thenearshore | Interlude: Meeting with Amaterasu

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Interlude: Meeting with Amaterasu

Who: Amaterasu and characters who have shared information with her, her advisers or her shinki
When: March 8, Evening
Where: The Meeting Hall
What: Amaterasu is bringing together newcomers of proven loyalty in order to share her own information and plans.

New gods and shinki who have offered their help to Amaterasu or her advisers, or who have given her information about any of the cult activities, will find a white-robed shinki knocking at their temple door or dropping by their table at the post-training meal on March 8th.

The invitations have the following text:

Lady Amaterasu invites you and your trusted allies to join her for an important announcement. The shinki who delivered this message will conduct you to the meeting.

The shinki carrying these invitations will wait until the invited person and their guests are ready, or will leave if the invitation is declined.

Guests are directed to an inner room in the Meeting Hall, where, on entry, they will discover that they seem to be floating in an endless dark void. Amaterasu stands at the center of the void, brilliantly illuminated; she's not wearing her usual mirror crown, and there is a short woman in old-fashioned white robes with the sleeves tied back standing beside her.

Amaterasu and the shinki accompanying her begin to speak once everyone has arrived. They have ink paintings of Votelli (although the features aren't very well rendered, as though it was painted from a description rather than by someone who'd seen her) and of Sotero (this painting is much more accurate and detailed.) These paintings are displayed on small stands behind Amaterasu.

"These two rogue gods have declared their enmity against myself and the Heavens through attacking and even imprisoning you, as well as attacking many of my shinki. They have even used humans as their agents to act in the mortal world." She holds out a hand to indicate the sketchier painting. "This one's name is Votelli. She is declared anathema. Should you see her, capture her, and bring her to me." The other, better-drawn painting is next. "This one's name is Sotero. He is declared anathema, and should you see him, capture him and bring him to me.

"We prefer them alive, but if they resist too fiercely to survive capture, we will still reward their captors highly."

The woman behind her takes the paintings down and folds the stands, disappearing into the dark with her armful of props, as Amaterasu continues speaking.

"We have located areas of the Near Shore that these gods have used as their sanctuaries in their invasions of the Heavens. The forest that Votelli used, many of you have visited. However, it seems that she can either hide there too well to be found unless she wills it, or she has gone elsewhere. We continue to search for her. My shinki have searched the volcano that Sotero used, as well, but with no greater success.

"It is possible that these gods have protected themselves somehow from the eyes of my shinki. I ask for your assistance searching for them both."

The woman reappears, without the easels and carrying two handfuls of charms instead; they are small, embroidered pouches that look like the charms found in the department store and around shrines at New Year's. Sabimei steps forward; he looks like he hasn't had enough sleep in weeks, and the harsh spotlight brings out the dark bags under his eyes.

"These things are using a magic I can't figure out," he says: his tone is almost petulant, but he moderates it at a reproving glare from the other shinki. "I suspect it's related to those two gods. I can tell you that they drain good fortune from anything nearby -- these are inert, don't worry, but I wouldn't keep one in my pocket if I were any of you. Burn them, or give them to me, because it's not as if I don't have enough to do--"

At another glare, he clears his throat. "In any case, placing these in our shrines at the New Year's represents a direct attack on our fortunes and our followers'. It seems that these gods consider us all enemies alike. Ask me later if you want to hear more about what I've been doing with these things." He bows, and steps back into the darkness. Amaterasu's formal demeanor softens for long enough to pat her other shinki's arm; the woman smiles down at her before tucking away the charms.

"Several humans have been implicated in assisting the enemy gods," she announces. "We do not act directly against mortals, but my shinki are watching their residences, in case our enemies should appear there. It is possible that there are more, and so, I ask that you help my shinki in that task, for if those two gods are no longer in the places that they once linked to the Heavens, then they must be concealed somewhere. My shinki will show you to these humans' residences if you are willing to assist.

"When we find them, we intend to ride to destroy them, and I invite you to join the hosts of Heaven when we do so, as well."

She folds her hands together, her long sleeves falling down to hide her fingers, and inclines her head in a small, regal bow.

