Duncan Heimdall Jackson (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
inchesofevil) wrote in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
maskormenacelogs2015-11-12 11:25 am
inchesofevil) wrote in maskormenacelogs2015-11-12 11:25 am
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[Closed]
WHO: Duncan & Sai
WHERE: Heropa #10
WHEN: 11/8, Sunday
WHAT: Duncan comes over to discuss the particulars of resurrection with Sai
WARNINGS: Death talk, also Duncan can't go five words without swearing
[The fact that the government ImPort housing is all grouped together makes this easy, it's not a long walk from Duncan's place to Sai's.
He spent most of the morning on clothes shopping, building up a couple weeks' worth of wardrobe so he can actually dress like a normal Earther and not immediately out himself as an ImPort. Had to dig through his wallet for the money - Zenderael gold turned out to be worth like $200 a coin with the current gold weight/dollar exchange rate, so that was a nice discovery. Unfortunately he only had like 12 gold on him when he got pulled over here, so... Gonna have to use that fallback sparingly.
"sparingly" means using one to buy himself a decent pair of boots tbh tho
Anyway the point is that when he shows up at Sai's doorstep to ring the doorbell, he's not wearing the armour he was when he made that video post. Instead it's boots, jeans, and a long-sleeved T-shirt - white with red sleeves - and the only thing that stands out about him is the fact that he's wearing long sleeves in eighty degree Florida weather.]
WHERE: Heropa #10
WHEN: 11/8, Sunday
WHAT: Duncan comes over to discuss the particulars of resurrection with Sai
WARNINGS: Death talk, also Duncan can't go five words without swearing
[The fact that the government ImPort housing is all grouped together makes this easy, it's not a long walk from Duncan's place to Sai's.
He spent most of the morning on clothes shopping, building up a couple weeks' worth of wardrobe so he can actually dress like a normal Earther and not immediately out himself as an ImPort. Had to dig through his wallet for the money - Zenderael gold turned out to be worth like $200 a coin with the current gold weight/dollar exchange rate, so that was a nice discovery. Unfortunately he only had like 12 gold on him when he got pulled over here, so... Gonna have to use that fallback sparingly.
"sparingly" means using one to buy himself a decent pair of boots tbh tho
Anyway the point is that when he shows up at Sai's doorstep to ring the doorbell, he's not wearing the armour he was when he made that video post. Instead it's boots, jeans, and a long-sleeved T-shirt - white with red sleeves - and the only thing that stands out about him is the fact that he's wearing long sleeves in eighty degree Florida weather.]
lmk if this isn't cool!!
If he doesn't get himself free before the bird takes him to the roof, though, he'll find Sai there waiting for him. He could have just ridden the bird down to fetch you, but. Eh.]
as discussed~
Duncan does not react well to suddenly being grabbed from behind, like, at all. And it's not just a matter of him being naturally high-strung and jumpy, though he is that. It's a matter of his brain having rewired itself to react to the tiniest hints of danger as if they were all full-blown lethal threats. There is no moment to stop and evaluate what level of response a threat warrants, it's just pure panic and instinct with one single goal: get the fuck away from whatever it is, however you can.
so his reaction to being grabbed is to IMMEDIATELY start struggling, and once his brain finally picks up on what he's being 'attacked' by, he has a target.
He might've lost his support magic when he got here, but his attack magic is working just fine. He throws a smite spell up at the bird and gets it to drop him, but unfortunately not before it managed to drag him a few feet off the ground.
So he falls, and he lands hard, flat on his back, knocking the wind out of him. THAT REALLY HURTS but a) he'll be fine and b) he's too busy staring up at the sky and trying to drag his brain out of panic mode to care at the moment]
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After observing Duncan for a few moments, he pulls out his communicator and sends the other man a message: i am on the roof]
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ah. was that his phone's text message beep?
yes. he should answer that. phone rings, answer it, that's how it works, he knows this one.
still working mostly on instinct, he reaches into his pocket and pulls it out to check his texts. he frowns at the one he gets.
The message he sends back is just: What?]
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look up
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he is looking up! up is the only direction he can look in from here! but he glances away from the phone to look up at the roof to see if he can spot anyone.
... ah. wait.]
Was that your bird?
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it was not going to harm you
[And he didn't expect you to fight back against the perceived threat.
...Which makes him realize, with a minor bit of disdain toward himself, that he's been living among civilians entirely too long. Back on his first day he took a senior jock-type trying to pants him as an attempt on his life and threatened them with a sword. And now he's just taking as given that he can snatch someone up from the street without incident.]
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[he picks himself up off the ground, dusts himself off, straightens out his clothes, etc. he notices that it doesn't even hurt anymore. he should've at least gotten some nasty bruises out of that; does the healing factor really work that fast? Damn, son.]
