Expanding [closed]

[tsurugi]

Tsurugi had been busy recently, taking hold of the village he so desperately loved and becoming it's leader and rightful lord. for the past year since the village became a place of insecurity and worry, Tsurugi had pulled together all inner factions of the village and secured his seat at at it's top. The demon remain unseen to the eyes of the proud berserker, so he found a second way to search. If the elders were loathe to risk defenselessness for the honor of the clan then it was he, the most influential of the berserker class, that would take command. He knew there were others that could best him in his village, but he was able to lead them, and he would if it meant the protection and betterment of his peoples. He was not one to drop responsibility in order to help his own vendetta, but instead he would make the world a better place, and increase the chance of finding the chaos creature.

The head of Tenmeigakure, and brutal force user, Kyoumou Tsurugi, walked into the lobby of Skylight Industries. The massive sword tied to his back and his clothing clearly out of place with the surrounding area. the very aura that flooded from him demanded obediance, and the oppressive pressure that flooded the area around him was a result of his control of force. His presence added to the gravity of the atmosphere, even without his full effort. The man had become so used to sudden attacks from his guard that he had begun to hold control over the area around him at all times. It was his guard that maintained his level of preparedness, and also ensured his safety. But now the members of his guard were hidden, and Tsurugi walked instead with the most well trained speakers and traders of his village.

The sound using elementals at his sides smiled politely and greeted the onlookers as if to ensure them all was well. The man appointed as his adviser in the endeavor to expand the village of the dawn's control stepped to him silently.

"You must learn to be more appropriate in public mi lord, these men are not used to such raw power appearing before them," it was Tenshi who spoke. Tenshi the sonic that spoke without his lips and made an eerie consume Tsurugi.

"Hold your spellbound tongue now Tenshi. That ability of yours is odd on my ears," hissed Tsurugi through clenched teeth. He had little patience for things too complicated to explain in one sentence. Tenshi bowed and and walked beside his ruler with a light smile, knowing the personality of his leader enough to understand that he meant no harm in his words.

Tenshi stepped forward and spoke quickly with the secretary in order to make the needed arrangements. Tsurugi stood stoic and awaited the results of the overly charming Tenshi, and his seductive magic voice. The only possible outcome was her forcing an appointment through, though there was a chance she would be unable to succeed in her attempt to do so.

"This is taking too long." spoke the restless Berserker, the weight of his atmosphere increasing.

[Oracle]

[This takes place immediately after "When All is said and Done..."]

At this rate, Oracle was never going to meet with Aika

But, at least some progress was coming out of this little distraction of his. The patient named Kensei he found earlier offered a life debt to Oracle; something he was normally against, but decided to take out of good measure for the man's self esteem. That got Oracle excited for no good reason, but he shrugged off the feeling as awkward anxiousness; if there were such a thing.

As Oracle boarded the elevator that zoomed past the thirty basement levels of his main building of Skylight Industries, a smile was brought to his face as a thought drew near to reality. Everything had been going smoothly since he received his chaotic sedative. Receiving that coin of law was the best thing that Gin could have ever given him. He dwelled on his latest successes. The finding of Abbadon; the setup of Mishiranu Arashi; the information he received of the heavenly records thanks to his operative Toushi. All of these tasks would not have been accomplished if it were not for the coin of law suppressing the chaos still lingering in his blood from that cut he received from the Sword of Darkness all those years ago.

Thirty floors below was an incredible breakthrough he discovered that could give him a rather powerful playing card in this game called the Ningenkai. Sure, he was already winning, but you can never have too many aces up your sleeve. This unexpected meeting however, was in Oracle's case, not necessary at all. He almost told his intern to tell his new secretary to let Mercelle handle it, until he remembered that he was in the Paris branch of the company. That thought made him sigh in frustration, only to realize that a trip to France was soon in his future to explain his absence from this realm to tend to his Heavenly duties.

Who would have thought running this realm this way was going to be so hard?

Once the elevator door opened at the lobby, Oracle was stunned to see a man with what looked to be a giant sword on his back and bandages wrapped around his mouth; similar to the facial mask his patient thirty flights below had on before he took it off to reveal that lovely face. Oracle immediately gathered the conclusion that running into this Kensei person was of no coincidence, for these two characters seemed to own the same mindset; especially once he heard the bandaged man speak.