As the presentation ends, the darkness begins to fade, and everyone invited will find themselves standing in an ordinary room with Amaterasu, and with guards at the door and along the walls. The female shinki who had been behind her has disappeared, and she is wearing her crown again, with Sabimei standing just behind her.

It looks like she's ready to take questions now.

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"You could always not transform, Kimi," Kiwami points out plainly, but the shinki waves it off immediately.

"I shouldn't do that unless it's an emergency. This is our only connection to Sotero, I can't ruin this."

Aomi finally pushes himself up and away from Kunimi, still wrapped up in his focus for Ebisu, and takes a deep breath. His hands shake a little from adrenaline, but he seems mostly composed besides that. "Let's not talk about the worst case scenario just yet. We're jumping ahead of ourselves. Heaven hasn't found either of the gods yet."

"It's not going to be pretty when news spreads. I nearly got into a fight for mentioning Votelli's existence to others; a capture order is going to cause violence."

The new generation is passionate and sensitive when it comes to kids. Ginia once more considers this could be a trap in a lot of different ways, but she still feels firm about helping Votelli.

"I'm curious how they found out about Votelli." For a lurching moment, she wonders if it was her doing. Did someone spill information because of her report? No, there are so many people that met her or could have contacted her some other way that could have told. Now isn't the time to fixate on possible failures. The drawing of Votelli was sketchy at best.

"I set up a shrine for Votelli under a different name. There's also been offers for her to stay in other countries. If there's a chance to warn her and Sotero and they can escape elsewhere, how long will the hunt continue?"

"As long as it takes." Kiwami reaches down to swipe his hands against his pants legs. That won't stop the indentations that have been made there, but maybe it will help anyway. He's not entirely sure if sweat can gather in this kind of space.

Slowly, Aomi nods his head. "It's hard to imagine when you're still a young shinki... But this kind of thing could go on for decades, if need be. Us of the Far Shore experience time differently, after all. If there were less attacks, maybe they'd eventually forget..." Frowning, he glances over to where Unmi is standing at the ready. They really have to thank their senior when this meeting is done with. Unlike the mess happening in this shared vessel space, he makes keeping his cool look easy.

"You have a good question, Jitsumi. Maybe we should figure out how they learned as much as they did about the two gods."

Calmed down a little, or at least not threatening to pace again, Kimi nods. "I hadn't thought Sotero was the kind who'd introduce himself to people actively pursuing him... He's still too much of a hot-headed kid for that."

Great. What does time matter when you're immortal or otherwise long-lived? And the pacing begins again.

"I can definitely say I didn't try to get his name when he was throwing fireballs at me." That was a bad day for a lot of different reasons. But if Ebisu made contact with him and was able to talk to him, it stands to reason there were calmer folks that also talked to him.

On the other hand, the overall impression of Votelli is more positive, even with the kidnapping thing. Unleashing a volcano on an area is probably worse PR overall.

"If Heaven has a name and description, the most likely reality is it came from someone of my generation. Plenty of us knew about her and were also looking into the cult. I may have tipped someone off by sharing information about her at a meeting. But what would someone stand to gain by telling Heaven?"

See, that's, that's great, because Kimi needs to start rocking back and forth on his heels again. It's not pacing? It's not pacing yet. Kiwami drags his eyes away from the proceedings so glance at the pair with the quiet of someone who is debating on if he should intervene or not.

At least Kimi is doing more than just bouncing on his feet. He's listening to Ginia, too, and lets out a rush of breath. "I mean, not everyone is our temple," he says, and glances at the others cautiously.

Kiwami finally breaks the ice on that. "I told her about before." Promptly, all of the others glance at him for that, although Kunimi can't spare too long before looking back to the rest of the world.

"It was only a matter of time," he concedes, which seems to be enough for the rest of them. Kimi nods his head at Ginia.

