Dark Reunion (Tsuya)

No. Limbo town was in fact NOT a place the lone wandering spirit frequented. It was hardly residence to beings she played nice with. Able to live off god's little playground instead of perishing with whatever bad deeds they lead in life. And then there was the Ogre... Perhaps the worst of the servants they had. But... it was a place where the lady could find some refuge for a moment. The previous battle had left her ragged and reconsidering her options. Three of them, just there. And no doubt narrowly avoiding the fourth. It was absurd how quickly it was happening this time. It usually took years, but something was accelerating this...

---

"This beats having to feel every muscle in my body ache... Honestly. You look rough."
Inside a quaint little tavern, Tsuya had tossed the white blade off its sheath and to the ground, exploding in a bright light to reveal a fully formed, small human. They knew each other too well, and getting to converse in person was much more comfortable for the pair. And unlike Usumidori's control, Griselda woke up with not a single mark while she rested in that ivory blade. The youth stretches and looks up at her much taller counterpart.

"Of course, I don't expect his kind to treat any of us nicely. Don't worry about me, I've just been busy."
This certainly grabbed the attention of those in the bar, one such rugged-looking demon behind the counter gawking with beady eyes. Definitely not the average traveler and red alarms were set off at the lack of halos. Those narrow green eyes look down at him. That sofrt smile shifts to a neutral as her attention is pulled from the progeny. "Sake for me. Get her a meal and drink as well."

"Non-alchoholic, please."
It wasn't the first time she stepped into hell. Usumi showed her around a few times. She wasn't nearly as put off being here as she wold be otherwise. With a knowing nod, the barkeep turned to a few cooks in the back, mouthing off this and that while grabbing a bottle for Tsuya. Pouring a proper few shots of and offering them with a slick slide across the counter. Tsuya takes one and pulls a seat up for Griselda.

"Yeah, you must be busy. Busy using me... You still never told me where he went."
Before Tsuya could pull a shot back and drink, senses flew wildly by as a familiar presence was made clear. First, that presence nearby... and then the black ooze seeping through the narrow doorway of the tavern. On a hunt for her, apparently. She tilted her head from where she stood and perked a brow. Griselda took this as avoiding the question again and puffed her cheeks.

"Shh... Someone is searching for us, child."

---

"Oh."
Tsuya gave the small blob of shadowy detail a few blinks. It was as if a doll has strolled into town, one with no name and a chip on their shoulder. From the distance, it appeared nothing more than that. There were no shortage of odd fellows who called Hell home, so it was perhaps not the strangest thing to see. It was when it bounced from door to counter that the pair of women gave it another lookover. Griselda, as she leaned on her arms with hands in her lap, looked like the spitting image of Usumidori. Remove the piercing red eyes, manic smile, and raven locks. Tsuya looked much as she did when she awoke in front of him, only missing her usual light green hakama top.

"Well, that's new."
Griselda blinked at the thing, amused, but the older woman knew exactly that posture and form. Making it out even in shadows. It was that smaller gentleman she had run into on Namek. One with a particularly nasty streak with Usumidori. Either this was some clone or he himself did not recognize her as he darted straight for the barkeep instead for his questions. Quickly killing the vibe for the few other residents trying to enjoy their drink. The old spirit laughs a little and downs one of her shots of Sake before taking a seat and leaning her face closer to the tiny shadow man.

"Hardly new. This sort of trickery is as old as magic itself is."
She mused, smiling and raising her brows up at the scrutinizing shadow. "You. You must be a creation of that shadow demon that assaulted me back on Namek. You're the spitting image, minus the brim and accent. What are you wandering out here for?" Tsuya was hypervigilant, but sensing shadows move wasn't exactly in her repertoire. Not unless it was tied to spiritual energy, like one's ki. If Erebos was planning to physically sneak up he'd have another thing coming.

"Say... He DOES look like him... Don't think we got his name."
It wasn't long before Tsuya grabbed another shot and pushed some of her hair aside, out of her face. She had little intention of hiding from people she did not see as the enemy, so this started to feel less like a hostile tracker and more like a funny coincidence. She might need more shots than she ordered for it.

"Someone Usumidori clearly made an enemy of. Vapid fool."
That black blade at her side remains dormant, sheathed and silenced like it ought to be.

