Not The Only 6

[Raizo]

His eyes would snap open as his body would be startled from rest. It was hard to consider it rest, as his body and mind both felt completely exhausted and a pain seemed to resonate throughout his entire torso. That would be when his gaze would be shifted downwards towards the bandages that seemed to cover his entire upper body. The half-mummy would quickly shake off this initial shock as his eyes would begin to scan for answers for the next question that was dancing around in his mind...

Where in the hell am I!?

The simplest question was a bed, since he was clearly laying in one. That, however, would be where the obvious answers would stop. The room that seemed to contain the bed holding the Sennin would be of a very unique design. The walls were made of what appeared to be clay and there seemed to be little to no decorations adorning the room. The small pieces of furniture scattered about did not lead him to believe that this room was someone's full-time or if it so, then it was someone who did not maintain a lot of possessions. The quietness that seemed to surround was almost like he was trapped in a void, with the one small fragment of noise being sudden powerful gusts of wind. It was at that time he seemed to start to realize a bit more of where he currently was, but there were still some questions he was not going to get answered sitting in bed.

Pulling himself up, aches and groans fluctuating and escaping his body, he would begin to slowly make his way to the door. It would take longer than he would have liked, his body feeling like it had been tenderized very thoroughly, but upon reaching the door and opening it, it would be greeted with a brief hallway. Within the hallway there would be more doors, closed much like his had been, and a large opening. The opening, which looked more like a den space for a home, was housing several individuals. For whatever reason, this home seemed to have been converted into a hospital, which only further confirmed his suspicions.

I'm with a desert tribe...

Since the fall of the Diamond Maelstrom, the desert tribes had taken up their nomadic ways with much more fervor than when trying to combat a storm that would literally rip them to pieces. The tribes, during the time of the storm, had started to band together to create little hovels and villages to survive in the hellscape, much like what had happened for the Okayama tribe that had taken him in, but now those settlements were fewer as the people found the ability to travel much easier. The reason this little home looked hastily converted is because it probably was, with the new residents of this encampment using it for a clinic area as opposed to housing.

The question of why he was there also was starting to become clearer. The simple answer was because he was injured, but further past that the images began to flutter back to him. On his way to the World Martial Arts Tournament he was jumped. While not the clearest image, something within him was willing to believe that the attack was the work of The Sovereign. It honestly could have just been bandits, but for whether he wanted to admit it or not his heart seemed to be dead set on it involving the group he had currently set his sights upon.

The man whom he believed to be the doctor, or at least the closest thing one could find within this traveling tribe, would slowly start to make his way towards him. The man seemed to have a weathered face, the sun, the sand and the winds shaping his face to an almost leathery looking appearance. His eyes seemed locked in a perpetual squint but his mouth was a pleasant smile. His figure was thin, probably a telltale sign that this tribe was having a hard time gathering food. They would not be the first nomadic group to hit that point nor would the be the last. Still, this man was working to help those, even those just brought in from the desert, the best he can.

"Stranger, I have no idea what you encountered out there... or what life you've lived before, but your body is a medical mystery."

"Because of the amazing shape?"

"Because it looks and feels like someone who has been repetitively smashed by a boulder."

"Ah..."

Well, it wasn't news to him that his body was in bad shape. Having survived several near death, and in one instance a series of momentary deaths, experiences, he was aware that his body was pushing its limits. Recently his body, once able to summon the power of the Chakra Gates, has started to show negative signs about maintaining such heightened states. However, he persevered.

The doctor would motion for him to follow, as he would attempt to lead him back to his room.

"Listen, I know your type; too strong to be hurt. Come, take a little bit more rest and then after that I won't even try to stop you from leaving. One more night, all I ask."

It was a reasonable and annoying request. He hated feeling like he was a simple read but in this case that would prove true. He wan't to leave, he felt his natural healing would get him past this momentary hangover and he would be back in fighting shape before too long. He also could feel his body telling him to listen to the older man. This would be one of those rare cases that his body would win out over his own stubborn thoughts.

