Forum Thread

Mister Detilander's voice seemed to come at her out of nowhere. She visibly jumps in surprise when he suddenly appears and gives her some fruit. She thanks him, even though she was certain that he teleported away after giving her the fruit. She slowly eats the fruit and spends the next few minutes trying to pinpoint what kind of fruit it was before she gives up, ultimately deciding that it was some sort of magical food not available to normal people.

He wasn't lying though. Like magic, she could feel her energy returning. Pretty soon, her hour was up. Whenever you're ready you can restart the simulation the same voice informs her. Bree stands up and after relocating the button, she resets the simulation.

Once again, she hears a sound behind her. But this time, it sounded like running footsteps rather than a falling body. A furious war cry sounds from behind her and Bree instinctively pounces away from her attacker. Just in time too, because a sword slams into the button, which was where she was standing just seconds ago.

Bree curses as she backpedals away from the attacker. Something hit that button. It's either a club or a sword. If situation one had arrows, I'd doubt situation two would involve use of a primitive club. She considers grabbing her dagger from her boot, but realizes that it was worthless. She had no idea what type of sword her attacker had. A dagger could never win against a sword. Not unless she got extremely lucky and she would never be foolish enough to bet her life on luck.

Instead, Bree tries to shield herself the next time her attacker strikes. She brings her arms up, now aware that this will create a dome shield and while it blocks the attacks, she finds that blocking attacks consumes a lot of energy. She won't be able to hold it forever.

The simulated attacker continues to fight her seemingly on unlimited energy. Soon, she is forced to drop the shield and get hit by the sword. It cuts across her face. While it doesn't leave any marks, it certainly feels like it had cut her face open. Situation two is over, the simulation will reset in one hour the voice reminds her. Once again, Bree sits down, all the while holding her still stinging face. She was a bit angry that the odds were against her for this situation. It almost seemed like she was set up to fail. But at least she learned a valuable lesson. Unless she managed to get stronger, her shield could only be held up for a limited amount of time. This begged the question, what other limits did she have?

---

Kanae sat in his room for some time, wondering how he should train with this box. Would he train his mind to withstand the influence, should he open it to find out what effects it had.? He decided to go on and risk a look, after all, one wouldnt be able to know their limits if one were never to rist anything. His hands went to the box again, it had been resting on his legs as he sat, but now he wanted to open it.

Opening it wasnt easy to say the least, he had to fumble with it for a second, being inexperienced. The Ankrah opened after some tries and some fiddling with the lock on it, then he magaged to click it open and.. hesitated for a short while, eyeing the now open box, which layed closed on his leg. //alright, calm yourself. One glance wont harm your mind too much.// he figured, eyeing the box again after glancing at the wall.

Kanae opened the Box, and looked inside, then closed his eyes when a sudden flash seemed to appear out of it. To anyone watching, there was none and he´d only be staring at the box, yet to him, inside his mind and in front of his eyes, few hundret or thousand choices and futures flashed by. He saw gruesome things, nice things and just merely acceptable ones as well. With a shake of his head, a slight groan and a hand clasping the box shut forcefully, he managed to snap out of it.
He glanced the Tanji on his lap again, that was a lot to take in. He blinked slightly, getting his troubled mind back to a calm(er) state, trying to figure out what had just happened.

He knew what went down, it was explained after all. But.. how would he be able to get such a wave of information and futures under control enough to be useful? He sighed a little frustrated.

Having had closed his eyes, letting the shadows coalesce around his form, Binghe nearly screamed at the cold added weight that prodded his shoulder. Oddly though, instead of lashing out he shrunk away, shadows building up a firm wall between him and Mister Detilander, the shadows pulsing lowly in time to the cut off song that Binghe had sang. The shadows responded to Binghe's will like he had been doing it all his life, the easy swaying of the matter a welcome home to a place that the boy didn't even know existed, yet there wasn't a speck of light to be found anywhere. The complete darkness of the room spoke to Binghe's inability to even cultivate a glimmer of light. It seemed that he certainly was more proficient in one aspect than the other. With a low hum, the shadows passed through Mister Detilander harmlessly, giving Binghe the information he needed even in the pitch blackness of the room.

"Mister Detilander, this one sincerely apologizes for being unable to give you any light to see by." He hastily apologized, gripping the energy reviving fruit loosely. "I am still woefully lacking in understanding how to even communicate with this Tanji, still unable to summon forth anything. It would be impudent of me to take a break when I am surely behind the other extraordinary talents gathered here." Truly it was vexing that there was little progress that Binghe felt that he was making. So far he was only commanding the ever present shadows in the dark room to do his bidding yet he couldn't even form anything as Tilly had explained that Ongreuktnm could do.

