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Post by Kouichi - Yami No Kuro Raion on Oct 11, 2009 21:45:45 GMT -5
He nodded. "Kouji is a bit of a mouth, isn't he? And no, where we come from really isn't anything like here. You know where we boarded the planes? Well, that's where I come from. It's a country called Japan, although in our own language, it's Nippon. We're a small, island nation, full of history and legends, about guardan spirits that live in all things, demons, gods... but a lot of people don't really pay attention to the legends and history, anymore."
It felt good to share some of his thoughts about where he lived with her; felt good to tell her about his homeland.
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Post by lana on Oct 11, 2009 22:15:27 GMT -5
"Hmm...like Crepusculum, except with moving boxes with wheels and we're much bigger, huh?"
Lana's eyes narrowed a little as she continued staring at Kouichi. Thinking of the strange country that was called Japan made her think of everything Kouichi had told her about him up to this point. Something was off...
"You said you were accustomed to the darkness. Your homeland is not nearly as dark as Nerezza," she said quietly, "or is there a magic on Earth that can make a land dark? Something other than the sun setting?"
It wasn't that she didn't believe him--she knew he was telling the truth, the guy could see in Nerezza of all places. She was just curious.
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Post by Kouichi - Yami No Kuro Raion on Oct 11, 2009 22:22:13 GMT -5
He looked away.
"I'm not sure if you remember, but... I told you that I had been in a situation like with Crepusculum once before... well, it's true. I was called away to a world much like Crepusculum, inhabited by strange creatures. Humans like us hadn't lived there in a long, long time... and a long time before, spirits were left to those creatures by ancient warriors, sworn to protect them. Well... an evil from the past awakened there, and some of the warriros awoke, and, corrupted by one who had once been their leader, turned against the world."
He sighed.
"My friends were called there by the Lady Seraph, one of the Three Angels that kept the peace of that world. I attempted to follow but was hurt, and the evil, the Lord Cherubi, the youngest Angel and the corrupted one, found my spirit and pulled it through. He gave me the corrupted SPirit of Darkness and promised me revenge against all those who had hurt me, and rule of the Kingdom of Darkness there. I forgot who and what I was, in that place, buried in the spirit of the Dusk. Kouji helped me return to my senses, and somehow I purifid that spirit, but... ever since then, I've had a touch of darkness that follows me wherever I go. I can see in the dark, and..."
He raised one arm, pulling back his sleeve to reveal the 'tattoo' underneath.
"...I've had these marks on my arms."
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Post by lana on Oct 11, 2009 22:40:25 GMT -5
Lana blinked very little as Kouichi told her his story, though her eyes seemed to soften slightly the more she listened. Some elements from his story she could relate to, about promises of being someone, doing better and rising above those who tormented you, and ending up finding yourself lost. Much like Kouichi, Lana felt like she had been quite lost herself. Kouji showed up for his brother, and Kouichi showed up for...
Did she seriously consider her and Kouichi's first meeting one where he...saved her? Lana was more than able to look after herself, she didn't feel like she needed someone to give her a hand. And yet ever since then he had been there somehow to help her in some way or another.
Her eyebrows raised as he revealed the markings on his arms. Such an intricate design, and despite what memories they probably brought back to Kouichi, Lana personally found them...
"It's...oddly beautiful," she answered softly, finding herself moving a few paces closer to get a better look, "if that isn't creepy to you, that is."
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Post by Kouichi - Yami No Kuro Raion on Oct 11, 2009 22:43:34 GMT -5
He shook his head. "They are pretty well-designed... and I'm not the only one who has them, either."
He held out his arm so she could get a better look.
"All of us, everyone who held the spirits, have similar marks, now. Kouji's look like pale blue wolf heads, while Takuya, back home, has red flames. I think they're the remains of the spirits, protecting us, or... something."
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Post by lana on Oct 11, 2009 22:49:50 GMT -5
Lana stared at them for the longest time, almost entranced with them. She'd seen very few things that caught her eye like that, afterall. Though somehow them being on his body somewhere seemed to make them more interesting...and for a younger guy, he had good muscles growing in, too.
Not that that was important to know or anything. She shook her head and looked back into his eyes.
"And you say this angel with this spirit, before purified, promised you things like revenge? Against people who hurt you? Who hurt you before? Why did any of this seem appealing to you, to rule over a land surrounded by nothing but darkness?"
