1 The Court of Owls [Contract/Private] Sun May 07, 2017 12:49 am
Karumo
D-rank
There was everything laid out before him, big empty room even though he didn't need the space, probably 20 feet in each dimension and in the center, was a large scroll with its sealing formula scribed across its surface as it lay open in the middle of the floor, just like he'd left everything. The room itself was empty and near barren, it's grey walls that reflected no light gave it a natural dimness that was perfect for this sort of thing. Crouching down just behind the scroll, running his eyes over the markings of the formula, Kuchiyose no Jutsu, a technique he'd been working to train for some time now was etched in formula in front of him. Hand on his right knee as his left was pointed down, he leaned forward and let his bangs drop as his eyes closed, taking a mental breath to focus himself.
He knew the consequences of doing this, activating the summoning jutsu without a signed contract. He'd either summon some animal that he was connected to in a form or he could end up like those of legend, pulled through and launched to who knows where in the world or possibly even to his own death. There was such subtlety in the fear that began to encompass him as he acted, holding his right hand up and biting into the side of his thumb, letting the blood flow gradually down it. The room filled with silence, he let his hands slide together fluently for the hand signs, pausing briefly at each one. Oo. Inu. Saru. Tori. Hitsuji. he mouthed the names to the signs aloud to himself in a mumble as he settled in, then with ferocity, pressed his blood soaked hand and chakra into the scroll. Letting it flood out in a pass and activating in a small puff of smoke that consumed him violently.
First it was a change, he stayed knelt down even as his body shifted, the floor was gone, everything was. It was just... smoke? Haze and mirrors at best as his scent was the first to return and strike against his nostrils, it was humid and filled the air with the scent of a forest, dirt and foliage were obvious as those smells filled the air and then the haze began to fade away to reveal the world around him. But no longer was the cold and grey empty space of that room but quickly growing green foliage. He was moving down, closer to it, falling? Karumo's demeanor began to shrink as his arms came in front of him in an X-shape to brace against himself, his eyes squinted as he could feel the wind around him and pressing sharply to his body. His knees moved up, retracting his legs and preparing to find anywhere to brace his fall and possible save his torso from anything painful on the way back to ground.
Not to say there wasn't panic, as the green brush of the canopy opened up and sank to his vision, there was nothing but a hundred thoughts running through his mind. If he could use chakra to grab something and prevent his free-fall, how far the ground was, remembering that he could have anywhere from ten feet to hundreds of feet from the canopy to the floor. Still, the first bit came into contact, rustling was the sound but it didn't give true image of the speed and force of which Karumo crashed into those leave, a few branches, he was tossed to his side as he burned through it. A small grunt as he changed position again, finding his midsection coming crashing directly into a thick branch, knocking the breath right out of him but he didn't feel it otherwise. What he felt was the rotation as his body wrapped around and moved him to fall from his back first, sure it killed his speed and momentum, but if that had been six inches or higher onto his chest he might be reeling from broken ribs and the like instead.
Thankfully his fall the rest of the way down, was... more controlled? In the sense that debris, tree limbs, brush, and vines of all sorts all found their way to making contact with his ever increasing lifeless body, every thump and rotation, new welts and bruises forming as he moved down. Every increase in acceleration and downward velocity was brought to a halt by a new obstacle to break his momentum entirely. To call that sort of fall fun would be an insult, but the last twenty feet down or so was clear, and that's when he came to a heavy thud at the jungle floor, thick grass broke his fall to a degree, enough that he wouldn't snap his neck but it did become dark. He'd passed out, his body taken enough punishment for the time and he dreamed, lightly of nothing in particular, about where he was and how he got there.
One minute inside the village in a testing room and the next moment he was midair in a jungle and in free fall. In his darkness, he didn't find much solace, instead he found himself... wandering around aimlessly? Was he... lost? Where was he heading, he mused to himself from his own omniscient point of view in dreamscape, wondering if this was the hell he was confined to in death. It seemed like eternity, watching himself wander about, staring straight ahead, no path in particular and nothing around him in the void, it startled him greatly. His subconscious was building the image of his own perceived future, nothing in particular to aim for and nothing or no one around to serve and protect in any manner. He was lost in his mind as he felt lost in his own real life. Sweating, his omniscient presence grew eerily nervous, sounds began to flood him and then... the image of him walking away began to shrink? No... instead it was that he was falling? The self he felt aware of disappeared and his speed gaining, it grew smaller and smaller and seemed to disappear but before it could light struck his eyes!
