(may catch-all) when devilman no uta comes on

[apocalypticist]

WHO: Ryo Asuka + various
WHERE: Around
WHEN: May
WHAT: Quests, logs, etc, as to avoid spamming the comm.
WARNINGS: Geese murderizing, monster fighting, Ryo enjoying bloodshed a little too much probably

Specific prompts in the comments! If you want to quest with Ryo or thread with him, hmu at archeops for plotting or PM me!

Comments

(05/04) dextera, guren - the gang kills a spider demon

[apocalypticist]

[ It's been about a month since the harpy quest went up on the forum and the three of them completed it and were rewarded with a pile of knives. So when a similar one goes up, Ryo decides to contact Guren and Dextera to see if they're interested in working together again since they made a good team last time. A jorogumo, huh... according to folklore, they're said to be solitary creatures that feed on young men. This ought to be interesting.

It's already dark out by the time the quests appear on the forum and heading into the forest at night is a good way to get killed and eaten as midnight snack by some foul creature, so they agree to meet up the following day after the sun comes up.

Just like last time, Ryo's got an arsenal of knives concealed under his oversized coat when he heads over to their meeting spot near the edge of the forest. It's pretty warm out today, too warm for someone to be wearing a full-length coat, but Ryo doesn't seem to be bothered by the weather at all as he waits for the other two. Overheating is a foreign concept to him, apparently. ]

[passio]

[ dextera has decidedly not kept that pile of knives, having passed it off to guren and relying on his usual, familiar sword. he doesn't know a lot about jorogumo—while he's familiar with much of christian and judaic mythos out of necessity, this one is out of his realm of expertise.

it sounds... japanese. probably? he's leaving it up to guren and ryo, in any case, and he's just here to be the muscle that will definitely be required if the harpies were any indication. the bonus of this quest, at least, is that there seems to be only one. that means, he thinks, that it's going to be big and deadly, but maybe he can purify it and learn something. he's got guren's drugs on him, too, so he's more than ready for an adventure!

he approaches ryo with a little more confidence, a little more certainty than the last time they met up—things have been going well for him lately, and though it means nothing to either ryo or guren, he's left the angelic rifle at home this time.

he nods a greeting. ]

[swordfucker]

Yo.

[It's not long after Dextera arrives that Guren approaches, as well. As they both have probably seen by now, Dextera in his many visits and Ryo in the apothecary, Guren's uniform is being repaired, so he's wearing peasant clothing. His sword is still at his side, but this time, he's grinning as he stops next to them, hands on his hips. He seems... excited? He's feeling confident.]

I hope you're both ready to kill a youkai. What do either of you know about them?

[Before they run off, he wants to establish that!!]

[apocalypticist]

[ Guren the peasant... Ryo returns Dextera's greeting with a nod of his own, and inclines his head slightly when Guren appears. ]

I've read a lot of books on youkai. [ Demons have existed among humans for a long time, and they're likely what gave rise to the various creatures and spirits that appear in myths and folklore across the world. Reading those stories is a way for Ryo to prepare for what he and Akira may encounter during their hunts. ]

Jorogumo are spider youkai that often appear as a beautiful woman to attract young men. When she sees a man she desires, she invites him into her home and he's never seen again. Sometimes, she'll play the biwa for him and while he's distracted by the sound of the instrument, she binds him with silk threads to keep him from escaping and store him away for later feeding.

[passio]

[ dextera doesn't know shit about shit, so he shakes his head when guren inquires about their respective knowledges—but of course, ryo knows more than enough to make up for his lack. a beautiful woman, then? that's probably bad news, but it's good to look out for any tricks she might get up to.

when he's not being immediately faced with a hot lady, though, he's as apparently composed. there's something he wants to establish, too, if it's possible. he raises his hand, letting it light with that purifying glow that at least guren knows well by now, and when he extinguishes it, he places that hand over his chest.

let him land the killing blow! he has a plan, and that plan is to purify. there might be something to learn. ]

[swordfucker]

[Guren nods along with Ryo's words. It matches up, pretty much, to the public thoughts on things. The Order of the Imperial Moon would occasionally deal with creatures in secret to the public, but all of that seems so long ago now.

He's surprised when Dextera gestures, looking over to him at the light and then tilting his head slightly.]

