Spanning the Ages-Reira

[Saasha]

So he was at least not the Battosai, that was comforting. Though she knew full well that if he had been of that mentality, she would likely be knee deep in her own blood by now. Well nothing left to do but answer honestly. No doubt he had recognized the style from her earlier show, so if she lied now there would be no point. "It would seem we study the same." She smiled brightly, knowing the implications behind her words. The Hiten-Mitusurugi style was made for killing. And here she found herself before a man that had just admitted that he didn't like to kill. Perhaps it would be better to reveal herself now before too many questions were raised. He already knew that the realms held many a person from one world or another, so the knowledge should not be a huge shock should it? In the end she decided to let him figure it out, but to answer his questions honestly.

"I was taught by friend of the family. He spent most of his life researching and learning the Hiten-Mitusurugi style and other styles that had died out in time. He was pretty much my mentor when I was growing up, I was always hanging around his restaurant." She gave a small laugh at the memories. "When I got old enough, he decided to pass down this knowledge to me. To continue these arts and preserve them." Well, this was half-way true at least. She had left out a few parts but they didn't really matter at the moment. "I was honored to learn such a treasured art. Even if it was meant to exclusively to kill."

[Linx]

His smile falters as she admits that she too knew the Hiten style. "An honor, maybe. But I'd much rather that it had been forgotten and never uncovered. The art of swordsmanship is learning the art to kill." he says, shaking his head sadly. "I wish that the world was a place without the need for weapons or violence, that learning swordsmanship was just a hobby for people, with no real need for it. That people never had to stain there hands with the blood of others." he says sadly, looking at his hands, seeing the blood of countless staining his skin as the smell permeated the air to his senses. Like that long ago night, the scent of blood and hakubaiko filled him as he reached into his bag, pulling out a chilled bottle of sake, setting aside two small cups.

"Would you like some? I find sometimes that tea isn't strong enough." he says, pouring himself a cup, sipping at it. He thought back to that night in the middle of the revolution, the night he'd met his first wife, and that blood rained on the streets of Kyoto. Back then, he'd been solely the Battosai, the hittokiri fighting for the revolution to overthrow the Tokugawa Shogunate. He'd just been a kid then, so young, yet so old. And now, all those years later, the fighting still hadn't ended. There was just more and more death and fighting, and the scent of blood followed him wherever he went. He finishes his cup of sake, pouring another one for himself as he began to sank deep into his troubled thoughts. The words he'd spoken to her brought him back to when he'd first met Kaoru, and saved her from the Battosai impersonator. That had been one of the best moments of his life, the day he'd met his future wife and all the friends that came with it. Until the darkness came and swept across his world, and everything burned in the world fire.

[Saasha]

Melany nodded a bit. "Yes I agree. Unfortunately things has progressed where I have had a need to use my blade. But, I have been able to adapt the styles so as to not kill. Though" She nodded to him as he offered the sake. "Though I will admit it is not difficult for me kill things that are already dead." She drained the last of her tea and set the cup aside, her mind running over the irony of her words. She was now one of those undead... in a sense at least.

"I need a drink to be honest. I don't often drink, but when I do it is for good reason." She could smell the sake even before he undid the bottle. She had a good nose to begin with, but that was interesting. She was going to have to get used to a lot of changes, but hopefully they would be rewarding ones... She pushed the thought aside. "I have striven to make good of the styles I have learned. To make them as... unoffensive as possible, despite the growing difficulty to do so." Now she supposed would be as good a time as any to find out what timeline this Kenshin was from... if it was late enough, perhaps he could provide information as to how to undo the curse. "Might I ask a peculiar question?"

[Linx]

He nods, wondering about her. "Go ahead, there is little I won't answer. I of course have a few things I do not like to speak of, as do we all. If your question does not cross any of those subjects, I shall answer." he says, pouring a drink for her as he downs his second. He pours a third drink, taking this one more slowly as he sets the bottle between them, allowing her to take as much as she'd like. "Where I come from, the dead are not liable to stay dead." he says softly, all too familiar with having to fight the undead and the ghosts of the deceased. He shakes the thoughts from his head, turning his blue eyes back to hers, watching her, waiting for her to speak.