Karumo jumped up gasping for breath, visibly sweating on the jungle floor, his legs out in front of him he found himself sitting among the brush and grass. The sounds of birds chirping off in the distance and crickets around him, wind blowing, and his own breath audibly heard around him. He looked at his palms, focusing on controlling his breath slowly, a shallow tint of sweat gleamed under the indirect sunlight, he wiped them into his pants to remove the moisture. His clothing was dirty now, that ANBU armor he'd wore came in handy just a little bit this time, probably keeping some of the more severe bruises mild, but he didn't have time to think on it. Looking around his surroundings he saw nothing but brush and darkness in the distance, a thick forest almost. Dry and temperate, the wind blew just enough to give an eerie noise across the trees, light enough that a normal person wouldn't hardly feel it and couldn't tell the direction it came in.
Only one thing stood out to him, a lone owl watching him with huge and beady yellow eyes, black pupils intently focused upon him. The sound it cooed out, Hoo Hoo! Hoo Hoo! rang absently in Karumo's mind. He grunted, bringing a knee up towards his chest and placing his hand into it as he pressed himself up slowly, the fatigue and soreness in his joints escaped his mind but not his body. It wasn't until he'd risen to a knee that he'd heard a voice call out from some place around him, "Where did you come from, boy?" The tone was deep and condescending, Karumo's purple eyes flicked up and looked around, but there was nothing. Only that owl twitching and shaking its feathers, as birds so often did to shake away liquid around them or to keep themselves clean.
Shaking his head, Karumo tried to bring himself together, You can't lose your mind now, you've just got here... survival is no small problem, and you're a strategist. You can't be hearing voices, just keep it together... he spoke audibly in his mind and mumbled it hardly to himself as he shook his head and stood up completely, patting some dirt off himself. Seemingly, avoiding any noticeable broken bones, at least none that would prevent him from standing and beginning to move. Then, the voice pierced again, "Don't make me ask twice!" it was loud and commanding, some unknown entity, Karumo looked around again, stepping around and spinning to see if it was behind him instead. Nothing... "Don't tell me you're crazy and deaf! That would be such a tragedy here..."
Karumo turned and looked towards the owl, still the only other entity here, it's head was clocked to the side a bit as its eyes focused in on him. Karumo blinked and gulped a bit, "You?" he paused and waited, the bird's head slowly moved back to vertical and the bird spoke up with a shake of its feathers. "Of course! No one else is here you dunce!"
What Karumo was really unaware of now, was that he had entered the Time-Lost Eyrie (高時萎巣曾, Kōjīsusō). Face to face with an owl who spoke, no idea himself where he was, or how to get away, questions surmounting and nothing to give him any reassurance that he wasn't losing his mind. About to talk to an owl in the middle of a forest he had no recollection of in any form.
[1650 words]
[To be Continued]
He knew the consequences of doing this, activating the summoning jutsu without a signed contract. He'd either summon some animal that he was connected to in a form or he could end up like those of legend, pulled through and launched to who knows where in the world or possibly even to his own death. There was such subtlety in the fear that began to encompass him as he acted, holding his right hand up and biting into the side of his thumb, letting the blood flow gradually down it. The room filled with silence, he let his hands slide together fluently for the hand signs, pausing briefly at each one. Oo. Inu. Saru. Tori. Hitsuji. he mouthed the names to the signs aloud to himself in a mumble as he settled in, then with ferocity, pressed his blood soaked hand and chakra into the scroll. Letting it flood out in a pass and activating in a small puff of smoke that consumed him violently.
First it was a change, he stayed knelt down even as his body shifted, the floor was gone, everything was. It was just... smoke? Haze and mirrors at best as his scent was the first to return and strike against his nostrils, it was humid and filled the air with the scent of a forest, dirt and foliage were obvious as those smells filled the air and then the haze began to fade away to reveal the world around him. But no longer was the cold and grey empty space of that room but quickly growing green foliage. He was moving down, closer to it, falling? Karumo's demeanor began to shrink as his arms came in front of him in an X-shape to brace against himself, his eyes squinted as he could feel the wind around him and pressing sharply to his body. His knees moved up, retracting his legs and preparing to find anywhere to brace his fall and possible save his torso from anything painful on the way back to ground.
Not to say there wasn't panic, as the green brush of the canopy opened up and sank to his vision, there was nothing but a hundred thoughts running through his mind. If he could use chakra to grab something and prevent his free-fall, how far the ground was, remembering that he could have anywhere from ten feet to hundreds of feet from the canopy to the floor. Still, the first bit came into contact, rustling was the sound but it didn't give true image of the speed and force of which Karumo crashed into those leave, a few branches, he was tossed to his side as he burned through it. A small grunt as he changed position again, finding his midsection coming crashing directly into a thick branch, knocking the breath right out of him but he didn't feel it otherwise. What he felt was the rotation as his body wrapped around and moved him to fall from his back first, sure it killed his speed and momentum, but if that had been six inches or higher onto his chest he might be reeling from broken ribs and the like instead.
