Weeks had passed since the incursion on the Antilon.
What remained of the mighty fortress lay buried beneath the Nhad Swamplands—its corridors collapsed, its systems extinguished, its purpose erased in a violent bloom of energy that no one among the Yaarou had witnessed… only escaped.
Beneath the veil of the Tempest of Madness, they managed to breach the Shi stronghold, cripple their defenses, and hunt their warriors through their own domain like wounded prey. The Yaarou had carved through hundreds of them with the precision and brutality expected of their name.
And yet—
The Serpent’s Heir had not been there. A simple fact that made the mission a complete failure.
☆☆☆☆
In the days that followed, the surviving operatives were returned to Qiyoto under immediate care.
Mitsuko had been the most difficult to stabilize. The necromatter that had taken root within her system resisted purification at every level, clinging to her regenerative processes like a parasite that refused to die. Even now, she remained under constant supervision—her body healing, fighting, adapting… refusing to yield.
Katsuro’s recovery had been faster, though no less taxing. The strain of maintaining his Nova State against an opponent that could track him had pushed his limits further than he had anticipated. He suffered from cranial swelling from Naten Exertion, but has since returned to mobility. Though the Inuki clan has since rescinded the aid of their heir and have instead sent “adequate” envoys of their own military. Much to the chagrin of the Yaarou council.
Takeda required the least intervention. His injuries, though dangerous, had been managed efficiently. He had already resumed light training, his composure intact—as though the encounter had been nothing more than a mild inconvenience.
And Rinnala…Rinnala required nothing.
She had refused extended treatment, and accepted only what was necessary to maintain function.
She was the first to return to readiness, and has done so without complaint.
But even she had not emerged unscathed.
—
Far above the quiet recovery wards, within the Yaarou Council Chamber, the Elders convened once more.
And the air within the obsidian walls was buzzing with tension, anxiety, and cyber activity.
Fragments of the Antlion invasion rotated slowly above the central table, projected through the hovering AION Sentinel's relay in cold, shifting light. Combat logs. Structural schematics. Energy readings. Every captured moment of the battle dissected, replayed, and analyzed.
Again..
And again..
And again..
The room was filled with the finest minds the Yaarou Clan had to offer; doctors, physicists, and several degrees of engineers all glued behind holographic screens. They were studying the Shi's AIONS weapon configurations and elite defense protocols in comparison to their domestic models. And while they may have held fewer in number, the AIONS deployed by the Shi displayed adaptive efficiency more refined than anything the Yaarou themselves had been granted access to.
And beneath those projections, another set of images lingered.
The SLAYERS Suits. The visuals captured during Xetta’s ultimatum were scrutinized under a microscopic lens.
Facial recognition identified them as The Shi Five, encased in these hyper technological exo-suits that pulsed faintly even in stillness—each one a convergence of Hyperian engineering and Shi ingenuity. The readings alone suggested their individual outputs were no less than nuclear in scale.
..They had not even been deployed. And still, the Yaarou had been forced to retreat.
Silence hung over the chamber.
Not from lack of thought, but perhaps from too much of it.
Keiko stood at the forefront of the assembly, her gaze fixed on the projections as they cycled once more through the final moments before the emergency extraction.
Her posture was as it always was—perfect. Composed. Unyielding. But her eyebrows were furrowed in hardened grooves. “Everybody out..” The word left her quietly, but it carried through the hushed cadence of murmurs and keystrokes. ”Council meeting. We need the room.” she said, referencing Jhun, Ayune, Sevrin, and herself. And the shift was sudden and uniform. In seconds, the collective of experts vacated the room and left only the aforementioned four settled around the central table
Jhun’s eyes narrowed slightly as the feed shifted to display the adaptive layering of one of the Sentinels. And before he spoke, he let off a heavy sigh. “There is no room for doubt.” he said. “The architecture is consistent. Computational behavior… unmistakable.”
His fingers tightened within his sleeves. “They have not only accessed AION frameworks—they have integrated them.. improved upon them.”
Keiko exhaled softly, her gaze fixed toward the projection. “Then the question is no longer if Hyperia betrayed us, but why? And for how long have they been coexisting?”
The wave of her hand caused the projection to shift again, and visuals of the SLAYER Suits filled the space once more. “Those units,” Keiko continued, “were even not deployed. Yet they were prepared for combat readiness within minutes. They must have taken months to develop.. if not longer to perfect.” Her voice remained even. Measured. “And if their Sentinels alone were sufficient to stall our operatives, then if these SLAYERS were ever released, we were doomed from the start. .”
