Show me your inner self... [Closed]
Characters: Gin, Shinjiro, and later Cirucci.
Content: The drugs are starting to lose their effect, so Gin has offered to help Shinji find other ways of keeping his Persona under control; namely giving it an outlet of violence.
Setting: In a clearing, a reasonable hike from the fairgrounds.
Time: Mid- to late-afternoon.
Warnings: Sparring and ( Read more... )
Content: The drugs are starting to lose their effect, so Gin has offered to help Shinji find other ways of keeping his Persona under control; namely giving it an outlet of violence.
Setting: In a clearing, a reasonable hike from the fairgrounds.
Time: Mid- to late-afternoon.
Warnings: Sparring and ( Read more... )
He found the trail Gin had mentioned easily enough, running his fingers over the red ribbons as he walked. The hike wasn't too bad, and he was glad to see that the long walk wasn't aggravating his knee. Maybe it had finally healed completely... he damn well hoped so at least.
The cook stepped into the clearing, moving to lean against a tree. His trademark coat and hat gone, as well as his turtleneck. Only a dark gray wifebeater covered his torso, and his thick hair was tied up out of his face for once. But most noticeable was the stark-white gun holster around his waist, the bulk of it clinging to his left hip like it had always belonged there. And in said holster was his Envoker. And of course there was his monster of an axe, as always. The thing looked outright clunky next to Shinsou, that was for sure.
"Been waiting long?"
Reply
"Just long enough to enjoy the scenery," Gin told him cheerfully, pushing away from the tree and circling around to the center of the clearing, keeping a respectable distance. "I doubt it'll look this pretty by the time we're done with it."
He'd given up the white coat for the day - he was too fond of it to risk the tears of battle, and it was such a bother to get cleaned - and was instead wearing simple black training attire. He didn't draw his sword, but the smirk he wore was full of daring challenge, and he might have been radiating just a little of Shinsou's vicious intent.
Reply
But the aftermatch of that intent showed on his face, just a little. It was almost like a scent in the air, something he picked up on instinctually. And it made it even harder to keep hold of Castor. Though soon he wouldn't need to, and the thought made the corner of his mouth quirk up. "Not to worried about the random nature Ichimaru." hereplied, fighting down the urge to smirk.
Reply
"Show me this how this Evoker of yours works," he said, and he couldn't quite keep the eagerness out of his tone. A possibly suicidal enthusiasm, considering the circumstances, but he didn't seem concerned in the slightest. "I want to see what your Persona is like when you actually mean to call it out."
Reply
The eagerness in Gin's voice made his smirk grow, showing teeth.
"Alright then." And the 'weapon' was raised, pressing against his temple. Without his hair in the way there was no mistaking -where- the muzzle was pressed against. No tricks or slight of hand. He took one last deep breath and... shot.
The sound from the gun was just as loud and almost an exact replica of a real pistol blast. His head jerked, and his open eyes glazed in shock, though the movement wasn't as powerful as it would have been if he had really shot himself. If he had called one of his more powerful attacks out the jerk would have been stronger, but not yet. And instead of brains and gore, blue spirit energy and the sounds of shattered glass filled the air, a gush of it expelling from the other side of his head. The blue rose up from the ground at his feet as well, and lightly from his entire body. The grass and small plants around him rustled in the aftermath, the leaves rustling as Castor manifested behind and above him.
"How's that?" He husked out, his voice taking a ragged edge to it.
Reply
For the moment, though, he simply admired the poetry of the evoker. Who would even think to come up with a design that made a summoning look like a suicide? Maybe it had something to do with the shock-factor. It looked painful, although that might just be because Shinji had spent months or years poisoning his Persona in an effort to keep it contained.
It should have been getting weaker, but in defiance of all logic Gin thought it might be stronger now than when he'd encountered it the first time. The air was thick with its presence, an acrid, bitter taste in the air like steel and smoke, or at least that how he interpreted it. Something angry and untamed.
"I just hope you haven't forgotten how to use it," Gin taunted, but in spite of the attempt to stay casual his stance shifted slightly in readiness. This thing resonated oddly. He didn't know what to expect from it. "Do you need me to stand nice and still just to make sure you don't miss?"
Reply
"And if you stand still..." He gestured forward, giving the signal. "... I won't feel bad when it kills you." And with that Castor lurched forward in attack, the rider's eyes blank, but the horses gleaming with manic glee. And as it moved a wave of pure slicing force expelled from it, aiming right for where Gin stood, tearing up the ground as it went.
Reply
-but there was one, indisputable way of finding out. He didn't move, just waited while that shockwave of power sliced through the air, cleaving through the dirt, with an anticipatory smirk on his face. He drew Shinsou at the last possible second, as though defending himself was merely an afterthought. In a way it was. He tended to find flashy displays of power rather distracting, but at least in watching it he thought he'd figured out how much resisting force he'd need to block with.
Not quite, he found, as the impact jolted his arm from wrist to shoulder in a way that made his muscles burn with the suddenness of movement. Rather than snuffing it out as he'd wanted to, he was forced deflect it, Shinsou's power grappling momentarily with Castor's intangible blade before sending it spiraling off into a nearby tree. There was a very satisfying crunch of splintering wood, although Gin didn't bother to inspect the damage. He was too busy examining his own wrist, where a lashing of Castor's power had slipped past his guard, leaving a long, shallow slice across his knuckle and the back of his hand. A quick wiggle of his fingers assured him that it hadn't cut anything important, but blood driped freely from the fresh cut.
"Not bad," he attested, swapping Shinsou to his left hand and showing Shinji the damage. In a way he was satisfied. He wanted to see how the cook reacted to his injury, and the knowlage that they weren't simply screwing around.