---

“It takes practice. You have just taken your first try, after all. Practice more, and you’ll eventually get the hang of it, don’t worry” And on that note, he too, disappears. He appears next to Ramson and Kanae separately, giving them each the same fruit, with the words “Good luck” and a few others of encouragement. Tilly smiles at Mehul. “Now that’s the spirit!” She disappears to visit Ramson “How’s it going?”

---

Mehul drops to the floor again as Tilly leaves. Now, though, he had eaten the fruit, and had some more energy to spare, so he supposed he'd rather read some more than sleeping his time through. So he did.

---

He clicked connect. Or at least, intended to.

"Is your Tanji skill giving people jumpscares?"

Ramson had almost dropped his Tanji when he had heard the voice so suddenly.

"Well, I suppose it is going alright? I just figured out how to connect using the Tanji. A guide could really have helped, you know." Ramson said as he regained his posture.

Tilly snaps her fingers, and everyone was immediately teleported to another room, dropping about 30m before landing onto a pile of soft and super squishy pillows. “Come on come on we don’t have all day you know? Here, get through this door, you’re not done yet.” Through the door is a buffet table loaded with food, and a set of thick books, one book for each Tanji. The seating places seem to be fixed, too. “Now, reading may seem boring to many of you, especially these thick books. Thankfully, these are the most interesting set of books you’ll ever see, with moving pictures and hidden surprises. Please try not to be alarmed if the human animation in the book tries to strangle you, or if confetti suddenly pops out. For Bree, your book has been specifically designed, and don’t worry, you have your own surprises to deal with.” The seats looked relatively comfortable. Bree was sat next to Kanae and Ramson, Faith was next to Binghe and Mehul, and Kahiri at the short end of the table, by himself.

Faith looks much less surprised this time round. She had gotten used to the craziness of this place. She took a plate of food then set down, opening the book, jumping as a huge black puma jumped out of the book, running several rounds around them then jumping back into the book

---

Mehul groaned as he was teleported midway through reading a section, but did not complain, especially cause the reason was food, and he was hungry, despite the fruit. He takes some of the pasta, and whips his book out, the book on Grendulas. The book seemed like a normal one, until it randomly exploded at a page. "Grendulas loves exploding things. You should too, but just be wary of the power in your hand." He continued reading, suppressing his screams at the worst jumpscares. He wondered if each of these books were written for them specifically, like Bree's one had to be, but his book did have signs of being old. Was his sword used by someone else before? Did they not mention that it was deemed to be his before the creation of the universe or some nonsence like that?

---

Binghe was dropped into the room, looking a little bit like a drowned cat. But instead of water, shadows were sloughing off the boy's thin frame and he hastily shook them off. The shadows reluctantly but obediently slink away into the recesses of the room, joining its brethren as Binghe squinted. Being in pitch blackness for so long to be suddenly dumped into a room full of light stung and Binghe's eyes had to take some time to adjust. When the urge to rip out his eyes to relive himself of the burning pain finally abated, Binghe let out a breath and let brown eyes flutter open. Poised grace carried him over to the table as he knelt down, tucking wary legs under his thighs. Does this place have herbal teas? was his first thought when he spotted a old fashioned wicker handle tea pot. Reaching over, he gingerly removed the lid and peered in, satisfied to smell the contradictory waft of Hawthorn herbal tea. It was much different from the teas his Auntie brewed for him back in the day but the familiar actions of minding what angle his hand was at when pouring and the satisfaction of a good pot producing a steady stream of hot water was still the same.

Gingerly picking up the cup he had poured for himself, Binghe let the sweet tang of the tea spread over his tongue. Gingerly sipping, he sighed as he felt energy seep back into his exhausted body. Finishing off the cup, Binghe gingerly bit into a fig, letting the fruit slip down his throat into an empty stomach. Satisfied, he cleaned off his hands before touching the tome sat down beside him. While reading wasn't his favorite past-time, a luxury that he couldn't quite afford most days, there was an undeniable peace to simply sitting down and absorbing new information. Flipping open the well worn cover, A wave of darkness spilled out from the pages. There was nary a gasp as Binghe simply waved the shadows away like an unruly child. The shadows were his home. How foolish of it to attempt to scare him with it.

---

This lady's planning to kill us before the Alacratz even get a chance!

Only Ramson knows how he managed to keep a straight face after that, but he did.

Seeing the size of the books, Ramson involuntarily gulped. He sure hoped she wasn't lying when she said that it'd strangle him, since he was starting feeling as though that would simply be better.

He opened the book, and his right eyebrow went up without him even realizing. In front of him stood the green little robot mascot of Android.

"Is this sponsored?"

"This is #NotSpon, bzzt."

