Bleach Hereafter RPG

Pause Posted Feb 11, 2023 16:58:55 GMT -5

Maria Tokareva

Location: Las Vegas
Status: Alive

Tags: Niji , Momoshiro

Wait, so... shouldn't this have been an invitation for Tendo to explain what he knew about Val's fate? Apparently not, because the conversation simply took another round of nothing, Tendo offering to answer any question and Niji granting the opportunity to her.

"Wait, me?" Maria remarked, confused. It was Niji's idea to catch Tendo and start asking questions, was it not? Maria was expecting Niji to carry the conversation as well. "Alright, alright..."

Maria briefly clasped her hands as she took a deep breath, then laid her demand forward:

"I want you to tell me everything you know about my sister. What happened to her until you kidnapped her for your experiment, and what caused her to end up the way she was."

She wasn't certain whether Tendo would actually know much - from what little she has gathered about the incident in Tendo Shoten, it seems as if his relationship with Val was merely that of a scientist and work material. Still, it did not hurt to ask. Perhaps he had some insights about what caused Val's scythe to shift this way.

"I was also... told that you were betrayed," she continued, her eyes shifting to Niji for a fraction of a second, before returning to face Tendo. "And that this is what caused Val to end up into the horror that she became. Is this true? And... how does this relate to Virgil?"

ADMINISTRATOR

Shinigami

There are many causes I would die for, but not a single cause I would kill for.

Pause Posted Feb 12, 2023 17:50:45 GMT -5

sadaharu TENDO

定春天童

𝖳𝖠𝖦𝖲: Hequita | Niji

Sadaharu might have looked like he wasn't paying attention, but he was. He heard the feelings behind the words and he noticed the subtle looks. After Maria had finished asking her questions and making her demands, he took a long drag of his cigarette and then blew out the smoke slowly. He was debating on how to answer, but more importantly, what exactly not to say.

He reached across the table and slid the ashtray closer to him. He set the cigarette on the end of it and let it burn. The little trail of smoke rose up between them.

"I can't help but get the feeling that there are some mixed signals between you two."

He glanced up to Niji who was still standing and gestured to the pillow on the floor.

"You're welcome to stand, but feel free to have a seat. I won't bite, promise."

He chuckled softly and then looked back over to Maria and offered her a warm smile before getting to her questions.

"I can see her in your features you know."

Sadaharu gestured to her face and then sighed.

"It's really unfortunate what happened and I am terribly sorry for your loss..."

Tendo paused for just a moment before continuing.

"I never kidnapped your sister and I didn't even know of her existence until she was brought to me by Virgil, under what I know now to have been false pretenses."

He glanced over at the cigarette still burning in the ashtray.

"Virgil had told me she volunteered for the experiment. Little did I know he was trying to dispose of her because, I assume, she was becoming too powerful and too erratic to control any longer."

Tendo rolled over onto his back and stared up at the ceiling.

"It wasn't until it was too late that I realized what he had done."

Player

Fullbringer

I have nothing to say.

Pause Posted Feb 12, 2023 18:15:28 GMT -5

Niji offered the man a pleasant smile and made no move towards the pillow, she gave a slight bow and shook her head, ”You are clearly a very busy man, Mister Tendo. You said you do not have much time; I would not waste your time making myself comfortable.”

She listened calmly, her face remaining passive as he walked through his side of Valentina’s murder. It more or less matched what she thought he would know, even if it didn’t answer why Tendo had believed the leader of the Red Lotus. But his vague answers gave her a window to play dumb; she allowed her smile to falter, and her voice became questioning and vaguely accusatory, ”This Virgil, how have you dealt with him? His betrayal of you nearly destroyed everything, surely you and the rest of the Shinigami would not have left such an action unpunished.”

It was a particular approach to the whole Red Lotus situation, if she could play it that way. While she might not have had the forces necessary to eliminate Virgil and his loyalists, if she could get the Shinigami to act against him, they could bring more force to bear on the man than she could bring in her lifetime. Niji felt no particular need to kill the man herself, but it was clear that a beast like him needed to be put down; perhaps Maria could, in fact, get involved with avenging her sister by rallying the Gotei 13 against this mostly unknown menace.