Reply
"Yeah, for a start." He growled before moving again, darting forward. Castor moved with him, the two unable to stray far apart, lest Casto un-manifest sooner then Shinjiro planned. He had to get as much use out of the Persona as he could before it faded again. And as he moved in closer the horseman gave off a burst of what -looked- like flame from around it's body in a gush of energy. There was no heat, the appearance meaning nothing to what it really was: a pure wave of concussive force.
Reply
Considering the heavy, twisted feeling of guilt Shinji carried around with him over the death of the woman he'd killed, and the utter reluctance to use his Persona again, Gin had distantly wondered if Shinji had developed some sort of aversion to violence. The look in Castor's eyes said no. Gin decided that was probably part of the problem.
He felt a little vindicated at that discovery, and smirked madly whilst flicking blood from his hand. "Just so you know," he began pleasantly, "I'll be paying back every injury in full."
And then he was forced to dodge, giving way before the boiling mass of power that Castor was expelling. Shinsou was a weapon made for cutting, piercing and slicing; it didn't really have any decent defense against such a wide-spread attack, except for its own unleashed force, but Gin didn't want to release that too freely. There were still people back at the fairgrounds who might pick up on it, even at this distance. He did have a small arsenal of kidou spells at his disposal, but as a rule he didn't resort to those often. They felt too much like a crutch, and certainly they were both more work and less fun than relying on his zanpakuto.
If Shinsou had a strength, however, it was distance. He gave ground all too readily, shifting out of the path of Castor's attack with what borderlined on supernatural speed, moving back to the opposite edge of the clearing and pointing Shinsou forward. It didn't matter that he was aiming with his left even though Gin was predominantly right-handed. The blade would go where he wanted it to. It always did.
"Shoot to kill," he said, a clear, deadly command, although instead of aiming for the heart like his instincts wanted he directed the tip of the sword to catch Shinji in the side as the blade shot forth with the force of a gun much more deadly than the Evoker.
Reply
But nothing really prepared him for Shinsou.
Gin was fast, and Shinji had still been turning to face the older man after he had dodged his attack. But even though he didn't -see- Gin attack, he -heard- the command phrase, and his gut dropped. He spun around just in time to see the extending blade, but was helpless to block it. The weapon cut into him like a knife through butter, tearing his shirt and flesh is a burst of gore. The cut wasn't deep, but it was long and painful, and the force of it almost knocked him off his feet.
"F-fuck!!" he yelped, holding a hand to his side and bringing his axe up lest Gin 'fire' again.
Reply
There were things he probably should have asked beforehand. He didn't know Shinji's limits, or how much strain this whole episode would put on him, or what would happen if the Persona itself was attacked. If it really was a part of Shinji's mind then he might very well do some serious, irreversible damage by injuring it. Then again, zanpakuto seemed to have a similar sort of nature, and those could be broken and rebuilt without too much setback to the user.
That was only a theory, of course, but Gin's decision on the subject was summed up with a gleeful mental shrug and a why don't we test and find out?
This time when Shinsou lashed out - slower than before, the only concession he was willing to make - he aimed for the horse's dark next, wondering whether manifestations could bleed.
Reply
And normally an attack couldn't do shit to Castor. It wasn't really -there-, just an image of Shinjiro's power. But Shinsou wasn't a normal attack. Metaphysically it was just the same as Castor, just in another form. So while the Persona didn't bleed, it did react.
There's nothing quite like the horrible noise of a horse in terror or pain. It was like the scream of a murdered woman.
And while Castor didn't bleed, Shinjiro did. He hacked, as if hit in the gut, eyes going wide as a trail of blood escaped his nose. The look on his face was one of almost comic shock. No one, -No- one had ever been able to hurt Castor directly. He had no idea what that could do, to the Persona or himself.
And of course, Castor faded out. At least for now.
((occ: You know, I read "bleed" and "breed" at first. First thought: OMG Are Shinsou and Castor gonna have metaphysical babies?! D8 Do not want!))
Reply
But not without effect. He tilted his head at Shinji, his smile utterly unaffected by the cook's obvious pain.
"Oh, sorry," he said with false apology. "Did that hurt? I didn't realize I wasn't supposed to touch it like that."
Reply
As someone much better with words then him once said, it was like being touched by dozens of twisting snakes. It made the hair on his neck stand up. It was more intrusive, more skin crawling, then any of the after-hours activities they might have shared. And it scared the -crap- outta him.
His hand danced over the butt of his Envoker as he pondered if he wanted to summon Castor again right away, but he didn't. Doing that too fast would be bad... he could feel it. Instead he straightened up, rolling his shoulders. The wound on his side had already stopped bleeding and, oddly enough, had started to heal as Castor's regenerative abilities kicked in. They only ever seemed to show up when the adrenaline was pumping through his body and the magic and psi of using the Persona were flowing. He could be shot over and over, and Castor wouldn't do a damn thing for him unless he called on it. Selfish bastard.
"Fuck off Ichimaru, ain' any different then any other time you touched me." He hissed before darting forward. He had to close the distance. From far away Gin could slice him like a turkey. He swung the axe, trying to keep the other man on his toes.
Reply
"Isn't it?" he asked lowly, his voice losing the light, cheerful edge but not the dark amusement. "Does that mean you're still enjoying yourself?"
While it wasn't a good idea to try any sort of distance battle against Gin and his zanpakuto, closeness wasn't necessarily any safer, especially since Gin had never been one to play fair. Swinging wide had left Shinji unguarded right where the cut on his ribs was, and Gin reached out and pressed his hand right to it, the movement somewhere between a grab and a brutal caress.
Reply
Leave a comment