expiationlogs | Man is something that shall be surpassed [Semi-open]

Man is something that shall be surpassed [Semi-open]

Who: Biwasaka Eiji and Shikishima Ritsu (first prompt); Biwasaka Eij and open (second prompt)
Where: Eiji and Ritsu's room (first prompt); About Aldrip's town square (second prompt)
What: Eiji discovers a new tattoo right about his right eye. He is not pleased. He does, however, become a bit more pleased when he discovers the 'powers' he might be manifesting. Ritsu will likely be less pleased by this (first prompt). Later, Eiji decides to go about the village a bit, seeing if he can find others who are marked and, more importantly, testing and seeing who might be affected by his new found 'ability'. (Second Prompt)
Warnings: Mind control. Dealings with a high functioning psychopath.

A. Inside his room; locked to Ritsu

[Eiji is a vain man. That is something clear in how he carries himself. Eiji would ask why he shouldn't be. He knows that he is an impressive example of humanity, much better, and much higher, than so many others who are human. Only those who have no pride would ever be ashamed to acknowledge their vanity, whether that be in skill, or knowledge, or in appearance.

It's part of why Eiji is in such a bad mood today. While Eiji is intentional and proud of his appearance, it isn't common for him to spend much time in front of the mirror. But right now, he is, lips drown down in a grimace of anger. He uses his hand to move his hair a little more out of the way as he inspects the tattoo above his right eye that hadn't been there before.]

Bastards...

[His voice is a hiss, eyes furrowed in barely contained rage.]

Are you trying to fuck with me?

[How dare someone decide to change a part of him, of his body. How dare they do so without his consent.

In the back of Eiji's mind, there's a dull hum. Unfamiliar to him. The beginning of a headache, perhaps, he thinks. This situation is pissing him off enough for it to be one.]

B. Around Aldrip; Open to All

[In the end, it made sense after all. That he should be gifted...no, that he should have earned this new ability. That he should have something else that not just sets him aside from other men, but gives him authority over other men. It is only right; it is only logical, after all. He is that impressive a specimen of humanity. Isn't it right, that his own mind should affect others? Should direct others? It only makes sense. How much better, and greater, everything would be with Eiji in charge, undisputed.

He goes about a normal day in Aldrip, greeting others and seeing if there's anything new. The temptation to start using his ability to control minds, to flex them, is great. Eiji, however, manages to resist that, at least for the most part. It would be unwise to go to extreme with it yet. Going from 0 to 100 mph on this would be a bad idea. It has too great a chance of exposing him. He needs to be somewhat cautious with it. Even if Ritsu seemed to succumb to his control...Ritsu, one of the only people Eiji has ever met that he would consider an equal or possible greater...no. He still needs to be cautious.

Because there are others. That woman over the communication devices revealed that, didn't she. Other marked. Other people who, Eiji assumes, might have proven themselves to be overmen, just as he is. Eiji should seek them out. Learn about them, to see how he might overcome them.

No. Learn about them and come to join them. They are united in how much greater they are then everyone else. They must acknowledge and respect each other for that. Right Eiji? Yes. Right. That's right.

While you're out today, Eiji might come up to you.]

It feels like this place is going to be getting busy soon, doesn't it?

[He says it happily, and with a smile, eyes on the person he's speaking with. Still...now and then, his eyes seem to just briefly wander. Like he's looking for something. Sometimes, very briefly, he looks towards the forest.]

[OOC: Eiji is afflicted with mind control by the eldritch-like entity the event will be centered around, and has the ability for mind control in turn. At this time, Eiji is unlikely to try to use his power, though if a player gives permission, he might attempt it to try and ingratiate himself further with that character. Please tell me if you are okay with Eiji attempting this in your post; he will not attempt to use this power unless a player gives permission.]

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[Ritsu supposes it was about time the other shoe dropped.

If this is just a tattoo, then it's not a bad way to fuck with Eiji, Ritsu has to admit. Someone of Eiji's standing, so concerned with presenting a squeaky-clean image, ending up with a mark that hints at more unsavory affiliations? Ritsu supposes there's a very good chance that tattoos don't have such a connotation here, but even if that is the case, it doesn't change the fact that they have that connotation for Eiji. The insult is clear; they might as well have cut his pinky finger off for how loudly they seemed to be declaring that Eiji was a very specific type of criminal.

Which, of course, wasn't even getting into the fact that Ritsu very much doubts the mark is just a tattoo.]

I don't suppose there's any chance this one is just a blacklight stamp.

[Nor is it the mark of Ghatanothoa. Alarmingly, this one resembles something far more tailored to Eiji himself.]

Would it matter?

[The same questions have gone through Eiji's mind, as well as Ritsu's. Of course it has to be more than a tattoo. It has to be something placed on him by whatever force scooped them up from the bowels of hell and placed them here. It's not as if someone could have broken in and tattooed Eiji while he and Ritsu were asleep.