"This is taking too long," he said.

Oracle chuckled to himself as he placed his hands in his pockets, still in his Markus Bleache' guise. He approached the man in bandages, along with who seemed to be his assistant to catch their attention with the pattern of his shoes.

"I completely agree," he said as he approached the two by their right side. "I apologize for the sloth of my secretary; she is relatively new here."

Oracle took the time to preview his nails for dirt, grime and grease. "My previous secretary was at her prime, she was. Unfortunately, she took a rather random sick day and... never came back, if you catch my drift."

The disguised Malakite polished his nails on his shirt before extending the hand for the bandaged man to shake.

"My name is Markus Bleache'," he introduced. "I am the CEO of Skylight Industries. What pre tell can I do for you, today?"

[tsurugi]

Tsurugi took a moment to observe the man before him, and he saw a great many things in that moment. From the moment the man chuckled he had manage to attain the ninja's full attention. His pompous demeanor was obvious, and Tsurugi saw it as a foolish manner to carry oneself. Tsurugi saw no purpose in pomposity, so it was not part of his outward action. The man pocketed his hands, and Tsurugi read it as a sign of a man with no reason to fear those around him. He figured the man was comfortable here, and when he spoke he had an arrogant tone in his voice. Tsurugi saw before him the full extent of the foolish mortals of the outside world. It was annoying to view such a being, the agitated leader turned to face the man addressing him.

The two men standing on either side of him seemed to recognize the man and glanced at their leader as if to plead for his words to be kind. Tsurugi trusted the two ninja beside him, though he didn't much like there suits. The third elemental turned from the secretary and intercepted Marcus before he could be insulted by Tsurugi. Tsurugi saw the man polish his nails after a close inspection, This fag..., and clenched his teeth. He was holding back all the annoyance he could hold already, and as the man neared him he had already increased the gravity of the area within arms reach to three times normal.

Marcus Bleache extended his hand to Tsurugi, Does this fool intend to challenge me?, but before Tsurugi could move he was cut off.

Be still Lord Tsurugi, he does not know our customs. Even among the village, each class has it's own specific customs, outsiders do not know.

The sound of Tenshi's voice was placed into Tsurugi's ear and stilled the anger inside him. Th sound user was skilled at speaking to only the person he intended, and without the need to move his lips at all at that. Tsurugi looked toward the elemental and smirked, music soothed the savage beast indeed. Tenshi moved in within a second to stand nearly between the berserker and the man who almost got cleaved in two. He took both of Marcus' hands in his with a smile and shook lightly. It was an action telling Marcus he meant no harm but not to touch, as well as the most simple way to make himself the speaker in this transaction.

"Nice to meet you Mr. Bleache, I am Tsumasaki Tenshi, the speaker. This man behind me is called Kyoumou Tsurugi. We are emissaries from the village of Tenmeigakure," said Tenshi as he coated his voice in a subliminal note of soothing sound. As he mentioned emissaries he pointed toward the other two men in business suits behind him. Then he looked in the direction of Tsurugi, "Kyoumou-sama in the leader of our village."

Tsurugi looked at the man without a sign of his thoughts or feelings and merely observed him. He was waiting for the response, as he suspected the man was treacherous and vile. His trust in the world outside his village didn't exist, and there was nothing about this insolent man that could convince him he deserved any more of Tsurugi's trust then the rest of the world.

[Oracle]

Oracle flinched. He was honestly not expecting representatives and bodyguards from different civilizations to just show up in the lobbies of his place of mortal business. The man who spoke for the one wrapped in bandages took both of his hands in friendship, calling himself Tsumasaki Tenshi. He was even so kind as to introduce the man he was originally under the belief was Tenshi's bodyguard as the leader of the civilization in question.

The Tenmeigakure

Oracle smirked.

"This is all you need to know of me" indeed, Kensei, the Malakite thought to himself.

Oracle bowed to Tenshi, as a businessman in Tokyo should whenever meeting new clients.

"A pleasure to meet you, Tenshi," he said to the mediator present. He glanced at Tsurugi with the same business-friendly smile. "As with you, Kyoumou-sama."

Oracle placed his left hand back inside his pocket and used his right to display the majesty of his kingdom to his guests. A haughty smile poisoned his lips as he graced in his own ego in a triumphant sort of way.