"No one else has been on the worst end of Heaven," he continues. His hands are still moving along with the spoken word, just to give him a way to let loose his energy. It's a little nervewracking to speak about this while in earshot of Ebisu, for lack of anywhere else to be, but, well... As long as they don't go into details, it should be fine. Ebisu isn't stupid, no matter how much a child he might look. He's picked up on the empty desks and what Heaven likely had to do against a renegade god. "So there are no negative notions on Heaven. I mean, unless there are, anyway." That sort of thing isn't something which Kimi has really talked to a lot of the newer generation about, and he doubts the others have either. "They might think they're really helping, especially since you all have been attacked as well by these renegade gods, right? Or maybe they're trying to curry favor."

Aomi draws his attention to the rest of the room. "Maybe that's something we can figure out while we're here, then. You're of the new generation, Jitsumi. You would know more people here than we would, wouldn't you?"

Ginia's heel-toe-heel-toe steps come to a halt as Kiwami speaks, glancing toward him too as she gauges everyone's reactions. She assumed after that night he might have told them already. Guess not. Her back and shoulders tighten a little, but as no one else seems to object, she resumes her measured march.

It's true; the new don't know how bad it could be. There are perhaps comparable life experiences given some of the dreams she wandered through at the end of January, but it's still very different. Many of the savvier new are likely aware of how it could be and are treading cautiously. Amaterasu did not gain any favor with her statement on the network after Gojyo's attack if anything.

"I would say opinions of Heaven are neutral at best. I can think of a few with lower opinions, but I'm not sure anyone outright hates them and is spoiling for a fight. This order isn't going to make them more favorable though. I doubt anyone is trying to win favor either."

Not through selling someone out at least. If they would... hope they're good at hiding.

"Thinking they're helping is a possibility though." The most likely even. Ginia looks out at invited people, familiar with the majority and not at all surprised at who was offered invitations.

"I'd rule out all three Gods of Fortune of our generation. Shun doesn't trust Heaven enough and has been investigating Sensei with me. He's aware of the waves handing Votelli over to Heaven would cause, though I don't doubt he's given Heaven some leads on the humans involved. I don't know Hakkai as well, but he's politically savvy enough that he also wouldn't cause ripples. Especially not when his shinki have a personal stake in things. Hibiki is self-serving and prioritizes herself, but I can't see her turning Votelli over either. It'd put her position at risk too much."

"Are you sure...?" Aomi glances over to wear the god of the arts is lurking the background like a particularly obnoxious glitterbomb, and presses his fingers to his china and some of his mouth. "Apollo seems particularly keen on Amaterasu..."

A clap goes throughout the space as Kimi smacks his hands together. "Yeah, but she's pretty stupid, honestly, so I think we should be fine!"

Well, that earns a pause before Aomi nods slightly in concession. "Fair enough." He can't really argue with that. He kind of doesn't want to? "At any rate, she seems more preoccupied with her own business, as Jitsumi has said."

Kiwami points over to where Chikusa has made his way forward to one of Amaterasu's shinki, Sabimei. "What are the personal stakes for Hakkai's shinki, then?"

Following his coworker's gesture, Aomi hums. "Hakkai has been mostly an unknown for us, along with his shinki... Besides that incident not long ago."

A snicker escapes at Kimi's assessment. She can't argue with that either.

Ah, Chikusa. There's a mystery in a lot of ways. He supported her decision to share information about Votelli at the meeting, but she can't see him sharing information about Votelli with Heaven. There's nothing they could offer him it feels like, and his dismissive attitude toward them is clear.

More than that, Chikusa is a person of minimal effort and doesn't like attention. Given that he's capturing ayakashi for his own purposes, the last thing he needs is any attention beyond what being the exemplar of a God of Fortune brings.

"Too much effort for too little gain for his exemplar. I doubt he trusts Heaven either. Of Hakkai's other shinki... I can't see one of them getting involved, the other would definitely never tell anything to Heaven. He'll most likely fight on Votelli's behalf."

Ginia pauses, looking over Hakkai and Shun, a brief smile.

"They may not have personal stakes in Votelli, but they care about the people here and about what's right. They'll defend the community even if it means rebellion well before they'll follow Heaven."

"Really? Which other shinki?"