Still scowling, Eiji turns from the mirror to Ritsu.]

We'll have to keep a sharp eye on my behavior. Who knows what this goddamn thing actually means.

It looks like your Overdose.

[And that, perhaps, is the most worrying part of this.]

Do you feel any different?

No. ...I.

[There's that buzz in the back of his head. Soft and pleasant now, not the migraine Eiji had thought it was leading into. It's like a soft wave, lapping at the shore of his thought.

He feels fine.]

There's nothing. I feel fine.

[Ritsu's eyebrows raise slightly at Eiji's strange reply.]

...Well, until we can find out a bit more about this thing, it might be best if you avoid using your Catharsis Effect.

[Since it resembles Eiji's Overdose, there's a chance it might be tied to his Catharsis in some way.]

[Eiji clicks his tongue a little at that. Like a schoolteacher, unamused at a student trying to discipline them. Eiji's mood is on the sourer side today for sure, and it seems he's exhibiting little caution, despite his struggle with wording a moment ago.]

Ridiculous. What should I do if I find myself in danger?

[He supposes he could burn the shit out of whoever was threatening him, but his pyrokinesis is an ace he'd rather keep in his back pocket. It's a messy power to explain, and it has messy results. The fact that his Catharsis is non-lethal makes it easier to explain and justify.]

[Well, it's not so strange that Eiji is in a bad mood. It's hard to imagine anyone could be in a good mood after waking up to something like this.]

You have me, don't you?

[Thus far, though, this place hasn't been that dangerous. He hasn't needed to use his Catharsis at all since he got here, so what are the chances that that'll change all of a sudden?]

[That causes a pause in Eiji.

It's true. He has Ritsu, and Ritsu is his partner. Theoretically, the laws of society, of relationships, tell us that we rely on our partners, don't they? It is part of the reason we even have a partner. The saying usually goes that two heads are better than one. In essence, two can look out for each other better. They can pool resources, ideas, and share with one another.

The trade off for this to work is it requires them to be vulnerable to one another.

The last year and a half has been a hard journey for Eiji in that respect. Eiji is not accustomed to showing vulnerability. He knows too well that to be vulnerable, to tilt your neck, is to invite death. It's to possibly bring disaster upon yourself, if you are not careful or wise in the company you keep. Eiji has often been careful with the company he's kept, kept it to people who he was not threatened by. But even then, he never exposed his neck.

The last year has been a lot of him allowing Ritsu access to that vulnerable point, hasn't it? To a man who is Eiji's equal, who could be even greater than him, and so far Ritsu has not bit through his throat. Ritsu has continued to honor his vulnerability.]

[And yet. And yet, Eiji, is Ritsu truly worthy of your trust? Your full trust?

It is a noted fact that Ritsu desires you as much as Eiji desires Ritsu, it's true. But at the same time, Ritsu has shown he has a tendency to break when he doesn't get what he wants. Has shown, through the fact that Ritsu is simultaneously the musician Lucid, that Ritsu would be happy to crush Eiji if Eiji ever rejected him. Ritsu would be happy to kill Eiji, even worse, to demean Eiji should Eiji leave his grasp and become unobtainable.

It doesn't need to be objective unobtainability either. By Ritsu's own admission, Ritsu had been unable to perceive a way to gain Eiji, which led to his decisions as Lucid. It doesn't even need to be something rooted in reality for Ritsu to suspect Eiji of wrong doing and to fuck with him; it just needs to be what Ritsu perceives.

And Eiji has Ritsu? With all of that, what does that mean now Eiji? Eiji doesn't have a shield here, no. He has a loaded gun that has a history of exploding or backfiring.]

You could not be everywhere. And we cannot be together every moment.

[The reason why they couldn't be, when they damn near had been for a full year in Hell, seems to escape Eiji for now. He just knows that they can't be.]

Depending on what happens, we might find ourselves apart. We don't know what this means; we might need our Catharsis Effects.

Edited 2023-05-07 20:49 (UTC)

[A slight raise of an eyebrow.]

Do you plan to go somewhere without me?

[It's less of an actual question, more him pointing out how odd it is that Eiji should express a sentiment like this all of a sudden.]

[Infuriating. Eiji doesn't know why that sentiment should be so infuriating; after all, it's a rather logical statement. It's not as if Eiji does plan to go anywhere right now.]

No. I don't. Although, I might go for a walk later.

[Something to burn this irritation and annoyance. It could help to get some fresh air, and find out if others have to deal with this.

A walk in the forest, perhaps.]

[Unexpectedly, that brings up another point of consideration for Ritsu.]

I wonder if it'd be possible to cover that thing up with makeup. You might attract unwanted attention if you go out looking like that.

