thenearshore | 009 | Where Your Demons Hide

009 | Where Your Demons Hide

Who: Everyone!
What: Emergency demon fighting
When: Late May 5-Early May 6
Where: Just outside of Tokyo
Summary: The demon from the school has reared its ugly head again and needs to be taken down.

On the evening of May 5, the Heavens suddenly receive an influx of prayers from people in and around a certain town just outside of Tokyo. There seem to be a lot of people in the area that have suddenly stopped responding normally (or at all). The situation continues to spread as the night goes on until not only is the whole town suffering from this malady, but the neighboring towns are starting to become affected as well.

With so many gods and shinki on hand - including new ones that have just appeared - the Heavens have issued a request for any available gods and shinki to go investigate what might be happening down on the Near Shore. New gods and shinki will be given the low-down on what's happening, but not much more than that.

The situation will continue to expand until just a little before dawn, when the demon finally has enough power to revive.

Drained Humans

Many humans in the affected areas are walking around despondently. Oftentimes, they are just walking into things or getting hit by things. There have been a few car-related incidents as well. Anyone who was present for the high school incident will recognize these symptoms as something that was happening to people in the school. The glazed looks, the spiritless responses and reactions. So this should be fairly familiar to some.

No One's Safe

Unfortunately, being in the town will start to wear on anyone who is there. Gods and shinki alike will find themselves growing more despondent the longer they spend in the town. All of their energy will be slowly sapped from their bodies, and shinki in particular will feel almost like their existence is draining away.

Hellish Circle

There is a large park in the center of the town. Drawn all around this park is a magic circle, large enough to encompass the whole park. There are candles around the edges of the circle, and in the center there is a cup filled with blood covered by a mask with a swirling eye pattern on it. Stepping into this circle will not only make you extremely tired and suddenly drained, but it will also bring bat-like ayakashi bearing down on you.

The Demon

The Demon itself rears its ugly head just a little before dawn, springing out from the center of the magic circle and looking right pleased with itself. It stands about 5'8" tall, so it is largely unimposing, but there is an aura about it that makes it undeniable that it is powerful. The demon will gladly fight anyone who comes at it, though most he will just shove out of the way without a second thought.

In Summary:

Help the drained people
Try not to get drained yourself
Be careful about being corrupted
Fight the demon
Have fun~

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

You named him Yoyo? [She snorts] At least I gave Nami an actual name.

[The banter is habitual, something honed over centuries of fighting and training together. And no matter how nonchalant they seem, their focus never wavers.

Yoruichi knows she needs to make a quick, last-ditch effort to save the girl she's carrying. Saving energy is moot at this point--it's just about all or nothing.

Trusting Kisuke at her back, she launches into shunpo. Her steps are shorter than usual in order to help her more easily dodge--she pivots here, banks off a tree there--and she's over the circle's boundaries, carrying the girl to join the rest of her friends.]

I'm clear! [She calls out, turning to see if Kisuke needs help. Even if it's not safe to cross the boundary again, she can launch a ranged attack from here if he needs it.]

Oh.... no you don't.

[ When Yoruichi moves, one the ayakashit darts after her. Utilizing shunpo, Kisuke and Yoyo (admit it, Yoruichi, the name is fabulous) intercept the winged creature. The attack isn't perfect and the ayakashi is wounded but not vanquished. He's going to have to do some more research on shinki and god partnerships.

Just not right now.

Upon Yoruichi's call, Kisuke flash steps out of the area, leaving a barrier in his wake. There is one rather persistent ayakashi who veers around the sudden wall of shimmering energy. Landing next to her, he huffs. ]

They're as relentless as hollows.

[Kisuke may not notice it yet, but Yoruichi's watching his back. A swell of energy rushes through the ground and past Kisuke; it feels like her usual energy signature for the most part, but there's a discordant edge, ragged and seething, like it's just on the brink of tearing apart everything it touches.

Those ayakashi who dart around Kisuke's barrier, are met with the ground wrenching and flowing, opening a crack about a foot across and a yard wide. The flowing ground turns red hot as molten rock bubbles up and engulfs the small spirits. They die too quickly to even make a sound. The lava smolders at the edge of the gash, incinerating the surrounding grass and quickly warming the air.

Yoruichi looks alarmed and exasperated--will she ever learn to control this? But just as she opens her mouth to speak, her expression goes blank with shock.]

Oh.

[Her knees buckle, and she collapses to the ground, next to the kids she'd saved earlier. This new power is harder to use; with the demon's draining effect, the effort she makes to control it takes more out of her than normal.]

[ Yoruichi's reitsu is strong, powerful and well known to him. It's as exact she is and the differences in what he feels coming from her, albeit briefly, his enough to make his eyes widen and throw him a little off stride. The sudden lava pit - thankfully behind him - draws out a rather undignified noise. A million questions and possibility swim forward in his mind only to be pushed back when he expression changes from annoyed alarm, to blank.

With a burst of speed, Urahara pushes to her side not quite in time to catch her, but enough to put a steadying hand on her shoulder and the bulk of his body at her side to stop a complete toppling. ]

Interesting new trick you have there. [ He chuckles, making light as usual while his senses reach out to gauge her spiritual energy. Kisuke wraps his spiritual pressure around her as well like a warm blanket. ] You okay? Or do I need to princess carry you?

