Saikichi didn't move, his eyes were fixed on Lokei, reading every expression of his son's face. That smirk, his relaxed stance and the utterly lack of fear. It was all like the man in front of him had forgotten who he was facing or never saw Saikichi as a threat to begin with.
"Lokei,look at me when I'm talking to you."
Lokei did as he was told and Saikichi felt that same strange pressure that he felt before, not that bone-crushing pressure of Seidan release, not that the air itself was humming with power like the last time he fought a Seijinist, but something about his eyes made him feel like he's being appraised by something unfathomable, preposterous.
Saikichi shook the thought away.
"You've changed."
Lokei's smirk grew wider, his expression almost amused as he replied.
Have I?
Silence filled the room as Saikichi and Lokei stared at each other. Lokei let out a chuckle.
What a strange thing to say to your own son, Father.
"Whatever it is you're trying to pull, stop it."
Lokei blinked, a rare expression of surprise crossing his features before a chuckle escaped his lips again. Not a loud chuckle, not a wild laugh, but enough for Anzo's hand to clench into a fist.
Oh this is rich, the voice said, amusement clear in its tone as it observed the annoyed expression on Saikichi's face.
‘He's already suspicious of you, I haven't even done anything yet.’
Lokei's smirk didn't falter, if anything it grew more amused.
‘Perhaps this place will be more interesting than I expected.’ the voice thought
Suddenly a dull pain shot up Lokei's body, his smirk faltering as a small amount of blood trickled down from his nose.
Are you joking with me?
The voice stared at the blood with a look of surprise.
It hasn't even been ten minutes and this body is already reaching its limits because of me? What a pain.
The voice took Lokei's right hand and put two of his fingers on his chest and for a moment, something strange happened, and he took his hand away and wiped the blood off his nose with his thumb, the dull pain in his body dissipated and he looked at the blood on his thumb, then casually wiped it off.
‘That should give me an extra few minutes of fun. ‘
His gaze was back on the man standing opposite of the ruined auction hall, Saikichi Yoshe. Lokei tilted his head. Saikichi didn't move, his expression nothing but cold and calculating. They looked into each others' eyes but neither spoke. The silence between them stretched on and on, thick and uncomfortable.
Now then, where were we?
Saikichi immediately summoned his staff into his hand. His expression was calm, but his grip was tight on the weapon as he watched Lokei fall from above. Lokei landed on the center stage with a soft thud and for a moment he stayed completely still, before slowly walking towards his father's direction one step at a time, his posture relaxed, almost amused, and a faint smile on his lips, not a trace of the dullness that had marked the steps he took only minutes ago.
He stopped a few feet away from Saikichi and met his eyes directly.
I'm right here, Father. What are you going to do now?
Saikichi did not immediately answer as he looked at the young man in front of him, measuring, his eyes narrowing as they passed over Lokei's relaxed pose, the smirk on his face, the way his fingers flexed carelessly against his side, and took in the familiar features the boy had always possessed with a mixture of something akin to... disappointment?
There was nothing wrong with the face that looked back at him from Lokei's body. Nothing wrong with the way the boy wore his amusement, even the sharpness of the smirk that curved his lips was the same. It was all Lokei, save the eyes that narrowed in mock scrutiny at him, and the voice that said his name was not familiar at all to Saikichi.
Eighteen years of watching Lokei fumble his way through life, waste the talents he was given and disappoint him at every turn, had engrained the sound of his voice into the older man's bones. Saikichi knew the voice. It was not Lokei's.
It was as if someone had taken his son's body for a comedy act, and was finding the novelty of it all quite amusing.
"Who are you?" Saikichi finally asked, his grip tightening around his staff.
Lokei tilted his head at the question, his smile fading briefly before he blinked a couple of times, and a real smirk appeared on his face.
Getting straight to the point, I see. I like that.
He looked at the weapon in Saikichi's hand, then back at his face, amusement dancing in his irises.
