Loyalty, often a present [Open]

[Uka]

The sound of leather against the cold stone floor echoed throughout the chamber with every step that the youth made. The very large sack on his back was making a very quiet crumpling noise as it slowly shifted from side to side with every single step. It had to be noted that as unusual as his normal appearance was it was amazing how much he fit in here. For once Kazeshi was among his own, where nobody found his clothing or manners strange, but instead appreciated them. He didn't mind what anyone thought about him at all, but somehow it was really relaxing to be in this place no matter how much he didn't believe in anything the other monks followed.

It really was a strange thought after all. One would think a monk would believe in something spiritual, but this wasn't the case with the Kudochi line. No it was nowhere near the case. His family had always believed in something completely different, which many described as anarchistic. After all it was those beliefs that ended up robbing the boy of everything he had ever known, but he was never going to yield before oppression. His father had always taught him something might happen and now that it did Kazeshi was prepared. If anything the situation further solidified what he had been taught. The world truly was a rotten place where equality was but a myth and the only way everything could return to the natural order was though chaos. The nobility continued to tighten their grasp around society and all that did was cause suffering for the common folk, but if they were to be removed then everything would revert to the way it was meant to be. It was the only way. Sadly Kazeshi could do nothing but train and wait now. He was powerless compared to his father and there was nothing he could do for now at least.

The youth let out a prolonged sigh and hurried his step. He had to think about things a bit more, but first he had to find a place to relax. He could only come up with once place where people very rarely ventured and it was a place most sacred to him. To the monks within this temple the void chamber was something to be avoided, but to Kazeshi it was his place of worship. In fact the one thing his temple worshiped other than chaos was in fact the void. The ever-engulfing darkness and nothingness that followed chaos - the absolute order of everything.

As much as he hated to admit it he hadn't had an opportunity to meditate and collect his thoughts in quite a while now, but that was about to change soon enough. At least that was what he planned.

After a couple of minutes of walking he finally managed to reach his destination and he hurriedly sat down in the dead center of the chamber. Kazeshi removed the large sack off of his back and carefully placed it in front of him. The boy took a deep breath and carefully removed the object from within, which was nothing other than a guzheng. It really was a rather bulky instrument, but it was also what one could define as an instrument of worship for his beliefs. The last time he had had an opportunity to play it had been just before his temple had been raided and destroyed, regrettably after that it had taken him quite a while to gather enough money to buy a new one, but now here it was all shiny and new. He exhaled a long breath and carefully ran his fingers along the strings. Kazeshi closed his eyes and completely devoted himself to playing, completely voiding out anything else other than the tune.

​

[MFT]
[Topic Entered/Created]

 

[Ryu Hime]

Shikame was walking through the temple on her way to the nature’s clinic. Shikame wish to join the medical field and it was there where Shikora often volunteered. Like Shikame, Shikora was also an animal that walked on all fours. Perhaps she could teacher her a few tricks. However as she takes her short cut through the temple, she heard an unusual sound. The pink wolf’s ears twitched at the sound of someone playing a musical instrument. This was quite unusual for she did not expect anybody to be performing in a place of worship. Her ear swiveled as they scan to hear which direction the sound was coming from. When she locks onto the location of the song, she follows it and finds herself guided to the very center of the temple. On her way she passed by many other chambers. In the temple, the area is divided into 5 sections, each dedicated to an element. Raw forms of each element are housed in the temple, manifested and maintained by the priests. The very center of the temple is left vacant, a place known as the void. And there in the void was a man alone playing a sad melody. Cautiously she approaches the man in order to get a better look at him. He seemed to be a monk of some sorts, but what was he doing here? How would he respond to her presence?

 

[Uka]

[It has been a really shitty week sorry. I'll make sure to post a bit better next time round, but with this pulsing headache it's a wee bit hard]
The peace that playing brought him was absolutely not to be underestimated. As much as he was a calm person normally it was only truly at times like these that he could grasp the whole meaning behind the inner peace. It was too bad that such times were so rare now that everything had taken a turn for the worst. Sadly as quick as it began it came to an end. Kazeshi slowly opened his eyes and lo and behold the weirdness in this place continued. First it had been that black cat, then it had been the white pet tiger and now a pink wolf. What was wrong with these people and animal abuse? The boy sighed and slowly stood up, leaving his instrument on the floor.

"Why would anyone do that to a poor animal..."<i></i> He said as he slowly made his way towards Shikame, being careful not to startle her. "It's alright I don't intend to harm you."<i></i> The boy pulled out a pack of beef jerky from one of his pockets, offering a piece to her. It was probably a very stupid idea to offer wild animals food, but he was a monk and he didn't fear anything happening to him really. Maybe he was being stupid, but hey it wouldn't be him otherwise.

 

[Ryu Hime]

Shikame cocked her head with a confused look. What did he mean by 'why would anyone do that to a poor animal.' No one did anything to her. Was it her pink fur, the bow on her head or the fact that she looked like a wild animal made tame. He then offers her food. Well it would be only impolite not to accept such a generous offer. Slowly and cautiously she walks closer just in case this was some sort of trap. From her experiences food was a common tool it the capturing of animals and they often say they mean no harm when the do it too. If he tried anything he was going to find out she is much more than he could handle. She sniffs the dry piece of meat and backs away. It was not so nice of an offer after all. Shikame never understood how humans could stand such stuff. You kill all the flavor that way; meat is only good when it's fresh and bleeding or that's the view point of this wolf. This offering was not only cooked, but completely dry and overly salted. In her mind it was ineditable and her disgust was quite evident on her face. She walks around him in a circle, she looks at him carefully and he did match the description of somebody a friend saw at a bookstore. According to Kiki he was some sort of monk so possibly he could be here out of some religious practice perhaps. The people that attended to these shrines called themselves shamans so naturally he is not one of the staff here. Could it be possible that they served the same deities or did he simply find this place spiritual? If she remembers right Kiki said he was from a temple located in the country of Stone, so having the same gods would be possible, but she had her doubts. She stops her circling and sits down before him. "So Kazeshi, what brings a monk like you this far down from the mountain?" Surely being a spiritual man like himself is aware that there are creatures other than humans intelligent enough to speak the common language. There are demons that are commonly found as having an animal form and it is her understanding that these religious types knew about them quite well. Some worship them while others shun them. She herself has demonic ancestry, but just because she has some darkness in her it does not make her evil. It just as hard to see in a room of complete darkness than a room filled with blinding light. Now what type of person is this gentleman? Would he fear her or would he respect her? He would also likely wonder how in the world she knew his name. Shikame must admit the black cat made quite the informant; no one expects her of being an intelligence gatherer. "My name is Shikame. I believe you where recently acquaintance with a friend of mine at the bookstore on Aventurine Street." Of course with her lack of explanation of who the person was, he could likely assume she meant Nao instead of the cat.