Day turns into night as artificial light fills the alleyways and streets. Whether it be candle light or the rays of light bulbs filled the street, it wasn't enough to nullify the light from the stars and the moon. The cat ears and tail were off as it was soon time to get into business. People were mostly occupied at the Rose Line so the way to Hanami was empty. Even if the way to the guild was just a hundred steps away I was still fully equipped on whatever might happen. My gun was full of hollow points, my blades fully sharpened, and some charms freshly made if there happened to be a case where I needed to use something. On the two way radio headset I was about to receive a transmission. "Everything's clear. You're good to go." Rebecca said on comms.
I walk down fully packed and meet Tyrell downstairs. Mr. Williams was watching from the window with his crossbow pointing outside. Rebecca was on top of the store next to the inn. As soon as I walked out, Rebecca jumped down with a drop roll and a shotgun at hand. The doors of the Hanami Guild open on their own and the stone statues greet us with a solute. By the time we reached the guildmaster's office everybody was there. Gram was checking his inventory. Magna and Richard on the other hand were discussing issues at the desk with Sakuya. Mr. Williams was the last to come with this crossbow disarmed. It looks like everything was done into place. All that was left was the unidentified attention to get ready. "How are you feeling, Rin?" Sakuya asked. "Got to rest, I feel a bit better now." I answered.
"Should we begin with our meeting then?" Magna asked the guildmaster. With a snap of Sakuya's fingers, a large conference table emerges from the floor. "Everybody pick a chair." She told us. Once we took our seats, all was in session and we were ready to discuss about the current situation. "So… Where is this blessed dagger you got back at the heavenly plain?" Sakuya asked. I took the tanto out of my bag and slid it at the middle of the table. "Impressive. You managed to use whatever knowledge you had gained from your past lives and use it in a way it fits your own." Sakuya complemented.
Sakuya gets the dagger and takes a good look at the seal. She tries to get rid of it but nothing happened. "The seal can only be undone by the caster. Even if the seal is broken, the knife will only work for me." I told her.
"I am aware of that. Yet such a valuable item. What do you plan to do with it?" Sakuya asked.
"I was thinking of preparation before we enter the fray." I tell her, "Honestly even if we had a large map to throw it on, there's no telling on where it would land."
"Can't you throw knives like a pro?" She asked.
"Well that's the problem, boss. The knife must land randomly. Ebisu's blessings are done with luck. So most likely he has to throw it randomly and hopefully it lands on the location desired." Richard explained to her.
"If that is the case then preparations must be done. What do you suggest, Rin?" Sakuya asked me.
"Maybe we can leave after a week. We might as well get some supplies to get ready for whatever lies ahead. If the location is based on luck then we might as well be ready for anything." I recommended.
"I see...we might need to prepare for a truck then if needed." Sakuya agreed with me.
"You can do that?!" My group exclaimed.
"No worries. Besides, it's a good chance to test that bio-diesel our guild is working on." Magna insisted.
"Wait...our guild does that kind of work too?" I asked.
"I forgot to tell you that Magna here is co-head of our research and development department. He's the one that has been helping us in making these defense raids successful." Sakuya gave attention to Magna.
"With the monster attacks entering within the walls we need to learn to be creative every once in awhile." Magna told me.
"I don't know if we can just take this. Is there anything we can do in return?" Mr. Williams asked.
"Now that you mention it...if the group manages to get a hold of some magi-tech, that would prove as compensation." Magna replied.
"We'll see what we can do. But at the meantime we have to get ready." Mr. Williams agreed.
"So how long do you think it will take to be on this journey?" Gram asked.
"I'd say a week at least. Since we'll be on the road, my guess is that we might as well stock up on food and supplies. Weapons help too but good luck in finding ammo." Richard replied.
"I guess that just leaves to alternatives. We might need to drop by Tondo again for scrap metal." Tyrell pointed out.
"Come to think of it we might not have time to loot from the dead. Especially the undead." Mr. Williams pointed out.
"We can't use bombs either. We might end up attracting a kapre at worst." Rebecca added.
Looking at my group, it looks like they were getting hyped about the whole thing. Sakuya then nudged me a little. "Looks like your group is pretty used to the whole floating continent thing." She whispered to me. I cracked up a little when she pointed out. "You guys look so gunho. Back when you guys were starting off it was hard for you to adapt." Gram pointed out.
"We're here to get stronger to get out of the island so we might as well go hard or go home." Rebecca said.
"Even with your friend here to hide?" Magna questioned her.
"We're just gonna deal like we always do it." Tyrell said.
"And what would that be?" Magna asked.
"Get along and live together." Me and my group said all in unison.
"Honestly all we can do is what we can and take from what we get. We won't be able to get out of here for awhile so we might as well try to live here." Mr. Williams said.