Thankfully his fall the rest of the way down, was... more controlled? In the sense that debris, tree limbs, brush, and vines of all sorts all found their way to making contact with his ever increasing lifeless body, every thump and rotation, new welts and bruises forming as he moved down. Every increase in acceleration and downward velocity was brought to a halt by a new obstacle to break his momentum entirely. To call that sort of fall fun would be an insult, but the last twenty feet down or so was clear, and that's when he came to a heavy thud at the jungle floor, thick grass broke his fall to a degree, enough that he wouldn't snap his neck but it did become dark. He'd passed out, his body taken enough punishment for the time and he dreamed, lightly of nothing in particular, about where he was and how he got there.
One minute inside the village in a testing room and the next moment he was midair in a jungle and in free fall. In his darkness, he didn't find much solace, instead he found himself... wandering around aimlessly? Was he... lost? Where was he heading, he mused to himself from his own omniscient point of view in dreamscape, wondering if this was the hell he was confined to in death. It seemed like eternity, watching himself wander about, staring straight ahead, no path in particular and nothing around him in the void, it startled him greatly. His subconscious was building the image of his own perceived future, nothing in particular to aim for and nothing or no one around to serve and protect in any manner. He was lost in his mind as he felt lost in his own real life. Sweating, his omniscient presence grew eerily nervous, sounds began to flood him and then... the image of him walking away began to shrink? No... instead it was that he was falling? The self he felt aware of disappeared and his speed gaining, it grew smaller and smaller and seemed to disappear but before it could light struck his eyes!
Karumo jumped up gasping for breath, visibly sweating on the jungle floor, his legs out in front of him he found himself sitting among the brush and grass. The sounds of birds chirping off in the distance and crickets around him, wind blowing, and his own breath audibly heard around him. He looked at his palms, focusing on controlling his breath slowly, a shallow tint of sweat gleamed under the indirect sunlight, he wiped them into his pants to remove the moisture. His clothing was dirty now, that ANBU armor he'd wore came in handy just a little bit this time, probably keeping some of the more severe bruises mild, but he didn't have time to think on it. Looking around his surroundings he saw nothing but brush and darkness in the distance, a thick forest almost. Dry and temperate, the wind blew just enough to give an eerie noise across the trees, light enough that a normal person wouldn't hardly feel it and couldn't tell the direction it came in.
Only one thing stood out to him, a lone owl watching him with huge and beady yellow eyes, black pupils intently focused upon him. The sound it cooed out, Hoo Hoo! Hoo Hoo! rang absently in Karumo's mind. He grunted, bringing a knee up towards his chest and placing his hand into it as he pressed himself up slowly, the fatigue and soreness in his joints escaped his mind but not his body. It wasn't until he'd risen to a knee that he'd heard a voice call out from some place around him, "Where did you come from, boy?" The tone was deep and condescending, Karumo's purple eyes flicked up and looked around, but there was nothing. Only that owl twitching and shaking its feathers, as birds so often did to shake away liquid around them or to keep themselves clean.
Shaking his head, Karumo tried to bring himself together, You can't lose your mind now, you've just got here... survival is no small problem, and you're a strategist. You can't be hearing voices, just keep it together... he spoke audibly in his mind and mumbled it hardly to himself as he shook his head and stood up completely, patting some dirt off himself. Seemingly, avoiding any noticeable broken bones, at least none that would prevent him from standing and beginning to move. Then, the voice pierced again, "Don't make me ask twice!" it was loud and commanding, some unknown entity, Karumo looked around again, stepping around and spinning to see if it was behind him instead. Nothing... "Don't tell me you're crazy and deaf! That would be such a tragedy here..."
Karumo turned and looked towards the owl, still the only other entity here, it's head was clocked to the side a bit as its eyes focused in on him. Karumo blinked and gulped a bit, "You?" he paused and waited, the bird's head slowly moved back to vertical and the bird spoke up with a shake of its feathers. "Of course! No one else is here you dunce!"
What Karumo was really unaware of now, was that he had entered the Time-Lost Eyrie (高時萎巣曾, Kōjīsusō). Face to face with an owl who spoke, no idea himself where he was, or how to get away, questions surmounting and nothing to give him any reassurance that he wasn't losing his mind. About to talk to an owl in the middle of a forest he had no recollection of in any form.
[1650 words]
[To be Continued]