The Phantom's Sword

Jasper would have crossed his arms behind his head as he walked if not for the fairy sitting on his shoulder. She hadn't talked since he'd met her, so conversations were rather one-sided, but he at least knew she understood him, which was better than nothing. The black haired undead didn't plan on making any friends with humans, since he was only here to find the sword he'd borrowed. Fara was the only friend he had. It really was too bad Felix had to go and die just as he got out of the Unknown. Woulda been nice to joke around with the fool a little bit, for old times sake.

"I mean, sure, it's easier to move around out here and find whoever has the sword, but I never actually figured out the part of how I'm going to find this person," he said, glancing at the fairy, who giggled noiselessly at his misfortune. Jasper grinned. Silly little creature.

Batsu flew around searching for souls. In his arms he held three of them. Somehow they'd gotten lost on their way to the Unknown and he was on his way back there, but he was always keeping an eye out for straying souls. As he flew over a path he picked up a familiar scent that made hims top. He slowly descended to the ground and smiled when he saw Jasper and his fairy. "Hi," he greeted as he walked over to the two, or rather three if one would include Boreas.

Jasper stopped walking and looked up when he heard the sound of large wings. He tilted his head when he saw the red haired being that landed in front of him. 'It's Batsu...' Boreas said, sounding a little confused. Jasper had figured that too, what with the red hair and black wings. But... "Hey there yourself. You look...different," he said with a small chuckle. The fairy on his shoulder gave a small wave to the being. He looked less scary than before.

Batsu smiled, glad to know that Jasper recognized him and seemingly the fairy. "Kymin took me to the Unknown so that I could get my own body," he said. "I know it's not much different from my the one I borrowed, but I'm less intimidating, so it all works out in the end." He'd often thought about what villagers would say if they saw him. They could easily tell that he was the God of Chaos from before and he wasn't as strong anymore. He honestly didn't know what to do. "Where are you two...three off to?"

Jasper nodded as Batsu explained. "How was he? When you saw him, I mean? Last time I saw him, he was pretty messed." He chuckled when the red haired being said he wasn't as intimidating. That was certainly true. He glanced to the fairy, who was staring at Batsu's arms. When she saw him looking at her, she pointed, as if saying 'Look at that!' The only problem was, the black haired undead couldn't see anything there, even though it looked like the other male was holding something. He shook his head lightly and turned his attention back to Batsu. "You can say the two of us. It's fine since Boreas is technically part of me." 'Don't you fucking exclude me,' Boreas growled. "And I'm not sure. There's something I'm supposed to be looking for, to return it to Silence, but I don't have a clue where to start," he said with a light sigh. "What about you?"

(Boreas I hilarious!)

Batsu shook his head. "I don't know what's wrong with him, but he wasn't any better when I came across him." The red eyed being shrugged. "I thought he was supposed to be looking for the silver haired man he was with." Batsu looked at the fairy who was pointing at the souls. He looked down at them. One was grey, the other was maroon, and the other was highlighter pink. The winged creature stretched his wings. "I'm just collecting lost souls and taking them to the Unknown. Kymin said I should do this until I find a purpose." He looked down at the souls again before glanced back up at Jasper. "What did you take from Silence. Maybe I can help you find it."

(Lol, thought you'd like that.)