Hequita Momoshiro

Player

You fool! You fell right for my trap!

Pause Posted Feb 13, 2023 12:51:45 GMT -5

Maria Tokareva

Location: Las Vegas
Status: Alive

Tags: Niji , Momoshiro

Listening to Tendo, and then to Niji, Maria stared at the table between them, in complete silence. Tendo confirmed her suspicions, stating that it was indeed Virgil who betrayed him and led to Val's ultimate fate, Niji pushed for the Shinigami to do something in order to stop that bastard. She had a point there. If Virgil was truly responsible for what happened to Val - why she turned into a nihilist destroyer of Shinigami, and why she was kidnapped for this "experiment"... he could not be allowed to stay alive.

"From what I can tell, Virgil is... involved in something secretive. I doubt the Shinigami even know much about him - I know I hadn't heard anything about him until I decided to go investigate myself," Maria explained - her voice was slower, more pressed down and somber. "I... suspected as much about Virgil. Even before what happened to my sister in this place, I was going after her trail, trying to find her and... maybe convince her to return to who she once was - that's how I first came across him. A few days before that event, I... found her note talking of a "Director", who was, according to her, acting strange and was greatly worrying her, and she was planning to meet someone in Akai Hasu, a few kilometers from here - there, I found him."

It was her alongside Hyakuji, but the fact that she was working alongside another Shinigami did not matter here. The search for Val was because of her initiative, not his, anyway.

"I didn't make the connection between Virgil and that "Director" at first, but even then, he... unnerved me. And he knew Val very well, too. I... could certainly buy him being a complete selfish murderous bastard behind that facade."

A sudden, built up burst of fury got her to clench her fists, tightly, then, she glanced down to her open palms - the right almost entirely bandaged.

"...it's fine to take revenge, in this case, would you agree? To kill someone?"

ADMINISTRATOR

Shinigami

There are many causes I would die for, but not a single cause I would kill for.

Pause Posted Feb 14, 2023 16:36:08 GMT -5

sadaharu TENDO

定春天童

𝖳𝖠𝖦𝖲: Hequita | Niji

"...it's fine to take revenge, in this case, would you agree? To kill someone?"

For a moment or two, Sadaharu said nothing and just stared at the ceiling. There was an awkward quiet after Maria's question. There were so many things he wanted to tell her about her sister and Virgil but he knew the road that would set her on and it wouldn't be good for anyone, most of all Maria. So he decided to keep those secrets to himself and shoulder it like he did many times before.

The man eventually let out a heavy sigh and sat up to look at Maria.

"I won't tell you if it's right or wrong, because that's not my place... but if it were my sister, I certainly would be inclined to try."

He finally grabbed the cigarette from the ashtray and took a drag off of it. As he exhaled, he blew the smoke off to the side and away from the two of them. Then his eyes drifted up to Niji.

"You already don't trust me, so I don't imagine any answer I give you will be satisfactory. With that in mind, and in an attempt to not waste anyone's time, I'll just say I'm doing everything in my power to make sure he pays for what he did."

He shrugged his shoulders a bit and took another drag of the cigarette before putting it out in the ashtray. Tendo turned back to Maria. His faced brightened somewhat as he smiled.

"Do you have any other questions for me?"

Player

Fullbringer

I have nothing to say.

Pause Posted Feb 14, 2023 17:12:28 GMT -5

Niji’s eyes briefly reflected surprise as they darted to Maria, she had met Virgil in person? She already knew about the Red Lotus? It was a miracle she wasn’t dead yet, but it also raised the question of why the Shinigami had not acted. Had Maria some reason to keep the man’s existence a secret?

She turned her gaze back as the shopkeeper addressed her, and she resisted rolling her eyes at the man, her face remaining passive, her voice dispassionate, ”Of course I do not; you have given me ample reason not to, and vague non-answers are not lending you any credibility. I am learning more from Masha’s questions than from anything you have said thus far.”