"I'm glad you're of a like mind at least, if only partially it would seem. Most would take the style that offered them the most power, and use it to enforce their will on others. I'm glad to see that if the Hiten Mitsurugi style has been brought back, it at least seems to be in good hands." he says, attempting a smile. "And if you don't mind my asking, what was the name of your teacher? I would think that there would be a Seijuro Hiko always, that the style wouldn't have died out." he says, curious as to how it came about and brought back to the surface. He knew none that would write down the style, as that seemed outside the tradition of the style. Perhaps she hadn't yet mastered it, and was still lacking the final two techniques. The Kuzu Ryusen, and the Amakakeru Ryu No Hirameki, only learned when one master died, and a new Seijuro Hiko stepped into the void. That had only been circumvented once to his knowledge, and that was in his own training, he wondered how she had learned it then.

[Saasha]

She was pleased by his compliment, but with it came a tough question to match hers. Both the question and the answer would be very hard to state as each would reveal a lot about herself. But she didn't feel it would be prudent to skirt around either so she decided ask him first. "I was wondering if you had ever heard of the Ryūsui no Ugok style. It is said that a very skilled swordsman used to use it in the days of the Revolution in the Edo period. I was wondering if you would happen to know of the style. It has been an interest of mine to study the history of." The reason why she would not state entirely just yet, but this was how she was going to determine what years he was familiar with. Well, hopefully. "I will tell you of my teacher in a moment. I promise." She took a sip of the sake. Good flavor.

[Linx]

He pauses, thinking for a moment. "Ryūsui no Ugok? Yes, the genius head of the Oniwaban group, Aoshi Shinomori used that style." he says, sipping at his sake. Thinking of Aoshi took him back across the days when he'd encountered the head of the Oniwaban at the Kanryu estate. "Aoshi was truly a remarkable swordsman, even after the death of the Oniwaban group at the hands of Kanryu Takeda. Last I saw of him, he remained in isolation, seeking healing for his wounded soul." he says, thinking of his former ally and enemy. "As for the style itself, Aoshi was quite the master of it. Using dual kodachi's, he was more than a formidable opponent. However, it was his own lust for power that defeated him in the end." he says, sipping at his sake, waiting for her to answer his question.

[Saasha]

Ok so he knew about Aoshi, and the stories seemed to match up rather well... curious. Kekekekeee, a whispering laugh echoed in her ear, causing her to jump a bit. .Oh gosh please don't do that.. she thought in responce, the ghost's presence totally masked up until that moment. She disguised the jump as though some random bug had bitten her back. She reached back and rubbed the 'bitten spot' as another laugh echoed in her ears.

Now then, to answer his question. She was certain by this point that he at least had an inkling of who she was so there was no reason to be overly cagey about her answer. But how to do it? The only option she was was to play the innocent card for now. "I appreciate that information; thank you for telling me. Actually helps in my research a lot. Now I have a name to put with the style." She smiled amicably and took another sip of her sake before continuing. "I suppose it's my turn now. I am afraid the line of Seijuro Hiko came to an end long ago when my dimension. The only reason my instructor knew what he did was due to the stories and history have been passed down for generations. As I mentioned before he took great pride in learning the Hiten Mitsurugi style and other styles that have long since been lost. His name is simply Okina and that is all I have ever known him by. Well... Besides 'master'." She grinned again and refilled her cup, but only half-way this time. She would probably need it.