[He may not have been able to catch her, but she still gratefully leans into him when he gets to her. Her head is swimming and she feels short of breath; it's enough to make her rethink using her god power tonight except as a last resort. Her eyes close a moment, reveling in the comforting, familiar feel of him.]

I can't really control it. [Frustration edges through her exhaustion; it's been far too long since she'd had to work at a technique like this. And knowing Kisuke can already use his--genius that he is--isn't helping.]

I don't even know what it is--I've made storms and turned rocks into sand and caused little earthquakes, and now this. [She waves a tired, irritated hand at the lava.] What is this place doing to me?

[She hasn't answered his question or responded to his attempt to lighten the mood. Only he gets the full force of her frustration. And only he is allowed to hear the faint fear lacing her voice in her last words.]

[ It's hard to hear her fear because she's so rarely afraid of anything. Cautious, yes. Careful, certainly. But not afraid. His hand curls around the back of her neck, rubbing in small circles as he listens. Truth is, there isn't much rhyme or reason in what she tell him. No one thread that ties all these things together except 'natural disasters'. ]

Did they tell you anything about what the god you're supposed to be oversees?

[ He could see the correlation between his supposed domain and his powers. So far he's only used it on a small scale. But, even as he turns what he just witnessed and what she told him around and around, he keeps massaging her neck. Keeping Zangetsu in line and yeah even safe in this entirely strange situation in addition to powers like this have undoubtedly weighed on her more than she's letting him see.

Much less what she'd allow anyone else to see. ]

[It's a little surreal, sitting here in the dark surrounded by lava and unconscious teenagers. For now, the ayakashi have decided to stay in the circle, away from the pair who's brought them so much death. The muscles beneath his fingers loosen just a bit; he remains calm as he often does, bending that brain of his towards unraveling what's troubling her.

She takes in a deep breath before replying.]

Yeah. Oya is from somewhere in West Africa. The storm clouds make sense--storms like hurricanes are one of her attributes. [Gradually, her voice evens out, as though she's passing on intelligence.]

Storms, winds, death and rebirth, and sudden changes. The necessary, unpleasant ones that are for your own good--like moving to a better town because a hurricane flooded your old one.

[She shrugs, irritated again] It's hard to find good information on her. [Kisuke might have better luck; Yoruichi's internet ability is only so-so.]

Well, you got all the fun things. [ He smiles, ruffles her hair a little before getting a bit more serious. ] We'll dig some more and once I get some things made, I'll run a complete analysis on your spirit energy to see if there's any change.

[ He can't feel anything now, but he'd definitely felt something when she'd used her powers. Hell, he'd be excited about it if it didn't bother her so much. Kisuke looks over at the circle and ayakashi who seem a little more content to hang back with them not close to it. ]

Do you feel anything different when you use it?

[ The noise she makes might have been a laugh under better circumstances; today, it's just a soft huff. ]

Yeah. It feels like wrestling shunko, but worse. Like if I stop paying attention for a second, it'll destroy everything in sight.

[She frowns.] For a while, I couldn't even summon it at all. Now I can, but I can't control what form it takes.

That's... unusual.

[ And troubling. Yoruichi isn't exactly a slouch when it comes to learning new techniques. She's one of the best. So, this is something else altogether and he's got some digging to do. ]

Buuuuut, I suppose right now we should figure out our current problem.

[ Ayakashi, strange ritual circles, zombie humans. It's been a busy night. ]

If we stick to the area around the park, we can keep any more strays from wandering too close.

[ Because, Kisuke has no idea what to do with any of this. It's not their home and rules aren't the same. But he's been similar spots before, so it's no surprise that he wants to stay close to where the action will likely be. ]

After a break though. The area effect affects gods and shinki. Yoyo's barely hanging in there.

[She's no more closer to figuring out her power than she'd been before, but just sharing this much with Kisuke is reassuring. If it can be figured out, he'll help her do it, so it's enough to let her put the subject out of her mind for the time being.

She draws in a long breath, nodding. With a little time to recover, they could patrol the edges, keep out the innocent, and hopefully be in position to take this thing out at the root.]

He's probably just mortified. Who can hold their head up answering to that name?

[She still sounds tired, but there's the barest thread of amusement running through her voice.]

I wonder if we'd recover faster back on the Far Shore?

[If the entire town is being drained, maybe going back for a little while will help negate the effects.]

Hey, it's a perfectly respectable name. The lofty yo-yo has brought hours of entertainment to the world. [ Then he nods at the idea; it makes sense, but then... ] You can feel Zangetsu, right?

[ Leaving the Hollow unsupervised could be a wrinkle in an otherwise neat plan. Kisuke's connection to the soulless Yoyo was strange and he hadn't quite figured it out yet. He hopes the one she has to Zangetsu is stronger. ]

I saw him earlier. As soon as this is over, I'll get to work.

