westwhere | Following Sairen [closed ]

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Following Sairen [closed ]

WHO: Kaneki, Hermione, Akira, Five
WHEN: Beginning of March
WHERE: Ruins near the fortune fetters
WHAT: Stalking Sairen
WARNINGS: Violence, some limbs being lost, some limbs being eaten (cannibalism), gambling. Will add as needed.

Pursuing Sairen at one point leads the group to the highly knocked-down ruins of a fortress near the fortune fetters. The stone remains now crudely host a gambling arena, with fierce thugs and associates of the revered Sairen waging bets on anything from dice throws to card games, snake fights, arm wrestling and various challenges or games of wit. The stakes range from coin to some men pledging their services, others their freedom, and a scant few even volunteering their body parts in gory, ad hoc amputations. All play and pay, to Sairen's entertainment.

The infiltrators will need to pretend to be servants or gamblers and participate in the games, to avoid arousing suspicion. They might also wish to steal some ritual stone masks from the participants already in attendance — everyone in the den is wearing such a face covering, including Sairen.

While Sairen nominally presides over the Hok-Shinn, he appears too distracted to partake of their petty cruelties and retreats in wine and the gossip of his counsellors. He sometimes passes judgement over conflicts among his generals, receives or awards gifts and is introduced to new clan conscripts.

Feel free to spend some time 'mingling,' drinking exceptionally strong swill, gambling and smoking opium by the fires — as well as perhaps overhearing or remarking:

■ Sairen's guests seem to include visitors from other villages,

■ Some guests question 'old man' Sairen's ability to keep the younger, more aggressive rising stars of the Hok-Shinn clan from rightfully taking over the fellow villages of Ke-Waiar and Ke-Waicai and 'teaching them who is truly in charge.'

■ Word is that Sairen has been... fretting about the iminent return of the the Beastmaster, who was dissatisfied with the previous, nondescript Hok-Shinn offering during his previous visit.

■ A group of drunkards whom Sairen refuses to receive into the Hok-Shinn murmur that the day will come when the entire clan falls, once it is no longer the sole custodian of a certain substance that helps revive the highly arid and infertile agricultural terrains of Ke-Waihu.

■ One drunk mutters that the white wanderer who brought the first vials of the chemical to Ke-Waihu handed it out freely, before disappearing. Since then, it has been monopolised by the Hok-Shinn, who charge an arm and leg for this substance, withholding it from any farmers who rebel against their rule.

By sunrise, the crowds start to dissipate, with some leaving their masks behind by hanging them on the branches of an ancient willow tree. No one wears their mask back into Ke-Waihu, making it difficult to figure out which villagers participated.

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[ Five has blinked in front of enough people to expect any kind of reaction, even a violent one, and that's sort of the point. He's long used his abilities to stop them in their tracks to win an argument and then fucking off before they can get a last word in. But every now and then, especially here, someone manages to surprise him.

Tentacles suddenly shooting out at him are not something he prepared for. Even his assassin-honed reflexes might not have saved him had they not suddenly frozen mid-attack. If he wasn't taking him seriously enough before, he's learning quickly, and he's seconds from using whatever weapon he can grab when he starts pulling them back.

It isn't the first time he's seen something like it, and being reminded of his dead brother does nothing to settle the sudden uneasiness he has. (Which, frankly, should have been there the second he saw him with the hand.) Ben had just as much trouble controlling them, but Kaneki clearly doesn't want to fight him.

When they slink away, Five is left to puzzle over what he just saw. He's silent for a while, not moving from his path or letting his guard slip for a moment. ]

Neither was I. [ ... ] You didn't tell me you had something living inside of you.

[ surprises all around! ]

Living... [ living inside him? Yes, there is. It's something ugly, disgusting, something that consumed him completely ] It is "me", now. [ Kaneki is now that thing living inside of him; he can no longer escape it and those red tendrils are proof of it. Two wrap around kaneki's legs while the rest stay back although they still surround Ken.

He sighs, pulling down his mask once again, while the ghoul eye is reacting now. There is no point hiding it, but at least Kaneki's expression is less... ah- dangerous. He looks back at Five for a moment before his eyes look away, ashamed at the way he reacted.

And in his shame, kaneki gives in the information he has heard. To be fair, Five is right: he has been here longer than Kaneki and most likely would know better, child or not. ] I heard Hok-Shinn has some sort of magical solution that makes land fertile, but they monopolize it completely. They not only charge incredible prices over it, but it seems that's how they can keep control over everyone. "The white wanderer" was the first to bring those vials into the villages and even handed them out for free, but that was time ago - perhaps to prove to the villagers they had no other choice.

But they believe Hok-Shinn won't have control over it forever, and the moment that happens, the clan will fall.

[ It's more of an explanation than he thought he'd be getting. That logic makes sense out of what he witnessed. Not that it's better to know how unpredictable he is, but it's better to know what he can do and keep his own hand close to his chest. Five looks from his eye to the tentacles, waiting for anything else to come out of his mouth before he goes on to honestly tell him what he's been asking since finding him in the woods.

Switching gears isn't easy, but he listens more intently as he goes on. That's actually a lot to process. They took the long road to get here, but he managed to gather something useful after all. ]

Well. [ Can he blame him for thinking he wasn't taking notes? He keeps on staring at him down, before he finally says... ] Good job. We can use this.