Climbing back into the bed, the doctor would begin prepping an IV bag.

"You were incredibly dehydrated and had a heavy amount of blood loss... again, it was pretty impressive."

"Heh, I guess that's one way of putting it..."

The doctor would chuckle a bit himself as he slipped the needle effortlessly into Roku's arm.

"So, if I had to guess, I would say you are a shinobi, right?"

"Correct."

"Really don't see a whole lot of you out here in the nomad lands."

"I was heading off to a tournament."

"Oh, my what a peculiar travel reason."

"I'm a fighter, I guess a bad fighter--probably explains it a little better."

Both would enjoy a chuckle at the joke. The warm sensation of the IV fluid entering his body would cause a sensation of relaxation to wash over him. It wasn't often that he was able to just lay down in a bed and enjoy small talk. Normally he was begin asked to fight this or that, or he was taken it upon himself to fight this or that. These past years had been one battle after the other, with them not just being physical fight but also battles within his own mind and emotions. His body was barely holding together and deep down he knew that he himself was barely holding together. So a small moment of like this, even in a hospital bed, was a nice refresher from the norm.

"So you weren't out looking for someone?"

"Huh...wh..."

The words sounded weak and pitiful.

Wait, was that me? Wait... was... that... me...

"I saw the mark above your heart. A 六 (roku) mark? You are one of them. Well, as I told you messengers before, I'm not in the mood to join a cult. I will remain independent, besides this has been my best hunting ground yet."

The once pleasant and weather wary face of the doctor now seemed to be draped in a tangible madness.

"To think one of you would get injured and wind up in my clutches... time to see what makes you all tick, aye?"

He would chuckle again, the third time for their brief interaction, but this would not be one were the Sennin would join him in laughter. Instead, his eyes would grow heavy and begin shutting as the world around him grew increasingly muffled. The sensation of relaxing would fade while his body would remain in a relaxed state. His brain, firing off a flurry of thoughts, would attempt to will the rest of the body to match the growing stress, but it would be in vain. Nothing was going to happen, it was already too late.

"You probably thought you could come kill me, but it seemed luck was on my side. The legend of Toru will grow to exceed the little commune you all are starting once I kill a Pillar. My, my, I just keep having such amazing luck..."

... darkness.


MFT - 1458 words

 

[Raizo]

Drip, drip, drip.

There it would go again, that sound of a small amount of water attempting to break free. He had heard it before, with the most prevalent time being out in the desert while training with Natsuru. At the time, he was confused by the sound. Being near a body of water it shouldn't have been that out of the ordinary, and yet, it dripping sound would give the impression that water was landing upon something. The little man-made lake was still, there was no way it could have been the cause of the noise. But here he was, hearing the noise once more. Unfortunately, this time he understood the source of the commotion.

Attached to his body was an IV drip, much like before. This time the drip was intended to serve the purpose of not restoring or maintaining his own liquids. No, this time it was intended to keep him docile. At this point he was no longer sure how long he had been within this encampment, but he was sure it had been at least a week and no longer than a month. While the constant forced sedation clouded his mind, it was more the treatment he was receiving that continued to blur the lines of what and where he was.

The IV was attached to him and he was attached to shackles. The shackles were attached to chains and the chains were attached to the ceiling. His full frame was extended to its limit, as if he were some hunting trophy that was being prepared to be skinned and cleaned. In fact, it was exactly that. Each day, the man he once assumed was a doctor who had saved him, would enter the room roughly twice a day. Each meeting would go roughly the same way.

The escaped criminal known as Toru, a man known affectionately as a butcher, would go through his normal routine. First, would be the round of verbal nonsense. Toru would waver between anger, affection, admiration, rage, curiosity in an endless loop of insanity. He would remark on his body, how the Sennin happened to be "built" different than anyone else he had cut up. He would be angry at his own bodies inadequacies and ultimately he would just be generally excited about the opportunity of cutting up "one of the six". This was by far the easiest portion of the ordeal to overcome.

