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Eloquent Conversationalist
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 Posted: Mon Jun 28, 2010 10:44 pm
Charles smiles in achievement. True, making another person sneeze is hardly a feat, but in this case he helped promote the desired result. Watching intently, he sees William shift states with careful detail. As if his book can shunpo on it's own, he is suddenly holding the charcoal gray book and drawing at a maddening pace, again limned with notations. "Impressive . . . . most impressive . . ." In far less time than most could consider, he has a full drawing of the feline form complete with accurate depictions of fur patterns, minor markings, color uniformity, and other quirks- not the least of which includes retaining speech.
Charles is tempted to unsheath his blade and perform a shikai for comparison, but knows better. Typically that change involves glowing and a loss of detail until the change is complete. In this case, the morphing required no such overt glow. The transition was smooth . . . or as smooth as going from hominid to feline could be. Now there seems to be some sort of side effects, and that is expected. Disorientation, nausea, confusion- all are understandable given the radical shift of the body. "I wonder if your reiatsu has changed composition as well- or what form your zanpaktou will take assuming your lack of hands . . ." His musings are soft, but not muffled. Charles is in his analytical mode, noting everything he can, and wondering aloud. Thankfully this time his musings are not tactless, or dangerous. More than once his curiosity and choices have led to rather controversial ends.
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Posted: Tue Jun 29, 2010 2:21 pm
William listened while his mind continued to ache slightly and his stomach continued to churn. He had excellent control over his own active bodily functions, but now he wasn't so sure. "I-I donno Takena. I just feel horrible from the overwhelming amount of information that is assaulting my mind right now. All my senses are being overloaded all at once. Maybe it'll just take some time for me to get--used to this."
He closed his eyes and attempted to shut out the world for a little bit. The effort had helped a little, but he knew it wouldn't last for too long. "I don't exactly know what you mean by reiatsu, but I don't feel much different on the inside now. If by zanpakuto you mean the swords that had been on my arms, I can still feel them right where they were, but they just don't look like they're there. Mnhh," he groaned while expertly putting one of his paws over his eyes to completely block out the light.
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Eloquent Conversationalist
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Posted: Wed Jun 30, 2010 8:43 am
He watches cautiously as the newly feline compatriot deals with the conditions of his new form. Animal senses tend to be sharper than human, so the information overload is not unexpected. In fact, Charles feels a faint twinge of jealousy for that intense awareness. Nevertheless, he is facinated by the change and effects. Again, he wonders if the secrets of this form were unlocked, could he replicate it? So many questions to that possibility . . . assuming it even is a possibility. But his face contorts in exasperation as William continues, listening to admissions that should not be.
"How do you graduate the Academy, and subsequent classes in Kido without knowing what reiatsu is?! Basic terminology, William! Now, as for your blades, I don't see them . . . perhaps the incorporated into your arms as the claws? A bit 'comic book' for me, but perhaps that would explain natural weaponry." Charles squats down in the grass to take a closer look, careful not to approach or grow complacent. With a massive shift in form, a likely mental shift occurred as well. That combined with his chiding might make himself less of a companion and more of a target to a 'wild animal.' Caution is definitely called for- despite his urge to bring the cat back to the lab and study the reiatsu structure in exquisite detail . . .
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Posted: Wed Jun 30, 2010 3:14 pm
Slowly, the feeling of nausea was subsiding; however, his senses were still playing with his mind. He was able to remove his paw from his eyes and even open them, but he did not dare move more than that for fear of overdoing it. Instead he stayed still and attempted to make sense of what he was hearing, smelling, seeing, and feeling. Like little radar dishes, his ears twitched and turned at every minute noise, and he could hear every single subtlety in Takena's voice. His paws and body for that matter were telling him that something far off was moving at a steady pace, "Perhaps a motor of some sort?" He dismissed the thought and continued to bring his senses under control. Bugs all around him caught his attention, and without moving his head he followed them, noticing the impossible detail on them compared to his human eyesight. Even his smell had drastically change, allowing him to smell hundreds of different things all at once, most of which he had never smelled before. One or two of such smells came from Takena, but he did not know what it meant.
