Songs Collide: Requiem (Job, Koari, Private)

Ikuchi waited as the spirits began appearing, the first one being the one who took the form of a man from Midi. He had put on an act, threatening to destroy the contracts and invoking the anger of another. At the end of that, Samira had seen the error of her ways and made ammends with her spirits. Ikuchi ignored the glares from the spirits, he cared not for their petty opinions, and began approaching the summoner with a harsh demeanor. Had he had a weapon out, he would be concerned about being stopped as he had been very hostile recently; but he was unarmed. If any of the spirits got in his way, they would see Ikuchi vanish and reappear next to her. If none of them stopped him, as he was a loyal servant and they should expect Kaori to be highly distraught if he harmed Samira, then he would continue walking to the girl. "Congratulations, you've earned your name back Miss Nassar." he would say in a calm voice, honestly more pissed that he had to resort to tearing her apart just to get to this resolution. Ikuchi then held his hand out and formed a white orb that began removing the wounds on her body, and the scratches on her face. Samira would feel her magic power being completely restored, but not over-filled as his kiss would do. She would feel any pain in her muscles reversing, and the pain in her mind easing. He would then look at Chaac, the one who seemed rather tribal. "My master taught me a spell that restores magic power, as well as heals physical wounds. She can explain the rest." Ikuchi said calmly before turning his mask to Kali's direction. "My master wishes to speak with you the next time Samira is in her office." he said before walking away from the group of spirits, and back through the portal.

Ikuchi had figured that, that was the cause of the issue between the water spirit and his summoner. It was the reason she was unable to do much of anything, and needed to wait for a break. The whole thing had seemed to start a day or two after the slumber party, and he knew that her spirits were always watching her. There was no chance that one of them didn't see it, and tell the others. The reason Ikuchi had left was because he was tired of looking at the scene, seeing that woman who his master adored so greatly, and being made a pawn to her development as a mage. That was not his mission, but she had made it so it was necessary. The reason for Samira regaining her magic power was that Ikuchi naturally radiated it, and Kyoka had made that effect stronger. Since he wasn't forcing it into her body as he did with the kiss, he was unable to super charge her- which was unfortunate as he loathed that spell Kaori had taught him. When Samira stepped from the portal, she would see Ikuchi leaning against the Terasu one with his arms crossed over his chest. "Kaori had died before, did you know that?" he would ask her out of the blue. "Saia had an encampment not far from here, in the mountains, with forces dedicated to attacking this city. It was before my arrival, but from what the hawk told me... Her face was unrecognizable. Her mask had been shattered in two, with the half that wasn't missing melted to her face. Her hair had been replaced with burnt flesh, and several arrows made entirely of metal were protruding from- and wrapped around her arms and torso. The only clothing she had was the scraps of what was melted to her flesh... Lady Ceostra saved her. I have no doubt that Lady Ceostra will not mind doing it a third time." Ikuchi said, not mentioning what happened the first time Gisen Ceostra had healed Kaori as it wasn't pertinent information. Ikuchi grabbed Samira in the bridal position and vanished into Terasu.

---

"Hehe... You know she was the false one..." Samira said in Kaori's mind, the voice penetrating every attempt to be blocked out. "Shut up..." Kaori said while curled up on the bed in the medical ward of the castle. "Shit, she's getting ready to do it again- Where the hell is the guild leader!?" a voice that Kaori couldn't find the source for screamed. "She's in the Cursed Lands, it'd take days to get a message to her!" "Can't we just put her to sleep till then?" "We've already used six syringes! Anymore and she'll-" the voices cut out... "Kaori... come back to us... come back to me, please." Samira said again, Kaori feeling a warm pair of arms wrapping around her shoulders. "Shut up..." Kaori repeated, knowing the disembodied voice to be false. "You know I would never say such hurtful things to you..." the voice was cancer to Kaori's ears, and carried none of the emotions that Samira's normally did. "SHUT UP!" Kaori screamed in her sleep-like state, sending out a blast of psychic energy outward that was coated in darkness. The frame of the bed she was on exploded into splinters, and let the mattress drop to the ground. The wall behind it had a massive crater from where the energy hit it, and the other beds in the room were all pushed away and piled up wherever they landed. "We- we can't stay in here... she'll kill us before help arrives." the head nurse said while crawling from under one of the piles of beds and separator curtains. It was too late to move Kaori somewhere she wouldn't hurt anyone, so their only option was to block off the halls leading to the room she was in. The castle itself was able to contain her power to that one room, so they only needed to keep people from entering it.

