Forging the Heavens Anew

Ryo sighed as he Gora, and Hekate were resting in the archives. Well, the other two were resting Ryo himself was busy studying. He had been gaining power ever since he was a youth, he was someone who wanted to gain power, and he felt that he needed to grow in power in order to protect the guild. With the mastery of his card magic and the mastery of his blood magic he figured that now was the proper time to go about finding and collecting another magic. This magic was more akin to rediscovering his old magic that he had lost when he had achieved the immortality of the Vampire. He thought that it had been lost to him forever but discovering the great Archives that lived inside of the World Tree had given him hope. He could recall that time very vividly even though it wasn’t that long ago.

Upon entering Yggdrassil for the first time and hollowing it out he and Kite had made expansive explorations of everything it had to offer, along with convincing the guardian of the tree that Sabertooth was there to help. It had been a close enough thing at the time and Ryo for one was glad that things worked out the way they had. He and Kite had split up to search the tree’s many hallways, and locations. It was Ryo who stumbled upon the Archives deep within the World tree and he found that it held a vast wealth of knowledge likely the knowledge that all of the elders had. It was their lifeforce that grew the seed of the world tree, so it would only make sense to him that it was their knowledge that filled the thousands of tomes that lined the shelves of the Archive. As Sabertooth made their home Ryo found himself more and more often drawn to the Archive searching through the vast wealth of knowledge that the Archive contained. It was through these books that he started to redevelop some of his own card magic spells and redesign the way he used his blood magic. He also discovered that Blood magic was among the most ancient of magics in the world of the elders. Respected, feared, hated, and loved. The wielders of it were many, and they were all mighty, of course then dragons came and changed all the rules. He had read several tomes and stories where dragons, demons, and ‘gods’ were starting to spread throughout the various realms even among the Elder’s realms.

The elders were able to fight against these invaders and master their powers, but before that they relied heavily on very special elemental magic, blood magic, time magic, summoning magic, and ancient requip magics. This was only the information that he had been gleaming from the study sessions that he had begun to do mostly for himself. Yet, these tomes began to give him hope that he could once again reunite with his old friends, and his old magic. A magic that he had thought beyond his reach ever again. Before Ryo had turned into a vampire in order to save his life, he used Tarot cards to create the key’s that a celestial spirit wizard used to summon the spirits from their world. He had made friends with several of his spirits and he loved them dearly. However, upon becoming a vampire he lost the connection with the keys he formerly had, and it seemed as if they would remain silent forever. However, he had begun to hear the call of spirits once again from his cards and so he had begun to look for an answer. As it turns out not all of the spirits that someone could summon were ‘holy’, ‘light’, or even ‘good’. It seemed that there were so many different kinds of spirits and not all of them minded if someone was a vampire or not. In fact, he found a few instances of Elders who were also Vampires summoning spirits just like normal.

This gave him hope that he wasn’t perhaps just going mad with the insanity that he thought was likely to come with drinking blood. After all, blood is the currency of the soul and someone who dabbles so much with said currency should be careful they don’t have a collector come to take their debts.

This was the research that he had begun to devote himself to. It was in the search of this knowledge that he was up all night, and most of the day. Thankfully, in the realm between realms there was no true sun, and thus no true day. He could stay awake and alive indefinitely. Yet, before he went out into Fiore, he always allowed himself a day to rest and die inside of his true bed which he hid underneath the bed that was in his room with Gora resting on top of it. The great white Dire Wolf seemed to enjoy being with him no matter where he went, what he did, or with whom he was doing it with. They had grown to be nearly inseparable. Hekate was a welcome addition as far as Ryo was concerned even if she did seem to hate him. The whole day they had spent in the Archive. Ryo had searched all of it from top to bottom looking specifically for books related to summoning and the summoners who did the summoning. As soon as he found all of them, he stacked them on one of the tables that were in the archive and he soon had a castle made of nearly 10 stacks, all of which held no less than 20 books a piece, and these were just on the table in front of him. Around him were nearly a dozen more stacks these containing around 50 books a piece, and only a smallish number had even been removed from the shelves. Gora lay around his master in his battle-ready form. Here in the confines of Yggdrasil he didn’t have to put on the airs of being a normal wolf if albeit a freakishly big one. Here he could be in his true proud form ready to attack, devour, and run wild without check. He lay his head on the table to Ryo’s right-hand side beyond his wall of books.