With a sigh, he patiently awaited the end of his new bodies torture. At Takena's questioning, William simply said, "Must be the disorientation still that's affecting my ability to recall such simple things," he easily lied. He seriously doubted that Takena had ever heard a feline lie, so he didn't think that it would be possible for the scientist to pick up on the half-truth. "As for the weapons, like I said; they feel like they'rrre there, but we can't see them. They wouldn't cut anything anyway because I couldn't take them out of their scabbarrrds." His senses were beginning to clear, and his mind started to adjust to them. He would try moving in a minute or five, once he was ready to go mentally.
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Eloquent Conversationalist
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Posted: Thu Jul 01, 2010 10:00 pm
Charles sighs softly and closes his book. It seems that William has his answer- that this is a naturally controlling metamorphosis. He knows the trigger, and should be able to do this as he wishes. With the option of intensive experimentation too far-fetched to entertain, and the primary goal of the experiment reached, Charles wonders what is left. Unfortunately, he is becoming bored. With little remaining to explore at the moment, he puts the book away and begins to walk off. "If there is nothing else . . . "
(( sorry, I didn't know where to go from here. ))
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Posted: Fri Jul 02, 2010 7:20 am
William looked up at Takena after slowly moving to his feet. "Thanks doc, I think I'm healed..." he said with a small chuckle. He was about to walk off when he realized something very important, "Um, there is...one morrre problem. How exactly do I trigger the reflex to sneeze? There must be some way to train myself to sneeze on command; something similar to muscle memory. I remember reading in an article back in the Real World that you could train yourself to automatically induce a bodily reaction to something. Becoming nauseous at the mere thought of fish or possibly even sneezing at the thought of pepper. Is it possible to train such bodily reflexes? And if so, how would I go about doing that?" He slowly set one foot in front of the other, finding that he had to alternate his back legs and front legs while he did so. The process was slow, but he was quickly learning how to walk in his new form.
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Eloquent Conversationalist
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Posted: Sat Jul 03, 2010 9:40 pm
He smiles again, despite not facing the feline, at the title of "doc." Despite not having any form of doctorate, being called that makes his spirit rise just a tad. Almost like a recognition of his intelligence. As he walks out of the area, William begins to prattle on about controlling sneezes, and controlled reflexes. With a sigh, he stops and looks over his shoulder. "I work with energy and technology. Learning the intricacies of the body is not my forte. At best, I could study you- and in worst case dissect you. Naturally, I would prefer a living subject." He is playing the opposite card here. Before he was kind and understanding. Now, without any real hope of further study or even a chance to field-test his weaponry, this exercise no longer has any value.
"Squad four is more into bodily functions . . . At best I might develop some sort of limiter switch. Doing so would take significant time, though."
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Posted: Sun Jul 04, 2010 7:35 am
William frowned at the bad news. "I see," he said in contemplation. "I don't want him to experiment on me, and it doesn't seem like he'll be able to help me any further. Perhaps I'll follow his suggestion to go to Fourth Squad." He straightened up so that his head stuck up above the tall grass, "Well, thank you for helping me to find the trigger anyway. Perhaps when I am stronger I can help you with your weapons in return. Provided that they aren't lethal that is, heh." He paused before it dawned on him that he didn't know where to go, "Um, Takena, could you point me in the direction of Fourth Squad? I've never had to go there before, so I'm sort of at a loss of general direction."
((After Takena answers.))
"Thanks! I'll see you around then," he said while turning to go in the direction he was to go in. The tall grass limited his vision severely, but once he was out, he could see relatively well. He trotted on in his leopard form, unable to change back without sneezing and unable to grab onto something that might cause him to sneeze.
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Eloquent Conversationalist
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Posted: Sun Jul 04, 2010 4:10 pm
Still looking over his shoulder, he eyes the feline with something bothering him. His sword. Where did the weapon go in that transformation? If the shift was caused by a natural mutation of the body and spirit, then something as abstract and representative of the soul would be left behind. Still, evidently the weapon was 'felt' but not un . . . sheathed . . . Charles' jaw drops a little and widens his eyes as a revelation hits. Transformations were not unheard of for Bankai level, and occaisionally even the shikai level makes changes. What if this is- yes! That could explain a bit!