Jasper tilted his head. "He didn't tell you then?" He frowned for a minute, debating on whether it would be okay to tell Batsu. Why would it matter if he told the guy anyways? It's not like that other guy was gonna find out and scold him anyways. "Felix is dead. He died about a month back, right after we got out of the Unknown." Jasper had to give a small little smirk though. "For the record, I'm fairly certain they were more than friends," he shrugged. It wasn't a hard thing to figure out, at least it hadn't been for Jasper. But really, who said 'I love you' over the phone to a friend? The black haired male's eyes narrowed in confusion. "Souls? How do you know where they are? Hold up...can you see souls?" Was that possible? He knew that souls of some kind had to exist, despite his doubts before his death. Souls had to exist if he could be brought back to life, right? But he didn't know that you could see a soul. That was kinda neat. He wondered what they looked like. "I borrowed a sword from him when I was still alive," he shrugged. "It ended up getting taken from me before I died, and Silence isn't very forgiving to people who don't return his things," he said, his tongue against the side of his mouth in annoyance. He hadn't been happy about having been raised from the dead. "I don't know how much help you would be. The guy who took the sword from me probably isn't alive anymore. He could have passed it down to someone else, or hidden it, or..." Jasper gave an irritated sigh and scratched the back of his head. "What a pain...I mean, I'll take any help I can get, of course. I don't mind the company. Being stuck in the Unknown for a hundred years has left me feeling very sociable," he joked dryly.

Batsu looked a bit dumbfounded and he felt horrible. He'd been so cruel to Kymin. It was no wonder the guy didn't want to take his soul. "That's too bad." Batsu looked off to the side. "I should probably go find him...then again he probably doesn't want company and he said he had some business to handle." The red eyed male shrugged. "Anyway, it is possible to see souls, I'm actually holding three. It's something I inherited when I was really human. Me and Kymin come from the same Clan. Don't ask, it's complicated." He paused before speaking again. "Where'd you last see the guy, I could probably track the scent," he said with a shrug. "Or we could just ask around."

Jasper felt a bit unsure about Batsu going to find Kymin. "I dunno, he seemed pretty bad off. I don't think he'd want the company, honestly." He paused. "Or maybe it's just that he doesn't like me very much," he shrugged. He didn't care either way, even if he did feel bad for the guy. "You should probably focus on getting those three souls to the Unknown before helping me," he said with a half frown. "But since I have too much free time and no where to start, I'll tag along. Maybe I'll find something useful along the way," he said. "And I doubt the scent would be there anymore. Last time I saw him I was in the forest about a day's hike from the Stealth. Couldn't say exactly where either. I think our best bet is to ask around. Especially since it's not hard to miss a sword that would occasionally glow. Or the guy who took it for that matter." But then again, he didn't really know if the guy who'd taken it would still be alive, but who knew. Maybe the sword granted immortality.

Batsu shrugged when Kymin was mentioned. The winged creature then nodded as he was reminded of the souls he should have been taking back. "Oh yeah," he sad with a small sniff. "I'm glad you're tagging with me. I didn't socialize much either." His grey eyes were unblinking as he started for the Unknown. "As long as he wasn't in the Snow everything is good." Batsu smiled lightly. "So, what's her name," he asked as he pointed at the fairy.

Jasper nodded and started for the direction he thought the Unknown was in. How did a guy forget that he was holding souls in his arms? Didn't they feel like anything? Then again, he guessed if they did, people would be running into them left and right. He glanced at the little fairy on his shoulder. "Boreas named her Fara. She seems to like it, so we just call her that. I'm pretty sure she can't talk, so it's a bit difficult to communicate with her," he shrugged. "Heh, yeah, I bet," he grinned. He'd been out long enough to have heard about the destroyed villages and had pieced it together himself, especially when he'd heard about the black wings.

Batsu didn't feel remorse for destroying those villages. He acttually didn't feel anything. "I know I'm asking for a lot, but would you like to help me find Serenity afterwards." He smiled, showing a set of normal teeth. "I remember hearing you say that you liked her. Maybe you can make her happy." He shrugged and waved to Fara. "Hi."

Jasper blinked when Batsu said he was asking for a lot. "That's not really what you'd consider a lot, if you think about it. She's an old friend, and she might know something about the sword. Aside from that, it'd be nice to see a familiar face," he smiled. "Now then, let's go drop off those souls," he said with a nod. His smile widened when Fara shyly waved to Batsu. Looked like she was warming up to him. With most people she'd usually just hide behind his neck or in his jacket pocket.