No one argued.
The chamber dimmed slightly as the projection shifted again—this time to a broader map of the Nhad Swamplands.
Empty. Deceptively so.
“And the Serpent?” Sevrin asked.
Keiko waved her hand again, shifting the images to an overhead thermal view of the terrain “We have deployed satellites to monitor any subtle seismic changes, and we have been vigilant to his return.. but our sensors have recorded zero activity.”
A pause followed before Jhun spoke again. “Then.. we can anticipate that he will come to us then.. as It would not prove too difficult to find us.” He said, allowing the implications to properly smolder.
Qiyoto was not hidden, never had been. For centuries, the Yaarou remained the pinnacle of the Shinobi world and never encountered an enemy who dared impose upon their home in Edo. Not until now..
“Hmph. Yes, our Xhi'on did refuse Hyperia's cloaking technology, didn't she?” Sevrin said, as he clicked his tongue softly. “Another oversight we may soon regret..”
Silence lingered for a spell. Before Ayune cleared her throat and drew their attention. “Yes well, on the matter of Hitomi.”
That was enough. Every gaze shifted in her direction. Even Keiko's, though she did not turn fully. “Yes? What do you have to report, Elder?”
Ayune hesitated, but only for a moment. “She has regained consciousness.”
The chamber stilled. Sevrin’s head lifted sharply, and Jhun’s eyes widened into full crimson moons.
“When?!” Keiko asked.
“Recently.” Ayune contended. “She opened her eyes just a few days ago.”
“And.. her condition?”
Ayune’s gaze lowered once more. “She is stable.. But weakened. Severely.”
The weight of that answer settled heavily. “She is opposed to further visitation, but lies too weak to refuse treatment.. for now.” Ayune continued. “She remains confined to her quarters, but it is only a matter of time before she refuses my examinations.”
Sevrin exhaled through his nose. “Can she at least stand?” He asked, his voice quiet but irate. But simply Ayune shook her head. “Not without assistance.”
Another silence settled as the reality of it their situation became clear. Their Xhion lived, but she could not lead them. Not in her current condition.
Keiko’s gaze returned to the projections detailing their clan's impending threats and assailants; The Empire, The Shi SLAYERS, The AIONS, as well as the Serpent's Heir himself. And after a moment, Keiko finally spoke. “Then we proceed.”
”Proceed?” Jhun asked as his eyes shifted toward her. “With what?”
Sevrin chortled lightly, and smirked as if he'd already known what Keiko was referring to. Keiko unfolded her arms and angrily shot a gaze at Sevrin before she responded.
“If we have exhausted all other viable options, then we must press onward with what we have. We will proceed with him.. We must deploy the Defiler.”
A Wretched Bargain
-
The Yaarou Clan
- Drifter
- Posts: 118
- Joined: Tue Nov 05, 2024 6:42 pm
-
The Yaarou Clan
- Drifter
- Posts: 118
- Joined: Tue Nov 05, 2024 6:42 pm
Re: A Wretched Bargain
he descent into the lower chambers began in silence, no different than the first time the four of them approached the vault concealing the disgraced sorcerer. However, this time around, the halls were markedly colder. So much so that frost had formed along the enchanted walls of the descending corridor, and even crystallized the floor beneath their feet.
It was uncanny, like a vacuum that pulled at anything that drew closer to the dwarfing doors sealed at the end of the hall.
The further they trekked, the harder it became to breathe. It was subtle at first, but then all at once—a drastic and sudden drop in temperature and oxygen.
Ayune’s steps slowed—barely perceptible. She felt her breath hitch in her throat but she couldn't bring herself to stop.
Jhun’s fingers tightened once more within his sleeves.
Sevrin’s head tilted, as though listening to something no one else could hear.
Keiko did not hesitate. But even she felt it.. And despite her stoic expression, she shared the same sentiment as her peers.
It felt unnatural.
“Something is wrong.” Jhun murmured, his steps more measured than before. Ayune's apprehensive expression echoed this proclamation, though she was hesitant to voice anything herself. It wasn't until they approached the frost encrusted doors of Hiroshi's tomb did any of them give true thought to what Jhun had surmised.
The doors did not open immediately. Despite Keiko performing the proper handsign, the mechanisms controlling for locks upon the door responded as if they were frozen solid. But in time, with a low, grinding howl, the chamber doors slowly parted.
Beyond its threshold, Hiroshi's tomb remained visually unchanged.. but the moment they stepped inside, that small certainty withered to smoke.
