Post by Misaki Kazamiya on Feb 29, 2020 22:54:54 GMT -8
Misaki’s hoe dug into the earth as she happily dug up new soil, sweat falling down her brow even as she gently caressed the broken earth with the metal implement. Building new soil, fresh ground for a whole new generation of plants to grow, and mature. While it wasn’t strictly the gardener’s job to take care of all the farmwork, as well, Misaki had been polite enough to ask nicely to help out, and the gardeners in question had no problems whatsoever allowing the young gardener to take a bit of the load off of their shoulders.
So that was why Misaki stood in naught but her usual dress and a lovely sunhat, complete with yellow flowers, and sturdy boots as she toiled at the earth. Perspiration dripped down her face, the watery sweat falling down her nose like it was a subtle canal. It had been a little while since she’d gotten to do such simple work - indeed, she hadn’t worked on a farm like this since she was a teenager, looking for extra work that would be interesting to someone of her interests and talents.
A gardener and a farmer had very similar jobs, in this instance. While Misaki did very little to take care of animals, they could both appreciate the hard work that went into plants. Creating the perfect environment both in the soil below and in the earth and air above, tirelessly making sure to water them - not too much, for fear of drowning the plants, nor too little, in case thirst overtook them. Making sure they grew up big and tall, and guiding them into the healthy creatures they would one day become.
...Hmm, come to think of it, Misaki wondered if Fauna were truly very different from flora, in that respect?
A grin, and a slight chuckle, echoed the gardener’s lips as the thought passed through her. Well then, perhaps she was the foolish one for thinking there were differences… perhaps.
The happy chuckle was suddenly cut off by a sudden slicing pain originating in her throat, leaving the gardener confused. What was this? She could feel… something reaching for her. An imprint of some branch leapt across her throat as the florist felt herself held back by some invisible force, briefly. What was going on? Her senses were going haywire, even as she felt her body start to go numb. Misaki’s strength was going out of her limbs even as she Grit her teeth and tried to hold on, defiance visible on every muscle of her face as she released her aura, Golden energy swirling around her….
And entered a world that was not her own. A place of blue, misty clouds firing electricity in different directions.
Misaki looked down to see her own body, the same as ever, with the exception that she was floating in mid-air, without even using a bit of her ki to keep aloft. She felt weightless, and yet she felt also as though she could barely move…
The Teahouse gardener pursed her lips, taking a deep breath as she waited for more of this realm to reveal itself…
So I have summoned you, and so you have come.
Misaki blinked. She had certainly heard words, but say nothing of what might have said them. What kind of situation was she in? What kind of craziness could cause any of this…
Or as a secondary possibility, had something been slipped into her afternoon tea?
...perhaps something had been slipped into her afternoon tea.
No phantasm of humanity’s delusions speaks to you, oh gardener of soul.
“...Then, who am I speaking to?” Misaki would ask, raising an eyebrow as she opened her eyes, looking around. She tried to open up her senses, but they felt hopelessly scrambled in this dark blue Miasma. It was simply too much noise to take in for her senses to properly process. A defense system, perhaps?
I have lived for hundreds of years, guiding and empowering the humans that once created me. I am the kreatest of all those that reach their hands towards the sky, and the last, kindest titan of my kin. I am nourishment for those that cry for power and Power for those who seek to nourish the world.
Misak blinked a few times, as the being explained itself.
“...Excuse me, could you repeat that all a little more clearly? I think I’m a little too out-of-sorts to recognize such clever wordplay, and this place is making me… a little dizzy.”
There was silence, for a few moments, before there was a violent shaking of the world around her… before a table, a chair, and a pair of tea-cups showed in front of her… along with… herself?
“I see.” The other-her stated. “I’m limited to what your mind already knows, and we have few commonalities in experience, so I’m afraid this form is what I am limited to, in order to have a normal conversation.
Misaki blinked a few times, flabbergasted, before taking a deep breath, and sitting down at the prepared chair.
“I’ll be a little more blunt… I am a guardian of the earth, born from the earth. A tree unlike any other.”
Misaki’s stare turned to one of curiosity, leaning forward as her hand left her chin. Juniper had said something about this to her before. A mystical tree that had a noticeably high ki…
Misaki blinked, looking around, and her eyes widened… as she looked down from her position, seeing a bright, golden aura outlining a system of tubes, long and fat, short and small… roots, she realized!
So this dark blue mist around her…
“Is my aura, yes. Though it’s not what it used to be.” The other Misaki stated, before sipping some of the otherworldly tea. “That’s what I need to ask you for.”
Misaki blinked. If this was such a powerful being in nature, then that fuelled an urge within Misaki to help it. “...Then, what is it you need?”
“I am dying.” The other Misaki replied. “But not due to age. I should have millenia left to exist.”