Aquarius had appeared among Kaori's spirits within her mental space. "What the hell happened here!?" he shouted angrily. "Well... that Samira girl stabbed Kaori in the heart." Jediniah replied, getting ready to explain the situation in full. "There's a lot more to that story- aaaand he's gone..." Scarlet said, trying to prevent Aquarius from getting the wrong idea. "Anyone know where he went?" she asked, looking at the others. "We can't summon ourselves too far from Kaori, even if that guy can summon us he doesn't have our keys. So the same applies to Iron Fist..." Mammoth mentioned, getting ready to summon himself when the time was right. "I'll keep an eye on the room, if needed, I'll keep people safe from her." he said, the others agreeing that would be best.

"Get out of my head!" Kaori screamed, shifting her position to the fetal position while clutching her skull. "HAHAHAHAHA! You think you can get rid of me so easily?" "Get out! Get out! Get out! Get out!" "-You're truly retarded, the original me was right about you!"[/color] "AAAAHHHH!!!!!" Kaori released another burst of energy that shook the room, causing dust to fall from the ceiling of the room below her. "Yes, throw your tantrum! Prove me right even more... Let my love infect you." More bursts of energy shook the door to the room, causing the nursing staff to flinch with each loud 'thud' that they heard.

---

Vanishing and reappearing every other second, Ikuchi was moving considerably faster than he would if he were in his dragonhound form. He was lying to himself when he told Samira that Gisen could help Kaori. The issue was something in Kaori's mind, and Gisen could only help with magical or physical complications. The sound of a woman making strange, rhythmic sounds was heard as Ikuchi shot past the couple. The woman had her hands placed on a tree, and the man was behind her doing... something that Ikuchi would ask his master about later, as he wasn't quite sure what it was at the moment. His mind fluttered back to a time earlier in their relationship...

In his mind scape, Ikuchi had recreated the insides of Kaori's room abord the White Mermaid. The day was the day she was to escort an ally to her friend's wedding, and Kaori was less than prepared. It had been over a decade since she'd seen Midi, and she wondered what had changed. What if the Lareci clan had changed while she was away? Kaori knew most of the happenings in her clan since she kept regular contact, and signed all of the documents for trade and laws; but, what if there was someone pulling strings behind her back? What if instead of changing for the better, her clan had become a bunch of cutthroats? What if what was left of her clan had been wiped out, and Saia was toying with her the whole time? Kaori paced around her room nervously as Ikuchi watched from the seat of Kaori's desk. "My master, you shouldn't be so concerned... I heard humans have skin reactions from stress." he said, referring to acne caused by too much stress in life. "I know... it's just... I haven't been home in so long, and I don't know what to expect. For all I know this could be a trap, or- or Kirei could be dead by the time I get there, or-" "Master, with all due respect, your worries are illogical." the man said, looking at Kaori with his hellfire like, dragonesque eyes.

Ikuchi stood up and walked to Kaori, resting his hand on the top of her head and gently rubbing it. "If this man is half as amazing as you are, my master, he would not be dead or anywhere close to it upon arrival." he commented in a soft, gentle tone. Kaori walked into Ikuchi's chest and wrapped her arms around him. "Thank you Iku." she said in a weak voice. Ikuchi reciprocated the hug "Nonsense." he replied while holding Kaori and closing his eyes to feel her emotions flow into him. He admired Kaori for her strength, and weakness. She had so many different emotions hidden behind her mask, and bore the burdens of many without cracking under the pressure. At the same time, she worried many people -Ikuchi included- by doing this. No being existed who could handle everything, not even dragons could do it. He knew at some point Kaori would break, and he felt it was his duty to be there to help her pick up the pieces and put herself back together. Ikuchi had known that this was one of those moments where he would need to help his master do just that, put herself back together as it seemed her mind had come apart.

Ikuchi stopped his moving and looked before him with eyes filled with anger, and an absolute desire to kill. Twenty one men and women stood before in in an organized group, twenty of them had black ninja clothes on and wore platinum bands on their wrists. They were the highest ranking members of Saia's clan, and the only ones capable of using magic. Kaori had often times faced them, and managed to get past the mages by using tricks to throw them off before dispatching them with explosions. Ikuchi didn't move a muscle beyond gently setting Samira down. The ninja in front wore a dark blue uniform, with a magenta colored band... a new rank. "We came for the girl with the mobile army." she said, referring to Samira and her spirits. "You came to die." Ikuchi said in a hostile tone. Saia's men weren't particularly savvy on magic, and didn't know that even if they'd taken the keys from Samira, they'd be useless to them. If they'd taken Samira in general, they'd only bring about their doom once Kaori found out.