She could have forced the issue, pushed harder on it; insisted he take it to the Shinigami leadership. Perhaps it was something she’d have to do herself; they had attempted a genocide of an entire race for less than what Virgil and Tendo had done. While she did not have much pull with the Shinigami, perhaps she could pull the right levers to get them to move against Virgil without putting anyone she cared about in the crosshairs.

The Fullbringer looked back at her companion, ”Akai Hasu, or Red Lotus, is a secret organization of Fullbringers. Valentina was a member of the group when I first met her. I thought she had left the organization, but perhaps she was only planning to and the Director decided it would be easier to use Mister Tendo to dispose of her.”

Hequita Momoshiro

Player

You fool! You fell right for my trap!

Pause Posted Feb 18, 2023 9:33:10 GMT -5

Maria Tokareva

Location: Las Vegas
Status: Alive

Tags: Niji , Momoshiro

Yet more tension between Niji and Tendo. This time, over the abstract and vague answers that the shopkeeper was giving them both - apparently, even the little that Maria knew about Virgil was more helpful to her. All this truth hiding, and vagueness, and tension were really not helpful.

"I'm on Niji's side here. We came for actual answers about what happened, not just vague off-hand explanations," Maria briefly explained her stance, then suddenly stood up from her seat, with her fist clenched. "But that doesn't matter anymore! I... know what I must do, now. If Virgil is truly responsible for what happened to my sister, then... I have to get revenge."

Now, she had a reason to improve beyond just aimless dreams of becoming a better Shinigami. She had to improve to surpass this "Virgil", and the Red Lotus organization which, according to Niji, he commands. If Val was... a member of Red Lotus, that means that Virgil's goons are at least as strong as her, and he might be stronger. If Val was able to defeat Hya, then... there's a massive gap I'll need to bridge...

Maria turned her eyes to the Fullbringer, briefly staring her in the eyes - then, yet again, she grabbed Niji by the shoulders.

"Niji, you... you know something about Virgil too, don't you? And this Red Lotus? You... You will help me, right?"

ADMINISTRATOR

Shinigami

There are many causes I would die for, but not a single cause I would kill for.

Pause Posted Feb 18, 2023 12:25:17 GMT -5

sadaharu TENDO

定春天童

𝖳𝖠𝖦𝖲: Hequita | Niji

After they had both finished talking, he reached into his robes and pulled out another pack of cigarettes. He pulled one from the case and slid it back into his robe. He lifted the cigarette up to his lips and with his other hand he pulled a lighter out and lit the end. He took a quick drag off of it. The end lit up brightly for a second before dimming again.

Tendo sighed, exhaling the smoke, once again away from them.

"I do apologize. I want you to understand that I'm giving you the best answers I am able to considering the circumstances..."

He paused, considering how to word this next part.

"... I am trying to be helpful and give you some peace of mind about what happened to your sister, but there are details that I cannot, and will not share because other people's lives may be at risk if I did. If I don't go into detail about something, you can assume I have a good reason not to."

He glanced over to Niji.

"I apologize that I did not answer your question as thoroughly as you would have liked and for the barb that came with the explanation. As I mentioned before, I share what is safe to share. I do not like to take unnecessary risks. What if I told you my plans or the Gotei's plans to capture or kill Virgil and he got to you and tortured you for that information? Now he knows and all of those preparations and plans are for nothing or worse he uses that information to hurt others."

Sadaharu took another drag of his cigarette and then set it on the ashtray before he addressed them again.

"I have to think about those scenarios and all of the various possibilities before I say or do anything. I do not enjoy keeping secrets or holding back information. I do it to protect people. I hope you two can understand that."

He rubbed the back of his neck and then looked at Maria.

"I'm sorry I can't tell you more. I really am."

Tendo was sincere. There was no mask to his words.

"I don't doubt your conviction or your ability, but please do not go after Virgil. Even if you somehow manage to find him before we do, he will kill you. That is a certainty and something I do not wish to see."

Last Edit: Feb 18, 2023 12:26:38 GMT -5 by Momoshiro

Player

Fullbringer

I have nothing to say.