Next, he would move to the more interactive round. Very systemically and methodically Toru would completely flay the body of Roku. The upmost care would go into essentially dissecting a living person without killing the subject, and Toru had seemed to fully grasp this art. From what he could tell, Toru at one point did learn medical jutsu and skills, and was probably very skillful with the trade. The flip side would be that he was secretly a monster with evil buried within him that he quickly succumbed to, which is why he found himself in the spot he was in now. Separating flesh from muscle, muscle from bone, he would do it over and over. Each time he would start and finish in a different manner. In the beginning it was literally a living hell. By this point, however, it was just an experience. There was a complete numbness that was not entirely due to the sedating liquid.

Drip, drip, drip...

Lastly would be the moment where Toru would sit back and admire his work before ultimately healing the Sand shinobi back to nearly perfect health. The man made sure not to restore one thing; his chakra coils. This was something he knew himself was deteriorating due to his overuse of the Eight Chakra Gates and the infusion of consuming the energies of the woman of the desert, Kazuki and the flesh of Barnyx. Each of it was like a swirling madness that his body seemed to react to but ultimately led it to decay. The skillful Toru would notice this internal wreck and would remark;

"I am not sure what you are or what you've done, but this body's chakra system is completely wrecked. It was like everything was shutting down... so let me help you out, my most favorite pet."

On top of this, the power to summon forth a blade of pure chakra, his Rose Blade, was made completely ineffective at the gutting of his internal chakra system. Everything he had just barely scraped by to build up within his body to keep it functioning and fighting was finally completely destroyed. He was stripped of everything. Maybe it was for the best? As if finding some silver lining in this situation was needed. He could no longer use the skills associated with the legendary Hachimon arts, he was at the complete whim of a psycho and to top it all off he was more than likely going to be killed by the manaic before too long. But, if there was a silver lining, it would be this singular thought;

Best amount of sleep I've gotten in years.

His sense of humor, his ability to step into his own mind, seemed to be the only thing that had not been stripped away during his personal sessions with Toru. There must have been some divine humor in all of that, the man who could not remember his past happened to only have his mind left as the last 'intact' thing of his.

Drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip...

What the hell is it now? I shouldn't be bleeding that much, he wakes me up to make sure I can see the blood pour from me. Fuck, I'm like a leaking boat... maybe he forgot to heal something before putting me down? No, he wouldn't be that careless.

"Hello, boy..."

The voice, it was one he had not heard in awhile.

"I know your body has been struggling so far, but we are going to continue. This time we are going to see if you can replicate Number 3..."

Hearing this voice play through his mind would cause a sensation to shake through his body he did not feel he was capable of experiencing again; pain. An unbearable amount of pain would wash over his body as the sensation of being torn apart once more would come flooding to him. He had been in this situation before, he had been opened up before, and while the more he learned of his murky past connected to Nao, the more this shouldn't shock him. However, this time it seemed that there was a specific reason this memory was floating back up to the forefront of his mind. Something once more was awakening within him.

"Wakey, wakey... time to play, my number six~"

His eyes would snap open as Toru was preparing to start cutting into him. It seemed that he had blacked out through the initial process, and the disdain in the face of his captor only reinforced that notion.

Drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip, drip...

His eyes would narrow in on Toru as he approached with blades in hand. The rushing sensation would continue pouring through him, no longer as a feeling of pain but now as a sensation of release. Something in him had been damned up and it was about to break free.

"Now this isn't your final stop... this is just a test..."

Chuckling would echo through his mind as his teeth would begin to grit. The sound of water would intensify, no longer being a mere drip, but now sound like rushing river.

"Oh? You wait until now to want to put up a fight? How boring... I guess you are reaching your last legs..."