[Linx]

He paused at the name. "Okina?" he murmurs to himself, remembering the old man he'd known by that name. Head of the Kyoto Oniwaban, such as they were, in the Aoi-Ya restaurant. He smiles lightly as he takes another look at her. Red hair, and he bet he knew what was under the bandage now. And her teacher, Okina. Was she a descendant of his in another world? He downs his cup, tilting his head forward to rest against his arm as he draped it across his leg. He closes his eyes for a moment, his mind filled with emotions and memories like a raging sea. He sighs softly, sitting back as he turned his eyes skyward, wondering what cursed fate it was that would do that to someone else. His trials had been hard enough, but for someone to repeat them? He only hoped she were a better person than he had been.

"Melany. Melany Himura? There is only one Okina I know of that would look out for others. Okina, the head of the Kyoto Oniwaban, based out of Aoi-Ya. We met during the Shishio incident, and he defended it well against the Ten Swords when they came to kill." he says, shaking his head as he looked at her, profound sadness in his eyes. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry that you must bear the sins of the past." he says softly, barely able to bring himself to speak. He hung his head in shame, unable to look at her. "If you need help...I will do what I can. There is only one reason Okina would pass on the Hiten Mitsurugi style, and only one person he'd teach it to. A descendant of Kenshin Himura, Hittokiri Battosai. Former Man Slayer of the Bakumatsu revolution. Now a world slayer." he ends, almost silently. He sighs, shaking his head. "I'm sure there are gaps in Okina's knowledge of the Hiten style. No matter how close to death the line of Seijuro Hiko was, I'm certain that the final move would never be written down. That knowledge was to be earned by the apprentice in the style, and would not be left for just anyone to find, not even Okina." he says, raising his eyes to hers.

He could never make amends for the sins of his past, and he could never restore that which was lost to her. But he could do everything he could to ensure that she was prepared to face any coming trials. The Kuzu Ryusen and the Amakakeru Ryu No Hirameki, the two most powerful moves of the Hiten Mitsurugi style would never have been left in writing to his knowledge, and so she would need them, if she were to survive the trials that he had to face. Unless she was less restrained about killing than he was, of course. He hoped she wasn't, he really hoped that as the years progressed, the need for killing would have lessened. "I'm sure Okina's knowledge was great, he was the greatest spymaster of Kyoto, but there are certain secrets of the Hiten Mitsurugi style that I'm sure he never learned. I will teach them to you." he says, steadying himself.

[Saasha]

She face became solemn as she listened to him speak. HE figures it out... and alot of it. Perhaps now was the time to spill her secrets. "I aprriciae the offer but you must not burden yourself so heavily. It is not your sins that I pay for. It is the sins of another. You have found one part of my secret already, my name. Lost in the sands of time to protect me form the curse that has risen upon me. My friends as well. Himura is my rightful name. I legally changed it from Kaumpkof out of honor for my ancestor once the vengeful had begun to rise and my identity own had been found out. Even my own linage had been hidden form me in desperation that the curse should never take hold." This being said, she reached up to her cheek and gently removed the white patch from her alabaster skin, revealing her mark of identity. "I was scarred so as to show the other vengeful who I truly was... My friends underwent similar happenings. But as I said, it is not your sins that we atone for. Although the stories are similar, you are not my ancestor."

"As for Okina, it is also not the same Okina that you know. Though with how these stories are lining up they might as well be the same. Okina was the first to come to help us long before the curse took hold, teaching myself and the others. After a series of events, we received new teachers. Okina had taught us only enough to keep us alive until those events occurred- a task he did diligently." She looked down at her hands in remembrance of the sessions, the challenges, the trials. All sweet and wonderful memories to her. But those she could never return to if Tony's words were true. She looked back up to Kenshin's form, "Since the arrival of these teachers, I have properly learned the Hiten Mitsurugi straight from the source. Let me just say that we are not alone in this field." At that moment, at her side, a smaller figure sat crouching with one fist pressed firmly to the ground. His opaque brown spiky hair stood straight off of his head and his piercing were locked onto Kenshin's. But he was only there for a moment before his transparent form faded back into nothingness.