But you should know something, Saikichi Yoshe. Your useless son isn't here anymore. And by the look on your face, I'd say you already knew that, didn't you?
Saikichi moved, his staff slashed towards Lokei's head, making the air around it vibrate and the curtains around it flutter but Lokei wasn't there as his head wasn't even in the same spot.
Saikichi reversed his grip and stabbed his staff into Lokei's ribs. Lokei twisted, making Saikichi's staff miss. He immediately began to slash again, switching the staff from hand to hand with ridiculous speed, creating openings as he did so. Lokei avoided every single blow like the annoying man he was. He moved backwards beneath the next strike, stepped away from the next, and even turned his shoulder to let the tip of the staff pass by.
He might as well have been floating the whole time. Every single one of Saikichi's attacks missed like it already knew it was going to. Lokei looked at his father with a disappointed expression.
...That's it?
Suddenly with a burst of strength he yanked his staff backwards and then drove it into the stage. The whole stage seemed to vibrate upon impact and before the sound could fade away, he did it again. A deep groan echoed throughout the halls and Lokei's smile faltered as something else besides the Seidan in the air filled up the surroundings. It was a nice scent, a flowery one that tickled the senses and brought a pleasant feeling to the air in the auction halls.
Saikichi stood straight and raised his staff forward.
"Final Liberation...Scented Cloud Jungle."
The stage itself seemed to exhale and from the floor a thick mist bled outwards before curling around the stage and the walls, turning the whole place into a strange jungle filled with giant trees that stretched into the ceiling, and thick branches that intertwined with hanging vines and flowers.
The wooden floorboards were now covered with thick moss and carpeting of greenery while the trees themselves had clusters of flowers blooming from them, releasing thick white clouds of scented mist that floated lazily from one tree to the other. Warm, rich smelling air filled the halls as a mix of rich flowers, green leaves, and the pleasant scent of Seidan surrounded the two fighters.
In the span of seconds the auction hall had been transformed into an endless jungle.
Though the guests, the auction stands, and the auctioneers themselves remained strange ghosts within the trees, floating amidst the greenery as if they had been swallowed by the land itself.
Lokei frowned, looking around for the first time since he had taken control of his body, the voice within his mind was gone.
Saikichi stood a few meters away from him, his staff resting on his shoulder as the thick carpet of moss and plants beneath him seemed to breathe with every exhale.
"Welcome to my world."
Lokei turned back towards him and frowned, his smile was wiped away almost instantly, a cold sharpness replacing it.
"This is the Yoshe Clan's territory. And that makes me the head."
Saikichi raised his staff and the forest around them seemed to shift. Branches above the two fighters groaned and creaked, vines coiled around tree trunks tighter and the mist thickened, making the distance between the two seem longer than it was.
"Whatever you are, you've already made a mistake."
Saikichi's sharp gaze settled on Lokei, assuming, correctly, that due to the speed of his attacks, the young man standing before him could not have possibly sensed any of them.
"A mistake of thinking that because you're fast enough to dodge me, you're fast enough to win."
A flower bloomed open beside Lokei's shoulder, its petals gently trembling. The scent of the jungle seemed to thicken around Lokei and his grip on the staff in his hand tightened.
"Let's see how long that smile lasts."
Lokei turned his gaze back towards the strange forest surrounding them.
Oh~, Now this is more like it.
Lokei slowly turned his head, and looked at the giant trees around him, his gaze lingered on the twisting branches, the hanging vines, the fragrant flowers that littered the lush jungle. He said nothing for a moment then gave a slight chuckle.
So this is how you view and understand the world. I have to say, Father, this is way beyond my expectations.
Saikichi said nothing. Lokei raised a hand and studied his fingers as if they were something foreign to him.
But a Final Liberation like this? Straight weak sauce.
Without any warning at all. Lokei snapped his fingers, the sound was barely audible, but the effect was immediate. The flowers ceased their swaying. The vines stiffened. A deep crack echoed through the great trunks of the immense trees, and spread outwards like spiderwebbing across the entire jungle.