"That's no surprise. You have been living together for a long time now. Make sure you guys work hard." Richard said.
"I'm surprised after a two months here you manage to make a good deal." Sakuya said impressed. "Preparation is key, just like you taught me." I replied.
"That's the problem, the preparation you give is good but I don't see you prepare." She told me.
"So what are you saying?" I asked her.
"I'm saying that as guildmaster I should be the one to tackle all issues related to our guild." She says, "And since you are currently one our problems it's my responsibility to handle you."
"So what are you trying to say?" Mr. Williams asked.
"I'll be the one to accommodate you in preparations for your quest." She announced to the whole group.
The room became silent at that moment. But it was everybody except my group stood up from their seats and couldn't help but react. "What is that supposed to mean?! You're the guildmaster!" Magna exclaimed.
"What of it? Even I have to move my weight around here. Besides, it's been awhile since I got out of capital and cut loose." She told them.
"This isn't about cutting loose! You're considered a person high on the social ladder! You have any idea how important are you to the guild association?" Gram told her.
"The guild association can last a few days without me. Plus don't forget we still have to settle one other problem?" Sakuya pointed out.
Soon I ended up getting all the eyes. The group of veterans sit and come into thought as they see things unfold. "So...why Rin exactly?" Tyrell asked. "To be honest...we don't know Rin's potential." Magna says, "With the amount of abilities Rin is capable of, it's starting to be hard to tell his weaknesses."
"I'm guessing you're using this as a tactical advantage?" Mr. Williams asked.
"My apologies to all of you. But if even if we did know Rin as Hijikata, it doesn't mean that there wasn't any change from the time after that." Sakuya told us.
"But doing this behind our backs? Why bother thinking us as an enemy?" Rebecca asked her.
"I'm more concerned about Rin's recent past life rather than the his current one." Sakuya told her.
"So why Kenshin? What makes him so different than the other four?" I asked.
"It is true that you have proven your worth in our guild but I cannot change the fact on how skilled Kenshin is...especially for what his skills come from." Sakura told me.
"It is kinda true kid. Not only that, even if you act like the past life we know, it doesn't change the fact that what happens if you follow 'his' footsteps." Richard added.
"Rin's not like that all! He's been good since day one that we met him!" Rebecca shouted.
"Yet have you thought what happens if one day Rin might become bad?" Sakuya asked Rebecca.
Just a question like that left Rebecca unable to talk back. "Honestly we're taking a risk whether or not Rin is the same guy as Hijikata. Especially with the factors that come into play." Sakuya explains herself, "We cannot ignore it since there are to many inconsistencies of Rin's abilities."
"What would be those factors then?" Mr. Williams asked.
"First off is that he's a breed of demonfolk. According to Ebisu, Tasogare are linked to the underworld and hell. Yet when he is able to go to the heavenly plain and be fully healed in the process. If this variant of demonfolk is specifically connected to the underworld then why is able to be part of the heavenly plain?" Richard asked.
"Is that a problem?" I asked.
"I'm afraid so. Normally the Heavenly Plain and the underworld was separated for a reason. Yet I'm wondering how the gods aren't able to detect you if you don't give a dark aura or malice." Sakuya gave her thoughts.
"Yet that only implies if Rin underwent demonification." Magna told her.
"That's what I thought too but after thinking it through, Rin must underwent a certain kind of demonification." Gram told her.
"Come to think of it...gods gives different gifts per individual. So Rin might be the only one with this feature." Richard admitted.
"Yet I was looking at the books for a bit and I noticed something very odd when I was researching about it while Rin was in the inn." Gram implied.
Gram takes out a book from his bag. It was large red book and was an inch and a half thick. He opens the book and starts flipping the pages. Eventually he spots what he was looking for and shows us the page. "Around the Land of Kamigawa and Monarchy of Shin-Yamatai there exist a few ancestral lands that are home to the Tasogare clans." He explains to us. "The number of horns are equivalent to how powerful the Tasogare is. One is the lowest; six is the highest. Rin is four so he is considered above average."
"Then what of the times when the color of his horns changing?" Tyrell asked.
"That I don't know…it isn't recorded in the book so my guess is that's considered a bonus. I'd suggest we need to study that." He told them.
"Then I guess that leaves Kenshin, Rin's recent past life." Sakuya commented.
"From the Cornerstone he was pretty good. Yet the ability to see through his previous past lives does bring concern." Richard implied.
"Yes that's what I also want to point out, Rin?" Sakuya asked me.
"I don't know what to point out. He can speak Japanese but he sounds more natural when it comes to English, it sounds American. Yet I'm also kinda surprised that he knows Filipino. It's kinda hard tell about his history." I told her.
"Filipino? Can you speak it?" Richard asked me.