"Hiten Mitsurugi is not my only form however. I have been well prepared for what is to come. If the curse extends to this world as well." She brought her favored katana around to sit just in front of her knees, placing both hands on it and giving him a traditional bow. "I apologize for not being outright and open with you, but I hope you understand the circumstances I was under." She straightened. And when she did and her eyes met his, he would see one other staring back at him. That faintest glow of purple would overlap hers and then fade into the darkness of hers. "I carry the name and legacy of the Hittokiri Battosai, the Manslayer within my history, my bloodline, and therefore myself. This is my battle, my family, this is me. And I will protect my family, no matter the cost." Again she bowed, the air around her ceasing to twitch in agitation. "I do need help however. As of yet, we have found no way to break this curse. If you have any information that could lead to its termination, I would be very grateful. For, as long as I and my partner live, the dead shall remain that way..."

[Linx]

He nods, bowing low to her in return. So he wasn't even needed for her training. He was old, battered and worn out, of no use to anyone. He'd been unable to protect his world from the darkness, all because he'd been weak. He'd spent too long trying to avoid killing people, and because of his own hesitance, his world had been reduced to ash. If he'd been faster, or stronger in his convictions, maybe things would've been different. Maybe his world would still be alive. He noted the ghost of Beshimi beside her, wondering who else it was that followed her. Perhaps even his own ghost? She seemed to have hinted at it, and he could only imagine the torment that would bring her. The Battosai, blood thirsty and ruthless, was a trial even for him, but for a child it had been thrust upon with no warning? He could only imagine.

"I'm sorry that you must bear this burden. I understand, truly, how hard it is." he says, before rising from his bow, smiling sadly. "I know little of curses, admittedly, but I know that there are people on my world that specialize in breaking them and any type of magics. I know of rumors that three such people have found there way here to Genesis as well. They might be able to help you more than I." he says, shaking his head sadly. "I would assume that it arises from the grudges born against Battosai. It is Jinchu." he says, thinking on the war his brother in law had waged against him. In the revolution, the Hittokiri had left notes with the word Tenchu, divine punishment, upon them. For his brother Enishi, it had been Jinchu. It meant that even if the heavens would not cast their judgement, then it would be an earthly one. Enishi had very nearly succeeded as well, had it not been for Tomoe and Kaoru helping him. At the end, he'd thought he'd be free, but even still, the Battosai haunted him. "You say that it is your family, your fight, and I agree. But even from another world, I am Kenshin Himura."[/color he pauses, taking a steadying breath, "Himura the Battosai. I will stand beside you still, for it seems as if it is the Battosai they truly hate. Let them vent their wrath upon me then, and leave you in peace. I fought that the later generations might know peace, so once more, I'll fight." he says, bowing his head as he closed his eyes. His hands closed hesitantly around the hilt of his sword, thinking of his last battles. Could he do it? Could he draw his sword again? Or would the Battosai take over as it had then?

[Saasha]

"To be honest it would be an honor to stand beside you. And..." She rubbed the back of her head a bit nervously though there was really no reason to be. "I have a feeling that trans-versing the dimensions is tiring for my guardians. Would it be possible for you to assist me after all?" She felt a slight slap on the back of her head as a gloved hand tapped her lightly in mock hurt. She chuckled in her mind to him lovingly. "I have never really be able to clash blades with my Grandfather so I have never been able to try my abilities with another Hiten practitioner. Well, I have but I cannot feel his blade so there is really no comparison to a palpable one." She realized that she had begun to ramble again- darn her habits. " I am sorry! I was just thinking out loud again." She insisted, holding her hands palm out and waving them lightly in front of her chest. "I am not going to ask you to draw your sword unless you wish, but... could you possibly watch my form? I still have a long way to go until I perfect the style, but then again my body type wont let me keep that for long anyhow. Hence all the other styles I was taught."

