Twilight of the Gods

"How dare you," Hector growled at the cat as it landed a scratch on his face, which then disappeared. He tossed the cat away. "I know nothing more than any of you, but I think we could try capturing somebody and making them tell us where Tsukishima is. Of course, that is assuming he told any of them."

S"Don't mess with my cats."

*Aroma pets a kitty.*

S"They're not going to know, & worst case scenario, he'll be there. They think he's their friend now."

Ginjo<That's it.>

*Senthose looks at him like, "What, bitch?"*

Ginjo<When I fought Giriko--or, as you claim, Tsukishima claiming to be Giriko--he turned his bookmark into a sword, & was very earnest to hit us with it in our center body mass. Going by the bookmark motif, he likely inserts himself into the "hearts" and "pasts" of his victims. As a friend, a lover, a relative...anything to make it so it's not a question of trust.>

S"That's great, but how does it help me shove a sword through his forehead?"

*Ginjo shrugs.*

Ginjo<Right now, we simply do not have enough information to fight back. If he's now taken over Xcution, as well as Las Noches, & even some of the Soul Society personnel, he has literally hundreds of places where he could hide.>

"If it is no longer a matter of 'manipulation' or 'altering', and he is literally inserted into their past," Hector seemed suddenly serious. "...Does that mean there is no way of reversal? It would be damned inconvenient to have to kill all of his victims."

"If you even think about killing Euryale, or Lilith I will end your life," Noct said, "I promise you that."

Mortal raised her hands, "Everyone calm down, no one is killing anyone. Except for Tsukishima, it seems." She looked at Ginjo, "I agree that we're going to have a hard time finding him, but we can't just sit on our thumbs here. We need to do something, else we risk him finding us while we're petting cats."

Noct looked incredibly concerned, "Oh my god, Lulu!"

"You shouldn't have to worry about her," Atae said. "If everything else is the same for Euryale, then she'll still remember to feed the cat. To her, the only thing out of the ordinary is you."

*Aera sits down next to Iris near the mouth of their cavern.*

Aera: <Okay, listen here. If you so much as smirk, I'm hitting you. I tried making us human food. I'm going to be honest here, it's likely to kill you. And yes, you still have to try it.>

"I did not mean to upset you... Noctis," Hector said soothingly, waving off Eduj as he tried to put himself between them. "I was simply voicing my concerns of one more possibility, as undesirable as it may be."
He looked at Mortal, "Agreed. Japan is not a large country, and any kind of sustained search by those with powerful senses would reveal us quickly."

S"Not going to happen. The surrounding forest is so full of old Hollows that it would mask almost any amount of spirit pressure. The only other thing I allow this far in is stray cats."

*Ginjo looks a bit shocked once the discussion quite frankly turns to gang-murdering Tsukishima.*

Ginjo<...They should return to normal once Tsukishima is dead. But how do you think they will feel about us trying to kill Tsukishima? If we're lucky, they'll only think we're insane.>
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*Lilith walks into the throne room & waves a greeting at Astarte.*

"Guess what? An old friend dropped by to visit."

*Tsukishima walks in from behind her, smiling.*

Tsukishima<Thank you, Lily. I couldn't have gotten better without your expert care.>

*Lilith blushes.*

"Oh, stop...it was no big deal, really."

*He turns to Astarte.*

Tsukishima<My, how you've grown. Congratulations on becoming Queen.>

"Thank you very much," Astarte also blushed slightly and cracked a smile. "Though I do not really fit this kind of role, I shall do my best... Is there something I can do for you, Shukuro?"

"I am really quite unsure of how we should act," Hector said as though he was still thinking intently. "But... I don't know. Would it be possible to lure Tsukishima to us and kill him then?"

Noct shrugged her shoulders, "Does it really matter? If they'll turn back to normal once he is dead, they won't care once we kill him. They'll only be upset while we're killing him, and I don't expect that to last too long."

Ginjo<You say that now, but you might feel differently when you see the look on your beloved's face. Right now, she's probably terrified for you, & misses you greatly.>

*He scratches the back of his head.*

Ginjo<I don't mean to make you guilty. But this isn't a situation we can just cut the head off of. We should expect our friends to defend Tsukishima with their lives.>

S"If we're out of clues, then our only solution is to retrace where Tsukishima has been, looking for more. Las Noches is obviously out of the question."
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<I need to borrow quite a few helping hands. Plus, we should probably expand Las Noches.>

"Any of the Hollows within this palace shall aid you on request, Daisy as well... Though I do require her to stay within Las Noches," Astarte said. "What kind of expansions did you have in mind?"