No, I can't die here. I have to know. I have to know...

"I have to know..."

While the words would come from the mouth of the Sennin would be shocking to Toru because it would be the first time in weeks he had heard the man speak, they would also be shocking in the sense that the voice seemed to carry something with it. Something was mixed into the voice of Roku, something else.

I see, so you are finally wanting to talk to me? You consume me, lock me away in your purgatory-like essence and just now, when you are in this stupid situation, decide you'd like to finally utilize me? This is why that other human considered you a failure...

Wait... what...

Before the internal dialogue could continue Roku would feel another sensation he had not felt in awhile; freedom. With a splash of water, his hands would be freed from the shackles.

"Wait... what the hell..."

For whatever reason, the drug that had been keeping him in a paralyzed state would no longer be effecting him. In fact, he would be feeling great.

"NO"

Toru would exclaim as he would send the blade jutting forward, piercing into the chest of the Sennin. There would be a sound that you would expect from being stabbed, a kind of wet sound, but instead of blood pouring forth there would only be water. Roku himself would look down in astonishment as the blades were clearing inside of his flesh, but there was no pain. There was no blood. There was, however, the appearance of water rushing around the blade itself. Toru would release the blades as they would seemingly get pulled into his body, as if caught in a current, before being expelled from his ankles to the ground. The soaked blades would just sit there, as if they had been sent through a power washer.

Both men in the room would be rather confused by this, but reason would come flooding back to one much quicker than the other.

"Thanks for the care, Doc."

His hand would raise up to the chest of Toru as his index finger would extended outwards and tap the chest of Toru, right where his heart was. The figure would turn translucent, water-like, before quickly converting to ice, taking the shape of a sharp icicle. Without hesitation, he would push his finger forward with all his might, piercing directly into the heart of Toru.

"I really mean that... you spurred a change in this body that only death, or I guess near death, can... I have no idea what I am now, but I do know one thing; you are dead. Adios."

So this is how you choose to use these gifts?

Who are you?!

Not important. Very well, for as long as this body is willing to accept this form I suppose we are in this together. I believe your very soul cried out that you wanted to settle things with that other human... well, whatever he was, that forced us together? Well, I support that, and this power is yours in those efforts. But for now, let me stretch...

What...

The rushing current of power he had felt before would once more intensify, this time to the point that it was like a waterfall or a geyser erupting. Energy would explode forth from him, consuming his entire body, consuming the entirety of the room and the building he was being held within. To any looking outside, it would appear like an orb of water had encased the make-shift hospital. Within, a strange humanoid figure would seen. It's cold, glowing eyes glancing down at its figure before the water encasing would disperse, the immense aura filling the area would subside and the humanoid appearance would disintegrate revealing a drenched Roku.

"I... wh-what?"

He would look down at his hands, which to him looked like flesh and bone. However, it was almost without certainty based on what had just recently happened. To test the merit of what he was seeing, he would calmly, and very much like the adult he was, punch the nearest wall. Based on what had happened earlier, he half expected his hands to erupt into puddle of water. Instead, his fist merely would connect with the wall causing an indention.

"How in the hell... am I... is this... I am dead?"

It appeared it was now time for him to attempt to rationalize the situation, in hopes of better understanding what it was that he just witnessed. It wasn't every day that your body would absorb blades as if they were being tossed into a pool of water. Then there was the strange voice in his head that seemed to be less like Nao's voice, which he could feel was a memory replaying. This voice felt much 'closer' and was very much directly talking to him in the here and now and not from a past perspective.

My goodness, if I had known you were going to drive yourself mad over this I would have just stayed locked up. While I can't provide you with all the answers you seek and want, I can provide you with one thing; I am very strongly associated with the element of water, and because I am a part of you, through barbaric consumption, you are now very much attuned to water yourself. Luckily humans are most composed of the substance, otherwise our compatibility would have been dreadful. Yet, to think it would take this long to manifest, I can't say I disagree with that 'man'; you are a failure.