[Linx]

He hesitates, staring at his blade as his mind drifted. "Hmm? Oh. Yes, I suppose I could practice against you. I've not trained with anyone other than my Master in the Hiten Style, but I've fought other users of it. For now, I can lend you my experience, such as it is. I can only hope it'll help you." he says, smiling lightly. He pours himself another cup of sake, taking an idle sip as he thinks to himself. He'd begun to feel the pulls of the Battosai at him once more, perhaps this would help slake it's hunger. Hopefully. "Whenever you want to practice, I will comply. For the time, if it is alright with you of course, I'll travel with you wherever you go, and do my best to help you." he says, shrugging lightly.

"And really, it's no problem, I assure you." he says, laughing lightly. "It'll be my pleasure to do everything I can to help you." he says, smiling lightly. He takes another sip from his sake as he thinks about it. Yahiko had often tried to get him to teach him the Hiten style, and he'd never really sparred using it before against anyone, so this would be rather unique. He'd fought in earnest against one other user of the Hiten Style, and it had been a close match really. He wondered how he'd fare against her. She was exceedingly fast it seemed, but he expected nothing less from someone that used the Hiten blade, and he already found himself working out how he might win against her. It would be difficult, but he thought he might be able to pull it off, if he had to. In a sparring match though, he doubted it would be of any consequence, neither would be giving it their all.

[Saasha]

"Mind if I ask one last question? Who are these people you spoke of before? The ones who might be able to help me with the curse?" She drained the last of her sake and shifted her legs so that she was sitting cross-legged and her hands were behind her, propping herself up. It was at times like this that she was glad that alcohol didn't affect her very much. Or maybe that could be her new genes. So much to get used to now she didn't even know where to begin. First Oda resurrected somehow, she got pulled into this new world, she died, get turned into a fledgling, ran into her ancestor from another dimension. Oh well, as long as she lived... Maybe she could lure some of her hunters to this world. Probably no way to do that, but if they wanted her badly then they would find her. She only hoped that the others weren't to heavy laden now that there was one target around.

[Linx]

He thinks on it for a moment, before answering. "Eru, a Chaos Elf who spends his time here in Hallowon, then Dante and Linx who wander more than anything." he says, shrugging lightly. "I don't really know much about them beyond their names, as we've all come from the same world. I've met them briefly and they all seem like decent enough people. Eru is quieter and more serious than the other two, Dante being the most out going by far. Linx is the reclusive tinkerer from what I saw." he says, thinking fondly on the time they had met. It had certainly been interesting indeed. They had all gathered and held a wake of sorts together for their fallen world. "There may be more on this world, I can not say for certain. Those are the only three I know of however." he says, sipping his drink.

"Eru will be by far the easiest to find, as Linx spends most his time in his own little dimension, and Dante travels much as I do, though I've remained in Hallowton, resting. Linx is the most powerful of them, with Eru being the least, but he has practiced the art of spellbreaking and is as proficient as any that I know of. He was making quite the name for himself back on our world, before he vanished and ended up here, like I did after...well, it doesn't matter." he says, waving it aside. He leans back against the tree, letting his mind wander a bit before returning to the present. "You are more than welcome to ask any questions you want, I'll answer to the best of my ability." he says, blinking once as he forces his mind onto the matter at hand.

[Saasha]

She nodded and memorized the names to recall later. "Much appreciated, on both topics. So now the only issue that remains is to train and hope that some of the fight comes to me instead of my family. Good thing they are more than capable." She looked to the sky and let the rays of the sun seep deep into her muscles, not feeling a bit of fatigue. So far, her change wasn't so bad. But she was certain that the cons would show themselves eventually. And on top of that, she was certain that the lore she knew would prove wrong in this world. A slight breeze tugged at her hair and she turned her face into it happily. Although he was right on some things, she was not as burdened as he thought. In fact, she had well accepted her fate by this time and considered it her way of life. If she could reverse the fates, of course she would, but if not then she was ready to continue on. But for now, she would relax and get her head on straight.