The Dead Have No Voice [ Takehiro | Musou ]

[Uesugi Kenshin]

The realm of the dead was a dreadful, dreary place where the stench of death and decay lingered eternally amidst the fog and corpses that covered the land. It was as if the entire world was devoid of color, and the wailing screams of the eternally damned could be heard no matter where one trekked. 

The Goddess Izanami ruled over this land. The opposite of her brother, Izanagi, she was a cruel mistress who found enjoyment in the torture of each and every soul to pass through her domain. It didn't matter if you were dead or alive,if she got a hold of you, you were her next plaything. 

And so it happened that Amakusa Takehiro would wake up in this realm, finding himself lying on the ground with no idea how he got here. Izanami had chosen him to be her next subject, and her chilling laughter would be heard upon his awakening before her voice boomed as if from nowhere.

"Welcome to the realm of the dead, mortal."

[Amakusa Takehiro]

Initially, the mercenary would have slept through the change in scenery and the screams of the dead. He was used to them in his dreams, at this point. Though, what woke him was the voice. Startled, he sat upright, looking around himself. It was as if his dreams had manifested into reality. The man slapped his cheek a few times to see if he was dreaming, but... this was real. There was no way.

"Who are you?! Where am I?!"

[Uesugi Kenshin]

That chilling voice would speak again, unamused that even this man had asked the same questions as the previous souls to pass through here.

"You are in the world of the dead, and I brought you here because I was bored and needed a new toy."

Takehiro was a man with a good heart, but his own bad deeds and past were the perfect tools to use against him. Izanami knew she would have a lot of fun, she just wondered how long this man would last before he broke.

Before him, a solitary path would appear as the fog around it would split. It was the only way not obscured by the fog, and he had no choice but to move forward.

"I have such delights planned for you..." She would speak again. Izanami awaited Takehiro at the very end of this path, if he could make it that far.

((OOC: Lock in your stats in your next post. ))

[Amakusa Takehiro]

[OoC:
Str: 17(24+2)

Dex: 17(20)

Con: 16(28)

Wis: 14(17)

Spr: 15(18)]

Takehiro cocked a brow at that response. So he was in a form of hell?

"You sound like my mother."

The mercenary stood to his feet, looking around himself for his spear. If he could find it, he'd pick it up and take it with him. If not, well... he's got his gauntlets. He would proceed down the path laid out for him, moving quickly enough that he could make it past any horizontal traps, but slow enough he could spot any vertical hazards, like a guillotine falling from the sky or some shit like that.

[Uesugi Kenshin]

Takehiro would be successful in finding his spear. Izanami wanted to let him be at his full strength before she utterly shut him down. Takehiro would successfully make it through the path as well with no resistance, to place him in a false sense of security.

Soon, he would find himself in a clearing, an arena littered with the bodies of the dead. Many of them were souls who had visited this area in the same manner as him.

Wisps of light were floating around arena, and one by one, each would fly towards a dead body before merging with it, and the dead began to walk. Their terrifying wails would fill the air, and Takehiro would hear them from every direction as they began to shamble in his direction. The corpses were broken and falling apart, and many of them didn't have weapons, or rather, their bodies were littered with various objects that had ended their lives. Their eyes were completely white, yet seemed as though they were staring straight into his soul.

"Let's see if you fare better than the last one I brought here." Izanami would speak into his mind.

[Amakusa Takehiro]

"What the -"

The mercenary looked around him at the dead rising. This was just like that fucking swamp, and he was sure he was done with that shit. He cursed, taking his spear in his hands and taking up a defensive stance. He needed to see just how many of these guys there were, and exactly what they were capable of. He'd fought rotting corpses that he could arm-wrestle with, so he wasn't about to treat these as a pushover.

[Uesugi Kenshin]

((OOC: The dead possess 5 in every stat.))

The dead were weak, but they numbered as far as the eye could see. Against a few, Takehiro would have no problem, but in these numbers, chances are he would tire out.