She asked this because she still remembered first arriving in Nerezza...she didn't want any of it. She hated every moment of it and there wasn't anything that could have changed her mind until she got into the rough military training...
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Post by Kouichi - Yami No Kuro Raion on Oct 11, 2009 22:55:48 GMT -5
"It wasn't the spirit, although his personality didn't help. Lord Cherubi promised me these things, and twisted mymind with lies. You see... my parents split before I can remember, and my mother took me. I found out when my grandmother died that my father was living with a twin brother I never knew I had - Kouji. Lord Cherubi, twisted by the evil power of the one behind the scenes, convinced me that my father was trying to hurt and undermine my mother out of hatred and spite. He swore that along with the Dark Area, I would have a part of earth and my mother's safety as well... as for the Dark Area, it... suited my new personality, and the thought of ruling or controlling anything, even a land of darkness, was appealing to me at that point, because my life was spiralling out of control."
He seemed uncomfortable with those feelings he'd once had - tthe anger, the hatred.
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Post by lana on Oct 11, 2009 23:03:42 GMT -5
"Huh..."
Lana sat back on her knees and blinked a couple of times before she continued, "spiralling out of control, was it? That has to be hell, living in a life you have no control over. It probably really hurts, too, especially when you feel alone that the moment the opportunity for it to all go away comes along, you take it. Did you have to fight hard for you to rise so high? I bet once you got there it didn't feel too great anyway, whether you realized it at the time or not. Is that how that worked?"
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Post by Kouichi - Yami No Kuro Raion on Oct 12, 2009 14:04:17 GMT -5
He nodded. "I did have to fight... but not too hard. Lord Cherubi favored me, the other Corruptd said... looking back on it, they were right. At the time all I cared about was strength, and about the power the darkness gave me. I cared about pleasing Lord Cherubi, no matter what I had to do to do it. I took a kind of sick pleasure on eradicating those weaker than myself. I told them that they didn't deserve what they had, because they were weak. But... Kouji was right... I never really believed it. And you're right - it didn't feel as good as I thought it did. It felt so much better saving the lives that I would previously have crushed without a second thought."
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Post by lana on Oct 13, 2009 10:22:29 GMT -5
"I see..."
Lana couldn't think of anything else to say. A lot of what Kouichi said almost reminded her of herself, however different of a situation. Much different, the only superiors she had that actually took a liking to her were Elexa and Ludro...
She closed her eyes and sighed.
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Post by Kouichi - Yami No Kuro Raion on Oct 13, 2009 21:08:00 GMT -5
"Are you alright?" he asked her.
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Post by lana on Oct 13, 2009 21:29:29 GMT -5
Lana opened her eyes and they instantly met Kouichi's again. She half-rolled her eyes and shook her head as she answered him.
"It's nothing, really. Just thinking," she said slowly, "I kinda got into what you were saying for a moment because it sounded almost similar to something I'd been through, is all. With a senior captain, the one I took the position of later. To get to where I am now, his spot, I had to fight all the way up to him and them take him on himself...things didn't go too well, to say the least."
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Post by Kouichi - Yami No Kuro Raion on Oct 14, 2009 13:51:00 GMT -5
He nodded. "Would you... like to talk about it?" The question was tentative; if she didn't want to, he wanted it to be clear that he wasn't trying to be nosy or rude. He sincerely wanted to help her.
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Post by lana on Oct 14, 2009 14:40:05 GMT -5
"Heh...there's nothing much to really talk about, I guess. He tried to kill me and the only way I could get out of that is if I killed him first, right? When I say it didn't go well, I mean he didn't die like he should have and he came back. Piece of s***," Lana answered, quite bitterly, too. Her eyes softened then.
"I probably should have declined becoming Lady Elexa's captain again, actually, now that I think of Rous. My queen may think differently, but I know I am in no shape to be a real captain."
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Post by Kouichi - Yami No Kuro Raion on Oct 14, 2009 15:40:25 GMT -5
He gave her a startled look.
"What?! Lana, you're a great captain - your Queen said it herself. You're really good at protecting things you want to protect, and there's no better quality in a Captain, right?"
He placed a hand on her arm and looked into her eyes. "I think you're better than you give yourself credit for."
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