Ikuchi had little time to play with these sorry excuses for mages, and half assed ninja. The lead ninja knew that Ikuchi wouldn't be letting them just take Samira or her keys from the hibiscus around her neck, and she'd have to see him dead. She vanished and reappeared behind Ikuchi who vanished as soon as her sword was drawn only to knee her in the back. She vanished once more and reappeared near her men, eyes wide open and standing beside herself not knowing what even was logic. "Kill them both and take the keys." the woman commanded, her and the other twenty ninja drawing their blades. "Don't move... and don't waste your magic." Ikuchi said, literally ordering Samira not to do anything even though she just made amends with her spirits.


The words came out cold, and from Ikuchi's mouth with a violet magic circle arupting around him while casting a brilliant glow. At the last second, the lead ninja vanished as she didn't know what the spell would do. Her subordinates hadn't had enough time to even process what was happening before they were inside the border of the spell. Everyone, even Samira herself would begin moving considerably slower... Samira could be trying to sprint away, and only be moving at a liesurely crawl. Ikuchi however was completely uneffected by the spell, as it was his dominating blood that made time bow to his authority. In his right hand a white katana appeared with a golden hibiscus for a grip, from the hilt of the sword a tassle hung that was white as snow.

Ikuchi vanished, slashing the first ninja across the stomach and moved to the second one to do the same. Slowly, a man began reappearing behind Ikuchi with his sword raised but was moving so slow compared to Ikuchi that he had been cut from groin to mandible the same time he showed up. The well dressed ninja spun on his well polished heel and beheaded two ninja with one strike, letting their heads seem to float in the air as their motion to fall was slowed down so badly. The battle had lasted for only a quarter of a second within the confines of Ikuchi's barrier, but outside, it would have lasted at least two or three. The head ninja watched from afar as her unit was cut down, and decided that it was best for her to retreat while there was still available distractions. Ikuchi had moved from person to person quickly killing them, just as his master would do. He knew the ninja would die either here and now, or further down the road as Kaori was on a mission to eradicate Saia's forces. What's more, if Kaori had found out from him that they were confronted by this group who wanted Samira's keys, Kaori would go out on a rampage and destroy them anyways.

Once all the enemies were dead, taking up roughly ten seconds that would feel like an eternity in Ikuchi's barrier, he flicked his blade and let the katana vanish. The violet glow faded, returning time to its nature flow and allowing all the heads, bodies, and bifurcated enemies drop to the ground. While all of this was happening, Gabriella had grown tired of waiting at the shrin on Terasu and had begun flying back to the Wakusei portals. She'd known Ikuchi's nature, and that if they had started the mission he would inevitably go there... but she was waiting for over three hours for him to arrive. Her path was one that lead down a side path, so she didn't have the luxury of running into Ikuchi and-or Samira on her way back to the portal. This would mean that Gabriella would be in for a wild goose chase in her attempt to confirm Kaori's safety...

Lava Hawk
Motorcycle
Ikuchi
Word Count: 2,621/7,000
Kaori
Ikuchi
Charlotte
Jediniah
Scarlet
Mammoth
Aquarius
Samira

Kaori's mind was beginning to go numb as she lost control slowly, painfully, and at the behest of her alleged friend. Soon... she found herself walking out of the magic using clan's castle and across the bridge leading to Hargeon. Kaori had seen a sight that was all too familiar to her, something that she knew was in the past.

A man who was standing not far from the bridge between the city and the castle had a group of young men aiming fire arms at him, demanding he provision them with large sums of colorful paper. It was another thing Kaori found strange... the people of this land really liked rectangular plastic, and paper slips. In her home currency was made entirely of metal; gold, silver, and copper to be exact. But here they used paper. The man with the guns pointed at him was slowly backing up, looking like he was getting ready to run. Kaori, who was approaching the scene had stepped up and stopped between the three boys and their target. She crossed her arms under her chest and began tapping her right foot on the ground as she waited for them to make their move. One of them made a comment, stating that Kaori was a 'pretty sweet looking piece of ass' to which one of the others replied that he would 'tap her for days' when they finished with the man. Kaori didn't know these terms, so they held little significance in her mind, which was lucky for them. While Kaori was forgiving, she would still beat wholesale ass when it came to someone making a sexual comment about her. She turned, looking at the men through the slits in her mask. "I advise you three to leave." she said with a cold, unhappy tone. The response she got was one Kaori half expected; laughter broke out from the first two as they commented how she was out of her league, and they'd never lose to an unarmed baby chicken. The third one however seemed to have some form of sense as he immediately put his weapon away and backed up stating he didn't feel like hurting a girl. Kaori kept that in mind.