Saikichi widened his eyes.
"What–?"
The jungle exploded in all directions in a flurry of sharp shards of light. The mosses, the flowers, the scented wisps of air all fragmented and scattered like dust in the air. And in the blink of an eye, the Scented Cloud Jungle was gone.
The auction hall reappeared in view, but not for long.
A pale cloud floated across the floor, then another, and another, until the entire space was filled with large billowing clouds. Not a misty forest, but more an amorphous collection of great white islands that stretched out in all directions, consuming the edges of the auction hall, until there was nothing else save for the sky far above.
The ceiling was gone. The walls were gone. Even the floor beneath them seemed to stretch out into infinity.
Above them floated an immeasurably vast and ancient sky, scattered with great clouds that drifted leisurely by. Each one took the form of great mountains, impossibly long winding corridors, or vast structures that jutted out from the depths of the heavens. And among these billowing formations, great shapes could be discerned;
On the backs of these great floating islands stood ancient structures, their origins unknown. Towering pillars of stone shot up into the sky, vanishing into the clouds. Roads of broken stone stretched from one floating mass to another, leading to places that seemed impossibly far away.
There were no oppressive jungles, no scented air, no great entangling mass of plants and vines. Instead there was an immeasurable vastness. An impossibly ancient space filled with things that seemed to have existed long before anyone had ever set foot upon it and standing amidst it all, was Lokei.
The bemused expression on his face had not faded, though something in his expression had changed. There was a quiet confidence to him that made the vast space seem almost...insignificant.
Final Liberation: Assistance of the Ancient Cloud
Saikichi stared, his staff remained poised, but the rest of his body had frozen in place.
Years of hard work had gone into creating this manifestation of Seidan; his Final Liberation was the embodiment of everything he knew, everything he saw as the foundation of his power. And yet, all of it had disappeared in an instant, at the mere snap of a finger and now, in front of him, was a Final Liberation so immeasurably vast and intimidating, that Saikichi felt the power within his own seemed like a petty joke.
Saikichi swallowed as he turned towards Lokei, no. Not Lokei but the thing that wore his son's face looked back at him, as if this entire experience was little more than an amusing novelty to him.
What's wrong? Don't tell me you're already disappointed?
Saikichi's expression darkened.
"Who...are you?"
Lokei turned his head and regarded Anzo with an amused expression.
Ah, now that's a tough question to answer. I guess you could say I'm someone who remembers a world you could never even dream of. And frankly...it's been a very, very long time since I've had this kind of fun.
Saikichi was motionless, his eyes scanning the endless sea of clouds. He looked upon the ancient structures hovering idly in the distance, the towering pillars that shot into the sky and the vast amount of clouds that stretched out of sight. Even the ground under his feet seemed alien to him. There wasn't a single source of life that could support this world, but the world was there none the less.
This wasn't just some magnificent show of Seidan. This was... something else entirely. Something different.
'What is this? What am I looking at?'
Saikichi narrowed his eyes at the scene in front of him, trying to decipher the Liberation in front of him. He had seen countless displays of Seijinism in his lifetime. He knew more about his own power than most masters and had spent years upon years contemplating the very nature of Seidan itself.
But this... this he had no idea about then it hit him. As his eyes fell upon the ancient pillars jutting out from the horizon, his eyes widened slightly.
'Wait,' he thought.
Looking back at the massive clouds that floated serenely above the white-out landscape, the hovering structures, the almost alien-like presentation of this world... Saikichi knew he had seen something like this before.
Not this, but something like this. The memories flooded back; the ancient scrolls detailing the legend of the founder of his clan, the Yoshe Clan, and his eternal fascination with the man. Anzo shakily inhaled as the realization dawned upon him.