"Welcome to Skylight Industries," he said to the members of the Tenmeigakure. "Please. Follow me to the briefing room; we can discuss things without having to deal with prying ears."

[tsurugi]

Tsurugi was disgusted with many of the gestures made by the man before him. It was obvious that he was no warrior, and even that the creature before him was a snake of a man. The world he was leading his people into was a place of warped men and lost souls. Honor was one thing he would force his people to remember, never would his people become so arrogant and foolish as to take pride in menial things. The man before him held reigns to an empire, and he liked the look of his castle, Tsurugi killed many men like this in his time. Castles fall in one mighty swing, and this place was no different. Though Tsurugi could hold no ill will to this man... that is.. if he proved to serve his intended purpose.

"We would be pleased to move this to your briefing room. The master would love things to run smoothly, as would our people," said Tenshi with the sweetest of charms in his voice. it was unknown how much of an effect his sound magic would have, but it normally simply acted as a buffer when things went bad. Tsurugi opened his lips and spoke on his breath more lightly then any whisper could be. not a sound would carry more then two inches, though to Tenshi it was perfectly audible.

"This man is a weasel. I don't like him." were the words formed by Tsurugi's lips as he exhaled. tenshi made no motion to show he had heard, and before Tsurugi could start again he was cut off by the sound of a voice as if it was his own thought, place in his ear.

Bare with it Kyoumou, most men of power are hungry for the like. It i unlikely that he is any different.

Tsurugi walked behind Tenshi into the room, and the two silent sound users walked in behind him. The rest of his guard remained around the building in hiding, none of them visible, and their position was unknown even to Tsurugi.

"Our village has long remained in the shadows. Ever since we were chased from our homeland we have lived in secret, practicing and developing our arts in secret. Though, we also have contacts outside our village. Honorable men of families that have kept us in their hearts and supported us and our solitude. Those contacts are powerful in the world we have distanced ourselves from, but they have one common character that ties them from their positions across the globe," Tenshi spoke quickly and directly, as soon as the door was closed behind the party. "We have come to realize that this company own stocks of all major businesses in the world, and holds a monopoly on half of them. As well as the enormous revenue this company and it's many smaller branches have hands on. With these things and the shady background around it's head and the rumors of it's secret dealings my people have come to an agreement." Tenshi paused and looked at Tsurugi, whom at that point stepped forward and spoke himself. His deep serious tone reverberating between the sound users, who had up a wall to keep in this conversation.

"I want to bring the village of the dawn into the twilight. We have too long served in silence and had no say as the world fell into lawlessness chaos and honor less pandemonium. I tire of battles with weak and timid men. You have become the figurehead of the silent world order. As far as the village is concerned you are the only necessary partner for us to correct the world." boldly these words spilled from Tsurugi. He needed no sweet talk, but told the direct purpose of his visit. His direct approach made Tenshi wince, he hadn't planned on saying such things so soon, but it was done.

[Oracle]

Oracle entered the briefing room first, making sure that he was seated by the time the representatives of the village of Tenmeigakure made themselves present. He held his hand out before clasping both of them together, gesturing the two to sit down. His two index fingers touched and rested on his nose, as the one with a voice of what Heaven should be started speaking.

The one named Tenshi gave a brief history of their village, and -- surprisingly -- his own company. These men had definitely done their homework on who they wished to invest themselves in. And whereas Oracle was never a man to gloat on his own ego unless the moment was necessary, he had to admit; hearing about how he brought this company from the gutter into the multinational corporation it is now made him smirk a small bit.

Then the sweet and sultry sound of Tenshi was interrupted with the standing of Tsurugi, hearing a sentence echo out of his bandaged-covered mouth that relatively surprised Oracle.

"I want to bring the village of the dawn into the twilight."

Oracle blinked a few times before the fact that the leader of this village he was under the impression was a mute spoke in a full sentence resonated in his mind.

He speaks, he thought to himself. And he uses metaphors! I wonder if a simile is next...

Oracle continued to listen to the brute's words as he caught the hidden praise toward his accomplishments within the Ningenkai as Markus Bleache'. But it wasn't the praise that intrigued Oracle; it was what he said after the oral pat on the back that reached him as he finally stated his business with Skylight Industries:

"As far as the village is concerned you are the only necessary partner for us to correct the world."