The undead began to advance on Takehiro, swords, claws, spears at the ready. Upon nearing him, they would strike, attempting to extinguish the small life that remained in their world. Takehiro's goal was to make it to the path directly on the otherside of this arena, but the soldiers would pose an obstacle the entire way.

[Amakusa Takehiro]

Takehiro would block any incoming strikes with his spear before pushing back, sweeping it in front of him. Without much hesitation - though he was evidently disturbed - he would charge forward, looking to push past any who got in his way. He would send out explosive punches, looking to blow the crowds away if he could, and make himself some room. Though, he reserved himself as much as possible as he pushed through. He didn't want to end up tired and overwhelmed in the sea of decay.

[Uesugi Kenshin]

Any opponents that Takehiro struck at would fall, but for every dead two more seemed to take its place. The explosive punches had stopped many of them from getting close, but soon Takehiro would find himself being clawed and grabbed at from behind. From the front, two undead would be swinging their swords at his neck and chest.

[Amakusa Takehiro]

The mercenary would slide to his knees across the ground, whipping out his spear to swat away the swords from below. He would then pivot on his heel, raising back to his feet and extending his spear, striking in a full  circle around him. He would proceed as far forward as he could, performing figure eights with his spear in front of him to stop any attacks from the front, and he would try to outrun any of the bastards behind him.

"This is gettin' old, real quick!"

[Uesugi Kenshin]

Takehiro would successfully dodge the blades as well as break free of the soldiers behind him, but his journey forward would not be entirely fruitful. His figure eights would keep him safe as he advanced for the most part, but due to the sheer number of enemies, several of their blades would get through and he'd find himself slashed and cut across his cheek, chest, and arms.

He wasn't far from the path, yet even still the dead seemed to pour as if out of nowhere.

[Amakusa Takehiro]

"Come on, you bastards! IS THAT ALL YOU'VE GOT?!"

Takehiro shrugged off the cuts, as he'd taken worse before. He extended his spear once again, spinning it forward in a wide arc all around him several times as he progressed. He would push through this. He wasn't far now, so he had to.

After a good few spins of his spear, he would charge one of the undead, hurling the body behind himself and striking it in the back, explosively propelling it into the horde. And he just kept pushing on.

[Uesugi Kenshin]

"Impressive. You'll be more fun than I thought."

Izanami would speak as Takehiro successfully made it to the next path. The undead would stop moving at this point, standing completely still in whatever poses they were in prior to Takehiro reaching the exit. Swords would stop just inches from his body, but the man was allowed a brief respite before pressing onto the next arena.

[Amakusa Takehiro]

Takehiro just stopped for a moment, eying the blades all around him. Once it was clear to them they were halted, he would push them aside and proceed down the next path, wiping the blood from his cheek. His spear was at the ready, and he wasn't about to let himself be surprised.

"You got no clue who you're dealing with here, you little shit."

Of course he would talk shit to the god of death.

[Uesugi Kenshin]

"Such spirit. I will enjoy slowly cutting that tongue from your mouth while I force you to watch."

After walking a ways, Takehiro would find himself at another clearing, although this one was considerably smaller. It looked empty, yet something about the wisps in this area seemed larger, and carried a darker energy.

[Amakusa Takehiro]

"Why don't you tear my eyes out while you're at it, so I don't have to see your ugly face?!"

Maybe he was getting a little too worked up, but it was hard not to when you were robbed of your sleep and thrown into a world of decay. The mercenary just watched the wisps, searching for the bodies they were likely to fall into. If he could get to the bodies before the wisps, he would tear those heads right off.

[Uesugi Kenshin]

His remark angered Izanami, as she believed she was more beautiful than anyone. The wisps would suddenly dash straight into the ground, and suddenly, corpses would begin to rise up from the ground. While at first glance they seemed to be the same as the ones Takehiro had already fought, he'd soon realized that every corpse here was a person he had killed personally. At the forefront of it all, the village elder would be staring straight at him, half of his face a bloody mess from the decisive blow that Takehiro himself made. He let out a ghostly wail of agony before all the corpses began to advance upon Takehiro.