The air here was so dry and thin that it was practically non-existent. Breathing, let alone standing, became a laborious effort even amongst the four of them.
And at the center of it all, sat the Defiler himself.
His posture was loose—one leg folded over the other, an arm resting lightly across his knee as he rested his head against his fist. The long, pale strands of his hair spilled freely over his shoulders and down his back, catching faint light from the sigils that lined the chamber walls.
Hiroshi had changed..
Where once there had been the withered frame of a man long past his prime, there now remained something.. Refined. His robe hung open at the chest, unfastened and unguarded, revealing a body that no longer bore the erosion of age. The gaunt hollows that once defined his face were gone, replaced with the contours of a man in his prime.
His wrinkled skin had become smooth and flawless while his atrophied muscles now swelled taut with vitality.
At first glance, it seemed to be an illusion. Keiko was certain of it. But the plumes of steam rolling from Hiroshi's flesh was evident of rapid cellular regeneration. This was no ruse. From the moment the Elders removed the shackles stunting his Naten, Hiroshi had been using Shokotsu to restore his body to its former glory.
“He has.. healed?” Jhun murmured in disbelief..
“Shokotsu.” Ayune answered quietly. “His mastery in the craft was at one point remained unparalleled among the clan. There are techniques and protocols that he has written that our sages teach the acolytes to this day.. including me..” She said, narrowing her eyes in shame. “While his name has been removed from the annals, the truth of the matter remains.. He was in a league of his own.”
“Welcome back, Elders.” His voice was a deep, resonant tremor that effortlessly commanded the room. But he spoke softly as if to quell its weight. “Was the mission a success?”
He asked with a coy and devilish smirk that barely moved his lips, but it was enough to ignite a smoldering vitriol within each of the four Yaarou oracles. None of them responded to him… Not until Keiko stepped forward after focusing her rage into a quiet, bloodied fist at her side.
“Are you mocking us?” She asked with a cynical smirk of her own. “This failure reflects on you, Defiler.. Your vision was flawed.”
A moment passed as Hiroshi slowly blinked his crimson eyes, allowing his gaze to pass lazily over Keiko to Jhun. ”Was it?” Hiroshi asked, as if posing the question solely to him.
Jhun instinctively stepped forward. “You predicted the Serpent's Heir would be present at the Shi stronghold. You were wrong..” He continued, grounded in their collective resolve. “You predicted we would not be met with resistance, and yet the Shi proved more than capable of defending themselves despite your best efforts.” His eyes narrowed as he challenged Hiroshi's apathetic gaze. “We've come to question our faith in your strength.”
“Yes, of course.” Hiroshi said suddenly as he slowly rose to his feet. “This must be why you initially refused to unleash me, yes? Because you.. questioned my strength. It must also be why each of your hearts have tripled in pace since you've arrived, and seen my new body.. because you all question my strength.” Hiroshi mused, pressing his palm against his neck and massaging out three hundred years old aches before settling his crimson gaze on the four of them. “Is this also why you've returned to this chamber, driven by your lack of faith once more?”
“Mind your tone, wretch.” Sevrin interjected, his Naten spiking wildly out of the intent alone. “Lest we remind you of the strength the Nayl of Heaven possesses.” His building aggression caused the seals along Hiroshi's neck, wrist and legs to ignite with a smoldering auburn color. “We own your soul, Defiler—regardless of the form you take. And your deception will not go unanswered.”
Hiroshi closed his eyes as the crests binding his free will began to sear and burn through flesh and bone. And while he didn't seem burdened by the enchanted scorching seal, his coy smirk did fade. “Hundreds of Shi were culled, yes? Their stronghold unveiled? Hmph, were their hidden strengths and weaknesses not exposed?” He asked while gesturing his hands in a theatrical manner. “And not a single Yaarou Shinobi was claimed in the effort? This is no failure, Elders, but the initial triumph of many.”
“Enough.” Keiko retorted. “Regardless of the outcome, the Serpent lives.”
Hiroshi inclined his head. “Of course.” He said, drawing ire and twisted glares as he continued. “If he had died so easily, he would not have been worth killing.”
The air shifted; again, the Elders felt the air in their lungs grow thin dry.
“The Serpent’s death was incumbent on presence on the endeavor. But you all should be glad that he was not there.. He would have slaughtered your soldiers and wore their flesh as he stormed Qiyoto.”
“Hmph.” Ayune scoffed. “..but you would have defeated him? Despite the SLAYERS and the AIONS.. you would have succeeded alone?”