[ It seems insane to let him off the hook, but he can't argue with results. ]

You've got a handle on it now?

[ kaneki goes into business mode rather easy; in fact, it's the perfect time to switch to it because he just feels bad for wanting to maim Five moments ago. He shouldn't have gotten angry, but Kaneki has Issues and loses control of his own emotions far too often. Trauma, some would call it; self-preservation, Kaneki would claim.

He nods softly at the small compliment, although he doesn't expect the conversation to go on. In fact, he'd be happy to just turn around and move back towards the drunk men, but Five speaks again.

Handle it? ]

... I have amazing control over them. They are part of my body, so the same way you can control your arm, I can control my kagune. [ that's what it's called. In fact, finally it disappears, fading away and turning into dust.

But.

It doesn't mean the person controlling them has a handle on themselves. And when that happens, it's as if the kagune controls Kaneki instead. ] But sometimes you pull your arm too fast, and you hit something. So it's probably best to be ware of that. [ in other words: don't approach them ]

[ Five frowns, unfamiliar with the word 'kagune' but committing it to memory all the same. He seems to be calm now, and he watches as the tentacles fade away. It wasn't a true test of what they can do, but this has been... informative in more ways than one. There's still a risk to keeping him alive, as with so many of their group, and he weighs that up until he gives him a short nod. ]

Noted. [ It's true that he did startle him and it wasn't an intentional attack, so he can cut him a break. And maybe part of his acceptance is because of Ben. He was always self conscious when his tentacles massacred a room full of people that they'd been taught were the 'bad' guys. But his brother also didn't eat them afterward.

He has an urge to make more of a threat here, but being underestimated may work in his favor someday. He clicks his jaw before relenting and taking a step back. ]

You've probably done enough gambling tonight, don't you think?

[ No, it really wasn't a test of what kaneki can do with them. They can do a lot, including killing dozens in one single go; however, if one wanted to look at it some other way, Kaneki is the one who can kill dozens in single go, the kagune is only the weapon.

But the thing is, the kagune is not the only thing about Kaneki that is dangerous. Killing him is not as easy as one would expect. Believe him, he has tried to kill himself in suicide missions many times before.

Not that Five would know unless he tried. ]

Hm. I can go back, but I think they are out of it. [ when Hermione played with them, they were so drunk and high that she even won against them - without knowing how to play.

There is a pause before Kaneki asks: ] You- was that superspeed, what you did?

[ Kaneki recovers so quickly, even the Commission might have been impressed. And in all fairness, plenty of them were deranged psychopaths, so he can't say he's never worked with worse. (Not that he was one of them...) If it weren't for the bloodstains on his clothes, Five could almost forget the whole incident occurred and ask if he wanted to go out for coffee.

His suggestion was an invitation to leave before any of them got suspicious, but he might not need a cover after all. ]

...No, it wasn't. [ He's surprised he asked about his ability, but at least he didn't call it magic, so he decides to answer. ] It was a spacial jump.

[ As if that explains it entirely. He doubts he'll follow the long version. ]

I could press our luck and get closer to Sairen, but you're better sitting the rest out. With the way they were playing, I'm guessing you don't need the temptation.

[ Spatial jump...? That's -- ] Teleporting? [ it's what it is, right? To instantaneously travel from one point in space to another without passing through the intervening space... Kankei is not a huge fan of sci-fi books, but he knows this much.

But he pauses when he hears Five wants to approach Sairen. ] Approaching Sairen is a big risk. Specially because we are the only ones not drunk and out of our minds. [ a longer pause ] You are also a child. [ LOOK! He had to say it at some point because it's true ]

[ He should have seen that coming. After Five was so understanding of his cannibalism, it's an added layer of insult to be called out for his appearance. He knows what he looks like, and how much that stands out in this setting, but anyone should be able to see past that after talking to him for any length of time. Instead he finds himself in this exact situation again and again. ]

I'm old for my age. [ He responds curtly, purposely holding in anything that could classify as a tantrum. Loudly insisting that he's 'not a child' tends to have the opposite effect. ] Teleporting. Luckily, I can blink over to get close without him ever noticing.

[ Look, he accepts that Five is not a normal child. But he still looks like a child and Sairen would take that into account, regardless of how mature the kid is ]

I understand that. But Sairen would not, don't you think? [ he isn;t trying to be insulting, simply stating a fact.

But it's true, Teleporting could be a very useful power to eavesdrop unnoticed. Kaneki hums, looking at Five, but here is the thing: even if Kaneki's instincts had told him to cut off Five's limbs not so long ago, a Kaneki who is in control doesn;'t like the idea of shoving a kid into something dangerous like spying on the clan's boss. ] It's a bit risky, don't you think?

[ With the way he's patronizing him, he sincerely doubts he understands anything. There likely won't be much more to gather, unless Sairen openly starts talking about some relevant strategy in the middle of their gathering, but that's not the point.

Five isn't the only one here who looks like a teenager, even with the mask. He doesn't need to be judged by someone who thinks he's the most capable because he has a more literal monster living inside him. ]

Suddenly that's too big of a risk for you? [ Minutes after he was ready to take his head off. Five scoffs and makes a move to turn back before his temper gets the better of him. ] Just try not to eat anybody before they're dead and let me worry about the rest.

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Following Sairen [closed ]

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