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 Posted: Fri Sep 25, 2009 1:16 am
A vast underground training field, nearly empty, resembling a waste. A single tree growing stubbornly in the middle of it, all skewered and hardly green. Althought that cannot be seen, the walls and the high ceiling are made of rough materials strengthen with spiritual particles in such way to be able to contain vast amounts of energy, while not allowing any of it to pour out. Safety comes first here, but this time not the safety of the trainee, but of others. Experimenting with energy can be fairly unpredictable.
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Posted: Fri Sep 25, 2009 1:30 am
(1/75)
Kaede Yui entered the hidden underground training place, with her zanpakuto strapped horizontally on her back for this occasion. It wasn't absolutely neccessary for the kind of experimenting she came her to execute; but an advice from her zanpakuto spirit would be more than welcome when dealing with such a powerful and upredictable force. She intended to explore the nature of reiryoku, spiritual energy, the potential that every shinigami posesses. Years of experience have taught her that the energy current was unpredictable in its flow, and moody in its temper; and by far not prone to be dissected.
She approached the lone tree, and sat down near the stubborn plant. Strangely, however, due to the fact that no source of light could be seen, the mingled branches of the treetop were casting a gloomy shadow over her. Crossing her legs in a comfortable position, she listened to the silence lying heavily on the wasteland surroundings. Her mind cleared, her senses listened to the beat of earth beneath her; she meditated, calming herself, collecting and clearing her thoughts, unifying her soul.
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Posted: Fri Sep 25, 2009 2:03 am
(2/75)
Kaede's right hand reached back for the zanpakuto strapped on her back, and unsheathed it in a ellegant swing, holding it horizontally with her outstreched arm. Keeping her eyes shut, she bended her arm, and laid the wakizashi gently in her lap, the silvery blade glowing between the folds of the fine cloth of her dress. Her fingers curled themselves loosely around the elaborately curved onyk hilt, and the entire zanpakuto seemed to glow with an eerie unearthy gleam when she whispered. "Heru-ur, your advice is needed."
Calling the spirit to share his wisdom was - not surprising due to his nature - the only way to extract him in his pshysical form. He would not demonstrate himself unless the wielder would admit that his own intellect is not sufficient, and that he needs an advice from the wise falcon.
Slowly, Kaede opened her eyes to greet the mighty spirit. She reached with her left hand in one of the many pockets of her deep-blue clothing, and retrieved a falconeer glove. Not that anyone knew exactly how she managed to stash that away in her pocket without having a strange projection at its place; but actually, she had it with her at almost all times, as she never knew when it would be needed. Every time that she summoned Heru-ur, she offered him to rest on her gloved hand dignifiedly, so that he would not tire himself hovering in air above her.
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Posted: Fri Sep 25, 2009 2:31 am
(3/75)
A strand of royal blue bursted from the end of the zanpakuto, and lifted high up in air, forming gradually while swirling within like a stirred liquid. Eventually, it took the form of a magnificent falcon with bright eyes, the right one shining with a strong yellow glow, resembling the sun, and the left one glowing with a faint silvery white gleam, the minimised duplicate of the moon. The falcon flapped his wings, stirring a wind that whipped up a dustcloud from the ground.
Heru-ur waited for Kaede to put the falconeer glove on her left hand. Despite the dustcloud he created with his strong feathered wings, he could still see her quite clearly with his unmatched sight. More gracefully than one might attribute him, he perched on Kaede's gloved hand, and waited for the wind to calm and the dust to lie down. Then, he turned towards her, and gazed at her piercingly with his bright glowing eyes. He spoke, his voice deep and ancient, as indeed coming far from the long forgotten history. "Thou hast called upon me. Where doth the problem lie, my child?"
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Posted: Fri Sep 25, 2009 2:35 am
(4/75)
Kaede looked up to meet Heru-ur's gaze, and hardly managed to restrain herself from rolling her yes annoyedly at his words. "Heru-ur, cut the show. This is no joke. I have serious matters to discuss with you." Her face was stern, and lit up from inside by a warm light of eager anticipation; however, he voice remained a cold contrast, calm and serious as ever. She didn't came to play games and word puzzles with the falcon; she needed his opinion and advice on the decision she had taken to dissect the spiritual energy to its essence.