“Yes.” Hiroshi said longingly, as if he were truly filled with regret. “He would have perished for the lives of any of his clansmen. And despite Aphosis, the child he is bound to is painfully human.” He continued, stroking his chin as if visualizing the event. “Breaking into the Shi stronghold would have given me my pick of hostages to choose from. Mother's, wives, children.. Elder, it would have been child's play.”
The silence that ensued was.. deafening. Hiroshi's words left a sickening feeling of rot and unease within each of the four Yaarou elders. But beneath that nauseating sensation of depending on something like Hiroshi, there was something else.
Anticipation.
“You will have your opportunity.” Keiko's eyes hardened.
“Oh, I am aware.” Hiroshi said softly. “The Serpent is headed for Qiyoto. And I assume you will need me to defend our home. My home.” He said with enough presumptive ease that Ayune nearly puked. But regardless, their silence was enough for Hiroshi. The quiet,’begrudging acceptance. He smiled lightly as he dusted off his tattered rags. “..Then I will require my instruments.. and the materials necessary to restore them.”
Ayune’s disgusted expression did not change. But the tension beneath it did. “Those will not be granted without condition.”
Hiroshi looked at her. “Of course.”
She held his gaze. Unflinching. “You remain bound.” she said. “..and you will act under our command. You will be surveilled every second you exist outside of these walls and given a mask to hide your face.”
Hiroshi inclined his head. “Naturally.”
Ayune looked back to the four pillars of the Yaarou council and nodded in agreement with each of them. “Then.. it is done.” She said before looking back to Hiroshi's unnerving smirk and scowled in response. “Come.”
It was uncanny, like a vacuum that pulled at anything that drew closer to the dwarfing doors sealed at the end of the hall.
The further they trekked, the harder it became to breathe. It was subtle at first, but then all at once—a drastic and sudden drop in temperature and oxygen.
Ayune’s steps slowed—barely perceptible. She felt her breath hitch in her throat but she couldn't bring herself to stop.
Jhun’s fingers tightened once more within his sleeves.
Sevrin’s head tilted, as though listening to something no one else could hear.
Keiko did not hesitate. But even she felt it.. And despite her stoic expression, she shared the same sentiment as her peers.
It felt unnatural.
“Something is wrong.” Jhun murmured, his steps more measured than before. Ayune's apprehensive expression echoed this proclamation, though she was hesitant to voice anything herself. It wasn't until they approached the frost encrusted doors of Hiroshi's tomb did any of them give true thought to what Jhun had surmised.
The doors did not open immediately. Despite Keiko performing the proper handsign, the mechanisms controlling for locks upon the door responded as if they were frozen solid. But in time, with a low, grinding howl, the chamber doors slowly parted.
Beyond its threshold, Hiroshi's tomb remained visually unchanged.. but the moment they stepped inside, that small certainty withered to smoke.
The air here was so dry and thin that it was practically non-existent. Breathing, let alone standing, became a laborious effort even amongst the four of them.
And at the center of it all, sat the Defiler himself.
His posture was loose—one leg folded over the other, an arm resting lightly across his knee as he rested his head against his fist. The long, pale strands of his hair spilled freely over his shoulders and down his back, catching faint light from the sigils that lined the chamber walls.
Hiroshi had changed..
Where once there had been the withered frame of a man long past his prime, there now remained something.. Refined. His robe hung open at the chest, unfastened and unguarded, revealing a body that no longer bore the erosion of age. The gaunt hollows that once defined his face were gone, replaced with the contours of a man in his prime.
His wrinkled skin had become smooth and flawless while his atrophied muscles now swelled taut with vitality.
At first glance, it seemed to be an illusion. Keiko was certain of it. But the plumes of steam rolling from Hiroshi's flesh was evident of rapid cellular regeneration. This was no ruse. From the moment the Elders removed the shackles stunting his Naten, Hiroshi had been using Shokotsu to restore his body to its former glory.
“He has.. healed?” Jhun murmured in disbelief..
“Shokotsu.” Ayune answered quietly. “His mastery in the craft was at one point remained unparalleled among the clan. There are techniques and protocols that he has written that our sages teach the acolytes to this day.. including me..” She said, narrowing her eyes in shame. “While his name has been removed from the annals, the truth of the matter remains.. He was in a league of his own.”
“Welcome back, Elders.” His voice was a deep, resonant tremor that effortlessly commanded the room. But he spoke softly as if to quell its weight. “Was the mission a success?”