"You know that doesn't work when you speak, right?"

"I will #killyou, bzzt."

"Without even taking me out to dinner first?"

"That joke is #dead, bzzt. Must you really be a #boomer, bzzt?"

Shutting his book immediately, he turned to the lady he simply referred to as Boss Lady.

"Such a wonderfully lovely book."
Those looking at him got the extremely rare opportunity to see not one but three popped nerves.

Unlike the last time she had been offered food, this time, Bree doesn't hesitate to accept the offer of having something to eat. With help from a servant she eagerly fills up her plate and dives in. She was quickly starting to consider use of the Tanji being like a muscle- using it was a workout, but with time, she was sure she would be able to heal and shield others with ease.

But she wouldn't know for sure until she opened up her book; and from the sounds of it, the books were definitely- interesting to say the least. She didn't know whenever or not she was excited or nervous to open up her book. She decided her answer was excited because no matter how hard she tried to ignore it, the urge to read her book was overwhelming. She continued to eat until she could no longer withstand fighting her curiosity and opens the book to a random page. As promised, the text was written in braille.

Your shield is a very powerful ability. A dome-like structure that can be used to shield yourself and your allies. How long you can hold your shield up depends on your strength and experience. Bree smirks, feeling proud of herself for being able to figure that out on her own. The shield can block almost anything, even man-made bullets! Bree doesn't even have time to react. What sounds like gunshots erupt from the book, causing bullets to fly towards Bree. Just like in her simulated training, the bullets only sting for a little bit when they hit her. "Seriously? This again?" Bree mutters while quickly shutting her book.

---

Kanae seemed a little bit bothered still, thinking about the things he had seen when opening the box, yet he grabbed himself a plate of food, again only taking what he knew, and sat down in his seat. He looked at the book in front of him, its covered showed that same box he just tried to train with, the one that showed him these cursed images, yet he decided to give it a try, flipping the old looking pages open to see whats inside, while munching on some toast.

By now, Tilly has nearly collapsed onto the ground with laughter. “Go on, go on. Read the books” she says.

Faith looks at Tilly blankly “What is your Tanji, Tilly?” She asks, not really looking the slightest bit amused, but she doesn’t look angry either.

“Ah, yes, my Tanji. I’m sure many of you are wondering the same thing. This jewel inlaid hairpin? This, is my Tanji, my pride and joy. With it I penetrate the minds of many, anyone foolish enough to come within the range of my powers. I can read your minds, only one at a time, but still! I can see what you’re thinking, hear what you’re thinking, feel what you’re thinking. But of course, I respect your privacy. I only hear the strongest of thoughts, those of negative emotions.”

---

So, a discount Xavier?

Ramson opened the book once again, carefully this time.

"Yo what was that for, Bzzt??"

"I think I liked the you who used hashtags better than this accent. Just doesn't suit an android."

"I will suit your-"

The android was stopped by Ramson who held his mouth shut.
"Shh... we're all trying to read, so quite down. Tell me, what is your purpose?"

"Are you Socrates, Bzzt?"

"Thales, actually. Anyway, what do you want?"

"I'm supposed to be your assistant, Bzzt."

"So, Sam but, more green?"

"Do not think of Shrek, Bzzt."

"I thought of Fiona so that should be fine."

"Ughh. Anyway, I should inform you that you are going to have a lot of reading to do. Good bye, Bzzt."

Saying that, the 'assistant' went went back into the book. Such a wonderful assistant. Resisting the urge to shut the book once more, Ramson started reading it.

So basically all of his thoughts were broadcasted towards Tilly. Wonderful. His mind was a cesspool of negativity even if Binghe's outwardly persona suggested the other. Whatever. He had nuance, not just some one off character. Flipping through the pages, Binghe read leisurely while refilling his cup with tea, filling his mind with the words from the ancient looking pages. He didn't want Tilly poking around in his head any more than he already gave her. The occasional sparks of light popping from the book made him blink, spots dancing before his eyes slightly before he continued reading. No attempts at his life at least, the whispers of shadows calm as he flipped to yet another page. Sipping his tea as he read, an eyebrow arched at the descriptions inscribed in scribbles that he had to focus to decipher.

It isn't unusual for Ongreuktnm to favor one side over the other. It seems that those who cultivate the darkness are are jaded yet accepting of the ugly world while those who embrace the light find themselves the heroes of stories that hardly end well. Well Binghe certainly wasn't here to be psychoanalyzed by an ancient tome and quickly flipped to the next page. The withered old page didn't give any better information. Whoever wrote the book was full of nonsense.