With a sigh, the other her put the cup of tea down on the saucer, the liquid going from piping hot to frigid. “I am being slowly drained for all I’m worth by a madman. One who will most certainly kill me if he’s left to it…”
Misaki frowned. “And you’d like me to kill him for you.”
The tree shook it’s head. “...Yes, but that’s not quite all.”
“Then, what?”
“I don’t need a savior who will simply leave me to be taken by some other madman. I have grown tired of that…”
Misaki nodded. “...So you’re looking for a commitment.”
“...I’m looking for a guardian.”
The Florist smirked. “You’re quite forward for a tree, aren’t you.”
“I am strong. So I am allowed.” The apparition stated. “As long as you prove to be my chosen guardian, I will grant you my power.”
Misaki thinks about that, and slowly nods. “The power to protect you from misuse by those who would abuse nature?”
“Precisely.”
Misaki would look thoughtful for a moment, seemingly lost in thought, before nodding. “...Very well. Your terms are not unseemly. I accept your offer…”
Misaki tapped her head. “...I suppose I’ll have to figure out a name for you later. I’m thinking… max.”
The Tree blinked, before clasping it’s hands together. “...We should really workshop that. But… the time for talk has passed. Do you accept my charge?”
“I do.”
“Then… back to your realm you go… and by this power I imprint your status as guardian…”
“With this…-” Misaki managed, but already the vision was swirling away, and the Real world asserted itself with terrifying authority.
As the vision shifted, and she found herself on solid ground once again… or rather, unstable, as Her power blasted into the sky in a cone of power. Energy roiled and rocketed through the gardener’s body, and She clutched her shoulders as blue and yellow energy coalesced, her body lifting slightly into the air as the painful power rocketed through her limbs.
After all, if you cannot survive even this much energy…
You are no worthy successor to my strength.
“G… gah… gak…ch….” Misaki managed, as she feltthe foreign ki move through her. Every inch of her body felt ready to tear apart, but she had not raised it to be disobedient enough to go through with that notion without her permission. With a scream, she dispelled it for half a second, using a kiai to push it away with a simple “Ragggh!””
Calming herself, trying her best to soothe her breathing, even as it became difficult, she thought back to Warr’s more measured training, showing her how to calm herself, how to make her ki work with her, not against her, and placed both hands palm-up to her sides as she focused…
Yellow and blue ki bounced up and down from misaki in a torrent, a hurricane of yellow and blue energy that battled one another, the frequency between the two becoming shorter and shorter, until finally…
Misaki breathed out, and at last, a spiking, sharp green aura suffused the Gardener’s body, skin-tight and more or less stable. The color swirled, going from dark, to light, to dark, and every shade in between.
The Gardener opened her eyes, and with a heavy sigh, gave a cautious smile.
“Then does that mean survivin this much… makes me your worthy successor?” She taunted aloud.
So that was why Misaki stood in naught but her usual dress and a lovely sunhat, complete with yellow flowers, and sturdy boots as she toiled at the earth. Perspiration dripped down her face, the watery sweat falling down her nose like it was a subtle canal. It had been a little while since she’d gotten to do such simple work - indeed, she hadn’t worked on a farm like this since she was a teenager, looking for extra work that would be interesting to someone of her interests and talents.
A gardener and a farmer had very similar jobs, in this instance. While Misaki did very little to take care of animals, they could both appreciate the hard work that went into plants. Creating the perfect environment both in the soil below and in the earth and air above, tirelessly making sure to water them - not too much, for fear of drowning the plants, nor too little, in case thirst overtook them. Making sure they grew up big and tall, and guiding them into the healthy creatures they would one day become.
...Hmm, come to think of it, Misaki wondered if Fauna were truly very different from flora, in that respect?
A grin, and a slight chuckle, echoed the gardener’s lips as the thought passed through her. Well then, perhaps she was the foolish one for thinking there were differences… perhaps.
The happy chuckle was suddenly cut off by a sudden slicing pain originating in her throat, leaving the gardener confused. What was this? She could feel… something reaching for her. An imprint of some branch leapt across her throat as the florist felt herself held back by some invisible force, briefly. What was going on? Her senses were going haywire, even as she felt her body start to go numb. Misaki’s strength was going out of her limbs even as she Grit her teeth and tried to hold on, defiance visible on every muscle of her face as she released her aura, Golden energy swirling around her….
And entered a world that was not her own. A place of blue, misty clouds firing electricity in different directions.
Misaki looked down to see her own body, the same as ever, with the exception that she was floating in mid-air, without even using a bit of her ki to keep aloft. She felt weightless, and yet she felt also as though she could barely move…
The Teahouse gardener pursed her lips, taking a deep breath as she waited for more of this realm to reveal itself…
So I have summoned you, and so you have come.
Misaki blinked. She had certainly heard words, but say nothing of what might have said them. What kind of situation was she in? What kind of craziness could cause any of this…
Or as a secondary possibility, had something been slipped into her afternoon tea?
...perhaps something had been slipped into her afternoon tea.