"Ok, ok... this has been fun but you can shut the hell up now."

Oh, no, I am afraid we have some things we need to discuss before you go off and squander this new gift.

"Sweet hell... can I go back to the other torture..."

To Be Continued

MFT - 2267 words
OOC: These two posts are serving as my application for Kinjutsu removal (Hachimon), Kinjutsu application (Jinchuuriki - Water Spiritual), BL/CA Removal (Nanjirou) and BL application (Water Adept).

I purchased a Swap Card for the BL and a Kinjutsu Removal Card for the Kin changing.

 

[Raizo]

Drip, drip, drip.

The sound from within him seemed to persist. The ever present dripping, the sensation of water--

"Oh? Shit, I guess it's actually raining."

Exiting the make shift clinic he would notice a very rare sight; a sudden burst of rain in the desert. His eyes would cautiously look around. While he had handled his captor, he was not entirely sure the man was alone. That wasn't necessarily true, based on his time together with Toru he quickly profiled the man as someone who would always work alone. He would end up killing anyone that attempted to join with him. And even with that knowledge, he was still tense entering the open. When he first had a chance to look around, before Toru had lured him back in and sedated him, he had noticed that this was more than likely a makeshift stop gap for a nomadic tribe. Now, however, seeing more of the full location it would appear to be a ghost town.

"Have they already moved on?"

Aside from the rain drowning out any minute noises, creating a calming background white noise, there would be no other discernible audio coming from within the makeshift rest point. There were no sounds of people talking, children playing, meals being prepared or other tasks and job being completed. No, it was dead silent. It was at this point his suspicions about his surroundings seemed to become more concrete.

"Toru... I remember seeing his name in the book. He had been apprehended originally and upon escaping it seemed that slowly slaughtering nomadic tribes became his MO. Usually leaving his mark, signing his work... bastard.

He did not need to enter the different huts, he already had a clear image of what he would find. The same scene he had been living through would probably be displayed in each different location. Bodies shackled to the walls, blood deeply pooled and soaked into the floors and and different little setups of 'his' tools. It would seem that when he had been put asleep, the mad man would go and visit his other 'guests'. His best guess was that since they were not as malleable as himself, Toru would probably grow tired and kill them after having his fun. The man's ability to heal meant that he could have kept all of them alive for as long as he wanted, but regular people's minds would have been shattered making them less of a treat to 'visit'.

He would spit to the ground in disgust.

"Good thing you are in the dirt... piece of sh---"

His eyes would begin to widen as he would look down. A sudden force of pressure applied to his back would be what led him to look down, and before him would be an image that he was not expecting; the tip of the blade protruding from his chest.

"Wha--"

"Did you miss me, my beautiful pet?"

Gritting his teeth, he would feel a sensation of chakra surging within him. Unlike his normal molding, this seemed to be happening at a much quicker rate and without needing to use a medium such as hand seals. It was like his mind was legitimately controlling the chakra and that the chakra was reacting as if a living thing. Unlike the instance that occurred following his awakening to this new form, he felt completely in control of this chakra.

I don't like being stabbed...

And with that, his chakra would oblige him. From his body, a purple mineral would begin to bubble up and solidify. The encasing process happened at such a fast rate that it began to consume the enlarged scalpel that Toru had used and attempted to enclose upon his hand as well, but the butcher would release his grip and leap backwards creating distance.

"How are you still alive..."

The doctor turned murder would begin laughing manically.

"I was blessed with the ultimate gift of healing... I am essentially a god; I take my pain and suffering and send it to a sacrifice and in return accept their condition as my own. You probably assumed I had already killed everyone? No, I make sure to leave a couple of bodies alive enough that I could always Life Switch with them. Granted, I must consider them allies and them consider me the same... but I have ways of persuading people with enough time."

He would once more wildly cackle.

