Pale Star [Contract Search]

[Shiruko Makoto]

The desert was the only place around that was quiet.

It wasn't just physical noise, of course. Makoto could tune out physical noise, especially in pursuit of sleep. It was the swelling tide of emotions, which he was now sensitive enough to that filtering was near-impossible. He could usually exhaust himself enough to sleep anyway, but that was becoming harder. He didn't want to have to deal with this forever.

Perhaps going out into the desert wasn't the wisest thing to do in the middle of the night, but he'd fancied a walk, and supposedly the stars were much clearer from there than anywhere else. Most of Moon, outside the towns themselves and the farms on the southern edges, was forest--not an ideal type of terrain to stargaze from.

There were creatures in the desert, of course, as well as bandits. But he could handle the former, or at least run from anything he couldn't, and the latter would enter his empathy range long before they got within any distance to be a threat.

Besides, it was night. The only light aside from the stars and moon were the small motes of light he kept hovering around him, dancing fireflies of photon chakra that were just sufficient to show him the area around him, spread out in a cloud about six feet in any direction.

The phoenix had counseled him to be careful, and to keep his sixth sense tuned and regular sight as clear as he could. It didn't mind him sneaking out of the hotel for a bit of stargazing, though he'd had to agree not to go too far out of visual range of the dojo and slowly reconstructing city on the surface near it. Not difficult, since all of it was visible for miles into the desert...well, it was during the day anyway. He was still only a little beyond sight of civilization, just enough to see the sky clearly.

And it was a clear night, the stars bright in the sky. He should have just found somewhere to flop down and stare into the sky, getting some mental rest.

You're very restless tonight, Makoto. Is it really getting worse?

Yes. Or at least, it seems it. Maybe that's because I can't find a way to filter or dampen it. He gave a mental sigh, pausing in his walking. The motes, shifting slowly in colour between pale yellow and white, then back again, paused with him. He tilted his head back to look at the stars, tracing various patterns in them of constellations. There's no other recourse; I'll have to find a way to shed it for something else. If I can.

If you can, the phoenix echoed in his mind. And if you cannot?

He frowned unconsciously, staring at the sky. Then. I'll find some other solution. But I'd rather not accept that I cannot. I'll find a way, regardless.

If you're that determined, I am sure you'll find a way. I will do what I can to help, if anything.

He didn't respond 'verbally,' but it would be able to read the current of his emotions as well as he could read anyone else's. Better, even.

The truth was...the truth was he wasn't really sure it was possible at all, but that didn't much matter. As he'd often thought in battle, it was a bad idea to regard anything as impossible. Even if it was impossible, you should shut up and do it anyway. That line of thinking had gotten him through an awful lot in the past.

Including something in this very desert.

So maybe this desert, or this country in general, was a good place for him to be if he wanted to do something so difficult as to voluntarily shed a power core. It was here, before, that he'd met--well, become aware of, or maybe more precisely even, re-awoken--the phoenix spirit inside him.

That wasn't why he was there, though. He was just tired of the emotions of a whole city of people shouting at him, and him being unable to filter them effectively--even if he just focused on one or two he knew slightly better. That didn't help much anyway; too much focus on either of his traveling companions only unnerved him, reminding him of their emotional irregularities.

He started walking again, not away from the village but along it, as far away as it was. Maybe he ought to just exhaust himself out there, every night until he found a more permanent solution. Get a couple of hours of quiet in daily.

Unusually, the phoenix did not warn him off that. Perhaps it sensed he was, in some ways, fraying at the edges.

I'll figure it out. Nothing is impossible. If it is, I'll do it anyway.

He continued on through the desert.

[Using Discovery of Contract of Your Choice ASP card to find the Bird contract.]

 

[Maki Kichiru]

It would be unsure what Makoto would notice first: His empathetic senses noticing a presence or the shadow that covered the area around him as a large figure flew overhead. If he were to focus his senses on the being he would only be met with a washing sensation of relaxation. Not quite the same feeling as when one lays down after a long mission, but the sensation of vulnerability and peace that a child experiences when resting on their mother's lap. The feeling that one can truly submit themselves to the darkness of the world with the trust that they would be protected from it.

His eyes, on the other hand, would tell a much more interesting story. If he were to gaze upward into the sky he would see a large winged creature circling about a hundred meters above him, casting a shadow over the young Shinobi as he walked through the desert. It would soon then tilt downward as it flew towards the desert sands, its beak aimed a few meters in front of Makoto. As it came into view he would be able to make out further details of the majestic bird, whose wingspan stretched out over two meters in length. The body and head of the avian were covered in jet-black feathers, whilst the feathers on it's wings were a brilliant white that each ended in a beautiful violet tip.

As the large creature neared the ground it would lift it's head up slightly; it's wings flapping with such intensity that the sand below it began twisting about erratically as if being stirred about by some otherworldly entity. As it descended the sand seemed to continue twisting more and more violently into that of a whirlwind that shrouded the creature's descent to the ground. Once it's feet touched the sand flapped it's winged one final time, sending a flow of air in all directions. This air matched the sheer power of the strongest of winds, disrupting the vortex of sand and clearing the nearby area of any resulting sand-cloud that might have been created by it's descent.

It's eyes turned towards Makoto, though in them he would not see ferocity or even apprehension as one might expect if they were dealing with a wild creature. Instead, he would be met with calm violet eyes that seemed like they could calm even the most furious of beings. Though he would notice that the eyes seemed to gaze not only toward him, but also somehow through him, as if with that knowing gaze that every mother possessed. It soon opened it's beak to speak, her voice flowing through the air like the gentle melody of a lullaby sung to a restless child.