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Posted: Fri Sep 25, 2009 7:24 am
(5/75)
Heru-ur made the closest approximate to grimace of dissatisfaction and annoyance that a bird could do, and narrowed his bright eyes in contempt. But he was too curious about what matter will Kaede bring up, so he abandonded his act, and inquired about the nature of the problem, more seriously this time. His voice, however, still sounded deep and ancient as resonating from distant past, buried in the tombs of pharaohs - that, for one, was no act. He indeed was an ancient bird, gifted with the wisdom of the egyptian god Horus as well as a falcon's cunning and sight. "So, youngling, what lies upon your soul? It seems you're up to something." Even for a zanpakuto spirit, which was in its essence a part of the wielder's soul, he saw suprisingly deep into Kaede, and he was in fact the only one she trusted besides the headmaster.
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Posted: Fri Sep 25, 2009 12:03 pm
(6/75)
Kaede cleared her throat before speaking, and stroked the folds on her dress. "I was wondering... what would one discover if he could delve deep into the mysteries of the reiryoku, and dissect it to its essence... I can feel that the energy holds great potential in store for us, and we just need to discover it."
When she started to speak about exploring the essence of every shinigami, the reiryoku, her face lit up from the inside, and curiosity merged with eager anticipation was etched on her face. Although she normally restrained herself from showing any feeling or facial expressions for that matter, she now felt comfortable enough to abandon the expressionless mask. After all, Heru-ur probably knew her better than she did herself, and hiding anything from him would be futile.
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Posted: Fri Sep 25, 2009 12:15 pm
(7/75)
Heru-ur's eyes narrowed slightly. To one who was not familiar with expressions that he as a bird could produce, it would seem nothing had changed about him at all. But Kaede could sense his disapproval at meddling with energy, but could tell that the matter intrigued him greatly, and he started to imagine endless possibilities that knowing the shinigami's source of power in depth might bring.
He spoke slowly, cutting senteces in parts, emphasizing vital points made. "Dissecting energy... is rather unadvisable. I haven't heard of anyone who succeed in doing so... and survived. Reiryoku is rather... unpredictable, and can bring unpreceeded situations. Of course, this place is probably able to sustain nearly anything. The only thing that would be at risk is our existence." He paused, and fluttered with his wings a bit, settling more comforably on Kaede's outstretched arm.
"However, I must admit that the mere thought of what power might lie within sends shivers down my spine. And the vast amout of information about the nature of reiryoku that might be obtained during the process..." He sighed, as it was hard for him to admit his insatiable thirst for knowledge. "As a philosopher, I cannot turn away from anything that might broaden my knowledge." He didn't say any more, as he did not want to suggest a decision to Kaede; it was a decision she had to make herself.
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Posted: Fri Sep 25, 2009 12:37 pm
(8/75)
A play of light effects flashed over Kaede's eyes, making the appear like an ocean was swirling within. Her excitement was growing as she listened to Heru-ur explaining his view. When he had finished, she realised she will only gain arguments for and against from him; he would only help her clear out the possible scenarios, the probabilities, and would aid her as much as he could in whatever she chooses. Although he still found it hard to accept being wielded by a woman, he entrusted his being in her hands from the moment she called upon him for the first time. He had been her companion, her loyal combat camerade, her wise councelor. And now, she, the insignificant shinigami, had to decide whether she would be willing to risk their lives for knowledge.
To be honest, Kaede knew it would come down to that from the moment she though about consulting with Heru-ur, but couldn't accept that fact. How can she be the one to decide about the existence of such a magnificent being as Heru-ur? She lowered her head for a moment in silent contemplation. In a matter of ten seconds, she decided to try to gain some additional time and information, and lifted her head again, to entangle the spirit in a discussion.
She spoke a bit reluctantly, and her voice was only a shadow of the strong confident voice that normally resonated across the academy hallways. "I remembered the Ancient Greek and their theories about what the world is made of." She smiled at the thought, but the smile wasn't sincere, as more serious thoughts were crossing her mind, and Heru-ur knew it. However, they both went with the play, and she continued. "Thales claiming that everything is made from water; Anaximander with his unidentifiable, undefided substance, forged and driven by the priciple of contrats; Anaximenes with his theory of differently thick air forming all basic Elements of Nature." She chucled lightly at the mere thought how reasonable those theories sounded then, and how idiotic they sound nowadays.
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Posted: Fri Sep 25, 2009 12:51 pm
(9/75)
Heru-ur looked at her with pity, although careful enough not to show it too clearly. He was well aware of the heaviness of the burden of decision that had been bestowed upon her, but also knew that there wasn't any other way. For himself, he didn't fear; his existence was tied irreverisibly to hers, and the only thing that truly matter to him was her well-being, although he always hid it from the young woman.
Although he was a falcon and she his falconeer, a zanpakuto and she his wielder, he felt more like Kaede's father. He listened to her as she reminded him of few examples from the Ancient Greek Phylosophy, and felt proud, knowing that she was familiar with many more, a lover of philosophy and therefore, by its definition, a lover of knowledge.