One of the other two idiots rested his hand on her shoulder. "Look sweet cheeks, why don't you head over to my place and get a sandwich made- I'll help loosen up that tight lookin' ass when I get home, kay?" he said with an over confident tone. Kaori appeared behind him in the air, his hand still on the other Kaori's shoulder. The back of the real Kaori's heel slammed into his temple, his face seeming to distort from the sheer force behind the small appendage as it sent him flying sideways unconscious before he even hit the floor. The next one immediately turned his weapon to Kaori but was cut short. She'd gotten as close as possible and slammed the wrist he was holding the gun with, with the palm of her hand and sent the hand and weapon upwards. Out of reaction the man accidentally pulled the trigger and let a shot off. A couple streets down some men in armor heard a 'bang' and began running in its' direction.

Kaori spun on her left heel, sliding her right foot behind the man's and pulling it out of place to make him begin losing balance. While spinning still, a firm slam of her elbow to his sternum sent him to the ground. While he was falling, Kaori lifted her leg and dropped her heel on the man's skull to send him to the ground even faster, totally knocked out this time. Kaori turned her head to look at the third wheel, the man tensing up and sweating from the unarmed woman's display of skill. "What's your move?" Kaori asked, her tone caked in ice and annoyance. He shook his head, implying he had no intention of trying to take her one-on-one. Two armored men called to the group while running towards them, ordering them all to cease and desist at once. Kaori stepped back from the two piles of useless flesh and let the armored men do their jobs, one demanding to know what happened. "These guys were trying to procure this man's paper currency. It would be dishonorable for me to have walked away, so I disabled them both." Kaori said in a calm, informative voice. The other guard looked at the third wheel asking about him, the third wheel froze up with a scared look about his eyes. "He's just a bystander. Probably would've gotten robbed after the other one." Kaori said, the third wheel looking at her with a degree of surprise.

After the guards grabbed the two collapsed men and collected a bit of extra information from Kaori, they left. The third mugger looked at Kaori and asked in a confused, shy tone "Why...?" To which Kaori replied "You wanna know why I vouched for your innocence?" to make sure she was clear about the question. The boy nodded, confirming that's what his inquiry was about. "In the end you stood down. Your punishment will come for you when they're released- IF they're released. If you'd like to avoid that, leave this city and find a new home. Make a new life, and find the light that will guide you to a better path." Kaori's words rang with mercy, and compassion in the boy's ears. He thanked her for not turning him in too, and promised that he'd never come back to the city. He promised he'd do what she told him to and make a new life, a better life, an honest life.

"That was really nice of you miss." the man said in a humbled tone, his eyes displaying a level of capability as Kaori finally had the time to look at them. "I was planning to use my magic to run away, but I think what you did was better for them." he added. "Time in prison and a beating will teach the other two humility. The boy who I let walk away will forge his own path, a mission that will make him a man." Kaori replied while staring at the man through the slits in her mask. "I was on may way back to the shipyard when those three stopped me, but I think my boss can forgive me for being a bit late. Please, let me thank you properly... ummm" "Kaori." the masked woman stated, the young man looking at her while turning slightly red. "Kaori Lareci, I'll be happy to accompany you. You know my name, but I have not heard yours." The man spoke up "Carver... Just, Carver." Kaori gave a small giggle, the sound being muffled from the mask that didn't have a mouth hole and she said "Well... Just Carver, where will we be going?" with a friendly tone that contrasted the mask she wore.

