Guardian confrontation [closed]

[youwillbeunequaled]

WHO: [Group One] Rin Okumura, Wei Wuxian, Sierra Mikain, Akira Kurusu, Goro Akechi
[Group Two] Tonbokiri, (Blue) Saber, Maya Asano, Mordred

WHERE: The depths of the forest
WHEN: August 24
WHAT: Spurred on by the conversation started by Link, a group has agreed to confront the third and final guardian in the forest. They will travel together, and when they encounter the guardian 'Group One' will use their various abilities to try communicating with it.
Depending on what happens, they may or may not have to kill it... If they have to fight, 'Group Two' will take the initiative.
WARNINGS: None yet, but possibly great amounts of violence should they have to fight the guardian.


The group has been walking through the forest literally all day.

Tonbokiri has followed his previous experience to this point, leaving at dawn to strike deep into the forest. He is expecting that they will at least start to sense the fiend as dusk falls, but there has been nothing yet. He exchanges a meaningful look with Maya-dono. Should they try to turn back? Given recent events, they should not risk trying to camp in the forest...

Mikuniguro abruptly tosses his head and snorts, causing Tonbokiri to look around for what disturbed the horse. Of course, there are trees and the forest floor covered in shade-stunted grass. The forest's ever-watchful eyes are upon them. Immediately before them the land rises slightly, and just over a hundred meters on there is a long, low hill. Even in the meagre light their lamps cast, that hill seems particularly verdant--

Then two emerald-bright spots glisten, and the hill blinks at them.

As naturally as leaves bending in the wind, the hill unfurls to reveal a great dragon-like creature. For all its leaf-like appearance, there is no mistaking the might of the beast as it lashes its tail and extends pale claws.

Clearly, it is ready for a fight.
But they are not here for a fight. Not yet.

"This is not the fiend that we encountered before, but it has a similar presence. Be on guard." Tonbokiri warns.

Comments

[satanslash]

Getting up at dawn was never Rin's idea of a good time. He made a promise to Link before he left, though, to make sure something could be done about the guardians and ensuring that the last known one could actually be dealt with peacefully. Were it not for that...

Well. He still doesn't want to kill it, but if that was what the group was going for he wouldn't have come along.

But being woken at dawn, dealing with such a long trek, even with breaks for food that he had packed for them was frankly exhausting. Even his demonic stamina couldn't last forever, and he was starting to sag with the weight of the pack on his shoulders. His sword was at his hip on a holster, but that was only there as an absolutely last resort.

If they even came across anything, that is.

"I swear, if we don't find somethin' soon--"

The horse's snort cut Rin's sentence short, blue eyes looking around the area carefully as well until his gaze locked with the creature. He felt an unfamiliar sensation in his chest, like a pressure but unlike drowning or losing breath. Part of it was probably awe as the creature unfurled, but there was something more akin to how he felt being in the presence of higher tier sentient demons.

"Whoa..."

Low and under his breath. It took a moment to shake the stunned silence that followed, but Tonbokiri speaking his warning did pull him back to the present. He swallowed hard, clutching the straps of his pack as he stepped closer.

"We're not here to fight you!"

[theshowsover]

Akira, clothed in his Phantom Thief gear, came up alongside Rin, keeping his arms at his sides, not yet reaching for his weapons. Normally, he liked to negotiate with shadows at the end of a dagger, but this is a delicate proceeding, and he doesn't want to provoke the Guardian's anger.

It's a pretty cool creature, that he has to admit. If it were a Persona he would definitely want to acquire it, but it isn't. Shame. Because of that, he has no idea if he'll be able to communicate effectively, but he might as well try. Hopefully, Tonbokiri and the others won't have to use that spear he gave them...

He nods in time with Rin's words.

"We just want to talk."

His voice is stronger and more confident as Joker than as Akira.

[regrede]

Sierra would have preferred to kill it. Such was in her nature—not to murder, no, but to protect fiercely the things she loved. In that respect, perhaps she and the guardians weren’t so different, but their presence was likely a burden on the town. It was her ability to communicate with the dead and dark that brought her in the pacifist group, however, and she planned to utilize that power now.

“It seems to believe us,” Sierra said. “I sense no bloodlust. What now?”

It was strange, she thought, how a monster that had been thought to be a killing machine, or at least in the family of ones, could regard them with such a careful but willing eye. It wasn’t human, maybe not even completely sentient, but it wasn’t completely rabid.

[espritdecorpse]

“Zzzzz....”

This member of their little party has been uncharacteristically quiet thus far, because he’s been sleeping the whole way.

When Wei Wuxian heard this adventure included getting up at dawn, his initial reaction had been along the lines of “no chance!” Practically speaking, how on earth would he wake up in time? It’s not as if he can undo the habits of a lifetime so easily. Before 9am or thereabouts, he can sleep through anything. But then he hit upon the idea of working a particularly clever bit of enchantment in one of his puppets, so that it would pick him up, bathe him, dress him, and carry him into the forest along with everyone, while he himself stayed blissfully unconscious. Nine o’clock came and went, and he did rouse a little. But with such a boring journey, and the gentle rocking of being carried, of course he was going to doze off again.

But the change in conversation is enough to rouse him, and he cracks his eyes open, blinking for a moment.

“Oh look, it’s a dragon! I wonder if it’s related to the ones that visited us before?”

[satanslash]

The fact that one of their party had to be carried because he was still asleep was also an annoyance to Rin, but he didn't call the guy out on it. He simply gave a withering glare to the rather loud comment that came after Wei woke up before turning back to said dragon.

Read the room, dude.

"I guess this is where we start askin' questions."

[theshowsover]

Akira nods, looking up cautiously at the dragon. It's not at all like a Shadow so he doubts he can really communicate with it, but at least it seems to understand even if it can't properly answer.

The others seem to be better at reading its emotions than himself, but he can at least speak.

"What are you guarding?"