Fortunately, Kimi snaps his fingers and seems to realize what's going on first. "Oh! It's probably the dumbass who started a fight with Amaterasu's shinki, right?" It's perhaps a little crude of a description, but, well. If the exemplar is so cautious, slow to trust, and apparently someone who makes calculations like that... Then the kind of person who'd fight for Votelli over Heaven without question just makes him think of the guy who picked a fight and had to get picked up by his god.

...Not that Kimi can judge, he guesses. He'd probably be the same way.

While Kimi ponders on that, Aomi nods slightly. "Then, I suppose we can put aside the three newest Gods of Fortune. It's probably not the young Nanshe, either, is it?" He points out Nanako.

Ginia confirms with a nod but doesn't say more. It's not that she doesn't trust her fellow shinki to give names, but with the way things are right now, maybe the less they know the better. There's already the possibility of what could happen if Heaven discovers their connections with Votelli and Sotero. No need to get wrapped up in other people's actions.

Besides, while her impression of Gojyo has turned a little more favorable, she doesn't know him well either. He's passionate, caring, hot-tempered. Nothing she can fault him for, and maybe in different circumstances, she'd act the same way.

If he does go to Votelli's defense... may he stay safe.

"I saw her in the forest with her shinki, but I'm not sure how much she knows. I can only imagine people have tried to keep her safe and uninvolved as much as they can." Children can talk and spill things innocently, but only if they know things. It's also a bit of a surprise to see her here too.

Who else... Ginia looks at Aymeric and points toward him. "Aymeric's been investigating the cult as well and has helped me out with information. I know he's knowledgeable about Votelli, and I don't know him well enough to determine what he would share with Heaven. He's grounded and intelligent, I can't imagine he agrees with today's order."

All Kiwami adds to this particular segment of conversation is a brief nod, going back to rubbing his hands together. Aomi seems to understand what train of thought he's thinking, however, and glances back to where he can see the only coworker of theirs who is still out in his own body.

"Unmi said he's familiar with him, at some point... During the incident with the forest kidnappings, I believe he helped patch him up to some degree, and he returned the favor during New Years. When we're done with this meeting, perhaps we can ask him more about that." As it is, for right now, they're all stuck in here and unable to communicate with the older shinki. That's fine. They still have enough time to reconvene and figure things out together.

Kimi nods from his position, glad for the distraction as he looks at the god. "Still, looking at him, I get the same feeling as Unmi, while we're talking the two of them. He's definitely keeping his composure, you know?" His rubs at his chin. "So I can definitely believe grounded."

Bless Unmi for being Ebisu's stalwart guard and shinki representative so they don't have to and no one accidentally-purposefully punches someone. He deserves all the days off after.

"I get the impression he's some kind of public figure. He has presence and carries himself well, speaks well. I would definitely seek his input about everything, especially since he's fully aware of Sensei and the cult's influence."

Who else... who else... in looking around the room, Ginia's eyes fall back on Amaterasu and the crown on her head, one that was very notably missing during the presentation. She's said her part on most of the people in attendance, how about their hostesses?

"A question for all of you. Amaterasu's crown. The woman that helped present earlier, is that her exemplar?"

A lot of Ebisu's shinki deserve days off, but alas. This is the afterlife they're stuck with, at least for now.

Kiwami nods somewhat to show that he's heard her, keeping that as a note to himself. If it's someone who was a figure in the public eye during his time as a mortal, then that should mean something. The two shores can be very different places, but some things never change. Politics is one of them.

Meanwhile, he can give a solid answer to her question. "Yes, it is. That's Ikuten."

Ikuten. Ginia notes the name, but is immediately struck by its strangeness.

"I thought all of Amaterasu's shinki's names ended with 'mei.'" Since they've begun wearing nametags at the training sessions, it's become all the more noticeable. "Ikuten breaks that tradition noticeably, doesn't it."

"There are a few others, besides her exemplar." Aomi takes a moment to remember, one hand curled along the side of his jaw. "Koten and Kiten are two that I can remember right off the top of my head."

Kimi nods. "Old gods have a lot of history behind them... As do their shinki. It's like Bishamon's exemplar, Kizuma." But now that he's calming down from his jitters a little... Quirking up an eyebrow, he looks at Jitsumi. "Why are you asking?"