Hekate the evening sprite sat on the back of his chair in her left hand she held a bottle of Pumpkin spiced rum, and in her right hand she held a chalice that had been made for her tiny hands by one of Ryo’s playing cards. She was getting down right shitfaced while he was studying, while he was working to rediscover the magic that he claimed that he had lost. Ryo looked like he was perfectly at ease, his hat was low over his face, a smile played about the edges of his mouth, and his feet were propped up on the table his boots and spurs clicking softly as he tapped his feet to music that he heard in his head. He only reacted by allowing his ears to twitch as he heard the sound of footsteps. Gora’s head lifted slowly and then he surged to his feet with a low deep throated snarl. This caught Ryo by surprise and he arouse in a flurry of cards all of which were dancing around him as if they were leaves in the wind. When he saw who had found him, he smiled and shook his head “Oh, My apologies Kenna.” He said as he flapped his jacket which caused all of the cards to surge back inside of it. He looked to the canine that was moving with Kenna and he raised a brow at it “I didn’t know you had a dog. Please forgive Gora, he is not quite used to letting other canine’s in his presence or mine without a display of dominance.” He said as he gestured to his great Dire wolf “That’s enough. There are no foes here.” Gora was clearly not happy with this, but his hackles sank back down, and the snarl left his lips. He did however move a bit closer to Ryo as if to intercept the other canine from any kind of attack it could make. Ryo sighed shaking his head again “I could shoot the thing before it lunged. Now relax my dear one.” He said stroking the great icicle-diamond like coat of his wolf’s neck. Presently he looked to Kenna smiling and displaying a fair amount of his fangs “Oh you aren’t disturbing anything important. Just a fool doing foolish things. Please I am all yours, you have my full attentions.”

He listened to her tale and frowned as he continued to listen. He put his right hand under his chin and looked down in deep thought. When she showed the book to Ryo, he crossed the room in only a few strides and gently held out his hand for it. If she gave it to him then he would flick through it at a fairly rapid pace before handing it back to her. If she didn’t give it to him then he would simply smile and tug at the front of his hat tipping it slightly “Actually, I am only 30 years old. Not quite as old as you would think. Vampirism doesn’t mean I become some all-knowing ancient monster. Even so, in this place it has allowed me to spend much more time than I possibly could imagine doing all sorts of fine wonderful things.” He said before walking over to one of the shelves which had a very strange book on it. He picked it up and held it out “This is the book I am in the process of writing. It is a book containing some of my more bizarre adventures. The story of my change is in here as well. I am preserving my histories, my magic lore, and various other things about me and my life for future generations. Like the Elders that gave this tree life and filled these books with their vast knowledge and experience I wish to endure in some form forever. Now then,” he flipped the book open and nodded his head as he found the page he wanted “Ah yes, I recall. It was a strange dream, a dream that pulled both Gora and me inside of it. We weren’t alone however, we were with someone else, though I can’t recall whom. We had come under attack by a pack of wolves so hungry that they were starving and killing them was the greatest act of mercy we could perform for them. Then, something happened, and Gora and I awoke back in my chambers here in the guild hall. I know not if these two dreams are related, but the portal, the voices, and everything you are describing is similar to mine own experience.” He closed the book and put it back on the shelf smiling as he left a playing card sticking out from between it and it’s nearest neighbors “I can only tell you this, should you do nothing you are likely to regret not doing something. However, I realize that it may well be a trap and I will not let one of the Pillars of Sabertooth fight alone without aid. I would be honored if you would allow both myself and Gora to accompany you. Should this dream calling turn out to be a trap you shall not face it alone, and should it turn out to be something more important then you shall not be alone for that either.” He said as he held his hands behind his back.

Hekate on the other hand held up her cup “Well, you can just go off without me. I don’t want to go to no dream place and do something I’m going to hate. I’ll stay here and get drunk.”

Once more Ryo sighed shaking his head in clear disapproval “Forgive Hekate, she is incorrigible.”