Charles stops his walk and widens his stance. With a single eye on the feline, he again grips his blade handle. "Unleash your blade." The command is not a request in tone or words, and a stern determination comes across his face as he slowly turns to face the cat. Before he said it was still sheathed, and he also said that the transformation trigger was revealed by the quick jaunt into a mental world. He claimed over and over that he didn't know 'reiatsu.' Is this his first foray into the release of his sword? If he complies with the command, then that might make this interesting.
If he fails, then this will become even more interesting . . .
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Posted: Mon Jul 05, 2010 2:33 pm
William had already been attempting to design some sort of mechanical device that let pepper out when it was removed, when suddenly Takena demanded that he 'unleash his sword.' With some difficulty, he turned around to face him again. "Unleash....my swords? What exactly do you mean? As far as I know, my swords can't come out of their scabbards, so there won't be any 'unleashing' or whatever you want to call it." His mind began to slip away to his new senses, for he was truly confused by what he smelled. "Leave, stay, unleash a sword that cannot even be taken out of its scabbard.....this guy really makes demands." He snapped back to reality when he saw Takena reach behind his back once again. "Takena, despite my love for the sport, please no more fighting for now. I've got to heal and recover from the concussion you gave me."
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Eloquent Conversationalist
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Posted: Mon Jul 05, 2010 11:30 pm
The smile on his face grows darker and more devious. "My swords can't come out of their scabbards" The theory gains a bit of credence with that comment, showing that this cat doesn't know how to release Shikai yet. Slowly, he draws his blade to manually avoid his iaijutsu booster. The long blade, complete with a chain motif etching gleams in the light as he pulls it out with his right hand. Turning to face William, he stares hard, memorizing this moment, and takes a more aggressive stance. With his right arm coiled behind him, the blade still facing down his forearm with the sharpened edge away from his body, Charles keeps his left out front to show his hand is empty of any new toys.
"You misunderstand me, kitty. I didn't ask you to unsheath them, I ordered you as a superior officer to unleash them." Spelling out the details of his order, and his right to give one, Charles intently watches to study William's response. From the basic understanding of zanpaktou physics- such as it is, the weapon is not affected by alterations to the body beyond death. The shift in William's form appears to have absorbed his weapons . . . but they still exist. He feels them. Therefore, his form combined with information about the spirit within and his sensation of blades leads to a conclusion that this is not full Shikai, but the first step in the process. A human need not be an expert driver to push a gas pedal and steer. A shimigami may not need to understand Shikai to tap into it in some instinctual way. Charles muses to himself: instinctual. A good pun, if I do admit myself!
He is ready to unleash his own Shikai, bit first he has to see William's next move. He is whining about a concussion, but real combat won't stop for a pat on the head. Also there is that tricky little number about how spirit energy spikes much faster when the dangers at least seem real. With his attitude and mentioning of dissection, even Charles has to admit he seems scary enough to kill for the love of his vaunted scientific research. Such is the way of "monsters."
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Posted: Tue Jul 06, 2010 5:54 am
William was quickly beginning to find his new form somewhat annoying, so he went up to the edge of the grass to try and make one of the blades tickle his nose. "Stupid transformation sneezing....." he thought while he attempted to put the blade into his extended nose. He moved the blade back and forth while his tail moved in irritation. "You have no idea how annoying this feels." His head moved everywhere while he tried to get his nose to the grass. Takena's response was somewhat of a surprise. "Did he not hear me or something? But then again, he insisted that he unleash his swords and not draw them." He growled with some annoyance, "I can't......I don't know how to unleash my swords. If this is something to do with a higher level of power, then I don't know how to reach it." His paws twisted and turned, claws coming out to finely correct the movements of the grass.
After a few seconds the blade of grass finally entered his nose. "Finally! Ah....ahchoo!" He stood up dusting himself off. His eyes fell upon the sword that had been draw and placed in an aggressive stance. "If there's some sort of trick or phrase that needs to be said, then I don't know it." His swords slowly slid into place from their locked position next to his fists as if they knew what was coming. "Fight him," a voice spoke inside his head while a spark jumped up his arm along his right sword. "Who's there?" he asked with some confusion after looking around.