”Greetings, my child."​

 

[Shiruko Makoto]

As the main light source he was paying attention to was mostly generated by him, and in a cloud around him, Makoto did not see a shadow. He did not need to; the sense of another being nearby drew him up sharply, making him tilt his head back and catch the sight of the large bird wheeling in the air above.

That's not a vulture...they're not usually out at night, right? Could be one of those desert creatures... He wasn't as versed in much of the local wildlife as a native would have been, after all. But if it were an animal, I wouldn't have sensed it like that. Animals did not have strong enough emotions for him to notice.

That is not a normal bird, Makoto.

Huh? he thought back at the phoenix, before silently chiding himself for the slip of the 'tongue.' I mean. What do you mean, what is it?

Most unusually, the phoenix did not really answer, giving the equivalent of a mental shrug. Either it didn't know, or didn't want to tell him. Still, it didn't seem worried...

Moreover, something that emitted that sense didn't seem as if it would be hostile. It seemed...comforting, somehow. As if it was trying to be kind to him in a way he was unfamiliar with.

(It wasn't as if he was familiar with the affection of a mother--children in his clan had always been communally raised, and so he couldn't point to any one adult in his childhood who had held a greater amount of affection for him than average, especially not coupled with the full of it. So the nuance of it might have been somewhat lost on him; he had heard of the word 'maternal' but he didn't exactly know what it felt like, to have that directed at him.)

Motes of harmless light held themselves still in the air around him, shifting their light to a soft white instead of the oscillating yellow-to-white. He wanted to see this being better, especially as it landed before him, and without the tint of any other colour on it.

Black and white and purple, resembling somewhat in colouring the starlings that flitted around Moon's outer forests. Except the bird itself was much larger, and the colours arrayed to be much more visually striking. He watched it descend, carefully, from what felt like a safe distance. Somehow he didn't feel the need to tense up or be prepared for an attack. Even though some part of him cautioned that the sense of calm itself could be part of an attack, but he was only getting the full force of it in the first place due to his empathy.

If he'd had any doubts this wasn't a natural creature after the phoenix had told him otherwise, they were dispelled by the time it landed.

Especially with the way it radiated contentment, safety, affection like a beacon. He'd yet to meet anyone or anything that could fool his empathy--the one thing it was good for. So too, this single being did not much bother his senses, not scraping at them as a constant wash of people did. Maybe it was the being itself, or the clarity of just one to focus on within his range with non-violent emotions.

He approached slowly, not out of caution, but because some part of him was certain a being like this deserved respect. He stopped a few feet away, well within range of it if it so chose to move.

"Hello," he said--softly, since sound carried so easily in the desert. "I've not seen...who are you?"

He had meant to say 'what' instead of 'who', had meant to say many things more than such an expression of seeming wonder, but the question had tumbled out of his mouth unbidden. It seemed more appropriate, somehow. Because the 'what' was evident; what was very clearly 'a large, sentient bird.' Asking beyond that seemed foolish.

 

[Maki Kichiru]

The sand around them settled down as it seemed like the winds themselves died down as if in tune with the beat of her wings. When her wings finally came to rest at her side so did the winds, for this particular creature was known to her kind as the Mother of all Birds as well as the originator of the winds that swept across the world. To those who knew her by name would tell stories of what would happen without her presence, describing a land in which the air would sit completely still and the waters would lay completely undisturbed. As such she was ingrained in the ebb and flow of nature itself, one unable to properly exist without the other.

“Ah.. Human, my apologies. I was not speaking to you. I was addressing my child, a winged spirit of flame that seems to have taken residence within you.”

Her eyes peered through Makoto once more, as if awaiting a response from the phoenix which she addressed. It was likely he would be confused as to her ability to sense the presence of the phoenix, which likely was not an entity whose existing he shared with many. Her eyes, however, were sharper than any eagle's, able to not only pinpoint a Legionnaire Tick over a mile away, but also capable of sensing the spiritual fluctuation of the area around her. In this way she was able to sense the unique concentration of chakra within the human that stood only a few feet in front of her.

“As for your question... My name is Ho-Pu, it is a pleasure to meet the both of you.” She would calmly say as she bowed her head in greetings to Makoto and the Phoenix. If Makoto were paying close enough attention he would likely realize the calmness of the winds around them, whilst only a few hundred meters away there still existed the normal winds that carried wisps of sand into the air. More so, their voices would carry as if they were standing within a closed-off room, not requiring much effort for their words to carry to the other whilst maintaining an eerily undisturbed quality.

The human worried her. The trait of maternity brought along an acute perception of the emotional state of those around her, even to the point of understanding one's emotional state before they can even decipher their own thoughts. Those who were troubled tended to react in a variety of different ways, whether they would act out in rebellion against whatever it was that troubled them or they would completely isolate themselves in an attempt to hide from their concerns. Seeing as how this particular encountered was happening within the Great Desert she assumed it would be the latter case.

“You possess the air of one who seeks isolation, human. Why is it that you find yourself wandering the Great Deserts at such a time?” Her words would flow out once more, taking on the emotional state of genuine concern. Whilst Ho-Pu was only known as the Mother of Birds, she still possessed a respect and love for all those who had yet to prove themselves unworthy of it. It was this quality that set her apart from Kyuuraku, who constantly pined for her position of power.

 

[Shiruko Makoto]

The phoenix wasn't young, which was, oddly enough, the reason Makoto had assumed the bird had meant him. At the same time, however, he knew his concept of 'not young' would be vastly different than a spirit's concept of the same--so while, by human reckoning, the phoenix was older than an individual human could hope to be, it was still probably quite young compared to the majestic bird before them.