The man had an impressive build once Kaori had gotten a closer look at him. He wasn't rippling with muscles, glowing with manliness, and radiating testosterone... rather, he looked like a slightly more muscular normal guy. He had medium length black hair that was surprisingly well kept for someone who worked at the docks. He was obviously taller than Kaori, it would be embarrassing if a nearly grown man weren't since she herself was rather short. He wore a brown shirt with short sleeves, and a pair of blue pants made of a strange, thick looking material. Looking at them, Kaori couldn't imagine herself wearing such things since it would restrict her movement. He wore black boots that were suited for work that may result in his feet getting slammed, but again, Kaori couldn't see herself wearing those. The boots were heavy and cumbersome looking, and would slow her down or trip her up if she wore them. The man was walking away from the docks, toward the nicer part of the city by the eastern sea. It was a place where wooden structures turned to brick, pavement became cobblestone, and houses became restaurants. A place Kaori was intrigued to visit since it meant that she could try some more of the food from the strange land.

The man had stopped at a rather small, unimpressive looking building. It wasn't run down or anything, in fact it was in rather decent condition. The building was the size of one of the houses from the coast, and had normal sized windows to match. The ones around it had nothing less impressive than the largest windows, and dazzling ornaments all over- as well as tons of people within. This one, from what Kaori could see through the clear glass panels, was somewhat vacant. "Don't let it's modest state fool you, this is the best place in port. The food's just like home." Carver said with a passionate tone that made Kaori give a slight smile under her mask. "I wasn't thinking badly of it. I prefer this setting, it's less cramped looking. Shall we go in?" she stated in a kind voice, gesturing to the door. Carver nodded and continued to the building. Kaori looked it over once more, noting the strange design choice. It was made of logs on the bottom, arranged vertically but stopping after a couple feet. On top the logs was a solid sheet of stone wall that Kaori could only imagine was a bit on the thin side. Structurally, the building looked weaker than anything she'd ever seen. Kaori thought it was a marvel that they even put windows on it since those only made the structural integrity worse. Entering the building revealed hard wood floors much like the ones in her home, her real home back in the Lareci clan. The walls were a slightly yellow color with sconces on them. Pictures of people Kaori didn't know at all. There was a counter in the far end of the room with bottles of amber, clear, and unnaturally colored alcoholic drinks on a set of shelves behind it. The room contained several people gathered in groups, all speaking to each other while drinking to their heart's content. They were all happy, smiling widely with friendly expressions that countered some of their large appearances.

The smallest of them, a man who was shorter than Kaori by over a foot, had arms as thick as Kaori's torso and fists like her head. His legs were short and stubby, but his every step caused the table and drinks on it to shake as he moved around in drunken stupor. Kaori giggled slightly at the sight as she finally focused in on what he was doing... He was singing about someone named scarlet. She listened in while slowly following behind Carver, staying close enough to not loose him. The drunken midget sang...


Kaori had already gotten distracted by it and moved away from Carver, standing next to the dancing drunkard. She swayed side to side to the rhythm while clapping, smiling from ear to ear below her mask and having a good time without having made it to her table. The bar keeper had seen her split and pointed Carver to check behind him, a look of amusement came about his face to see Kaori enjoying a good 'ole shanty. The men at the table were bangging their cups rhythmically, some whistling a tune to match, others slapping their knees to the performance. He took on a look of shock when the masked ninja trotted to him and grabbed his hands, hauling him over to where the fun was to dance to their song. It seemed that when it came to the chorus, all the men knew to join in instead of just one singing.


Carver couldn't understand Kaori at all, she looked like a complete edge lord with a rack but was forcing him to have fun. She was laughing, and while he couldn't see her face behind the cat mask, he knew she was smiling too. She had a good sense of tempo, and he could tell that while she pulled him in, she was following his lead. Carver found it hard to resist the dance, especially with someone as energetic as Kaori keeping him there and decided to go with it as the shanty continued on. The midget had switched places with a different man wearing an outfit like Carvers but with a blue and white striped shirt on singing.


One of the city guards had thrown his arm around Kaori and Carver, swaying side to side with them while sing-shouting boistrously. Held in her left arm like a football was his helmet, shiny and stern- a real symbol of justice.


Kaori broke free of the mans' arms, unable to be bound by inhibitions. She slammed her fist on the table and let out a stern statement in the rhythm of the song, her voice confident and very much sober as she sang it using the men's sailor accent.


The room grew quiet for a moment, the men not expecting a masked person to randomly show up. The air became tense and awkward... After a moment, all the men rejoined in the harmony and shouted together with Kaori and Carver.