From -ten to -mi. When did that happen and why? Maybe it's relevant, maybe it isn't, but it's history all the same.

She glances at Kimi at his question, but looks away just as quickly to survey the room. It's her inclination to probe and poke at secrets and questions and try to understand the bigger picture. "Has Amaterasu been a child for long? It's a question a lot of us among the new generation have wondered." is what she asks. It's been a question on her mind for awhile, but it's a cover for the question she wants to really ask but can't bring herself to do.

Is Amaterasu the one in power or is it really her exemplar? If Amaterasu reincarnated recently, how much does she know about things? It's the old question of whether Amaterasu has records to guide her, but she can't voice that in front of the other shinki.

And if Amaterasu is not a recent reincarnation, then was the execution of Ebisu and his shinki her order?

Even if Jitsumi doesn't want to say things so blatantly, well... The leap from inquiries about an exemplar to how long a god has been in their current childish incarnation.... It's not something that requires a lot of thought. Each of Ebisu's shinki pause, all of them save Kunimi glancing over at her.

"Not too long, in the grand scheme of things," Aomi says slowly. "I believe the young master was actually the first to be reincarnated.

Shifting over to be nearer to her, Kimi tilts his head at Jitsumi. "Do a lot of the new generation think that she was betrayed by one of her shinki?" There's no point in keeping it hidden, however all, especially not when they're all like this.

Ginia rocks on her heels a little, expression uncertain. It's not an idea that's been voiced, but if she's considered it, certainly others must have as well at some point.

"I'm not sure, but I imagine more than one person believes it. Perhaps even more so, that her shinki are the ones in control. It all happened before my time, but the rebellions, the flyers calling for her downfall distributed to humans, of Amaterasu's temple set on fire, it's easy enough to think it's the cult's doing. I don't doubt the cult is connected. But... things are so specific too.

The cult isn't putting bad luck charms in every single shrine. They're only showing up in shrines belonging to a new god. If they wanted to take down everyone, wouldn't it be easier to curse every single shrine instead of picking and choosing? So someone, somewhere is telling them where to go. Then there's everything with the dolls at Hinamatsuri, whatever the hell that was about."

Ginia sucks in a breath and runs a hand over her face, feeling like her rambling is making no sense. Maybe she's grasping at connections and has lost sight of the important threads. She exhales and faces her temple, feeling a bit small in the moment.

"A lot has happened over the last five months. A few are nearing a near if not a bit over now. We have no answers save what we can find or discover on our own. So maybe we are all a bit distrustful of Heaven. It doesn't help we don't know why we're here in the first place."

For a brief moment, there's a wave of silence over the shinki sharing the space with her, along with Ebisu himself (although the latter has been mostly silent throughout all of this as he's been taking in the announcement and the reactions of the other gods and shinki in attendance). It's Aomi who, after glancing around at his coworkers, starts with, "While I can understand, I don't..."

Kimi interrupts. "Alright, first things first!" Reaching over, his hands lightly brush against the back of her own, lingering there. "Before anything else... Let's take deep breaths, okay? You're winding yourself up. Just follow my lead, alright?"

It's only been five months and that's nothing for how long a god or shinki can live, but it's a lot to go through when it's all you can remember too (for the most part). It could all end tomorrow too and that troubles her the most. Gods know what's waiting for them, but what happens to shinki?

She looks at Kimi as his hand brushes against hers, nodding quickly. Right. A calm head for everyone's sake. Ebisu knows what's happening, but Alex and Chris elsewhere don't.

...Fuck, she needs to tell them about everything after.

Later. Later. Right now, Ginia forces out a slow breath. Follow Kimi's lead. She can do that.

Once he's certain she's focused on him, Kimi takes one of her hands for a brief squeezes before he gets back to the breathing exercises. Just a steady pattern, deep in all the way to the bottom of the lungs, and then completely out again. In and out, slow and steady. He keeps this up for a few moments, watching her carefully.

