thenearshore | [closed] in which things are awkward

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[closed] in which things are awkward

Who: Celestia & Obi
When: January 11
Where: A mountain in the Former Inca Empire, aka in this case Ecuador
What: Hunting ayakashi in the mountains is without a doubt the best team building exercise.

[ It is a lovely, not-too-chilly January day, and Obi had not initially intended to climb a mountain together with his god. Alone, maybe, because sometimes he just feels like climbing a mountain, but then he most likely would have gone alone, maybe to hunt or something.

And yet here he is, with only a flying, talking horse for company, and he has no idea what to say or how to act, which is very unusual for him except, apparently, around this particular deity. ]

Sooo, uh, can we, um, try some of the food in this country after we’re done?

[ Not that he wants to hang out more than he has too with her, but because he loves trying new food. ]

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[Celestia is indeed flying, alternating it with walking whenever she has a need to cross terrain she otherwise couldn't. Mountains are not generally pony terrain.]

[The feel of this whole thing has her a little off, so she grabs for his comment as a way to center herself.]

Absolutely. I'd like that.

[ Mountains are, on the other hand, Obi terrain. Not as much as forests are, but nonetheless.

While Obi is not opposed to silences, that's comfortable silences only. Those are currently an impossibility, so he feels the need to fill the silence with words. ]

Alright, yeah, that's good, they might have some interesting stuff here and all.

[ And Obi likes food. If he didn't like food, or cooking, he wouldn't be working as a cook. ]

I have no doubt they do. Hopefully things I can eat, but every culture has developed at least some vegetarian option, haven't they?

[Yes, these are not the most comfortable silences, but perhaps Celestia can take this opportunity to get to know him a little better.]

Is there a particular sort of food you prefer?

Yeah there should generally be some option like that. There will be times in any country where meat isn't available, anyway, so if only for that reason..

[ Otherwise just some salad should be an option right?

Obi isn't particularly fond of talking about himself a lot of the time, but he does like food and it's a pretty neutral topic. ]

I like spicy food. And things like venison.

[ Which... feels a little strange to say to a horse. Not that horse is the best provider of good meat but still. (But he does work at a restaurant that makes that sort of stuff. As a cook.) ]

[She perfectly understands that humans are a species that eats meat, and doesn't hold that against them. By now she can tolerate them doing so in her presence quite well indeed.]

Hmm, I do think there's a history of spicy food to be tapped here, but I haven't found out nearly as much as I maybe should have --

[A shifting up above grabs her attention away from her words, and she falls silent for a moment, looking upwards to the clouds.]

...I do hope that our quarry is not going to simply shoot past while we're climbing up.

[ He'll still refrain from it for the most part for now and won't kill, flay or cook things in front of her. That might make things even more awkward. ]

You think so?

[ Obi is still very bad at reading Japanese and is not exactly good at the computer thing or phone or stuff, so he has not done any research, unfortunately. ]

If they do we'll just have to hunt.

[ And hunting is something Obi is pretty good at. (Generally that would be people, but variety is fine too.) He's fast and he's agile and he's deadly. It's good for hunting. ]

Yes, but it will be causing trouble down there while we reverse course.

[Celestia looks up the mountain again, a frown crossing her face.]

Can we speed up? I'm starting to get a bad feeling about all of this.

They've managed this far, Mistress.

[ He glances over at her, and sure she looks a bit worried. Personally he doesn't care much either way to be honest but he does enjoy a good fight and nature (unfortunately he knows that he'll have to go into vessel form eventually).

But instead of answering her request, he does speed up, still easily maneuvering the terrain even though he's going pretty fast. ]

[She isn't in a hurry to make it happen -- no matter how much it might be objectively safer for both of them.]

[With a little help from her magic to clear the way, the climb proceeds apace, with the air growing colder and thinner as they rise up the mountain. Soon enough, they reach a fairly steep cliff, with hints of an opening at its top.]

[ Good for her. He finds it sort of unpleasant, and he's not exactly good at relying on other people to fight for him.

The rising chill in the air is less uncomfortable than the thought of taking vessel form, though he can't help thinking about it. Once he spots the opening at the cliff, Obi halts on a rock. It's very sudden, from high speed to zero. ]

Might be in there...

[ It's more a mutter to himself than informing her. The ayakashi may be elsewhere too, but it's a good place to start. The crevice isn't large, and it could almost be just another shadow among the rocks. It's not, but it could have been. ]

If there is anything in there we might have to bait it.

I feel like most people I have met in the Far Shore would advocate charging in and cornering it. [Which isn't to say his idea is bad. Quite the opposite, actually -- they have the advantage of mobility if they lure it out, which is no small thing at all.]