---

What a funny little fella. And that was exactly how this shadow clone presented itself. Tsuya's quaint interest turned to amusement as it called her 'beautiful'. It even got a bit of a rise from Griselda, who laughed a bit at the idea of the constantly changing Clint Eastwood. If this was based on Erebos, clearly this cowboy was off base with the original being so charming towards them. It revealed something a bit more jarring to Tsuya at least; The little demon had been following her moves. Or at least was aware of them. Tsuya leaned away from the little guy moments before a larger arm pierced through and pulled a proper body from this creature. Some of the spineless in the bar found it a good time to dip if that's how it was going to be.

"Hey!? What-"
Griselda, who was busy eating, hopped off her seat. And... Well, she wasn't much taller standing there, but she did move away. Tsuya comfortably watched with that amused smirk still crossing her face. Holding a hand over Griselda's shoulder to comfort her as she remained sat down. Some of that black ichor would get on the women's clothes. So the comfort would be short-lived as a free hand flicked some stray ooze bits from her face and shoulder as she swirled her sake around in its cup.

"Oh dear. That's unfortunate. I think that look suits you more than whatever that is. Oh well-"
The tall lady unabashedly smirked and downed her second shot, letting the burn muddle some of her emotions for the time. Griselda herself looked a bit standoffish at the ordeal, eyeing Tsuya to see what she'd do. The air may be tense, but it felt like the old spirit could breathe through air drenched in malice. He repeats the clone's question, aggression doing him no favors.

"Is this actually about freeing the big bad Lottus, or are you really still so miffed I had to abandon our playdate? Or, well, interrupt you and Usumidori's playdate. I'm a little flattered. I didn't expect to have myself followed from that whole mess they made. Well, I already apologized for his actions there, and I hate repeating myself."
She still didn't view that little bit as anything more than awakening. her first proper fight was with Lottus, the subject of this matter now. There was little sense in hiding her intentions here. With the deed already done, there was little Erebos could do even if she were the one to free him.

"So you were one of the fools who talked with the man as well. And certainly no Shinjin Horseman at that... To answer you plainly, no; I did not help Lottus escape. By the time I got to pay my visits here, there were others that spoke to him from beyond the veil. It became clear, as it always does in every age, that the worst of man find their way out of the god's playground called the 'Otherworld'. I even offered to help, but the guy found his own way. That or he was told by someone else."
Griselda was like a deer in headlights blinking at the two. This was over her head, even more so than Usumi's Demon Realm ramblings or after Tsuya explained herself to the younger lady. It was just a lot to take in and not particularly something she signed up for. Tsuya watched Erebos's energies rise with the answer that probably didn't satisfy.

"So I continue wandering. Watching to see what other fools avoid death. With any luck, I can chase them back into the living realm and question their reasons for living. I can hardly take on the gods' designed afterlife by myself."
Either she was lying or she was an open book. Something that more comfortable thought to Griselda than the conniving Usumidori. This time, Tsuya grabbed two of the remaining five shots that were poured for her and offered one to the man getting on her case. She was so devoid of any feelings one way or another about their fight that it'd either defuse any situation or piss off the wrong kinda guy. Tsuya didn't know which would apply to Erebos.

"Well, you found me, boy. A toast to celebrate?"

---

"If it helps you sleep, sure."
Erebos was confident they could track Tsuya, despite the lady having to plainly broadcast her presence to that little scout of his. Be it a need to keep his own ego bolstered or some vague attempt to impress anyone was beyond the spirit. She leans back in her seat and downs her next shot just as Erebos takes the one offered and slouches back himself. Laying a hand to rest on her chin while looking down at him.

"Does his sincerity matter all that much? The cycle always produces those who become blights in the living world. Destruction, justified or not, laid upon those who cannot fight back. And if they fight back, it becomes an exercise in endurance."
Lottus had his own reasons. Poser or not, it would cause the same inevitable destruction. "Once these blights have a taste of fake death, what reason is there to even care to justify anymore? One could always break their chains. Ignore consequences." Some meddling devil or naive kai, all it took was some patience and will.

Griselda was... Mostly there, content with hearing more about what her last living relative was like and how she thought. She was particularly not sure why Erebos brought her into this. The smaller woman would blink up from her fruit-flavored seltzer and give the demon a pair of raised brows. He didn't seem to linger on it himself, but Griselda had to clear this up; She never liked being confused with her demon half.