Can we do this on the ground maybe?
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no
[......but that's probably as far as any consideration from him will go, ha ha ha...there's Important Shit he's got to talk about, and he's not doing it in public, even if likely no one would have any idea what he was talking about.]
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[ugh and he forgot to notice before but now that he's calmed down he realizes he is COVERED IN INK.
goddammit sai he just bought these clothes!! literally an hour ago!]
What the fuck was that bird even, though
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[also goddamn he does not want to do the whole Explaining Chakra 101 dance rn]
lets just say one of my abilities allows me to materialize what i draw should i wish to
[Among his many, many other abilities, because shonen.]
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dammit he should make Sai pay for replacements if he can't get this ink out]
Ok well
Send another one down I guess. I won't attack it this time.
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very well
[A quick couple swipes of his brush against his scroll, and a new bird materializes from the page, flapping its wings as it touches down on the ground and turns its head toward Duncan, as if waiting patiently.]
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this is better, though, the bird waiting patiently instead of just grabbing him and flying off. why didn't you just do this in the first place dude
Duncan shoves his phone back into his pocket and walks over to the bird, cautiously touching a hand to it first to see if it'll come away covered in ink. He wants to make sure he's not going to make it worse before climbing onto the thing's back.]
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And he didn't do it because he thought it'd be more efficient okay, it was a Miscalculation. The bird is perfectly dry, however. The chakra holding it together might even approximate the feel of feathers (because somehow he can create ink fish even??? idk its magic)
Once Duncan is on the roof, Sai tilts his head mildly at the older man, expression impassive as usual.]
I chose the roof because we are less likely to be overheard up here.
[Sure, there's no doors that can be locked, but no one comes up here either. Most civilians can't get up here on their own.]
What we discuss today is not to be repeated to anyone, for any reason. The only exceptions are individuals you see me address as Hokage, do you understand?
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Once he's on the roof, he climbs off, looks to Sai, and...gives him a very dubious expression at the explanation. That's... ok buddy. There were probably much better choices for this than your roof, but ok.]
Yeah, sure.
And hey, you know what, don't repeat anything I say here to anybody you don't hear me call "Vahishta."
[ok he's being a smartass because he's the only Vahishta that exists right now. but the way this has gone so far makes him inclined to be a smartass, esp since you wouldn't know it unless you understood how Zenderael's titles worked.]
[He takes a seat on the roof, folds his arms, and motions toward Sai with one arm to prompt him to start talking about whatever it is he wanted to discuss specifically.]
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Anyway, there's some slight squinting at the mention of Vahishta because didn't you call yourself that, sir. But okay, timeline shit, there are probably other Vahishtas before/after him and that's probably what he's talking about? Whatever, not important unless they actually show up.]
As you wish.
[But okay, now that they've got that settled, how does he actually go about this? If he wasn't prepared to get into chakra and jutsu, he sure as hell isn't about to get into jinchuuriki or the Infinite Tsukuyomi. So he'll just. Distill this into the basics, really.]
You are aware of the unusual flow of time in this world, correct? [He hopes you are, because he sure don't have the patience to explain it to you] In the near future from my time, my world will be engulfed by war.
[And he does mean the entire world. It's. Yeah.]
All of the shinobi countries will ally together against a group known as the Akatsuki, who essentially seek control over the entirety of the world.
[More like Madara plans to plunge all of humankind into a mass delusion powered by feeding their life force into a tree as a means of creating world peace because Narutoverse is Fucked Up, but, y'know.]
From what I understand, there have been considerable losses on our side already. As you can imagine, the presence of someone capable of resurrection would be an invaluable resource to us.
But you are not of our world. Despite what you say, we cannot expect your cooperation for free. If you agree to assist, you may name your price before the Hokage.
[Because he sure isn't authorized to promise you shit.]
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Mm hm. [@ the flow of time question. He has noticed some stuff on the network that seems to imply the passage of time here doesn't line up with the passage of time in people's home universes, and it seems like a natural assumption to make anyway.
He sets an arm on his leg and his chin in his hand, settling in to listen. "Shinobi countries" gets an arched eyebrow, but he doesn't ask for details. He gets the basic gist of it. Big war imminent, lots of deaths to occur.
But his brow furrows as he realizes what Sai is asking. That is...wow. That's certainly a commitment to ask of someone. Duncan could probably just teach Sai resurrection himself, but...well, that's dangerous, for one thing, and he can't in this world for another. He can't make clerics anymore for some reason. And even if he could, Sai would be stuck without the components necessary to make it safe for himself, so...