Which was supported partially by the sensation in his mind he got from the phoenix. It was a flash of...surprise? With perhaps a touch of guilt?

Well. That was shocking.

Hello, Mother of Birds. I assume you can hear me, or sense me in some fashion. A pause. I have...been here for some time. I admit I am surprised anyone can sense me, but not that the one who can is you.

He hadn't told anyone, anyone. His brothers knew from being there immediately after the possession happened; he hadn't told them himself. So the only answer, of course, was one he could have worked out even without assistance--of course this was an entity who was spiritually attuned. But, Mother of Birds? That...that was a pretty mighty epithet.

Then again, she's obviously a pretty mighty bird.

The phoenix was capable of taking its own form, for brief times, if it stayed near him. He knew this, or at least had been told such, but it had never actually done so. This would have seemed like the ideal time for it to at least try, but it did not seem to want to, for the moment.

"Hello," he said, belatedly, sketching out a quick bow. "I apologize for my earlier rudeness. My name is Shiruko Makoto. I am honored to meet you." A little politeness, as odd as it was from him, could not hurt, especially with how her presence was just...so soothing.

He didn't meet many beings whom that was true for anymore.

(Honestly, he would have put most of that down to sound traveling well in a desert. But the winds, the winds he had noticed. Even at night, they usually blew.)

He hesitated, and tugged his scarf more tightly around the neck, dropping his head a bit as he played with the fringes. It would have been a well-worn scarf, with how long he'd had it and how much he used it, except he kept it stitched with preservation seals. The edges should have been frayed, and then it would have been good symbolism for him. But they weren't.

Not that symbolism was something that tended to appeal to him anyway.

He wasn't sure how truthful he wanted to be, at the same time as being aware that lying or omitting things was not a very intelligent option in this case. He didn't do a lot of the former, but he had been aware, lately, that he did a good deal of the latter, albeit frequently by necessity.

He made himself lift his head again, so he could answer while speaking to Ho-Pu and not the sand at her feet.

"I...suppose it's because the emotions of people in the city bother my senses," he said slowly, opting for complete truth. "I...I gained empathy a few months back, but it's been much less of a gift than a source of problems for me. I don't seem to have gained the ability to filter, or turn it off. And when I'm around a good number of people..." He dropped his scarf and spread his arms; the conclusion was obvious. "It's as if I'm being shouted at, all the time."

Perhaps a bit too open, at that, but he'd been concealing the secret of his empathy from everyone except one of his brothers for as long as he'd had it. Being questioned when he was feeling relatively peaceful, by a being he knew he couldn't really hide from, meant he could relay it somewhat calmly, instead of bursting in someone's face at the worst time possible later.

Which, he realized, would have been the inevitable result of trying to handle it on his own. He suppressed a sigh at that thought. Even with empathy, he just wasn't an emotionally-adept person.

 

[Toraono Kuro]

“It seems the time has come to release yourself from your host little one, I suspect your presence has altered his mental capacity to the extent that he is enduring undue pain. Come along child. I wish to tend to this one's pain and I cannot do that as long as you hide within him.”

​

Her eyes peered into Makoto allowing her to stare into the young phoenix's eyes like any stern mother would. While focusing her calm, kind, yet persistent will upon presence of the phoenix within Makoto Ho-pu took on a human form and stood before him as it was easier to speak in a human manner when in human form. The winds remained calm but a glaring yet comfortable flame collapsed the large bird into the shape of a human woman. A red haired woman in a green skin tight uniform coalesced into being before him the flames of creation and rebirth surged forth and then began to take shape around her as she came close. With pleading eyes she held his gaze and held her open palm over his chest. A pulling sensation made his entire body lurch as she began to call forth the entity within him and as she did so his mind began to relax.

 

[Shiruko Makoto]

"Wait, what?" Makoto forgot his manners for a moment. "No, no, that's not it at all. The empathy is...it has nothing to do with the phoenix! It was due to something else I was doing...it's been trying to help me with this! It's been with me most of my life, and not caused me any problems...it's helped me!"

Strictly speaking, not entirely true, Makoto.

"I don't really care about the elements. It's so minor, that doesn't even count." He shook his head, running a hand through his hair. "I don't want you to go. It's...I've never asked if you want to stay with me, have I? You might have better things to do. There was that other spirit, that demon you were fighting, you never wanted to look for it...?"

Her. She usually takes the form of a deer. It isn't important; I drove her off from Moon. There was a touch of hesitation in its words, and when it next 'spoke,' the words seemed aimed at Ho-Pu. If my host does not wish me to leave him, I will not. There are still ways I could potentially help him, and helping other beings who need it is a core part of my own being. I can appear outside of him, briefly, and disconnect myself enough for you to see us separately...but I think it best I do not disconnect entirely.

Relief flooded through him at that; he hadn't even considered the possibility of the phoenix detaching itself before and he really, really didn't want it to. At this point, it wasn't about being special compared to others, if it had ever been. Nor was it about anything it could do for him in the future, or even who owed whom for life-saving at this point.

No, he just really didn't want to lose a friend. He didn't have a lot of them to begin with.

Then the part she had said hit him, and he turned his attention back to the ethereal being in front of him.

Wait...cure me? As in, remove my empathy? That would...she can do that?

Even with the shift she had made to human form, it was not hard for him to think of Ho-Pu as a bird anyway; she had such a powerful spiritual presence as one it would have been difficult to mistake. Still, in this form it was even easier for him to read her cues.

And he didn't want the phoenix gone...

He took a half-step back, some odd sense of propriety interfering with his desire to just, find a way to keep her from ripping that bond out. That...he didn't want or need that. He knew she was trying to help, hence not wanting to be rude, but...