"I don't think so. I remember you vaguely, though. You are most definitely thinking of Usumidori. They were always picking fights. Nasty little demon. Anyways- I'm Griselda. Nice to meet you. Again?"
Tsuya scoffed and leaned up from her hand, reaching for the last shot the barkeep gave to her before vanishing. Still unsure when that fellow would be back, she'd held the drink for a moment while reaching down at her side. That black blade remained dormant, even as she yanked the sword wholesale with its sheath out of her waist belt and propped it onto her lap. She didn't speak on it as the conversation drew to his questioning again.

"You could say that. It's as we've discussed though, the man works quicker than even I anticipated. He will not be the only one, given enough time. Which means I have my work cut out for me."
She lifts the sake to her lips, savoring the initial burn before choking the rest of her shots down. One of the reason she took drinks from Otherworld was that they could actually affect her here as a slight flush grabs her nose and cheeks. Despite her size, it hit her eventually. Perhaps it was also a mixture of that nostalgia behind her favorite drink as not everything was literal in spirit form.

"Not including yourself, me, or those who also rose to golden warrior heights during Usumidori's little excursion, I counted three 'Super Saiyans' when I got there. Or their equivalents, whatever the people want to call them. Before I left, there were more. Individuals that are capable of destroying entire solar systems alone. I was under the impression when I emerged there were two, but this has been blooming rapidly. What are we to do?"
Rhetorically, Tsuya had no actual clue where to go with this beyond trying to convince those in the current age something was deeply wrong. Lottus was an easy message, if sloppy due to how reckless the man is. So it would sound like she was being coy, to mask a strange truth in her isolation. Without her people, she was fighting a worse uphill battle. An age where her cause is all but extinct.

---

Tsuya was almost more amused by the demon's constant nagging at her. The spirit tapped the countertop to snag herself another cup and just enjoyed herself. The tall woman just smiled back at Erebos when pressed and belittled for her thought. The faintest tinge of red would only be after a few more drinks. Being larger innately makes even the dead's drink take a while to settle in. Tsuya raised their box cup again with that unbothered expression; Very good at hiding her true thoughts behind it.

"Of course nothing matters. Look around you, even the dead get to enjoy much of what they had in life. Some even prefer the playground to what they had to deal with in life. It'll end the way it always does... So why bother? Don't kid me, boy. We've all got our reasons to 'step it up'."
Griselda was used to giving a more polite curtsy or bow than taking handshakes. Hesitating a moment before releasing a cool hand off her drink and offering it to Erebos. It was soft, careful with gripping too hard. Not generally the characteristics of a fighter, yet her power blows past most who had trained their whole life. The girl was genuine with her smile back. Perhaps because she was much freer than her counterpart, despite having to stick at Tsuya's hip in the current. Not that a demon would know this at a glance. They looked more like mother and daughter than anything.

"I don't think normal people hang out with demons and spirits in the afterlife. No offense."
When pushed to answer a question, she shot Tsuya a glance. The spirit shrugs at the girl; Again, opting to not control her actions. Griselda was a bit confused, more so looking for guidance from someone who she could actually look up to... but given no clear direction, she clutched her own collar. A small fist was made as she looked hard onwards, almost past Erebos.

"Theories? I don't think about any of this, really. I'll just keep living. As I have been."
Something hung in that sentence. A hesitation, caught on 'have been'. What 'has' she done in the past few years? Tutor under a vengeful demon? Sought a killer with no ulterior cause? She had long since been removed from the reason she took the blade in the first place, she almost forgot she's a prisoner in her own body still. Tsuya was by far a more kind captive, but had such an absolute control over it. It felt like she was forgetting something here...

"What does a 'Herosbane' get up to anyways? What is it you'll keep doing?"
Tsuya piped up again, downing another box cup of sake.

---

Griselda blinked some at Erebos. Perhaps caught off guard by the simple, playful charm while simultaneously correcting her. Something of which she might have disagreed with as per Usumidori's old word about 'normalcy' for a girl in her standing. But 'normal' was just, different for different people. And at that point normal became more of an obtuse ideal that nobody can rightly pin themselves under. The smaller woman smiles and shrugs at the demon.