Oracle's smirk turned rather sinister with that sentence uttered, covered from his company's gaze by his hands. He could feel his blood running through his veins, which in this case was not a good thing. He pointed to the two with his left hand as his right found it's home in his pants pocket, rubbing the law coin to sedate the traces of chaos in his bloodstream. It worked.

"I always admire a man that envisions the future, Tsurugi," Oracle said as he stood up. "You are right; this world is filled with chaos and honorless mediocrity. I am a man of vision; a perfect world something that I have always dreamed of. You have no idea how long I have searched for individuals such as yourself that share my ideals of order; of perfection."

Oracle ran his fingers through his white hair as he allowed a friendly smile to grace his face.

"My only question," he said, "Is why wait until now to make yourselves known?"

[tsurugi]

Tsurugi felt a swift wave of unease settle over him, and as a result he glared directly at the face of the only suspect in his mind. There was an odd security in this man, he trusted total strangers to see him in private so easily. The fact that he seemed to have no qualms with avoiding people he knew nothing of, as well as the fact that he himself came to bring him to the briefing room. Tsurugi placed things together easily, and simple puzzles made black or white were his favorite. He had to keep himself in check however, or he would have responded immediately to the threatening feeling. Instinctively he would normally force the area around him into the ground with all his might in an instant, which was more then enough to turn this building into compact rubble.

Tenshi was quick to act however, proving his worth as the mediator and the buffer in all transactions. He sent out waves of sound to the leader he knew to be a hot head. Seeing that the man was obviously unsettled, at least he was to one who knew the normal Tsurugi and had enough experience to tell the difference between his many glares. The vibrations of his tensed body disturbed the air anyway, and Tenshi was always careful to monitor such things, as he was useful only before the battle began. Tenshi stood from his seat and walked to the end of the boardroom table, nodding to Tsurugi who sat calmly, glancing over to Marcus once more before relaxing himself to a normal level of defensiveness.

"Yes, I understand you to be a very swift dealer when advancement is made. We have been watching the growth of your company since the first million dollar gross. And yes we know it is odd that we would spend so long in hiding only to come out now of all times," Tenshi began, his voice charmed and naturally melodic to the ears. "I have no doubt you should be suspicious, but we are an old peoples, and we are a people who remember our history. Once we were betrayed, but we have grown and developed. We have established a foothold in the economy of the world in secret through masks and scapegoats. Though we have grown, we cannot extend our reach alone. The village's first and foremost objective is the protection and perseverance of our culture and traditions. In an essence, we can't go too far for the sake of our village's well being."

Tenshi spoke animatedly, moving calmly and fluidly in order to emphasize his point. His hands moving as if to shape his words and coax his audience. Tsurugi himself felt pleased to hear such a speaker, it was a product of his village, so naturally he felt great pride in his countrymen.

[Oracle]

The look on Oracle's face went from a friendly smile to a stoic stare. It would have grimaced if he were not playing the role of the opportune businessman. This civilization -- with limited to few contacts with the outside world because of some self-righteous ideal that this bandage-wearing "head" controls, has been watching his organization since his involvement underneath a microscope and a fine-toothed comb. Normally, such situation would not have brought so much disgust to Oracle. Instead, the reason for this sudden feeling was that he was unaware that this was happening under his nose.

Oracle placed his hands in his pockets and looked out of the window taking as much space as a wall. How could he have been allowed his operations to be watched by a single speck on the globe? Were they really as versatile as the representative Tenshi implied that they were?

That was when Oracle started to see the silver lining in all of this. The Tenmeigakure came to him. They need his help. They want him to bring their village to the twilight. And with a resource such as themselves underneath his belt -- a research that can be everywhere and nowhere at the same time, would make Oracle not only the most powerful being in the Ningenkai, but at the same time the most feared; a title he only has now in the form of bedtime stories for children and urban legends.

"I can assure both of you," Oracle said to his guests from the Tenmeigakure, "that treachery will not be something that you would have to worry about from me."

He looked at Tenshi and Tsurugi out the corner of his eyes, continuing to face the wall-sized window inches away from his face.

"Skylight Industries shall aid in the growth of the Tenmeigakure," Oracle told the two. He then smiled. "I assure you..."

