thenearshore | ( closed )

( closed )

Who: Urashima and Nari, Urashima and Chinatsu
When: Mid-August
Where: Neptune's Temple and around the Far Shore
What: Urashima finds himself assigned to another god and checks up on his kohai

for Nari

( When Urashima wakes up, he smells salt on the air and hears waves splashing on the shore. It's different from what he's become used to waking up to-- fresh water, bubbling ponds, the wind blowing through the garden. He sits up quickly in the sand, and finds himself staring out into the sea. Clouds form on the horizon and he can feel in the air that it won't be long before it starts to rain. This isn't Eris' temple and he understands exactly what's happened. So this is where the Heavens want him to be? He looks down the shore both ways and then turns to look back. He can see trees and homes. That must be the temple, he thinks.

He'll go to investigate later. Just give him a minute. He sits on the sand, knees pulled close to his chest, chin resting on his folded arms, looking out at the sea. Kamekichi sits next to him and he pets her shell. )

Mmm, I wonder where Chinatsu-chan is...

( He'll meet his new god first and then look for her. She's a strong person, he thinks.
She'll be fine for a little while. )

for Chinatsu

( After getting in touch with her, Urashima sets out to meet Chinatsu. She's been here for a little while but it isn't as long as him. This is her first time losing a god and he remembers how that feels. When he finally meets Chinatsu again, he arms himself with a smile and calls out to her as brightly as ever, )

Chinatsu-cha~an!~

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[Dragon King? Uh, yeah, that's a cool comparison. Nari loves dragons!]

Why wouldn't it be? A god needs a shinki to fight those ayakashi things.

[Not that he's run across any yet. Chores and training keep him pretty busy. It is a pretty big place to maintain upkeep on.]

If a kid is willing to fight, I ain't gonna tell them not to. Strong or not..... are you a kid?

That's right.

(He can definitely fight his share of ayakashi too if Nari lets him. If he's still a sword. He's been a sword every time so far so why would that change?)

Hm... (The question makes him thoughtful. He's genuinely thoughtful and he taps his chin, looking up at the sky as he tries to do some math. He's repeating a lot of different years-- Heisei, Showa, Edo... and numbers. Japanese calendars are rough, Nari.) I think I'm between 300 and 400...

(357, more or less.)

But I don't feel very old.

[The fact that Urashima has to count how old he is tells Nari that he's definitely not dealing with a regular human being who just looks displaced out of time.

The answer makes him stare.]

......... You're a few hundred years older than me.

(What if I told you he forgot he's from the future so he's actually almost 200 years older...

That's ok! (Was it ever a problem? I don't feel that old at all!

What matters is the time here, right? And I've been here for a long time now so I know how to be good and I can help a lot, really！

[Somehow that would not make things worse, just confusing.]

..... Right. You look like a kid even if you're old as fuck. Magic, right? But it's good you can help. I don't know what the hell I'm doing........ Not that I ever do, but that's for another time. [He waves his hand a bit.] So what are we supposed to do first? A tour?

( He shakes his head no. )

This is where I'm supposed to be. ( So he doesn't need a tour. He'll learn everything he needs to with time.
He can roll with the waves like that. ) So you just have to name me.

... I can help you, if you want.

( Nari doesn't look like he'd know kanji. None of Urashima's previous gods knew kanji so he's used to this. )

[Urashima, you are already one of his favorite people here. He hates giving tours.]

Name you? Oh, yeah, the vessel name thing.... Yeah. I need help. The only kanji I know is for ice. That's when I know I'm at the right store.

[This guy is a lost cause when it comes to grocery shopping. If Na can't read it, he tends to not get it.]

Heh heh, that's ok. (Really.) I helped my other gods name me too.

(He's never really had a god who knew enough Japanese on their own.)

What are you thinking about? I don't really like the cold so... not ice, please.

(Please, he's a summer child.)

So you got a lotta gods who don't read or write a lick of Japanese? Somehow I ain't surprised.

[He shakes his head.]

I hate the cold. Unless it's too hot, and then I like some cold........ maybe stick with the theme of the god I am? So sea or something?

Mmm, you're my only one now...

( It's hard to tell if he's being smart or genuine since he says it so casually. He crouches down to the ground,
petting Kamekichi and one of the kittens as he begins to trace a character out in the sand. )

Mmm... ( He's writing each stroke carefully in the sand. ) It's only right for the god of the sea to call on the sea for strength~

"Kai." ( And he circles the final character: 海 ) So you would call me "Kaiki."

Easy, right?

( Inb4 Nari calls him Kēki )

[That makes it sound like that this guy has gone through a lot. Shinki... seem to pull the short end of the stick in this game of kill the bad things.

He crouches down beside Urashima and watches the kanji be drawn.]

................. as long as you don't expect me to copy that, sure. So. Do I just call you that or is there some kinda ritual?

You have to say...

(He has to think for a moment, recalling Pippa, Terra, and Oona. He also makes sure to stop every now and then so Nari can repeat after him.)

"You, who have nowhere to go and cannot pass on, I'll give you a place to stay."

And then you say your name.