"I don't think I'm close to syncing with him when it comes to language. All I got close to is his combat skills and strategy. Then there was the Magi Eyes. Anything else is a blur." I replied.
"Then how about the blurry stuff? Maybe there's something we might help you with." Sakuya offered.
The blurry thing that can only be considered recognizable were the memories of which some blurred images of people kinda overlapped with other memories...some of them in battlefields both other in other locations. I could tell they were with me but I do not recognize their abilities. For all I know I just remember it because they said it in a certain way. If I told them about the hallway then it's just gonna be more complicated. It was best for me to be sure, just in case I need to solve the problem quicker. So instead I told my guildmaster something else.
"Somehow my past lives have a habit of materializing as apparitions that only I can see. Like a hallucination." I told her.
"So they began to do that? When was the first time that happened?" Sakuya asked me.
"Around my battle with the Anti-magic type Saurian. Chiron gave me knowledge to hunt and kill monsters better."
"When was your recent one then?" My boss asked.
"It was around when I was at the heavenly realm. Toshizo was with me, turns out a god taught him how to fight.." I replied reluctantly.
"That is odd…I never took you at that life to have divine intervention. As of your god, what did she think of it?" Richard asked.
"He said something about, 'Knowing my tragedies might be the way to survive'? I think." I replied unsure.
"Tragedy? You serious?" Richard asked, unamused.
"Well judging from the past lives I know...Hijikata died valiantly but tragically he fought till the end for a cause that was never meant to be. As for Chiron, he was struck by a hydra poison arrow accidentally released by one of his students, only to pray for his immortality to disappear. The Greek gods took it away to do a mercy killing." I explained to them.
"So...all you have to do is recall how they died and he is yours?" Rebecca asked.
"It's not that simple. They have requirements for me to remember these memories. Unless I follow them then I won't be able to get their memories." Sakuya told her.
"What requirements?" Rebecca asked.
"A better way of saying is that the past lives are kinda picky on who to pass their information to. So you need to fit a certain requirement to be able to gain their skills." Sakuya simplified.
"Yeah like mine for example. Sakamoto likes adventure so in return I go out of the capital. As for Goemon...I got him earlier around childhood when I tried to lockpick my bully's locker." Richard added.
"Then what would Rin's be?" Mr. Williams asked.
"Oh yeah...you never told us that, Rin." Richard calls me out.
"They're not really big deals." I replied
"Well let's hear it. If they're simple then it might be easier for us to help you recall." Gram told me.
"Well...Chiron wanted me to teach so I ended up getting his memories once I was an instructor. As for Hijikata...all he wants is to swing a sword." I answered with that last part in embarrassment.
"I get the first one but why the second one? It's too simple." Magna questioned.
"Oh... Actually that's pretty simple. I got Rin drunk once when he was Hijikata." Richard says, "It went out as, 'when I was a kid I always wanted to be a samurai, so sometimes I'd swing a wooden stick like a sword and do pretend like I was a hero'."
That's when I rush to Richard and cover his mouth. "Idiot! Did I not say not to speak of that ever again!" I shouted. "What? That was like a century ago! No way that's a big deal now." He talked back. But Richard then adds two and two together and forms a derpy look at his face. "Ehh?! Don't tell me you did that thing too with the whole 'gozaru' thing?" He asked with an annoying face. I then inserted two fingers up his nose and lifted them up. "Alright! Alright! I give! How the hell was I supposed to know that you act like Battousai when you were a kid!" He exclaimed. "That's why I kept telling you when you to not open up old wounds when you were drinking!" I shouted.
"But I'm not drinking!" He shouted.
"It works the same way with or without the bottle!" I told him off.
I raised my arm a little and Richard then started to tap out as the pain worsened. We were both hurt. His nose felt numb while my pride was shattering. "What happened when you were training Rin? He and Richard are like cats and dogs." Tyrell asked. "Even if Rin has times with the freelancer class instructor, me and Richard did most of the training…. eventually Rin kept on recalling memories of Hijikata and old conversations and routines started to come back again as if we never left Bakumatsu." Sakuya told Tyrell.
"So they're back to being old rivals again, huh?" Tyrell asked rhetorically.
"Somehow I feel a bit jealous right now…" Rebecca commented.
Tyrell and Mr. Williams turn to Rebecca with eyes wide open. It was out of the blue and unexpected. Rebecca turns red and tries to explain herself. "It's just that Rin doesn't really open up that much. Actually it took me almost two weeks until he was able to talk to me normally." Rebecca confessed. Rebecca then forms a bland face, almost as if she felt disappointment. " "Is there a problem?" Sakuya asked.
"Well Rin has trouble starting conversations with girls so it takes awhile for him to open up. But at least he talks normally when you give the topic, in a more stoic sense.." Tyrell mentioned.
"Dammit Tyrell!" I cursed.
"The truth had to come out some time." Tyrell told me.