Something gently unwound in his mind--not gone, but slightly faded.

I think that is enough for me to do this.

There was a tug, and a shimmer off to the side, and Makoto's attention was diverted to it, almost by some kind of reflex. His breath caught.

When he'd last seen the phoenix in its 'physical' form, he had been a child, and the memory had faded a good deal since. Speaking with it, he didn't ever get a visual sense so much as a warm, comforting presence. His only recollection of its appearance had been a very large, glowing, white bird, with scores across its form. It wasn't wholly inaccurate, but that memory was fuzzy, twenty years out of date, and incomplete. Or perhaps the phoenix had healed now.

When he thought of the word 'phoenix' it conjured images of flame and a set picture in his mind. That picture no more resembled the actual phoenix spirit than a child's drawing could. It was large, that was true, and glowing. But it was no longer simply white, but iridescent, the colours of its form shifting in the moonlight and the light from his chakra. It also did not truly seem to have talons, or feet of any kind, its form being a kind of silhouette in light of a swan's head and body, a short tail, and a pair of very large wings too mighty to belong to a normal bird. There was a kind of aura to it, and this was pure white, enveloping it and casting that soft glow.

The connection was still there for now, and Makoto reached along it with his chakra, reinforcing it. Still, it made him realize he was in the presence of two quite powerful spiritual birds, not merely one.

He...hadn't thought of it that way in a long time.

"Please don't make it go," he said quietly. "At this point in my life...I think, it would be wrong..."

 

[Toraono Kuro]

​

With a smile she nodded to Makoto, “I can’t make it leave you permanently, all I can do is ask it to separate from you so I can make sure you haven’t suffered any spiritual, mental, or physical damage from harboring one of us for so long. Since you seem to be capable of full cognizance with it inside and outside I suspect it only heightened your mental capacity in a manner that allowed you to feel everyone else’s hearts as well. Fear naught I would never separate friends from one another but I must insist that you release your physical links ever so briefly so that I can diagnose you both. There will be no harm to either of you and afterwards we can have a discussion about your union and how best to maintain yourselves.”<i></i>

She would begin her analysis of the bonded duo after they managed to comply with her request.

 

[Shiruko Makoto]

Makoto swallowed, trying to calm himself down and ignore the feeling of foolishness that swept through him.

"A-all right," he said after a moment, noting how the phoenix was gradually pulling its presence out of his mind--carefully, and not completely, but the flash of its own guilt was easier to unpack from his own feelings than it would normally be. "Sorry. Right."

There wasn't much he knew about the process; the phoenix handled most of the temporary separation on its own. Gradually, the soft glow from the phoenix brightened. It didn't reach a point where it would quite rival the full moon as he knew it, hanging in the mountains above his homeland, but it was the nearest comparison he could draw of that light. And certainly far more lovely; the faintly rippling rainbow sheen of the spirit's body was a decidedly prettier picture than the rabbit in the moon.

It was at this point that he couldn't really feel the presence in his mind at all.

"I...have to admit," he said, addressing Ho-Pu, "that I...have no idea if that's the case or no. I know that I gained the empathy through my own efforts, or at least I'm fairly sure I did, but it's very possible that its presence made it more likely that I gained that rather than say, the ability to speak with ghosts--which, when I think about it, was also something that could have correlated to the study I was making at the time that I gained that skill. But I wouldn't change what I did during that timeframe, even if I don't like the results," he added, with a glance at the phoenix. "And all of that, I did on its advice."

The beak made a motion that should have been a clack, but there was no sound of that nature to it. "You seemed to need the help. You are still young, even in terms of your people, and your family has not seemed able to guide you in certain things."

The admission was phrased delicately, but Makoto was put in mind of when it had glanced at some of his memories and discovered from whence his belief that airing your emotions publicly was a bad thing came.

He took a deep breath "Go ahead then," he murmured inclining his head respectfully to Ho-Pu. "And I am grateful for if you can do anything, this is just a bit...overwhelming, sorry."

In fact, there was no real damage from the phoenix's possession of him that wasn't there with any other possession--probably less than most, given that it had not only been voluntary, but Makoto had been young and flexible both mentally and spiritually, enough to adapt relatively easily. There had been that small fever he'd had not long after their spiritual merge, but that had gone in not long at all, and he'd never since suffered adverse effects.

...Well, there was the thing with his chakra, but he'd known and agreed that his temporary--or even permanent--loss of the ability to recognize elemental chakra was a small price to pay for a life. He'd become quite used to it, in fact. Not that he minded terribly having the elements themselves back, but he didn't see the fuss about them, even with the phoenix helping him develop them.

And he'd gladly give them up again to get rid of the empathy, if that were the trade. It wasn't as if he'd be wholly unable to use elemental chakra; they'd just be...different.

Which, honestly, had been an advantage more than it had ever been a disadvantage.

(But none of that was a conscious thought, really.)

 

[Toraono Kuro]

​

"It seems she has indeed altered a portion of your brain but it is not life threatening nor is it detrimental for your expanded capacity. I will heal the portion of your mind that contains your emotional psyche and return my child to you as you seem to be good for one another. With this your reception of emotional turmoil good or otherwise will be greatly diminished and easily controlled. Is this treatment okay with you or would you prefer to remain the way you are? I could even reset your mental capacity to a state more compatible with your actual aptitudes but I will need your help with some other efforts if you take me up on my offer. What say you?"<i></i>

Ho-pu waited for Makoto's decision before proceeding with her healing method or leaving Makoto to his own devices.