"You mentioned a mansion in your plans to deal with him, earlier," Hector said. "I have not seen this mansion before, but would it be a good idea to try that place?"

Noct folded her arms, not wanting to imagine the look on Euryale's face. Mostly it was because she didn't want to imagine what a horrified and distraught Euryale looked like, but also a bit because Euryale being sad about Noct killing Tsuki made Noct sad too. She hated the idea of Euryale being against her.

Mortal nodded at Hector's suggestion, "Yea, but weren't you already there looking for clues though, Senthose?"

S"No, you can't get there by Garganta anymore. So he might be there, or he might not. And I don't like the idea of waltzing right into enemy territory."
=========================================
<There are many Hollow colonies that still do not enjoy the benefits of Las Noches. I thought you could...take them under your wing, so to speak.>

L"You're not staying?"

<I'm afraid I can't. You remember my Zanpakuto's power, right?>

L"I'm not sure...I think it's a healing sword, isn't it?"

<Yes. With it, I believe I can cure the psychosis that's been afflicting our poor friends. But I have to find them, first. Don't worry, I'll call you guys to help later on.>

OOC: That is actually a good idea for Atae... Why the fuck didn't I think of that?!

"Well, what options do we have? Odds are the fullbringers are at Xcution's hideout, so we can't just waltz in there," Noct said.

Iris: <Well, if you insist, dear. What did you make?>

"Of course, I shall do that," Astarte agreed with Tsukishima's suggestion. On mention of curing Mortal and the others, Astarte looked slightly hopeful. "Please do help them, I am not suited for this title and it would be terrible to have them as our enemies any longer."

"Everywhere I can remember that the human has been to or could be is now enemy territory," Hector sighed. "Unless somebody else knows of a place, staying out of enemy territory seems impossible."

Tsukishima<I will do my utmost.>

*Daisy emerges from the shadows.*

Daisy<I believe I have rounded up all of the Hollows still under Rasheverek. Should I simply kill them?>

Tsukishima<You know, I think I might be able to help.>
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Ginjo<It is possible that Tsukishima was actually in the park, & that is where he turned Riruka.>

"Bring them to us, Daisy," Astarte ordered before turning back to Tsukishima. "You mustn't trouble yourself over such a small matter, Shukuro."

"Well then, that sounds like a good place to start," Hector said. "Do we all need to go?"

"Plausible," Noct said, standing up from her cross legged position on the ground, "Alright, we have an idea, lets go."

Tsukishima<Oh, no, I insist. Anything to help an old friend.>

*Daisy drags in about 2 dozen Hollows bound together with some vaguely twitching white rope.*

<What is the meaning of this? Who is this fuck?>

Tsukishima<Oh my, they've forgotten me. How very sad.>

<Fuck you on about?>
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Ginjo<There aren't that many of us, so as long as we keep our Reitsu suppressed & spread out, it shouldn't be a problem. Is everyone here able to quickly get back to this spot without being followed?>

"Thank you," Astarte leaned back in the throne and glared down at the Hollows. "Help them if you can, but otherwise we shall dispatch them."

"We use Garganta," Hector said. "How do you intend to get back? Can you use Garganta?"

"We have this weird ability to run really fast," Noct said, "Crazy right?!"

Atae giggled at the sarcasm.

S"Tsukishima also runs quickly. And if he finds this place, we're finished. I suppose we could always team you up with a Hollow, if you can't move any faster than that."
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<Why don't you come down here & threaten us, you traitor!>

<Human-loving who-->

*Tsukishima stabs that Hollow, a monkey-like creature with a mask like a stag beetle, in the head & slashes downward.*

Tsukishima<Now, now, that isn't necessary.>

*As the shallow cut Tsukishima made closes, the Hollow turns its head towards him.*

<Oh, Shu, when did you get here?>

<What the--what did you do to him?! Let us out of here!>

*The Hollows begin to uselessly struggle to get away.*

"I see you are able to easily correct what Senthose has done to them," Astarte said, seeming pleased. "This is good. Don't let any of them escape, Daisy."

Hector stood silently.

"I can basically teleport," Noct said, "You know that..."

"But don't you hate doing that with someone else?" Atae asked.

"Oh yea, and I suppose you'll be coming along. Alright, I guess pairing up with a hollow will be smart." She looked at Hector, "I want one from the harem, or Senthose..."