"You truly are a piece of shit... I am going to end this."

The Amethyst Casing would finish materializing around his body. The finishing touch would be a crystal mask and helmet that would envelop the head of the Sennin.</B>

Spoiler: Amethyst Casing Form

<B>

"You think a little costume change is going to save you?"

The Amethyst warrior would take a step forward.

"You think your armor will save you from my blades?!"

Toru would withdraw from his various pockets several over-sized scalpels. Scalpels that were just smaller than kunai but clearly were not designed for medical purposes. They were the perfect weapon for a man who was once a doctor but had been perverted into this madness. He would take another step closer to the mad man.

"Imma make you bleed... show me that fucking face once more you FREAK!"

Desperately the villain began throwing his scalpels. To his credit, the speed and precision he unleashed them were incredibly skillful. The speed alone was intimidating, but noticing that each blade was targeting a vital spot but a non-lethal location. Even in his panic, he had enough mental fortitude to keep with his goal; do the needed damage to immobilize his prey. A man that could heal you back from almost death had a lot of room for error when attempt to subdue someone. Yet, the armor on Roku would keep this tactic from being effective, and by this point he was only a couple of feet away from the butcher.

"You... you... you think this is it... you MONSTER?! Bring it!"

Toru would fling his arms forward with his palms landing upon the crystal covered chest of the Sennin.

"This is pointless..."

But within that comment a sensation of pain would begin surging throughout his body as a stream of blood started to burst forth from his mouth.

"I am god! My healing can either save or damn a person... ehehehehehe!!!!!"

The use of negative energy was something he had never experienced before, but even with his ability bypassing his armor, it would seem that the attack had lost some of its edge.

"Fine."

The rain would seem to pause within the air. A chill would quickly sweep over the area as the puddles of water from the shower would instantly freeze. The man, who had been soaking wet from the constant rain, would find himself now immobilized, frozen with his arms outstretched to Roku.

"Funny... well..."

He would raise his own arm to Toru, his left prosethetic would open its palm towards the face of the butcher. Quickly and orb of chakra would manifest and begin to pulsate as more energy began to swirl around and collect within the ball.

"...maybe..."

His eyes would turn purple as the skin around his eyes would begin to turn a green color. The discoloration would slowly start to spread throughout the rest of his body. The artificial skin on his fake left arm would begin to bubble up and rip apart. Then without warning the collected orb of energy would explode forward and a giant blast of energy would rocket forward. The blast would not only consume the mad doctor but would engulf the clinic behind him and almost a third of the make shift settlement. The blast would only last a few moments, emitting a brilliant light, but would quickly fade out. The rain that had been falling would stop, the chill in the air would vanish and the arm Roku had stretched out would now appeared mangled and melted.

"....maybe it wasn't as funny as I thought."

Upon the ground would be the only evidence that Toru was once standing before the Sunan; his feet with still smoking charred ankles. The rest of the body, however, would not ever be found. With that, the chapter on the Butcher of the Sands would end, and the criminal Toru would finally be brought to justice.

"Holy shit..."

His eyes would widen as he would quickly turn around. The speed would cause his destroyed prosthetic to fall off his body, leaving only his stump of a left arm. Upon turning around his eyes would lock onto six figures, each cloaked and wearing a hood.

"Ha, the pretend doctor finally got what was coming to him!"

"Me no like lil man, but me no really like lil doc."

"You, you down there."

The figure in the middle of the others would say. While Roku could not make out his face, he knew the individual was staring straight at him.

"Show us your mark."

"My mark?"

"The symbol you were branded with. The symbol we all share. The mark of the 六. The mark of the Roku. The mark of the Six."

OOC: 1527 words

 

[Raizo]

It had seemed like an eternity had passed since the closure of his interaction with the Butcher and the introduction to these mysterious figures. Within this same eternity, one of the figures would move closer to him without ever making a noticeable move. His eyes would shift to the one next to him.