(He looks at Nari.)

"Lingering here gripping thine true name, I make thou mine servant with thine alias. Thy name is follower, thy vessel is sound. Obey mine order and become my shinki."

"Kaiki."

......

[YA WANNA KNOW SOMETHING, URASHIMA

Your god can be a bit lazy and informal.]

Too long. How about this? I bestow upon you the name Kaiki.

[~~Roxas' was even shorter and it worked.~~]

That's what--

(Pippa and Oona did? Terra's was pretty short too now that he thinks of it and... was that a girl thing? He doesn't know. But before he can say as much, something is already happening. His name is branded onto him in a flash of light-- right at the back of his neck-- and the next thing he knows, he's changing.

There's a bright light that turns turns to a sudden flurry of cherry blossom petals around them. Urashima is no longer in front of Nari. Instead, there's a short sword in Nari's hand where all the cherry blossoms seem to be concentrated around. The cherry blossoms gradually disperse, leaving behind no trace there were ever any petals to begin with.

Also have fun with that flashback Nari. )

[It's the first time he's had a shinki change on him. Nari never named Mark, the soulless shinki he's locked in a closet, so the flashback is not expected.

It leaves him with a roiling stomach as he tries to swallow down the sickness of this. He's seen patients die, accident victims, gunshots, and many other deaths. But this? This is different. It feels sad in a way. His shinki wasn't even truly a human, he was a weapon, made to be one, and shattered doing the one thing he was created for.

Nari thinks back on his own death and has to admit to himself that maybe these two were a little more similar than he thought they could be. They both died taking down an enemy. Unlike Urashima, though, Nari had time to embrace his and die with the knowledge that everything was over.

He sighs softly, a wistful smile on his face as he watches the petals.]

Never seen a sword bust out blossoms before. That some kind of power of yours?

Hmmmm.

(He hums a bit which means he's humming in Nari's head.)

It happens sometimes... (He's noticed the cherry blossoms that appear out of season around him from time to time. He's never really thought too much about it, though.) It's never happened like this before, though...

(A few stray petals fall. There's a light, pink glow and the very edges of the petals shine particularly bright-- like the edge of a sword.)

[...... well, he can't say he's going crazy hearing a literal voice in his head. That's something to get used to for sure.]

Something to get used to-[Hmmm... pink glow and this place being magical? Time to investigate.]-Let's try something. I can sacrifice a tree for this.

[He walks over to a smaller tree and holds the blade handle with both of his hands. As fast as he can, he slashes at the tree. If his hunch is correct, maybe the blossoms do something. If not, then he's gotta make sure not to touch them and then apologize to the tree.]

Just the tree, right?

(As he pulls back to strike, the cherry blossoms begin to gather around them. Some of the petals will brush against Nari but they won't hurt him if anything, they appear to just disintegrate on contact, leaving only a warm, light feeling. But the ones that concentrate around the blade, blowing wildly around them as he strikes the tree, will glow with a brighter light. The blade cuts the tree easily-- he's very sharp, you know?-- but there are other, small slashes along the bark and some of the leaves have been cut cleanly. It's pretty clear that the petals are doing the cutting and it looks like it only cuts what he wants them to cut so he has some control there.

At least, Urashima's figured it out more or less,)

Ah, they cut!

[........................................................]

That..... was.... so cool!

[He stares in amazement, picking up one of the leaves and looking it over. This was such a precise and clean cut... better than what he could do to vegetables!]

It looks fancy and is hella useful.... I think I like this ability of yours.

( Please don't use him to cut vegetables. He's a respectable sword. )

You do?

( Ah. Those cherry blossoms might be kicking up again. He's... happy? Can you tell? )

Heh heh, it is really cool, right?

[He wouldn't do that. Nari has a set of knives for that and each one has a task it's meant for.

Also wow at least these petals disappear, else everything will be covered in pink.]

Yeah. It'll make slicing and dicing those ayakashi a god damn breeze.

Yeah, yeah! You can count on me!

( He's down to fight. He's ready to fight. It almost sounds like he's ready to play some sort of game. )

Oh, and if you want me to change back you just have say so and say my real name. "Urashima!" It's really easy.

But not today. [Sorry to burst that bubble for now.] You gotta meet the rest of the fam first.

[Fam as in family.]

......... This vessel thing is easier than I thought it'd be. Alright, Urashima, let's go meet Argo.

( In the same light and flurry of cherry blossoms, he goes from sword to boy. He lands on his feet with a skip in his step as he scoops up Kamekichi and trots over to Nari's side. Look, he's settling into his role easily here. )

Fam...? ( He can figure that it means family but he looks around as he places Kamekichi on his shoulder. Is anyone else here besides the cats? Argo? So they'll go meet them next? Speaking of family, though... ) There's someone I want you to meet too....!

[Are cherry blossoms Urashima's theme or something? Could be worse.]

Family. The cats and Argo are part of it. [It's a bit of a walk that leads them across an open field with a fence. They end up at a small stable. Nari unlatches the top of the door and lets it swing open. There's shuffling around in there. Wanna take a peek in, Urashima?]

You do?

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject