Aftermath [Private]

[Mikaboshi]

[col]The plume of smoke and ash from the destruction wrought upon Sousuke's apartment complex by Mikaboshi's successful arson was still quite visible as the shadows yawned wide and disgorged both Shiori and Mikaboshi into the gloom of a half-constructed residential building a few blocks away. In many places the new Residential District was still being built up from the foundations put down upon the sands of the surface desert and it was in one such place that Mikaboshi chose to hold their short face to face meeting. He had not seen Suna since the event involving Shouki during which he had subjected her to a torturous illusion in his anger and frustration and during that attack he had gleaned a peak beneath the surface of her mind and saw through to her motivations. Ancient-kind had dwindled to less than a handful in the intervening years between the fall of the Old World and the current year and it was impossible for either of them to even say where the remainder of their kin had gone. Mikaboshi had been present when the majority of his court's major members had been destroyed but where had the remains of the other courts gone? Did they simply avoid all contact with humanity or had the Sunahoshi hunted them down as they had with Mikaboshi? Before coming across Suna in the guise of Takahashi Shiori, Mikaboshi had in fact assumed that she was undone at the hands of the same men that had turned their blades on him in their fear.

Trapped as he was, Mikaboshi could not simply leave and seek others of his kind. The pact he'd agreed to with Sousuke had assured that much, certainly. At first he hadn't minded the pact as the terms were certainly preferable to remaining in the spatial exile of being sealed within the Black Blade. He served the interests of House Takahashi. Protected Sousuke from his enemies and when necessary was a repository of knowledge for the Steward-Kazekage to rely on when he did not have answers for the questions that gnawed at him. For some time it seemed as if the Steward had come to think of Mikaboshi as a friend and for a time the ancient was satisfied enough with their arrangement that he made no attempt to undo the pact or sabotage Sousuke even though such things were in his nature.

It was only until the return of Suna that such things lasted. Soon after Mikaboshi learned that the Steward had been taking for himself power and spiritual energy from the Black Blade as if such things belonged to him. As if simply being in possession of the Black Blade made him the owner of the essence contained within. And naturally such a conclusion incensed the remarkably proud spiritual entity. From then on Sousuke had treated him less as a valuable ally and more like a weapon that was owned by him. It reminded the ancient that, no matter how comfortable things had become, there would always be him and them.

"You'll forgive me if I am succinct, I imagine that Sousuke's hounds will be not long for my heels once he discovers that I was present at the scene of his domicile's destruction." Remarked Mikaboshi, his back to Suna as they appeared. "But really, this conversation could not have come at a more opportune time given the nature at which events will now begin to accelerate."|[legend="[[b][u]OOC Notes[/u][/b]] - [SCENE BGM]"]

Mikaboshi - Sand ANBU Sennin

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[Michi]

The chill and the gloom had swept them away, through a billowing darkness void of sound. She did not know where he was taking her, not did he know his intentions. Was this the act of the ANBU Sennin, Sousuke's hound? All the same she was not in chains yet as she pressed against him with her arms wrapped around him so that she would not be lost in this abyss. Ensconced in his frigid aura only briefly she felt numb in his presence as her lips turned blue and her flesh even more pallid. She took small, careful breaths while her mind attempted to review the possible scenarios. She was not a prodigy, merely someone who had lived a long time and had seen it all and sifting through such a repository of memories was tedious.

What did she know of this situation. She had come to destroy Sousuke, not physically but rather socially. In her weakened state she did not believe a battle between the two of them would end in her favor and even if she found victory it was unlikely that she would escape the village alive. She did not fear death or even pain but she did not savor either, she feared whatever it was that prevented her brothers return, she feared being bound like Mikaboshi was. Ancients lived a long time and even she did not know if there was a terminal point where they were naturally intended to live no more, but with such a protracted existence it was perhaps best to not exist at all than to be subjugated by another evermore. It would take a great deal of trust to know that someone had that kind of power, that kind of ability to utterly conquer you and to believe that they would not use it. When she first came to know of Mikaboshi and Sousuke's 'alliance' she thought it was indeed feasible that Mikaboshi was simply allowing the Steward to believe such. Things were never right with their union, starting first and foremost with the shade that allegedly coexisted within the Black Blade. Shadows manipulate by nature, the truth obscured by assumption and dread. She actually felt for Sousuke being manipulated as such, saw him as a future victim and with her sentiments for him she wished to protect him. Sousuke never needed a bulwark, he was in control the entire time and he used this power with such ease and without hesitation or regret. Sousuke was not an emotional man, perhaps that was why he did not see the atrocity in his actions that she was taken aback by. His callous apathy towards the freedom and inherent essence, all of which became his when it was beneficial for him. When it was logical, not when it was necessarily right.

They stopped, somewhere. It was a building still under construction somewhere within the residences from the look of it. Mikaboshi no longer in her grasp, his form an adumbration made of ether and shade. The smell of fire was heavy on her still, the stale choking scent. Her eyes scanned the space, it was not the Obsidian which would have been her first guess, followed by perhaps someplace obscure in the badlands. "You have a beating heart?" Shiori commented but the tone was that of disbelief rather than a statement. She heard it in Sousuke's apartment. Her ears twitched as she continued to try to pick up something as she took a half step back from the Sennin whose back was turned to her. He possessed the very same mannerisms as he always had, that air of authority and utter control even when he was at the disadvantage.

"You'll forgive me if I am succinct, I imagine that Sousuke's hounds will be not long for my heels once he discovers that I was present at the scene of his domicile's destruction."

Shiori furrowed her brow. He was Sousuke's hound. "Sousuke was not involved?" Shiori attempted to confirm. A statement that made no sense to her given the assumed nature of their agreement. Mikaboshi was utterly subject to Sousuke's will, something she saw with her own eyes. A being of such pride, she doubted he would have knelt to Sousuke's word to support a mere ruse. Would he? Perhaps she never truly knew him, the differences in their courts were great and moreover their paths before now rarely crossed. What did either truly know beyond rumor and diplomacy?

"But really, this conversation could not have come at a more opportune time given the nature at which events will now begin to accelerate."

She had no idea what he was talking about. "What events dear brother?" Her body tensed as she adjusted the glasses she donned for the charade that Mikaboshi had prevented. "Assuming tol hi los vrah dii zeymah." (Translate: Assuming that you are indeed my brother.)

 

[Mikaboshi]

[col]"Involved? No, the Steward is most certainly involved. Whether he wants to be or not. But responsible for my actions? He did not order them, if that is what you mean."

Mikaboshi remarked, ignoring her question regarding his beating heart entirely. He wasn't sure yet if he could count on Suna to be an ally in the war he was igniting. For too long Sousuke had abused his position of power over Mikaboshi and now that the ancient was free his first and most important order of business was to visit punishment upon Sousuke for daring to wound what was most important to him and for forcing him to abandon that very thing to achieve the revenge he craved.

His pride.

In the coming days Sunagakure would no longer be safe for him. The world had changed much since the fall of the Old World and humanity simply possessed too much power and he too little. He was confident in his ability to defeat any person present in Sunagakure, Suna included, but what of three of them? Four? Five? Their numbers were large and growing by the year. There was a lesson to be learned by the creature which the record keeperas had taken to calling the Djinn which had attacked Sunagakure some years back. Even though it possessed an overwhelming source of spiritual and physical power, the military might of Sunagakure had banded together and defeated the monster before it could destabilize too much of the village.

Indeed even though his heart burned with a hatred of them as well there was also a lesson to be gleaned from the Cabal as well. They were individuals of strength, surely but none of them were a match for a Sunagakurian shinobi in single combat. Even still they managed through cunning and planning to bring the village to it's knees for days on end and really it was only their mysterious decision not to bring down the guillotine blade they had held over Sunagakure for days that saved the conflict and allowed Sand to win the day. If the Cabal had truly been out for blood they could have seized control of the city and then asphyxiated it beneath the cavern ceiling by bringing a thousand tons of stone, sand and earth down upon their heads. Knowing that they had come so close to obliteration was not a thought that was wasted on the ancient sennin.

"Kein los nau niidro ven." Growled Mikaboshi, turning at last to face Suna as his mouth made the complicated gymnastics necessary to pronounce the ancient speech. It was rough and guttural and lacked the many varying ways to say different things that the human tongue called Common did. "My brother. Our brother. He said those words to me once before the rise of humanity transformed into the crusade which destroyed him. It was the first and time we ever spoke in person."

He spoke of course of Fuujin. The Great Lord of the Sun and Sky had never seen eye to eye with Mikaboshi and likewise for the Deep Lord. But that was their way and they'd never questioned it. After all, how else could the Sun and the Night be related to each other if not in rivalry? Mikaboshi had never possessed the power to attempt to supplant Fuujin and Fuujin had never really been given a reason to strike down Mikaboshi. They glared at each other from their respective corners of the light spectrum but there was rarely anything beyond saber rattling if that even. But one day the Lord of the Sun and Sky descended to the depths and scattered the Deep Court before him as a show of power to demand Mikaboshi's attention knowing of the Deep Lord's affection for the First Law. It was perhaps the only civil conversation the two ever had. Fuujin explained humanity's driving will to be free and told Mikaboshi of their leader the man called Primus. In his parting, Fuujin had warned Mikaboshi that war was coming and that it would find them all in due time. He demanded that Mikaboshi leave the underground and join his army.

Fuujin strained the very limits of his existence to descend and conscript the Deep Court and Mikaboshi. His domain was that of the light and of the surface just as Mikaboshi's was that of the dark and the deep places of the world. Often Mikaboshi could not help but wonder if Fuujin had known even then that Mikaboshi would not ride to war with him. It was in his nature to defy the Bright Lord just as it was in Fuujin's nature to mistrust the scheming Deep Lord. That was their way, after all.

"I will give you only this single warning. Kein los nau niidro ven." Mikaboshi reiterated the phrase he'd said in the ancient speech once more for emphasis. "War the likes of which the Wind Country has not seen for hundreds of years. I will see all of humanity burn for their crimes and I will lay the still warm embers of this civilization they have built at Sousuke's feet so that he may know the depth of my suffering. I tell you this with the understanding that you may choose to side against me only because you are who you are and I am who I am. You are owed the warning that we will be foes if you choose humanity a second time."|[legend="[[b][u]OOC Notes[/u][/b]] - [SCENE BGM]"]

Mikaboshi - Sand ANBU Sennin

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[Michi]

He spoke a familiar tongue that she had not heard in a long time. She took in a sharp breath as she considered the implications of what he had just done. He had broken what tethered him to the Steward and by extension conceivably the Black Blade if it was ever more than the Deep Court Lord's promise that had a hold over him in the first place. Did Mikaboshi barter for his freedom? Was his freedom given to Mikahboshi freely by Sousuke or did the Ancient Lord have to take back what was his? She did not know the answer to this, but the answer would change the dynamic of this conversation completely. Had Sousuke freed him of his own accord, her quarrel with the Steward would be no more, but then the Deep Court Lord's wrath would be another concern entirely. If Mikaboshi had to take back his liberty through deals or force, his righteous indignation was if anything understandable. In fact she felt the same way, his fate was the only fate she feared.

"Kein," she repeated, her voice low and calm. War was something she had already declared against her cousin, although her scheme more a war of attrition and by far less grandiose than her brother's. "You might have your freedom then," she observed stating the obvious but what she desired was confirmation. She did not know if the Ancient was indeed free or still a puppet under the Kazekage's employ or if his actions even now were the will of the Steward. The thing about the Deep Court was, they were not liars, she did not know if they lacked the capacity to lie or simply never bothered but she knew that their intentions and true intent were often hidden under layers of deceit and manipulation. She could not trust the Deep Court Lord, not truly. It was not in his nature to be an entity of trust. "Your... freedom," her eyes scanned him suspiciously. "Was it obtained, taken or forfeited?" Shiori asked, not that his answer would earn her trust only lessen her ire towards Sousuke if his independence and autonomy was a 'gift.' Mikaboshi's wrath would not suggest any past favors, only past offenses, some of which she had seen. Freedom now would not change the trespasses committed against him by Sousuke or his predecessors.

Mikaboshi spoke again of war and how he would make Sousuke know the depth of his own suffering. "How ironic," she mused. It was almost cruel that he would attempt to include her in a war he has already declared. Her brothers made the very same mistake and in her or rather their folly they thought nothing of the rebellious humans. "Rather, how cruel of you brother," she added in a low voice as she listened to the rushing civilians and shinobi making their way to the heart of the flames. "If war was already declared by yourself, it would be contrary to my nature to intervene. It would be a war of survival: theirs and yours unless I was directly offended, you know this brother," she reminded him. She reminded him of the war that ultimately heralded the end of an era. "It seems callous of you to place blame or claim favor in my stead when you have already raised your banner and expect me to counter my nature," Shiori countered as she looked through the hollows of the mask. "But, you may still be one to hold grudges," she shrugged. "I apologize for not making myself known earlier, but I forgot what I was for a time during this cycle and it was not until I cycled a second time that I came to recall what I was. Brother Fuujin and Homura's failed cycle took a toll on me," she admitted. There was a time when she thought herself human because she truly believed it. She died believing herself a failure as a human, because she held herself to human standards and ideas. Learned the desires of mankind and hunger pangs she could not satiate because she did not understand them. "Nor did I truly grasp the hold Sousuke has... had over you," her mouth cocked to the side as she corrected herself. Was he truly free or was this a terrible game her cousin was forcing the Deep Court Lord to play.

"I already declared war against the Steward," Shiori announced "but I would assume you would have been made aware of that considering your adjacency to the Steward up until now." Her accusation less direct than what most humans would make, but that was one of the many differences between them and humanity. The profound sense of pride they possessed. Calling him a liar or her a traitor would not come without reprisal. Especially considering the distinct possibility that Mikaboshi was still not free. "So in this war of attrition, now... absolute, thanks to you. You have my solidarity in our war against humanity," she extended her bare hand out towards Mikaboshi. The Deep Court with their pacts and their deals, subject to their word and sealing their fate with their promises and proclamations. Of course she did not know all that has changed or the lengths Mikaboshi had to go for this 'freedom' that he now enjoyed, perhaps if she did she would consider this Faustian pact even more dangerous than before. "Alliance in war, between yourself and I."

WC: 909
MFT

 

[Mikaboshi]

[col]"Nid balaan piraak." was all Mikaboshi would say in response to Suna's question regarding his freedom. Roughly translated it equated to the phrase "Nothing worth having" and was a short-hand expression meant to reference the idea of equivalent exchange. As beings of the natural world, ancients understood better than most other creatures that there could be no gain without loss of some kind. Nothing could be acquired without payment. He had sacrificed a very core part of his being for the freedom that he now possessed and as a result he teetered on a dangerously sheer edge between sanity and madness. The first of their kind to do something similar to what he had done had lost his mind and destroyed the lives of many around him while he disrupted the natural order that he had once been a part of. While Mikaboshi cared little for the well being of the humans that lived above the underground now he certainly still valued his own existence enough to resist the temptation to give into the purity of madness that came with the power he'd inherited.

As she chided him about her nature, Mikaboshi fought the urge to roll his eyes. She did not need to remind him of how their connection to their own natures worked. The desert was unyielding and stoic... but also capricious in nature and could be violently difficult if not properly prepared for. Still, he stayed quiet and let her explain her stance. She admitted that she did not completely understand the nature of Sousuke's relationship with Mikaboshi but even now she didn't really understand. She knew the depth of it now but there was no way to truly empathize with him without having stood in his shoes.

There were none that could. Not really.

"I have been absent Sunagakure for some time." He responded noncommittally to her insinuation that he should know about the conflict between her and Sousuke by now given their connection. He was not yet ready to share the details of his new... arrangement with anyone else. Information in the coming conflict would be power and the less knowledge about his new state of being floating outside of his grasp there was the better advantage he held as a result of it. There would come a time when Sousuke would find out what new power Mikaboshi had awoken in himself as a result of his new acquisition but that would be in due time.

Suna offered her hand in alliance but that had not been what Mikaboshi was asking for. In fact, Suna seemed to have misapprehended his purpose entirely in bringing her here. He had never intended to ask for her aid or her friendship. Only to give her a warning of the oncoming storm and to inform her that they would be enemies if she chose to stay the path of being by his side. His entire warning had only been issued in the event that somehow Suna's strange transubstantiation into a human being had allowed her to stand with humanity or worse obligated her to do so. He was surprised to find that he was pleased that she was offering her allegiance as she was but quickly reminded himself that just as he had found the power in this new age to change himself in order to gain new power there was always the possibility that Suna had done so as well. He liked to think that she would not willingly deceive him but this was uncharted territory for the both of them.

After all. She was partly human now.

Still, Mikaboshi took her hand and nodded his acquiescence to her terms of alliance. They were partners, now.|[legend="[[b][u]OOC Notes[/u][/b]] - [SCENE BGM]"]

Mikaboshi - Sand ANBU Sennin

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[Michi]

Mikaboshi claimed he had not been around in some time. That was likely true, but there was no way for her to know for certain. She had spent the last almost year recovering off of scraps as she struggled to stay beneath her cousin's purview. "Nor I," she admitted with a half shrug. She escaped the hospital at her earliest opportunity, they could do little if anything for her there and her continued presence would only create more questions, questions she was not willing or wanting to answer. Souls were not quite as easy for her to come by without drawing attention to herself, she did not have the same pasture of dammed as her brother did so recovery was a slovenly process. "It would seem that recovery is a dawdling process, with or without human intervention." She was like a wounded animal that retreated to lick its wounds, but what of the Deep Court Lord who did not suffer the same injuries. While she was merely recovering, was he growing? That was a concerning prospect, even for an 'ally,' there was always little love and even less trust between the courts. There was a constant rivalry for territory and power between the various elements and those who commanded or rather were at the beckon call of these natures.

She did not actually have any faith in the ANBU Sennin, and to his accredit even if neither had no ulterior motives he likely should not fully trust her. "Why an explosion?" She blurted out, a worry on her mind that he would not likely satiate with an answer. "You brought attention to yourself and by extension and circumstance myself," she charged. The violent explosive force and the raging inferno that followed might consume the newly erected village, but that was not truly her concern. For all she cared, the entire village could burn away much like her entire empire had all those centuries ago. So she was not against the inferno, but in doing so he had made himself a known target for the village unless... Unless he was working under the Steward's orders and this act of treason was to be pinned on her. It was a paranoid assumption, but one that she could not let go of. She did not know the depth of Sousuke's power over the Deep Court Lord but from what she had seen she knew it was profound. She had no way of knowing for certain if he was free from the Kazekage's grasp and without his verbal acknowledgement, she could not even use his nature as a testament. The explosion was in fact troublesome for her, she needed to defame her cousin in a way that society would blindly give her their support even if it was for a short time. She needed to get him out of the way and because of Sousuke's apartment now turned furnace, she was going to have to demonstrate his lack of stability through riskier means.

 

[Mikaboshi]

[col]"Attention, yes. My intention was to put the Steward out of his home, to take something important from him." Mikaboshi explained. The explosion he'd caused was not some haphazard attack that was considered in the spur of the moment. It was a calculated attack. "The explosion and subsequent wildfire not only accomplishes that but also removes any direct proof of my involvement. It is ill fortune that you happened to bring along with you an eye witness but he is a child. Who knows what he saw? He will describe that he saw an ANBU that melted into the shadows take you away -- not so uncommon a trait among my minions. But ultimately they will come to question me and when they do I will claim that I had been in pursuit of the arsonist and was distracted from my goal by your presence when I whisked you to safety."

"After all, elements of the Cabal are still at large and Mikaboshi cannot lie." Which was in itself a lie about his current state of being. The very act of it was... powerful and in the back of his mind Mikaboshi tasted that power for the first time. Humans who were capable of lying so readily could not possibly understand the weight of such an act for a creature who had existed for hundreds of years without the ability to directly state things which were not true. He could mislead by means of selective misinformation but the information he gave had always been true to the words he spoke. "Who will the Steward believe? A child who witnessed a man in a mask? Or his trusted assistant?"

"As you well know, a man cannot run on strength of will alone forever. Without a home to call his own Sousuke will be unable to go to rest without wondering where next he will come under attack... a fear well founded. Knowing that you are at odds with him plays well into my plan. When the time comes for our confrontation he will be tired and exhausted. Pushed to the brink. And then I will shove him over."|[legend="[[b][u]OOC Notes[/u][/b]] - [SCENE BGM]"]

Mikaboshi - Sand ANBU Sennin

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[Michi]

Mikaboshi made a rather curious statement. A statement that he was seeking the arsonist, the person who was he. Wasn't he? A shadow of doubt loomed over her mental picture and her memory of the scene that unfolded in her rather recent memory. It was him that started that blaze wasn't it? She simply assumed that it was him because there was no other there besides herself, the Deep Court Lord and the Kirishii child. Her brow furrowed, her features painted a confused image. She took a half step back, her heart bounded for a moment as her intuition told her to panic but she buried this sentiment somewhere deep within her. It was the nature of the Deep Court to put her or anyone at dis-ease, but there was one thing she could be sure of -- they could not lie. But if it was not he who set off the explosive device, then who? He knew and seemed to support this unknown arsonist's cause and purpose, he even shared some of his own sentiments. He intended to betray the Steward -- somehow.

Shiori shook her head. "How are you supposed to defeat a man who can with a single utterance draw you to your knees," Shiori's doubt in his success obvious in her words. Her concern was of course not unfounded. The Steward seemed to posses a great deal of power, specifically over him. To the point where even she had begun to fear his potential because there would be a day when he realized she would better serve him if all she could do was serve him.

She took in a sharp breath, "have you found allies or is it simply luck that drew you to the Steward's..." she started to ask before she cut herself short and waved herself off. She did not care to know. She did not need to know. In fact, the less the knew the better. "He. Will. Force. Your. Compliance," she warned, the angles of her jaw pronounced as she gritted her teeth. "It is best I do not know all you have planned, nor you I. Unlike you, I can lie," she admitted. "But I can do something for you before I cycle again," she announced as her palm pressed against his chest. She twisted her fingers around his buttons. This was far from a flirtatious moment, the dark energies that emanated from her fingertips made her intent obvious. "My loss will most certainly be your gain brother," she muttered as she pressed her hand against his flesh. "Considering how durable humanity has come, I must be infinitesimally weak... so your survival should not be a concern." What she committed if he did not avoid her was both a blessing and a curse, this duality of nature that seemed to permeate her being and by extension her court. The risk of death for the reward of a greater strength, most commonly a strength that was diametrically opposed to what her victim had a natural propensity for. It was almost cruel, granting a man a strength he was never intended to have but that was a human's plight. This sealing was something she had done only to humans, never to a fellow Ancient. Never before today that is. His potential was certainly limited, just as hers was as it was their nature be to such but she imbued him in this intimate act with something that could only add to his nature. This was something she was not entirely sure how his body would react to. Would he simply shrug it off and the seal would do nothing? Would this incapacitate him and threaten his life? She doubted such, over these recent years she has learned first-hand just how malleable their kind could be. Orochi demonstrated what power could do for and against an Ancient. Her only concern was when he truly was free. When he could act of his own volition and eat his fill. If he ascended faster than she. If that happened, she would not be able to stop him.

She forfeited a portion of her essence, enough to birth a son of the Court had she chosen. The chill of the Deep Court was overwhelming as the color left her temporarily, as if the crimson sands had been drained from her entirely. She seemed dull in comparison, and also hungry. Hopefully her efforts were worthwhile. She parted from the Ancient in case he lashed out and waited.

[Curse Seal Given of your Choice]​

Dark Sage. Mastered Sealing. I own every seal type.

 

[Mikaboshi]

[col]"He will try, of that I am certain. The Steward is a logical man but not a creative one. He will not understand that I have broken our pact until it is demonstrated for him. A show that I am more than willing to be a part of."

The way Mikaboshi spoke of the coming confrontation was laden with anticipation. He was clearly looking forward to the moment when he was able to personally reveal to Sousuke that their pact was undone. The moment where the Steward would realize that the yoke he'd used to bring a creature that was so much more his better to heel was broken. It was one that would live forever in his memory, he knew. For Shiori's part, this would be the first she would have heard Mikaboshi speak of having dissolved his pact with Sousuke... but that fact alone would not be terribly shocking. It would not have been the first time that Mikaboshi had managed to leverage a cleverly worded loophole in a pact he'd agreed to to undo it to the surprise and chagrin of those that believed they'd gotten the upper hand on the ancient creature.

Sensing no hostility from Suna, Mikaboshi allowed her to lay her palm against him and in that moment he felt a portion of her essence transfer through the tips of her fingers and into his own. Like a transfusion of blood, Suna's spiritual energy mingled with his own but harshly. His body jumped with pain and shock as Suna withdrew her hand but the sensation lasted for only but a moment. Mikaboshi did not consume the energy that she offered him -- there was still but a few taboos that he would not engage with if only to spare his own sanity -- but rather assimilated it much as he had when Toraono Kuro had unleashed his ancestor to try and corrupt his artificial body into a half-demon body. Drawing in a swift breath, Mikaboshi stretched his neck and felt the popping sensation as a result before speaking.

"I am surprised that you give so freely of gifts. I am honored. Trust that I will not forget it." The word of Mikaboshi was legendary for it's value as Suna had no reason to believe that the former ancient of the Deep Court could break his given word but even still this was a promise that he did not intend to break. It was curious to feel that way, he reflected. The realization hitting him now that he could turn upon her right that second and take more of the energy she had just given him. How powerful would he become in that case? The moment of madness was imperceptibly fleeting as Mikaboshi turned his back to Suna to look out once more at the growing inferno that he had given birth to. "We are officially accomplices in this now but I must be away before they grow further suspicious. It is to our gain if we are not immediately suspected. Unless you have further business?"|[legend="[[b][u]OOC Notes[/u][/b]] - [SCENE BGM]"]

Mikaboshi - Sand ANBU Sennin

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[Michi]

Mikaboshi had somehow released himself from the pact he had made with Sousuke. A curious oddity in and of itself that left her bewildered. She saw the authority Sousuke was capable of summoning, the words used to make their pact she felt were likely coerced in exchange for his 'freedom' from the Black Blade that she did not believe Sousuke had done. She thought, even if he had left himself some verbal loophole that he could acrobatically dance through that Sousuke still had the power and the wrath of the blade that had sealed him. She did not know the circumstances that led to their Shadowy-pact, she had one queried this of him but she was not given an answer to something that was likely rather intimate between the Lord and the Steward.

Once her hand left the Deep Court's chest and escaped the strange beating mass of muscle beneath. Again, a heart? Her brow furrowed but she did not ask, she was barely more than a husk of sand made to appear human. Apparently more effort was taken in his disguise. She looked up at his mask and down at her hand as it returned to her side. She wanted to ask 'what' he was but chose better of it. If nothing else, it would be exceptionally rude and they were having a civilized discussion.

"I am surprised that you give so freely of gifts. I am honored. Trust that I will not forget it."

Shiori, rather Suna nodded. It was not something that was commonly done, most certainly it was something she had never done. That is, shared what essence she had with another Ancient. She, like many others from this old time knew and feared the ravenous, maddened fate of the Wild Hunt. Extinguished with the death of their Lord because he had eaten his kin. It was the closest she knew of 'true death' before Homura and Fuujin fell to Primus' legendary blade. She heard an audible pop as Mikaboshi's bones shifted to accommodate whatever her essence would change within him. There was a half-grin on her face, at the very least it still stung she realized. There was a time when it would have done more, but now it was barely more than an inoculation. There was no 'worthy' element any longer attached to her diminished and tired essence. Of course that was also why she gave it so freely, because she would not... could not risk the existence of the only brother who remained in arm's reach. The world was a dark and dangerous place and if alone it would be too treacherous to trod. "dii am ahst drem," there was no word for happiness or a sense of being 'glad' in their tongue. Such sentiments were so fleeting and peripheral that happiness was a foreign concept to the ever-warring Ancient Courts who only demonstrated a facade of peace because to do otherwise would only mean mutually ensured destruction. 'I am at peace,' was the closest she could consider with their true tongue.

"We are officially accomplices in this now but I must be away before they grow further suspicious. It is to our gain if we are not immediately suspected. Unless you have further business?"

She looked at the ever-darkening sky through a window. The fires here would soon consume the newly erected residences. "No, it is all right," she nodded politely. "I have more to share, but perhaps I will seek a new form before I attempt to collaborate," she announced. Mikaboshi knew nothing of her intentions yet, as in how she planned to cajole Sousuke into a fight. A fight she might win, but she doubted it. How she would do this before he had his god-killing or subjugating weapon and before he truly considered the fact that she or rather they were immortal. Death was most certainly a painful process but she did not anticipate a protracted struggle. Of course, if she knew of Sousuke's regret and horrid medical skill she would have thought better of her plan but that would be a story for another day and another thread.

[Topic Left if Allowed]​

OC: Mikaboshi, I do have one more item for you. If you would do me a favor and after our other topic either spend time with me OR find me in the Obsidian after Roku is done with me I have one more gift for you.