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Eloquent Conversationalist
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Posted: Tue Jul 06, 2010 11:00 am
For several moments, Charles considers attacking while William is still in his cat mode. That might prove an interesting lesson in being prepared for any situation- but no. Best not to push his luck any further. This situation is carefully controlled and orchestrated. He has to be cautious. Charles is intimately aware that his sword is made for more defensive moves than offensive. Striking puts him at a disadvantage- and he has no familiarity with feline combat either, so nothing would be gained by striking before the transformation. On the other hand, his theory is now proven as William grumbles about not knowing how to release his swords. I wonder if he even knows the name yet?
Then, after the transformation, William continues to grouse- until he jumps and talks to somebody not there. A spark of recognition ignites in Charles' mind as he recalls being met by his spirit in the lab after an experiment. Determined to press the intellectual advantage, his voice softens just a bit from a command to a statement. "Look at me . . . carefully." Pulling his sword out in front of him, he grasps the handle with both hands. Thumbs together, and blade reaching to his right, his stance does not change.
"Keiyo- Aitourensa." As he speaks, the blade and handle glow silver and the blade itself begins to shorten. Pulling his hands apart without loosening the grip, the mass of light pulls with his hands and droops in the middle like taffy pulled too far. A mass forms just beyond his left hand and slowly falls a short bit held by a tether, and his right hand also grows a mass, but it curves out over his fingers to a point. When the glow subsides seconds after beginning, he no longer holds an oriental blade. Instead he holds a small sickle-like blade in his right hand called a 'kama' and a octagonal weight hangs from his left, replete with eight short blades all pointed down like a spider ready to clutch at something below. The pair of weapons are connected by a long length of dull-gray chain making the ksurigama that is Charles' shikai.
"This is a release. First release to be technical." Charles decides not to give any further details, nothing about the boost to speed, strength, or reiatsu as he and his partner now are more closely working. In his mind, he hears the voice of Aitourensa speaking with deviously smooth and supple voice. Toying with one already in our web? The being rarely speaks, but the tone of voice tells Charles that this manipulation, this 'toying' with William pleases him. Charles doesn't respond vocally, just a barely perceptable nod as he begins to lazily swing the weighted end of the chain. A circle four feet across begins to appear at his left as he spins the weight faster and faster. Certainly if William was concerned before, this should get his attention! Despite himself, Charles smirks deviously and has to fight to suppress a devilish laugh.
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Posted: Tue Jul 06, 2010 1:47 pm
((To clarify before hand: Dark red is William's Zanpakuto talking to him. Dark Blue and italics are his thoughts while dark blue and bold are what he says. Not to insult you or anything; believe me, I know you likely figured it out because you did something very similar in your last post. It's just that some people really get confused when I start using different colors/writing styles. I've even gotten a few really random PM's telling me that I fudged up their reading experience by doing so.))
“It’s me,” the voice in his head told him before he engaged in a mental conversation. “Who exactly is me?” There was a small pause before the response came. “I am you,” the voice answered before laughing at his confusion. He felt the distinct feeling of fun in his mind, but it was not he that was having fun. “What, are you a split personality or something?” The female voice in his head couldn’t help but giggle, “No silly! I am your Zanpakuto, essentially your weapon. I am a part of you. How about a Halo reference to clear it up. Ahem….I am your sword, I am your shield. Lame, but I think it'll translate what I mean to your thick skull.” He was still very confused before his mind began to put two and two together, “You’re these swords?” He felt a confirmation in his mind before he said, “That’s, that’s imposs—,” “No, no, mister ignorant Stark,” said the voice in his mind to interrupt his incorrect thinking pattern, “Nothing is impossible now that you’re dead. I am a part of you, and you are a part of me. My physical representations in your world are the swords on your arms that are for paw-to-paw fighting.”
William was at a loss for words, for he had a hard time getting over having a second part of him able to talk back. He thought he recognized the voice though, “Are….are you the thing, the leopard I saw in my dreams?” She laughed yet again, “Yes, but those two times were technically not dreams at all. They were short jaunts into my world….your inner world if you’d like. In any case it is where I exist and run around. I can take you there any time I want to, or you can come in. I’ll get to you eventually.” There was a pause in her words before she said, “Anyway, that guy over there, Takena I think was his name. He wants you to see something, oh wait! He’s gonna show you what he meant by unleashing me. And you’d better pay attention! I want out soon.”
