happened... not a bad reason to stop by, Sho.]

Isn't that what we were all doing with the invasion a few weeks back? Possibly even with the boats. [The edge to her voice is still there, though it's a little less sharp than before.] It's almost like we're here to clean up other people's messes.

Invasion?

[Goku blinks, glancing from Elsa to Sho for confirmation. That was before he got here, obviously. The boats, though, didn't seem like much of a mess.]

The boats just seemed kinda like a fun festival, so I dunno if that had anythin' to do with messes. But that chocolate was kinda weird. Why'd Heaven tell us to pass out a bunch of chocolate when it's just gonna make people sick or worse? I thought we were s'posta be helpin' people...

[ Good. They were listening. ]

The invasion was an ayakashi influx. Call that t equals 2-24, or n. [ Said as an off-side, directed half to Goku to explain. ] Then t equals 3-5, or n plus 10, unlucky boats. n plus 20? Suicide chocolate. Meanwhile, n minus 9 is estimated to be the first iteration.

[ He rattles this all off in a staccato rhythm without a care for clarity, or even a pause for breath. The numbers spoke for themselves. ]

Let's operate in the real domain here. We're not the players. We're the pins. [ Now, he actually bothers to take a breath, but only one. No time to let anyone else interject. ] Bet you we're getting slammed at t equals 3-25.

[It really does make sense. Hakkai hadn't plotted everything out on a calendar, but Susano'o clearly has.]

Or 24. There is that initial irregularity.

If it follows the pattern, it should be something less serious this time, don't you think?

[He ticks each off on a finger.]

First, the new gods began to appear. Then, an ayakashi attack. Then, the boats. Then, another ayakashi attack. April fourth or fifth should be our next attack.

[Not the players, but the pins. The pieces on the board. It sends a chill through Elsa, because it feels too much like what she remembers from last year: being plucked from your normal life, being given a task, and being expected to do it. There's even fighting in her current situation. And maybe she gets to remember who she is this time, but Hakkai and the other shinki don't.

It's far too familiar.]

If that's the case, then we should prepare for it. [How do you prepare for an ayakashi attack, though? Short of predicting where it will be, or what will happen, and being there, there's not much they can do.] What's the point of identifying the pattern if we don't make use of it? We can tell the others, warn them.

[They have to do something. They can't be pawns anymore.]

[Meanwhile, Goku's head is still spinning from the numbers and math jargon that got called out. He didn't understand a bit of it. ... okay, well, he understood "ayakashi influx", and from listening to Hakkai and Elsa, he thinks he gets the idea. There's some kind of pattern.

At least he knows patterns.]

So, wait. There're gonna be more attacks soon? But if it's that easy to figure out, why can't Heaven do somethin' about it before it's a problem?

[ It was always nice when someone moved at a speed that could keep up with him. This, Sho thinks, ought to go well. He shrugs nonchalantly and tucks his thumbs in his pockets, keeping a loose posture. ]

My calculations suggest Heaven's a factor. There's a few reasons I picked an academic god to talk to.

[ He bounces on the balls of his feet, giving it a brief moment of dramatic pause. ]

One ought to be smart enough not to blab it all at 299,792,458 meters per second.

Heaven is the only common factor. Each of these events has been organized by the Heavens -- hasn't it?

I wasn't here for the invasion or the initial appearances. [He glances curiously at Susano'o. If those fit the pattern, too -- some kind of response organized by the ruling powers -- then there's no doubt whatsoever. Ayakashi invasions shouldn't happen to the schedule of anyone other than the person responsible for creating them.]

The question is who. Heaven is a very loose term, after all.

Amaterasu is the head god, isn't she? I arrived on the day of the invasion, so I can't speak to anything before then.

[Hinamatsuri at least is a cultural event, but is their involvement normal? Is it really true that keeping the boats away from shore was helpful? Giving away the chocolates certainly wasn't.]

I was told to leave a message when I went to talk with someone in the administrative offices. Filing paperwork isn't my preferred method of problem-solving. [Is it anyone's, though.] I'm not comfortable with the idea of not being allowed to speak to my-- [a bit of hesitation there, because she almost said 'master'] --superiors. I've always made it a point that my faculty, staff, and students can come talk to me.

[Even Mesogog was always available to talk to, for goodness's sake.]

... you don't think it's this Amaterasu lady, do you?

[It's kind of scary, knowing that the people in charge in this place would do something like that. That's not right. Why would they want innocent people to get hurt like that? All he remembers is the boats and then the chocolate - though he doesn't remember much, since he was sick - and while the boats didn't really hurt anyone, the chocolate did. He heard about it, and he experienced it firsthand.]

But there's lots of other gods, too, right? Ones that we've not met? So it could be anyone. But if we can't talk to 'em, how are we s'posta know who's doin' this stuff?

We've got too many unknowns to pin it down. [ Sho concedes that with another shrug. ] Even Monkey sees we can't calculate that where we're at now. But if big sis ain't doin' the job she's supposed to, someone's gotta do it for her.

[ He fizzles out in static, reappearing to sit atop his sculpture like some great, ungainly vulture. It comes to him as he leans forward that this is pretty damn fun. ]

So maybe it's time for a new game. I'm not about to let what's mine get derived, are you?

Edited 2016-06-12 14:50 (UTC)

That's the choice, isn't it? Either she's responsible, or she hasn't been doing her job at all.

[Hakkai looks up at Sho, his expression coolly interested. A "new game," indeed. His gaze, after a moment, flicks to Elsa.]

Elsa?

[He's not sure if he trusts Sho to be a stable or reliable ally. But if they both want to take down the highest gods... then, he thinks, he trusts Sho to be a powerful ally. And he'd spotted the pattern of supposed random events before Hakkai had.]

[Pursing her lips, Elsa frowns. She knows what Hakkai is feeling, which serves only to fuel the fire of what she is thinking. It seems that Sho has brought them a gift to entice them into an alliance. In truth, she doesn't trust him either -- she barely knows him, and he wasn't exactly responsible with his shinki after the chocolate incident.

But he is strong, and he is crafty, and he will be able to do things that she and Hakkai can't.

Glancing at Hakkai, she nods, then turns to Sho.] No, I'm not going to let that happen either. People died, and I want to know who is responsible.

[Something about this is bothering Goku, though. It's just how... black and white everything seems to be. Either Amaterasu is responsible, or she's failing to do her job and someone's getting away with it. But if she's trying her best, and someone else is just really good at slipping under the radar... That's a possibility, too.]

So... what're we gonna do? I don't think it's fair to just go in thinkin' it's all her fault, but maybe someone's just really good at sneakin' around an' she just can't find 'em.

[ His eyes are bright and excited. Yes. Yes, that's a win right there. They'll be an effective force, or a useful distraction. Either way, there's going to be more actors out there.

It'll become increasingly difficult for anyone in Heaven to find the real signal in all the noise. He just has to keep riling people up. ]

We're gonna proxy for my big sis, that's what. [ He's barely suppressing the excitement humming within him. ] We're the big damn heroes.

Now, now, Susano'o. I think heroes is going a little too far.

[Hakkai taps a fingertip against one of the owl's feathers with a light, metallic ting!]

You're suggesting we investigate behind her back, then?

Zetta duh. It's time to look at a more radical approach than playing catch up.

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