No phantasm of humanity’s delusions speaks to you, oh gardener of soul.
“...Then, who am I speaking to?” Misaki would ask, raising an eyebrow as she opened her eyes, looking around. She tried to open up her senses, but they felt hopelessly scrambled in this dark blue Miasma. It was simply too much noise to take in for her senses to properly process. A defense system, perhaps?
I have lived for hundreds of years, guiding and empowering the humans that once created me. I am the kreatest of all those that reach their hands towards the sky, and the last, kindest titan of my kin. I am nourishment for those that cry for power and Power for those who seek to nourish the world.
Misak blinked a few times, as the being explained itself.
“...Excuse me, could you repeat that all a little more clearly? I think I’m a little too out-of-sorts to recognize such clever wordplay, and this place is making me… a little dizzy.”
There was silence, for a few moments, before there was a violent shaking of the world around her… before a table, a chair, and a pair of tea-cups showed in front of her… along with… herself?
“I see.” The other-her stated. “I’m limited to what your mind already knows, and we have few commonalities in experience, so I’m afraid this form is what I am limited to, in order to have a normal conversation.
Misaki blinked a few times, flabbergasted, before taking a deep breath, and sitting down at the prepared chair.
“I’ll be a little more blunt… I am a guardian of the earth, born from the earth. A tree unlike any other.”
Misaki’s stare turned to one of curiosity, leaning forward as her hand left her chin. Juniper had said something about this to her before. A mystical tree that had a noticeably high ki…
Misaki blinked, looking around, and her eyes widened… as she looked down from her position, seeing a bright, golden aura outlining a system of tubes, long and fat, short and small… roots, she realized!
So this dark blue mist around her…
“Is my aura, yes. Though it’s not what it used to be.” The other Misaki stated, before sipping some of the otherworldly tea. “That’s what I need to ask you for.”
Misaki blinked. If this was such a powerful being in nature, then that fuelled an urge within Misaki to help it. “...Then, what is it you need?”
“I am dying.” The other Misaki replied. “But not due to age. I should have millenia left to exist.”
With a sigh, the other her put the cup of tea down on the saucer, the liquid going from piping hot to frigid. “I am being slowly drained for all I’m worth by a madman. One who will most certainly kill me if he’s left to it…”
Misaki frowned. “And you’d like me to kill him for you.”
The tree shook it’s head. “...Yes, but that’s not quite all.”
“Then, what?”
“I don’t need a savior who will simply leave me to be taken by some other madman. I have grown tired of that…”
Misaki nodded. “...So you’re looking for a commitment.”
“...I’m looking for a guardian.”
The Florist smirked. “You’re quite forward for a tree, aren’t you.”
“I am strong. So I am allowed.” The apparition stated. “As long as you prove to be my chosen guardian, I will grant you my power.”
Misaki thinks about that, and slowly nods. “The power to protect you from misuse by those who would abuse nature?”
“Precisely.”
Misaki would look thoughtful for a moment, seemingly lost in thought, before nodding. “...Very well. Your terms are not unseemly. I accept your offer…”
Misaki tapped her head. “...I suppose I’ll have to figure out a name for you later. I’m thinking… max.”
The Tree blinked, before clasping it’s hands together. “...We should really workshop that. But… the time for talk has passed. Do you accept my charge?”
“I do.”
“Then… back to your realm you go… and by this power I imprint your status as guardian…”
“With this…-” Misaki managed, but already the vision was swirling away, and the Real world asserted itself with terrifying authority.
As the vision shifted, and she found herself on solid ground once again… or rather, unstable, as Her power blasted into the sky in a cone of power. Energy roiled and rocketed through the gardener’s body, and She clutched her shoulders as blue and yellow energy coalesced, her body lifting slightly into the air as the painful power rocketed through her limbs.
After all, if you cannot survive even this much energy…
You are no worthy successor to my strength.
“G… gah… gak…ch….” Misaki managed, as she feltthe foreign ki move through her. Every inch of her body felt ready to tear apart, but she had not raised it to be disobedient enough to go through with that notion without her permission. With a scream, she dispelled it for half a second, using a kiai to push it away with a simple “Ragggh!””
Calming herself, trying her best to soothe her breathing, even as it became difficult, she thought back to Warr’s more measured training, showing her how to calm herself, how to make her ki work with her, not against her, and placed both hands palm-up to her sides as she focused…
Yellow and blue ki bounced up and down from misaki in a torrent, a hurricane of yellow and blue energy that battled one another, the frequency between the two becoming shorter and shorter, until finally…
Misaki breathed out, and at last, a spiking, sharp green aura suffused the Gardener’s body, skin-tight and more or less stable. The color swirled, going from dark, to light, to dark, and every shade in between.
The Gardener opened her eyes, and with a heavy sigh, gave a cautious smile.
“Then does that mean survivin this much… makes me your worthy successor?” She taunted aloud.