"Ehhh? How come it didn't happen to me?" Sakuya asked.
But that's when Tyrell and Rebecca started going up to Sakuya. "What do you mean?!" Both of them exclaimed. Sakuya looks away, embarrassed of what was going on. Looks like that cool head of hers is starting to melt. But she remains calm despite how neurotic it was becoming. "Well he talks to me normally, ask about his progress, we talk about random stuff when we're at the surface...even when drinking he makes sure I don't overdo it." She replied as she was avoiding their stares. Richard then started poking me at the cheek. "Ehhh? Look who's the beshounen now!" He teased. "I don't know… it just came naturally." I defended myself.
"Really now? You sure didn't get any street-cred from me?"
"Shut up! I acted out of nostalgia and just went with the flow!"
Richard then pauses for a little. It looks like he was thought again, only to be filled with disappointment. "Wait...don't tell me you talked normally all this time to Sakuya because you treated her as she was Kondo." He rationalized. But that was something that I didn't want to confirm. But the silence confirmed his suspicions. "Wow...that's disappointing..." He says, "I expected something to tease you with but this just got boring." But as Richard looked the other direction, it looked like Sakuya was in disappointment. "Boy...I can't believe you forgot." She moans with a face palm. "What?" I wondered what was going on.
"Remember when we were drinking in the afternoon during cherry blossom blooming season? For sure you would have remember." She groaned.
It took me awhile just to recall. But once the memory came back, my face turned red. "But weren't you drunk at that time?!" I stuttered. "Please I was only half tipsy at the time." Sakuya disagreed.
"I thought you were joking?!"
"Yet I told you not to die a virgin but you did. And with the way you are, most likely you will a second time."
"What are you guys talking about?" Rebecca questioned out of suspicion.
"NOthing! Absolutely nothing!" I pragmatically insisted.
Even with sweat was about to drip down on my face I tried to keep a straight image and kept calm. Honestly this was one secret that I didn't want to keep into light. Rebecca read the mood and starts to see what was going on. She then sighs and says, "Alright then...if it's that embarrassing then you don't have to share any of it. Just do it at your own pace." Rebecca swallows her pride and we soon get back to the main conversation.
"So how are we going to go through the week?" Tyrell asked.
"Before we go out I'm going to set up a party group for preparations. I'll set a permit for us to go tomorrow to join the party system." Sakuya answered.
"Why need the permit? Don't we go as a group all the time?" Rebecca asked.
"Actually the party system different from forming a group. The party system is a form of procedure that allows people to share quest and missions in order to get the same share of merits and money." Mr. Williams clarified.
"Then why isn't this done more often if we all had a chance to rank up faster?" I asked.
"Well...if all your group members at the moment are at the same guild then you won't need a permit. On the other hand, most people would want different job classes to join with them for certain jobs. Sometimes we might need external help from other guilds just to get the job done." Magna explained.
"Plus with all the different locations and monsters, you might need an expert or two to fill you in with certain information and skills." Richard added.
"So much like bringing Tyrell as a tech and resource expert?" I asked.
"Exactly. Hunters can serve as monster experts, Rogues in lockpicking and sabotage, and magus for magic related information can also be considered depending in the missions and quest taken. As for the producer classes provide intel on resources and technical skills." Magna agreed.
From the words of my seniors, I can see their point. Our group had a bunch of different classes with different skill sets, both from before and after being sent to Laputa.
"Then why need a permit?" I asked.
"Some guilds have secret skills and information they do not want to share. Plus it's harder to give merits of the individuals came from different guilds. The system used isn't as updated as the ones at Aria." Gram says, "The current system Laputa uses was updated after Ventus left Aria."
"So if a guild were to join forces with another guilds then that would mean the job asked for must be hard." Tyrell commented.
"With that alone it must bring a lot of attention. Rumors would be flooding around everywhere." Rebecca added.
"Which is why we just instruct you to take the same types of quests and missions separately. To make it a form of a social camouflage for you to hide in the crowd." Sakuya implied.
"Then that makes rumors the new internet, right?" Rebecca asked.
"Yep... we're back to old school. But with that you have to learn how people work for the crowd to work for you." Richard confirmed.
"Great… I'm back at high school… Another scar I would rather not remember." Rebecca moaned.
I then felt a sharp pain in my head. It felt like a jolt of lightning passed through my brain. Again another vision of blood. But there wasn't the smell of dead and ash. Just gunpowder. The vision was blurry but stopped. The only problem was that it wasn't from any of my past lives...but mine. I heard of trigger words but this was ridiculous. But before I can get a grip of what I was seeing, Richard tapped me at the back and I desynchronized. "Something wrong?" He asked. "Nothing...just kinda annoyed like Rebecca." I made up. We got along with the conversation as there was more planning needed.