Yeah. He's fine for now. [Her expression falls a moment. Of course she can't leave Zangetsu here. And Amane's out there too. It's too easy to fall into old habits with Kisuke, as if the only people they have to worry about are each other.]

But good. I don't know how much longer he has.

[The fear of him losing control and eating loose souls is never far from the back of her mind. She'd been on the verge of asking Heaven for help--something she'd wanted to avoid, given that they may decide that Hollows have too many similarities to ayakashi.]

Maybe to the edge of town, then. That might be far enough.

[ Kisuke isn't sure either. He has hope. The Hollow had pretty handily resisted eating one of the souls. How much time is the real question as she voices. ]

If he gets bad again, putting him in weapon form and getting him out of here might be the best course.

[ It's not a necessity, but it is an option. Standing up, he offers her a hand and nods. ]

I've corralled some our locals to the east. We can swing by and check on them on the way. There's a barrier over them so they're safe. At least, from anything on the outside. How many walls they've walked into is another question.

[Taking his hand, Yoruichi pulls herself to her feet. She's still tired, but she knows she can at least make it to safety.

The ayakashi have pulled back into the circle, so the park seems to be relatively safe. Still--]

Let's pull these kids further back and we can get going. If we run into either of my other shinki, we'll just bring them along.

[Kisuke hasn't met Amane yet, but Yoruichi's sure he'll take to the earnest, quiet young woman.]

[ His answer is to pick up one the girls. Being slung on someone's shoulder isn't the most dignified way to be carried, but it leaves his arm free to scoop up the second one. It's better for one of them to act as pack mule and the other to watch out for nasty surprises.

Briefly, he feels out the spiritual pressures around them, opting for the path of the least numbers. It should be free of trouble. Or at least less of it. ]

If we need to, we can set up something outside the town and start funneling people there. I wonder if this is going to attract other ayakashi.

[Yoruichi shakes her head.]

I don't think so. They only attacked when people crossed the circle, which probably means there's something inside they're protecting.

[Besides, whatever's draining people can do it from anywhere in town. Presumably, it needs the humans alive for that.

They start off with the first two, Yoruichi watching his back as Kisuke carries the unconscious girls. They make it to a safer spot without incident.

The next trip, a few braver ayakashi make half-hearted attempts, but Yoruichi quickly takes them out.

The last trip, Yoruichi picks up one of the teens as well, figuring the risk of not having both hands free is worth getting them all to safety quicker.]

I'll take this guy so we can be done. How are you doing?

This feels remarkably familiar.

[ Dragging near comatose people out of danger that is. They seem to do that a lot. And in circumstances that aren't so dissimilar. ]

Tired. However they're doing it, this energy drain is scarily effective. I can't feel anything actively doing anything.

[ Leaning against a conveniently placed wall, he takes a moment to catch his breath. Then he looks over at Yoruichi with a small, concerned frown. ]

you?

[The last of their charges tucked away (relatively) safely, and Yoruichi lets her shoulders droop a bit at the brief respite. It's certainly not the first time they've done something like this, nor the first time she's wondered if her lot in life is to constantly clean up messes.

It's a pointless question though, so she dismisses it as quickly as it comes.]

Not great, but I can make it.

[Because she has to--they need to be able to watch each other's backs. While Kisuke would carry her around until he collapsed, she'd just as soon not let it get to that point. If she can stick to kidou and hand to hand rather than her god power, she should be able to keep from getting worn out too quickly.

As if to mock her thoughts, her head swims as she looks around; she shakes her head to clear it.]

Which way were your people again?

About a half a mile south of here. There's fourteen of them total. As long as we keep an eye out for any ayakashi, they should be safe where they are.

[ They both need a little time. It's been a long night already and there's no promise of it getting any shorter. Frustration creeps across his features for a moment. It's been a long time since he's felt in the dark about what's going on around him.

If this were a Hollow event, they would have figured out a way to coax it out and deal with the problem by now. ]

[A half mile is doable, even in shunpo. So she takes off without another word, staying well below her top speed, but still moving far faster than a normal run.

She knows this has to be driving Kisuke crazy. He hates not having a plan, but they don't know enough about the threat--hell, about this world--to be able to craft an effective strategy. So all they can do in the meantime is react; saving the humans they come across and trying not to pass out before making it so safe ground.

She slows down long enough to be heard.]

Most of the ayakashi I've seen so far are small and weak like those in the circle. With any luck, we won't see the bigger ones.

[ He'll never be as fast as she, but since she's not going all out, he can keep up well enough. Even this speed feels like too much and his limbs feel far too heavy. ]

Let's hope. If they're truly attracted to the negative emotions of humans, then we should be fine. Most of these guys aren't feeling much of anything.

[ When they arrive at the alley, a shimmery gold barrier closes off the alley and most of overhead. There's enough open to let air circulate through. He gestures, opening one corner just far enough to let them slip in and out easily. ]

It's a shame there's not a cart nearby.

[ He's not above stacking them in like cord wood at this point. Shaking off his fatigue, Kisuke slides in and grabs two of them, starting the process they'd done once already all over again.

There are a few ayakashi here and there. Small ones, thankfully. ]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

009 | Where Your Demons Hide

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