Pause Posted Feb 19, 2023 20:13:36 GMT -5

She gently removed Maria’s hands from her shoulders, and held them gently between her own hands. The Fullbringer returned her look, and her voice was gentle, ”Peace, Masha. This is why I was afraid for you. If you come for Virgil without a plan, it would be like me trying to assassinate Captain Commander Katsumoto. You are not…”

Niji glanced to Tendo, then back to Maria; she shook her head, clearly changing what she was about to say, ”...ready.”

She kept her hands around Maria’s as she turned back to the shopkeeper, her voice hard, but calm; ”I do not need to know the details of whatever plan is in place, but if that is vague admission that there is a plan to eliminate the Director, then I will accept that for now.”

She considered for a moment, she had valuable information about Virgil specifically as well as the organization of the Red Lotus in general. Information possibly entirely unknown to anyone outside of the organization; information that literally no one knew she had. While she had started letting Ikazuya get an idea that she was actually a substantial power, he had made no attempt to recruit her, as they both had assumed in the forgotten hour. If there was one person she could trust to use this information against Virgil, it would have been Maria.

Niji looked back to her companion, ”If you can coordinate with whoever is planning this; I know some information that might be helpful. I do not need to know details myself, indeed, I probably should not. It may not be the frontal assault that you want, but this particular fight would be out of our league.”

Hequita Momoshiro

Last Edit: Feb 20, 2023 7:29:01 GMT -5 by Niji

Player

You fool! You fell right for my trap!

Pause Posted Feb 20, 2023 13:07:06 GMT -5

Maria Tokareva

Location: Tendo Shoten
Status: Alive

Tags: Niji , Momoshiro

So that's where this was leading towards. First Tendo, then Niji informed Maria that she should cool down and not go after Virgil - both warned her that he will kill her if he got the chance. Maria's conviction to take revenge even got Tendo to explain himself deeper, detailing that he simply cannot reveal anything about his or Gotei 13's plans to stop Virgil, yet implicitly assuring the two women that such plans existed - and it got Niji to once again pull out her protective side and try to talk her out of something she was not ready for.

While her hands were clasped by the Fullbringer, Maria stared her in the eyes. Both her and Tendo's concern appeared genuine, and for a second, she did consider backing down. But... her heart simply could not accept the idea of simply standing on the sidelines, or being no more than a helper for Tendo or the Gotei 13.

"I... know I'll sound selfish right now, but I don't think I will be satisfied with merely being informed that someone else - whether it is you, Tendo, or the Gotei 13 - took down Virgil," Maria answered. "It doesn't matter anywhere near as much for anyone else but me, her sister. It's not just a matter of balance or security as it might be for the Captains, it's a matter of revenge. I can't let myself just stay on the sidelines."

She slipped her hands out of Niji's grasp and turned her head towards Tendo.

"If I'm not ready today, then I'll be ready in a year, or ten. How much are we talking about, how dangerous is he? Around a Captain? I could reach that. I will reach that. Trust me."

ADMINISTRATOR

Shinigami

There are many causes I would die for, but not a single cause I would kill for.

Pause Posted Feb 21, 2023 21:36:15 GMT -5

sadaharu TENDO

定春天童

𝖳𝖠𝖦𝖲: Hequita | Niji

Once again, he listened to both women, watched as they interacted with each other, and studied the multitude of emotional and physical ticks that they displayed. Not that he wasn't paying attention or invested in the conversation, not at all. It was just a habit by now and not something he could exactly turn off easily. It came as second nature, studying people's reactions. Luckily, he was a good multi-tasker.

That being said, he could tell Maria wasn't going to be satisfied with standing by while someone else moved against Virgil even after being told by both him and Niji that she was not ready for that fight and that encounter would just result in her demise.

"...I will reach that. Trust me."

He nodded in reply to her.

"Oh my dear, I do very much trust that you can accomplish such things."

Sadaharu turned to look at Niji.