It's only when he's certain that they've relaxed a little bit- he's not asking for a lot here, especially when it's their heads on the line- that he squeezes her hand again and moves back a bit. "Okay," he says, "let's go over things slowly, bit by bit." He looks back to Aomi, giving a nod to the other shinki. It's clear that the two of them will mostly be handling this, after all, with Kunimi watching after Ebisu and Kiwami more prone to action and succinct words. Which is fine, but just possibly not what's necessary here.

Aomi nods back before looking to Jitsumi. "Let's start with the bad luck charms. For starters, I don't think it's only your generation of gods that are getting them. Some were left at the young master's places as well. I'm not saying you're wrong in that the new generation might be specifically targeted," he adds hastily. "But I don't think it's only them who are getting attacked. The problem is that I think there's a difference in generations. The new gods and shinki are much more connected, in all sorts of different ways. That can be serious matters, such as when Nekhbet-sama alerted people to the dangers of the forest, or... other things."

"I liked the guy who asked for love advice on anonymous," Kimi pipes up.

"However, that sort of freely given information and communication doesn't happen as much with the old gods, with some exceptions such as the young master and the other Gods of Fortune. It's possible that other gods who got cursed charms simply didn't tell anyone outside of their temple or close allies."

Ginia focuses on the air filling her lungs and flowing out, stress and negativity rolling out with it. A bit of the tension releases from her shoulders and she rolls her neck to help ease up. She smiles at Kimi and signs a quick "thank you" as they step away.

She listens patiently to Aomi and Kimi, processing everything and holding back any commentary. Community is what ties the new generation together. It's their shared circumstances so different from the old, but maybe also a dose of caution and paranoia toward authority (for better or worse).

"I can concede it's possible there are gods receiving charms that have said nothing about their problems. I can also concede perhaps it's a difference in pantheons as well. To my knowledge, the gods in Ireland not represented by new gods have not seen curse charms."

Which is where her theory it's a targeted attack. Amaterasu is an obvious target, but it's true Ebisu has also received trouble too. Hmm.

"What about Hinamatsuri? Did any of you see the dolls?"

Edited 2018-12-22 21:28 (UTC)

There could honestly be a few ideas behind why who is being sent cursed charms. Maybe it's something targeted to foreigners, and that's easiest to do because, well. It's pretty obvious to tell their shrines apart. Alternatively, the targeted gods are only meant to be diversions. Who can really say for sure? None of them have enough information at the time being.

...Including, it seems, about the complete list of events that's happened at all. Kimi and Aomi pause. "Hinamatsuri dolls?" the latter asks, brow crumpled.

That's when Kiwami quietly speaks up, rubbing his fingers across his knuckles. "The young master and I did. Kunimi as well." Kunimi, who's still busy. Kiwami himself will have to explain. "We were returning the boat's onto their proper courses... And we saw more of your generation collecting dolls as well. They were more decorated than usual."

"There were straw and paper dolls. Straw dolls dressed in traditional clothes, paper dolls decorated to look like shinki that used to be here. All were damaged in some way. I touched a doll that looked like a friend that left and instantly began hallucinating him."

Resignation crosses her face and her shoulders slump. There's a letter at the bottom of her desk, read once before she put it back in the envelope and hid it away. She could live with Lancer leaving, no matter how much it hurt, but seeing his paper doll punctured and his light laughter in her ear tore that wound open again.

"Heaven says they're not responsible for us being here. So who brought us here, and do they want us to stay, or are they trying to send us away?"

Magical hallucinations? Kiwami turns partially so that he can look at her, and Aomi rubs at his jaw again. "So they must have been cursed, or been used in something.."

Looking abash, Kiwami bows his head slightly. "I apologize for now having the young master investigate further." Absentmindedly, Kunimi reaches over to pat his shoulder, but it's Kimi who speaks up.

"There's no need to worry, no need to worry, besides all the things we seriously need to worry about, especially me, and Jitsumi." Very reassuring, he knows, but Kimi clasps his hands together. "Wondering about how you got here is above our pay grade, Jitsumi, and we don't have enough information anyway on those sort of particulars. Let's start with what's at our feet. Now, Kiwami, Kunimi, and the young master might not have investigated the dolls directly, but I'm sure they could point out all the people who did, right?"

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