Batsu shrugged. "I'm not exactly human, I'm learning....okay." He then smiled as Fara waved at him. This was going to be fun. "And just so you know, I'm a familiar face. You haven't seen me in a month." He flicked his wings back and glanced to Jasper. "So, what exactly is Boreas to you," he asked. "He has a mind of his own, but you're one soul."

Jasper raised an eyebrow and shrugged when Batsu said he wasn't exactly human. "Fair enough." He grinned, his grey eyes shining in amusement. "You're face isn't familiar at all. It's changed," he pointed out. "Or maybe you just haven't had a chance to look in a mirror lately. Now that I think about it, have you ever had the chance?" He was serious. This guy had probably never even seen himself. 'Can I explain?' Boreas questioned excitedly. No. "It's hard to explain, really. At first I thought it was a kekkai genkai, but then I realized no one in my family had it. They all had an affinity for ice, but not like me. Believe it or not, people started believing I had schizophrenia and multiple personality disorder after that. I finally figured it out though, not too soon before I died. You know what a human's chakra is, right?" he asked, looking over to Batsu. "Turns out chakra isn't just some sort of energy we use to perform jutsu. They're an entire second consciousness, but normally humans don't live long enough for the consciousness to develop enough to communicate with the host," he said. 'I hate you. I wanted to explain.' Jasper almost rolled his eyes. Don't be such a baby.

Batsu gave Jasper a short look. "I've seen my reflection in the water and in windows, but I've never thought to myself, 'Hey, I should go look in a mirror today.'" He gave a huff before focusing on Jasper's explanation of chakra. "So you're one of those lucky humans that get to communicate with their chakra. That is interesting." He nodded then looked ahead to the entrance of the Unknown as it came into view. "We're almost there," he pointed out, mostly to the souls.

Jasper snickered at the look he got. "I didn't mean anything by it man." Then again, most people would take offense to something like that. Maybe it had been too long since he'd had some kind of social interaction. The black haired male gave a small laugh. "I wouldn't say I'm lucky." 'Well then fuck you too.' Jasper looked to the gates once Batsu pointed them out. "I think I'm gonna wait outside. I don't wanna go back into that place without the sword," he said, almost nervously.

Batsu shrugged. "I'm not too worried about it," he mumbled. The grey eyed male then smiled. "Can't Boreas hear you," he snickered. Without a word about Jasper's fear of entering the Unknown he went inside. "I won't be long," he called. He disappeared and came back a few moments later with a smile on his face. He'd watched each soul take on their new forms. One had chosen a song bird, another a small deer, and the other was a mix between a human, bored, and tiger. He didn't really know. "All done, let's go."

"Oh, he can hear me alright. I just don't give a damn," he smiled. Jasper decided while Batsu was in there, to let Boreas out, since the guy was bugging him so much. By the time Batsu walked out of the Unknown, Boreas was smiling and playfully tickling the fairy on his shoulder, who kept running to the other shoulder to try and avoid him. He had a brown glove on his hand, just in case. He'd insisted that Jasper buy a pair so that he didn't accidentally freeze Fara again. When Batsu spoke, the small fairy flew over onto his shoulder, noiselessly giggling as she hid behind his neck. Boreas looked a bit surprised, but almost annoyed at the same time. "Tch, she took a liking to you way too quick," he mumbled. 'You know...I think being in the Unknown has changed you a lot,' Jasper thought curiously. Boreas shrugged. "Alright though, let's go," he said, pulling the other brown glove on. He paused when Jasper reminded him "Where is Serenity, anyways?"

When Batsu came up he didn't quite know that the Boreas was out until he was right up on the guy. "You like her, don't ya." Batsu grinned with a teasing look shinning in his eyes. His grin turned to a soft smile when Fara landed on his shoulder. "Hi there." He chuckled as Boreas made his smart ass comment. "Jealous?" He then shrugged. "I don't know. I think she said the Gears, but I don't know where that's at." He looked to Fara and patted her on the head as softly as one could manage.