Despite the fact that he knew that the debate was only a facade to hide her real concerns, the spirit gladly cooperated. Who knows, it might even ease her bane and aid her in reaching the decision. He decided to remind her of more recent theories that, at least to those who posess the knowledge of the shinigami, have proved false as well. "No matter how we regard them nowadays, their theories were accepted and considered reasonable at the time they were established; and from the amount of the information they had at the moment, those were actually sensible conclusions. But what would you say about the Atom and Quantum Theory? And the publicly accepted fact that there is no such thing as souls and afterlife? Did you ever doubted it when you were alive?"
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Posted: Mon Sep 28, 2009 1:00 pm
(10/75)
Kaede's face froze for a few moments when being remembered of the simple fact that, in the living world, she would have never doubted that "the soul" was merely a human-invented term that was created due to the human lack of understanding of the concepts of nature, and the way he himself is created. She would have never even dreamed about there being an afterlife... Not to mention the shinigami and the soul society. And idea sparkled to life in her mind, and she spoke to Heru-ur with great zeal audible in her voice. "What if our world here, in the soul society, isn't what it seems as well? Then, wouldn't everyone want to know what the truth is, had he the opportunity to discover it?"
Her eyes glowed excitedly, the deep seafoam blue with sparkles of the dark shade of the night-sky swirling within. One could literally hear the gears in her mind as she calculated and deduced, one step closer to her decision.
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Posted: Mon Sep 28, 2009 1:11 pm
(11/75)
Heru-ur sighed lightly. He felt where this conversation was going, and he wasn't sure whether he liked it. Of course, he was intrigued by the energy itself, but he wondered whether dissecting it out of interest could be justifiable. He replied slowly, carefully picking his words. "It is... possible that what we experience is not what this world in its essence is. Dissecting the reiryoku, the force that basically drives this world... it might reveal the truth, but it might shatter what we know. You and I, and any lover of the knowledge itself, would risk anything; but could that be justified in the eyes of everyone else?"
He looked straight at her, piercing all the way to the deepest hidden corners of her souls. Searching for a shadow of a doubt, he literally scanned her insides, and her seemingly iron will.
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Posted: Mon Sep 28, 2009 1:16 pm
(12/75)
Heru-ur's words gave Kaede a matter to chew on. She kept quiet for a minute or so, thinking what could be said on that matter. She didn't want to force Heru-ur into this, but if she was willing to sacrifice her own life, she had to be willing to sacrifice his as well. After all, their existance was binded, and no one could live while the other perished.
As a simple, but effective thought crossed her mind, she curved her lips in a half of a crooked smile, and asked the noble spirit. "Tell me, Heru-ur, what do you think of Kant?" She knew he would, at least partly, see through her question, and only hoped that he would answer the question honestly nonetheless.
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Posted: Mon Sep 28, 2009 1:22 pm
(13/75)
The falcon spirit stopped for a moment before answering. He knew Kaede well enough to be certain that this question was not posed without a purpose, and something big was coming. However, he couldn't risk not being honest, and neither he would ever be dishonest with Kaede because of his moral principles. That's why he answered that he believed him to had been a wise man, and that he values his work amongs the greatest of the western philosophy.
Then, he waited to see what was coming. He hoped that it was a good argumentation that would hold against anything, for he himself was too intrigued in the nature of reiryoku to be able to say no.
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Posted: Mon Sep 28, 2009 2:13 pm
(14/75)
Kaede lied down and looked at the sky, which was actually the underground training place ceiling. A faint satisfied smile was curling up her lips slighty, and the light emitting from the strangely glowing wallls adorned her face in a warm orange gleam. She spoke slowly, her voice not as cold and distand as normal, but with a somewhat warm purring undertone. "I remember the part when Kant explained about his Categorical Imperative. The one that had always impacted me the most, was the third form introduced: "Every rational being must so act as if he were through his maxim always a legislating member in the universal kingdom of ends." It's really so simple, but so amazing when put in effect."
She paused for a moment or two, tributing the silence to the great genius. Then, she carried on, slightly louder, with a hint of pride and aboslute determination in her voice. "Let us say for a moment that I want to explore the energy, even at the price of our lives. That, simplifed, means that I would be willing to sacrifice anything for widening the area of knowledge, even if the process might fail. Would I want to live in such a world where this would be a law? Where it would be one's duty to explore the confines of unknown, even at the cost of his, or other's life? With my heart, I say yes. With my reason... I say yes." Her voice rose up in a crescendo as she stated her final decision.
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