http://ghost-bait.livejournal.com/ ([identity profile] ghost-bait.livejournal.com) wrote in [community profile] trans_92010-11-30 05:19 am

Purifying a Miasma... Maybe.

It was a long, thoughtful walk to the Shrine. The odd, high-pitched whine of something Wrong had faded just as soon as she'd entered Religion Row, and Miku spent the rest of her time rubbing her ears to remove the tickle. It was hard to explain to other people the exact feelings that came with her ability.

But Cargn... understood. To a point, she supposed (considering, of course, that he didn't have eyes and hers were still very much attached). But even that point was much more than someone who had never experienced that plummet of heart and stomach, the loss of color from the world, or the shrill, lingering whine of getting closer and closer to something that shouldn't have been there in the first place. Miku sighed as she entered the Shrine of the Aquila and started looking for her sensei, and his little, strange helper.

"Viginti-san? Cargn-sensei? I'm here," Miku called, and her voice echoed oddly in the Shrine. No, she was never going to get used to how creepy that was.

[identity profile] daemonomicon.livejournal.com 2010-11-30 03:48 pm (UTC)(link)
++Greetings,++ Sigmund called as he hovered over to Miku when she entered. ++The Master is this way.++

The little drone scooted along, guiding her to one of the Shrine's back rooms. There she would find Cargn, hard at work. He was currently drawing strange patterns on the ground in red chalk. The walls were covered in similar patterns.

Something seemed a little off about Cargn, though. His bionic arm, which was normally in pristine condition, seemed somewhat scuffed now. His flesh-and-blood arm was wrapped up tightly with bandages. Most notably, however, he was even more pale than he usually was.

Still, he smiled when he looked up at Miku.

"Ah, greetings, my dear."

[identity profile] daemonomicon.livejournal.com 2010-11-30 10:23 pm (UTC)(link)
"My current work is a bit taxing, that's all," he says simply. "I'm currently taking a break from it, so there's no need for concern, my dear."

He stands up, dusting himself off after putting the final touches on the designs on the floor.

++The Master's vital signs have remained within acceptable parameters,++ Sigmund added.

[identity profile] daemonomicon.livejournal.com 2010-11-30 10:56 pm (UTC)(link)
He chuckles at her first comment. "Like I said, child, nothing to worry about."

He motions to the designs covering the room.

"Foci. They will help focus your energy for today's lesson."

[identity profile] daemonomicon.livejournal.com 2010-11-30 11:36 pm (UTC)(link)
"The techniques I'm going to show you are rather advanced. You'll need to be particularly focused for it to stick the first time around."

He motions to an open circle drawn on the ground, at the center of which was a small mat for her to sit down on.

"Whenever you're ready, child."

[identity profile] daemonomicon.livejournal.com 2010-12-01 12:10 am (UTC)(link)
Cargn knelt down in a similar circle across from her.

"Very well," he said. "Take the time to clear your mind. When you've accomplish that, picture a vast, empty space, like a field or plain."

[identity profile] daemonomicon.livejournal.com 2010-12-01 01:57 pm (UTC)(link)
In Miku's newly imagined landscape, Cargn's psychic projection appeared next to her.

"This field is much as you yourself are now. Open. Vulnerable. But look around you. There is space to create."

"Now," he added. "Picture a box, here."

[identity profile] daemonomicon.livejournal.com 2010-12-01 07:52 pm (UTC)(link)
"Yes, perfect," he said. "Now, imagine the box is secure, like a safe or a chest, that only you have the key to."

"Once you have done that, fill the box with representations of what makes you you. Life defining moments, cherished memories, your strongest emotions. Create something to represent these, like books on your life, or old photographs, and place them inside the box. I myself use scrolls in my own mind."

[identity profile] daemonomicon.livejournal.com 2010-12-02 06:15 am (UTC)(link)
Cargn laughed lightly at that. "That's a good thing. The more personal and individual it is, the better. You connect with it more, and your mind will want to protect it more."

"Now, around this box, I want you to create somewhere you feel safe. A home, perhaps, or even a fortress. It doesn't matter how strong the actual walls of the structure seem, so long as you feel comfortable and safe in it."

[identity profile] daemonomicon.livejournal.com 2010-12-02 08:59 pm (UTC)(link)
"Yes, I believe so," Cargn said with a smile.

With a snap of his fingers (he was in a somewhat theatrical sort of mood), the two found themselves in front of the house.

"Now we are reaching the final step. Here, I want you to surround this structure with defenses of your own design. This can be a fortress wall, a maze, some sort of guardian, anything that makes you feel protected in this place."

[identity profile] rope-victim.livejournal.com 2010-12-03 03:51 am (UTC)(link)
Oh, Cargn.

Miku turned around and looked behind them. A torii grew up from the ground, and blooming around it came a high stone wall. Unlike a traditional torii, the gate's entry was closed with a thick rope roughly the size of Cargn's arm. Dangling from it, and swaying in the breeze, were braided strips of white paper.

Sitting above it, Miku remembered to place a spirit which was meant to devour the evil people that stepped into the temple. "...There. That was... tiring, sensei." It was hard to protect herself, she realized, when she was used to protecting others, even if it wasn't in the way they thought.

[identity profile] daemonomicon.livejournal.com 2010-12-03 04:10 am (UTC)(link)
"You did well, regardless. A very good foundation."

He looks around at the newly created mental landscape.

"As you have been creating these things, I have been solidifying them in your mind. All of these will protect you, your mind and your soul from unwanted incursion. The outer defenses repel those who seek to enter your mind. The inner structure is your sanctuary, a mental fortress for you and you alone. And the box you created first ensures that, no matter how deep anyone might try to reach into your mind, there will always be a part of you that is yours."

"You need only to will it to enter this landscape again, and you can alter it as you will."

He laughs.

"My own such defenses are the result of centuries of tweaking and improvements. I get lost inside sometimes. Dreadfully embarrassing."

[identity profile] rope-victim.livejournal.com 2010-12-03 05:03 am (UTC)(link)
"Well, I won't have as much time as you do, sensei, so I hope I never need a map inside my own mind." Maybe this would help the next time she read something and it backfired on her. A place to land for Just In Case.

She patted Cargn's large arm, "Thank you for teaching me this. I guess the best test would be to enter the observation deck again, wouldn't it?"

[identity profile] daemonomicon.livejournal.com 2010-12-03 05:32 am (UTC)(link)
"Indeed," he said with a slight nod.

With a slight mental nudge, Cargn leaves the mental landscape, and the two of them would reawaken in the Shrine as they were when they started the exercise.

"Good luck, child," he says, after standing back up from his place on the ground.

He knew it would be difficult for her. These defenses he helped her build were only just formed, and so were still slightly unstable. However, such a test would only serve to further strengthen these defenses, helping keep safe his young pupil from future harm.

[identity profile] downloadtruth.livejournal.com 2010-12-03 06:32 am (UTC)(link)
Faintly, ever so faintly, there was the sound of someone screaming. It was a familiar sound, at least to those who had witnessed Punishment.

[identity profile] downloadtruth.livejournal.com 2010-12-03 06:42 am (UTC)(link)
The screaming got louder and not just because Miku was coming closer.

"No! No, please!"

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