Kaori's voice soon change to Samira's and the room began glowing red. The sound of snapping wood, and crackling began being heard as Kaori held her hands over her mouth. Her heart beat picked up and she could feel the heat of the flames around her. The woman who stood behind the bar counter began screaming and running for the door with a crown of flames adorned on her head, the children's cries from upstairs echoed in Kaori's mind as they burned alive. Kaori began crying, but her tears were black as they fell from her eyes. Upon hitting the ground, small flames came from her tears just before they exploded and sent Kaori out of the building. "You should stop fighting... rest, you're tired... AND YOUR HEART BELONGS TO ME!"

Kaori let out an even stronger blast of energy than before, so great that the walls cracked on the outside of the room. The nursing staff could feel Kaori's pain, and only stand helpless on the other side of the wall as they watched the crack form. Several members of the guild had gathered around, having heard the screening two floors below (albeit faintly) and come to see what was going on. They noticed a hint of madness in the energy waves that cracked the thick stone walls, and knew that if Kaori came through that wall it'd be a fight like none other... Kaori was strong, and only got stronger as time progressed. She didn't know her own power, which meant no one else did... which made her even more dangerous when she wasn't in control.

---

"Looks like she's getting unstable... more... unstable." Jediniah pointed out. "At this rate she'll bust through the castle and start really doing damage." he added while leaning against a pillar. The spirits were gathered outside Kaori's mind room as the entrance was currently sealed off by whatever power was taking over her mind.

"If that happens I'll step in." Scarlet said, manifesting her shotguns in preparation for it. "Last I checked she turned you into a limbless torso in under a second stubby..." Jediniah mocked the former slave captain. He knew Scarlet from jail, when Kaori captured her by cutting off her arms and legs and searing the wounds shut. "She's unstable, and likely won't have the power to come at me like that." Scarlet said in an annoyed tone while trying not to blast Jed.

"I- I'll" "-You'll stay here and make sure Aquarius doesn't kill Mammoth." "Yes ma'am..." Charlotte felt sad that she couldn't do more than help Mammoth hold Aquarius back if needed. She was the support role, for the one being in the support role. Everyone thought of her as weak since she was so passive, and submissive all the time... even though she trained with Kaori, the spirit was still disregarded. The only person who thought otherwise was losing her mind with each passing minute.

---

Gabriella shot across the strange planet, leaving a trail of light behind her while whizzing past trees and animals. Upon arriving to the shrine and touching down, she noticed that the shadow gem was gone. A large figure rose from the ground, pooling itself together and forming a phoenix. "Ah, Little Gabby... you really should call first. I'm afraid I didn't have time to prepare any... amenities." the phoenix said in its deep and unintentionally condescending tone. "The ones who were here, was it a celestial wizard accompanied by a dragonhound and masked woman?" she asked, skipping the idle conversation. "The dragonhound was here, accompanied by a tool... though their masked friend is somewhat... disabled, I'm afraid. Soon to be permanent." the phoenix stated, not minding being so direct with much of anyone. "I see, then they'll be going to see the master then. Thank you, I'll come another time to talk casually." the arch angel said before turning around and blasting her way to the portals.

---

Ikuchi had arrived at the shrine with Samira in tow, gently setting her down and walking to the shrine to move the gem. Samira had inquired as to why Saia had any interest in her spirits. "Saia, like Kaori, are both from the same clan. Magic is a tool only brought about during Lady Lareci's reign. Her understanding of magic is greater than Saia's... let that sink in when you think of how little she knows. Quite likely Saia does not know the limits imposed on you, or that he would be unable to summon your spirits. As for why they are here, they were following us. It is hard to pick out unusual scents when the entire world smells weird- I apologize for this." Ikuchi walked to the pedestal in the middle and paused, noting that there was no gem to be moved... The runes on the shrine were different as well, and the shape was a near perfect circle. "Miss Nassar, I advise photographing this shrine." he said calmly while looking at the pillars at each end of the platform. He'd walk over to Samira and take one of the stones from her back before making his way to one of the pillars. He noticed an odd symbol in the bin. Looking into the gem itself, the symbols didn't match. He walked around the platform to each holder until he found one with a symbol that matched the on in the gem. "It seems we must line up the correct gem with each of these symbols... Likely that this one means 'Soulsmoke' since that's the gem I'm holding." After the two had matched up all the gems, they would become impossible to remove. However... an awkward silence would take over the atmosphere as nothing seemed to be happening.