"How the hell...."

The figure would turn to him, and even though they were right next to him, the shadow would still be cast upon their face. All that could be seen were two striking eyes peering out from the void of their face. It was haunting and mesmerizing.

"Just... just what the.."

"Just... just what the hell is going--oh? You decided not to finish your thought."

He was frozen. There was something happening and his brain seemingly was having a hard time dealing with it all. Was this a side effect of the trauma he had endured at the hands of the Butcher? He had been tortured for upwards of a month, that clearly would take a toll on anyone. He was strong but he was still human, his emotions were still a complex thing and not something that could just be easily waved off.

"Is this trauma from my time spent with the Butcher? You think you are that human that you'd experience, what, PTSD?"

There was no processing it. He had been thinking what this individual clearly could read as well. It was like he was some book and that this person, this monster, had the chance to read it before he could. Could they read his mind or was this all some trick?

"Calm yourself, Roku. You are getting too far ahead of yourself. What do you think this has all been? Do you believe your story has truly played out the way you've experienced?"

'What?!' was the only expression that came to mind as his gaze shifted back to the leader figure off in the distance. His words seemed to imply that maybe this, or some aspect of what was happening or had happened, was not real. That should have been laughable, right? Of course this was real. he was experiencing it, how could it not be real?

"You are a person that has died, multiple times, and each time you've returned. Do you believe that you are..."

"...normal? Am I normal?"

"Are you talking to yourself."

His teeth would grit at the insulting statement as his eyes would sharpen upon the figure before him, however, what was before him was only an image of himself. The figure, donning a cloak, was now very clearly him. But the eyes, his eyes, they looked different. They looked wrong. Did they always look that way?

"Not a question. Observation."

What was going on? What was happening? Was this real? All of these were excellent questions and under the circumstances the most obvious one to ask. But there was no solace in that. This was a moment that felt both incredibly real and fantastical at the same time. Was this a dream, a nightmare... no, that wasn't the true question. The true question carried a much heavier weight and tone. It was a question even thinking about caused him to shudder. Thinking it welled up a feeling of dread and discomfort. He would ask it out loud anyways.

"How long... how long has this..."

"You don't know?"

The crazed eyes of the Sennin would turn to the female-like figure that had been next to him. She no longer looked female, and while she never really looked human she most certainly did not look human now. His mind could not register exactly what it was that she looked like. It was a beast but there was some humanoid nature to its form. It stared at him, like a predator to its prey, but he felt no hostility. The figure seemed foreign but familiar, fierce but friendly... it was bizarre. Everything happening around him was bizarre.

"When was the first time you felt like your world was slipping?"

He had no answer. For years it felt like his body was falling apart. He just assumed it was the nature of his job, of his life. He would fight and get beat up, falling apart just seemed like the natural progression. The body he had, it was like a machine that had been overclocked and overused, he figured it was time that it just finally burned up. Fire. Consumed in a fire.

"When was the last death before this started?"

He had died so many times he was no longer sure. Each time it seemed like he had a new face, so was that the sign that it wasn't real? Should he still be blonde haired and wearing formal attire? Was that even what he originally looked like?

"Wouldn't it be easier to just cast aside this old shell... just become what you were supposed to be."

He didn't even realize the voice speaking to him was no longer a female tone and simply just his own voice.

"Be what I made you to be, baby boy~"

That voice. That voice.

"That... voice..."

It was Nao's voice. It was the voice he had associated with Nao, but now the question would rise; did he ever truly know Nao's voice? Was this all a prolonged psychosis? How long, just how long had this been going on.

"What if this is a lie?"

"Lie a is this if what?"

"Why would you lie?"

"We do lie."

The dripping was gone, the thoughts within his mind and the noises around him were much more maddening than that. It wasn't water. No, it was a raging roar. It was a fire.

"A... fire...."