(OOC: Stats are all 10 this time.)

[Amakusa Takehiro]

Every single face that rose up from the ground was one that Takehiro recognized. These were all people that he himself had killed. He didn't forget a single face. He didn't forget a moment's passing as they died by his hands And he never forgot how much that ate him up on the inside.

"You want your revenge, you pieces of shit?! COME GET ME! HERE'S YOUR CHANCE!"

Takehiro would meet their charge, thrusting his spear through the head of the first soldier who came his way. He would quickly pull it out, whipping around in a circle and slashing at as many as he could. He was not going to let up for a second.

[Uesugi Kenshin]

"Unafraid to kill these people a second time. You're truly an amusing creature, probably almost as evil as I am." Izanami was surprised to see that he wouldn't back down, even when faced with his own misdeeds.

Their bodies would fall before him as his spear met their charge. All around him, he could hear their cries of agony, their wails, their screams. Calling his name. Calling out that he was the one who murdered them. Calling out for his death so that they may rest in peace at last. As long as the man lived, their souls would never know respite.

Takehiro would immediately find himself surrounded, the dead grabbing at him and attempting to drag him down and claw at him.

[Amakusa Takehiro]

He wouldn't allow himself to be compared to her. He was fighting for survival, she did this for her own sick pleasure. That was something he would never do. All these people who he would have to kill a second time died in the first place because if they weren't killed, it'd be him in their spot. But it made him wonder, was it worth it? One life for all of these?

The mercenary's fists rushed out toward the hands, striking them and seeking to destroy them upon impact as the gunpowder reacted. He couldn't stand the smell of decay, and he couldn't stand hearing what they were going on about. He was blocking everything he could out, at this point, once again fighting for his life.

[Uesugi Kenshin]

"How much longer until I can see your broken form, I wonder?"

Takehiro's explosive fists would serve him well, successfully knocking the crowd away. However, the moment he did that, the village elder would appear before him in an instant, thrusting a sword forward and planning on impaling Takehiro in the heart.

[Amakusa Takehiro]

Takehiro tried to dodge the strike, moving to the side. Instead of his heart, the blade would pierce his shoulder, and he would let out a cry of pain. He didn't falter, however. He pushed forward, the blade digging further through his shoulder, and with his good arm, he would send a powerful explosive punch toward the elder's face, looking to blow it up where it had previously been crushed when he was killed the first time.

[Uesugi Kenshin]

The elder's face would be smashed once again as Takehiro's fist connected, the corpse flying backwards and falling in a heap on the floor as his blade remained lodged in Takehiro's shoulder.

From behind Takehiro, the dead were still wailing, and began to charge at him faster than before, their blades raised and ready to finish the elder's job.

"I wonder what it is you hold most dear in your heart."

[Amakusa Takehiro]

"Well keep fucking wondering!"

He pulled the blade from his shoulder, holding it firmly in his hand. He tried to see how well his arm would move, now, but he doubted it would help him at all here. Takehiro turned around, meeting the mens' charge, trying to swat away any of the blades he could, while going for the guys' throats. He would take off as many heads as he could.

[Uesugi Kenshin]

Izanami smiled at his struggle, even as he decapitated and slaughtered all that opposed him or tried to hold him back. The blood of the dead would spill and spray all over him more and more with every being he slaughtered. This man was willing to kill the dead all to stay alive himself, and he was strong enough to follow suit with it. Izanami was finding more of a use for him as he went on, but she wasn't done toying with him yet.

More wisps would appear, reviving all that he had just slaughtered and reanimating them to fight again. It would be an endless onslaught, and Izanami would enjoy seeing him finally tire out.

"I think that once I am done with you, I will drag those you care for into this world next. Maybe they'll find you among my ranks."