 

[Shiruko Makoto]

Makoto didn't need time to think. Not for this. Not really. He'd wanted the empathy gone since he'd gotten it; it was oversensitive and all it did was degrade his ability to deal with things.

He'd been trying to understand how people felt, but it wasn't something he was really capable of dealing with properly when he got it funneled into him directly. He had realized, at some point, that what he got was around the same level as what the other people felt--and he was not a naturally emotional person regularly himself. It was too much.

So he didn't hesitate.

"Yes, please," he said simply. "I...my friend there could tell you, I don't exactly have the easiest time with it, so if you could actually flat out remove my ability to detect others' emotions that way entirely that...that would be for the best."

Even if there was a cost...well, it would be worth it.

"And anything you need my help with, related or otherwise, I can do. That is, I am willing to do, if there's anything I can."

He glanced at the phoenix, who did an approximation of a shrug, the light over its form rippling as it gave a single flap of its wings.

"I do not think she would ask anything of you you are incapable of, Makoto, though I am relatively sure we are only speaking of assisting you, at the moment," it said. Oh. Well then.

"Right." Makoto coughed. "Um. The second option, that would be what I would prefer. It's very gracious of you to help at all, honestly. Anything you can do would be appreciated."

It had been occurring to him lately, in dealing with his traveling companions and also other affairs, that he was not actually, naturally, a rude person. It seemed to take less effort for him to be polite these days, namely because doing so got you into less fights.

Not that he would have attempted to be rude to a being like this, in any point of his life...

 

[Toraono Kuro]

​

With a smile she nodded to Makoto once more. A brief surge of light rippled from her hand and encompassed his entire body. Portions of his mind began to shrink and return to a normal state like the swelling of a hand or finger would subside after time. The surge of energy made Makoto feel warm and light and free all at the same time. The hairs of his body stood on end but instead of alarm he simply tingled like one would after bathing in mint oil. His mind at ease and his body awash in light Ho-pu asked if Makoto would like to have celestial resistance to harm. “Your mind is healed. The swelling of your frontal lobe has been corrected and your natural capacity for thought restored. Now with this done I require a service of you. I require the retrieval of 2 family heirlooms from a temple of monks. These men are neither criminals nor threats. They are very devoted to protecting these sacred items. They have made 2 grave errors that we of the Bird Clan cannot abide by, they have taken away the pinion feathers from the wings of several giant geese to keep them from flying away so they can use their feathers to make items. They have not responded to our attempts to balance this act by healing the geese and allowing them to continue their pilgrimage. If you can retrieve the sacred quill and papyrus from the temple without killing or maiming any monks I can reverse summon them from the temple. What do you say to my request? ”<i></i>

Hopu placed the young phoenix back within Makoto their bond no worse for the wear.

 

[Shiruko Makoto]

It was an...odd...sensation, to say the least, to have another being externally making modifications to his mind.

Makoto had never been fond of Genjutsu, but he had been subjected to it several times in the past. This was not at all like that. Perhaps the difference was in how the mighty bird had actually asked his permission first. Perhaps it was in some of her technique instead. Whatever the case, the sensation remained merely strange instead of invasive and harmful.

In fact, he began to feel almost giddy at some point, but he was not a particularly outwardly expressive person, and the sensation was so alien to his usual modes of thought that he didn't know quite how to express it even if he had been. So that was its own kind of mildly odd, too.

Celestial resistance to harm? I...am not entirely sure what that means, but I'm fairly sure my friend gives me at least some measure of it.

He shook his head lightly to clear it as the sensation subsided, so he could parse her words better as she spoke. He felt...

Well, better than he had in months, honestly. The additional sense, the sensation of others' emotions crawling over his skin...he'd have to go near others before he knew if it was truly gone, but it felt as though it were. He didn't possess the same feeling he had back when he had discovered it within himself.

"So...they're keeping these geese from flying away?" He frowned lightly; geese were migrating birds last he recalled. They needed to be able to fly away at certain times of the year, unless they lived in a very narrow band of climate that he was fairly sure did not include this region. "That. Yes, that seems a more than reasonable thing to ask in exchange."

Contrary to what some people who knew him might think of him, Makoto was not a person who was inclined to deliberately take advantage of others. He likely would have agreed no matter what the request had been, as long as it were short of anything too extreme.

And he had ended up with the phoenix in the first place from the desire to help it.

"So you don't want me to harm these monks, right?" he asked. "Or, simply not to unduly harm them? I'm not sure I can talk them into handing over these items; I do know how intent people can get over things they consider sacred. There is a good chance I may have to rob them."

That...didn't bother him too much, but it might cause a few problems. He wasn't fantastic at stealth, after all.

Abruptly, he felt the bond snap into place. The phoenix rose into the air and circled him once, twice, three times, trilling softly yet happily. It did not vanish once the bond was restored, but rather alighted on his shoulder, shrinking to something the size of a large songbird or crow.

"I think I will go like this for now, unless we have to use stealth when we get there," the phoenix said, beak not moving. "I am allowed to assist, yes? If I am not, I can go back to being internal for now."

Makoto could not resist reaching up and lightly brushing his hand over the phoenix's back. It felt warm and soft, comforting. It nudged him lightly with its head much the way a cat would do.

"I wouldn't mind if you stayed like this, except for the danger when we're around others," he admitted.

"I know that. It is fine, Makoto."