Saikichi's mind wandered back to those stories told in the days of old, the embellished legends of the past that grew to take on lives of their own. An ancient hero and his incredible will, the master of Seidan who forged the world into existence with but a wave of his hand, the progenitor of the Yoshe Clan.
The founder. The creator. The father.
All long dead, buried in the annals of history along with the rest of the broken relics of the past. Even then, the very thought wasn't an impossible one to conjure up. Not in the back of his mind, not when he was a child full of dreams and aspirations of becoming a great leader of his people. The thought that the greatest hero the world had ever known had once walked these lands, fought in these fields and stared into the eyes of death itself - it wasn't an impossible thought to entertain.
'This world... It reminds me of that.'
No, that wasn't right either. Not simply reminded him. A strange sensation crawled up his spine, one he couldn't quite place. Saikichi turned towards Lokei, who stood a good few feet away from him, staring blankly at the floating clouds with an air of nonchalance about him. As if the impossible sight before them was an every-day occurrence for the young man, as if the alien landscape they were staring at was no more thrilling to him than the dusty courtyard of his home.
That voice...that sensation...everything that had invaded his son's body...
Saikichi's mind reeled at the thought. There was only one answer, but it was an answer he knew he couldn't accept.
'Could it truly be him?'
The great leader, the great hero - the progenitor of his bloodline and the founder of his house. The one and only founder of the Yoshe Clan.
For centuries upon centuries the man had been revered as a god amongst men, his deeds and accomplishments etched into the stone tablets for all to see. But even gods had to die, and long ago, the man had met his demise. And with him, the Yoshe Clan's bloodline had died out, until it was re-born in the form of Anzo and his son, Lokei.
Unless...unless that wasn't the case at all
Saikichi shook his head. The thought was ridiculous, laughable even. His grandfather had been a great man, but he had died and he was gone. No matter how much he had loved his family, no matter how much he had wished for his line to continue, there was nothing he could do to defy fate itself. And even if the old man had defied fate and lived on for centuries more, why would he take up residence in the body of Lokei? Why not his own flesh and blood?
Lokei was a disappointment.
His Seidan was weak, his grasp of Seijinism mediocre at best. In all things pertaining to his future as a warrior and leader of men, his father had failed him.
Saikichi turned away, unable to bear even the thought of such a thing occurring. Lokei turned his head, regarding his father with a knowing smirk.
Something on your mind, father?
Saikichi didn't respond. Instead, Lokei simply chuckled.
Ah. You've figured it out, have you? Go on, then. Say it. Say it out loud. Who do you think I am?
Saikichi hesitated before finally speaking.
"Are you... the founding father of the Yoshe Clan? WuKong?"
Lokei stared at him and for a few seconds he said nothing, then frowned in confusion, and a moment later he laughed. It wasn't Lokei's usual laugh, there was something almost mocking about it as if Saikichi told him the most idiotic joke he had ever heard.
The founding father? WuKong?
His laughter slowly died as he stared at Saikichi .
Don't ever compare me to a Monkey like that.
In an instant he had vanished. Anzo's eyes widened in shock as he turned around but before he could do anything Lokei reappeared right in front of him.
There was no show, no flashy moves, no gathering of Seidan. Lokei simply sidestepped into his father's reach and punched him right in the chest with a one-inched punch. Everything went silent for a brief moment as Saikichi's body twitched from the impact. His staff clattered to the ground as he stumbled back in surprise, his wide eyes nearly popping out of their sockets as he tried to regain his balance but failed miserably.
The immense world of the ancient clouds trembled before vanishing. Saikichi gave one last look at Lokei before his body crumpled to the floor. It was the first time in his long life that he failed to understand something, failed to complete his Seijinism and perfect the teachings of the Yoshe Clan.
His body lay motionless on the floor as Lokei lowered his hand and looked at the lifeless eyes staring blankly at him and for a moment he said nothing, his gaze fixed on his father's eyes then suddenly a dull pain flared up his arms as he shook his head, sighing deeply. His breathing was ragged, a thin line of blood trickling down his nose as he clicked his tongue in irritation. He wiped the blood off with the back of his hand as he gazed distantly at the endless horizon.