Oh? You want to finish her off? [That's so bold of Dextera!! But that means he wants it for a reason. Guren knows that he can create those crystal things, even if he barely understands what they are, so... he can agree to that.

He's been thinking about how to set this up in general, and it's easy to slide that into everything.]

Even a whore spider won't just approach three guys at once. From tales of her, she may be able to use types of illusions, so I don't want us to get too separated, but two people should hang back and follow.

[He jabs his thumb at himself.] I'll go first.

[He's really excited about luring out a jorogumo? Does he think he's the most eligible bachelor with a sex drive here? Really, he just doesn't feel comfortable making anyone else "bait" in this scenario, but he'll gladly pretend it's the hot stuff reason.]

[apocalypticist]

[ Ryo regards the light with mild curiosity. He doesn't understand the purpose of it, but he has no objections to letting Dextera deliver the finishing blow. It's probably the best approach to ensure the mission is successfully completed, since Dextera is the required blue in this group and he doesn't want to risk failing because a red defeated the spider. ]

That sounds good to me. [ He nods his head, looking to Guren. He's fine with letting someone else go first, hot stuff. ] ...In some stories, she slowly kills her prey with a powerful venom.

[ He says, looking to Dextera again. If he isn't familiar with the jorogumo, it's important to convey crucial information. Don't let the spider bite you, buddy. ]

(05/06) akechi - local teenagers fuck up a quest

[apocalypticist]

[ Ryo only did one quest last month, but this time he wants to have a go at more than one now that they know they get some form of reward for successfully completing them. He's also noticed that more color has returned to the world; two instances still don't make a pattern, but he can say with relative certainty that there's a correlation between their activities and the restoration of color. ]

Good morning, Akechi-san. Would you be interested in completing one of the quests with me?

[ He sends this at... seven in the morning, because Akechi should be up by now if he wants to make the most of the daylight hours. Thanks, Ryo?? ]

[doublecrowss]

[ Normally, Akechi is up early - and considering his schedule is far more flexible here than it is back home, he even as the chance to get some actual, proper sleep! Wow! Imagine that! ]

Good morning, Asuka-kun. Which quest do you have in mind?

[apocalypticist]

Quest 7, since we're both reds.

[doublecrowss]

Goose hunting? I can't say I have any experience, if that's what you were hoping for. But I would certainly be willing to give it a try.

[apocalypticist]

I don't have experience catching geese either, so that is quite alright. Find a burlap sack and meet me in Ruga at the edge of the forest.

[ Gotta stuff those geese in a sack so they're easier to carry. ]

aaaand action!

[doublecrowss]

Very well. I will meet you there shortly.

[ And true to his word, Akechi makes it to the edge of the forest in a brief while, burlap sack in tow. He also takes a few of the knives he got as a reward for a different quest, just in case they might be useful-- he can throw darts, so throwing knives shouldn't be that different, right? ]

Good morning once more, Asuka-kun. [ He greets with an easy smile. ] I hope I haven't kept you waiting.

[ It's a beautiful day for murder!! ]

(5/??) vaguely after they kill the spider

[passio]

[ now that he's had a chance to sit and examine the crystal for himself, luckily immune to its effects since he's the one who created it, he's definitely sure that ryo needs some kind of attention, whether he wants it or not. the memory of the sentry angel's corpse, wasting away in front of the research facility, is still salient in his mind—and even if this crystal is much less self-destructive than longneck's, dextera doesn't want to leave ryo alone for too long.

he's going to be as chill about this as he can be, though, which is still probably not that chill. check your inbox, ryo!! ]

Hello. It's Dextera.

Are you busy today?

[apocalypticist]

[ good thinking, dextera—touching the crystal caused a few side effects to manifest in ryo, like frequent hunger pangs and a sudden aversion to the colorless food. normally he doesn't care about the taste because to him eating is solely about providing sustenance to his body, not about pleasure. but what's more concerning are the intrusive violent thoughts. sometimes he finds himself thinking about strangling kaoru in her sleep or tricking guren into taking a drug that would make his guts explode in a gorefest. ]

Hello, Dextera. I'm not busy.

[passio]

[ that’s what he likes to hear! not the murder or the hunger, but the fact that ryo isn’t busy. he was feeling oddly brave in asking in the first place, and it would have been hard to recover if ryo were busy after all. ]

I want to see you.