William’s attention turned back to Takena at the word ‘carefully.’ What he witnessed astonished him. The blade, the entire blade changed before his eyes. “Physically changed….how is that….” “YOU’RE DEAD STUPID!” his Zanpakuto shouted into his mind at his forgetfulness. He felt an ever so slight pressure hit his shoulders and chest for a second before it was removed, but he could not explain it. “First release?” he asked Takena with curiosity, “There are more I assume; not that it wasn’t amazing enough to watch a ‘simple’ weapon turn into two task-specified weapons.” “And if you’d release me, I could show you the same! Well, not like that but still a change,” his Zanpakuto told him with annoyance. William’s eyes kept up with and watched every revolution of the swinging weighted weapon. Like before, he could watch every move as if it were at a slower speed; his body simply couldn’t keep up with them if he had to dodge. “So how exactly do you release your sword—Zanpakuto? Was Keiyo- Aitourensa the name or release phrase?”
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Eloquent Conversationalist
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Posted: Tue Jul 06, 2010 5:42 pm
(( I understand, and have no difficulty reading all that. You do have a lot of dialogue there, so I can see how others would have trouble. Either way, no problems here. To clarify, larger text is spoken aloud, italics are mental thoughts/conversations, and the silver text is my weapon. ))
The weighted end of his chain now is spinning so fast as to be a circular blur. Charles' smile remains devious and superior. In truth, his skill with the weapon is largely due to the weapon itself helping him learn. A fact he is not quick to forget- for if William does what Charles wants to provoke, things will become much more . . . hazardous. The one thing he readily admits is that both are predatory. His spirit is a spider- cunning and powerful. William appears to have a feline spirit, one known for agility and strength. In a straight fight, no clear advantage is evident. This is a 'tangled web' where such could go wrong, fast. Still, despite his intellectual nature the power is intoxicating and fun. Perhaps that is because of the display? Keiyo translates to either display or fly from Japanese, lending to the situation as much as the manipulation. Perhaps that above all else is what pleases Aitourensa . . . manipulation through showing off.
"Basic zanpaktou theory. Most have an ability unique to that weapon. All have a name, and learning it helps to call forth releases. The swords we use have a sealed state, a first release called shikai, and a full release called bankai. Method of release for shikai varies as wildly as the name of swords. This . . . " holding up his kama while still spinning the weight without any real thought " . . . is Aitourensa. He is my partner, my 'friend,' and the only person I truly trust above all others. He gave me the knowledge to do this. We trust each other. I ask him to join me, and so call on him to display." Charles' voice softened during his speech, approaching the closest he has ever uttered since becoming a resident of the Soul Society to adoration or even love.
With great care he slows the weight to a speed he can release and deftly catch. His left hand now holding the chain right above the heavy weight, his right hand has the slack to let the kama fall two feet from his hand with the chain in his grasp. Far slower than he weight, Charles begins to swing the blade with the ease of one that might have done this for centuries. Without warning or another word, he begins a dance in place, the chain flowing around him like a gentle breeze. After a second of gyrations, Charles calls out his next move. "Gattai-kyuuten!!!" In a seemingly random pattern, he fires a set of strands through the air at William. Each about four feet in length, and as thick as his forearm. The combat dance, the 'kata' he performs is a combat style to maximize defense and offer opportunities for counters.
Each strand is aimed at either where William is, or where he might dodge to. Eight strands in total fly through the air with great speed. Two at him, one to either side, another two diagonally upwards on each side, and a couple just above him. Unfamiliar with William's battle style beyond that jab from earlier, this is the best way to score a hit. Beyond the impact similar to a punch, these strands only are highly adhesive. Spiderwebs made of reiatsu . . . and pound for pound, spiderwebbing is stronger than steel. Formed of spirit energy, these strands might as well be a part of Charles launched away. Once all eight are away, he stops his dance to watch each and see just how William deals with an attack he has nearly no way to dodge . . . or if he figures out the only way to get away.
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