Mana drain pt. 1

[22:56] Even if it wasn't intentional, Satsuki would certainly pretend it was. It was definitely proper form for old Shengese masters to slip inspiring life lessons into what would otherwise be a mundane, inconsequential statement; and she, qualifying as all three things - old, Shengese, and a master - seemed right at home offering that sort of advice.

"But of course, Ethan Hawke," she responded, giving the slightest of bows. Her expression didn't change in the least. "There is... one particular art I attempted to learn many years ago, as part of Sunyata. Only, it is... purely theoretical, and- it seems you have your own idea now. I think that counts for more."

She reached across the table and swiped another bottle of rum - a spare one if there was one, or somebody else's if there wasn't a spare. She didn't seem to care either way; the other two were already drunk or on their way to it.

Satsuki?

Alcoholism was in her blood, in both her actual lineage and her adopted lineage. She hadn't even gotten started.

"And- I am sorry about your daughter. I heard the situation, but... as I am now- there is little I can do on the battlefield, these days."
(Satsuki Shimasu)
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[23:00] Ethan shook his head lightly, offering a small smile to the woman.

"I don't expect you to go and fight at your age, Sats'. I think it's my burden to carry, really. She's my daughter, not yours, yeah?"

His words were followed a couple more bottles of rum falling from a portal and upon the table gently. It seemed they weren't done drinking, even if Reito wasn't quite matching their pace.

"What art were you trying to learn as part of Sunyata?" He asked before the pink-haired woman could shy away from the question.
(Ethan Hawke)
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[23:03] Oh, she kept drinking. The effect it had on her numbed the taste thusly enabling her to drink more and more. She was barely even paying attention really to the conversation at hand.

She heard it, absolutely. But did she understand? If she did, she showed no signs of it. She held up a finger,

"You know what I'm gonna do to Sors when I get my hands on him....?" She asked, rhetorically, a finger lifted in the air. "I'm gonna.... I'm gonna punch him once for good measure. For Jesse!" She exclaimed, "Then.... I'm gonna seal all his magic away and make him walk bare footed back to Dawn."

Her grand plan, revealed, in a drunken meeting. Sober Reito would be mad in the morning.
(Reito Shimasu)
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[23:08] "It's... not really Sunyata. It would be something different entirely. You... cannot teach an old dog new tricks - so it is... not something I could learn at this point. But, perhaps... hm." Her head tilted slightly to the side. Yes- it was possible. Theoretically, like she said - but possible. It was a sound idea on paper, anyway. Putting it into practice would be another matter entirely.

It was something she could do. Satsuki was - at least in her own opinion - one of the premier experts on mana and the manipulation of mana to ever walk upon Agartha. But Ethan...?

Maybe, with enough effort.

"Sunyata... at its core - actually draws inspiration from how Qilin manipulate mana, of all things. I believe there is room to... branch out, there, with enough... effort, and understanding, and..."

Still alert, her gaze shifted to Reito, and the old Kitsune nodded approvingly a few times in quick succession. Given her nods came in response to things that hadn't yet been said, it was hard to tell exactly what parts of this master plan she approved of, but there was at least something she liked in there.

"...That, too, is something I wanted to accomplish with Sunyata. Complete sealing, as an alternative to execution."

Sors, though - if Reito caught and released, Satsuki would be there to plunge in Insatiable. No half-measures on that one.

"I believe it is possible. Mori and I thought it possible, anyway - which maens that it is completely possible, if the both of us thought so. Butwe need to... beat Sors Ultovex before then, hm?"
(Satsuki Shimasu)
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[23:12] Ethan nodded at the woman's explanation, even if it was skipped over almost completely. He barely even noticed that she had gone on to talk to Reito rather than fully answer his question, and for a long while, he was... confused. A brow was risen as he looked towards the old woman, drinking slowly from his new bottle before he pushed for the same question once more, allowing Reito's drunken rambling to go heard, but nearly ignored.

That monster would not live when he was done with him.

"What kinda different thing?"
(Ethan Hawke)
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[23:15] She continued to drink merrily. The idea of beating Sors caused Reito to wave her hand lightly, and shake her head. But whatever thought she may have had was ceased and silenced, the Kitsune going back to drinking.
(Reito Shimasu)
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[23:22] "Ah- how did Mori explain it to me..." she muttered to herself, glancing down at her new bottle of rum. Rather than follow that up with anything useful, she just chugged a good half of the bottle or so. Qilin circuitry and the manner in which they used it was an utterly foreign thing. His explanation was so easy - but it was also fifty years ago, and Satsuki's mind wasn't quite the steel trap that it used to be. And, even if Sunyata drew inspiration from the Qilin that was once her companion, it was... still difficult to explain, as a human to another human.