WC: 2,005
Total: 2,005/14,000

Itori still found herself impressed by the beauty that was Yggdrassil. She had lived a long time but there were very few things which could compete with a unique existence that could call itself the World Tree. The white fox walked through the hallway slowly and deliberately, her eyes closed as she instead listened to the many sounds. The tree sang a song too soft to be easily heard, her wooden sandals made a clacking sound whenever she took another step. She listened to how the sound reflected off of her surroundings, her mind helpfully supplying an imagined map based on those sounds. She could have opened her eyes and seen where she was walking just as easily. However for the kitsune whose ears were sharper than most to listen held more value than to see.

She was in the outer rings, where the stones were of a lighter shade and the ambience was aimed towards a sensation of vastness and antiquity. She was heading for the mess hall even as she took her time, her stomach once more having reminded her that when she didn't have more pressing needs she might as well satisfy her eternal craving for food. While she didn't feel like she was starving her stomach never seemed to be completely full no matter how much she ate. That said the sensation was stronger than usual, and if she had to guess she was pretty sure why the need to replenish her internal storage had strengthened. The two culprits were slowly moving from side to side behind her with every step.

Her three tails had recently increased to five, and while that meant that her power had increased significantly it looked like her body was still in the middle of adapting to the change. Over time her diet would return to the usual (that is to say, way too much for a single person) but for now her body thought that it needed more food to maintain and contain all the power that now flowed through her body. Compared to the guild master and other members of the guild it was still nothing impressive, but the fact that she'd grown four tails in recent years when she'd spent so much longer with just one made her suspicious. She didn't think it was going to stop with five, and she had to prepare accordingly.

Why it had taken so long for her to grow more than one tail she didn't know. It wasn't normal for kitsune to go that long without their tails multiplying, but at the same time it should take more than a couple of years for three to increase to five. It wasn't supposed to happen in pairs either... The kitsune came to a standstill and sighed as she shook her head, for a moment forgetting of the beauty of her surroundings as she was distracted by her internal confusion. Something strange was going on with her, and it had been going on for a long time. She couldn't find any signs of a disease, curse or anything else that would be detrimental to her physical or spiritual health, but she was pretty sure it wasn't random that her growth was so skewed and abnormal. She just hoped she could figure it out quickly, hopefully before any harm came of it.

After pondering it for the thousandth time, taking some minutes to not hurry herself, she let out another sigh and continued her journey. She was already close, so she hastened her step until she opened the doors leading to the mess room and entered quietly. There was a rather noticeable thud as she pushed the doors shut, then turned around and headed for the kitchen. She still wasn't sure if she was actually supposed to prepare her own food or if there was someone whose duty it was to cater to the mages, but there hadn't been anyone who told her to stop yet and she liked to cook. With nobody else in the mess hall she got to work, quickly preparing several dishes at the time while also keeping an eye on their inventory. She might have to inform the guild masters that their food storage would need refilling. How did they get their food anyway? Did they buy it like everyone else, or did Yggdrassil itself have a method for replenishing its stores? There were a lot of questions left unanswered. They piqued Itori's interest, but she wasn't a child who'd go bouncing around trying to find the answer as quickly as possible. Yggdrassil was as safe a place as she'd ever been in, so she wasn't in a hurry.

Once she'd prepared enough food to keep her busy for a while she cleaned up the kitchen and got to eating, her eyes still closed as she was enjoying the taste until her ears twitched and a shiver went across her spine. It felt like something had just brushed against her consciousness, faintly but insistently. Waiting for a couple of seconds it happened again, leaving the spirit fox little choice but to put her eating on automatic while she focused on some of her other senses.

Breathing. The rustling of paper. A heart beating steadily and powerfully. The crackling of an open flame. The scent of blood. Dog fur, oddly enough. Whatever it was that was trying to reach her was having some difficulty, but after a minute of receiving several types of scent, sound and touch she could finally hear a distinct voice.

"Come. Support."

This was repeated twice before the presence disappeared, leaving Itori with her meal and a lot more questions than before. She kept eating calmly while she considered her options, although she didn't have to think long. Most of the time when she was contacted by a spirit for help it was because she happened to come across said spirit on her journeys. For one to reach out to her like that meant it was important, so not lending her support would most likely be a really bad idea. Once she'd finished her meal she'd go find the person whose scent had been amongst the sensations. It was someone she'd come across at least twice before, and she was pretty sure she could find them in Yggdrassil right now.