Hmph, well it's been fun. But now...
He frowned thoughtfully as he looked down at his borrowed hands flexing his fingers.
I need to have a chat with the owner of this body.
A small smile played across his lips as he closed his eyes. He snapped his fingers and the ancient clouds vanished, the pillars of light dissipated and the endless sky disappeared before the world snapped back to the Yoshe Clan's estate.
Lokei reappeared on the steps overlooking the grounds before lowering himself on one knee, resting his elbows on his knees, he was silent for a moment then his fingers twitched, his shoulders stiffened and a sharp gasp escaped his lips as his eyes shot open.
"Huh?..."
Lokei stared at his hands before looking around in confusion, his heart hammering in his ears. The last thing he could remember was fighting Sanori. That he had great difficulty keeping up with her, that he had felt his body moving on its own.
After that...nothing.
Lokei slowly raised his hand to his face.
"What the hell happened?"
He looked up at the manor, he had no idea that his father was dead.
Lokei slowly stood up from the steps.
He felt dizzy. His head was throbbing. Everything was hazy.
The auction hall was in ruins. Most of the guests were running outside through the surviving doors.
'Did Sanori and I really do all of this?' he thought
Lokei looked around with a puzzled look on his face. The image of battling against his twin sister appeared before his eyes.
He remembered fighting desperately to catch up to the agile Sanori, remembered his muscles tightening up as he tried to find an opening, then some sort of voice spoke up inside of him and after that, everything turned blank. His memories of the battle were jumbled up.
He couldn't remember defeating Sanori nor remember what happened to Anzo but most importantly, what the hell happened to him?
That wasn't the only thing that came to worry, as Lokei turned his gaze towards his body, he felt his Seidan and it was recovering!
Lokei was shocked. He could feel it flowing throughout his body, fueling him up with energy. The pain in his muscles was vanishing away, the tension in his body slowly disappeared. He stretched his arms out to look at them.
'Wait. Why is my Seidan coming back? I don't remember using any techniques to bring it back!'
It just... came back and what's more amazing is the fact that it was still continuing to come back. Even after his Seidan was fully restored, it just kept flowing back in.
How the hell is this happening?
Lokei turned his head around. Strange white clouds were floating in the sky above him. At first he thought they were the remains of Saikichi's Seijinism, but the longer he looked at them, the more he felt something was wrong but those clouds weren't ordinary.
The shapes they made were similar to that of a human's figure, there was a slight glowing effect all around them and furthermore, the images of the familiar figures were somewhat... human-like.
One of the white clouds flew past Lokei's shoulder. Another one came towards him from the other side. Dozens of the glowing clouds came from the remains of the auction hall and started to surround Lokei.
Lokei was stunned.
"Whoa, whoa, hold on! Whatever you guys are, back the hell away from me!"
Lokei tried to move one of the clouds away, his hand went right through it. The white cloud twisted around his arm, flowing upwards until it disappeared into his chest, he stood frozen in place and a new sensation was overwhelming his body. A strange, pleasant feeling flowed throughout his body. He nervously patted his body to see if there was something crawling on him.
"No! Not again!" He yelled as another white cloud came near him.
He waved the oddly-shaped fog away.
Once again, the cloud weaved through his fingers and disappeared into his body.
Again, and again, and again, the clouds came towards him.
"STOP COMING TO ME!"
Lokei yelled. He backed up, but the clouds just kept following him. No matter how many times he waved his hands away or pushed the strange masses out of his range, they still came towards him. They kept flowing into Lokei's body and disappeared. It was as if they were fueling him up.
That sensation of power was becoming stronger and stronger. Every time one of the masses of light went into him, the tension in his muscles slowly melted away.
