002 | Tokyo In Trouble

[godsoffortune]

Who: Everyone!
What: Surprise! There's a disaster on the Near Shore.
When: Late at night (February 24, 2016) into mid-afternoon (February 25, 2016)
Where: The Meeting Hall of the Heavens AND various places around Tokyo
Summary: A nice little greeting for the new guests and an unpleasant surprise for the older ones~



A sudden, loud blast of noise persists throughout the entirety of the Heavens. It sounds much like a war horn of ancient times being played at a decibel that is meant to shake the very core of every being within its range. No matter how much you might try to block out the noise, it remains ringing in your ears deafeningly, and somehow you find yourself compelled towards the Meeting Hall - the place where you were first introduced to the Heavens and what you have gotten wrapped up in.

Anyone checking their phones will notice a large, bright red alert flashing at them - 'EMERGENCY! REPORT IMMEDIATELY!' It seems that the Heavens have taken to using modern technology for their messages as well.

Once you have reached the Meeting Hall, you will find that every wall has turned into a sort of television screen, displaying various streets and buildings in Tokyo, everyone one literally crawling with ayakashi both big and small. A voice that you recognize as Amaterasu's - though you would never be able to describe it properly - rings throughout the halls.

"We need your help, brave gods, loyal shinki. A rift the likes of which we have never dealt with has opened on the Near Shore. We must end the ayakashi who are harming our dear followers. Please come to our aid in this time of need."



Meeting Hall

The once garishly decorated Meeting Hall looks very much like the base of operations for an army at war. There are gods gearing up with shinki and man-made gear as well and plenty of gods and shinki saying prayers before they head out to battle. Everything you might need to make yourself feel safe during a fight has been provided, including every type of weaponry. But, of course, only shinki wielded by a god can actually destroy an ayakashi.

Counselling

In the main hallway, there is an innocuous door with a small, nicely written sign that reads "Gentle Counselling". Inside the door is a small room with a few sweetly smiling shinki inside who are willing to listen to your problems and answer any questions you might have. They are also here to help out any gods that are having a hard time dealing with knowing about how their shinki died and any shinki that is having trouble coming to terms with the fact that they are dead.

February 24

The rift that has opened is so vast that there is literally nowhere in Tokyo that you can go without encountering a rampaging group of ayakashi. Everything is utter chaos and there are creatures everywhere for you to fight. Let's just hope that you can get out of this dangerous battlefront mostly unscathed.

February 25

Towards the middle of the day, it will seem that the ayakashi are becoming fewer and further between. Things seem to be calming down a lot, though they are nowhere near normal yet, especially since the rift is taking longer to close than the Heavens would like. Fortunately, no new ayakashi have escaped into the Near Shore from the rift since this morning, due to a barrier that has been placed around it. Still, the ayakashi seem to be really hell-bent on getting away from you all now rather than fighting...



In Summary:

• There are a ton of ayakashi on the Near Shore that need to be destroyed.
• The newbies are getting one hell of a welcome as a result.
• Seek counselling if you need it!
• Go kick some evil ass.
• Comment to the first thread to get a randomly generated number of ayakashi to face.
• Mods will gladly play out any ayakashi interactions where requested.
• Try not to get killed~

Comments

Meeting Hall

[sleepingknight]

Whoa...

[Hi Tsuzuki, have another person peering curiously at your work! She does at least keep her voice down until he finishes his current slip.]

Can you really use those?

[Somewhere in her mind, she thinks that they're an old superstition, but... Well, she's also a spirit serving a god now. She can't really just rule it out.]

[sweetdeath]

Oh, hi, Yuuki! Yeah, I can.

... I'd be able to do a lot more if I could get in touch with my shikigami, but I think the contracts are affected by this promotion. I should ask if anyone knows how to get to the Illusionary World.

[It makes sense to him! After a moment, he realizes that it probably doesn't make any sense to her, though, and glances up guiltily to check for confusion.]

Uh, that is, I used to have some powerful summon spirits but I can't get in touch with them since I showed up here.

[sleepingknight]

[...Yup! That's going over her head.]

...Is all of that from when you were a death god?

[sweetdeath]

It is!

[It's not something he's ever tried explaining before, except to new Shinigami going through their first attempt to form a contract, so he hesitates over the amount of detail she should actually get for a moment before he shrugs.]

Most of us don't have a special power to use when we're fighting, so we work with spirits to help us if things get tricky. Byakko or Sohryu would really make a difference in a big fight like this one...

[And he misses them, too. Suzaku would probably be the most effective of all, but before he risks summoning her again, the two of them are going to have to have a talk.

She's probably furious about that thing with Touda.]

Anyway, I've got Hisoka with me, so we'll be fine!

[sleepingknight]

Huh...

[...Byakko and Sohryu? The first one in particular sounds familiar.]

Is it 'cause you aren't a death god anymore? [Or at least, that'd be her guess.]

[sweetdeath]

It could be. I've changed, and I made the contracts as a death god, so it's possible that being Tajimamori broke the contract.

[He glances back at her, smiling.]

If that's what's wrong, then I might be able to visit them again and fix it! If I can figure out how to get to the Illusionary World from this realm. It's kind of... well, it's a virtual realm, so it's tricky to access.