[That is a good point actually. It would look very suspect to just have it obvious and out there. Others could be looking for it. And really, Eiji has no certainty at all that he wants others to see it.

Eiji rests his chin on the thumb of a fist, thinking it over.]

It's true. It'd be better to avoid questions I don't have answers for yet.

You'd help me cover it, won't you, Ritsu?

[...? Has his mood improved all of a sudden?]

Of course.

Would you like me to do it now?

That would be best, I think.

[The sooner the better, Eiji thinks. Somewhere, somehow…Ritsu might think that too. A creeping vine at the back of his skull he just can’t place.]

[It's only natural to want that thing covered up as soon as possible. It doesn't suit Eiji at all, to have something so hideous marring his face like that. The sort of mark that would make people whisper and gossip about you as they pass you on the streets, clutching their belongings with fear... The sort of mark that would make respectable establishments decline to serve you... It'd be unforgivable to let it stay visible, wouldn't it?

He moves past Eiji to retrieve what he needs from the bathroom, then begins to apply it to Eiji's skin.]

[As always, Ritsu is quick and proficient in his work. Eiji would say he’s impressed - and he is - but at the same time he would expect nothing less of Ritsu. Multi-talented, fathomless Ritsu.]

…It’s odd, isn’t it?

They could have marked both of us, but only marked me.

Perhaps you left a bigger impression.

[He's joking.

Mostly.]

You think that’s it?

[Eiji’s voice is amused, but there’s actual inquisition underneath it. Yes. Of the two of them, Eiji would be the immediate stand out, wouldn’t he? Why shouldn’t he be the one chosen?

Chosen. Now there’s a word he hadn’t been associating this with before. But it feels right. Eiji was chosen. Doesn’t it just make sense to put it that way.]

It could be worth it to see who else has these marks, don’t you think?

[Obviously they should find out. It could only serve them to know who else might be…afflicted.]

[Ritsu is silent. Something about all of this irks him. While it's true that it could be helpful to find out if any others are also dealing with this and try to ascertain if there's any pattern, part of him is against the idea.

Part of him can't help but feel there's something off about the way Eiji is reacting to all of this.]

...Apophenia can be a dangerous tendency.

[Eiji should know that, at the very least. Sometimes there is no pattern, no bigger reason or rhyme to a particular thing. It's important to keep that in mind, lest one go into a scenario with a conclusion already made up.

Humans have a pesky inclination towards seeing only what they want to see.]

[There is a moment of silence as Eiji looks at Ritsu. It is a mere couple of seconds, but against anyone else, Eiji’s glare could draw those seconds into eternity.]

We have to pursue what leads we can while we have the time. We don’t know what this damn thing is.

[Oh, Ritsu knows that disapproving stare all too well. He's seen it every time he said something Eiji didn't approve of, every time he asked a question that was inconvenient for Eiji.

He hates the way it makes him feel, insecurity suddenly welling up inside of him, telling him to walk this back so he can fix it. So that Eiji stops looking at him like he's a disappointment, unworthy of Eiji's attention.]

You don't think that might be exactly what they want you to do?

[For now, he stands his ground. He's not the Ritsu who desperately trailed after Eiji in Mobius anymore.]

[Eiji can’t help it. He grimaced at that.]

Our other option is inaction.

[It isn’t. There are other actions they could take that would remain cautious. Slower, but still action.

But that isn’t what Eiji wants. He wants to take action now. To move, now. And the frustration he feels at Ritsu right now is palpable. How much easier it would be if Ritsu was following at his heels. It would only be appropriate; Eiji knows where he wants to go, compared to Ritsu. Ritsu, who often seems to be wandering.]

Don’t you want to go out too, Ritsu? It could give you a better look into the hearts of those who have been targeted.

Perhaps into mine, as well.

[Along with his words, a sliver of mental influence tries to slip into Ritsu’s mind. Isn’t this boring, Ritsu? Would it really be so bad to follow Eiji’s footsteps on this one? Maybe even comforting. He wants you to follow.

Eiji is ordering that he be followed.]

[A better look into the hearts of those who have been targeted? Is that what Eiji thinks he wants? He's insulted, and part of him feels hurt, too, that Eiji would try to appeal to him in such a way. As if he's still the Shikishima Ritsu who put on five hundred masks for five hundred different people, indiscriminately diving into their hearts to peek at the ugliness of human nature. As if they're back to those days again, of Ritsu and Eiji distrusting each other, putting barriers around each other's hearts to keep the other from getting too close.

Even though he threw that identity away already. Even though he gave up heart-diving, gave up being everyone's confidant — because that's what Eiji wanted, right? To have Ritsu's favor. To be the only one to have Ritsu's favor.

Because Eiji has always demanded no less than complete devotion.]

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