It was getting more and more light-headed, his breathing steady and his heart beat was slow. Lokei looked at his hands in confusion, the unpleasant feeling in his body had disappeared, and was replaced with a strange sensation.
The clouds suddenly stopped approaching him.
Lokei looked up and the masses of glowing white smoke were hovering in place. They were watching him closely but the question was what did they want?
His muscles tensed up again.
"I'm getting stronger?"
He clenched his fist and a small shockwave traveled through the air. His eyes widened in realization, he turned his gaze towards the remaining clouds. All of this was happening because of the strange energy that was flowing through him. Inside of him, a long forgotten sensation was awakening. Something ancient was inside of him.
It was waiting for the right moment to come out. His body screamed at him, telling him that something amazing was about to happen. A part of him was waiting for this moment to happen.
Lokei stared at the remaining white clouds for a few seconds before he released a tired sigh.
"Whatever. Do what you want."
He turned around and sat down on the steps, resting his elbows on his knees.
He was too tired to fight something he didn't understand, besides, the clouds seemed to have no interest in hurting him. If anything, the strange energy that was entering his body was making him feel significantly better and so with that he leaned back and closed his eyes. It almost looked as though he were getting ready to take a nap, another heavy sigh escaped his lips.
"Just let me rest for five minutes..."
The white clouds continued to drift towards him. One after one, they entered his body, their pale bodies dissipating into faint wisps of light before Lokei gave them no further attention and for the first time since the battle started, he simply allowed himself to rest.
Meanwhile Mischa Chikae stood some distance off, partially hidden behind the remains of a broken pillar.
She had seen everything, the strange change in Lokei's behaviour, the impossible speed at which he had defeated Sanori and the sudden disappearance of Saikichi's Liberation
She saw everything.
Mischa had spent enough time around powerful Seijinists to know that what she had witnessed was well beyond an ordinary awakening or improved Seidan control.
Yet she couldn't explain it.
Her gaze remained on Lokei, he was sitting on the steps with his eyes shut, almost like he had stayed awake for three consecutive nights but the thought was absurd. A few minutes ago he had been struggling to keep up with Sanori and now he had displayed an ability that Mischa couldn't begin to understand.
'Is that really the same person?' she asked herself.
She pressed her lips together, there were too many questions she had no answers to but one thing was certain. Lokei needed to be taken back to Armada headquarters.
Whatever had happened to him, the organization would want an explanation and if his sudden transformation represented some new development in Seidan allowing him to disappear un-questioned would be an unacceptable mistake.
Mischa took a quiet breath.
"I'll deal with him once he's awake."
For now she still had an objective to complete that being the retrieval of The Nishizi and the assignment she had somehow forgotten. She was just about to turn away when–a sudden pressure descended upon the estate.
Mischa's body stiffened, her instincts screamed at her to look towards the center stage. So she turned around and her eyes widened.
Saikichi Yoshe was standing, the man who had fallen after receiving Lokei's devastating punch was rising to his feet slowly.
Mischa stared in disbelief.
"No way."
She had seen the destruction surrounding the stage. She had witnessed the aftermath of Lokei's battle, though she hadn't seen the exact moment Saikichi fell and she had no reason to believe the clan head could simply stand up again.
Yet there he was, Saikichi straightened his back, his body tilting slightly to one side then he raised his face.
Mischa's breath caught in her throat, his eyes had changed, the whites had disappeared, replacing it was a deep unnatural purple that seemed to swallow the light around them and at the centre of each eye sat an upside cross shaped pupil, sharp and unmistakable.
There was no recognition in his gaze, no anger, no confusion, only an unsettling stillness. The pressure surrounding him intensified and Mischa instinctively took a step back.
'What is that?'
Saikichi slowly turned his head, surveying the ruined auction hall, then his gaze settled on Lokei. The young man was still sitting on the steps, his eyes closed, seemingly oblivious to the presence watching him.
Saikichi stared at him for several seconds because something else was looking through those eyes, something that had no business being alive and whatever it was had just awakened.