"Ahh, heh, I suppose you're right. 'Normal' is a bit dull anyway. Why not aim far and beyond expectations? Not that I need to tell you that, 'hottie'."
She teased some, the ludicrous self-aggrandizing he offered in his own quirky response eliciting pushback in a way disarming of any notion she was either uncomfortable or annoyed by the playful attitude. Rather, it didn't seem like she got enough of it. This was further contrasted with the more wizened and abstract thought Erebos offered her teacher. It was admirable, for supposedly long-lived beings to feel that way about man learn from it. Even if Erebos was ultimately selfish in that altruism. It was a sheer mirror to Usumidori, who seemed driven previously by nothing more than their past and name.

Griselda kept to herself some as she absentmindedly watched Erebos talk and play with alcohol around a literal finger. Tsuya was, above all else, less impressed with the answer given. Doubly so when Erebos insinuated they were kin spirits, more alike than the mortals the woman proclaimed to serve in her retribution. How much of this was true and how much Erebos would read into Tsuya's relationship with her own sense of self-being bodiless was unclear. Clearly she wasn't too bothered by that part, nor has she been pressed by it before.

"A philanthropist with might, not gold. You'd be surprised how many godlings would similarly share the sentiment, yet still insist the system they buy into is 'kind' to us."
Tsuya seemed to insist, after hearing what Erebos likes to do. Downing another hefty drink of her sake with a sigh. "And what do you exactly mean by defending something for once? An idea, certainly, but do you mean a city? A planet? Delaying the inevitable to come is hardly what I'd consider a worthwhile 'squabble'. Not unless the conflict itself comes from the gods that bind us so."
Griselda took another sip of her drink, quiet. Hung up on uncertainty if she could even answer this herself. A few years ago, she wanted nothing more to get rid of the demons that took her family. To see if she could find any still alive. But gone are those years, wasted by a possessive sword who in the end couldn't even keep his own autonomy. Were she asked the same thing Tsuya asked Erebos, would she know the answer? Did she have something to defend, to help? Hell, even to 'mess with' should she feel like a brat?

She didn't know. Did she ever know?

"I take it Namek is your adoptive home, then. I'd like to ask you something. If you happen to know it then divulge it at your discretion."

---

"Are you sure that's not the drink speaking for you?"
Griselda was perhaps not expecting her playful remarks to be sent back tenfold. She could only pose with confidence for so long, after all, and demons like Erebos no doubt had the time to be cheeky with their advances. The smaller woman blinked a few times, eyes brightening as she shifted from a sort of doll-faced placid smile into something more anxious and off guard. A hint of embarrassed red marked her face. In truth, she wasn't used to compliments like this. Even if the compliments were cut by the overtone of crude flirting. She sets aside her drink and plants a pair of hands on her hips.

"So forward! You're cute, but I'd maybe stop at the stroll and dinner first! There's more to savor and appreciate in one another when you take it slow, wouldn't you agree?"
Griselda was direct and addressed mostly what he aimed her way. Tsuya was more amused than anything by his back-to-back insult of age and turning it around to pin the pair up as some sort of fun playdate. It shows in her eyes, that wry and cold smile she usually held only growing wider as she laughs. She laughs and then takes a solid drink of her sake to finish off the glass. She gave the boy a more unabashed look over before shrugging and setting her box of finished sake down for another.

"I think you'd struggle just dealing with one of the girls, better yet me. But I also haven't cared to indulge in a long while. I have plans. I also have yet to meet someone who could ever hope to try with me. Even for little flings."
The old spirit disregarded the charisma Erebos put on with a wave of her hand. Far more open about her feelings or lack of regarding all that. Instead, digging right back into her questions about Namek. "It might help me if I know something about Namek first, to ease my mind and schedule. Usumidori. The 'bratty one' as you put it. It knows you, and it was there on the day I was released. You wouldn't happen to know what they were after, would you? It seems they don't quite know themselves..."

"We travel. A lot. It's mostly me tagging alongside Tsuya here, and her teaching me a few things about her whole... order, and sword fighting. Don't think many could handle us, honestly. - In a fight. I'm talking about a fight."

"Speaking of."
Tsuya whistles, the whole conversation also bringing something else to her mind. In the spirit's mind, the demon and her blade had unsettled business. It was them, after all, that seemed to get Namek all up in arms over what Usumi did. Moving part of her hakama aside, she'd show more of that sheathed black blade for Erebos. "I recall this brat having a bit of a spat with you at one point. Would you care to talk with them and settle anything?"

---