[sleepingknight]

Maybe...

[Or maybe not? Heck if she knows, this is way out of her scope.]

What about your shinki? Was it-- Hisoka?

[sweetdeath]

Yeah, it's Hisoka! What about him?

If I do figure out a way through, I might just bring him with me. It's about time...

[Whoops. He probably shouldn't get into that. It is about time that Hisoka made a contract with a shikigami or two of his own, since he's been working so hard on his magical skills, but he can't let on that he and Hisoka are from the same world. That opens all kinds of cans full of worms.

He clears his throat, shrugging.]

I'd like the company!

[sleepingknight]

Well, he's your spirit now, so...

[Maybe he should just shift to working with Hisoka instead of the old spirits?

But now he's saying weird stuff again, and she frowns a bit in her curiosity.]

...About time for what?

[She isn't knowledgeable on these things, but she's by no means dull.]

[sweetdeath]

Uh -- about time I visited them again! It's been years. I should bring by some souvenirs, too. Maybe a nice castella cake, or some sake.

[Totally smooth, right? Not at all awkward.

(It was a little awkward.)]

Anyway, working with a shinki is different from working with a shikigami. They can help me right along with Hisoka.

[sleepingknight]

Can gods do that?

[Heck if she knows what god policies are regarding spirit helpers. It's an earnest question!]

[sweetdeath]

Well, it worked for me when I was a shinigami. Beats me what the rules are on shikigami up in the big leagues.

[He considers it for a long moment and then shrugs cheerfully.]</small I'll figure it out!

[sleepingknight]

[Hmm...]

Is it hard to keep up with so many spirits? Helping you out like that.

[Just. Checking. Bo's been extremely kind to her, so she wants to make sure other shinki are well-cared for, too.]

[sweetdeath]

Yeah, I have to make time for everybody. I mean, I usually don't call them all out at the same time, and there are some of them who aren't as good in fights.

[So it's been a long time since he talked to Genbu...

Man, he really does need to go visit. He wonders if it's even possible, as a god. If there's a way over to the Summons Bureau, too -- would he get in trouble? Maybe he should wait for now. There are too many dangers he doesn't know about, and Hisoka's depending on him.

And there's the question of whether looking into this with Hisoka around is going to get too close to the question of Hisoka's missing memories, too.]

[sleepingknight]

So what do you do with the ones who can't fight? Do they just stay behind?

[Jiii. You'd better not be planning to neglect your shinki for shinier spirits, Tsuzuki.]

[sweetdeath]

I wouldn't abandon anybody! But the ones who can't fight I wouldn't call out for a fight, you know? They might get hurt if I did.

[He's not even thinking about Hisoka right now. Hisoka can fight, of course. Hisoka's done some pretty impressive fighting over the years they've worked together, even if his ofuda magic isn't nearly as good as Tsuzuki's yet. He's improved fast, though.]

[sleepingknight]

[That sounds nice and all, but considering the current circumstances:]

Still... What are you gonna do about the ayakashi here? It'll just be you and Hisoka.

[Gee, are these two going to be okay? She's not even sure what the right answer is here, herself.]

[sweetdeath]

Well, I'm all stocked up on the supplies for my magic with these. [He waves one of the ofuda he's been working on, smiling cheerfully.]

And Hisoka can use magic, too! So I think we'll be fine even without my shikigami to help.

[sleepingknight]

Wait what. Her curiousity is evident on her face.

"He can?"

After her failed attempt at the barrier from before, this is extra impressive to know!

[sweetdeath]

Sure he can!

[Tsuzuki's smile brightens proudly. Hisoka's good at everything, after all. So of course he'd pick up the shinki abilities! It only makes sense.]

I guess it's a shinki thing. Have you tried?

[sleepingknight]

A shinki thing... Oh! The boundaries, you mean?

[She makes a face.]

Yukine tried to show me earlier, but I couldn't do it! Did Hisoka get it?

[sweetdeath]

Yeah. Uh, I think so! Maybe he can give you tips later?

[She's friendly! She'd probably be a good friend for Hisoka to have. So it'll be good for him to give her some pointers. He probably has his head start because of all of the practice he'd been getting with ofuda magic back home, in any case.]

[sleepingknight]

[Meanwhile Yuuki just sucks at magic. Oops!]

Yeah, I'll try asking him! I figured for now at least, I should stick with what I know.

[Which is very definitely just swords, judging by the one already belted to her side. Maybe she'll learn it from Hisoka and then surprise Yukine with it after! Yeah, that sounds like a plan!]

[sweetdeath]

Hey -- good luck, anyway! Be careful down there. It sounds like it's pretty bad.

[She's armed, and that's a good start, but Tsuzuki's still worried. Especially if she's not doing too well with the borderlines so far. He smiles at her, trying to be reassuring.]

With all of us working together, though, we'll definitely do okay.

[sleepingknight]

Yup! It looks like a lot of them, but if they're all just small fry, I bet they aren't as tough as they look!

[Hopefully he wasn't expecting her to be lacking in confidence.]

I'm sure Bo and me will be just fine!