Very well. Would you like to get in position to strike as soon as it emerges? Assuming it is in there, I think I might be able to offer it a tempting target.

The chance is that we might walk into a nest and be outnumbered if we do that. [ You need to be cautious and not barge in without a plan when not knowing the situation.

He shakes his head, not approving on her acting as bait. ] They like eating shinki. And if something goes wrong and there's a need to get out quickly, you could get me out by calling me. You need to think that through more, Mistress. [ He rubs at his shoulder. ] It'll be troublesome if you die.

[Celestia looks away from the crevice, down to Obi with a neutral expression.]

You have better resources to attack physically than I do... and as a god, and an alicorn, I can teleport if need be. So it is not quite so ill-informed... and more importantly, I am the only one I can offer as bait. But if you're willing, and trust me, then I think a shinki is indeed more likely to draw it out than a god.

[ It's not that he trusts her (he doesn't) but he figures that a good-two-shoes (four-shoes? does she even wear shes?) like her probably would not like to see him get eaten even if he is mistrusting and avoiding her. ]

You'll have less space to maneuver, while I can fit through very small spaces. [ Like a cat, or other scrawny wild animal. ] I do know how to fight and shinki seem to appear tastier.

[ That being said, he straightens back up and there are a few blades in his hand. ]

Well Mistress, just be ready.

[Trusting her nature is trusting her, and she is fine with that.]

I am very ready.

[She spreads her wings, taking to the air but not surmounting the cliff yet. This will give her ample maneuverability and opportunity to respond.]

[ She's too simple. She's a weird royal. He's no good with royals. He glances after her as she flies up, and he pulls his scarf to cover his mouth.

Obi slips through the shadows by the large rocks, making his way up toward the crevice. He pauses to listen, and he believes that he can hear something move further in. He fishes some flint out of a pocket, and slips inside the darkness. ]

[As he enters, Celestia rises up to the entrance of the crevice, positioning herself to call in or hurl spells or whatsoever might be necessary. Both ears strain forward as she listens for any sign of danger, or anything her keen equine hearing can make out.]

[Please be careful, Obi.]

[ Believe in his skills.

His eyes quickly adjust to the darkness, and he sees deeper darkness shifting further into the cave. He makes way a little deeper inside, and he feels his skin prickle both in anticipation and from what might be shinki's instinct. He's excited, and Celestia might feel some of it pour into her end of their bond.

A breath, and a few knives fly toward the ayakashi hiding there; they won't really harm them, but they do startle and anger, and a moment later Obi strikes the stones together, creating both a loud sound in the silence, and bright sparks in the darkness. He can hear rustling from deeper inside, sees the shadows shift, and he strikes the stones together again. In response, there is a group loud shriek from the ayakashi. Quickly moving backward he alerts the ayakashi to his retreat, drawing them after him toward the crack of the wall and the world outside. ]

[Oh goodness. There are a number of them, aren't there? More than she expected, which is going to complicate this a great deal.]

[A bolt of magic cracks through the darkness, lancing past Obi by a narrow but certain margin to punch into the pursuing crowd. Thin them out, is her thinking, and slow down some of their progression so that they can wear down each one in turn rather than battling many at once for as long as possible.]

[ To slow them down further Obi slashes Lines between them at various intervals as he slips along ste cliffs, separating them from each other.

Once he's a way away from the cave he calls up to Celestia, ]

Mistress, I think it's time to render them!

[ He's not sure if the Lines will remain once he's called into vessel form, but they can't kill the ayakashi without rendering them. ]

[Celestia continues to pepper bolts into the cave, though she spares a glance for Obi to make sure he's safe once he's emerged.]

Are they weak enough, do you think? I can continue to fight them with your aid, but--!

[But she knows he'd rather be an active participant than armor.]

[ It's true, he would much rather avoid getting pulled into being in vessel form, but unfortunately, there are problems he can't take care of as a shinki. He sections off them a few more times, tries to draw them further apart still. ]

Can't really get rid of them without it.

[She is more worried about the ayakashi being weak enough to rend, but --]

Come, Dokuki!

[ There's not too much that can be done to weaken them- Obi needs to learn more spells and he needs to carry more holy water around if he wants to get up close and personal with the ayakashi.

Taking on vessel form makes him antsy, and he distracts himself from the ghost-sensation of skin crawling by focusing on summoning his power to the surface, causing the sound of electricity to buzz in the air like flies. ]

[The ayakashi surge out of the cave, boiling forth like the steam in a pressure cooker has at last been released. Celestia meets them with the electrical arrows that her shinki grants her, launching a volley into the fray with calm determination.]

Now, join your power to mine and we shall Rend them!

[Divine energy swells within her, foreign and strange but hers to command, out into the electricity crackling around them.]

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