Would you like to come over? Or I can meet you at your house.

[apocalypticist]

I'll be there in ten minutes.

[ and as promised, ten minutes later ryo's knocking on the door to dextera's house, rapping it twice with his knuckles. 'sup, it's your buddy ryo. ]

[passio]

[ dextera is a little impressed, and a little terrified, that it was that easy to get ryo to come over. when he gets ryo's warning, he places leliel outside to frolic with the other chickens, since he's pretty sure that ryo won't appreciate a wild animal clucking around his feet.

at the knock on the door, dextera was already waiting in the front room for ryo's arrival, so there's only a pause of a second or so before he answers... and lets out a relieved sigh, since ryo doesn't look especially haggard.

he nods in greeting, and steps aside to invite ryo in. ]

[apocalypticist]

[ he wasn't doing anything important at the time, so he saw no reason not to agree immediately. besides, he's been meaning to ask dextera about the crystal and the purification process he saw the other day since he knows very little about those things and he knows what he's experiencing right now isn't normal. ]

Why did you want to see me? [ he asks, stepping inside the house. he isn't wearing the coat today; as much as he loves his expensive prada coat, he doesn't want to wear it all the time. especially not when white gets dirty easily and doing laundry without modern technology is a pain. ]

(05/09) emma - gun maintenance for kids

[apocalypticist]

[ Learn a new skill. Ryo had offered to teach Emma how to properly clean and maintain her weapons. Unfortunately, he had to put it on hold for a few days when touching a spider soul caused him to be plagued by thoughts of murder and violence. While he was certain he could stop himself from acting on those impulses, he decided to play it safe and not do anything involving firearms until it wore off—even if he only loses control for three seconds, that's enough time to pull the trigger and kill someone.

He contacts her again not long after those thoughts have ebbed away, and they agree to have him come over to Emma's house in the afternoon. So here he is at her front door, knocking on it with his knuckles. ]

[keeneye]

[Thanks for the discretion, Ryo...

The cottage is normal for Flavo, homey and bright yellow like it just stepped out of a fairy tale. Emma answers the door with a big, bright smile.]

Hello! Thanks for coming all the way out here.

[This rural kid living in the boonies. She motions him to follow her into the house. The rifle and pistol are already on the table but there appears to be a new bow (it actually has color!) resting next to the front door. How big of an arsenal does a kid need? Whatever, it's totally necessary.]

[apocalypticist]

[ Ryo inclines his head in greeting and follows her into the house, closing the door shut behind him. His eyes glide over the weapons laid out on the table, studying them. ]

Out of curiosity, where did you get these? [ They're either brought with her from her home, or they're a quest reward. Either way, that's not a bad collection; well done, Emma. ]

[keeneye]

[A mix of both! Emma points to the guns-]

I brought these with me. [and then rubs the back of her head.] I was actually getting ready to fight before I showed up in that well. Thankfully, I haven't had to use them often since arriving here. Especially since I don't know how I would replace the ammo.

[The bow, on the other hand, she shrugs after looking at it.] The bow was just in my house one day. I'm pretty sure it was a reward for completing a quest

[apocalypticist]

I know how ammunition is made. The problem is finding a sufficient amount of raw material and adapting modern weaponry to use a different propellant, bullet and casing. Modern weaponry doesn't use gunpowder, which is corrosive and would damage the weapon over time.

[ Look at him, what a fucking nerd. ]

Casting lead bullets would be the easiest part, I think, if you took a bullet out of an unfired round to make a mold.

[keeneye]

[Whoa! Emma listens with rapt attention.]

I never considered that! The engineering stuff was always Ray's forte... But I can't rely on him anymore. Ah- [She reaches over and grabs the unique pistol from the table. It has four barrels that are configuration to shoot different types of ammunition. Sorry about steampunk future tech.]

Would it be possible to figure out how to make more of these bullets too? They're pretty strange. It can shoot a smoke screen, concussion shots, netting, and some sort of sticky substance. It's useful for controlling situations but I ran out of them pretty fast- before I even arrived here.

[Mostly because she was figuring out how to use a gun through trial and error with the thing. It's kind of embarrassing to admit that though.]