---

The inner rings were more sombre than the outer rings. Darker and with a construction more aimed towards defence and toughness. Itori supposed that this part of the immense guild hall was meant to be the fortress they were to retreat to if something ever managed to attack the world tree en masse. However right now that was a secondary concern. Amongst the sounds of the world around here there was the very, very faint noise of people talking. One of the voices matched her expectations so she headed in that direction, making her way towards the Vault of Archives. It wasn't very far away from her current position, so it didn't take long before the world became enriched with the scent of many, many books. It was a pleasant smell, although Itori didn't think now was the time to stand still and truly appreciate it.

Even from a distance her ears picked up on the conversation. It was difficult not to eavesdrop if your ears were your sharpest senses. Although given that they were in the Vault and not the private quarters she hoped they didn't object, and she was here because of them after all. Kenna's voice was easily distinguished, elegant while hinting towards fiery enthusiasm. Another voice was distinctly male and spoke with the confidence of an experienced (and victorious) wizard. There was also the breathing of two dogs but Itori filed that away as unimportant. She hadn't heard the first part of the conversation but she was in time to catch the male voice mention dreams and that if Kenna were to do nothing she'd certainly regret it while if she did do something it could work out.

Given the circumstances Itori was pretty sure that there was some force moving the three of them, but as the male voice pointed out it didn't have to be a trap, and that even if it was a trap it might still be the better choice to go. The fox paid close attention to omens and the like, and in this instance believed that the man was right and that going was better than not going. Some unknown entity contacting three different mages was too important to ignore, regardless of whether it was dangerous or not.

Closing in on the voices Itori came into view near the end when the sprite spoke up to state that she wasn't going. Finally opening her vermilion eyes (she knew that most people preferred it if she was looking at them instead of only listening) she took in the group of people she was here to join. Kenna Terrynhain accompanied by a particularly long-haired dog, and a man dressed in red and wearing one of the fanciest hats Itori had seen in a while. Although now that she thought about it, there weren't that many people who wore hats in the first place. She hadn't met this man before but despite her yet having to become acquainted with a good chunk of the guild she had heard of and memorized the name of one of Sabertooth's guild masters. And if a guild master was involved in this situation it was another strong indicator that something big was happening.

The kitsune called out from a distance as she approached the two, her gentle voice reaching farther than its tone and volume would have suggested. "My apologies for intruding." She kept walking until she was within a distance that they could converse normally, after which she bowed deeply towards both of the mages. "Greetings to you, master Knetegawa. I am Shirokawa Itori, member of Sabertooth. And also greetings to you, lady Terrynhain. I once more apologize for intruding upon your conversation, but I believe that I am meant to join the two of you." Her five tails were spread out behind her, the tips low to the floor to show her respect. Although she wasn't sure if the humans knew about body language for a body part they didn't possess. "I was visited by a vision as well, although mine was fleeting and refrained from telling me much about the actual task. The scents and sounds I received indicate that I am to play a supportive role towards the two of you, accompanying you and using my abilities to ease the road as you go and take care of whatever situation caused the visions to appear." She bowed once more. "I realize that this is rather sudden, so I would not blame you if you were hesitant to let me accompany you. However I believe that whatever path fate is making us take is an important one." She hesitated briefly, her red eyes going across all the people (and dogs) present before nodding. "I also believe we might have to depart soon."

As she spoke she internally compared her new mana reserves as a five-tailed kitsune with Ryo and Kenna. Ryo was still far above her but it looked like she was now roughly on par with Kenna. Given that the last time she and Kenna had worked together Itori had felt like the demoness had done most of the work that improved her confidence a little. Aside from the final explosion (which Itori had caused by making all the power already present in the area spike) Kenna had been the one to raze all the enemies to ashes while Itori just did her usual thing of stabbing and slicing. Her sword would still be her most likely weapon but at least this time she would be able to perform on equal level, if in a supportive role.

As for Ryo... she wasn't sure if he even needed her help. Judging by his aura and his stance he could most likely handle most issues on his own. On the other hand she didn't get the sensation of him having a strong affinity with the spirit realm, so maybe her duty here would be to act as something of a translator and interpreter. If a spirit came to three mages to impart a message to them it would be beneficial to have someone who had an easy time communicating with and finding spirits in the group.

WC: 2084
TWC: 2084/14000