He asked with a coy and devilish smirk that barely moved his lips, but it was enough to ignite a smoldering vitriol within each of the four Yaarou oracles. None of them responded to him… Not until Keiko stepped forward after focusing her rage into a quiet, bloodied fist at her side.
“Are you mocking us?” She asked with a cynical smirk of her own. “This failure reflects on you, Defiler.. Your vision was flawed.”
A moment passed as Hiroshi slowly blinked his crimson eyes, allowing his gaze to pass lazily over Keiko to Jhun. ”Was it?” Hiroshi asked, as if posing the question solely to him.
Jhun instinctively stepped forward. “You predicted the Serpent's Heir would be present at the Shi stronghold. You were wrong..” He continued, grounded in their collective resolve. “You predicted we would not be met with resistance, and yet the Shi proved more than capable of defending themselves despite your best efforts.” His eyes narrowed as he challenged Hiroshi's apathetic gaze. “We've come to question our faith in your strength.”
“Yes, of course.” Hiroshi said suddenly as he slowly rose to his feet. “This must be why you initially refused to unleash me, yes? Because you.. questioned my strength. It must also be why each of your hearts have tripled in pace since you've arrived, and seen my new body.. because you all question my strength.” Hiroshi mused, pressing his palm against his neck and massaging out three hundred years old aches before settling his crimson gaze on the four of them. “Is this also why you've returned to this chamber, driven by your lack of faith once more?”
“Mind your tone, wretch.” Sevrin interjected, his Naten spiking wildly out of the intent alone. “Lest we remind you of the strength the Nayl of Heaven possesses.” His building aggression caused the seals along Hiroshi's neck, wrist and legs to ignite with a smoldering auburn color. “We own your soul, Defiler—regardless of the form you take. And your deception will not go unanswered.”
Hiroshi closed his eyes as the crests binding his free will began to sear and burn through flesh and bone. And while he didn't seem burdened by the enchanted scorching seal, his coy smirk did fade. “Hundreds of Shi were culled, yes? Their stronghold unveiled? Hmph, were their hidden strengths and weaknesses not exposed?” He asked while gesturing his hands in a theatrical manner. “And not a single Yaarou Shinobi was claimed in the effort? This is no failure, Elders, but the initial triumph of many.”
“Enough.” Keiko retorted. “Regardless of the outcome, the Serpent lives.”
Hiroshi inclined his head. “Of course.” He said, drawing ire and twisted glares as he continued. “If he had died so easily, he would not have been worth killing.”
The air shifted; again, the Elders felt the air in their lungs grow thin dry.
“The Serpent’s death was incumbent on presence on the endeavor. But you all should be glad that he was not there.. He would have slaughtered your soldiers and wore their flesh as he stormed Qiyoto.”
“Hmph.” Ayune scoffed. “..but you would have defeated him? Despite the SLAYERS and the AIONS.. you would have succeeded alone?”
“Yes.” Hiroshi said longingly, as if he were truly filled with regret. “He would have perished for the lives of any of his clansmen. And despite Aphosis, the child he is bound to is painfully human.” He continued, stroking his chin as if visualizing the event. “Breaking into the Shi stronghold would have given me my pick of hostages to choose from. Mother's, wives, children.. Elder, it would have been child's play.”
The silence that ensued was.. deafening. Hiroshi's words left a sickening feeling of rot and unease within each of the four Yaarou elders. But beneath that nauseating sensation of depending on something like Hiroshi, there was something else.
Anticipation.
“You will have your opportunity.” Keiko's eyes hardened.
“Oh, I am aware.” Hiroshi said softly. “The Serpent is headed for Qiyoto. And I assume you will need me to defend our home. My home.” He said with enough presumptive ease that Ayune nearly puked. But regardless, their silence was enough for Hiroshi. The quiet,’begrudging acceptance. He smiled lightly as he dusted off his tattered rags. “..Then I will require my instruments.. and the materials necessary to restore them.”
Ayune’s disgusted expression did not change. But the tension beneath it did. “Those will not be granted without condition.”
Hiroshi looked at her. “Of course.”
She held his gaze. Unflinching. “You remain bound.” she said. “..and you will act under our command. You will be surveilled every second you exist outside of these walls and given a mask to hide your face.”
Hiroshi inclined his head. “Naturally.”
Ayune looked back to the four pillars of the Yaarou council and nodded in agreement with each of them. “Then.. it is done.” She said before looking back to Hiroshi's unnerving smirk and scowled in response. “Come.”
The team