The Two Paths [Murasaki, Erika]

Murasaki’s eyes admittedly lit up just the faintest bit at the notion that they might spend a longer time down there, even if the rest of her expression gave nothing away. She was plenty composed, certainly, but she’d also admit that her guard was a bit lowered when she was dealing with Erika.

“Right, sounds good to me. I’ll pack for that then.”

And off she went, quite familiar with everything necessary for a few days out in the plains. A yurt, some stuff for a campfire, food, couldn’t forget all the comfy stuff and the pajamas…ah, she didn’t even have any kumis to bring, that was disappointing, wasn’t it? Ah well. She was plenty quick about packing, and before long she was already at the senkaimon, everything ready for a few days down on Earth.

Parting ways for a bit, it took Erika a little longer than she had planned. First she had to find her subordinate which given that he was not in his office was an annoyance. Thankfully he was not too hard to find with her reikaku, find and then explain the situation in the typical Erika fashion. She could tell that he was fishing for details as to why the vice-captain and the captain had to depart to Earth but the man had dealt with her enough to know that if she said something was happening then there was a reason for it.

As far as packing, she took nothing with her. Murasaki would probably account for what they would need and Erika had spent a long time wandering with nothing but her own immediate possessions to make do and eventually she met up with the captain at the senkaimon.

"Ready."

She wasn't one to bother wasting time with chit-chat, she was already walking and heading towards Mongolia.

Even if Erika wasn't the sort to chit-chat as they went, that didn't change that Murasaki was, and her expression gave away just how excited she was as she practically bounded through the senkaimon, and onto the familiar plains of Mongolia.

"God, it's been so long! I know you've come through here, Erika, but when was the last time you did? Not that it really changes too much, but still, I always feel like I'm missing out when I'm somewhere else."

Of course, that had subsided a good deal in the past few years, but this grassy steppe was still the place she felt most at home. It was, after all, the very same place reflected in her own shikokai, that inner world made manifest. It was the closest one could ever be to simply seeing what Murasaki's soul was like.

"Nobody'll bother us a little further south. There's more hills and stuff that'll keep us from being right out in the open."

It's just grass. Lots of grass. Was Erika's thought in response to Murasaki's elation at being back on Earth, she didn't really have much of an attachment to all of this. No matter where she was it was all the same at the end of the day for her. It was either where she needed to be or the path she was creating to that point. Not much else to it.

"A while ago. I don't really keep track of where I've gone."

Only where she's going. Her past was just a lot of pain and since she couldn't get rid of it she'd just keep looking forward and walking until she turned back and the distance between those painful memories and her was too great.

"Sounds good. Let's go then."

She was ready to shunpo but paused, entirely prepared for Murasaki to opt to walk the way there on foot rather than skip straight to the training.

Murasaki's own expression fell just a touch, admittedly not having really thought about Erika's own worldview. They were friends, and she really ought to have thought about that, but she'd been so caught up in the excitement of being back that she hadn't considered that Erika didn't tend to look backward.

"Sounds good to me. Shouldn't take more than a couple steps!"

She would, indeed, have enjoyed nothing more than a leisurely walk through the plains, but that wasn't what they were here for. Like it or not, Murasaki knew that this was a trip for training, not just for fun, and she took off with a single flash step, her own natural speed only making it that much quicker. She didn't go so fast Erika would lose her, of course, but she was clearly not planning to watch the scenery.

As soon as Murasaki took off, Erika followed. As short as the trip would go she did keep her senses sharp and to the point, if her attention hadn't been brought to the topic of the last time she'd been to Mongolia she'd have continued as normal but trying to find that specific amount of time led through tangents and detours of other less favourable memories. Ones which once made her happy which only now made her feel nauseous and sick.

I don't care. She repeated it in her head like a mantra until it had achieved what she'd wanted. If she let herself upset or angered by it then it meant that woman still meant something to her. Those feelings could become indifference though and it wouldn't matter either way.

Her attention being internalised though made her realise she had almost taken an extra step when Murasaki came to a halt. How embarrassing but she didn't give Murasaki a chance to mention it.

"This spot will do."

Murasaki was definitely not so inept that she'd miss that Erika had nearly kept going, but she also definitely wasn't the sort to say a thing about it, even if Erika had been totally silent. She didn't like to pry, and she knew she'd probably pushed a little too much on the friendly side of things. It'd been a while since she and Erika got to hang out, even before she asked her to come back as vice captain. It took some time to remember how to deal with her right.

"Right here? Okidoke, that works great for me."

Stretching out a bit, Murasaki maintained her cheery demeanor, looking to Erika with confidence and a clear eagerness to learn. Kido hadn't ever been something she cared to know, but she wasn't going to be an incompetent captain commander. Besides, she could remember what her mom did with her kido. That part didn't sound so bad.

"What's the plan?"

What now? Well that was easy, Erika looked off to the side and in the general distance. The short blonde's hand came up and aimed a little bit towards the sky as she closed her eyes in preparation.

"Ye lord. Mask of blood and flesh, all creation, flutter of wings, ye who bears the name of Man. Inferno and pandemonium, the sea barrier surges, march on to the south. Hadō 31: Shakkahō"

Forming in her palm and launching, the large blaze of red fire flew into the sky before exploding harmlessly and having small embers rain down to dissipate before they hit the ground. The vice-captain took a seat and rested the asauchi next to her.

"Now you repeat that over and over until you have got it, then I'm going to make you repeat it for Ōkasen and then Sōkatsui. Then some basic Bakudō to make sure you are able to remember the shape and incantations of the kidō spells... and we'll do that all day if we have to."

"Okidoke, I'll get to it!"

Murasaki raised her own hand, steadying it with the other to ensure she had proper form. Honestly, she probably didn't need to do that, but she really wanted to make sure she got this right. Taking a deep breath, she then spoke confidently, focusing on the energy of the spell as she formed it.

"Ye lord. Mask of blood and flesh, all creation, flutter of wings, ye who bears the name of Man. Inferno and pandemonium, the sea barrier surges, march on to the south. Hadō 31: Shakkahō!"

The spell shot out of her hand a bit more intensely than even she had expected, and Murasaki was actually rather glad she'd been steadying her form. She really hadn't done this in a while, huh? Oh well, nothing to do but keep at it! Taking a deep breath to recenter and refocus, she rolled her shoulders, then once more took up her proper form.

"Ye lord. Mask of blood and flesh, all creation, flutter of wings, ye who bears the name of Man. Inferno and pandemonium, the sea barrier surges, march on to the south. Hadō 31: Shakkahō!"

Better this time, and she was actually ready for it when the spell formed. She'd be here all day if she had to be. This was a basic spell, after all.

Erika remained close off to the side while watching through closed eyes. It was easier to visualise the shape and creation of the kido spell when she wasn't trying to process all the visual details from her eyes. Her heart able to reach out and analyse the formation and execution.

"Stop. Now Ōkasen, omit the incantation."

Realistically she should've had Murasaki practice the Shakkaho without the incantation before she gave such a tall order but she wasn't trying to teach a beginner here. She was just trying to refresh Murasaki's knowledge. The overall process to the three Hadō she had chosen were all similar and with dynamic twists which gave them slight changes to the creation.