Lava Hawk
Motorcycle
Ikuchi
Word Count: 6,132/7,000
Kaori
Ikuchi
Charlotte
Jediniah
Scarlet
Mammoth
Aquarius
Samira

Ikuchi looked at the Phoenix with a blank expression as Samira seemed to have grown a pair in the past thirty minutes, between the time of Ikuchi and the Shadow Bird's tearing out her pride and the lazy bird not wanting conflict. However, as fate would have it, the bird had no intention of provisioning victory unto the two beings as it was 'bad timing' in his opinion. "I have little time for this." Ikuchi said and vanished, appearing with his fist ramming into the phoenix's cheek. A large ball of magic had been formed as he combined several of Kaori's spells into one massive attack. "WAKEY WAKEY MOTHER FUCKER!" he shouted with an annoyed tone, applying even more strength than his master. As the punch's swing concluded, a large explosion of white shadows caused the bird to fall over.

The phoenix's eyes were wide open, and completely white as a ghostly form seemed to be dangling around its beak. It would appear Ikuchi had literally punched the soul out of the creature. The only thing audible as Ikuchi realized that he may have gotten a bit too impatient was a very long, very soft, very whiney sound (much like when that one salty not-god got the crap beat out of him in that one movie with the big green guy, metal suit wearing dude, dominatrix, spangly outfit wearing spandex person with the metal frisbee, and bow user) as the last bits of air left his body. This however didn't make Ikuchi any less unhappy, and seemed to only piss him off more. Fire seemed to erupt around him and he held a fist up before the ghost-shaped figure and said "Get back in your body or die..." with a tone that implied doom and destruction in exchange for insubordination.

The ghost flew back into the bird's body immediately for fear of being hit so hard its soul would be knocked out of its soul (in the twilight zone). The phoenix let out a series of coughs and began staggering to stand up. "Such..." a series of coughs was released again. "...Such a lively one you are...." the bird said. "You gonna fight us, or give me something for my master's troubles?" Ikuchi said, not bothering to acknowledge the compliment. "Well... I don't really-" the bird's eyes went white again and its beak dropped. A tear formed at the corner of its eyes from the incredible pain it was feeling, wishing that he was knocked unconscious instead...

Looking down, Ikuchi was seen with his knee firmly planted in a very sensitive area between its legs. While there was nothing dangling there as foul normally had a cloaca rather than a phallus, the pain was excruciating since Ikuchi's knee was slamming into an area near the cloaca that wasn't accustomed to being hit. "WRONG ANSWER!" he shouted, displaying the same brutality his master showed the mercenaries back in the Ancient Ruins... just incarnated to a different level of 'what the fuck' customized to Ikuchi's most easy to hit target. A white energy came from Ikuchi's knee and shot upward, making the bird perform a flip over Samira and land behind her on the other side of the ruins. The creature landed with a violent 'thud' that caused the surrounding area to tremble and dust to kick up. As the dust settled over the downed bird, words seemed to form over the avian that coincided with a majestically deep voice being hear over the wind saying "Fatality... Flawless victory." Ignoring that voice, Ikuchi walked over while materializing a massive, white battle axe with a tassle on the end that had a gold hibiscus on the end of it. He rested it on the bird's neck. "If there is no reward for this blasphemous journey, then I shall create one to adorn Lady Lareci's office." he said grimly, causing the bird to see his light.

Suddenly, two objects appeared in the middle of the shrine. One of them was a small rectangle, similar to the one Aquarius took from Saia when Kaori and Samira went to the Ancient Ruins. The other was of little concern to Ikuchi as he knew the artifact would be of more value to Kaori than the other. "Oh my... it... seems I found something... Please take it and don't hit me." "My master was on this journey too, you know?" Ikuchi said threateningly, obviously milking the situation. "She likes books... fairy tales to be exact." he added, a book suddenly appearing near the other rewards. It was another one that didn't exist in Earthland, and upon seeing the cover Ikuchi continued keeping his axe to the bird's throat. It was only after nine more books of equal rarity appeared that the angry dragon made his axe vanish before walking off to claim his prizes. "Is... our business concluded?" the bird asked. "You owe me for being so generous as to not kill you. Bear that in mind as you slumber." Ikuchi said coldly, letting the bird erupt into nothingness. Noticing a colorful feather on the ground, the servant took it as it'd make an excellent quill. This was the best way to dispatch a phoenix, and Ikuchi felt no shame in his actions.

Lava Hawk
Motorcycle
Ikuchi
Word Count: 7,009/7,000
Kaori
Ikuchi
Charlotte
Jediniah
Scarlet
Mammoth
Aquarius
Samira