"Well, I cannot confirm or deny that there is a plan in place to locate and deal with Virgil. I certainly can't tell you that if there were a plan, it would happen before Maria would be ready to take part in it."

He hoped Niji would catch that he was being light-hearted with that comment in a way to confirm without confirming.

Tendo then turned to Maria.

"That being said... What do you know about that Dangai?"

Player

Fullbringer

I have nothing to say.

Pause Posted Feb 23, 2023 7:20:32 GMT -5

Niji shook her head, she let her hands drop to the side, as Tendo gave vague ‘yeah, plans are in motion’ then tried to change the subject to the Dangai. She had learned a little about the tunnel between worlds from the Shinigami textbooks, but that didn’t seem relevant at the moment. Maria needed to know she understood what she was feeling.

She locked eyes with Maria, ”You know what happened to me; I felt the same way when the battle was over. Do you think I wanted to let the bastards that nearly ended the world walk free?”

She pointed at the shopkeeper, not taking her eyes off the woman, and her voice grew several degrees colder, “”It took everything I had to hold back and not try to rip his goddamn throat out. A final message from your sister basically convinced me not to throw my life away in the attempt, but it was a near thing.”

Tendo might have been tricked about Val, but Niji had no doubt the man would try his experiment again if he could confirm the provenance of his next subject. He had apologized for a lot of things, abandoning the five of them that had fought the results of his experiment. Apologized for his vague answers and unwillingness to answer questions. Told Maria he was ‘sorry for her loss’ when he was ultimately the man that killed her. But he had never apologized for attempting the experiment in the first place, and she was certain he’d give it another shot.

She shook her head, willing her fury down, she had been practicing keeping her emotions out of her reiatsu, but she wasn’t perfect at it yet. It was not the time. Her best shot at making sure Virgil went down was feeding the intelligence she had to the Captains; and her best option for that was through Maria. Of course, she also didn’t want the woman to throw her life away in a hopeless attack. The softness returned to her voice, slightly pleading, ”If you die attempting to kill Virgil, even if you were successful, it prevents all the good that you could do in the future.”

Hequita Momoshiro

Last Edit: Feb 23, 2023 7:21:40 GMT -5 by Niji

Player

You fool! You fell right for my trap!

Pause Posted Feb 26, 2023 13:35:56 GMT -5

Maria Tokareva

Location: Tendo Shoten
Status: Alive

Tags: Niji , Momoshiro

Tendo decided to answer Maria's determination with a question that seemingly came out of nowhere. With a confident grin, he asked whether Maria knew about the Dangai - which got the woman to blink, unsure how to even respond.

"I... yeah... you mean, the dimension between this world and Soul Society?"

Much like Niji, she couldn't tell how this could possibly be related to anything they were discussing - and, almost instantly, she was pulled away to focus on the Fullbringer. Niji had a lot to tell Maria - first, the similar hatred she felt towards the person standing pretty much next to her in the same room, then, yet another attempt to dissuade her from the crusade for avenging Val. She was determined to not allow the Shinigami to go there and potentially die against Virgil.

Without stating it directly, she described Maria as a hero. A potential hero, someone who would do so much good for everyone if only she did not die to Virgil. That...

Slowly, Maria placed her hands on Niji's shoulders yet again. Her eye was closed.

"Please, Niji... there's no need for that..."

She let out a sigh.

"There's... no need for us to lie to each other. I'm sorry I... implied the other in Las Vegas, but you lived with me for ten years, so I assume you knew all along," Maria began to explain. "I'm not a good person. Not a good Shinigami, either. In the slums I... would steal, fight, I was lazy and heartless. I'm hostile to my fellow Shinigami in the Eleventh. I'm vain, I'm not good with people, I'm not as good as my friends, if they even are my friends, I don't know what I'll do with my life, I'm... not going to be of much good to other people in the world. There's nothing I can offer to them."

Briefly, Maria's grip over Niji's shoulders got tighter.

"But this... it actually gives me purpose. It's something good that someone like me can do for the rest of the world."

ADMINISTRATOR

Shinigami

There are many causes I would die for, but not a single cause I would kill for.