Could he feel the heat? He was in the desert, but wasn't it night? Was it day? He could not remember. Either way, it wouldn't be weird to feel warm. This heat, however, was different. It felt like it was inching closer to him. The sound, the feeling, all of it.

"All consuming."

Once more he would look out and the world around him would be set ablaze. An inferno in every direction, creeping up on him, preparing to engulf him. He wasn't scared, or maybe it was more so that he didn't understand that he should be scared. The figure, the beast, would be surrounded by the flames as well but would not be touched by them

"We are getting closer.... closer to your full awakening."

"What is this...."

"The next step."

The fire would quickly rush upon him like an orange tidal wave. He could feel the heat but there would be no pain, at least yet. The fire would wash over his body but would continue to travel, clearly on a mission to reach an intended location. This is when the pain would start as the flames would rush forward, straight into his eyes. He could no close them if he wanted, and he wanted to close them. Instead, the fire would continue to forcefully inject itself into his eyes until it suddenly stopped. It was quiet. It was dark. His eyes, they felt fine. Before him, not to his side but directly in front of him, would appear the beast-like figure.

"Go, consume as much as you want. We are almost there."

The animal-like claw would be placed upon his chest. There was no sensation of touch or contact, but there would be a pulling, a tugging, sensation. It would not be a pull against him but a pull upon the hand of the beast. The figure would seemingly begin to melt into his body as it took steps forward. There was no pain. This was natural, this felt natural. Each step the figure took forward into him, the more of a surging of power he could feel within his body. The power carried a heat with it. He felt like the sun, like he was radiating with energy of light, of warmth.

"You won't need to die but a few more times before you reach it... maybe you can reach it without dying. We are almost there. We are almost what you were supposed to be before. What you should have been. Unincumbered. Unchained. Unbroken."

His eyes, while not in pain, were bloodshot. He glanced down at his hand, which suddenly erupted with flame. Once again, there was no pain. Extending his arm forward the flame would flicker and dance outward until catching one of the houses in its grasp and quickly setting it on fire. The fire would shift from a normal orangeish hue to a sinister purple. His eyes, his gaze, he could feel a power coming from it. It was as if he had the eyes of a god, the eyes that one could not hide from if standing before him. His gaze was powerful. His gaze was mighty.

"Where am I..."

Who am I...

Questions would be left unanswered as he would slowly begin to make his way back to the village. Each step felt slightly lumbered, slightly awkward. It was like he was a recently born entity or maybe more so a recently reborn entity. Scurry across the deserts he would see a lone coyote, one of the small animals that roamed the wilds. The eyes of the creature and his own would meet. Within that instance, he would feel a pulsating as his mind seemed to scream out a command.

STOP.

The coyote would not budge. He would take a step forward, and still, the beast would remain. His eyes, now beginning to feel the slight pinch of strain, would once more pulse with power.

"Approach."

The coyote would respond in kind like a domesticated puppy. One last time his eyes would pulsate with energy. This time he would not utter a command, either verbally or internally. Instead, he would think once more of the fire that had been burning around him earlier. While he could not prove it, he could feel like the fire, he was seeing was also being seen by the animal. Without delay the creature, yelping in fright, would attempt to escape the imaginary fla,mes encasing him.

A smirk would appear on his face. Within him there was a swirly power, one that felt much more settled than his previous incarnations. Whatever it was that had been growing within him, whatever it was that he was meant to become, it all seemed that much closer to becoming a reality. The fire, not water, seemed to call to him and now found a home within him. The flame raging within his soul, within his body, it all seemed to be in a perfect harmony with him. He almost, for the first time since he was last with his brother, felt whole. Like he was nearly complete. There was still something missing, but there was enough there that this felt the most right he could ever remember feeling.

"Interesting..."

As he walked off from the scene, a scene he no longer cared about if it was real or not, the shadows of six others could be seen.

"Alert him, let him know the egg is almost ready to hatch."

​

Where is my mind...​

OOC: 1863 words