"Qilin circuitry is... as you probably know, different. It is... special, Ethan Hawke. They have a way of..." She made a noise that sounded halfway between a "hm" and a sigh as she puzzled it over. The alcohol wasn't really helping, either. "Projecting their circuits, shifting them in a way that we cannot. It allows their circuitry to interact with raw mana in the air. They can 'catch' it, as it were, and... redirect it. It is... how Qilin are able to 'reflect' magic. Sunyata was built upon the same principles, albeit... adapted. We both deal in... raw mana, and part of developing Sunyata was learning how to... 'connect' my circuits to another's, in order to manipulate their mana as well as mine. I will... find a better way to phrase that - consult my notes, my... book, perhaps, when we are not drinking. But-"

She took another sip, lowered the bottle, and looked back up toward Ethan. "All three techniques - Qilin's redirection, Sunyata, and this other 'project' of mine - involve the manipulation of raw mana. Qilin redirect it. Sunyata captures, contains, and erases it. This would... steal it - repurpose it. The theft of mana to... invigorate yourself, as it were. To... make that first wind last as long as possible."

"Do you follow, Ethan Hawke?"
(Satsuki Shimasu)
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[23:27] The principle she was speaking of wasn't one foreign to him, or at least sort of. Sapping away at one's existence to empower yourself was what most occultists did, though the way she spoke of it made it sound much, much more grand. It was something on a whole new level, really. Energy manipulation— mana manipulation on that level wasn't something he had ever thought of or believed was possible.

Maybe in theory, but in practice? Crazy. Ethan seemed a bit confused.

"I get what you mean, but... how?"

He needed to hear her theory - or at least take a guess.

"Are you sayin' I should find a way to connect my mana circuits to my opponents and... just siphon their mana?"

That seemed crazy.
(Ethan Hawke)
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[23:35] "Something like that," she said casually, in such a way that confirmed it was totally crazy. "Though, obviously, you cannot connect your circuitry to theirs in combat. Qilin can project their circuits to swipe raw mana before it turns into magic. My tattoo does something similar, as I obviously cannot do it with my own circuits. Like I said - one redirects, the other... merely contains - erases. To a layman, to... someone unfamiliar, it looks much the same as 'negating' magic. But what if you could go further, Ethan Hawke?"

She gave the tiniest grin. "Perhaps, with effort, you can become more like a Qilin than I ever could."

In terms of magic, at least. Satsuki still fondly recalled the early days of Huangzhou, when - despite her canine features - she was frequently mistaken for a Qilin. She was, by all accounts, much more like a typical Qilin than Moriya Ukitake ever was.

"What if, like a Qilin, you could actually use the mana you swipe? That was my plan. It could be your plan, too."
(Satsuki Shimasu)
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[23:39] She was insane. That much was obvious now. This kind of theory being crafted from nothing but observations and other happenings wasn't something Ethan had ever expected to be met with, and it seemed like a path that would end nowhere.

... Still, it could work, right?

While part of the Wayfinder thought that it was insanely crazy, another part of him knew that he had to take every sort of weapon and ammo he came across in order to arm himself for his next fight against the Adjuticator. A small nod was offered to Satsuki.

"With the exile I doubt I'll be able to drop by your place to try and practice that, so you better bring your notes around next time we meet, yeah?"

He definitely had no idea where he'd start, but thankfully enough the old woman before him probably had an idea. He was a blank enough canvas for her to forge something great out of, after all.
(Ethan Hawke)
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[23:44] To her shame, she admitted: "...I will have to retrieve my book from Noel. I... wrote a far better explanation than I could ever come up with on the spot after drinking... er-" She glanced down. "One and a half-"

She chugged the rest.

"--Two bottles of rum. But yes- I... have some ideas," she told him, answering a question he hadn't even stated aloud, "And we will... absolutely practice. I have so many wonderful ideas - and if you can figure it out... well- then I will know I was right."

Even at 70, far more humble than she used to be, her hubris knew no bounds.

"But, for now, was there... anything else?"

She looked to Ethan first, then to Reito, then back to Ethan.

"And if we do succeed in this," she added, "Sors Ultovex stands absolutely no chance, I assure you."
(Satsuki Shimasu)
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[23:46] The Regent naturally spoke up at this point. She had been imbibing the entire time while they spoke, and she had remained quiet, but she still wanted to help. She was still like she had been when she was younger.

She just wanted to help.

"I will help too! Anyway.... I uh - …. I can...." She trailed off, staring at the bottom of an empty bottle.
(Reito Shimasu)
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[23:47] Ethan couldn't help but smile at the woman as she stated that Sors would have no chance against them if they managed to make that dream of hers come true. It sure seemed to be something crazy - insane even - but the old man had to stop sitting around and waiting for the future to happen. He had to act. To get himself to the next level instead of stagnating at his current one.

"I think that's a good enough talk. Let's get back before I forget the runes I gotta use to take us back, yeah?"

The man's gloved left hand grabbed onto his half-empty bottle of rum while his right reached out, waiting for the girls to grab on.
(Ethan Hawke)
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[23:48] Satsuki Shimasu exclaims, "Right! Good talk! Good rum!"