---

To his surprise, the book was a bit lighter than the actual thing, some of the pages were almost blank, the old pages had withered a little and the writing had faded slightly, yet he found enough words to piece together sentences. Descriptions of the different visions there could be seen, although nothing was really deep diving into anything more informative, were written in there. Some merely scribbled into it, some had clearly taken a lot of time too.

He tried to find out some tips, mostly trying to figure out how he could focus on certain routes that the box would show instead of the mass that would infiltrate his mind when he´d open the box. Perhaps if he could learn to decide which path he´d want to see, the twisting of his own mind would be hindered or delayed. That way he could be of bigger help than if he were to go insane.

Mehul didn't want have any reaction to Tilly's tanji. It was scary, yea, but what was more scary than the fact that he was not going to be home for 24 hours for training with an explosive sword to save the world while it all would be mere 24 seconds for his parents and anyone outside. He continued reading through the book, avoiding sudden explosions and sword slices. One did get him, which should have chopped his ears off, but just tickled a bit. Real life won't be similar. He needed to work on his reflexes. He did dodge the occasional gunshots, but it wasn't enough.
"Grendulas has a mind of its own. If someone can learn to talk to him, and even persuade him, he could do much more than exploding at contact. This though, is only theoretical. The one who talked to Grendulas, the only one, he couldn't do much as will him to send explosive slashes into the air!"

---

When Binghe is finally sent home, it is with a brewing mind and many questions that he brings with him. One of the final passages in the book he was given was weighing heavily on him, the words still imprinted in his mind as if he had the text in his hands before him.

“Run not from the darkness. Shield not your eyes from the light. For does the light not cast shadows? And without the dark, how can we know light? Both are one and the same, separate yet joined. Without one, the other can have no meaning. As they are but two phases of the same energy, know that in darkness, there is light. And in light, there is darkness."

What an odd thing to say, the balance of such things intertwined so closely yet so different from one another. The duality of life reflected in the simple philosophy of black and white. Right or wrong. Yes or no. What a curious little cage people put themselves in to satisfy such moral struggles. In the end the line between the two was indistinguishable from the blood people shed to trod on the right side of their reasoning. Perhaps he was the worst type of offender, one foot in each faction as he trod the lonely road fraught with liars and deceivers. That thought only made him laugh out loud, his soft chuckling ringing through the empty streets of the poorer side of town.

Mounting the steps up to his apartment, Binghe made sure to stop at his neighbor's place to drop off a pair of jade earrings that had been the beginning of this whole mess. If he had accidentally procured fake jade instead of real ones... well no one needed to know that did they? Waving off the Grandmother's hurried thanks and offers of returning the favor on day, Binghe returned to the dilapidated and honestly overpriced hovel that was his apartment complex. It wasn't anything grand or lifesaving, certainly not an abode expected of someone wielding a Tanji (if those things really were as special as Tilly said they were) but Binghe had other things to worry other than his housing situation. Turning in for the night, Binghe hoped that when he awoke the next day, every thing would simply return to normal. He'd had enough of supernatural happenings for an entire lifetime.

---

Tilly came crashing through each of their windows respectively, during the early dawn. She seemed totally unperturbed at unceremoniously waking everyone up, yelling at them loudly before teleporting them cheerfully to the hideout, again to the room of soft squishy pillows. She simply ignored the grumbles of tiredness, handing them a green fruit smoothie, which was supposed to “awaken” them but tasted like someone’s rotting garbage. She seems oblivious to the glares of the kids around her, talking animatedly about their training.


Faith groaned in frustration, looking as if she would like nothing more than to duct tape Tilly’s mouth. With a jovial, unassuming wave, Tilly vanished, and they were teleported into an arena, where several terrifying members of the supposed organisation they were unceremoniously involved in, faced them, looking stoic with their own Tanjis. Tilly was commentating, giving a quick blow by blow of their opponents. Amongst them were Mr Detilander, two ginormous stone golems, one pissed off looking lady and two strikingly similar people, twins of the opposite gender, who moved unnervingly in sync. Apparently, the Tanjis could control fire, shoot projectiles, conjure illusions and more.


Great. Just great. Faith thought, as she heard Tilly announce that they, untrained people, were going to fight experienced Tanji wielders in the arena for today’s session. Just as she thought today couldn’t possibly get any worse

---

Kanae blinked slightly, looking at the people in front of him, he hadnt really finished the smoothie due to the awful taste but felt.. woken enough by the foul taste alone to analyze his opponents and realize that, they.. really shouldnt be doing this. He reached down to the coat pocket, feeling the box inside it, he hadnt touched it since returning home the day prior, yet the futures he saw during training werent really that good to make him sleep well.

He got the box out and looked at it before trying to think of something they could do. Clearly these people were way more experienced than any of the group, but he figured that if Tilly thought they should do this then she´d have a plan to get them out if it got too fierce