[tsurugi]

Tsurugi watched his prospective ally in the warfare of the silent dictators. He saw a copious amount of ambition in the eyes of the business man. Though, it seemed he lost a portion of his spark when the fact that his company was under surveillance. The drop in his face allowed him to know just how annoyed he was with it, and that he didn't know. Tenshi, naturally, was aware of this, and he had already known the man was unaware of the observatory powers of the hidden village. Where as the world was large in comparison to Tenmeigakure, it was small in truth. The ninja's of the clan had many mission, and as a necessity for self preservation, Tenmeigakure was forced to know who was in charge and who would climb the ladder.

Tsurugi was not one of those involved in the massive amounts of espionage the village was involved in. He was one of the few and the brutal berserker class ninja in Tenmeigakure. The elementals acted as moles when no longer needed by the village, and the assassins took the place of spies and their namesake. Tsurugi never underestimated his people, as they were the elite of the human race. The would recruit those they saw fit to join them, and train those and any other that could be of value. It was the way of the dawn to remain secret, and expand their hold on the world they lived in.

Their deal was peddled and the ball passed to the court of Skylight industries. Tenshi leaned over the table and placed his knuckles on the tabletop. Tsurugi smiled seeing the man started his words, seeing as he knew what came next. Berserkers saw many deals forced through and knew the words of agreement. This man was assuring his trustworthiness, next he would establish himself as an ally. Tenshi knew by the tone and poise of this man that he had found the deal beneficial, likely to reinforce his own power. Tsurugi rose as the final sentence was said, and took a step toward the window. It was then that Tsurugi was informed of something else.

His new guard is here my Lord. Kain the silent would like to know if he is to meet with his charge or not.

Tsurugi clasped his hands behind his back and turned toward Marcus. He took a breathe, curious as to how much should be revealed to the man. Maybe it would scare him to know his movements were to be tracked as a precaution. Tsurugi had already stationed a guard to tracking him, though that one had failed to keep tack of Marcus on many occasions. It was hard to shadow a man who wasn't supposed to find out while tacking precautions in case he was a magic user himself.

"Yes Tenshi, Kain will meet his charge," Tsurugi spoke aloud what was a silent conversation in the beginning. The response was quick and brash as was all of his speech. "If you don't mind I have a man that will act as a messenger and a guardian, he will be assigned to you. He will follow must orders, but he will give no information he isn't instructed to give. I won't have time to come see you every time there is an issue or need to meet, instead you will have him deliver and respond to messages."

The moment he finished speaking a figure walked out of the shadows in the most distance corner, behind the podium near the back of the room. Tsurugi chuckled, he hadn't noticed him, that was an amazing feat for anyone. It was obvious by his sudden appearance that the man was an assassin class of high caliber and strongest in the stealth category.

"Nice of you to join us Kain," said Tenshi, a mild waver in his tone as the assassin approach as if walking on living shadows. Few could feel comfortable knowing that this man could likely taken the life of most of them without being seen, nor heard.

[Oracle]

Oracle watched as the one named Tenshi joined him at the window. He was expecting a "thank you," or something along the borderline of, "you will not regret this decision." Instead, he heard the bigger one say something not only completely random, but that was able to throw off the disguised Malakite for the second time.

"Yes Tenshi," Tsurugi stated. "Kain will meet his charge."

Oracle's brow frowned in both curiosity and anxiousness. This scenario was occurring too often for one day.

It was then that Tsurugi continued to speak about the one named Kain; how he was going to be assigned to Oracle as his guardian, messenger and link to the Tenmeigakure. The look on Oracle's face showed that he had no problems with this form of engagement. However, he did look around curiously to signify that there was no one else in the room other than he and his present company.

But soon did Tsurugi finish speaking did Oracle's attention directed itself toward the back of the briefing room as he saw a being walk out of a shadow cast by a podium. His stealth was amazing; the way he used the darkness to his advantage only told Oracle that he would be a fool to pass up such a useful specimen as this "Kain." It was then that Oracle's ego started to escalate past his human persona presented to the humans before him.

Because he laughed.

It started as a normal chuckle. Then it escalated to the point that after a few seconds it was one step less of maniacal. Oracle was able to sustain himself from reaching that point of confidence. As his laugh died down, his mind started to calculate exactly what Tsurugi and these Tenmeigakure were and how it was possible for them to be everywhere and nowhere at the same time.

He smiled at Kain and slowly shook his head as he inhaled from his hearty laugh.

"Oh, brave new world," he said, "with such people in it..."