 

[Toraono Kuro]

Ho-pu smiled in a human manner as she explained Makoto's destination and some of what he would face. "Thank you for accepting my request. In honor of this I grant you the power to fly while in my service. Know that if you use my gift it will make you seem like a fiery beacon of a bird flying through the sky, although if you are flying on a bright sunny day you will cast no shadow nor will you be easily seen as long as there are no clouds.
PVE Jutsu awarded -Wings of the Phoenix -

Spoiler

Illuminating Phoenix Wings
Using phoenix wings control over wind and heat, the recipient will surge with phoenix fire powered by their chakra, they are able to glide at high altitudes or leap very high at low altitudes. With training, the winged are able to hover above the ground. Though this allows them to levitate off the ground with wind and fire or kinesis, this technique is moderately swift moving like that of a decent run. While this provides a natural protection against close range combat, long range fighters can easily pick off the winged flying as the light from their wings make then easily spotted from the ground especially at night.
Rank 1: Levitation - User gains +1 melee dodge, -2 Ninjutsu/Ranged dodge.
Rank 2: Super Leaps - User gains +1.5 melee dodge, -1 Ninjutsu/Ranged dodge. +5% chance of 'Acrobatic' dodging of RANGED attacks if the user possesses the skill Acrobatics.
Rank 3: Glider Flight - User gains +2 melee dodge, -1 Ninjutsu/Ranged dodge. +10% chance of 'Acrobatic' dodging of RANGED attacks if the user possesses the skill Acrobatics.
Costs:
Rank 1: 500 CP/rnd, 1 AP
Rank 2: 750 CP/rnd, 1.5 AP
Rank 3: 1000 CP/rnd, 2 AP
Notes: Levitation under 5 feet above the ground does not produce light
Fiery Wings Briefly Appear during super leaps
Your body glows like a lantern at night granting others +1 accuracy against you with ranged attacks at night.

The place you are heading for is the Temple of Seven Spires. The city of Yamashii was built nearly 7,000 years ago, during the twilight years of the golden age of the Old Ones before Godfall and the onset of the Age of Darkness and Humanity. Constructed as a tribute to the forgotten lady of the mountains Yamashii, above the site where she defeated the serpent lord Orochi. In each of the temple’s seven domains, a stone spire symbolizing one of the seven virtues of Yamashii's life. Each Obelisk was elementally charged and constructed before it was erected, and then placed atop each of the temples. The spires represent the elemental sites the old one's gathered their energies from. Within the center of the seven temples the people and the old ones placed a celestial monument.

The seven temples were constructed both to honor her sacrifice and to stand vigil over the ruined, beast worshipping village of Tenka. This village sat below the mountain summit. These seven elemental obelisks came to symbolize the mountain’s skyline, and even before the wars that were to come, they gave the mountain its enduring name—the Mountain Chapel of Seven Spires. Be balanced in your deeds, if you must do harm then you must heal in return. Things must be maintained evenly lest the items you retrieve will fail us and the Spectral Geese will not be saved."

 

[Shiruko Makoto]

"Get to the temple, retrieve the quill and papyrus, don't hurt anyone," Makoto answered, repeating back the key details. "All right. I'll be aiming for...stealth first I suppose, but presumably I can restrain people if I need to without hurting anyone. If all else fails I can maybe talk to them. Or intimidate them...I'd rather not do that last one, of course."

Actually, stealth was his preferred method of doing this, but he wasn't entirely sure how that one would pan out. It was entirely possible that, these being monks, they had some form of enlightenment that would enable them to detect someone trying to steal their stolen artifacts.

The power to fly like a bird? Surprise was written over his features briefly. I...don't know as if I've ever heard of a technique to do that before. That will be tricky to work out how to best make use of. At the same time, aside from getting there, I'm not certain how much use it will be.

"I...thank you," he said slowly, slightly dazed. He could feel something in the back of his mind now, something that seemed to radiate warmth and was not his usual mental companion. "I'm sure this will be very helpful...with what it sounds like the layout of the temple is, this will make it much easier to get in and out without having to engage too many people."

"You are terribly utilitarian sometimes, Makoto." There was no reproval in the phoenix's voice, and only a touch of amusement. "There is beauty in flight, but I would not expect you to care about that."

"I'm not big on aesthetics," Makoto mumbled defensively.

Balance. All right. So if I hurt someone, heal them. If I bind them, free them before I leave. Maybe this 'trying to explain if I run into someone' could at least be an option. It was something to consider. Not that running through a temple and hitting monks over the head was something he would consider anyway; having been raised in such a place as Moon meant he had several kinds of healthy respect for the faithful.

The first was that if someone genuinely was no threat to you, there was no point in attacking them. That was just respecting people at a basic, human decency level in the first place.

The second was that frequently, even non-ninja in places they were very well attuned to--especially religious people in their own domains--could possess certain abilities on some kind of spiritual level.

So he wasn't sure he could entirely evade them all, but he was sure he could maintain the sort of balance Ho-Pu was talking about.

"All right," he said, after he'd made sure to commit the described temple layout to memory. If he had flight for this mission, then he could scout it in full detail from the outside during the daytime when he got there.

It's a good thing Sheimi and Tatsuya are used to me running off for a while at a time. They won't even notice I'm gone.

"So," he said. "I think I've got it. Where is this temple from here, exactly?"

 

[Toraono Kuro]

​

Reigning in her abilities after granting Makoto solar flight Ho-pu directed Makoto's attention toward the seven spire mountain range that on foot would be a week's worth of travel. With wings Makoto should be able to make it there in half the time especially if he traveled during the day. It was just passed noon now so if he revealed his wings in bright sunlight only the spiritually sensitive would be able to see them. Unknowingly Ho-pu had increased Makoto's capacity for stealth as he now would no longer leave finger prints if he decided to hover. “The temples are to the Northeast. I will now retire to my home, to call upon me simply write down the name of your companion with the papyrus and quill once you have acquired the sacred items. I wish you well in your endeavours. ”<i></i>

If Makoto walks - Another path will unfold

If Makoto flies - A test will come to pass...

