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[socials]

Who: Souji and Reiji
What: There was a hiccup in Heaven, and Reiji finds himself under new management.
When: April 6th
Where: Izanagi's shrine
Warning: Reference to shinki death but otherwise N/A.

[ Generally speaking, Souji has seen some pretty interesting things, in the past year. So this entire god thing, it's not that strange, compared to summoning gods and fighting others; exploring an alternate world inside the TV; fighting monsters called Shadows, and inner selves called Shadows; spending time in a different plain of reality that was housed in a limousine. But... it's still strange. So after having fought the weird Jell-O cube at the school, he'd gone to his apparent shrine to recover and try to figure out where he'd go from there.

It's the next morning that he gets yet another surprise, as he's heading downstairs from his room and into the kitchen. He can see one of the tatami rooms from the lounge area of the kitchen, and he has to pause, then take a step back to get a second look, when something catches his attention out of the corner of his eye.

Slowly, his eyebrows raise, and he heads towards the figure just sort of... lying around in his new house. Aside from a stray cat he'd brought across the Shore with him and his soulless shinki - who he hasn't seen yet this morning, strangely enough - Souji thought he was rather alone. His eyebrows raise higher when he gets a look at who it is, and he kneels down, carefully reaching a hand out. Before he makes contact, though, he's suddenly struck with an image, and an understanding - yelling, a gunshot, blood.

Death. Reiji's, he realizes.

His fingers curl into a fist, and he has to steel himself for a beat, two, before he loosens it so that he can reach out and touch his shoulder. ]

Reiji?

Comments

[heiring]

[ It's all very new for Reiji so he's just going to roll with it. ]

That should be it. I saw several other gods doing stuff with their shinki's vessel forms, too.

[ When Souji does access the draw, a golden rune circle will appear beneath his feet. Whether he'll actually finish the draw is up to him, however. ]

[socials]

Oh - [ whoop there it is

Souji doesn't necessarily do anything beyond pulling on the thread he feels, until that rune appears. And then he considers it thoughtfully, before he takes Reiji's vessel and extends him out and upwards at a slight angle. So that if anything happens, it'll be aimed above the garden.

And then he twists his wrist, much like when he crushes the tarot cards he uses to summon his Personae, and thinks to release. ]

[heiring]

[ For a few moments, nothing actually happens.

And then there's a soft hum as the runes below him start to turn much like a wheel, and a connection opens. Souji would feel the impression of something dazzlingly bright against an impossibly dark backdrop - a star. Not in the sky, but in space; with uncountable other stars barely visible due to the four-pointed lens flare that its light might give. Probably a star in a galaxy, but somehow alone in the emptiness that its impression gives.

Energy starts pouring in from parts unknown, light and heat pooling along the blade and accentuating the golden glow on its edge. It's just a trickle for now, but still steady enough to be used.

If Souji leaves it be, it'll continue to accumulate in Reiji's vessel. ]

[socials]

[ Thankfully it's not explosive. That's a relief. Souji would be able to adjust and find a way to use it if it was, though that sort of reaction wouldn't have suited someone like Reiji anyways. So he lowers the shinki, examining the glow of the blade after he takes in the effect of everything around him. ]

You have star power, of some kind. It feels like really powerful energy. [ He lets it accumulate for a little longer, curious about its uses, but deciding that there will be plenty of time to practice with it.

Slowly, he eases the connection to what it was when he first called for Reiji as Ryouki. ]

[heiring]

[ Much like closing a tap, the inflow of energy slows and then stops. The accompanying rune circle stops moving, fading to only a slight yellow glow on the ground. The energy already in the blade still remains, however. ]

That's... quite cool, actually. I wonder what it means.

[ For Reiji, it's much like being surrounded by a sudden inpouring of fireflies. ]

I hope it's useful.

[socials]

[ Waiting until everything dims down, Souji regards the sword in his hand, and the way it seems like he just... stockpiled energy? That's what he thinks happened, anyways. And he's kind of glad that he did. If something happens for real, it'll already be there. ]

I'm sure it will be. We'll just have to learn how to harness it properly.

[ Just to get a better feeling for the weight and force, he gives the shinki a few swings, forward and backhanded, left hand still supporting underneath the hilt. ]

Would you like to change back?

[heiring]

[ There's a slight pause as Reiji considers it. ]

Give me a bit. I want to try out something.

[ There's a beat of silence, and then the energy within the blade disperses out in a shower of twinkling lights. The individual points are much softer than the brilliance they had displayed together when stored in his vessel form, and they float around slowly as if in an unseen breeze. ]

Okay, I'm done.

[socials]

[ Complying, Souji waits - and then huffs a soft breath of a laugh when he pretty much starts to sparkle all over again. With a purpose. But it's nice. Suits him. And it feels rather peaceful, actually, so he just observes calmly before inclining his head. ]

Suwa Reiji. [ It's convenient that he can change with just a name, after the initial rites.

Less sketchy, too, with the lack of the word servant being thrown around. ]

[heiring]

[ The sword in Souji's hands starts to glow again, dissolving into a stream of golden light before reforming some distance away into Reiji's human form. When the light fades, he'll be examining his hands for a few seconds before he looks up, smiling. ]

That was amazing.

[ He looks happy. That's one that he can learn and improve on, at least. ]

[socials]

[ When the vessel becomes light, Souji drops his hand, hooking his thumb in his pocket and looking rather pleased with the results, himself. Especially when he feels the emotion radiating off of Reiji like the light just did. ]

It was. I'm really looking forward to finding out what we can do with it. And I'm pretty glad that you're a sword, honestly.

[ They have a lot of work ahead of them, but that at least means that he won't have to learn how to wield a completely different weapon at the same time. Maybe if he gets another shinki, but not with his first one when they're both wandering in the dark. ]

[heiring]

[ Reiji dusts his shirt a little, just in case. Some of the light dots from earlier are starting to wink out, but he reaches out to try and catch one anyway. ]

You're familiar with swords?

[ Him being a sword fits, he thinks, so that's that. ]

[socials]

[ That's surprisingly cute of you, Reiji. But Souji won't comment. ]

I started off with golf clubs. [ He's laughing, softly, but is definitely serious. ] And bats, sometimes. But then we started basically scavenging loot from fights and taking them to a man in town who did metalwork, and he'd make us weapons mostly for artistic reasons.

[ The sword definitely suits him. So does the starlight. ]

[heiring]

[ Souji sounds like someone who worked hard to get from the bottom up. That is something he can very much respect. ]

I hope we can get weapons more easily here, at least. [ A pause. ] Could you teach me how to use a sword, then? I'd like to learn.

[ Since he's pretty sure he doesn't know. ]

[socials]

I'd say that shinki probably fulfill the role most weapons would serve, although I certainly hope that people aren't referring to or treating them simply as weapons or tools. [ It sits on the same "this is sketchy" discomfort as calling someone a servant.

He perks a little, and inclines his head. ]

If you're okay with learning from someone that was self-taught.

[heiring]

[ That's true. Reiji nods, but thats's more of a problem of other gods (hypothetically, he hopes these people don't actually exist) than of Souji. ]

I'll need one too, but that can be solved later. [ What matters is that he gets a teacher in the first place. ] I'm perfectly okay with that.

[socials]

I'm sure we can find something. Even if it's just a bokken - although that might be more advisable than trying to skip straight to an actual sword. [ He lifts his hands, palmside up. There are callouses built up, but also scarred nicks here and there on both his palms and the backs of his hands, when he turns them over. ]

I can heal most injuries with a couple different Personae, but that doesn't mean they're any fun to get.