Boreas rolled his eyes at Batsu's teasing. "So what?" He wasn't gonna bring up the fact that Batsu had pretty much saved her, but Jasper kept thinking about it and that both worroied and annoyed him. He gave a small huff. "I don't get jealous." Jasper wasn't right about him having changed. He'd just never seen the orange eyed chakra around a bunch of non-humans before. Yeah, he still hated humans, and he thought he had plenty of reason to. "The Gears? God, it's been years since we've been there," Boreas said, speaking Jasper's thoughts aloud. "Silence let us keep our memory, so...we kinda know where it is," he said with a small grin. Stop saying 'we' and 'us'. It sounds really weird.

Fara smiled and gave a small wave when Batsu said hi. She liked this man now that he was less intimidating. She wished she had a way to communicate with them, but she couldn't speak the language they were speaking. She blinked and tilted her head when Batsu asked Boreas if he was jealous. What did that word mean? She giggled noiselessly when Batsu patted her on the head, taking a seat on his shoulder instead. She didn't want to go back to Boreas right now, because he might try to tickle her again.

Batsu found it amusing to have Fara on his shoulder instead of Boreas'. The grey eyed male tilted his head when she giggled. No wonder Boreas had taken a liking to her. "You're a silly little fairy." The winged creature said before turning his attention back to Boreas. "Well, if you remotely remember then lead the way," he said with a nod. "And I think you are jealous." He nodded as if he knew for sure. "So let's get a move on. If I pick up her scent I'll be able to track her the rest of the way."

Boreas gave a small sigh. He hoped Fara wouldn't end up sticking with Batsu. "I'm not jealous," he insisted, starting away in a direction he thought the Gears to be. If he remembered, it was pretty far from here, and it was just north of the Unknown. He paused when he heard a familiar laugh in the distance. "Did you hear that?" he asked, tilting his head.


"Come on, they're this way," Alice giggled, pulling on Cross' hand to make him come quicker.

Cross followed after Alice. It didn't seem like he had a choice. "Who's this way?" he asked, his voice blank as it usually was. "Alice, where are you taking me?" He knew that this way was leading to the Unknown, but why was she taking him there? He only just regained consciousness, and he didn't know what had happened in the time he'd been out, or how long he'd been out, or how he'd even lost consciousness to begin with.

"It's the guy, it's the mister, he'll tell you what happened while you were gone," she said with a smile, her onyx eyes shining.

"What guy? Alice..." When Alice only laughed at his confusion, Cross sighed and followed, his wings ruffling once behind him.

Batsu smirked when Boreas insisted that he wasn't jealous. "Whatever you say." He then started off after Boreas. If it was a long way off then he was sure, Jasper would need to rest every now and then. During that time he would hunt for lost souls. Batsu was thinking up a suitable game plan when he heard Boreas speak. "It sounds like that girl from the Unknown." He had some very acute hearing.

Boreas nearly shot a glare at Batsu. He wasn't jealous. 'Dude, you're totally jealous,' Jasper thought. Boreas shook his head and looked in the direction of the voices. Sounded like she was coming towards them. Also sounded like she wasn't alone. The voice was low, and fairly deep, but it was easy to hear against the girl's squeaky one.

Alice continued pulling Cross along until she could see the two people come into sight, along with the little fairy on the red haired man's shoulder. "There they are, there they are!" she said with a big smile, waving to them. "Hey, hey misters!" When she let go of Cross' hand and went running happily towards them, Cross nearly started forward to pull her back, but only picked up his own pace. He didn't know these people, or if they'd try to hurt Alice. Once he got closer, he realized the red haired one had large black wings, much like his own. His eyes calmly glazed over the two individuals, stopping briefly on the fairy, who shyly hid behind Batsu's neck upon seeing him. She'd seen him in the Unknown before, but she'd never approached him.