 

[Shiruko Makoto]

Makoto stared off into the northeast. That...would be a long walk, yeah.

If he walked.

Who in their right mind would walk to the mountains if they could fly?

"A sentiment I greatly understand, as you might guess." The phoenix fluttered off his shoulder to hover in midair in front of him. "I can show you how to use those properly, presuming they work as my wings do."

"Probably not that different." Bird wings were...well not all basically the same, a hawk did not fly like a jay did, but there were only so many ways for a bird to fly, right? They ought to work similarly enough to the phoenix's wings that it would be a good guide.

And maybe the view or something would let him appreciate aesthetic beauty of the landscape like the phoenix seemed keen on. Something about a balanced mind, which was apparently a thing birds really liked if Ho-Pu's words from earlier meant anything.

"I'll do my best," he said to her simply. "For what it's worth, I've not failed a mission yet, so I do have that on my side."

The password to call her back is 'phoenix'? Heh. All right then. I suppose that makes some sense.

The sun was going to be coming up soon. He could double back to the city for supplies and head out after getting geared up. The phoenix fluttered back to him, shrinking in size further to remain unobtrusive and hopping into one of his pockets.

"That seems safe enough." Makoto paused a few paces into his walk back to Sand. "Wait, is it all right in there for you?"

"I do not experience physical discomfort, so do not worry about that." The phoenix's form now resembled something akin to a chickadee, though the parts that were normally brownish on one were more silvery. "Though of course I will try not to speak."

"My cousin has a talking snake. Although she doesn't seem to speak around crowds, so fair enough I suppose." He resumed walking.

As it turned out, there was long enough before sunrise for him to gather up equipment and food supplies for a journey of at least a week. He was capable of hunting, but he wasn't at all sure about what kind of animals would be available in these mountains, and he wasn't trained on what sort of plants in the region were safe to eat.

He even managed breakfast at the hotel and leaving a note for his companions before he set out, timing it so he left the village proper just as the sun was rising. He reached where he had been speaking with Ho-Pu hours earlier and faced northeast. The phoenix fluttered out of his pocket, enlarging back to its 'normal' size as it did so.

"All right." Makoto took a deep breath, and exhaled. "I think...I should do this a bit at a time. I don't want to be losing control in midair. So I'm going to just...do this gradually."

He poked the warmth in his mind as if it were a jutsu, and immediately the sensation flooded his body. At the same time, his feet left the ground.

It was...disconcerting, honestly. He thought he had the hang of it when he got several feet into the air. It was kind of nice being a little 'taller' in a sense.

Of course, when he drew level with the phoenix he started glowing, which threw him off a bit, but, well. It could have been a lot worse.

At least it was getting bright out. Maybe that was what Ho-Pu had meant about not being easily seen.

Not going to get anywhere this way, am I?

Kicking it up a notch had mostly the feeling of being extremely light, as if a peculiar form of strength had flooded him.

"I have a feeling I know what that is meant to do." The phoenix fluttered a little further away from him. "Try jumping high at a sharp angle and landing near me."

"How high is high?" Makoto asked, then immediately felt foolish and thought better of it, attempting to leap nearly straight up.

High was...high.

Very high.

It was a good thing he wasn't acrophobic.

He 'landed' several feet off the ground, slightly in front of the phoenix.

"You had wings at the peak of your jump," it informed him. "But I think you will need the full wings for this, most of the way. Jumping is not an efficient method of travel, and I assume that is what you're after."

"You do know me." Makoto shrugged, feeling awkward being twice as far off the ground as he usually was. "All right, so...wings."

Despite himself, he was a little excited. It was definitely good it would take a few days to get where they were going, as it would give him time to practice with them. And maybe all that appreciate aesthetics stuff too.

The wings that flared out behind him when he maximized the power output were warm. They were bright, too, he noted as he glanced back at them slightly. They trailed off his shoulders, seemingly made of light, apparently giving him a corona of some sort even.

He glanced at the phoenix, still hovering in front of him expectantly.

"All right." He flexed the wings, and surprisingly he could feel them to some extent. His brain maybe ought to not know how to deal with extra appendages, but his chakra sure did. "Teach me how to fly, and let's get going."

"It is not difficult, but I am unsure how much of the instinct those come with." It fluttered over to Makoto, its eagle-like size making it seem almost delicate in comparison to him. "Yours appear similar to mine. You can probably hover. But, let us go forward. Watch. I will lead for the first day, and then you may have to when we get closer. I cannot be guaranteed the same protection from sight as you."

Oh right, they'd have to stop and make camp along the way a couple of times. Night flying would be a bad idea, undoubtedly.

"Right." He managed to flex his wings. "And I'm not sure how much chakra these eat up. I brought some energy drinks, but let's get going just in case."

It was only a little awkward to follow the phoenix along northeast in the sky in the bright Wind Country morning, and getting easier every second. Thankfully.

 

[Toraono Kuro]

Makoto geared himself up for the trip to the Seven Spires, As he did so he practiced using the capacity to levitate, glide in the warmth of the sun and leap really far. He didn't have tail feathers but he could control the drafts of heat and energy that flowed under, over and through his chakra. It was a form of kinesis powered by solar chakra and will. As he explored his capacity for solar manipulation Makoto discovered that has long as he traveled during the light of day he was almost imperceptible to normal people. He also figured out as long as he focused his will he could control his movement while using the phoenix wings as easily as he would a chakra powered fighting technique. After working with his companion his competency greatly increased and he was able to leap over two miles. Makoto quickly realized he could fly without too much effort gliding on the warmer winds for just over 5 to 7 minutes. Makoto also quickly figured out that as long he rested in sunlight his energy was restored in less than 3 minutes after using the jutsu. It was quite a unique feeling,

His phoenix gained greater capacity as well although it did not notice it, one day it might take a sexual preference and no longer be asexual. As they began their journey they were able to see a quite a few things in the distance. As they looked about they noticed a village was under attack by armored men.