And on top of all that, he's a political figure in Zenderael. That comes along with the god-organ, he's important, his allegiances have weight. When he supports something, he is necessarily also giving the support of his entire church and the implicit support of the whole country along with it. That's what it would mean to agree to help with this.
Most importantly, though, is this stumbling block: ]
Could I even go to your world to help?
Seems to me like it doesn't work that way here.
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Not as yet. But there are many individuals in this world with a vested interest in changing that. If it is truly impossible, the point is moot, and of course any arrangement we make will be null and void should either of us leave this world before control can be gained over the Porter.
But would you be willing, in theory? Under the assumptions that you can come to my world, that there do not arise pressing concerns in your own that demand your attention, and that we can offer you sufficient compensation for your efforts?
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Sorry, Sai. But he is way more intrigued by that potential goal than what you're asking of him.]
[He drops his arm to his lap, straightening his posture out slightly.] Is there any kind of organized effort to take control of the Porter? Just. Out of curiosity. [because the whole point is moot if that's not going to happen, see, so it's a perfectly understandable question to ask]
But, uh, as for the offer-- [He reaches up to rub the bridge of his nose, glancing away from Sai and the roof briefly.] There are pressing concerns in my own world that I have to worry about.
[drops his hand again, looking back to Sai] You, uh. You mentioned a cost, when we talked about this on the network. Specifically, sacrificing someone else. Is that because that's how resurrection works where you're from?
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Not as such. We are not allowed to visit that particular Porter after we arrive, so any progress on that front is currently restrained to the theoretical. Your best bet would likely be at StarkTech.
[But Sai doesn't know shit about technology, so he is useless there.]
But that is correct. Such methods are typically labeled as kinjutsu, forbidden, but they do exist, and they are not unused. The leader of the Land of Wind, the Kazekage, was recently revived through such a method, in fact.
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Alright, so question then. People who've been resurrected, do they remember what being dead was like?
[This is the important part. This is the part he cares about, whether the afterlife is tolerable or hellish. That's the deciding factor in whether or not resurrection services seem vital.]
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[It's too bad Gaara's gone now. He's sure the man would agree with him on how useful of a resource Duncan would be. A pause, and he adds:]
If you assist with our war, perhaps we can be of use for the matters in your own world.
[He has to qualify it with that "perhaps", considering he has literally 0 authority to actually make any kind of political bargain, but the offer has to seem at least somewhat attractive to even be able to bring it to that stage.]
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[he's pretty sure that if it's amazingly terrible, there would be at least some kind of mythology floating around for it based on a personal account. so if not, then...it's probably not very pressing to make sure nobody there stays dead...]
I mean--I'm not sure how much you know about politics, but if I agreed to help you it'd be the same as agreeing to have my whole church help you, which means dragging the whole country into it... There'd have to be a meeting of leaders and a treaty and a whole bunch of other political bullshit, and I'm not sure I could convince all of those folks to back me up.
So if I'm going to try to convince them, I need to know if it's worth it.
I need to know if the dead in your world wind up in an actual, literal Hell.
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I know enough about political affairs, Heimdall-san. I understand what I am asking of you.
...You should ask Uzumaki Naruto for answers to your questions. He is friends with he man who was resurrected. [Pause] He is also more likely to know if there are any stories of the afterlife's nature in Konoha.
[Maybe he'll just take that at face value and not question it further, that would be really convenient.]
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[as long as he knows what he's asking, then Duncan's okay with him asking it.
And Sai is lucky, because nothing he says about Naruto triggers any suspicion. Knowing someone who was resurrected and having knowledge of the afterlife are not rare things in Duncan's world, and he doesn't think to question why.]
Alright, well. [he climbs to his feet, dusting himself off, but grimaces at the reminder that he's covered in ink and gives up.] You have my contact info. Tell him to get in touch with me, and I'll discuss it with him and get back to you about it.
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Alright. Thank you for your time, Heimdall-san.
[A beat, then:]
Would you like a ride back down?
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[pause. awkward glance toward the edge of the roof.]
...Yeah.
And thanks for fucking asking, this time.
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It makes him unfortunately a lot less useful if he does decline, but there's no reason not to still keep some manner of alliance with him in an informal sense. After all, someone who can resurrect the dead at no cost is not someone you want to work with your enemies at any point.]
You're welcome.
[Another couple of strokes of his brush on a scroll and the forming of his hand into a seal, and another ink bird materializes from off the page, which he hops onto, and motions Heimdall forward]
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he's going to be scrubbing ink out of these damn clothes all goddamn day after this...]
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But at least the ride back down proceeds without incident, and Sai even waits for Duncan to get down off said bird before he dismisses the creature, and it disappears in a puff of white smoke.]
Until we speak again, Heimdall-san.