 

[Shiruko Makoto]

[Took a while, sorry, been busy.]

The more he did this, the easier it got.

On reflection, that was a good thing. Makoto really didn't want to know what it would have meant for the mission if it took him much of his concentration to maintain the wings while trying to act with them. He could multitask, but it didn't seem wise to do so while also attempting to be stealthy and/or temporarily incapacitate without causing lasting harm. Better that it be no more difficult than a jutsu.

The phoenix kept pace with him easily; while he was gaining control of the wings more quickly than he'd worried, he wasn't a bird that was born to fly, and it was.

It also showed him how to catch an updraft, which apparently all high-flying birds did to take a little bit of effort out of flight. It was a bit disconcerting at first, but it was kind of relaxing.

The warmer updrafts were balanced out by cool air when he went high enough, so he neither overheated nor froze. (He did suspect the latter might have been more of a problem in another country, though.)

He did have to stop every now and then to recharge in the sun, of course, but that wasn't so bad. And, the phoenix told him seriously, most birds didn't fly continuously for hours anyway. Except migratory birds, of course, but phoenixes weren't really migratory birds.

"This is a longer flight than you're used to taking, then," Makoto commented during one of their brief rest periods. "I take it you never flew very far before?"

"I mostly stayed around Moon, as you guessed," it answered. Strictly speaking, the phoenix did not actually need to land with him, but preferred to. "It is an area very receptive to spiritual energies. There are some things that try and take advantage of this, and there are others that prevent that--though not all of them are so willing to interact with humans as I."

Makoto stood and frowned, stretching the wings again for takeoff. His wings, for now. "That other spirit you fought before I first found you...was it one of the former?"

"Yes, she was," it answered, taking off with a grace he couldn't really match and patiently waiting for him to lift off before leading the way on, slightly ahead of him. "I don't honestly know much about her, just that her energy was of the sort of spirit that is harmful and draining, and she did not have good intentions."

"Huh," he processed this as he searched out and located the next updraft. He was getting better at that part. "So, that one was a she. But I've always gotten the impression you're more of a...neither."

"Spirits differ," the phoenix said, with the equivalent of a shrug transmitted through their link. "I also do not require, or possess, a name. I believe she had one of those, too. There is a very wide array of us, after all. Perhaps I will develop a need for one or both of those things in the future. Perhaps not. When your lifespan is measured in centuries and you have no impetus or need to reproduce, you become less concerned with such things."

"I suppose." That made sense. "Although...really, you don't feel like you need a specific name?"

"I have never met another phoenix-shaped spirit, though I know they exist," it answered. "If I ever do, I may rethink my stance. As it is? No."

Despite how it often lectured him on being more in touch with his emotions, Makoto had long suspected that his companion was as pragmatic as he was on certain topics. This appeared to be very true.

"Huh." He shrugged himself. "That makes sense, I guess. Certainly it doesn't actually feel awkward to think of you in the terms you prefer."

It was also possible, mind, he was as much of an influence on the phoenix as it was on him.

He pulled up suddenly, noting the phoenix had stopped abruptly in front of him. Its shining white head was pointed toward the ground some distance in front of them.

"There is a village under attack, and we are not particularly close to our ultimate destination," the phoenix said. "We will be delayed if you decide to intervene. However, I doubt it will be by much, and certainly we were not given a time limit."

Makoto had caught the implication. He could just not interfere.

It said something about how he'd changed that the thought of leaving this alone did not actually occur to him until it was all but said.

"The real question is whether we're bound by that whole promise of keeping the balance before we reach our goal," he said, flaring the wings a bit. "I think we're not, really, since this isn't part of the mission. But to be sure, I'll aim to incapacitate if I possibly can and then let the villagers decide what they want done with them afterward...well. If it turns out I should intervene."

It occurred to him there could be a lot of reasons for this, and it might not necessarily be that the town was innocent or anything of the like.

"...I think I'll try and observe as best I can for now, actually," he said slowly. "If it turns out I need to intervene, I can do so from the air if it needs to be rapid, or I can drop down quickly if I have to."

Right. Best to get the lay of the land first. He was careful to stay with the sun, too, so they wouldn't see him coming if he needed to do anything.

If.

He might not. The situation might be more complicated than 'bandits attacking.'

But just in case it wasn't, he could spare a few minutes to double-check. Just to make sure.

 

[Toraono Kuro]

ooc: Sorry I was MIA on this thread let us get busy and beautiful observations btw


The village was indeed under attack and the women and children were running while a few old men and some teenage boys tried valiantly to fend off these warriors garbed in dark armor. The villagers were being wiped out and even with intervention the majority of the men of this village were dead, dying, or waiting for the final blow from warriors whom had captured them. A handful of women had grabbed some farming hoes, a spear, a large butcher cleaver, and miraculously a sword and shield and were protecting the children with a viciousness that made even the hardened marauders stay back. One boy whom was certainly no more than 8 or 9 years old was fighting an adult warrior with his bare hands, his mother lay wounded behind him. No matter how hard the boy was struck he would not go down. The women protecting the remaining children would soon be surrounded and the boy could not possibly last forever. One woman kneeled before an altar praying for help even as arrows flew toward her.

The leader of the warriors approached as the destruction of the village continued. These people needed a savior if they were to survive.